Chikage Utsuki/Emerald Palette

Spice is the best

Backstage Stories

Part 1Part 2

TV	“Good morning. We have an upcoming special White Day program for today.”
Chikage	(That reminds me, it must be that time of year already.)
TV	“We’ll be introducing you all to a variety of famous chocolate brands~!”
	“Everyone appreciates expensive chocolate after all.”
	“But nowadays, chocolates are getting more and more diverse――...”
Taichi	Is that how it is~ I gotta write this info down!
Kazunari	The packaging on those chocos look so chic!
Juza	Pralines, bonbons....... they all look tasty.
Muku	This’ll help me choose what to give back to director-san!
Taichi	There’s a lot more than just chocolate~! I’m already worrying bout all these choices...!
Itaru	What about you, senpai? What’s your game plan in returning the favor to director-san?
Chikage	I’m thinking maybe something with spices or curry.
Tsuzuru	Still as consistent as ever.
Muku	It’s nice to know someone’s tastes from your common interests!
Kazunari	Chika-chon's got the upperhand, I’m jealous~.
Chikage	(…But it’s kind of the same thing every year.)
	(It’s good to mix things up every now and then.....)
Boss	Good work. Utsuki, prepare a summary of what we’ve discussed at the meeting.
Chikage	Understood.
Colleague A	giving return gifts for White Day is something we gotta worry about every year, isn’t it~?
Colleague B	You’re screwed if you don’t have a plan by now.
Colleague A	It’s gonna be a big deal if you forget something like this....
Chikage	(White Day’s the talk of the town over here too...)
Colleague A	Ah, Utsuki-san, good work today.
Colleague B	Speaking of, what will your return gift be, Utsuki-san? Some high-end accessories?
Colleague A	He probably rented out a cruise ship for dinner!
Colleague B	No, no, I feel like he bought some luxury cosmetics!
Colleague A	It’s cooler to reserve a mini theater...
Chikage	..... Do I really give off that kind of vibe?
Colleague A	Well, Utsuki-san you’ve been abroad for a long time, I figured you’d get something grand as a return gift.
Chikage	They don’t have White Day culture over there, so I got no plans.
Colleague B	Aah, figures.
Chikage	(Besides, high-end brands and private reservations would be a turn off to director-san...)
Colleague C	Excuse me. Utsuki-san, may I have a word with you?
Chikage	?

Izumi	Come on in.
Chikage	Do you have a minute?
Izumi	Chikage-san? What’s the matter?
Chikage	I’d like to talk about spices with director-san.
Izumi	Sounds good. Then by all means.
Chikage	Pardon the intrusion.
	Actually, I was asked to give my opinion on an upcoming spice store by someone in charge of another department.
Izumi	Heh, I’d love to go if it’s possible!
Chikage	I’ve been wondering about something though.
Izumi	And that is?
Chikage	The store’s located at a popular marketplace that attracts a lot of female customers.
	It’s no surprise that people like us wouldn’t hesitate to go in, but I’m sure women would be the minority in that store, right?
Izumi	It’s true that you don’t usually go in there to do some window shopping......
	(But if it were me, I’d enter in a heartbeat....)
Chikage	That’s why considering the circumstances, I’d like to ask a woman’s view on how to attract more of the female demographic.
Izumi	I see......
	That’s right, hold on a sec.
Chikage	......? A bottle?
Izumi	I figured it’d be a good container for spices. It looked so cute that I fell in love at first sight.
	Wouldn’t it look colorful and pretty if you put spices in it and line it up on a shelf?
Chikage	I get it. Spices come in unusual shapes and bright colors, after all.
	Maybe I can arrange them for the interior design.
Izumi	All that matters to me is that I can use it for curry.
	But it's good for aesthetic purposes, I think it’ll catch women’s interest once they walk into the store.
Chikage	I guess the first thing to do is to make it look good. Star anise and pink pepper are pretty eye-catching.
Izumi	That’d be good! And to top it off, we should――...
Chikage	Thank you. You’ve been a great help.
Izumi	You’re welcome. I had fun!
Chikage	By the way, what are you planning to put in that new container you brought?
Izumi	I don’t know yet. Maybe I’ll put in something nice since I’m going out of my way to fill it up.
Chikage	Is that so......
Izumi	Woah.... I’m in a heaven of spices...!
Chikage	It’s such a spectacle to see them lined up on the shelves like this.
Izumi	Thanks for taking the time to invite me to the pre-opening!
Chikage	The person in charge of this place also wanted to thank director-san for the wonderful idea.
Izumi	I’m glad I could help you.
	The colorful spices contrast well against the white walls! I’m sure it’d attract a lot of female customers.
Chikage	That’s right. They also got some rare spices here, so go check them out.
Izumi	Sure! Why don’t we add some of this to curry? It’d go well with this one too!
Chikage	Sounds great to me.
Izumi	Ah, they even have vanilla here.
Chikage	Oh, that reminds me, there was vanilla in the butter chicken curry you made the other day too.
Izumi	You even noticed that!?
Chikage	........
Izumi	....? What is it?
Chikage	Nothing, I just thought you sound like you’re having fun.
Izumi	Fufu, you look like you’re having fun too, Chikage-san.
Chikage	...... Really? Must be director-san's fault and not the spices.
Izumi	Eh?
Chikage	Does this spark some joy in you?
Izumi	Yeah, a whole lot actually!
Chikage	.... I knew you'd enjoy this a lot.
	Hey Director-san. Can I choose spices to put in your container as my thank you?
Izumi	Are you sure?
Chikage	Of course.
	(...... I hope you enjoy White Day.)

adriemori