Gradually, sunlight filtered through the windows and into the apartment.
Quite some time had passed since they stepped out of the kitchen, and Velyan had already dragged Irena over to the sofa to play video games.
After a while, she stopped her movements, patted her stomach, and said, “Louise, I'm hungry~”
“It'll be ready soon,” Louise's voice called out from the kitchen. It had been quite a while since she started prepping, and she had remained inside the kitchen the entire time.
In the living room, Chen Mian paused his hand as he flipped through the pages of his book, turning his head to look toward the kitchen.
He saw Louise wearing an apron, her silver-gray hair tied into a loose, casual braid that hung over her shoulder, swaying gently with her movements.
The pot in front of her was bubbling away, releasing a faint aroma. Unlike the fresh, delicate scent of Flora's cooking, the aroma from this pot of soup was richer, carrying the refreshing scent of a blend of herbs and spices.
However, what surprised Chen Mian wasn't the smell of the fish soup, but Louise's current appearance. It was a stark contrast to her usual lazy and eccentric self, carrying an extra hint of... gentleness. If this had been the past, seeing Louise with such an outfit and expression would have made Chen Mian suspect she had been possessed by another soul.
Sensing Chen Mian's gaze, Louise turned her head to look at him. Her tone carried a trace of nervousness she herself hadn't noticed. “What are you looking at? Is there something on my face?”
“No,” Chen Mian said, withdrawing his gaze and flipping open his book again. “I just think you look really nice like this.”
Louise's hand holding the soup spoon paused mid-air. She then resumed stirring the soup as if nothing had happened, though her voice was slightly softer than before. “...Save it. Otherwise, don't blame me if I mistake sugar for salt later.”
“Irena, Louise's ears turned red again,” Velyan whispered, turning to Irena beside her.
“Mhm.” Leaning against the doorframe, Irena slowly ate the grapes Velyan had stuffed into her hands. Her tone was just as leisurely. “An'an, you're quite observant.”
“I am a dragon, of course my observation skills are good,” Velyan said, her eyes still fixed on Louise's reddened ears. “But Irena, how come I've never seen your ears turn red?”
“Who says they don't? My true form is red to begin with,” Irena said with a yawn.
On the dining table, the soup pot was still bubbling.
Louise sprinkled the chopped spice leaves into the pot, gave it a gentle stir with the spoon, and covered it with the lid, turning down the heat. Then, she took off her apron, hung it on the hook near the door, picked up a stack of bowls, and walked out of the kitchen.
Louise had naturally overheard Velyan and Irena's conversation. However, she didn't seem to get shy around anyone other than Chen Mian.
“Where's Loviki?” Louise asked as she set the bowls on the table and began ladling fish into them.
“She's meditating.” Flora took the soup bowl Louise handed her, leaning down to take a sniff. Her eyes lit up slightly. “It smells amazing~ What did you add, Louise?”
“Just the spices we brought back from the dungeon. I ground them into powder and sprinkled them in,” Louise said, scooping another bowl and handing it to Chen Mian. “It's a recipe I came up with in the past. Since I didn't have other spices, I substituted them with these. The taste should be about the same.”
Velyan had been waiting eagerly at the side. The moment she received the bowl from Louise, she couldn't wait to take a sip, her golden eyes widening. “This soup is completely different from Flora's! But it's also so delicious!”
“How is it different?” Louise picked up her own bowl and blew gently on the hot steam, though her gaze drifted slightly toward Velyan.
“Flora's soup is fresh! Louise's soup has this incredibly fragrant aroma, and drinking it makes my stomach feel all warm!” Tilting her head, Velyan thought hard for a moment before saying, “And the fish has that aroma too!”
“Herbal aroma,” Irena said, rarely taking the initiative to speak. She also held a bowl, her tone still carrying its usual lazy drawl. “There's also a very faint sweetness. It tastes like rock salt flower, but not quite.”
Louise glanced at Irena, a flash of surprise crossing her purple-gold eyes. “Mhm, I did add some rock salt flower.”
“Irena! How come I didn't know you knew about these things?”
“An'an, can you use your silly brain to think for a second? If I didn't know how to look for food, would you have been able to find so many delicious things in my home?” Irena said, poking Velyan's cheek casually.
“That's true. Irena is the real greedy pig.”
“...I'm going to beat you up...”
Louise withdrew her gaze, her eyes drifting subtly toward Chen Mian.
He took a sip, set down his bowl, and said in a very earnest tone, “It's delicious.”
Louise's fingers holding her bowl stiffened slightly. Her voice rose a bit. “...Really?”
“Really.”
“Then try the fish.” As she spoke, Louise looked at him with anticipation.
Seeing this, Chen Mian picked up a piece of fish and took a bite. A flash of surprise crossed his face. “It's delicious, way better than my cooking. And there aren't any bones in this fish.”
“I picked them out.”
“...You picked them out? Weren't you too lazy to even scale fish before?”
“...You talk too much,” Louise said, turning away as the blush crept back onto her ears.
“Irena! Louise's ears turned red again!”
“Velyan! Say another word and you're not getting any more!”
“I won't say it!”
Louise turned her head, her purple-gold eyes filled with a subtle emotion she couldn't quite describe. In the end, she merely reached up to tidy the hair on her shoulder, hiding her reddened ears behind the strands.
Seeing this, Flora let out a soft laugh, picking up a piece of fish with her chopsticks and taking a bite. “Louise is really cute like this, too.”
Louise's fingers holding her bowl paused slightly. Her gaze lingered on Flora's face for a moment before shifting away as if nothing had happened. “The word 'cute' suits you much better, Flora.”
“I think both of you are very cute,” Chen Mian said in a serious tone as he set down his bowl. “One knows how to de-bone fish, and the other knows how to compliment people. You're both amazing.”
Louise looked away, saying somewhat awkwardly, “...Why do you talk so much?”
“I'm just stating facts.” Chen Mian put another piece of fish into his mouth. After eating it, he spoke again, “Besides, since someone put so much heart into it, she deserves to know that her cooking is indeed very delicious.”
“Mhm! Velyan's reaction certainly doesn't lie,” Flora said with a smile, nodding her chin toward Velyan.
Velyan had already finished a large bowl of soup. She leaned back in satisfaction, patting her slightly rounded belly. “I think the soup Louise made could be written into the survival guide.”
Hearing this, Louise set down her soup spoon, lowered her head to take a sip of soup, and her lips curved up slightly.
Rate on N.U.
