Great. Not only did they fail to cook the dish, but they also broke the table.
If they didn't get this right today and left the kitchen in this state, Baal was definitely going to give them both a serious scolding.
At that thought, Zebul and Chiyo looked at each other and saw the same fear reflected in each other's eyes.
In that moment, the two of them became fully united.
Though Chiyo deeply regretted digging herself into this mess, it was too late to turn back now. The only option left was to go all in.
"General, when slicing ginger, the flat side should be placed against the cutting board. That keeps it from wobbling. Don't rush—we'll take it step by step. We've got this."
Chiyo demonstrated again and gave Zebul a bit of encouragement.
"Chiyo... maybe let's just forget it. You make the dish. I'll take the blame for the table—I'll say I did it all. My sister won't come after you."
Zebul's confidence was at rock bottom. Cooking might seem simple to others, but to her, it felt like scaling a cliff.
She was fine with a blade when it came to cutting down enemies—but slicing vegetables? Her hands might as well have turned to jelly.
If you asked her why, maybe it was because slaying monsters didn't require finesse. You didn't have to worry about shapes, angles, or how many cuts—just make sure they were dead.
Cooking, though, was different. The paper-thin ginger slices Chiyo made looked like magic in her eyes.
"No way. I was the one who suggested this, so it's partly my responsibility too. Come on, it's not that hard. Just be careful, and you'll be fine."
With Chiyo's encouragement, Zebul sighed, swapped in a new table, and followed her instructions—placing the ginger flat-side down on the cutting board.
To her surprise, the ginger finally stayed put.
When she lined up the knife to slice, Chiyo reminded her, "A bit thinner—it's too thick."
Zebul's current slice looked less like a ginger piece and more like a mini brick.
At Chiyo's prompting, Zebul shifted the knife slightly.
"Thinner."
"A little more."
After thirty minutes of struggling and coaching, Zebul finally managed to slice a few pieces of ginger.
The first failure came from too much salt.
Even though Chiyo warned her, Zebul's logic was... baffling.
Told to add just one spoonful, she thought it seemed too little to do anything—so she dumped in two more, confidently assuring Chiyo it'd be fine.
The result? Absolutely terrifying.
Other people's fried tofu was soaked in rich, flavorful broth. Hers? Soaked in salt.
One bite made you thirsty. Two bites? Dehydration. Three? Instant mummy.
The second failure? Too much water.
Scarred by the salty disaster, Zebul went the opposite direction this time—adding only half a spoon of salt.
It was bland, but at least edible... or so Chiyo thought.
Then Zebul dumped in a whole bowl of water, saying she was afraid it might still be too salty.
The end result: plain boiled tofu. One bite and it felt like drinking warm tap water. Weird didn't even begin to cover it.
...
A few hours later…
"Well? How is it? It's okay this time, right…?"
Zebul's eyes sparkled, filled with anticipation for Chiyo's verdict.
"Mm…"
"It's pretty close. Still a bit light on flavor, but honestly, it's not bad."
Chiyo chewed on the fried tofu and gave her evaluation.
"Really!? I'm trying it!"
Zebul eagerly took a bite.
And in that instant—
Tears welled up in her eyes and streamed down her face.
Finally…
Finally, on the tenth attempt, she'd done it.
After all the hardship and frustration, she'd pulled it off.
Chiyo had even made three extra supply runs. If they'd relied on the ingredients from that morning alone, they would've run out hours ago.
By now, night had completely fallen.
They'd been at it since morning and only now, by evening, had they managed to finish the dish.
Chiyo was absolutely exhausted.
But Zebul... Zebul felt like she had just taken a huge step forward in life.
Even becoming one of the Seven Archons hadn't moved her like this.
Becoming one of the Seven had always felt inevitable—but cooking a dish people could actually eat? That had always seemed impossible.
The difference was night and day.
"Come on, Chiyo! Let's go give it to Kitsune Saiguu!"
Zebul was sure Kitsune Saiguu would forgive her now!
"Alright... okay... just let me catch my breath."
Chiyo felt more worn out than after a full-scale battle.
But before she could recover, Zebul grabbed her and pulled her out the door.
Zebul, now beaming, practically floated down the road—full of energy and confidence.
It was like everyone else had to grind pity pulls, and she just landed the five-star on her first try.
No way she wasn't glowing with pride—her grin could barely stay on her face.
Chiyo, on the other hand, looked like a zombie. Exhausted, disheveled, and completely drained.
The two of them soon arrived at Narukami Grand Shrine.