Chapter 195
Then she was kicked out.
She's quite used to it. Sometimes when she comes home early, she'll want to lift the pot lid or sneak a bite to taste it.
However, in most cases, Shirou would discover and stop it.
Sometimes Shirou would point out a way for her to go to the refrigerator or the cabinet next to it and get some snacks, but unfortunately it seemed there weren't any this time.
As the sounds from the kitchen continued, the Penguin Logistics team gradually returned.
"Hiss—I smell it! It's the smell of sugar!"
Exusiai took a deep breath.
Unlike the others who smelled the aroma of meat, Exusiai noticed the smell of sugar first.
This means that tonight's dinner might be on the sweeter side!
With Shirou's cooking and her favorite flavors, how could she possibly lose!
This is a huge victory for Exusiai!
"Go change your clothes, you're filthy."
Texas, following behind Exusiai, ruthlessly pushed Exusiai toward the locker room, her face full of disgust.
While evading the enemy's pursuit, Exusiai accidentally fell into a trash can. Texas had already tolerated her the whole way, and even asked Isv to help clean the car.
She didn't want to smell that at night, especially at dinner time, because it would ruin her appetite.
"Don't push! Let me put the gun away first!"
Exusiai of Texas, was easily pushed into the locker room before she could even put down her belongings.
"It seems that Sister De and Sister Neng's work didn't go very smoothly today."
Seeing their miserable state, Croissant sighed.
"After all, they handle most of the goods."
Sora nodded in agreement with Croissant's words.
Texas's expression of utter disgust just now said it all. For Texas to show that expression, she must have been holding back for a long time.
The smell on Exusiai just now was indeed... a bit pungent, it's a wonder Texas could tolerate it.
You should know that Lupo has an excellent sense of smell.
"Croissant, are you there? Can you help me with something?"
After hearing the commotion between Exusiai and Texas outside, Shirou was certain that everyone had returned, which meant it was time to prepare dinner.
He turned on the stove to heat up the Potato Stew, and Shirou asked Croissant to come in and help bring the other dishes to the table.
This time, instead of giving everyone their own portion, Shirou simply placed several large plates of food on the table.
There's not much to add to the Potato Stew, except maybe a little extra sugar for Exusiai's portion. But considering that Exusiai gets plenty of sugar and energy every day, Shirou didn't make an exception for her.
As for the other two meat-eaters, let them serve themselves.
It's easier to go without him. Her tastes and eating habits are similar to his. She just ate less recently because of work. Now that work is over, she can start enjoying food normally again.
And the key point is! The empty space will automatically and spontaneously help carry the plates!
That alone is a huge plus!
"Hey... why is it all vegetables? Where's the meat?"
Shirou walked into the kitchen and saw that Emiya had asked her to serve only dishes Croissant; her face was full of disgust.
"Reheat it, I need to keep an eye on things here."
Shirou said, carefully stirring the contents of the pot to prevent the Potato Stew from burning.
Seeing how busy Shirou was, Croissant obediently went out with Sora to take everything out. Sora even put a heat-resistant mat and washed dishes on the dining table.
"This is... Potato Stew?"
After Shirou brought the food to the table, the group finally saw the main dish for dinner.
The long-awaited Croissant made tears well up in my eyes. After the other three people disinfected their phones, I was the first to pick up a spoon and fill a big bowl for myself.
Unlike the Potato Stew sold outside, Shirou has significantly more meat, and the potatoes, carrots, and meat are all larger in size.
The taste is also a bit different; it's a little sweet, but not overly sweet. It's a salty-sweet flavor that goes especially well with rice, and even the potatoes are stewed until they're very flavorful.
The huge pot of Potato Stew was quickly emptied, and Exusiai the remaining broth to pour over rice and enjoy it, along with the other dishes.
"Phew... that feels good."
After eating and drinking to her heart's content Exusiai felt that after a busy day filled with all sorts of bad luck, this meal had made all her troubles disappear.
Texas, standing to the side, had a similar expression, but compared to Exusiai, who was practically covered in red mochi, Texas was only slightly more relaxed.
God knows how they got through the past two days; this is their daily routine!
Sora, in particular, finally got to eat dinner made by Shirou himself after so long, and ate almost as much as a Croissant.
Think about the healthy meals I ate before, and then look at this meal in front of me—it's like heaven and earth!
"It seems you like it quite a bit."
Looking at the empty bowls and plates on the table, and then at the empty rice cooker, Shirou suddenly wondered if his cooking skills had improved.
Or were a few people simply hungry?
He didn't know, but seeing how relaxed they all looked, Shirou thought things were pretty good as they were.
Compared to what happened a few days ago, he still prefers his current life.
186 Shirou, may you live to be a hundred years old!
Longmen Knight Bureau, Training Ground.
"Cut!"
With a resounding "Chop!", Chen thrust his wooden sword forward with incredible speed.
"Oh?"
Seeing the moves his opponent used, Shirou quickly came up with a way to counter them.
After all, I had used it once myself.
He used the blade of his wooden sword to block the opponent's attack, then turned the blade and blocked Chen's sword-wielding hand.
It's just sparring; there's no need to go too far.
"Thank you for your hard work. That's all for today."
After seeing Shirou stop, Chen did not chase after him in anger or embarrassment. Instead, he carefully reflected on where he had made a mistake and what he needed to improve.
"No, after all, it's part of the deal between the boss and Director Wei."
I rubbed my right hand a little. Although my physical condition was better than before, constantly catching Chen's sword without Magecraft still made my hand a little numb.
Especially since Chen was holding back almost entirely, his swordplay became much sharper.
However, it wasn't difficult for Shirou. After seeing Chen's starting move, he could predict her next move, mainly because he Projection the Chixiao.
Speaking of the Projection Chixiao, Shirou recalled the chilling look in Wei Yanwu's eyes when he looked at him a few days ago.
It's best not to think too much about it; it's not good for your heart.
Thinking of the terrible look on the other person's face back then, Shirou still felt a chill.
It's a sweltering day...
He has long since finished his internship at the Knights of the Round Table. Because of his outstanding performance during his internship, and because many people hoped that he could return to continue teaching, Penguin Logistics has started a deal with the Knights of the Round Table again.
This time, the Emperor took Isv carefully, while remaining constantly wary of whether a certain treacherous dragon might try to stab him in the back again.
Although he didn't suffer any losses and actually made a considerable profit, the Emperor stated that he hadn't stooped so low as to need to sell his employees' dignity to earn that little bit of money.
Then, Shirou assisted the members of the Knights of the Round Table in training, mainly focusing on sniping.
Penguin Logistics, on the other hand, had the guarantee of mutual intelligence exchange, as well as the convenience of some transaction channels.
In short, although Wei Yanwu made a profit, the Emperor certainly did not lose money.
The only loser is probably Shirou.
None of the impressive things the boss said when he went in came true.
In the boss's words, Shirou himself doesn't particularly dislike the environment of the Knights of the Round Table Shirou, and since there aren't too many restrictions on him, and he's not being paid less, he might as well work a little harder!
In addition to his salary from Penguin Logistics, Shirou has now also received a salary from the Knights of the Round Table, which, although not much, is still an extra source of income.
Wei Yanwu also assigned him an extra task: to spar with Chen every day, a simple swordsmanship contest.
That's why we had that sparring session just now.
Shirou probably understood what the other person was thinking: they wanted someone with decent swordsmanship to be a sparring partner for Chen, a whetstone for his skills.
His swordsmanship had been reported by Chen, and the fact that he Projection Chixiao and used the Draw Sword technique at that time made Wei Yanwu target him again.
For Shirou, this feeling was definitely not pleasant.
After all, according to people I know, the other person doesn't seem to be a good person either.
How should I put it? Is it particularly insidious?
Aside from the subtle look in the other person's eyes when he looked at him, which made him a little uncomfortable, Shirou didn't seem to care much about anything else.
Anyway, with the boss and Isv in front to take the lead.
Simply put, due to various reasons and his understanding of the Chixiao Sword Technique, he instantly became the best candidate to be the whetstone.
That's why Wei Yanwu put in so much sincerity to have a good talk with the Emperor, and as he expected, the Emperor was successfully persuaded.
"Really..."
The thought of his boss promising to protect him one minute and then throwing him into a fire the next makes Shirou feel a lot of grievances and complaints no matter how many times he thinks about it.
"What's wrong?"
While reflecting on his own behavior, Chen finally came to his senses and asked after hearing Shirou's mutterings.
Although I mostly lost and won more sparring matches against Shirou, I still gained a lot.
Shirou always manages to exploit the weaknesses of the Chixiao Sword Technique, making her realize where her problems lie. Also, Shirou always manages to attack with very tricky methods.
These past few days, it felt as if Chen had rediscovered the days when he was learning swordsmanship.
She has a good balance between enriching herself and her work, and the extra practice sessions have not affected her work.
"No, it's nothing. You just used a sword-drawing technique at the end, right?"
Realizing that his complaints might have let something slip, Shirou quickly changed the subject.
"Yes, but it's only similar in movement; it's still difficult to fully execute with a wooden sword."
Unaware that Shirou was trying to change the subject, Chen smoothly continued and replied.
It wasn't that she was complaining about the weapons; both of them were using wooden swords, and the fact that she lost by so much could only be attributed to herself.
However, since both of them mostly only went so far as to stop, if they had really continued to fight, the result would probably not have been much different.
Chen originally thought it would be at least a 50/50 chance, but when she thought about how Shirou knew her swordsmanship and could find loopholes to attack her, and how he suddenly controlled a bunch of swords to launch mid- to long-range attacks in the Slums, Chen became less certain.
"That's understandable. The feel of it is definitely different from a real sword. Plus, since Chixiao is Originium weapon, the difference is even greater."
After hearing Chen's words, Shirou could understand.
Despite being able to use a variety of Noble Phantasms as weapons, he ultimately found Gan Jiang Mo Ye to be the most comfortable to use.
The Projection speed is fast, I've gotten used to the functions, and it doesn't consume much magic power.
"That's no excuse. Aren't you carrying a wooden sword too?"
Chen offered a brief rebuttal to Shirou's words of comfort.
She didn't want to accept that the loss was due to a weapon issue, as that would only lead to excessive reliance on the Chixiao weapon.
You should know that the Chixiao is not something you can just pull out and use casually.
"That one? Hahaha..."