After finishing their cold drinks, the three continued to explore the zoo. By the time they finished seeing everything, it was already noon.
"We got to see so many animals with our own eyes, the zoo is even more fun than I imagined." Yamada Elf put her hands on her hips, her radiant blonde hair fluttering gently in the breeze. She looked at Sora with expectant eyes, her voice crisp.
"Sora, let's come back and play next week, okay?"
Sora replied calmly:
"You find it novel because it's your first time here. You won't like it if you come back next week."
"Then let's come back after a longer while." Yamada Elf turned her head to seek an ally. "Mahiru, what do you say?"
"Umm..."
Angel-sama pursed her pink, moist lips, her voice gentle:
"Coming to play at the zoo is indeed very happy, I feel my mood has improved a lot... But next week is too soon to come play again. We can wait until next month to revisit this place."
"That's such a long time from now..." Yamada Elf tilted up her small face, her voice expectant.
"Let's go to the aquarium next week, okay?"
"We'll talk about next week's matters next week." Sora looked down at her.
"By the way, aren't you hungry?"
"I am a bit hungry." Hearing this, Yamada Elf covered her stomach.
"After walking so much, my stomach has completely flattened."
Angel-sama's voice was gentle, softly proposing:
"Shall we have lunch before heading back?"
"How about going to eat yakiniku [Japanese BBQ]?" Sora pondered for two seconds and said softly, "I remember when I came to play as a kid, there was a yakiniku restaurant right in front of the zoo. The food was very good."
"I want to eat yakiniku!" Yamada Elf's eyes instantly brightened.
"Let's go, let's go!"
"..."
A moment later.
The three arrived at a yakiniku restaurant and sat down in an empty corner.
Although there were many customers, the staff's efficiency was quite high. Before long, they brought out the ordered ingredients and hurried away.
"We have to grill the meat ourselves." Sora explained while distributing the grilling tools. "This is an affordable yakiniku restaurant, so they don't provide a grilling service."
"I've really never grilled meat myself before. The chef at home always handled it." Yamada Elf enthusiastically reached out her small hand.
"Sora, give me the tongs."
Sora looked at her. "Are you sure you're okay with it?"
"Sora looks down on people!" Yamada Elf proudly lifted her chin.
"I am a genius beautiful girl author. Although I've never grilled meat before, I'm definitely a genius at it too!"
"..."
Angel-sama didn't speak, just quietly grilled the meat by the side.
While Elf was still clumsily asking what to grill first, Angel-sama had already placed a perfectly grilled piece of thinly sliced beef onto Elf's plate:
"Elf, try it."
"Thank you, Mahiru~"
Yamada Elf's eyes rapidly brightened, happily expressing her thanks.
"Mmm~" With one bite, Yamada Elf quickly gave a thumbs up.
"The taste is super good."
Sora couldn't help but look toward Angel-sama with an expectant gaze.
"I'm sorry." Angel-sama looked up, her voice indifferent.
"Sora-kun is so skilled, you should grill it yourself."
Sora: "..."
"This mushroom is so delicious..."
The blonde loli's cheeks puffed rhythmically, her voice muffled:
"But I can only fit half a mushroom in my mouth at a time, why is it called a 'mouth mushroom' (button mushroom)?"
Sora looked at her speechlessly:
"Your mouth is just too small."
Yamada Elf instinctively retorted: "I'm not small!"
"'Mouth mushroom' doesn't mean it's exactly the size of a mouthful." Sora handed Angel-sama a piece of lettuce and casually explained, "The 'mouth' here actually refers to a place name... The full name refers to mushrooms transported from Inner Mongolia and sold in Zhangjiakou."
"Eh?"
Yamada Elf's beautiful eyes widened, an expression of mixed feelings appearing on her small face:
"Suddenly, it doesn't feel cute at all."
It's just food. As long as it tastes good, that's enough. Whether the name is cute or not is completely unimportant, alright!
"Similarly, there's the Jiwei shrimp (Metapenaeus ensis). It's not a biological species." Sora picked up a Jiwei shrimp with his tongs and placed it on the grill.
"The full name is 'Base Enclosure Cultured Shrimp'. As long as it's farmed in an enclosure by the sea, it's called a Jiwei shrimp."
And the Shatang orange (sugar mandarin). It's not because it's as sweet as sugar, but because the village of origin is named Shatang Village, hence the name Shatang orange!
Halfway through the meal, Mahiru accidentally got some dipping sauce on her hand. She stood up:
"Sora-kun, Elf, you two eat first. I'm going to the restroom for a bit."
"..."
Sora naturally didn't follow her. While eating and drinking, he suddenly heard a soft noise.
"A-Achoo~!"
Sora instinctively looked up and saw Yamada Elf pinching her nose with her left hand and covering her mouth with her right. Her eyes were wide and round, her expression surprisingly vivid and cute.
"Mmm..."
Seeing Sora looking at her, Yamada Elf's body trembled slightly. Her cheeks suddenly puffed up; she clearly wanted to sneeze again but forcefully held it in.
Sora suggested:
"Try drinking some water?"
"Okay."
Yamada Elf hurriedly picked up her cup and took a sip of ice water.
But just a few seconds later, Yamada Elf's expression changed slightly, and she hurriedly covered her pink lips again:
"Achoo~"
"I-Idiot Servant!" Yamada Elf's small face quickly flushed red, glaring resentfully. "Drinking water is completely useless!"
"I just said 'try it', I didn't say it would definitely work." Sora slowly took a sip of water. "Also, there's no need to hold it in. Sneeze if you need to sneeze. Even the Prime Minister sneezes sometimes."
"I don't want to..."
Yamada Elf turned her small face away, pinching her nose, forcefully suppressing the urge to sneeze again.
She had completed her bridal training and graduated with a perfect score. She clearly remembered one of the bridal rules: never be discourteous in front of your husband.
Although Sora wasn't her husband yet, he was already a husband-in-training. Sneezing continuously in front of him would definitely be very embarrassing, right?
So she had to hold it in!
She didn't want to be embarrassed!
Japanese people are indeed very concerned about being discourteous. For example, in the Edo period, for women of high status, farting was a matter of life and death. Some women would commit suicide out of embarrassment after farting at an omiai (matchmaking) table. Thus, a specialized profession was born: the 'Farting Bhikkhuni' (Farting Nun).
These were ordinary women who followed their mistresses. Once they smelled their mistress fart, they would immediately step forward and claim it was their own fart, thereby alleviating their mistress's embarrassment.
As for whether people would see through the lie... even if others suspected, no one would say it to their face.
"Stop holding it in." Sora took out his phone, opened Niconico, found a video he had saved, and handed it to Yamada Elf.
"If your nose feels uncomfortable, just sneeze properly. Forcefully holding it in is very dangerous."
"Eh?"
Yamada Elf widened her eyes, curiously looking at the phone, and was instantly shocked:
"A man forcefully held back a sneeze during a meeting, and his lung actually ruptured?!"
"Humans are actually surprisingly fragile in some areas." Sora said casually.
"Throwing out your back while sneezing, injuring your neck while sneezing, and there's even news of pregnant women bleeding from sneezing and having to deliver prematurely. These are actually very common."
"So scary. Whether it's sneezing or holding it in, it's super dangerous, alright!" Yamada Elf couldn't help but complain. Suddenly, her eyes lit up. "Ah, I remember now!"
"What?"
Sora looked over curiously.
"I saw a method before that is said to cure sneezing..."
As Yamada Elf spoke, she stood up, walked over to sit beside Sora, and looked at him with burning eyes:
"Servant, close your eyes!"
A bad premonition surged in his heart. Sora looked at her warily:
"Why do you want me to close my eyes?"
"Oh my, Servant, hurry up and close your eyes. Don't ask so many questions."
"I refuse."
"Ugh—"
Yamada Elf puffed out her cheeks unhappily. Her gaze shifted, and she suddenly lowered her voice, her tone dark:
"Pervert Servant, you wouldn't want the secret of our kiss to be known by Sagiri, would you?"
Sora: "..."
The nerve!
To actually turn around and threaten me, you're clearly twisting logic and subverting the natural order!
"Heave-ho~"
Taking advantage of Sora being stunned, Yamada Elf quickly launched a sneak attack, leaning in directly for a kiss. Her lips touched his fleetingly, like a dragonfly skimming the water. Then, she crossed her arms over her chest, turned her flushed small face away, and said shyly:
"I read in a manga that a sudden scare can make people forget to sneeze... I was just verifying it just now, it's absolutely not because I'm envious of Servant and Mahiru kissing so many times!"
Sora: "..."