Mei's Thoughts

"No, I didn't."

"I'm very sad right now!"

"Then... why aren't you taking your hand away?"

Looking at Dong Moxuan, who was covering his mouth with his hand, Mei's tone was full of suspicion.

"I'm just too sad. I'm afraid my sad expression will scare you!"

Looking at Mei before him, Dong Moxuan spoke with a perfectly serious expression.

Mei "..."

Mei stared expressionlessly at Dong Moxuan for a long while. In the end, she didn't criticize the seemingly schadenfreude-filled look on his face and simply turned to leave.

Seeing this, Dong Moxuan, who had just gotten a little carried away, felt slightly relieved.

What exactly was wrong with that guy?

After arriving in the kitchen, Mei finally couldn't maintain her previously calm expression.

Her brows drew together slightly, and her face was filled with indescribable distress.

There had already been far too many things happening during this period. Her father's imprisonment and the harsh blows from society had left the mood of this innocent girl, who was only in her teens, unbearably depressed.

Now, there was also this strange man who claimed to be her father's friend and had stubbornly stuck around at her home without leaving.

The girl named Mei truly felt exhausted.

However, that man was her father's friend, and he was unwilling to leave despite clinging to this place. She could complain all she wanted, but she couldn't really drive him away...

For now, all she could do was take things one step at a time.

"Sigh~"

She let out a soft sigh. Her usually resolute personality kept her from complaining too much.

She picked up the cooking utensils and began preparing dinner.

Normally, Mei would simply make do with whatever she had. After all, she hadn't been in the mood lately to spend too much time on food.

However, Dong Moxuan was a guest today. As the host, she couldn't prepare anything too shabby.

Mei glanced back at him sitting on the sofa watching television, shook her head, and focused all her energy on preparing dinner.

"Dinner's ready, Mr. Dong Moxuan!"

Mei cooked very quickly. In just half an hour, she had prepared a fairly sumptuous dinner.

Seeing Dong Moxuan sitting on the sofa, completely absorbed in watching Honkai Adventure and totally unaware that she had arrived, Mei felt another headache coming on.

"Oh... oh."

Only after hearing Mei's voice did Dong Moxuan seem to wake from a dream. He stood up from the sofa and sat down at the dining table.

"Go wash your hands first."

Mei untied her apron, her tone carrying a hint of helplessness.

When Dong Moxuan returned to the table after washing his hands and immediately picked up his chopsticks to eat, Mei, a pure-blooded Yamato Nadeshiko, couldn't help frowning.

She directly tapped the table lightly with her chopsticks.

Dong Moxuan froze at Mei's gesture.

He stood there blankly for a few seconds before understanding what Mei meant.

"I'm digging in!"

Dong Moxuan pressed his palms together and performed the Japanese ritual unique to starting a meal before picking up his chopsticks.

This time, Mei finally said nothing more.

"Mmm~ This flavor... it's absolutely delicious~ Munch, munch, munch~"

Dong Moxuan put a piece of tempura into his mouth with his chopsticks, his face glowing with happiness.

In fact, although Mei's cooking was good, it couldn't be called an unparalleled delicacy.

But in Dong Moxuan's eyes, the key clearly wasn't the taste of the food. It was who had prepared it.

This was a meal personally cooked by the Housekeeping Queen!

For Dong Moxuan, who had once been a captain, this was already an achievement worth commemorating.

Now that he had obtained Mei's dinner, what achievement should he set his sights on next?

How about setting a small goal: twisting Otto's head off and kicking it around like a ball?

As he ate dinner, Dong Moxuan thought this to himself.

"Don't talk while eating!"

After pressing her palms together and saying "I'm digging in," Mei had heard Dong Moxuan's exclamation. She couldn't help speaking in an exasperated tone.

As she spoke, she lightly shook her head.

Dong Moxuan was her father's friend and should technically be her elder.

But judging from his earlier behavior, he was practically just a child.

Was she raising a son?

She complained inwardly, completely unaware that her heart, which had become severely depressed because of all the upheavals during this period, had unknowingly grown much brighter because of Dong Moxuan's behavior.

After dinner, Mei tidied up a room for Dong Moxuan, then took a shower and went to bed.

Unfortunately, Mei didn't seem to have the Japanese tradition of having the whole family bathe together in a single tub, causing Dong Moxuan's plan to use the powerful ability he had obtained from the Emperor-class Honkai Beast "Kuafu" to die before it was even born.

After showering, Dong Moxuan lay on Raiden Ryoma's bed in the pajamas Mei had prepared for him and stretched.

Hmm, if Raiden Ryoma's daughter were lying beside him right now, it would feel even better.

"For now, I've settled in,"

"Although it wasn't part of my plan, making contact with Raiden Mei ahead of time clearly won't hurt..."

"Next, I just have to wait a month..."

Dong Moxuan sat up from the bed. At this moment, he no longer looked as unserious as he had when facing Mei.

He propped his chin up with both hands and gazed in Mei's direction, an inscrutable light flashing in his deep-blue eyes.

Based on his memories from his previous life and the information he had gathered during this period, the Honkai eruption in Changkong City would probably happen in about a month.

When that time came, the peaceful daily life of the girl named Mei would be shattered. She would meet her fate—the somewhat tragic fate that belonged to her.

However, although his motives were somewhat impure, Dong Moxuan was, after all, a friend of Raiden Ryoma.

Moreover, in his previous life, Dong Moxuan had also been a captain of unyielding integrity. Naturally, he wouldn't stand by and ignore his Housekeeping Queen.

So...

"Big Brother Ryoma, just stay at ease in prison. Don't worry—I'll take care of your daughter!"

In Raiden Ryoma's room, Dong Moxuan had just finished eating the dinner personally cooked by Raiden Ryoma's daughter. Sitting on Raiden Ryoma's bed in Raiden Ryoma's pajamas, he softly swore to take care of Raiden Ryoma's daughter in his place.

If Raiden Ryoma knew that his brother was being so considerate, he would surely be moved speechless, wouldn't he?

Dong Moxuan gently shook his head, moved by his own actions.

His only flaws were that he was too kind and placed too much importance on brotherhood.

The next morning.

When Dong Moxuan woke up, it was already past ten in the morning.

Mei had naturally gone to school long ago.

Dong Moxuan walked into the living room and, as expected, didn't see that gentle Yamato Nadeshiko. He only saw a note pressed beneath a paperweight on the table.