Ice cream cake

With the matter settled and her work off her shoulders, Cynthia happily went back to eating her ice cream.

Seeing how adorable Cynthia looked, Su Bai secretly thought he'd really come out ahead this time.

Cynthia, meanwhile, was actually thinking about how to thank Su Bai.

Cynthia wasn't yet the commanding Sinnoh Champion she would become. Though strong-willed, she still lacked the ability and experience to handle everything on her own.

This is too big a deal. I'll talk to Grandma and Uncle Qi later about how to thank Su Bai.

Seeing how intently Cynthia was eating, Su Bai tried a bite of his own serving-and nearly spat it out.

His proficiency in dessert-making hadn't just given him the ability to make desserts. It had also given him the ability to judge them, much like Little Master and Soma Yukihira.

His abilities just weren't quite as ridiculously sharp as theirs.

"Um... Cynthia, stop eating for a moment."

"What's wrong?"

"The ingredients are all poor quality. Neither the eggs nor the milk is fresh."

Su Bai felt a little awkward. After all, he was the one who had ordered them.

At Su Bai's words, Cynthia put down her spoon. To ease the awkwardness, he offered to buy ingredients in a little while and make her an ice cream cake.

"Sure! It's a promise!"

Cynthia smiled happily and accepted without hesitation.

Just then, an announcement informed Su Bai that Pikachu and the others had fully recovered.

After recalling Pikachu and Glaceon, the two left the Pokémon Center.

As they walked, Su Bai asked the question that had been on his mind.

"Cynthia, what brought you to the Dragon Nation this time?"

"I came to train at the Origin Temple."

"The Origin Temple?"

"You haven't heard of the Origin Temple?"

Su Bai did know of that Taoist temple. It was on the outskirts of J City, and the body's original owner had even visited it with his classmates.

Cynthia explained that the Origin Temple was a tourist attraction on the surface, but in reality, it was a place where secret moves were passed down.

The Dragon Nation was the birthplace of dragons and martial arts. Needless to say, Dragon-type Pokémon were abundant there. Its move masters could turn certain moves into manuals of martial arts secrets, and after studying those manuals, Pokémon could learn moves they ordinarily couldn't.

For example, Lucian's Bronzong had learned Body Press from a drunken boxing master.

That master had transformed Body Press into "Han Zhongli-staggering step, embracing lift, and heart strike," a technique from the Eight Drunken Immortals, and taught it to Bronzong.

"So you're going to the Origin Temple tomorrow?"

"Yes. Would you like to come with me?"

"Of course I'll come with you. Let's find you somewhere to stay first."

Cynthia nodded at Su Bai's words, then suddenly grew serious.

"But before we find somewhere to stay, there's something more important we need to do."

"What is it?"

"You have to make me an ice cream cake!"

The moment Cynthia mentioned ice cream, Su Bai could see the anticipation written all over her face, even with her mask covering it.

Su Bai then took Cynthia into Qian Da Plaza in J City.

After buying plenty of bags of supplies, Su Bai glanced at Cynthia.

"If you don't mind, shall we head to my place? I can make it for you there."

"Sure."

They hailed a Ponyta taxi and enjoyed the city scenery along the way, arriving at Su Bai's apartment complex at a leisurely pace.

They entered the complex and went up to his home. When he opened the door, a distinct dusty smell greeted them.

"Sorry, I live at school, so no one's been home. Please excuse the mess."

Su Bai opened the windows, quickly cleaned the sofa, and invited Cynthia to sit.

The house wasn't messy. With no one living there, it simply lacked the warmth of an occupied home and had gathered some dust.

"You can watch TV, or take a look at the research papers my dad left behind. They're all in the study. I'll do a quick cleanup, then start on your ice cream cake."

"It's all right. I can help you clean."

Cynthia wanted to help, but Su Bai stopped her.

Whatever their relationship might be, this was still their first meeting, and Cynthia was a guest. Common courtesy alone meant Su Bai couldn't let her help clean his home.

"Pikachu, keep Cynthia company for a while."

Su Bai let Pikachu out, filled a basin with water, and carried a cloth and mop into the study.

Half an hour later, Su Bai came out to find Cynthia giving Pikachu a lesson.

"The secret to Double Team is to move repeatedly at high speed, creating afterimages..."

"Thanks for your help. The study's clean now."

"It was nothing. This little one is adorable. I'll head in, then. Sorry for the trouble."

Su Bai had cleaned the study until it was spotless. Cynthia picked up a book with a smile and began reading with keen interest.

Pikachu adorably pushed a little cleaning cloth back and forth across the floor.

In less than another half hour, Su Bai finished cleaning the house and began making Cynthia's cake.

He whipped Moomoo Milk with egg whites, sugar, and freshly squeezed juices of various colors, then froze the mixtures to make different kinds of ice cream.

The key lay in the whipping technique and ingredient ratios. Cooking was easy to get into, but mastering it was grueling. A few fewer turns of the whisk or a little extra sugar could make a world of difference to the flavor.

While the ice cream froze, Su Bai began baking the cake layers.

Fortunately, the body's original owner had been a foodie too, so there was no shortage of kitchen equipment.

Once the cake was baked, he sliced it into layers and stacked them alternately with ice cream. Getting the thickness right so that neither the cake nor the ice cream interfered with the other's texture took skill.

Dinner for the Pokémon was a Berry salad.

Su Bai also used the leftover ice cream to make a thirty-centimeter-tall frozen sculpture of Garchomp and Pikachu. Garchomp looked imposing and majestic, while Pikachu stood alongside, equally ready for battle.

"Dinner's ready."

"Thanks for all your hard work."

Cynthia took off her glasses and emerged from the study, looking a little tired and relaxed. Some of her cool aloofness had faded, replaced by an easy warmth.

"Wow! It's beautiful! Soar through the skies, Garchomp!"

Cynthia spotted the Garchomp sculpture at once and let Garchomp out. Fortunately, Su Bai's ceiling was high enough.

Once out, Garchomp also noticed the frozen sculpture in Garchomp's likeness.

"Garchomp, Su Bai made this for you. There's one for Pikachu too."

"Pika!"

Pikachu happily leaped onto Su Bai's shoulder and nuzzled his cheek.

"All right, all right. I'm glad you like it."

"Come on out, everyone!"

Cynthia let out her Pokémon: Lucario, Spiritomb, Glaceon, Roserade, and Togekiss.

At the sight of Garchomp's frozen sculpture, everyone crowded around, full of envy.

Garchomp blushed-a rare sight-then turned to glance at Su Bai.

You know what's what, kid.

Spiritomb floated over to try a bite, but a glare from Garchomp sent Spiritomb retreating sheepishly.

"All right, sharing with everyone is what matters most. It would be a shame if it melted without anyone eating it."

At Cynthia's words, Garchomp gave the sculpture a reluctant look, then turned to Su Bai.

"Don't worry. I'll make you another one tomorrow."

Garchomp nodded and carefully used those finlike arms to divide the ice cream and share it with everyone.

Su Bai placed Pikachu's ice cream in front of Pikachu. After distributing the Berries, he cut a slice of ice cream cake and handed it to Cynthia, who was waiting eagerly.

"Try it."

"Thank you."

Cynthia eagerly took the ice cream cake.

"I'm digging in!"

One spoonful of ice cream cake made Cynthia's eyes narrow with delight.

The ice cream was cold and sweet, while the cake was soft and richly fragrant, yet neither overwhelmed the other's flavor or texture.

Eating ice cream was bliss, and so was eating cake. Ice cream cake meant double the bliss!

"Delicious!"

Cynthia felt as though she were wrapped in bedding made of cake, lying inside it like ice cream that might melt at any moment.

Su Bai cut himself a slice and took a bite too.

Even he was astonished. The system's randomly granted skill really was the real deal.

Su Bai had never eaten such a delicious cake.

"Pardon my humble hospitality!"