"Young master, lunch is ready," Nicole softly called, as she placed the noodles on the table. She skillfully opened a can of fish, sniffed it, and found it to be fine.
"Mm," Lucas turned and walked to the table, gesturing for them to sit. "Let's eat. Afterward, take some rest. We haven't slept well on the boat these past few days."
"Yes!" Mina responded, immediately pulling out a chair and sitting down. She held her large bowl, eyeing Lucas as she waited for him to start eating.
"Go ahead," Lucas said, placing a piece of egg in his mouth. He watched as Mina eagerly picked up her bowl and began slurping down the noodles in large mouthfuls.
"Eat slowly, there's plenty more in the pot," Nicole said with a smile. It was a joy to see others enjoying the food she made.
"Mmm-hmm..." Mina responded vaguely, her mouth stuffed full. The rich aroma and spicy flavor of the instant noodles made her love it even more.
"Slurp, slurp~~"
Nicole also picked up her bowl and ate heartily. She had tried to recreate the flavor of the instant noodles before, but she never quite managed to get it right—there always seemed to be something missing.
Lucas watched the two of them enjoy the meal, shaking his head with a light chuckle. Instant noodles were also quite popular on Earth, but they were best consumed in moderation. After all, they didn't contain much in terms of nutrition.
"Young master, these noodles are delicious." Nicole took a sip of the broth, her gray eyes looking at Lucas as she asked, "They're also really easy to make. Could we perhaps make them and sell them?"
"Huh?" Lucas was a little surprised. After swallowing the noodles in his mouth, he thought for a moment, then nodded, "Yes, we can. When we return, I'll teach you how to make them, and we can hire workers to produce and sell them."
Instant noodles were indeed a potential money-making business. A single noodle block, combined with a seasoning packet and hot water, would create a delicious, convenient meal.
The main ingredient in the noodle block was wheat, which was easy to come by. Lucas figured that by teaching people how to knead the dough and pull the noodles, and adding spice packets and other seasonings, they could pack it all into paper bags and produce a batch of instant noodles.
He had already thought about the target market for these noodles. The price wouldn't need to be too high—around ten copper coins per packet. The main consumers would be merchants, noble ladies, and knights.
The common people would be unable to afford it for now, since the production wasn't industrialized and depended entirely on manual labor to make the noodles. Lucas quickly calculated that if the production volume was large enough, the cost of making one packet of instant noodles would be around eight steel coins, which was close to the price of one copper coin.
If the price was set low enough for the common people to afford, the profit margin would be too low—just one or two copper coins per packet. Additionally, the common folk wouldn't be willing to spend one or two copper coins on a meal that would only barely fill them up.
Thinking of this, Lucas couldn't help but smile wryly. Instant noodles were a cheap food on Earth, but in this time, he was turning it into a luxury food.
"That's great!" Nicole happily put down her chopsticks and, thinking of more possibilities, said seriously, "Young master, does that mean we could also open a shop to sell noodles?"
"Of course," Lucas chuckled, "We can start a shop with some bone broth and noodles. It's a simple business. As long as you know how to knead dough and prepare some seasonings, it should do better than a pizza shop."
"Young master, leave it to me," Nicole said, patting her chest. She already had experience running two stores and was confident about opening a noodle shop.
"Alright, it's yours," Lucas said gently. He looked at Nicole's cheerful expression, which was completely different from the disappointment she had earlier, and couldn't help but marvel at the allure of good food.
"Slurp, slurp..." The cat-eared girl was focused on finishing her noodles and didn't interrupt the conversation between the two.
Twenty minutes later, the three of them slouched in their chairs, rubbing their stomachs and resting. They were starting to feel a bit sleepy, as it's the most common time to get drowsy after eating.
"Ahh~~ go ahead and sleep," Lucas yawned, stood up, took off his outer clothes, and climbed into bed, lying in the middle while turning his head to look at Nicole and Mina, who were both blushing.
"This..." Nicole's cheeks flushed red. She glanced at Mina and whispered, "Mina, you sleep first. I'll clean up the dishes and then sleep."
"Mm." The cat-eared girl nodded shyly, slowly walking toward the bed. She gently removed her leather armor and outer clothes, then climbed in, lying at the far side of the bed.
"Ahh~~ Nicole, we can do it after we wake up," Lucas yawned again, one arm wrapping around the cat-eared girl, while the other hand waved at Nicole.
"..." Nicole shyly glanced at Lucas, pausing for a few seconds before shuffling toward the bed. As she undid her outer clothing, her neck and ears turned red.
"Hurry up and get in, or you'll catch a cold," Lucas urged, half-sitting up and grabbing Nicole's arm, easily pulling her onto the bed and into his embrace.
"Ah~" Nicole let out a soft yelp, her face flushing as she lay in Lucas's arms. Her beautiful eyes darted around, only to meet Mina's blushing gaze. Embarrassed, she immediately looked away.
"If the War Wolves come back, remember to wake me up," Lucas said lazily, knowing the cat-eared girl would always wake up before him.
"Okay," Mina replied quietly.
"Sleep," Lucas said with a slight smirk, murmuring to himself. His arms tightened around them, holding both beauties close, breathing in their faint fragrance as he slowly closed his eyes.
"Mm." Nicole obediently rested her head on Lucas's shoulder, sneaking a glance at his closed eyes. Her heart swelled with a deep sense of security, and with a sweet smile on her lips, she gradually drifted off to sleep—her first time falling asleep in Lucas's arms.
"Aha~~" Mina grinned slightly, already accustomed to Lucas's scent. Her cat tail draped over his waist as she fell asleep.
The entire room quieted down, filled only with the faint breathing of the three, the soft crackling of the firewood burning in the stove, and the cold wind blowing in from the window—though it was held at bay by the warmth of the fire.
Outside the door, two members of the War Wolf squad stood guard, taking turns to eat and rest.
…
Four hours later, the sun had shifted westward.
"Young master, young master, wake up…" Mina called softly, her slender hand gently shaking Lucas.
"Hm?" Lucas slowly opened his eyes, greeted by Mina's delicate face. He yawned, coming to his senses, and asked, "Chris and the others are back?"
"Yes," Mina replied gently.
"What time is it?" Lucas sat up, noticing Nicole tidying up the bowls and chopsticks. Sure enough, he was the last to get up, as always.
"Five in the afternoon," Mina answered, immediately helping Lucas get dressed.
"Let them in," Lucas said lazily, settling into a chair and sipping the hot tea that had been prepared for him.
"Yes!" Mina responded with a serious tone.
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