"I'm home~"
Placing his shoes at the entrance of the hot spring inn, Hoshino Sora softly uttered, a phrase ingrained in his muscle memory, then quietly stepped into his room.
Opening the door, Erina Nakiri was sitting in the middle of the room, dressed in a kimono, looking serene and natural, very much like a lady.
"You look so beautiful in that outfit, exuding a mature and intellectual charm. Where is everyone? Are they not back yet? No, that can't be right, what time is it already? Could something have happened…?"
Looking at the gently dressed Erina Nakiri before him and the empty room, Hoshino Sora asked. Without waiting for Erina to answer, he continued to talk to himself, his expression full of worry.
"They all went to other rooms."
Her voice was soft, carrying shyness, Erina Nakiri replied quietly.
"Ah? They went to other rooms… When they arrived, they were clamoring to sleep with me, but now they've changed their minds. Is this what women are like? Such fickle creatures.
What about you? Do you want to sleep with me tonight? Serving me alone tonight? It seems like a good choice too, allowing me to understand little Erina more comprehensively."
Shaking his head, Hoshino Sora complained and then curiously turned his head to ask. He hadn't expected that Erina Nakiri, the least likely among them to be proactive, would actually come forward. How did that saying go?
Going alone into the fray, commendable courage.
"No, it's not like that. We just felt that too many people together wasn't good, and wanted one-on-one, so we adopted a lottery system. Today, it just happened to be my turn, so I was forced to come."
Her face flushed, Erina Nakiri quickly explained. She wasn't proactively coming for intimacy! That… that was out of compulsion, though she did feel a little happy inside.
Ahhh, it's all Hoshino Sora's fault! What's there to be happy about in such a thing?!
"Do you remember when we first met? Back then, you pointed at my dish and called it commoner's cooking. That really made me furious at the time."
"That was ages ago, and your cooking really was terrible back then. They were all just superficial dishes, completely incomparable to now.
And I wasn't doing it on purpose at the time. The main thing was that my grandfather forcibly took me away from my workplace, saying he was going to meet an amazing chef. I was already a bit angry then, and when I entered and saw your half-baked cooking, I naturally blurted it out as an outlet for my frustration."
Hearing Hoshino Sora's words, Erina Nakiri immediately explained. She had indeed been a bit out of sorts that day. If it were her usual self, although she still wouldn't think highly of those dishes, she would never have said it so directly.
As the young lady of Far Moon, she still had the most basic manners.
"Is that so? I knew you weren't bad, even if you were a tsundere. But you've really changed a lot recently. Do you want to go for a hot spring bath with me now? Or do you have other plans?"
"Let's go for a hot spring bath together. And while we're at it, let me try the taste of your… again."
As she said this, Erina Nakiri's face was completely red, and she dared not meet his gaze. Her whole body felt tingly, clearly having used immense courage to utter those words.
"No problem, I warmly welcome you to try as many times as you like!"
Hearing Erina Nakiri's words, Hoshino Sora was first puzzled, then pleasantly surprised, and a meaningful smile appeared on his face. After all, that was the God Tongue!
The supreme God Tongue in the realm of taste!
Every time he thought of this, Hoshino Sora would get excited, but was the taste of that really so good? It could actually make the legendary God Tongue so reluctant to leave.
He was curious, but Hoshino Sora couldn't taste it himself, so he could only ask Erina later. However, seeing her face flush to such an extent, he guessed she wouldn't say anything even if he asked.
But it didn't matter, teasing girls was also a very interesting thing. A blushing face of a young girl was the most charming.
"What are you smiling about? What's so funny?"
Looking at the faint smile on Hoshino Sora's face, and realizing that he was mocking her, Erina Nakiri couldn't help but get a little anxious. Her cheeks puffed out slightly, looking somewhat exasperated.
You know, saying such words was extremely shameful for her! It took immense courage, and now her toes were desperately gripping the ground from embarrassment.
"It just makes me happy. A smile isn't something you can stop just because you want to, especially when it's sincere. I'll help you out then too."
"Help me?"
"It means, how you treat me, I will treat you the same way. Yes, it's exactly what you're thinking right now."
Having recovered what was lost, Hoshino Sora was in a very good mood at this moment. Looking at Erina's blushing cheeks, he couldn't help but have the idea of teasing her.
"That kind of thing isn't necessary!"
"Be good and listen!"
Hearing Hoshino Sora's words, Erina Nakiri instantly understood his meaning and refused with a flushed face. However, not all rejections are accepted.
Especially the things that followed.
Because they were alone, Hoshino Sora became exceptionally unrestrained. Although Erina Nakiri was shy, she still cooperated in a half-consenting, half-resisting manner, passively unlocking many new positions.
When she came out the next day, although her appearance hadn't changed, everyone clearly felt that she had matured. If she was a half-ripe peach before, now she was fully ripe.
This was proof of being nourished by love.
Such days lasted for three days in total.
On Sunday evening, the group returned to Yōbi Dormitory in a stretched limousine. The first stop was dropping Aka-ri and Rika off at their apartment.
Currently, his father had already left, saying he was going to live in Huaxia for a period of time, but Hoshino Sora had a premonition that his father was going to do something big. As for what it was? He didn't know yet.
"Then I'll be going now."
"Mm, go ahead. Good luck with the cooking competition! We'll be cheering you on from the TV."
After seeing Ya Xiang and Rika to their doorstep, Hoshino Sora was about to leave. Before he turned around, the two of them grabbed his arms and left a lipstick mark on each side of his face.
Facing the affection of the two sisters, Hoshino Sora naturally wouldn't refuse. After accepting with a smile, he returned downstairs and got into the stretched limousine, ready to take Kitagawa and Yuigahama home.
This took another half an hour.
After that, the stretched limousine drove all the way to Far Moon Academy. Hoshino Sora sat in the corner of the car, with Alice Nakiri and Shiina Mashiro sitting beside him. Among his wives, they were the most proactive.
Among them, Shiina Mashiro pondered for a few seconds beside him, then naturally got up and sat in his lap, twisting her body from time to time. Finally, she managed to turn the soft seat into a hard one, and a satisfied smile appeared on her face.
"After we get back, we'll start researching pork dishes. Erina, do you have any ideas?"
Not minding Shiina Mashiro's closeness, he placed his hand on her lower abdomen and looked at Erina Nakiri, who was talking to Hisako beside him. Hoshino Sora couldn't help but ask curiously.
"It's already prepared, but it's only a semi-finished product for now. It's a secret."
"Me too, it's still a semi-finished product at the moment. Let's taste each other's dishes before the competition."
"Mm."
Hearing Hoshino Sora's words, Erina Nakiri nodded and did not refuse. The other party was a chef she acknowledged, and cooking a meal specifically for him was not something unacceptable.
"By the way, Little Ikumi, didn't you say a while ago that your family wanted to cooperate with me?"
After chatting with Erina, Hoshino Sora turned his gaze to Mito Ikumi. She was sitting next to Shiina Mahiru, wearing a light, thin dress, exuding a wild charm.
"Ah? Uh, I did say that. What do you think about this? Our family can offer the highest price on the market. We'll buy as many high-quality cattle as you have!"
Hearing Hoshino Sora's sudden question, Mito Ikumi was first startled, then spoke with a touch of flattery.
If they could obtain high-quality beef provided by Hoshino Sora, their family's beef industry would definitely be able to advance further, and entering the global market wouldn't be impossible!
"Sure. When we get back to Yōbi Dormitory, we'll discuss the cooperation. You can be my contact person then. I'll give you a whole beef carcass as a sample first."
Because the space of the Gourmet Manor had been expanded tenfold, more animals could be raised. With so many animals, he certainly couldn't use them all by himself.
This was also the reason why Hoshino Sora took the initiative to cooperate with Mito Ikumi.
He wanted to make money, and he wanted to have sufficient social status.
As for why he wanted to make money? Why did he need social status? The reason was simple: it was to allow Yukino Yano to marry him successfully.
"Thank you."
Hearing Hoshino Sora's words, confidence flowed from Mito Ikumi's eyes. For a businesswoman, having a sample and not having one were two completely different concepts.
With a sample, she could better analyze the value of the product, and for her, it could also help her better persuade her father.
"It should be a pleasant cooperation."
"Then, a pleasant cooperation!"
Laughter and joy filled the journey.
The stretched limousine sped along the highway, the girls inside chattering away. Hoshino Sora played on his phone with one hand, while the other caressed Shiina Mashiro's body.
The girls had long grown accustomed to this; even when they saw it, their expressions remained unchanged. Some, more emotional, even felt a slight warmth in their bodies at that moment.
Finally, the group arrived at Yōbi Dormitory before dark.
To prove the quality of his beef, Hoshino Sora went directly into the Gourmet Manor to slaughter a beef cattle. Not long after, he emerged from the room carrying two beef legs.
The beef legs were enormous. When Hoshino Sora placed the two beef legs in the living room, Mito Ikumi was stunned by the perfect color and texture of the meat!
Her hands couldn't stop caressing it, and she even pressed her face against it, practically having the word 'love' written all over her face.
Patting Mito Ikumi's shoulder, Hoshino Sora directly became a hands-off manager. As an expert in handling meat, this guy could definitely handle the enormous beef leg in front of him very well.
And he just had to wait to eat.
Heh heh~
"Leave it to me! I'll definitely let you eat the best roasted beef leg in the world!"
Feeling trusted, Mito Ikumi's face showed emotion. Which of the people present wasn't stronger than her? Yet, Hoshino Sora resolutely chose her, wasn't it because he trusted her?!
Hmph hmph hmph, who told her she was a meat expert!
"Then I'll leave it to you. Just call me when it's time to eat."
Waving his hand, Hoshino Sora left after handing the beef leg to Mito Ikumi. There was another purpose for having her cook the beef leg.
That was to let the other party more directly experience the quality of the beef he provided, thereby better achieving the goal of cooperation. You know, no matter when, the quality of a product always determines sales!
As for what Hoshino Sora was going to do now? Of course, it was to return to the Gourmet Manor. As the manor expanded, his breeding industry also expanded significantly.
With more animals raised and plants grown in the manor, the probability of mutation naturally increased greatly, especially after such a long time.
Following the spicy tomatoes and special fragrant beef, Hoshino Sora's Gourmet Manor finally saw the emergence of a third, fourth, and fifth type of mutated organism: mutated eels, mutated leeks, and mutated rice.
Among them, the mutated leeks could only be harvested once, and their maturation speed was much slower, but their flavor was indeed ten times that of ordinary leeks, and their nutritional value was extremely high.
In addition, the mutated eels in the river, having accidentally eaten fish and shrimp that had consumed mutated leeks, also underwent some changes. Simply put, their flesh became fatter and more delicious.
If the deliciousness of external eels was 1, then the deliciousness of ordinary eels in the Gourmet Manor was 2, and the deliciousness of mutated eels was 10.
Currently, there aren't many mutated eels in the pond. Hoshino Sora is actively encouraging them to reproduce. Once their numbers increase, they can be made into feed for livestock.
Livestock consuming this feed made from mutated eels might also mutate, it's worth a try.
He inexplicably created a food chain.
Then there was the mutated rice...
His gaze fell upon a section of the farm that had been separately demarcated, where one rice plant was exceptionally large, and the rice plants around it had withered, clearly dying due to a lack of nutrients.
If the mutated leeks and mutated eels were still considered homologous mutations, then this mutated rice was a bit peculiar.
Looking at the enormous rice ears in front of him, and the corn-sized rice grains, Hoshino Sora was momentarily speechless.
This thing is outrageous. A few grains of rice would probably be enough for one person's meal, but this is too big, isn't it?! It looks like it's for giants, and he doesn't know what it tastes like.
However, there probably isn't a pot in this world that can cook this kind of rice, and it's too big to cook thoroughly. But if he took some out and made it into rice flour, he could make some snacks.
Looking at the tree-tall rice plant in front of him, Hoshino Sora collected some rice ears, preparing to taste them later.
At this point, these were all the mutations that had occurred in the Gourmet Manor in the past few days.
After investigating all the situations and setting the next development strategy, Hoshino Sora went to the pasture and slaughtered a second pig, and at the same time, a thought arose in his mind as he looked at the vast pasture.
He should find a talent skilled in management to help him manage the manor, otherwise, such a large place would be too time-consuming for him alone, and he wouldn't be able to detect changes in the farm immediately.
With an idea in mind, Hoshino Sora left the Gourmet Manor with the freshly acquired ingredients.
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