"What kind of magic is this?"
Looking at the two identical plates of shredded pork in garlic sauce before her, Jean couldn't help but feel bewildered.
She had just run off to borrow the kitchen. Because her appearance differed from that of the Empire's people, the villagers basically all knew Jean and were happy to lend her the kitchen.
And the result was, after some cooking, she ended up with two identical dishes.
She had clearly only intended to make one portion. Jean scratched her head, as she had been too focused earlier and couldn't quite recall the details.
"Could this be the double output from achieving perfect cooking?"
Tasting it with chopsticks, it was indeed far superior to her previous creations, though this was also thanks to the kitchen's abundant seasonings.
Then, Jean counted the material consumption again. Compared to when she usually used them, nearly two portions' worth was missing.
"Ah, so I didn't get a free portion after all." That unscientific thing hadn't happened, leaving Jean feeling slightly disappointed.
Next, she carried the plated dishes to the conference hall and placed one in front of Akame.
"Come on, come on, try my cooking." She placed another plate in front of Kurome: "This is Kurome's portion."
Under that flawless smile, even the usually somewhat sharp-tongued Kurome said nothing and began to taste it.
Then, Jean took out another plate and placed it alongside the other dishes for everyone to sample.
The second attempt didn't seem to trigger the passive; it was just an honest completion of the cooking, though the taste was still quite good.
Seeing it was made by Jean, everyone gathered around to taste it, even Akame, who had already finished her own portion, came over.
However, she was pulled back by Kurome. Although Akame was a bit dissatisfied, Kurome shared half of her own portion with her, so Akame once again immersed herself in the delicious food.
Seeing her dish so well-received, Jean also became happy. This was probably the sense of accomplishment of a cook; it was indeed much more fun than cooking for herself.
Before long, Najenda came over and gave a brief summary of this mission.
Each branch had solidly completed their assigned tasks, but the Prefectural Governor's Mansion's reaction was now the top priority. After entrusting the intelligence gathering work to Lubbock, she had everyone raise their glasses and officially began the toast to welcome Jean's join in.
"...to restore a clear and bright world to the land. Finally, to Jean's join in, cheers!"
"Cheers!" XN
Jean also drank the wine in her glass along with everyone else. Looking around at the faces surrounding her, she couldn't help but feel the thought, 'I can do something too.'
Next, the banquet began. It was more of a drinking party than a feast; apart from Akame, few were really savoring the dishes.
But honestly, the wine in the glass wasn't very tasty. It had only a faint alcoholic taste, was quite low in alcohol content, had no bubbles, and lacked a refreshing sensation.
However, everyone else drank merrily. After a few cups, some of the younger members even seemed a bit drunk.
Time always flies especially fast at such moments. Just after Lubbock—whether truly or not—ended up drunk in Najenda's arms, the boss gave the order to disband.
She personally carried Lubbock away. Other members with good alcohol tolerance, or those who were underage and hadn't drunk, dragged the ones lying on the ground like mud back to their rooms.
At this time, Akame approached Jean.
"Want to go soak in the hot spring together?" Akame asked.
"Yes!" Hearing a loli invite her to bathe together, Jean instantly agreed, but then a question arose: "Does this village have a hot spring?"
"Yes, it's just behind the mountain."
Then, Akame led Jean towards the back mountain, and Kurome followed along.
'One loli turned into two lolis, a total win.' Jean happily thought, almost laughing out loud.
After climbing a short stretch of the mountain, at the end of the stone path was a structure enclosed by wooden planks.
Wispy steam rose from above, making it look like a fairyland.
"I never imagined there was a place like this." Jean remarked with feeling.
"This appeared only in the last couple of years. Like this hot spring, and that snowy mountain over there, they all appeared suddenly." Kurome pointed at a majestic snow-capped mountain in the distance.
Looking in the direction Kurome pointed, sure enough, there stood a towering snowy mountain. As the night was already deep, only the snow-white peak was visible under the moonlight.
Entering the hot spring entrance, it was different from the hot springs in her impression. There was only one entrance, with a large red character for 'female' written on it.
Walking further in from the entrance was the changing room. Following Akame's example, she placed her Take offclothes in a bucket, picked up the towels prepared there, and headed towards the inner part of the hot spring.
This wasn't a public hot spring. There were no cover-up bath towels or swimsuits, just a small towel, which made Jean feel quite insecure.
But Jean's attention wasn't too focused on herself either. If she was dressed like this, naturally Akame and Kurome were the same.
This eye-pleasing scene made Jean feel her blood boiling again, no less intense than during a fight with a demon.
According to etiquette, one should wash their body before entering the hot spring. Fetching a basin of water, she sat on a stone stool. Just then, Akame came over and asked Jean, "Need help scrubbing your back?"
"Huh? Is that okay?" Jean asked surprisely.
"Of course. It's inconvenient to scrub your own back."
"That's great! Ah, no, then let me scrub your back too."
Just as Akame was about to agree, Kurome also They came closer.: "You scrub my back. I'll scrub elder sister's."
Although Jean really wanted to say she could scrub both their backs, even their whole bodies, seeing how protective Kurome was of her elder sister, Jean agreed.
And so, the three of them formed a circle, each tending to the one behind.
Placing her hands on Kurome's back, Kurome had skin as tender and white as a baby's, yet it was also covered in scars, large and small.
Looking at these marks, Jean could imagine a little of the hardships she must have endured in her youth.
But seeing the smile on her face as she scrubbed Akame's back, perhaps she was much happier than in the original work.
After washing up, all three entered the hot spring, and Jean finally asked the question that had puzzled her for half the day.
"I see this place seems to have only a women's bath."
"That's right." Akame explained. "Big brother Brand said: 'A real man should bathe under a waterfall to train himself!' So the mountain hot spring is completely for the use of female members."
It seemed Akame had some Acting talent, imitating Brand quite vividly.
And at that moment, Kurome swam over, staring directly at Jean face-to-face.
"Um, is something the matter?" Although Jean stared back, this staring contest wasn't a fair match. Her own impure heart put her at a great disadvantage.
"How exactly did you grow so... big?" Kurome asked, pointing at Jean's chest.
"Rub them more and they'll get bigger?" Dazzled by the view before her, Jean didn't have time to think and blurted out what was on her mind.
"Huh... I see." Kurome thought for a moment, then swam away expressionlessly.
A little later, Akame's lament was heard: "What are you doing?!"
"Miss Jean said rubbing makes them bigger. I'm helping you."
"Is... is that so? But won't getting bigger affect combat?"
"No, it'll actually make you stronger. Look at the BOSS and General Esdeath, they're both so big and so strong."
After that, the warmth of the hot spring and the beautiful scenery nourished Jean's heart, allowing her slightly fatigued spirit to relax completely.
---
——Audience Sidestory 2——
'D': Damn it! Why is the whole screen covered in holy light!? Now we can't see the little LOLIs playing around! Kuso!
Shiraori: (Staring at D as if looking at something dirty)...
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