Chapter 75: Jinx Eating Spicy Stir-Fry
Ren went into the kitchen to prepare the meal, leaving Jinx alone in the dining area. She sat on the chair, bored, swinging her long blue braids back and forth like twin metronomes counting down to an explosion.
For Jinx, getting injured was fine—scars were just cool stories—but being bored was absolutely not! Boredom was the enemy. It made the voices in her head louder. It made her fingers itch for a detonator.
"What a bastard Chef..." she muttered, kicking her legs. "Taking my friends away. But... he's much more interesting than Ekko. At least he doesn't lecture me about time travel."
(Ekko, somewhere in Zaun: Sneeze! "Why do I feel like someone is mocking my chronobreak?")
"Ah ah... Bored. Bored. BORED!"
Although Jinx constantly claimed to be crazy, she was actually quite lucid most of the time. She simply enjoyed causing destruction and the chaotic fun that came with it. She wasn't insane; she was just... differently motivated.
Jinx looked upstairs towards the living quarters. She wanted to go up and explore—maybe draw faces on the walls—but then she thought of Ren's ability to instantly disarm her. He had moved faster than anyone she had ever met, even faster than Vi.
She didn't want to risk it; if she saw something she shouldn't, she might actually get kicked out into the void. And right now, the void seemed less appealing than the smell coming from the kitchen.
Jinx rested one hand on her cheek, the other idly twisting her braid around her finger. She glanced at the kitchen door every few seconds, her large purple eyes flashing with anticipation.
Time passed minute by minute. The shop remained quiet, save for the rhythmic chopping sounds. Just as Jinx was about to fall asleep from the lack of stimulation, she heard a distinct sound.
Sizzle!
The sound of ingredients hitting hot oil. It instantly jolted her awake.
"Hmm? What's that sound? Eh? What's that smell?"
She sniffed the air.
"So fragrant! It smells like... fire! But edible fire!"
Jinx could guarantee she had never smelled anything like it. Not in the street stalls of Zaun, not in the sterile labs of Piltover, not even at the fancy noble banquets she had crashed (and ruined). She wasn't hungry before, but suddenly her stomach gave a loud growl.
The aroma grew stronger and stronger—spicy, numbing, savory. Jinx felt hungrier and hungrier. Eventually, her foot couldn't help but tap the ground rapidly.
"This bastard Chef, he's quite impressive with the smells... but why is it taking so long! I could have built a bomb in this time!"
Just as Jinx finally couldn't wait any longer and was about to march into the kitchen to "inspect" (read: steal food), the door swung open.
Ren came out pushing a dining cart. He placed a very large, deep ceramic bowl in front of Jinx.
Jinx looked down at it. It was a chaotic, colorful mess of food. She saw various ingredients she didn't recognize. The only things she could identify were bright red sausages and chunks of meat; she didn't know what the other things were. There were meatballs of various shapes, slices of lotus root, tofu skin, and most importantly, there was something green scattered throughout.
Jinx, smelling the intense, spicy aroma that tickled her nose, was about to stab a sausage with her fork when she heard Ren say, "Wait a moment. This dish is missing one last step."
"Still missing one last step? It looks done to me!" Jinx complained, fork hovering.
"Yes. And it's the soul of this dish."
Ren's words made Jinx pause. A dish has a soul?! It sounds very impressive! Like a Hextech crystal!
Jinx held her fork in one hand and propped herself up on the edge of the table with the other, watching expectantly as Ren brought out two small bowls from the bottom shelf of the cart.
As Jinx was wondering what kind of magic powder he would use, she saw Ren grab a handful of small white seeds from one bowl and sprinkle them over the dish.
Sprinkle.
Jinx looked at the small white dots appearing on the red, oily surface. "Seeds?"
Before she could speak, she saw Ren toss in another small handful of fresh green leaves.
Jinx swallowed. The dish suddenly looked complete. The green and white contrasted beautifully against the red chili oil.
"Chef, what did you sprinkle in there? It smells even better now! Like fresh rain on hot metal!"
"You said it smells good, so what do you think the vegetable I just sprinkled in should be called~?" Ren teased.
Jinx squinted at the leaves. "It looks like grass. Is it fancy grass?"
"It's Cilantro."
"Cilantro? Sounds like an explosive compound. I like it."
Ren chuckled. "And these little dots?"
"Sesame seeds~. I know those! They go on buns!"
"Correct. Now, this is rice." He placed a bowl of steaming white rice next to the large bowl. "And judging by your look, no alcohol for you. So let's have a drink that actually matches the food."
He placed a tall glass filled with a dark, fizzy liquid and ice cubes next to the bowl.
"Of course, with this kind of spicy food, soda is even more suitable than wine. Now, enjoy your meal."
Jinx stared blankly at Ren as he walked back behind the counter to resume his reading. Then she tapped the black, bubbly drink. The glass was cold, covered in condensation.
Feeling the coolness on her fingertips, Jinx felt much more awake. (Cough cough~ Ice-cold cola is the best medicine for chaos).
But she quickly put aside the thought of figuring out what this drink was and turned her attention back to the vibrant dish that was emitting fragrance and steam.
Jinx didn't know what those meatballs were, so her first target was something she recognized: the bright red sausage cut into the shape of an octopus.
She speared it with her fork.
Stab.
As she lifted it, she saw the casing had turned slightly white and blistered from being flash-fried in the hot oil.
She took a bite.
Snap!
Her pupils suddenly contracted.
Crispy. Fragrant. Hot. Spicy.
These sensations hit her brain simultaneously. The fried sausage had a perfect snap. The meat inside was juicy, and the natural oils mixed with the spicy chili oil coating the outside. It wasn't greasy; it was savory. The slightly charred casing provided a texture that made her want to chew more.
For some things, just a little bit of char is enough to bring a pleasant surprise. It was chaos in a bite.
"Mmm!"
Jinx, somewhat surprised by the intensity, called out to Ren with her mouth full, "Chef! What's this dish called? It's so spicy! It burns in a good way!"
Ren didn't look up from his book. "This is something that both children and adults love to eat. It's called Mala Xiang Guo (Spicy Numbing Stir-fry)."
"Mala Xiang Guo? I don't know what that means, but this is great! It tastes like violence!"
Ren smiled. "Then eat more. But be careful, you can't eat the dried chili peppers or the star anise. They are for flavor, not consumption."
Jinx probably didn't hear him; she was too busy eating.
She grabbed a piece of lotus root. Crunch. It was crisp and sweet. She grabbed a fish ball. Boing. It was springy. She grabbed a piece of tofu skin. It had absorbed all the spicy sauce like a sponge.
Popular dishes are often not the expensive ones, but these dishes with unique charm. Mala Xiang Guo with a bowl of fragrant rice—this combination was a weapon of mass destruction against hunger.
Some things are simply meant to be together: Explosions and blue hair. Mala Xiang Guo and rice.
Jinx shoveled a spoonful of rice into her mouth to balance the heat. The fluffy, neutral rice absorbed the spicy oil perfectly.
Jinx seemed to be enjoying herself immensely. She was eating while her little feet under the table kept swinging back and forth. Every now and then, she would even cheer in surprise when she ate something particularly good.
"Woo! Spicy! Ahhh!"
Suddenly, she froze.
"Phew... water... right... water..."
Jinx seemed to have accidentally eaten a piece of the dried chili pepper Ren warned her about. Her tongue immediately felt like it was on fire. Her entire pale face turned red from the spiciness, and she quickly looked for relief.
She grabbed the black drink Ren had brought her.
Gulp gulp gulp...
The carbonation hit her throat. The sweetness hit her tongue.
"Phew... AH!"
She slammed the glass down and burped loudly. "What is this stuff?! It stings and it's sweet! So refreshing!"
Ren, sipping his black tea, smiled and said, "This is Cola. Of course, you drink ice-cold cola with Mala Xiang Guo. The bubbles scrub the oil off your tongue. Not bad, right~?"
Jinx nodded like a chick pecking at rice, her eyes wide. "Mmm! This thing called Cola tastes great! Better than chem-juice! Are you really a Chef and not a magician? Did you brew this?"
"If I were a magician, I would have already grabbed you for magic experiments instead of feeding you~."
Jinx snorted, then continued to bury her head in her food. Ren watched her from his seat. He saw her put both hands on her cheeks, chewing her food with a look of pure, uncomplicated enjoyment. The madness in her eyes had dimmed, replaced by the simple joy of a good meal.
He shook his head with a smile. Indeed, despite the guns and the threats, she was just a rebellious, lonely girl who liked spicy food.
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