Mei: No One Understands Cooking Better Than Me

Pardofelis lay on the bedroom floor, her expression a mixture of sorrow and joy.

Just a few days ago, she was living a good life at the St. Freya Academy when she stole something from someone, was found and beaten up by him, and then, for some special reason, she was implanted with a drug and had to obey that child's orders.

However, he treated her fairly well; at least she quite liked the Canned Food tuna. But—

Pardo tugged at the collar around her neck, looking incredibly resentful. "I'm not a cat, why do you make me wear this?" Even so, she couldn't bear to take it off, after all, it was studded with so many sparkling gems! (PS: They're all genuine.)

I glanced at the clock on the wall; that bastard owner would be back soon.

Pardo, bored, picked up the Crimson Kite's Wings and played with them. The plump Crimson Kite Bird looked very appetizing, but unfortunately, Xing had given her a strict order: if you dare to eat it, be prepared to be eaten by him.

The cat that Xing brought home stretched and enjoyed the afterglow of the sunset.

——Divider——

The Valkyrie, panting, handed a box to Sachi. It didn't look big, but it felt incredibly heavy in her hands. Sachi, on the other hand, carried the box with one hand, making it look effortless.

Kiana leaned closer curiously. "Sachi, someone brought you something again?"

"No, I ordered this online. By the way, Kiana, how's the construction of the Fire Moth?"

The white fluffy ball looked away guiltily, "It was just... just a little bit more..."

"Is it almost finished, or is it just a little short of starting?"

Kiana tried to bluff her way out. "Hey~ you really know me!"

With a dark expression, Xing jumped up and punched her on the head.

Carrying the gift he had specially bought for Pardo, Xing returned to his dormitory. As soon as he opened the door, he heard Pardo's listless and clearly perfunctory greeting. "Welcome back~"

Pardo yawned, changed her position and continued to rest, her attitude towards him neither good nor bad.

Seeing this, Xing didn't say anything, but put down the lunchbox and the box. "I had Mei make braised fish and other side dishes today, so eat them while they're hot. Oh, by the way, the box contains things I ordered online for you and Crimson Kite's Wings. The top layer is for them, and the bottom layer is for you, so don't you dare take it!"

After saying that, Xing left, as he still had evening self-study to attend.

After opening the lunchbox and enjoying her meal, Pardo turned her attention to the box. She used her ring blade to cut open the packaging. Looking at the small box, a memory from the past came to mind.

At that time, she was still a ruthless merchant and righteous thief on Twilight Street. Her methods were not yet very skilled, and she had not fully mastered the techniques she had learned from cats. During one "purchase," she accidentally made a mistake and was caught red-handed by the merchant.

She thought she would be beaten and thrown into some secluded corner to die, but to her surprise, the other party not only did not punish her, but also called several maids to give her a bath and change her into a beautiful set of clothes.

From Pardo's perspective, the cost of that outfit was at least equivalent to half a year's income for her.

She was just a little girl then. Although she understood the wickedness of people, there were some things she truly didn't understand. So when the man took her to a luxurious room, she had no idea what was about to happen to her.

A kind-looking old man came in, asked about her situation, and gave her some food. The aroma almost made her eat a lot.

However, she saw a hint of desire in the old man's eyes, and her innate vigilance suppressed her physical reaction. She pretended to pick up a knife and fork to eat, then took the opportunity to stab him in the neck several times before escaping.

That escape was difficult; she almost got caught and brought back. Much later, she learned who she had faced that night, and was incredibly grateful for her calm judgment at the time; otherwise, she might have had a mark placed on her abdomen 50,000 years earlier.

Returning to the present, the cat opened the lid and saw several boxes of cat food; she immediately fell silent.

Crimson Kite's Wings flapped its wings and snatched its snacks, skillfully tearing them apart with its claws and pouring them into its food bowl before happily eating them.

Pardo stared at it dumbfounded. A bird actually likes to eat cat food?!

"Yes, yes, the first floor is for it. Ours is on the second floor. Although that kid's eyes don't seem to match his age, he's probably just precocious, right? There can't be too many people like Mobius, so he shouldn't do anything strange to us..."

Cat kept praying. Her body hadn't recovered, and she had been marked with Stigmata of forced obedience. If Xing wanted to do anything to her, she would have no way to resist.

Pardo slowly lifted the second cover, and the moment she saw what was inside, she immediately closed the cover again. Her face turned red instantly, her cat ears stood up, and her pupils even showed hearts.

Pardo carefully lifted the lid and looked at it again; the immense psychological impact almost made her stop thinking.

The kitchen of the Fire Moth Base One —

After evening self-study, Sachi diligently followed Mei to learn cooking. As a member of the Kaslana Family, he felt it was necessary to correct the outside world's misconceptions about the Kaslana and prove that what they made was not necessarily biological weapons.

Kiana, who simply wants to get close to Mei, is also studying, but she's just there to coast along.

Soon, Sachi and Kiana's dishes were freshly cooked, with Bronya, Wendy, and Fu Hua serving as taste test judges, and Mei as the chief judge.

Bronya whispered something to the other two, and then the three of them unanimously requested to eat first.

A plate of braised pork was placed in front of them, and the six pairs of chopsticks quickly devoured it.

Fu Hua: "Not bad for a beginner." A straightforward, honest woman.

Bronya: "This time you finally remembered to add salt." The Ya Ya is very honest.

Wendy: "Brother Xing's cooking is so delicious!" Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Kiana: "This taste reminds me of my dad..." The Kiana didn't know that he was using his Stigmata ability while cooking, and the meat was filled with trace amounts of Honkai Energy.

Mei took a bite. "Hmm, it's alright. Sachi, it's pretty good. Now let's try Kiana's."

A curry beef rice was placed in front of the three people. Although it looked normal and much better than her previous one, the judges hesitated to pick up their chopsticks and turned their attention to the contestants.

Mei looked at Kiana, Kiana looked at Sachi, who had already picked up a spoon and taken a bite.

Bronya and Wendy stared intently at Xing, whose face remained calm. If Xing showed even the slightest sign of abnormality, they would prepare to switch to their larger sizes to avenge him.

Surprisingly, after chewing it a few times, I felt no discomfort.

(￣~￣): "This black pepper curry is a little burnt, but it's still edible. You guys should try it."

The group looked at each other, and seeing that he was alright, they lowered their guard and started eating.

Bronya took a bite. "Hmm, it's really fine. Kiana has really improved. Hmm, something feels off. Why is there someone lying on the table who looks exactly like me?"

Ashamed, he looked at Bronya, who was foaming at the mouth, lying unconscious on the table, and whose body was emitting golden smoke. He quickly used the Gem of Stillness to keep her alive.

The others collapsed one after another, leaving only the two white furballs staring at each other. Noticing Sachi's increasingly hostile gaze, Kiana weakly said, "I remember making sweet pepper curry, but I don't know why it turned into black pepper..."

Suddenly, Xing felt a churning in her stomach and rushed to the toilet. Kiana, seeing that she had almost wiped out the Fire Moth Squad, decided to go out and hide for a while. But before leaving, Xing threw out Judah, whose golden chains bound her like a dumpling.

One hour later—

Kiana, seeing the five menacing figures, lay on the ground and desperately tried to move forward like a caterpillar, but was picked up by Heavy Cannon Rabbit.

Bronya was entering the activation code for the Otherworld Black Nucleus Erosion Armor. "What should we do? I suggest throwing her into Siberia to dig potatoes for a month. I grew up there. I guarantee she'll know what pain is."

Kind-hearted Wendy didn't want Kiana to suffer. "How about we punish her by making her only eat food she makes herself for the rest of the month?"

Mei wanted to plead for them, but seeing the three little ones' pale faces from the poison, she remained silent.

Fu Hua adjusted her glasses and said objectively, "Kiana didn't mean it that way. It would be unsatisfactory for us to punish her. Let's do as Wendy suggested."

Almost unable to leave the restroom, Xing laboriously raised her hand. "I have no objection."

Luckily, he was Fusion Warrior, otherwise he could have had his soul leave his body along with Bronya's.

Thus, the incident ended with Kiana's wailing, and from then on, St. Freya Academy's ghost stories gained another midnight ghostly wails.

As the game ended, Bronya patted him on the back. "Are you alright, Xing? Do you want me to get you some medicine? By the way, why haven't you let me play games with you these past few days? Do you think I'm bad at it or am I not good enough?"

I was almost hit and killed by her car speed. "No, no, I was just thinking that you've only just recovered and need to rest more. Staying up late is bad for your health!"

"Oh?" Bronya gave him a meaningful look. "Wendy didn't go to your place, did she? Or are you secretly keeping a girl?"

Xing quickly shook her head. "What are you thinking? There's absolutely no such thing!"

"That would be best." Bronya pressed him against the wall, grabbed his hand and placed it on her thigh clad in black stockings. "Does it feel good?" she whispered seductively in Sachi's ear.

Xing blushed and didn't know how to respond for a moment. What was going on? Had he been possessed by Rita?

Bronya's tone suddenly changed, "If I find out you really left me behind to go see other girls, I'll strangle you with this stocking~"

Ya Ya's words were full of provocation, but Xing only felt a chill run down his spine. He did indeed keep other girls, and more than one at that.

Why does Bronya like him so much?

The red eyes met the silver eyes, and the red eyes were filled with cunning and mischievousness.

I shouldn't have cured her. She was such a nice, emotionless little girl with amnesia before...

Wait a minute, something seems off?

A strange feeling arose in his heart, just like when he was pulled into the Sakura Samsara by Crimson Prison Beast, but he just didn't know where this strange feeling came from.

Back in the dorm, after opening the door, Pardo obediently lay down on the bed and said in a soft, cute tone, "Welcome back, Master~ Would you like to take a shower first, have a midnight snack first, or eat first..."

Xing covered her eyes and said, "Pardo, why don't you go hide away for a few days?"

The cat, clutching the gemstone that Xing had bought for her, exclaimed in surprise, "Huh?!"

Author's Note—

Alright, let's take a closer look at Xing's background~

The World Serpent organization's staff (confirmed by Raven himself)

The successor to the next Bishop of Schicksal (he should be next after Theresa).

The students of the Anti-Entropy Leader (the entire class was like that).

Xing: "Who dares to offend me?!"

P. S.: Some of the asterisks in the book were typed by myself.

Additionally, I originally planned to give him the [Fleeting Life] mark at the end of the Jilin arc, when he transforms into Cloud Ink Dan Xin, since he gained Fu Hua's memories at that time. However, I decided against it, since having memories doesn't equate to having the mark. I'll wait until we enter Elysian Realm to get it gradually.