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"Why did this happen...?"
Asakura occasionally felt that he was too lenient with Yanami. After being slightly swayed by her, he actually followed Yukino Yukinoshita and Yui Yuigahama to the home economics classroom.
The result was this outcome; he could only look at the black cookies (no cocoa) baked by Yui Yuigahama and let out a sigh of despair.
"Why did this happen...?"
Yukino Yukinoshita was also dumbfounded. She had been carefully watching Yui Yuigahama, but in just a blink of an eye, the perfectly fine cookies turned into this.
What was the principle? Was there some chemical reaction she didn't understand? No, no, no, the ingredients were only milk, flour, egg yolk, and butter, right? How could these materials, which have withstood the test of human baking history, have unknown mysterious reactions?!
"Actually, they're not inedible."
Yanami Anna picked up a piece of coal... a cookie, chewed it a few times, and then swallowed it: "The trick is to clear your mind when eating..."
"You actually swallowed that?" Asakura was somewhat shocked.
"...Let me tell you a little-known fact. Although theoretically, flour can be eaten once cooked, you can't enjoy it without the resolve to swallow a knife, and even if you force it down, it will choke you. Even drinking water won't clear your throat immediately, and as oxygen gradually depletes, you can only rely on willpower to swallow the lump in your throat." (Note)
Yanami said with an empty gaze: "Compared to that, cookies that can at least be swallowed are already pretty good."
"Compared to your taste in food, I'm more curious about how you've lived this long..." Asakura was even more shocked.
"Yanami, on a scale of 10, how many points would you give my cookies?" Yui Yuigahama asked expectantly, looking at Yanami Anna, the only one who hadn't immediately given a bad review.
"4.5 points. I don't really like bitter tastes." Yanami said seriously, closing her eyes and nodding as she scored: "But the crispy texture makes up for the lack of taste. There's a lot of room for improvement."
"The main problem isn't the bitterness, is it?" Asakura couldn't help but retort.
Also, the score is very subtle; he couldn't tell if this person was serious or just joking.
"4.5 points, huh...?"
Yui Yuigahama looked quite conflicted by the score, her eyebrows almost distorted together.
"What if Miss Yukino Yukinoshita were to give a score?" Asakura asked suddenly.
Yukino Yukinoshita picked up a caramel-colored (caramel-free) biscuit, stared at it for a long time to prepare herself mentally, then put the chocolate-colored (chocolate-free) biscuit into her mouth.
A moment later, she ran to the trash can in the corner of the classroom and dry-heaved without a word.
"Uwah, Yukino, are you okay?"
Yui Yuigahama quickly ran over and gently patted her back.
"One…"
"Huh?"
"1.3 points."
"The score is so low! And at a time like this, don't worry about scoring!"
Yui Yuigahama looked at Yukino Yukinoshita's resentful expression, torn between laughter and tears.
"What are the scoring criteria?" Asakura asked curiously.
"It's food, plus 1 point," Yukino replied. "No strange dangerous chemicals like sulfuric acid or detergent were added, plus 0.1 points. It immediately triggers the body's protective mechanism to spit it out upon entry, preventing food poisoning from accidental ingestion, plus 0.1 points. Finally, because the instructor was me, an additional 0.1 points."
Putting aside that narcissistic bonus point at the end, Anna didn't spit it out when she ate this, Asakura thought to himself.
However, Yukino Yukinoshita already looked miserable, like she had been ravaged, so he didn't say anything.
"Speaking of which, I once heard that dishes made with love taste even better."
Yanami suddenly said.
"Eh? Love, love?" Yui Yuigahama's face flushed as if she had thought of something, her eyes darting around: "It, it hasn't reached that level…"
Before the other party could speak, Yanami had already pulled out a Pocky from who-knows-where and put it into her mouth, chewing like a hamster while pretending to be a detective with a pipe, loudly declaring, "This biscuit is so unpalatable, it must have been infused with deep hatred."
"No, it hasn't!"
"Oh, but I can taste it. That bitter, bottomless resentment, like a curse to the recipient of the gift~"
"Don't taste things that aren't there!"
Yui Yuigahama, red-faced and huffing, complained to Yanami Anna.
"Speaking of which, there's still one person among us who hasn't tasted Yuigahama's biscuits, right?"
Yukino Yukinoshita, who had finally recovered, suddenly said.
At once, the gazes of the three girls fell upon Asakura, who was watching the show.
Asakura: "…"
"At this point, does Asakura-kun still want to escape such a cruel punishment?"
Don't call it punishment! Haven't you seen Yuigahama next to you, her eyes welling up with tears from your words, you cold-hearted Ice Queen!
"Th-that, I also want to get some feedback and evaluation from Asakura-kun after he eats it…"
Even if Yuigahama you come over teary-eyed like a puppy, I won't be swayed! And why pick the biggest piece! Don't come any closer!
"Exactly, exactly! As the president, how can he stand idly by at a time like this!"
"You even know the idiom 'stand idly by,' Yanami is amazing~"
"Hmph hmph, my Chinese grades are pretty good… No, don't think you can fool me with a few casual words!"
"Tsk…"
Under the collective gaze of the three, Asakura finally, helplessly, picked up a biscuit from the baking tray (and refused the pot-sized biscuit in Yuigahama's hand) and put it into his mouth.
Hmm, it actually wasn't that bad. The moment it entered his mouth, there was just a strong bitter taste, but as he chewed, the crispy texture and the subsequent rise of an irritating taste, like some kind of highly toxic biochemical weapon, made his internal organs feel like they were burning… hot hot hot#&%@…
"Guh, kill me…"
Then Asakura's vision went black, and he collapsed onto the ground like a toppled mountain.
Yanami quickly leaned over, placed her finger in front of Asakura's nose, and then the girl's face showed shock: "He's dead!"
"Eh eh eh?!" Yuigahama was greatly shaken: "Ca, calm down first. I remember there's an incinerator behind the club building…"
"What a pity," Yukino Yukinoshita sighed, "He was… hmm, not a good person in life. Let us mourn him without deep sorrow."
"No, shouldn't you try to rescue him first…"
Asakura opened his eyes and retorted.
All in all, the first collaboration between the Service Club and the Chiba Magic Society ended in failure.
Note: In the original work, Old Eight really ate baked flour. According to her, the trick to eating it was to have a clear mind.
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