The kitchen in Uruja's shabby hut grew loud. The clanking of stone pots and wooden spatulas sounded like a battle was underway.
Do they really have to compete in cooking? Uruja thought. The achievement wasn't for a competition; it was meant to be celebrated.
Anyway, Uruja had no part in their mess. She was busy preparing the things she needed for her experiments. She wanted to create a formula that would heal wounds automatically without leaving any scars—no energy wasted. Also included in her list were beauty potions to make a youthful look last longer. She would definitely earn a large profit.
While grinding herbs, Uruja could not stop her thoughts about Cana's jump to phase three of cultivation. She could hardly believe how Cana did it. But maybe it was just her nature that she had better get used to. It could be related to the heirloom's mark Erus was sharing with Cana. Perhaps it helped in boosting the girl's adaptability to such an awakening, making it possible to break through the other phases.
Whatever! She was witnessing how carefree Erus was when he was with Cana. Uruja also liked Cana's light aura. She should brush off the idea of digging into who Cana really was. What was most important to her right now was Erus' peace and happiness. He had finally started to breathe like a normal mortal again.
She looked at the three vials filled with herbs. She should focus on her own business. Cana was her son's business to deal with.
"Will you stop looking at me like that? It's creeping me out," Erus retorted as Cana gave him a puppy-dog stare.
"But you won't light my pot. That's unfair!" Cana complained, leaning against the side where Erus was trying to work. She was blocking his cooking area.
"You turned the water lukewarm instantly, which means your ability is fire-related. Understand? Learn how to ignite that fire or you'll lose."
Cana scratched her head. "But what if we get another 'BOOM'?" She demonstrated how the river water had surged from her accidental energy formation.
Erus cleared his throat.
"Then the entire place goes 'BOOM' too," Erus said, mimicking her words but not her gesture. He spoke as if it were a common occurrence, leaning closer to her.
Cana retreated from Erus's sight. She could stare at his muscles for a day, but she couldn't last a minute under his gaze. Those eyes of his were soul-chilling.
But how would she cook if she couldn't even light a fire? She knew she couldn't use the same technique, or this small, shabby hut would become history. The way she had set the water temperature was different. There hadn't been the tiniest ember or flame like Erus's fire. She had only seen a white aura enveloping her hands that night. It had been pure instinct because of the emergency.
While Erus started to heat the ingredients, Cana gave him side glances—malicious ones.
"You won't figure it out by just staring at me," Erus told her, his eyes focused on the stone pot.
"I accidentally cultivated by just staring at you. And the way I discovered my ability was through my observation of your fire magic, too," Cana countered, then pressed her lips together.
Erus stopped and looked at Cana. He could not believe what she said, and he was flattered by her staring.
So, while he was cultivating, Cana was staring at him.
Erus cleared his throat.
"Then you have everything you need. Just do the same and follow your instinct. Set aside the fear of erasing this entire place, or else exactly what you're imagining will happen."
But that was why Cana was afraid to use the same technique. She felt like whenever she imagined how Erus did it, the result was different and far more intense. She doubted if her power was really fire-related. She had never formed an ember or a flame. The energy she had released during her accidental cultivation was a ball of lightning—dark, but with bolts emitting different colors. She had thrown it, afraid she would get hurt.
Cana sighed heavily.
She had been thrown into a fantasy world most humans would dream of, but being here was a headache. She didn't understand why God had allowed her to end up in this place.
Right! I'm a human. Why not use my resources from Earth then? This realization made Cana excited. If she could make magic just by imagining how someone else did it, then she could definitely trigger her power by imagining things from the human world. Knowledge was power, and the mind was what controlled it. That should do the trick!
Cana did a little stretching on her hands and shoulders as part of her preparation. Then, she started imagining her chores every morning with her family. As the oldest sister, she was the one to cook their food. She could clearly visualize that blue flame coming from the stove while she cooked. She could adjust the heat and the flame...
Then, Cana realized something. How was she able to adjust Erus' flame when he asked her to cook? It was through mind control. She treated it like a pet that would follow her instructions.
"That's it!" She snapped.
Erus furrowed his brows at her outburst.
Cana tapped into the energy within her again. She waited for that specific sensation, and when she felt it, she let the power flow freely. She stared at the bottom of the pot until a blue flame ignited. It was exactly the amount she had imagined from a gas stove. She grinned.
"How did you do that?"
She almost had a heart attack when Erus got too close, bending over to look intently at the blue flame. He looked like he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
Did I do it wrong? Cana thought. "What's the matter?" she asked Erus.
"You're a blue flame user—the real blue flame!" Erus exclaimed.
"Sh... should I not use it?" Cana felt a bit scared because Erus sounded too serious.
"What's happening here?" Uruja walked in and asked. She had heard Erus's voice from the other room and thought Cana and Erus had gotten into a fight.
"Mom, guess what? You picked an azure master," Erus said playfully to Uruja. He pointed at the blue flame.
When Uruja saw the flame, her jaw dropped. A memory emerged from when she was clinging to life after giving birth to Erus. It was the same color, the same aura as the blue flame that had shielded them against their assailant—the king's familiar. Cana's flame was a real azure, no mistake.
Could it be... Uruja looked at Cana, whose face showed clear confusion. She shook her head and then took Erus by surprise; she pinched his side so hard he almost jumped.
"What was that for?" Erus asked. He hadn't expected his mother to do that in front of Cana.
"You're confusing Cana. You should have explained her ability to her first before shouting loud enough to bring my hut down." She shook her head slightly while locking eyes with him. It was a warning.
Erus sighed as Uruja retreated to her room.
"Was I that loud?" Erus asked Cana.
"Yeah. A bit."
Erus scratched his head.
"Tch. Let's continue," he said instead, referring to their cooking battle. "Let me have your flame when you're done," he added.
Cana just looked at Erus. She didn't know why he was asking for it. Maybe it was just curiosity.
While they cooked, Cana noticed Erus taking glances at her blue flame. Every now and then, he would swallow. Or was she wrong? Maybe he was just smitten by the food she was making.
"Cana," Erus spoke after some minutes of silence.
"Mmm?" Cana answered, her focus entirely on the food she was mixing. It was sticky and needed constant attention, or it would end up as hard as stone.
"Don't 'mmm' me."
"Eh?" She looked at Erus, her brows furrowing, before shifting her gaze back to her pot.
"I'm going back to school. I leave tomorrow."
Cana stopped completely. She didn't know how to respond. The mention of him leaving felt like a sudden abandonment.
Erus noticed her reaction. He reached out and grasped the wooden ladle from Cana's hand, taking over the stirring. Cana let go, allowing him to take the lead.
"Uh, so you're still attending school," Cana said, her eyes fixed on the pot. The concept of a school in this world hadn't even crossed her mind. "Is it far from here?"
"Yes."
"Oh. Good luck, then."
"Good luck? You're coming with me."
Cana looked at Erus with a complete deadpan. So, she was going with him. She smiled internally. It meant that while keeping Erus company, she would also have the opportunity to learn more about this new world.
"And you can't say no. We're connected, remember? I can't leave you here to die," he added when she remained silent.
"Who said 'no'?" Cana sarcastically answered, covering her shame for forgetting the bond they shared. She had been acting like a buddy to Erus; she almost forgot they were bound by a master-slave contract.
"Really? It's okay with you?" He was making sure.
"Do I really have a choice? Plus, I wanted to know your world outside this place." Cana's last words were a bit heavy, but Erus didn't read into them. He didn't even notice the way she slightly smirked.
"Good then," Erus answered. There would be no need to use his convincing powers to drag Cana out of this house tomorrow. "The consistency is just right. Add the other ingredients," he told her, still focused on mixing the sticky soup.
Cana immediately followed. While pouring the last ingredients, she was laughing to herself. She just realized they were supposed to be competing, yet here was Erus doing all the manual labor of mixing. She had almost forgotten, but Erus seemed to have totally blanked on the challenge. She figured she might as well take advantage of it to save some fat in her arms. Erus only gave her back the ladle when it was time to put the finishing touches on his horned patty rabbit. He finished first.
"Done too," Cana said after she finished pouring the soup into the big wooden bowl on the table.
"Can I get it now?"
She looked back at Erus only to find him staring at the blue flame again. Cana nodded with confusion, curious why he was so drawn to the fire. Then, Erus made the most unanticipated move Cana could think of. He scooped up the blue flame and brought it under his mask. Cana was too late to react as she saw Erus swallow it.
"Oh, my god! Uruja! Uruja!" Cana shouted, fearing Erus might be burned by what he had done.
Erus was again pinned to the chair by Cana's slender arms. Her face was panicked, while Erus—in his shock—didn't even have time to savor the blue flame.
Cana checked Erus's throat. She even lifted his shirt to check his chest.
"How do you feel?" Cana asked in a rush.
"I'm fine."
"Damn you! How could you be fine after swallowing that? It was fire, Erus!" Cana's voice was pure concern and a bit terrifying at the same time. She looked ready to cut Erus in half just to make sure he was really okay.
Uruja came rushing in, witnessing her son being pinned down by the slim girl. She had initially thought Erus was bullying Cana and that Cana was calling for help. But the reality was the opposite; it was Erus who needed her help.
It felt like she had two children. She could not focus on her medicinal preparations.
"Are you two fighting again?" Uruja asked.
"Erus swallowed the blue flame!" Cana reported.
Uruja looked at them both, unfazed. These two were fighting over a flame!
"He said he was fine. To hell with that! It was fire!"
"Uh?" Uruja was baffled by Cana's high-pitched, angry tone. She looked at Erus, asking for an explanation.
Erus laughed—a sexy, melodious, husky sound. It made Cana stare at him.
"How I longed to taste it again," he said.
"What?" Cana did not understand.
"Relax, Cana. I'm telling you, I'm a fire-eater," Erus said, gently removing her hands from his chest.
Cana stared at him, blinking. She wasn't buying it.
"But it's a secret never meant to be shared with others outside our family," he said, reaching for Cana's cheeks to wipe away her tears.
Only then did Cana realize she was crying. She fell silent, the weight of his words sinking in. They were treating her as family.