Back at Himeko's place.
Mei woke up and pushed Kika, who was sprawled on top of her, to the side and sat up.
"Oww~ That damn Kika grabbed so hard, it really hurts..." Mei rubbed her chest, then got out of bed, kicking Kika's butt a few times on her way out.
Seeing Kika sleeping like a log, Mei gave her the middle finger, then gently covered her with a blanket and quietly left the room.
"I don't even know what time it is... Kika made me miss most of dinner. I hope everyone saved some for me." Mei patted her stomach and walked towards the kitchen. If they hadn't saved any for her and Kika, she would just cook some noodles.
Bronya, who was playing games in the living room, saw Mei tiptoeing over. Curious, Bronya greeted her.
"Big Sister Mei, you're back."
"Oh, Bronya, you're still up?"
"Mhm, Bronya is going to play a little longer. Does Big Sister Mei want to join?"
"In a bit. I didn't eat much for dinner, so I'm going to make a late-night snack. Do Bronya and Judah need any?"
"Thank you, Mei, I don't need any." "Bronya doesn't need to eat anymore either."
Since neither Judah nor Bronya wanted any, she would just prepare some for herself and Kika. Mei turned and entered the kitchen, only to see the leftovers and messy empty plates on the dining table, and her blood pressure shot up.
"It's one thing not to save any for me and Kika, but you couldn't even bother to clean up! Damn it, I'm done being the cook!"
"Roar, pots and pans!" "Kitchen, submit to me!" "Do you feel this searing rage?" "Hahahaha..."
Judah stood frozen at the kitchen entrance, watching Mei stir-frying vegetables while shouting all sorts of strange and bizarre lines.
Although Judah had already heard from others that Mei was a closet romantic, a chuunibyou girl, and a perverted lolicon, seeing it with her own eyes was still quite an eye-opener, leaving her utterly shocked.
"I shall fall into the kitchen, in exchange for a full meal for you." Mei added the final cilantro to the noodle soup, then turned around to get a bowl to serve the noodles.
Only to see Judah standing there, dumbfounded, nodding and applauding her.
"Judah!! When did you get here... you didn't hear all that, did you..." Mei put her hands behind her back, her fingers twisting together, so embarrassed she wanted to die...
"Uh, I was originally going to come and help Mei, and then... Anyway, Mei is very impressive!" Judah smiled, gave Mei a thumbs-up, and a like.
"Aaaaaah—"
Mei, her face beet red, picked up the entire pot and ran out of the kitchen with her head down. She urgently needed to move to another planet!!
"Mei!"
Judah quickly tried to grab Mei, but Mei was already at peak shame and rushed straight back to her room.
"Strange... wasn't that hot?"
*Bang—*
Mei kicked open her bedroom door and scrambled inside. She then closed the door and leaned against it, panting heavily.
"Ouch, that's hot."
Only then realizing she was holding the pot, Mei dropped it on the floor from the heat and ran into the bathroom to rinse her hands with water.
Looking in the mirror at herself, red from her neck to the tips of her ears, Mei felt like her life was over...
After rinsing for a while, Mei kicked the sleeping Kika off the bed.
Kika, who had fallen to the floor, shot her eyes open.
"Raiden Mei, are you trying to die!"
"Yes, yes, let's just die. But I'll take you with me when I go."
Mei rolled her eyes at Kika, then sat on the edge of the bed, blowing on her hands while saying, "I cooked some noodle soup, let's eat a little first."
At the mention of food, Kika stopped fussing; she was hungry too. But she glanced at the pot of noodle soup, then looked around, and asked Mei with a puzzled expression.
"Where are the bowls and chopsticks?"
"There aren't any. Take it or leave it."
"How am I supposed to eat this?" Kika scratched her head. She couldn't possibly be expected to eat with her hands.
Mei looked at Kika playfully, crossing her legs and tilting her head up slightly, looking down on Kika like a queen.
*So cool...* Looking at Mei like this, Kika suddenly found Mei exceptionally beautiful and pleasing to the eye, feeling an urge to submit.
But Mei's next words made Kika's head spin with anger.
"Go on, Kika doggy, get on your knees and lick it up."
"I'm going to fucking strangle you, you bastard."
An enraged Kika leaped up, grabbed Mei's hands, and tackled her onto the bed, pinning her down firmly.
Mei instinctively tried to pull her hands back from the pain, but Kika held them tight. Her face contorted in pain, and a few beads of sweat trickled down.
"What's wrong with you?"
Kika was startled by Mei's reaction and lost the mood for roughhousing. She sat up straight on top of Mei. Normally, Mei would have fought back immediately. This was the first time she had seen her look so pitiful.
"It's nothing..." Mei shook her head, then pulled her hands back when Kika wasn't looking and hid them behind her.
But Mei's small movement didn't escape Kika's notice. Kika cupped Mei's face with both hands, staring into her eyes.
Mei felt a little guilty and didn't dare to meet Kika's gaze... If Kika found out she had lost her mind from embarrassment and ran around with a hot pot, she would laugh herself to death.
"Look at me, Mei. What happened to your hands? Did I hurt you by accident before?"
"No... I accidentally burned them..."
Since she was found out, there was nothing she could do. Mei had to bring her hands out from behind her back.
"If you burned them, you should have said so. Why did you have to hide them?" Kika quickly grabbed Mei's arm and led her to the bathroom to help her rinse her hands.
"If this isn't treated in time, what if the wound gets infected? If it leaves a scar, these beautiful hands of yours will be ruined!"
Seeing the anxious look on Kika's face as she carefully examined the burn, Mei smiled happily. It was the first time she had seen such a gentle Kika.
Kika didn't even have time to dry her hands before she was about to go find burn cream for Mei.
"You rinse them here first, I'll go ask Bronya and the others if they have any burn cream."
"No, no, no, it's fine, it's fine, it's just a normal burn. We're Valkyries, a small injury like this will heal quickly... Just don't leave the room!! Just sleep with me tonight, don't go!"
Mei quickly grabbed Kika. If she let Kika go out and ask Bronya and the others for medicine, then Judah would definitely tell them about her chuunibyou incident in the kitchen. In that case, Mei might as well just jump out the window and end it all.
"Hmm? Raiden Mei, you're acting very strange." Kika looked at Mei with suspicion. Why wouldn't she let her go out? How could she get medicine if she didn't go out... and how would they get bowls and chopsticks?
But seeing Mei's pitiful and pleading expression, Kika's heart softened.
"Forget it, you're the patient, I'll listen to you."
"Yay, Kika's the best."
Mei clapped her hands happily, then winced in pain.
"Hmph, how fake." Kika watched Mei's predicament, a small smile playing on her lips.
————————
"Sigh, there are no bowls or chopsticks, we can't just eat with our hands... Are you sure we can't go out?"
"Nope, definitely not!" Mei crossed her arms in front of her chest, rejecting Kika's request.
"Sigh... exosuit 'Sabayou' activate..." Kika sighed, then summoned her exosuit.
"Raiden Mei, you better be grateful to me, this is my baby's first time!!!"
Kika's heart was bleeding. She would indulge Mei just this once...
"What are you doing?"
"Shut up, your hands are injured, I'll feed you..."
Kika shrank 「Sabayou」 to use as chopsticks, picked up some noodles, and gently fed them to Mei.
Mei smiled, her eyes crinkling, and opened her mouth slightly to accept Kika's feeding.
"Mmm, that's delicious. Mushoku Kika, I love you to death!"
"Get lost! I'm Ryn's."
Kika wiped 「Sabayou」 on Mei's clothes in disgust, then picked up another portion and fed it to Mei.
Mei continued to accept Kika's feeding and said happily, "Hmph, hmph, I'm planning to hang myself on Kiana and Ryn too~"
"Get away from me, you're disgusting."
Kika used the harshest tone while continuing to perform the most gentle action.
"Ah, open your mouth."
"Mhm~"