Two hours was both short and long, depending on how you looked at it. The lush greenery around them started to recede ever so slightly, and within a few minutes, there were more and more open spaces as they continued.
They could see farm fields around them, growing a small variety of crops that indicated that they were approaching a countryside village.
Yui peered out of the window curiously, lowering the glass and poking her head out like a dog to enjoy the cool breeze.
Thankfully, it wasn't that hot today, nor was there an abundance of clouds that threatened rain.
'Lucky me.'
Reiji checked the navigation and exited the highway, turning onto a smaller road to head to their destination.
Buildings began to appear at this point, and to their left, a fairly large river came into view in the distance, but from their direction, it was clear that wherever they were going was going to be right next to this body of water.
"It's so pretty here!" Yui exclaimed, her bright smile nearly blinding Reiji.
"Haha, you haven't seen the half of it."
"Really?!"
Reiji saw a large signboard coming up on his side that said 'Welcome to Tanizawa Village!', with various small pictures behind the text that gave them a small hint of what they were known for.
He glanced at the lively girl from the corner of his eye and was relieved to see that she was staring out the other side, not noticing the sign.
Though it wouldn't make a big difference, it would be better if he could extend the surprise as much as he could.
After a few more minutes, they finally entered the village.
The architecture here was quite different, embracing the local Japanese style from ancient times. Slanted roofs with dark tiles that curved gently at the eaves, with panels of shoji screens and sliding doors.
There were very few modern buildings around, and the ones that existed were there purely because they were necessary.
One reason why this village wasn't widely known yet was due to this lack of modernity. They somewhat scorned the use of social media and the internet, preferring to stick with their customs and traditions.
That's not to say the internet didn't exist here, because of course it did, it's just that they rarely used it for more than basic stuff like communication.
"Reiji, why are all the houses so old-looking?" Yui asked with confusion.
"From what I know, the people here are firm in their cultural beliefs and customs," Reiji replied, spotting his first stop of the day in the distance.
There was a parking space beside the building because this street was pretty much the commercial area of the village, where most of the shops were located.
He parked the car skillfully and grinned as he turned to Yui.
"Ready?"
"I-I think so? I don't really know what for....." she mumbled as she climbed out of the car.
The Warzone was more than a little conspicuous in a location like this, and it stuck out like a sore thumb because most of the other vehicles were either small sedans or pickup trucks that held functional value.
Which is why a lot of the local residents were staring at them.
An expensive car plus two attractive and young people weren't exactly commonplace.
"....They're staring at us," Yui frowned, feeling slightly uncomfortable.
"Ignore them, it's just because they don't get visitors very often, especially not a pretty one like you."
Yui tilted her head at him, holding back a laugh.
"Not bad, that was a better attempt than earlier today," she giggled.
Reiji rolled his eyes and grasped her hand.
"Let's go, or we'll be late."
The redhead followed a step behind, her gaze locked onto their intertwined fingers with a foolish smile.
But when she saw the sign above the building they were about to enter, her eyes widened.
'Tanizawa Sweets Shop.'
"This isn't just any sweets shop! The ingredients are all homegrown, and the owner has their own secret recipes for a bunch of their stuff!" Reiji chuckled when he saw her eager expression.
She became even more worked up when she heard that, and pulled Reiji along as she took the lead this time.
"Come on! Let's eat!"
'.....Still hungry despite eating all the macarons I made. I made the right choice.'
When they entered, the proprietress sitting behind the counter stood and bowed, welcoming them with a polite smile.
She seemed to be about 50 years old and wore a traditional yukata.
"Welcome!" she greeted. "You don't seem to be from around here?"
"Yes, I was the one who made the phone call a few days ago about the reservation?" Reiji replied.
A look of realization dawned on the woman's face, and she walked towards them.
"I see, I see. Come in and take a seat. I've already made the preparations."
She ushered them in and stuck a closed sign outside the door right after, locking the entrance for added measure. Yui turned to Reiji quizzically when she did that, leaning forward to whisper in his ear.
"What's going on?" she asked after the proprietress went into the back room.
"I reserved the whole place for an hour and requested her to make a small batch of every sweet she has in the store. Usually, she rotates her menu every few days, and you can't purchase all of her products at once," Reiji explained quietly.
This actually took a lot of effort on his part.
He wasn't exaggerating when he praised the skill of the proprietress before, since this shop became one of the main attractions of the village once it exploded in popularity.
She owned the shop on her own, which was something he only found out when he made the call for the reservation.
In the game, when the school made the field trip here, the shop was slightly larger and had a lot more employees to accommodate the sudden boost in popularity, so the full menu was available for the customers.
Which is why it was difficult to ask her to make a batch of all her sweets, since she had to make them alone this time.
But money talks.
".....You went through that much effort?"
Yui's eyes had widened, and there was a slight shimmer within them.
"This is just the start, there's still a whole day ahead of us," Reiji shook his head, tapping her forehead affectionately.
The proprietress came back out with a large tray, and small plates of delicious-looking sweets were laid out in a neat arrangement.
They were quite lovely to look at, with intricate details that spoke volumes about how much attention was given to each sweet.
"Here you go! These are the recipes I've landed on after decades of tinkering and fine-tuning. Please enjoy them while I go get the rest," the owner said with a wrinkled smile.
Reiji stood up to help her.
"Do you need me to help you bring the rest out?"
"Oh, no need! There's only one more tray and a few drinks; I can get them on my own. You have fun with your girlfriend."
The proprietress left the hall again, and Yui twisted shyly in her seat.
"Hehe, so we really do look like we're dating," she mumbled.
"Alright, stop zoning out. Try them and let me know how they taste!"
Reiji sat back down and reached for a dango skewer, the sticky sauce letting out a slight glimmer under the bright lights in the shop.
He bit into it, enjoying the chewy and glutinous texture as the strong flavor practically exploded in his mouth.
This was going to be his first time personally trying a lot of the sweets on the table, so this stop was just as important to him as it was to the sweet-crazed girl who was happily munching on some wagashi.
'Holy shit, this is amazing!'
He brushed his lips with a napkin in astonishment, the taste surpassing his already high expectations.
'If this were given a Maximus rating, I wouldn't be surprised if it got 3 stars!'
4 stars would be unlikely, since the internal ambience and branding fell short of the honor, but just the food quality itself didn't deserve anything less.
The proprietress came back out with the second tray, which also had a few glasses of drinks on it to pair with the sweets.
She placed it on the table and placed her hands over her abdomen expectantly.
"How is the taste? Is it to your liking?"
"It's amazing! I wouldn't be surprised if this shop became really popular soon," Reiji nodded, a mischievous twinkle in his eye.
"That's nice to hear, but this village is simply too small for that to be the case," she laughed.
"Nah, good things can never be hidden away for long."
Even without his future knowledge, he would've had the same sentiment.
"Exactly!" Yui piped up next to him. "If this shop were in the city, I would come over every day!"
The proprietress broke out into an undisguised grin, clearly ecstatic about the blunt praise.
"My, you two have mouths sweeter than what I sell," she chuckled. "You two enjoy, I'll go to the back and leave you lovebirds alone."
Once she was gone, Yui put down the taiyaki in her hand and glanced at Reiji.
Seeing his excited expression when he reached for a drink, she intercepted him and pulled Reiji's collar with no warning.
He parted his lips in surprise, which was the perfect move by accident, because it connected with her own in a deep and energetic kiss.
She only pulled away a minute later, with slightly hazy eyes that made her look extremely seductive, especially when she licked her lips clean.
"Hmmm... She was right, your mouth really was sweeter," she whispered.
Reiji sighed, wiping the crumbs off her face.
"So was yours."