Stay out of our anime waifus' business

Asta, Himeko, Welt, and Peppy had long since run out of patience.

They kept swallowing their saliva.

Here it came again.

That irresistible aroma was back.

Just smelling it was enough to make them decide they would eat this and nothing else.

Jiang Yao saw every expression on their faces.

He felt rather happy, too.

Sharing good food really did bring an Aeon as much joy as eating it.

At any rate, it was much more delightful than whatever that wretched Aha got up to~

Once the buns came out of the steamer,

their aroma was no longer as intense as before.

Or, more precisely, as lively and unrestrained.

It no longer filled the kitchen in an instant.

But that did not make it any less tempting.

The malty fragrance rising from the wrappers and the bamboo scent drifting from the steamer made of emperor bamboo

blended perfectly with the aroma of the buns and their meat filling, each enhancing the other.

If an openly delicious aroma was like Kaisia boldly declaring her feelings,

then these Xiaolongbao were more like Cerys, shyly holding back her words, her face half-hidden behind a lute.

Sniff~

Sniff, sniff~

Sniff, sniff, sniff~

Asta, Himeko, and Welt's nostrils twitched.

That delicate aroma sent the cravings inside them charging madly through their minds.

They wanted to taste what lay within.

Take Himeko, for example.

It was no exaggeration to say

that Himeko, who valued elegance and a sense of ceremony in her daily life, would ordinarily eat only one basket of buns.

Now she could eat ten!

"Everyone, what are you waiting for? Let's eat, let's eat~"

Jiang Yao could hardly wait to savor the taste of True Sting again, either.

His words rang out like a bugle calling a charge.

Asta, Himeko, Welt, and Peppy

could not even spare a thought for the heat.

They took Xiaolongbao straight from the steamer and popped them into their mouths.

That was, of course, the wrong way to eat them.

They were called Xiaolongbao, but in reality, they were no different from soup dumplings.

They should first pierce the translucent wrapper with their chopsticks, then slurp up the rich broth. Once they had drained all the broth from the bun, they should pour in just the right amount of chili vinegar.

Then swallow the whole thing in one bite!

That was the most satisfying way to eat them!

It also gave the experience more of a sense of ceremony.

But ceremony no longer mattered to Asta, Himeko, and Welt.

The instant the wrappers broke,

the explosively rich aroma of the broth really did explode!

It spread through their entire mouths at an incomprehensible speed, then through the whole kitchen.

Yes, the aroma had only withdrawn earlier because it had been sealed inside the wrappers.

Now that it had broken free of its restraints, what food in the world dared call itself supreme? What dish dared claim it could never be beaten?

The delicious broth enveloped their lips and tongues.

Then came the buns themselves, with their thin wrappers and generous fillings.

The choice cuts of True Sting meat and the concentrated, processed fat melted tenderly in their mouths, yet had a surprising chewiness.

Combined with the fragrance of the wrappers and the fresh scent of emperor bamboo, they instantly sent tingles across their scalps and dopamine flooding through their brains.

"Hss, hss... sho hot, but sho good!"

Asta spoke through a mouthful of food.

Then she covered her mouth.

Himeko and Welt nodded furiously, too.

At that moment, any words would have been an insult to this basket of Xiaolongbao.

Only digging in and finishing every last one

could show them the greatest respect.

But they still did not know how to eat them properly.

Jiang Yao, on the other hand, was a seasoned expert.

No matter how loudly his stomach growled or protested, he still calmly pierced the wrapper with his chopsticks first, though he changed the next steps slightly.

After piercing the wrapper, he took just one sip of broth, and an utterly satisfied expression immediately spread across his face.

What a nostalgic flavor. I've missed you, Tayzzyronth.

After briefly mourning a certain imprisoned bug,

Jiang Yao picked up the dish of chili vinegar and poured the mixture through the opening. Only then did he begin eating at a leisurely pace. This was the care and caution that fine food deserved, and it let him savor its flavors to the fullest.

It was the same principle as always saving his favorite food for last.

Compared with Jiang Yao's elegance, Asta, Himeko, and Welt presented a much rougher picture.

It did not match their refined looks, graceful bearing, or exquisite clothes at all.

They wielded their chopsticks without hesitation, picking up the buns and stuffing them straight into their mouths.

"Huff, huff, huff..."

As expected,

the scalding broth had all three blowing air out of their mouths again and again. Had it not looked so unseemly, they would have fanned their mouths with their hands to cool them down.

Of course, they chose an even less graceful approach.

They simply covered their mouths with their hands.

Clearly, the deliciousness mattered more than the broth burning their mouths.

They could not bear to let even a little of that scalding broth escape. It was simply too delicious, an absolute pleasure.

Who would ever complain about having too much pleasure?

Letting even one drop spill would have been a terrible sin!

What? You wanted to know about Peppy?

What table manners could Peppy possibly have?

Wasn't it just a matter of wolfing everything down?

Peppy was a dog. What else could anyone ask for? Don't push your luck!

Meanwhile,

elsewhere,

"What smells so good?"

March 7th, who had come looking for the others, twitched her nose.

Although she had only just finished breakfast,

this aroma stood head and shoulders above the rest, making her want another bite of something.

But that left March 7th rather puzzled.

"Do you even have to ask? Food, obviously!"

Stelle looked as though that went without saying.

"As if I needed you to tell me that... Do you think I'm an idiot?"

March 7th planted her hands on her hips and glared at Stelle.

"I meant, why would someone be cooking here?"

March 7th was confused.

While they had been eating breakfast, they realized something might have happened to Jiang Yao.

So they abandoned their meal and hurried off to look for him.

They remembered where Jiang Yao's room was.

So they headed straight there.

Naturally, they found no one.

Then they went looking for Himeko and Welt, and sure enough, neither of them was around, either.

Their next step was to ask the researchers here.

But after all that asking, not a single person had seen Himeko or Welt.

They had no choice but to find a Herta Puppet.

But the Herta Puppet knew nothing, either.

Himeko and Welt had not come looking for the puppet at all.

Fortunately, Dan Heng reminded them to ask about Asta's whereabouts.

Only then did they learn that Asta had gone to the kitchen first thing that morning.

Yes, her private kitchen.

The one specifically used to make dog food for Peppy.

She had even bought a steamer especially for it that morning.

That left the trio rather puzzled.

Asta had that skill, too?

Wasn't she always incredibly busy?

And what about Himeko and Welt?

If they had something to discuss, they would either go to Herta or Asta!

What on earth had happened?

Of course, questions aside, they could not go wrong by finding Asta when something was amiss.

And so they gradually approached the source of all this wickedness.

"How would I know? We'll find out if we go look!"

Stelle kept twitching her nose.

Just smelling the aroma brought a blissful expression to her face.

It could even rival the thrill of finding treasure in a trash can.

There was no helping it.

They were still some distance from the kitchen, but nothing could hold back that rich aroma. More than that, anyone who smelled it was powerless to resist its allure.

Everyone's appetite soared!

Those who had not eaten breakfast felt unbearably hungry.

Those who had eaten breakfast were drooling, too.

"Ah... it really smells amazing!"

"Oh no, oh no, I'm hungry again."

March 7th rubbed her stomach in distress.

Even so, despite how much she ate, she had never put on weight.

As for why?

All we could say was, stay out of our anime waifus' business!