A little while later.
The Shrine.
"Well? Ei, looks good, doesn't it? Doesn't it make your mouth water?"
After heading down the mountain with Ei to pick up some meat and chili peppers, Miko had taken everything to the shrine's kitchen, cooked it up, and set a plate of stir-fried pork with chili peppers down in front of her.
The moment the words were out of her mouth, though, she realized they might have come out slightly wrong.
After all, what she'd just said could easily be read as implying that Kiana's version of the dish was the one that didn't make your mouth water.
Which, to be fair, was exactly true — it just wasn't something you could say out loud.
No, no, no...
I have to make Ei understand what a normal stir-fried pork with chili peppers is actually supposed to look like first!!
After a moment's thought, Miko decided against changing her words or explaining them. Whatever happened, she needed Ei to understand what normal food looked like — that much was non-negotiable.
"It's... not as black? Is that it?"
Under Miko's expectant gaze, Ei tilted her head and asked the question with a slightly puzzled air.
Miko: "...???"
The two of them stared at each other across the table. Neither said a word. It was, objectively speaking, rather awkward.
"Miko, did you forget? There are a lot of colors I can't see."
Watching the expression on Miko's face shift from eager anticipation to pure bewilderment, Ei said it simply, with her usual calm.
"Oh, right... I really did forget..."
The realization spread across Miko's face all at once. Now she understood.
She had forgotten that about Ei.
And now, at last, she finally understood why Ei had shown absolutely zero reaction to the culinary catastrophe Kiana had produced earlier.
So that's why...
Ei can't see most colors...
And she can barely taste anything either...
So she had no idea Kiana's stir-fried pork was anything out of the ordinary...
Quietly turning this over in her mind, Miko suddenly found herself at a complete loss for how to explain to Ei the difference between her own dish and Kiana's disaster.
Because from Ei's perspective, Miko's version was, at most, "not as black." The taste? Functionally indistinguishable.
Haah...
I'll just wait for Kaito to get back and hash it out with him...
With Ei's particular circumstances back in mind, Miko quietly gave up on trying to explain what normal food was supposed to be. There was simply no way to get through to her about it.
"Then I'll give it a try."
Since Miko had brought chopsticks, Ei decided she may as well taste Miko's version. She couldn't expect to get much out of it flavor-wise — but the effort had been made, so tasting it was the least she could do.
"Go ahead, Ei."
Miko gave a small nod and sat down across from her. She knew perfectly well that Ei was only tasting it out of politeness. Given Ei's condition, Kiana's stir-fry and her own probably tasted more or less identical.
And so, under Miko's watchful eye, Ei picked up a piece of pork with her chopsticks, then a bit of pepper, and tasted them both.
Hmm...
Not sure how this is any different from what Lumine makes...
The thought came to her the moment she swallowed. But there was nothing to be done about that.
"So? Ei — can you tell any difference?"
Even though she was fairly certain Ei probably couldn't distinguish much, Miko asked anyway, clinging to the faint hope that something might come through.
Surely her stir-fried pork was at least a little different from the atrocity Kiana had produced. Kiana's dish had been beyond salvaging — calling it food at all was generous.
She was, of course, sensitive to Kiana's feelings — but the truth was, what Kiana had made was genuinely terrifying, and "bad" didn't even begin to cover it.
Which meant she had to find a way to help Kiana improve. She just needed Ei or Kaito to recognize the problem first.
"Mm... it does seem... a little different, maybe."
Setting down her chopsticks, Ei gave a slow, somewhat uncertain nod, as though she were trying to process a faint impression she couldn't quite pin down.
Because she genuinely had noticed something slightly different — she just had no idea how to describe it. It simply felt unlike the other.
"Then... in what way is it different, Ei?"
Miko, who had long since stopped expecting a meaningful answer, perked up immediately.
Whatever the case, getting Ei to register that her cooking and Kiana's cooking were actually two different things was the important part.
"I'm not sure... I just feel like it's different."
Ei shook her head slowly and admitted she didn't know — only that it felt different.
"Well, it's perfectly natural that you'd notice a difference. As for Kiana... hmm... how do I put this... the food she made... it just feels like she doesn't know how to cook. Actually, it's not a 'feeling' — she genuinely doesn't know how to cook."
In the end, even after turning it over several times, Miko still couldn't bring herself to put it bluntly. She trailed off and on, only managing to convey, in a roundabout way, that Kiana had absolutely no idea what she was doing in a kitchen.
"Wendy says the same thing about her — but they both seem about the same to me."
Watching Miko fumble through her sentence, Ei mentioned that Wendy had said something similar.
"Well of course they seem the same to you, Ei — you can barely taste anything."
Miko let out a helpless laugh.
Still, at least Ei had picked up some difference. That was better than nothing. If she'd noticed nothing at all, Miko would've had no choice but to wait for Kaito to come back.
Oh, right, right...
Maybe I should just go fetch Wendy...
Let her explain it to Ei...
Though knowing Wendy, she's probably already tried...
But then again, trying to explain it to Ei is no easy feat...
It's fine. This time I'm here!
Wendy had crossed her mind, and after a moment's thought Miko spoke up: "Where is that little rascal Wendy right now, anyway? I only saw her this morning."
"No idea. Probably out somewhere, or maybe back at the inn."
Ei shook her head slowly in response. She'd been here at the shrine for a while now, so she had no way of knowing where Wendy had gotten to.
Though, since Kiana had just stepped away, when she came back she'd be able to say where Wendy was.
Of course, once Kiana came back and mentioned that Mobius had gone missing, Miko's attention would almost certainly shift entirely to that.
"That girl really does love to wander off."
Hearing Ei's answer, Miko let out a mildly exasperated sigh.
There was simply nothing to be done. With things as they were, she genuinely had no idea where she'd even begin to look for Wendy.
____
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