Raiden Mei

"According to the plot, Raiden Mei's father, Raiden Ryoma, was arrested for an economic case on November 16th."

"It's August now."

"Then Mei can still enjoy her campus life for a few more days."

He Cheng-rui clenched his fist, feeling the power within him, and sighed.

Feeling the imprints within his body, [Spiral] gave him mastery of weapons and physics knowledge.

As for [Empty Dream], he originally thought it meant the more money he had, the stronger he'd become, but it didn't seem to be the case.

So, if he wanted to get stronger, he had to absorb Honkai Energy with his Stand.

'Normally, I absorb Honkai Energy from Herrscher Cores by interacting with Mei. During the holidays, I'll find places with high Honkai Energy concentrations.'

'It's almost 11 o'clock, time to sleep.'

At seven in the morning, He Cheng-rui got up precisely on time.

He washed up, made breakfast, and went to work.

"Ah, Teacher He Cheng-rui, we meet again."

Hearing Mei's voice, He Cheng-rui turned around and saw her looking listless.

"I thought I'd run into someone as disciplined as myself, but it seems that's not the case."

"Did something difficult happen? You can tell me about it, Teacher."

"It's nothing. After eating the meal you made last night, I got inspired. Plus, you said I'd definitely be a good cook in the future, so I gave it a try."

"But the result..." Mei gave a wry smile.

"You still need to rest. Cooking can't be mastered overnight. Practice regularly, and you'll quickly reach my level."

"Your level? That might be difficult."

He Cheng-rui shook his head.

"When you meet someone you want to cook for, your culinary skills will improve greatly."

"Is that so?" Mei nodded as if she understood but also didn't, lowering her head as if deep in thought.

"If you don't mind, I can offer some advice on your cooking from time to time."

"Really! Then I'll ask you to, Teacher."

"It's a small matter. But to be upfront, I'm very strict."

"Yes, I'll work hard!"

After some small talk, they arrived at the school and parted ways.

Entering his office, He Cheng-rui checked his schedule.

'No classes in the morning? I shouldn't have come.'

Thinking this, He Cheng-rui took out a book his previous self had bought from his bag and started reading.

As for lesson preparation?

What lesson preparation? With the physics knowledge provided by the [Spiral] imprint, high school physics was a piece of cake, a total piece of cake!

Accompanied by the cicadas chirping outside the window, He Cheng-rui entered a state of reading.

"Bang, bang, bang."

A knock came from the door. He Cheng-rui looked up at the time and realized an hour had passed.

"Please come in."

The person outside pushed the door open; it was a student from his class.

"Hehe, Teacher, I have some things I don't understand and would like to ask you about."

'I haven't even taught anything yet, so how can you not understand?'

Knowing that the female student was probably curious about him, He Cheng-rui didn't say much and patiently explained the parts the student didn't understand.

After class, He Cheng-rui made a cup of tea and continued reading.

40 minutes later, another knock sounded at the door; it was another group of students with questions.

'It seems it won't be peaceful for a while.'

"The classmates in the class are all praising you, Teacher, saying you patiently answer even the simplest questions."

"...If only they were genuinely eager to learn."

He Cheng-rui sighed helplessly.

Seeing He Cheng-rui's helpless expression, Mei covered her mouth and chuckled lightly.

"Isn't that just proof of your charm, Teacher?"

He Cheng-rui thought for a moment, nodded, and said earnestly, "Indeed."

"Right, Mei, let's start the cooking training tonight."

"Sure, but how will we do it?"

He Cheng-rui stroked his chin, thinking for a while.

"Do you have any ingredients at home?"

Mei shook her head.

"We just moved in and didn't prepare much. We wasted quite a bit last night."

"Then come over to my place. Let me see what your current skill level is."

"Okay, Teacher."

During dinner, He Cheng-rui sat at the dining table and began to taste the dishes Mei had made.

Upon tasting, he was somewhat surprised.

As expected of the Herrscher of Food. To reach this level on the second try.

While it wasn't particularly delicious, it wasn't bad either.

"How is it? I followed the recipe step by step this time."

"Hmm, the miso soup is too salty, the fish is burnt, and the scrambled eggs with tomatoes... did you add sugar? Why is it so sweet?"

"Most importantly, adding ginger to stir-fried potatoes is just making things difficult for me, isn't it?"

Mei listened intently as He Cheng-rui offered his critique.

"However, to be honest, have you practiced before? Being able to achieve this level on your second try is quite impressive."

"Ah, thank you for the compliment. I still have a long way to go."

"Alright, don't just watch me eat. Eat some yourself."

"Ah, okay."