"Just average," Madam Herta remarked. "That means it's exceptionally well-cooked."
Hearing this assessment from Madam Herta, Lumina nodded in satisfaction.
Who was Madam Herta? A member of the Genius Society, the Emanator of Erudition. To receive even an "average" rating from her felt like a champagne-worthy achievement.
As one of the Cosmos's most influential figures, Madam Herta undoubtedly dined on the finest delicacies daily, making her palate notoriously discerning.
Yet Lumina, a novice at grilling fish, had managed to earn an "average" rating from Herta.
I can actually look forward to eating my own grilled fish, Lumina thought.
"Hey, want a bite?"
"Try the grilled fish you cooked yourself."
Just as Lumina, brimming with confidence, prepared to grill another fish for herself, Herta paused thoughtfully. Then, she held out the half-eaten fish in her hand, presenting it directly to Lumina's face.
Though Herta had called it "average," the truth was, the grilled fish tasted rather awful.
Herta's "average" rating was simply because Lumina had cooked it herself.
If anyone else had served her this fish, Herta would have tossed it aside immediately and interrogated them: Are you jealous of the great Madam Herta? Did you try to poison me?!
Seeing Lumina fidgeting, as if she wanted to roast another fish for herself, Herta hastily handed her the grilled fish.
Hmm... this wasn't to lighten Lumina's workload, of course.
Rather, Herta feared that if Lumina roasted a second fish, she might gain experience and fail to replicate the unique, utterly revolting flavor of the first attempt...
Just how inedible this fish truly was—Herta had to make Lumina taste it for herself.
So, ignoring the fact that she had already eaten half the fish, Herta thrust her half-eaten portion toward Lumina just as she was about to start grilling her own.
"..."
Regardless of Herta's true motives, offering her half-eaten food to someone else's mouth was undoubtedly an intimate gesture.
Hearing this, the three people silently roasting and eating fish across the campfire instantly perked up their ears.
Especially Castorice. She looked like a little hamster, holding the grilled fish sideways and taking tiny bites with her small mouth, her cheeks puffed out busily.
But in reality, Castorice's attention wasn't on the fish in her hand at all.
Castorice's attention was entirely focused on Lumina and Herta across the campfire.
She stared intently at the roasting fish, but her peripheral vision kept darting toward the pair. Her busy hands were merely a facade, masking her true thoughts.
As a bookish young girl who spent most of her time at home reading and writing, Castorice sensed an unusual aura about Lumina and Herta. This aura was unmistakably the same one she had encountered countless times in the pages of her books.
Driven by this revelation, Castorice grew unusually serious, though she still dared not be too bold.
At least, she didn't dare stop her work and openly observe the pair's playful banter like the others beside her.
Feigning nonchalance, Castorice listened intently, pretending to be absorbed in her tasks.
"..."
Lumina remained largely unconcerned by the gazes of the trio, including Castorice.
Well... she was slightly concerned, but only about Castorice.
Lumina found Castorice's current demeanor utterly endearing.
If not for the need to temporarily resolve her issue with Herta, Lumina would have already rushed over to tease... no, to play with Castorice.
Without much thought, Lumina shifted her attention from Castorice to Herta, who was holding a half-eaten grilled fish in front of her face.
"Uh..." Lumina stammered, glancing at the half-eaten fish Herta was offering. She hesitated for a moment before gently brushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear. Then she leaned forward, parted her lips slightly, and took a small bite of the fragrant fish.
For Herta's sake... and, well, for my own too.
Lumina bit into a corner of the fish that Herta hadn't touched, avoiding any indirect kissing.
...
Before Lumina could say or think anything more, as she chewed the fish, her exquisitely flawless face suddenly darkened.
This is awful... What kind of garbage food is this?
Is this like chewing on raw wax? Why does it taste so awful?
With each chew, Lumina's expression grew increasingly pained.
Well... Although Lumina's current expression mirrored the "grimace" that normal people wear, on her exquisite face, it took on a uniquely captivating charm.
Gulp...
Even if the fish she'd grilled herself tasted awful, she had to force herself to swallow it.
Especially since Herta, with her expressionless face, had already eaten more than half of the fish. How could she possibly lose to Herta?
So, after chewing countless times, accompanied by a gulp, Lumina finally managed to swallow the lightly bitten piece of fish.
But even after swallowing it, the lingering taste in her mouth made her involuntarily wrinkle her brow.
To be honest, this grilled fish wasn't even remotely palatable.
In fact, the fish tasted nothing like food at all.
It didn't even resemble something edible...
So how on earth had Herta managed to eat it?
Lumina turned to look at the half-eaten fish in Herta's hand, a flicker of suspicion in her eyes.
Was Herta deliberately eating half of it, enduring such a horrible taste, just to make me take a bite too?
But that thought was instantly dismissed.
After feeding Lumina a single bite, Herta took back the grilled fish and continued eating it herself.
Her expression remained unchanged, as if the food in her hand truly was just as "average" as she had described it. Nothing particularly praiseworthy, nor anything worth complaining about.
Lumina wholeheartedly agreed with the assessment that there was nothing praiseworthy about it—unless one considered "not being inedible" a merit.
As for flaws worth complaining about, to be honest, Lumina could list a whole litany of them.
Yet, the very flaws Lumina found glaring seemed utterly trivial to Herta?
Is this for real? Lumina wondered, watching Herta eat with evident relish. She couldn't help but doubt whether the problem lay with her own palate or Herta's.
After all, even Lumina, the creator of this dreadful concoction, couldn't stomach it herself. It was truly unimaginable what mindset Herta must possess to actually consume this thing...
To this, Lumina could only offer her sincere admiration.
However, since everyone has their own preferences, Lumina didn't voice her doubts directly.
She respected Herta's actions.
If Herta ever wanted grilled fish again, Lumina would grill it for her.
Hmm... As for myself, I'll avoid eating it if possible.
If she had to eat the entire fish herself, Lumina would likely fall into despair—the kind of despair that only the arrival of one hundred beautiful girls could pull her out of...
"..."
While Lumina was inwardly marveling at Herta's actions, Herta had already finished devouring the grilled fish.
Apart from the head, tail, and bones, Herta had consumed every morsel of flesh from the body.
Witnessing this, Lumina felt genuine admiration for Herta for the first time—the kind of willing, humble admiration that comes from truly recognizing someone's superior capabilities.
Of course, Lumina would never voice such sentiments aloud.
Admiration wasn't submission. She wasn't about to shout, "Madam Herta, you are peerless in the world!"
Ignoring Herta's gaze after finishing the fish, Lumina continued grilling her own fish.
"..."
Across from them, the three who had been observing the interaction began to busy themselves with their own tasks.
Stelle and Trianne didn't dwell on it, quickly returning to what they had been doing.
As for Castorice, she was occupied with something entirely different from her earlier tasks.
There was a crucial detail that Lumina, Herta, Stelle, and Trianne had all missed, but Castorice had noticed.
It was the spot where Lumina had taken a small bite...
Herta had devoured the entire fish, naturally consuming the very spot Lumina had tasted earlier.
Which meant...
They had indirectly kissed!
This discovery had ignited Castorice's imagination. At that very moment, her mind was already weaving a fantastical story about Lumina and Herta.
None of the others present had any inkling of the story unfolding in Castorice's mind.
All they knew was that she seemed a bit silly, occasionally giggling to herself, making them wonder if she had been affected by something in the forest...
As time passed, their dinner by the campfire came to an end, and before they knew it, it was time to rest.
Trianne and the others hadn't brought any tents, but fortunately, they had brought some blankets.
Using blankets as beds and the open sky as their covers turned out to be a surprisingly enjoyable way to sleep.
Yet even under these circumstances, they had to take turns standing guard throughout the night to prevent wild animals from attacking them in their sleep.
This duty naturally fell to Lumina.
After all, for Lumina,
though the night had brought some minor disturbances, they were all insignificant.
Well... mostly minor disturbances with Herta.
Failing to secure some alone time with Castorice that night was something Lumina deeply regretted.
But fortunately, they still had several days of travel ahead of them.
Missing just one night wasn't a big deal.
She'd just make it happen tomorrow.
-
The journey from Okhema to the Grove of Epiphany wasn't particularly long, but it certainly wasn't short either. At the group's walking pace, it would take several days to reach their destination.
Since there was no pressing urgency—this was essentially a paid trip to deliver a message—Trianne Castorice and the others weren't in any particular hurry.
But Lumina was growing anxious.
After days on the road, her relationship with Castorice hadn't progressed even a fraction of an inch. This left Lumina somewhat puzzled.
Not only had there been no progress, but Lumina also sensed that Castorice's gaze toward her had become... peculiar.
Especially when Lumina was chatting with Herta, Castorice's gaze would become incredibly... well, a feeling Lumina couldn't quite describe.
Is it like how my fans look at me? she wondered. But it feels slightly different...
Lumina couldn't quite put her finger on it. Still, since Castorice's gaze was similar to her fans', it must be a good thing, right?
On the final day of their journey, as Lumina walked alongside Herta, feeling Castorice's gaze boring into her back, she muttered to herself.
"Hey, what's up with your target girlfriend's weird looks?"
"Is there some kind of pervert lurking in Amphoreus?"
"Has she been possessed?"
Lumina wasn't the only one who noticed Castorice's gaze; Herta felt it too.
Herta found Castorice's gaze particularly perplexing.
At first, she suspected Lumina had done something to Castorice behind her back.
But after days of observation, Herta realized the situation was far more complex.
Whenever she and Lumina were together, behaving even slightly affectionately, Herta could sense a... joy? Bewilderment? Emanating from Castorice.
Like Lumina, Herta couldn't quite name the emotion.
After enduring this for several days, Herta finally approached Lumina and asked outright, "I have no idea. I'm just as confused as you are about why Castorice is acting like this."
Lumina, of course, couldn't offer any helpful answers. She was equally clueless, equally curious, and equally eager to ask.
"Also, what do you mean by 'little girlfriend'?" Lumina muttered, recalling Herta's earlier term. "I just want to be close friends with Castorice. There's nothing remotely romantic about it, right? Why would Herta jump to that conclusion?"
"Oh, I picked that up from a short video recently," Herta replied casually.
Slightly turning her head, Lumina glanced at Castorice behind her and continued, "Why don't you just ask her yourself?"
"After all, with your charm, if you persist relentlessly, no one can refuse your requests."
"Oh? Is Madam Herta also one of these 'anyone'?" Hearing this, Lumina didn't follow Castorice's lead. Instead, a faint smile appeared on her face as she asked Herta in a slightly ambiguous tone.
"..."
Playing with fire, but Herta didn't care.
Crossing her arms, she hummed softly, "Guess. Guess if I'm one of these 'anyone'?"
Herta didn't give a direct answer.
But the implication was clear enough.
Madam Herta was one of these 'anyone'.
Hmm...
As Lumina processed this in her mind, Castorice's inexplicable gaze reappeared.
"Um..."
At the same moment, Herta beside her sensed the same gaze. The two exchanged glances, each seeing the other's bewilderment and confusion.
And they both understood one thing:
Regardless of Castorice's true intentions, they needed to clear up this "misunderstanding."