"What is this thing?"
"Soup~!"
Hearing such an explanation, Artoria's eyes almost popped out. This thing is soup? Are you sure? This pitch-black stuff, looking like the black mud from the Holy Grail, was still bubbling. Artoria activated her Dragon Eyes and Mangekyo Sharingan to look closely, and she could even see things resembling human faces on the surface of this so-called'soup,' seemingly cursing all living beings. Seeing this scene, Artoria really couldn't equate this unknown liquefied organism from the underworld with delicious'soup.' Closing her eyes, Artoria tilted her head back and took a deep breath. Opening her eyes to see Gaea's expectant expression, the words Artoria wanted to say got stuck in her throat. Artoria really wanted to say, 'This subject cannot do it'!
Pfft~!
This sudden sound startled Artoria. Turning her head, she saw Galacta slumped on the table. Beside this 'hero,' a bowl of the exact same substance as the one in Artoria's bowl had been knocked over onto the floor, and the floor had been corroded away. Galacta used her life to warn Artoria: this thing cannot be drunk.
Gulp.
Artoria forced down a gulp of saliva. She looked with great difficulty at the soup before her, and at Gaea, who completely ignored the commotion elsewhere and just stared at Artoria quietly. This gaze put immense pressure on Artoria, but she would absolutely not drink this stuff. Not just for the sake of her life, but because if she compromised this time, Artoria estimated she would see this pile of unknown objects on the dining table every day. The most terrifying part was that it might not just be this; it might even be upgraded. Gaea might replace all of Artoria's meals with this thing, so Artoria would never compromise.
"Thanks for the hard work cooking, Gaea."
Without touching the spoon beside her, Artoria sat there pretending to be very calm, giving an appreciative attitude toward Gaea's labor. Hearing Artoria's words, Gaea smiled happily, holding her wooden spatula as if intoxicated. But that wasn't Artoria's main purpose.
"Have you tasted the dishes you made yourself?"
Artoria immediately followed up with that question, which made Gaea snap out of it instantly. Artoria calmly looked at Gaea's dumbfounded face. Seeing this expression, Artoria understood that she definitely hadn't tasted the food she made; otherwise, she wouldn't have quietly brought it to her to taste.
"No! The book said the first bite should be given to the person you like most; that's the best."
Hearing Artoria's words, Gaea spoke in confusion. The book she read said, 'As long as it's a dish you made, the other person will definitely eat it with a smile.' It didn't seem to mention tasting it herself. Did she need to taste it? She wasn't very interested in human food and didn't need to eat at all, so she just followed the cookbook—a little of this, a little of that. The taste shouldn't be too bad, right?
"You can taste it first; after all, it's your hard work."
Seeing that her words seemed to work, Artoria struck while the iron was hot. This bowl of unknown substance had to be tasted by the perpetrator herself so that Artoria could save her own life. As she spoke, Artoria pushed the pile of unknown substance in front of her toward Gaea, signaling her to taste it. Although puzzled by Artoria's action, since it was something she made, she wouldn't be disgusted by it. So what if it looked a bit ugly? She had seen uglier things. Gaea unhesitatingly took out a spoon, scooped a bit, and put it in her mouth.
Thud~!
The same scene appeared before Artoria. Looking at Gaea, who was suddenly foaming at the mouth, Artoria couldn't help but shudder. That was close; she almost pushed herself into a dead end. Even powerful existences like Gaea and the Galactus girl were poisoned and collapsed on the floor, let alone a Heroic Spirit like herself. She'd probably have gone straight to the Yellow Springs to see Meng Po! With lingering fear, Artoria looked at that bowl of unknown species. Was this thing a biochemical weapon for god-slaying?
"How terrifying."
Artoria put on rubber gloves and a mask, carefully carrying this bowl of 'chemical weapon.' She had Garfield dig a hole in the yard, then placed the bowl of unknown substance into the hole and had Garfield scratch some dirt over it to bury it. After filling the hole, Artoria breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn't expected Gaea to cook up such a dangerous thing. It seemed she needed to keep her away from the kitchen to ensure everyone's safety.
"What happened to me? My head is so dizzy, I feel like throwing up."
After calming down, Artoria returned to the room and happened to see Galacta, who had just woken up. Perhaps she had eaten earlier or had a stronger physical resistance, but Galacta quickly regained consciousness. However, the adverse reactions from eating the unknown substance still existed. Artoria looked at the very uncomfortable Galacta and could only look at the unlucky child with pity. Although she knew you could even eat Planets, you shouldn't just put something that dangerous in your mouth! This wasn't just being a glutton; this was seeking Death. Artoria stepped forward and hugged the distressed Galacta to offer some comfort, proactively offering her lips. Artoria gave her magic power to Galacta to eat, alleviating her uncomfortable state.
"I passed out just now. Did someone ambush us? Artoria."
After eating the delicious magic power, Galacta immediately recovered from her confused state. She stood up and shielded Artoria behind her as if to protect her. But her actions made Artoria's eyes twitch. Good grief, does she have amnesia? Gaea! Your cooking is simply invincible in the world; even the powerful Galactus couldn't digest it, and it even had such severe side effects that it caused amnesia.
"Just get some rest, it's fine."
Artoria held Galacta in her arms and spoke words of comfort. This incident had a huge impact on Artoria, and she made a silent decision in her heart: Gaea would be strictly forbidden from entering the kitchen from now on. This lesson had been bought with half of Galacta's life; Artoria had to consider everyone's safety. Although she didn't know why Artoria had suddenly hugged her, Galacta still felt very safe.
"My Master, Miss Galacta's life alarm just went off. It seems she encountered a life-threatening danger. Do you need me to go check it out?"
Gaea, who was still unconscious, had no idea that her cooking had triggered Galactus on the other side of the Universe. She would likely be quite depressed if she knew she had accidentally summoned the other party's Father. As the silver-colored figure reported, a pair of giant eyes lit up in the darkness. These eyes were as large as two small Planets. After a silent exchange of electronic waves, the silver-white figure bowed respectfully to the giant creature, stepped onto a surfboard, and left the darkness. Once the figure was gone, the giant eyes vanished back into the shadows.
"We need to have a good talk, sir."
On the surface of the sea, the heroes stood quietly on the ship, facing the man holding a trident. Captain America spoke those words gently; their intention was not to fight but to persuade him. However, the Captain's invitation didn't cause even a ripple of emotion in the man's eyes. He just stared quietly at all the heroes, his thoughts unreadable. But in the next moment, he raised his trident, and the calm sea began to churn violently as he launched his attack.
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