Pirate's Freedom

As the commission progresses, the time after school passes little by little.

"Effort is a good solution, as long as it is done correctly."

The cool voice like a mountain stream seems to be telling the truth.

"Yugahama-san, you just said you have no talent, right?"

"Huh? Ah, yes."

A slightly panicked voice hurriedly sounded.

"Please change that idea. People who don't even make the most basic efforts are not qualified to envy talented people. Losers fail because they don't understand that successful people accumulate efforts bit by bit. .”

Harsh but impeccable words left no room for refutation. In the fleeting silence, the door of the home economics classroom was opened, and Porusalino took in the scene in the classroom.

There are refrigerators and ovens placed on the wall, and in the middle of the semi-enclosed strip table.

Yukinoshita, who was wearing an apron, frowned slightly, with a trace of dissatisfaction suppressed in his seemingly calm expression.

The thoughtful Hikigaya seemed to want to say something, but remained silent at this time.

"Mr. Porusalino?"

The girl on the side who still has a childish face but is deliberately dressed up to be mature has a speechless face with a little confusion and fear. Seeing the appearance of Porusalino, her expression is full of surprise and relief. Take a breath.

Ingredients such as eggs, milk, wheat flour, sugar, and vanilla extract, cooking utensils such as bowls, scales, spoons, and stirrers, plates with black residue, and three types of drinks that were mostly consumed in cartons, cans, and bottles were all messy. The ground was placed on the table in front of the three people.

"Teacher Porusalino, what are you doing here?"

The sound temperature dropped sharply under the snow.

“I was wandering around the building and noticed there was some activity.”

"Teacher Porusalino, please have the consciousness of being a teacher."

The sweet stream has been frozen, Yukinoshita said coldly.

"Don't wander around the school, and don't interfere with students' activities."

"The accumulated efforts bit by bit are all about hard work. You reminded me, Yukinoshita-san."

"……What's the meaning?"

Like a punch hitting an empty space, Yukinoshita was a little stunned by his unexpected words.

"Before worrying about your talent, you must first work to the limit of your talent."

"Yeah - I have always taken this matter for granted, so recently I have been having trouble finding my way."

Lifting his feet, he casually closed the door with the upper part of his shoe, and Porusalino walked in with his hands in his pockets.

"Before talking about hard work, let people know that hard work pays off. Those words that are just correct sound irrefutable, but they are nothing but uncomfortable."

As Yukinoshita's brows frowned, the teacher grinned.

"Yukoshita-san, you must be deeply touched by this."

"..."

Hikigaya thought he heard the sound of freezing air.

The girl named Yuigahama Yui looked at Yukinoshita, who exuded a sharp aura, and then at the new teacher in her class, her mouth slightly opened and closed in confusion.

"Hikigaya, what is this commission?"

Porusalino turned his head slightly and looked at Hikigaya.

"This time it's a commission about love troubles."

After being stunned for a moment, Hikigaya answered subconsciously.

"Yuigahama-san wants to make some cookies to give away."

"No! Mr. Porusalino."

Yuigahama's face suddenly turned red and he waved his hands helplessly.

"I just……"

As if she didn't know what to say, her eyes filled with tears from embarrassment, and she was obviously about to cry.

"Autistic man! How could you do this...!"

"Yes, I'm sorry, Mr. Porusalino, you forgot what I said!"

Hikigaya said in a panic as if he had just woken up from a dream.

"Yuigahama-san, teacher, I am very open-minded in this regard. If you have any love problems, it's okay to come to the teacher for consultation."

From a medical point of view, the above sentence should be regarded as shock therapy, which is usually used to treat hiccups, but now the effect is also very significant.

Yuigahama's head was so embarrassed that it was almost steaming, and it suddenly shut down.

"Why are you looking at me like this? When I was young, teacher, I also let down many young girls in Huaichun."

"..."

Yukinoshita and Hikigaya were looking at Porusalino with indescribably complicated eyes.

"Yukishita, I understand."

After calming down, Yuigahama didn't seem to dare to look at Porusalino, but looked directly at Yukinoshita and said this.

"I'm sorry, I will try harder next time."

"No need to apologize."

Instead, Yukinoshita looked away and twirled her long black hair, not knowing what to say.

"... Yukinoshita, just teach her the right way."

Hikigaya broke the silence between the two.

"Yugahama, you also need to listen carefully."

"I'll demonstrate it once, please follow it."

Yukinoshita rolled up her sleeves and beat eggs. Calculate the amount of flour to be added and allow the powder to completely dissolve without clumping. Then add sugar, cream, vanilla extract and other ingredients.

During this period, she also tried to drive away Porusalino with her eyes, but unfortunately——

"You are free to do as you like. Teacher, I also want to try it. It would be good to have one more person as a judge."

Yukinoshita quickly made the dough with skillful movements, and then used molds to press out different shapes such as hearts, stars, circles, etc.

The iron plate had already been covered with tin foil, Yukinoshita carefully placed the dough, and finally put it into the preheated oven. Not long after, an indescribable aroma wafted out.

The result is not surprising, the cookies look delicious when baked.

Yukinoshita put the cookies on the plate. The brown cookies looked as delicate as those sold in high-end bakeries.

"It's delicious! Where did you come from to be a super pastry chef?"

With a melting expression on his face, Hikigaya couldn't help but eat another piece, two pieces, three pieces...

"It's really delicious... Yukinoshita-san, you are so awesome."

Yuigahama also exclaimed slightly.

"Thank you."

Yukinoshita showed a kind smile.

"However, I just followed the recipe, so you must be able to do it. It would be weird if you can't."

"It's really good. If it were sold, I would be willing to pay for it."

Porusalino tasted a piece and made a very normal comment, which surprised Yukinoshita.

"…Thanks for tasting it."

Next is Yuigahama's challenge again.

"Come on, Yuigahama-san, come on."

"Okay, okay...can I really make such delicious cookies like Yukinoshita-san?"

"Yes, as long as you follow the recipe, there will be no problem."

however……

"Yugahama-san, it's not like that. When spreading flour, make it as circular as possible. Do you know what a circle means? You should have learned it in elementary school, right?"

"You have to hold down the bowl while stirring. If you do, the whole bowl is spinning and you are not stirring well at all. Moreover, the action is not to circle, but to break up the egg yolks."

Gu</span> "No, no, no need to add seasonings. There are still peaches for next time! Besides, if you add so much water, the dough will be reimbursed!"

Yukinoshita, who had fallen into chaos, was exhausted.

Although the final product reached a level that could be called a cookie, it was obvious that neither Yukinoshita nor Yuigahama were satisfied with it.

"It seems different..."

"...How should I teach you so that you can understand?"

"Why can't it be baked well? I did everything you said..."

In the end, it was Hikigaya who solved the problem in his own way.

"Ah...it seems you two have never tasted real handmade cookies. Please come back here in 10 minutes, and I will let you taste [real handmade cookies]."

"What? What a big tone, let me see what you are capable of!"

……

10 minute later.

"It's nothing special at all. It tastes just like one piece at a time! To be honest, it's not very delicious!"

Yuigahama was a little angry.

"Yeah, it doesn't taste good...I worked very hard."

Hikigaya lowered his gaze.

"Ah... I'm sorry."

"Sorry, I'll take it and throw it away."

"Wait, wait a minute."

"...so what?"

"Yeah, it's not like throwing it away...and it's not that unpalatable."

"...That's it, are you satisfied?"

After nodding, he immediately turned his head away, and the setting sun stained Yuigahama's face with a layer of ashes.

……

"What I mean is that boys are so naive. They can misunderstand someone just by talking to them. They are also very happy when they receive handmade cookies, so..."

After Yuigahama ate the cookie that he thought was Hikigaya, but was actually baked by himself, and gave a satisfactory evaluation, Hikigaya, who revealed the truth, made a conclusion.

"It's enough to use cookies that are not special at all, taste like one piece at a time, and honestly don't taste that good."

The cooking is not important, what is important is the intention, that's about it.

"You're so angry! You autistic man! I have to leave!"

Unexpectedly, this commission should be considered a victory for Hikigaya.

"Yugahama-san, what should I do with this commission?"

"no need."

Yuigahama turned around at the door with a smile on her face.

"I will try my own method next time, Yukinoshita-san, thank you, see you tomorrow, bye."

Yuigahama waved her hand and left the home economics classroom wearing an apron.

"...is this really good?"

Yukinoshita stared at the door and asked in a low voice.

"I believe that as long as you can improve yourself, you should continue to challenge your limits. In terms of results, that will also help Yuigahama-san."

"Well, you're right."

Hikigaya felt this.

"Working hard will not betray yourself, but it may betray your dreams."

"What's the difference?"

The breeze caressed her hair, and Yukinoshita turned her head to look at him.

“You may not realize your dreams if you work hard, and there are many cases where you cannot achieve them, but if you have tried hard, you will feel more comfortable.”

"That's just self-satisfaction."

"But it doesn't count as betraying yourself."

"What a naive idea... I feel so uncomfortable."

"..."

After watching quietly until now, Porusalino suddenly spoke.

"Although Yuigahama doesn't dare to stand up for herself like you, the teacher appreciates her courage to sincerely apologize~"

"Teacher, you are still here!"

Hikigaya was shocked and said helplessly.

"Why...I feel like this isn't the first time."

"Since it's right...why do you still need to apologize?"

Yukinoshita's voice was filled with dissatisfaction.

"Apologizing is not just about admitting a mistake, it's about understanding each other and building a deep connection, so..."

Porusalino's voice paused.

"Parents will apologize for their children's mistakes, teachers will apologize for their students' mistakes, and future generations will apologize for their ancestors' mistakes."

"But in the end, nothing can be changed. In the end, it can only become a perfunctory one."

Yukinoshita frowned and retorted.

"Who knows, maybe hard work may not necessarily lead to success, and complete understanding between people is even more impossible, but..."

Porusalino looked at Hikigaya, but his eyes were unnaturally avoided, and he then looked at Yukinoshita.

"You guys leave first."

"Huh? But..."

"I can't eat your cookies for free, leave this to me."

"What a surprise, the teacher would say such a thing."

Then the two of them also left, leaving Porusalino alone.

"I really didn't expect you to be waiting for me here. It seems that these students of mine are also [protagonists]?"

Facing the empty classroom, he suddenly spoke.

"Have you considered?"

Picking up a cookie and putting it in his mouth, the figure that no one could see except Porusalino turned around.

"How about you give me some more time?"

"Oh, don't you think it's troublesome?"

Mimicking Kizaru's tone, Tata Tot teased.

"Oh yo yo, that's really weird, Tata Tot."

Porusalino walked to his side and also reached out and picked up a remaining cookie.

"Why is it that once someone calls you a teacher, you can't just leave them alone?"

"Do you want to stay completely?"

“Students have to graduate.”

Porusalino replied as he savored the cookies.

"Even if there is no real thing in this world, we can still decide what we want to believe."

"Tata Tot, no matter how things change, I will still choose to believe in my justice."