Chapter 24: Pincotat Grand Festival (2)
"…Then I hereby declare the Pincotat Grand Festival officially open!"
With the announcement, the entire city erupted into a state of revelry. Pincotat was divided into five districts: East, West, South, North, and Central. Each district sold different items, and because of this unique situation, each had its own scoring rules. Each district could earn a maximum of 200 points, and the total score of the five districts determined the overall ranking.
Reinhild and Subaru first headed to the East District. The East District sold cuisines from around the world—the same district they had passed through when entering the city. This time, the East District's rule was to go to shops marked with a "heart" symbol and eat a couple's set meal. Meals were ranked by embarrassment level on a scale of 1 to 5, with points doubling at each level—from 1 point at the lowest to 16 points at the highest. To prevent repeated scoring, each shop could only award one stamp.
"Rein, want to try this? As long as the noodle doesn't break in the air and your hands don't touch the table, you can get 16 points."
—Wow, I didn't expect someone to actually make noodles like this.
Reinhild merely glanced at the noodles on the table and understood. When Subaru was recuperating in the capital, she had once prepared this kind of food herself, but had redone it due to embarrassment.
Indeed, it looked like a bowl of noodles on the surface, but in reality, it was a single strand of noodle. This one was different from what Reinhild had made before—she immediately noticed the small trick in it.
—Ah, I see. The noodle gradually thins, and because it thins so slowly, you barely notice. By the time both eat the last stretch of the noodle, it's extremely thin. If there's even a moment of hesitation, the noodle will naturally break. Only a couple who can naturally reach each other with their mouths will score.
—Reach each other with their mouths…
Reinhild froze for a moment, then grew conflicted.
"Mm, let's try it. I want to challenge the hardest level."
"Then I'll pay."
"I'll find us a seat."
Reinhild glanced around and sat in a corner. Subaru, having finished paying, naturally sat opposite her.
That Subaru… I feel like this trial might not be so simple.
"After all, it's the highest difficulty. But I believe in us, Rein-chan."
"Right. After this, which district do we go to?"
"I'll start eating."
Subaru put his hands together and then started sucking in the noodle.
—So that's how it works!
Three minutes later, Subaru finally the other end of the noodle and Reinhild's mouth. He also noticed the noodle had thinned to a thread-like state. Long familiarity had made Subaru no longer easily embarrassed, and his extensive training gave him excellent control over his body. Thanks to this, he managed to hold still.
-Over, xN
Countless onlookers thought this as they watched. The table between the two couldn't be crossed by one person, and the soaked noodle had begun to slowly break above the water.
None of this surprised Reinhild. In fact, Subaru not retreating but hesitating to approach her was a pleasant surprise. Confirming Subaru's intentions, Reinhild finally stopped hesitating.
"The judge later recalled it like this: It's a display of the girl's flexibility to the extreme. It's as if the red-haired girl had no bones in her body. She stood up in that position, yet her upper body didn't rise at all. It felt like she wasn't sitting while eating the noodle, but standing from the start. Her upper body hung over the table, and her face naturally reached the boy's lips."
All the spectators, including the judges, froze. Normally, the event required a loving couple to naturally lean in over the table and share a passionate kiss, not one person unnaturally bending over to lightly graze the other.
The shop manager hesitated as well, but seeing the shy couple, finally rang the bell.
"Congratulations to both of you for successfully completing the challenge! Who has the stamp sheet?"
"Ah, ah, it's with me. Sorry for the trouble."
Subaru hurriedly handed over the point card and received the valuable 16 points.
Subaru looked at Reinhild's back, still slightly dazed, perhaps affected by the surrounding couples showing off their affection.
Clap~~
—Yes, we are a couple.
Patting his own cheek, Subaru's eyes gleamed with determination.
—Exuding a manly aura.
"Rein, want to get a drink?"
Reinhild looked at the shop with a heart symbol and gave a faint smile, softly saying "Mm."
They walked to the shop. This store had couple drinks in levels 1, 3, and 5.
"How about this one?"
Deciding quickly, Subaru pointed at the level 5 drink. Reinhild slightly nodded, showing no objection. Subaru paid decisively. A few minutes later, a huge drink was placed on the table between them.
It was a roughly 1-liter transparent cup divided into three sections: left, right, and top. The lid had two straws naturally inserted in a heart shape. Having learned from their previous experience, Subaru was careful this time.
"Quite a clever mechanism."
Reinhild, observing Subaru with curiosity, pointed at the cup.
"This must be a test of coordination."
She looked around, confirmed her guess, and continued:
"The drinks on the left and right taste bad individually. But if mixed in the right proportions, they're delicious. The drink we sip will mix in the top section, and the more accurate the proportion, the pinker it becomes. I'll coordinate with you, Subaru."
Reinhild gently brushed her hair aside and lightly bit the straw.
—Inhale. —Exhale.
After a few breaths, Subaru also bit the straw. Their faces were only about ten centimeters apart. Subaru could even see his reflection in Reinhild's eyes.
—Ah, I see. To monitor the mixing properly, our foreheads must nearly touch, otherwise we have to keep staring at each other's faces.
Suppressing his chaotic thoughts, Subaru began drinking slowly. The shared heart gradually turned pink, and the sweet beverage entered Reinhild's mouth as she held her cheeks, a warm feeling spreading from her chest throughout her body.
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