"Closing up really is faster with five people."

"So this is the kind of work you do after the shop closes. Running a store sure is tough."

After the shop closes each day, we calculate the day's sales, clean the shop, restock products for the next day, wash the returned wooden tubes, and reorganize the inventory in the storeroom so products can be accessed easily during business hours.

Usually, four of us handle the closing tasks, but with Lange helping today, there were five of us, which made it significantly easier.

"Alright, Dolph, I'm counting on you to take care of Fia. And here's a little thank-you gift for the embroidery you and Angel did on the windbreakers for the uniforms. Please pass my thanks to Angel and Rea as well."

I’m truly grateful to the two of them for embroidering all five windbreakers in just a week. For the gift, I included yokan and chocolate bars that we don’t sell in the shop yet, along with stick ramen and some alpha rice.

"Thanks, Tetsuya. Angel was really happy with the yokan and chocolate bars you gave us last time, so I'm sure she'll love these too."

"Thank you, Tetsuya-oniichan!"

"You're welcome. See you tomorrow."

The three of us saw Dolph and Fia off. Tomorrow will probably be just as busy as today, so I’m counting on them to give it their all again.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, you two. Dinner tonight is stir-fried meat and vegetables with fried rice."

"Oh, it smells great!"

"This fried rice dish looks unfamiliar, but it sure seems delicious!"

When Lange is in this town, he typically stays at our shop. There's space in the upstairs living room where he lays out a mat and sleeping bag. Similarly, he often eats meals with Lilia and me, making it a group of three.

"Heh heh heh, but this isn’t just any stir-fried meat and vegetables or fried rice! The seasoning uses the instant ramen soup base!"

Yes, tonight’s dinner—stir-fried meat and vegetables and fried rice—was seasoned with the soup base from our stick ramen. Just like instant soup mix, the ramen’s powdered soup can double as a seasoning.

For the stir-fried meat and vegetables, I used the soy sauce flavor. While it’s not the same as using actual soy sauce, it should still pass as a reasonable imitation of soy sauce flavor.

As for the noodles, we had leftovers from when I made ramen for two previously and used extra noodles as "refills." The soup was left over, so I used it as a seasoning this time.

"Wow, so this ramen stuff can be used like that too!"

"Now that you mention it, you used the instant soup mix like this before, didn’t you?"

"Exactly. And as for the fried rice, it's a dish made by stir-frying rice. For this one, I used the tonkotsu-flavored soup base."

The fried rice was made with alpha rice, and I seasoned it with the tonkotsu soup base from the stick ramen.

"Mmm, just stir-frying meat and vegetables makes them taste this good? It really does remind me of that ramen flavor."

"In my homeland, we often use a seasoning called soy sauce. While the ramen soup's flavor is a bit different, it does come close."

"This fried rice dish is amazing too! So this is what happens when you stir-fry that rice we had before. The meat, vegetables, and rice come together in a wonderfully savory way. It's so good!"

"Yeah, I’m pretty proud of how the fried rice turned out. There are techniques to make the rice nice and fluffy, so I tried a few of them."

Back in my old world, I made fried rice often. There are various tricks to make the rice fluffy: mixing the rice with mayonnaise before frying, rinsing the rice with water, and more.

My personal favorite method was mixing the rice with eggs beforehand. If you use plenty of eggs, mix about half of them with the rice to make egg-coated rice first, and then fry it, the result is fluffy and delicious.

"Tetsuya’s cooking is always amazing. I’ve traveled to many towns, but it’s rare to find food as good as this."

"You’re flattering me. But honestly, it’s thanks to the great meat you brought, Lange."

Tonight’s meat came from a monster Lange hunted. It’s not as high-grade as Danama bear meat, but it’s several ranks above the meat we usually buy in town.

The meat was used in the stir-fry, and I even made char siu for the fried rice. Smoked meat would’ve been easier, but char siu has a distinct flavor that’s worth the extra effort.

By the way, I also used the soy sauce ramen soup base to make the char siu. When I added it to ramen the other day, the two of them really liked it.

"I’ve had plenty of different dishes before, but Tetsuya’s cooking is in a league of its own. And not just the flavors—there are so many new techniques like frying, steaming, and stewing. It’s refreshing."

"Hearing that makes all the effort worthwhile. Do you two want seconds?"

"Yes, please!"

"I’ll have a bit more too."

Cooking and eating together like this is always satisfying. Solo camping has its charm, but sharing meals in a group really brings out the joy of camping together.