Chapter 41: Did Yui's Cookies Get Sweeter?
The scene shifts to the Service Club, where early this morning, Yukinoshita Yukino and Hikigaya Hachiman received an urgent request from Yuigahama Yui.
The commission: she wanted to personally make perfect cookies for a friend, so she hoped Yukino could teach her how to bake.
Such a small matter—Yukino accepted it, thinking it would be easily resolved.
However, this baking lesson quickly devolved into a paranormal incident.
Inside the cooking classroom, the air was thick with a suffocating sweet smell.
That scent was so rich it felt like it could pickle one's lungs into candied fruit. Even the wall clock seemed to have acquired a visible layer of frosting.
Yukinoshita Yukino stared at the tray of cookies fresh from the oven, her brow furrowed so tightly it could crush a fly.
"This... this is way too strange!" Yuigahama Yui held a freshly baked cookie in her hand, her entire face scrunched up like a bitter melon.
She'd only licked a bit of the crumbs on top, but that terrifying sweetness—like swallowing a pound of pure saccharin—shot from her tongue straight to the top of her skull, making her feel like her teeth were wailing in agony.
"I clearly didn't even add sugar this time! I used all sugar substitute! And only a tiny bit! Why did it still come out with lethal-dose sweetness?!"
She stared desperately at the pile of failed attempts beside her. This was her eighteenth failed batch.
Standing nearby, Yukinoshita Yukino frowned, her eyes full of doubt about everything she'd learned in her entire life.
"Strange... I've already measured the recipe down to the milligram. Following this ratio, even someone with your complete lack of culinary talent should at most burn them or leave them raw. There's absolutely no way sugar could spontaneously multiply."
She reached out and picked up a piece, gently breaking it open. Inside, she could actually see viscous liquid like royal jelly stretching into threads.
"Unless... this flour itself is made of sugar?"
"How is that possible?!"
Yui grabbed her hair, on the verge of a breakdown.
"Yukino! Hachiman! This is definitely not my fault, right? This has to be haunted, right?"
Sitting in the corner reading a light novel, Hikigaya Hachiman's dead fish eyes rolled without even lifting his head.
"Yuigahama, if you're trying to cover up the fact that you mixed up sugar and salt, this excuse is pretty pathetic. Also, rather than ghosts, I'm more inclined to think you accidentally dumped an entire jar of honey in there."
"I did not!"
Yui stomped her foot indignantly.
"Could the oven be broken?"
She refused to give up and wanted to check the ingredients again.
Just then, from the corner of her eye, Yui caught a glimpse of an unusual color.
Looking closer, she spotted a strange creature no bigger than her palm, with fluffy cotton-candy-like hair and a pair of translucent wings.
At this moment, it was secretly hovering over Hikigaya's cup—originally black coffee—sprinkling sparkling powder into it.
"What is that?"
Yui rubbed her eyes vigorously, trying to see more clearly.
Meanwhile, completely oblivious, Hikigaya picked up his cup and took a sip. Immediately, his entire face contorted into a scream and he spat it out.
"PFFT—! Cough cough cough! What is this?! Syrup?! This is way too sweet! Not only is there a problem—this coffee is straight-up poisonous!"
Watching this scene, if this had been before, Yuigahama Yui might have thought she was seeing things.
But after experiencing last night's magical tokusatsu show in the park, she was now absolutely certain.
This is magic, right?! Definitely magic causing trouble!
To prevent these two completely oblivious ordinary people from getting dragged into danger, Yui's brain worked quickly and she made up a random excuse.
"Um... Yukino, and Hikigaya-kun! I just remembered I have something to do. Why don't we make cookies another time? You two should go ahead!"
Without giving them a chance to react, she yanked off her apron. Before either of them could process what was happening, she bolted from the classroom like a startled rabbit.
Leaving only Yukino and Hachiman staring at each other, completely baffled about what had gotten into this dumpling today.
Meanwhile, on the first floor of the old school building, in a classroom with a temporary application sign hanging on it, Kazama Chiba had his feet propped on a dust-covered desk, staring blankly at a somewhat outdated laptop.
The screen displayed a high-definition map of the United States, densely marked with various strange red dots.
"Say, Kazama, are you planning a trip to America? That country's desserts are pretty crude—all artificial sweetener taste."
Kerberos lay sprawled on the keyboard without dignity, its two paws clutching a piece of chocolate bigger than its face, chomping away happily with a ring of black smudges around its mouth.
"Shut up and eat."
Kazama Chiba glanced at it and tapped his finger on San Francisco's location on the map.
He was actually searching for talismans.
Though he now had the Rat Talisman, this thing could only function as a battery pack.
If he wanted to live comfortably in this high-risk world crawling with supernatural beings, he needed at least the Horse or Dog Talisman for protection.
And most of the talismans were scattered across distant America.
So later on, Kazama going to America was practically a done deal. He needed to start planning the trip now.
"Hmph, fine, don't tell me. Who cares anyway." Kerberos grumbled indistinctly and swallowed the last bite of chocolate.
"But if you want to run around the world, you should keep an eye out for The Move card among the Clow Cards. As long as it's somewhere you've been before or have a strong mental image of, it can teleport you there instantly. And who knows—combined with your modification abilities, it might have some special effect."
Kazama rubbed his chin.
"The Move card, huh..."
Right.
How could he forget this transportation god-tier card?
If he could get The Move, or that card that could open portals, he could just use photos or maps to grab those talismans scattered around the world.
Even the Shadow Khan masks—maybe he could get involved with those. He wondered if The Shadow card could control the Shadow Khan?
This was a topic worth deep consideration.
Just as Kazama Chiba's thoughts began to wander—
"BANG!"
The already flimsy wooden door was violently shoved open.
"Kazama-kun!!!"
An energetic but clearly panicked voice rushed in along with the dust.
Whoosh—
Kerberos's reaction speed rivaled a professional assassin's.
Within 0.1 seconds of the door being slammed open, it had already thrown away the chocolate in its paws, its body stiffening as it collapsed on the desk, transforming into a lifeless plush toy. Even the messy chocolate-covered appearance instantly froze into "cheap manufacturing paint job."
"Kazama-kun! This is bad! Something terrible happened!"
Yuigahama Yui burst in panting, her chest heaving violently. Her dumpling hairstyle had come slightly undone.
She hadn't even changed out of the flour-stained apron. She looked like a cook who'd just come off the battlefield.
"What's wrong, Yuigahama-san? If you're selling weird dumplings, I'm not hungry right now."
Kazama calmly lowered his feet from the desk and closed the laptop, blocking the map on the screen.
"No, not dumplings! It's cookies! No, wait! It's magic! Magic sprites!"
Yui braced her hands on the desk.
"Just now in the home economics classroom! I was making cookies, and no matter what I did they came out deadly sweet. Then suddenly I saw this tiny, tiny sprite! It sprinkled something in my dough, and then the cookies became super sweet! Sweet enough that even the air felt like syrup! This has to be magic, right? Just like that huge monster last night!"
She didn't care what Kazama's reaction was and dumped everything out like spilling beans from a bamboo tube.
This information was quite substantial, but Kazama's focus clearly wasn't on the mischievous sprite.
He frowned, his gaze like a scalpel as he scrutinized Yui from top to bottom.
"Yuigahama-san."
He interrupted the girl's chattering.
"You still remember what happened last night?"
"Huh? Of course I remember!"
Yui froze for a moment, then nodded as if it were obvious.
"How could I forget something that shocking?! That giant blue wolf, and that black shield... I remember everything clearly!"
"..."
Kazama Chiba cursed internally.
What the hell was that Kaguya woman doing?
Why hadn't Yui's memory been erased?
Even that drunk Hiratsuka Shizuka had been wiped clean, yet this wide-awake witness was completely untouched.
A fish that slipped through the net?
No, a magic user of Kaguya's level couldn't make such a basic mistake.
That woman with the twisted sense of humor definitely did it deliberately.
Did she want to watch the show?
Or was she leaving Yui behind to see how he'd handle this kind of interpersonal problem?
Whatever. Since she was a problem that wouldn't go away, might as well keep her under his nose.
Better than letting her run around and get targeted by something else.
Kazama gripped the Sealing Staff in his hand and gestured toward the monitor.
"Stop pretending. Come out. Since she remembers, you don't need to suffocate yourself."
"Phew—I was dying here!"
Kerberos immediately sprang up like a zombie, gasping for air.
"I told you this woman couldn't be trusted! She didn't get her memory erased! Now look—we've become a circus act!"
Seeing the plushie suddenly speak and fly up, Yui—though mentally prepared—couldn't help but let out a small exclamation.
However, she quickly accepted this development. After all, she'd seen even more outrageous things last night.
"Um... Kazama-kun, can you help me?"
Yui clasped her hands together in a pitiful pleading gesture.
"I know this sounds shameless... but I really want to finish making those cookies! They're... they're very important thank-you gifts! If I don't get rid of that sprite, no matter what I do, they'll fail!"
Kazama looked at her and remained silent for two seconds.
If he refused, this would just be a rampaging Clow Card. Leaving it alone might transform the entire school into a gingerbread house, causing even bigger chaos and more trouble.
Besides, though The Sweet card had no combat ability, in certain specific situations (like turning someone into a cavity patient), it could be quite useful.
"Lead the way."
...
The home economics classroom was located on the other side of the school building.
When the three of them (including one plushie) arrived, the hallway was dead silent.
"Look, look! It's right here!"
Yui pointed at the room with a look that said "praise me."
"I already sent Yukino and Hachiman away! The reason was... uh, anyway I sent them away! There's definitely nobody else here now! Don't you think I'm smart?"
She turned to look at Kazama, her face written all over with "praise my cleverness."
Kazama nodded. Indeed, clearing out unrelated personnel showed at least some brains.
"Mm. Well done."
He nodded, giving his approval.
Then he extended his finger and pointed at the wide-open door.
"Now then, please leave as well."
"Huh?"
Yui froze.
Kazama continued.
"What comes next is professional work time. You stay outside and guard. Don't let anyone in. If someone asks, tell them I'm conducting secret club activity rituals inside."
Yui protested indignantly.
"Wait, wait! I want to go in too! I'm the victim here! Plus those cookies are my hard work... I want to stay and help!"
"What help could you provide? Get in the way?"
Kazama glanced at her.
"Though it looks like a harmless little sprite, it's still a magical creature. If it goes berserk and turns you into a gingerbread person, I won't have time to turn you back. Or would you like to experience being stuffed in an oven?"
"Gin-gingerbread person?!"
Yui shrank back, terrified by this horrifying comparison.
"But... but those are for you..."
She mumbled quietly, her voice as soft as a mosquito, her cheeks taking on a suspicious crimson flush.
"What did you say?"
"N-nothing!"
Yui shook her head violently as if trying to shake the thought out.
"O-okay... then I'll guard outside! I absolutely won't let anyone in! Please be careful, Kazama-kun!"
Though a bit reluctant, she knew going in would only cause more trouble.
"Kerberos, let's go eat."
Kazama ignored the over-imaginative girl and called out to the drooling Kerberos.
Pushing open the door, a rich caramel scent hit him in the face. Even the humidity in the air seemed sweet.
"SLAM."
The door closed mercilessly in Yui's face.
And locked from the inside.
The girl stood in the empty hallway, staring at that tightly shut door, clutching her skirt tightly.
Though she'd been kicked out, she didn't feel much disappointment. Instead, a kind of secret joy called "sharing a secret" quietly grew inside her.
Kazama stood in the center of the classroom.
Kerberos inhaled deeply with an intoxicated expression—that pathetic look made Kazama want to stuff it back in his bag.
"It's definitely The Sweet card! This troublemaker can turn anything into sweets! If we don't seal it quickly, this classroom... no, the entire school will become a gingerbread house!"
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