[5/31 (Saturday) - Morning]
[Beacon Academy — Kitchen]
It was safe to say that Pyrrha's idea had been a welcome one, judging by how Ren had spent the morning carefully inspecting and preparing the ingredients Pyrrha and Clerval had bought the day before.
Passing by the kitchen after delivering another batch of coffee to the coffee enthusiasts in the staff payroll, Clerval paused at the doorway. Inside, Ren and—surprisingly—Nora were already deep in discussion.
"Do we even have enough for that many portions?" Ren asked as he eyed the ingredients laid out on the table.
"Eh, we'll cross that bridge when we get there. Let's get cooking!" Nora replied, rolling up her sleeves.
Clerval took a seat at the nearby bar counter, watching in silence as the two "besties" began preparing a meal intended for more than a dozen people. Watching them work together in harmony, he could tell they both had considerable experience when it came to cooking large batches of food with each other.
Noticing him nearby, Nora gave an enthusiastic wave. "Hey, Gray-Gray! Pyrrha said that we could use the ingredients, so come on! Help us wash some of the pots! We're a little busy here!"
"Nora, you can't just force someone to help us," Ren sighed, flipping a butter-coated fish in the pan as it sizzled.
Clerval simply shrugged and stood up from his seat.
A moment later, he was wearing an apron, elbow-deep in warm water as he washed used bowls and pots at the sink with a soap-filled sponge. Scrubbing to rid the pot of any stains, Ren gave control of the stove over to Nora and walked over to pick up a few clean plates.
"Thank you for helping," Ren added as he took a quick break. "It's been a while since we cooked such a large batch; it would have been difficult to keep track of cleaning."
Dismissing the thanks with a small shake of his head, Clerval glanced at him instead.
"Are you used to cooking in batches?"
Ren nodded, a faint, almost nostalgic smile forming.
"We are orphans, Nora and I," he said calmly. "My parents passed from a Grimm invasion in our village. The matrons at our orphanage had a difficult time managing so many children at once. Mistral is... well known for having a high number of orphaned children."
He paused briefly, turning his attention back to the stove to check on Nora as he continued.
"So we helped wherever we could. We mostly assisted with preparing the ingredients until we were allowed to cook; it was our way of giving back for taking care of us."
Uncomfortable at reminding him of such disasters, he offered a small, awkward nod of understanding, unsure of what else to say. Ren noticed the reaction and gave a faint, reassuring smile. He reached out and patted Clerval lightly on the shoulder.
"Worry not," he said gently. "It was a long time ago."
"Renny! The searing is done! Let's get started on the riceeeeee~"
From the other side of the kitchen, Nora placed the final piece of seared fish into a heated container before zooming over to where they stood, grabbing the dishes from Ren's hands in one swift motion.
With a playful boop to his nose, she giggled as she moved back toward the stove.
Ren let out a small, resigned sigh, though the faintest trace of fondness lingered in his expression as he returned to his station.
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[5/31 (Saturday) - Afternoon]
[Beacon Academy — Dorm Lounge]
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"We're done!" Nora exclaimed, stretching her arms with a satisfied groan. "I forgot how tiring it is to cook that much food again!"
In front of them sat ten neatly packed meal boxes, each filled with seared fish, rice, and a mix of vegetables and fruit.
"While the cafeteria does provide good meals, sometimes homemade food is more enjoyable," Ren noted as he sealed each container and stored them in the fridge for later reheating. "And we still have some ingredients left for future cooking."
"Here you go."
Clerval accepted one of the boxes of Seared Fish Medley and gave a small nod of thanks. Ren returned a quiet smile in response.
"We'll call you when we're cooking again! Oh, and next time, we'll teach you and the others how to cook! That'd be fun!" Nora added brightly.
He gave a small nod in response.
The world around him dimmed for a moment as Mary's voice rang within his mind.
["I am Thou,"]
["Thou art I."]
["Thou hast established a new path,]
[bringing thee further into your odyssey."]
["With the birth of the Emperor Arcana,]
["Thine soul shalt be blessed to call forth stronger Personas of the Emperor Arcana..."]
"I'm gonna go take a shower now. I smell like fish and oil!" Nora muttered, wrinkling her nose cutely before giving him a wave as she dragged Ren toward their dorm. "See ya later, Gray-Gray!"
"Goodbye."
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[5/31 (Saturday) - Afternoon]
[Beacon Academy — Dorm Room]
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While dressed in his pajamas and reading his borrowed book from the library, The Divine Messengers, his Scroll rang with a notification. He lifted it to check the latest messages he'd received.
[Conversation with GROUP: Nora + Ren (3 Online)]
[Nora: Gray-Gray!]
[Nora: Jauney and Pyr really liked our cooking!]
[Nora: Great job today, dishwasher!]
[Ren: Nora, that's very insulting...]
[Ren: But thank you for your help, Clerval. Your assistance is much appreciated.]
[Nora: Hope you liked it too!]
[Nora: Goodnight!]
[Nora: And don't forget your promise! I'll drag you to the kitchen when we're going to cook again!]
[Ren: She is joking... I hope so.]
[Ren: Goodnight, Clerval.]
[Nora has sent a sticker of a pink sloth dozing off with drool spilling.]
[Ren has sent a sticker of a lotus flower with "zzz" floating above it.]
[Clerval has sent a sticker of an ash-blond boy sleeping in a bed without a care.]
[NORA VALKYRIE has gone offline.]
[LIE REN has gone offline.]
Closing his Scroll, he exhaled softly and returned to his book, now about two-thirds of the way through, feeling his sense of Kindness had become just a little more grounded than before.
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SOCIAL LINK RANK UP!
EMPEROR (IV): Nora Valkryie & Lie Ren
Level 1 / 10
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NEXT UPDATE: 27 May, Wednesday
A/N: Sorry for the delay. I had a lot of things that unfortunately happened during these last two weeks that caused me to not be able to upload at all. I explained it all in my Patre0n page, you can see the update there.
I should be good to go, though. here's to hoping nothing happens again for the next couple of weeks.
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Advanced Mastery Tier - 3 Advanced Chapters and more (Almost Fully Implemented!)
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