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“Heh, heh….”

Mariel sat down on the floor, exhausted, catching her breath.

“It’s just purification, but even with the power of the Saint, it feels this overwhelming… This isn’t just an ordinary curse…”

I turned my gaze away from Mariel, who was muttering incomprehensible words, and looked back at the table.

For some reason, my meat pie was beautifully ablaze.

The flames were so mesmerizing that I could only stare blankly at them—

Wait, no!

I immediately got up and grabbed a nearby blanket.

Then, I swung the blanket toward my flaming meat pie, trying to extinguish the fire.

However, my efforts were thwarted by Mariel, who was desperately trying to stop me.

“No! There might still be a curse! If you’re not careful, you could collapse just like that child!”

The image of her earlier exhaustion was gone, replaced by a ferocious strength I couldn’t fathom for someone so small.

Mariel’s arms wedged tightly under my armpits, displaying an unbelievable strength I wouldn’t expect from her delicate frame.

“Let go, senpai! It’s my hard-made meat pie…!”

“Oh no, someone help! I think she’s already enchanted!”

At Mariel’s words, only Yuli remained by Selian’s side, while Anne quickly rushed to my aid, wrapping her arms around my waist.

There was no resisting against Anne’s overwhelming strength.

In the end, I could only helplessly watch as my meat pie transformed into a pile of charred remains.

Instead of shining like I had imagined, my precious dish had self-combusted and departed for the heavens.

…Although no one on the ground except for Selian tasted it, I suppose the Goddess up there would enjoy it.

I’m truly proud that you were my dish. It was nice to have you, even for a moment. Farewell.

Boom!

As if the heavens were aware of my sorrow, thunder roared outside the window, and a sudden downpour began.

“Phew… That was quite a foe. Are you feeling better now?”

Wiping the sweat from her forehead, Mariel asked me.

What on earth was this Saint trying to say?

There’s no way my sadness over sending my meat pie away could easily dissipate.

“Oh! Luckily, there’s still some left that we served on our plates…”

The only thing burned was the meat pie on the table, and we had portions set aside on our plates for tasting.

“Oh no! I dropped a piece on the floor while helping Selian! I was really looking forward to it; what a shame!”

“Me too!”

But when I turned my head at the sudden exclamations, just as Yuli and Anne said, my two pieces of meat pie had thudded to the ground.

Some were burned, and some had fallen to the floor, leaving only the piece that Selian had taken a bite out of.

“I guess I’ll have to share Selian’s. With five of us… no, including Mariel, we won’t even get a proper bite, but it can’t be helped…”

Even if the guests came suddenly, it wouldn’t be polite to just send them away.

“Oh, no! Wait…!”

However, Anne was flustered at my words.

Perhaps she was lamenting that her already reduced portion would shrink further due to Mariel’s share.

“Um… shouldn’t we ask Selian for permission?”

Now that I thought about it, I had forgotten to ask Selian, the actual owner of the pie pieces.

She had definitely been conscious earlier, but she was so quiet, I overlooked it.

“Selian?”

I called out to her to seek her approval, but for some reason, there was no response.

Instead, she had her thumb stuck in her mouth, sucking on it, and was simply gazing at me blankly.

“Selian…?”

I approached, holding the plate she had been eating from in one hand, and found her blue eyes, usually so benevolent and intelligent, shining brightly as she looked at me.

“Wow! El! Selian wants to play with El!”

As I got closer, she pulled her finger out of her mouth and welcomed me with a cheer, speaking in a cute, childish tone.

“Um, Selian…?”

“Hehe. Selian really likes El!”

Then Selian hugged me tightly, rubbing her face all over my belly.

What kind of new game was this?

“Um… I don’t quite know how to respond to that, but may I ask you something first?”

“Umm? What is it?”

Hugging my waist, Selian tilted her head up at me.

“About the leftover meat pie. Is it okay if we share it among friends? Mariel can join too.”

At last, Selian’s gaze shifted from my face to the meat pie I was holding.

Surely, with her kind nature, she would give me permission…

“Eep!”

However, for some reason, Selian suddenly began to squirm as if startled.

She was clinging tightly to me and thrashing about, causing my body to sway.

In the midst of this commotion, the last piece of pie on the plate…

Thudd!

Was suddenly kissed by the floor.

“Whooo! Selian won’t eat that!”

Whether she realized it or not, Selian continued to act like a child, shaking her head violently, adamantly refusing.

But whether she refused or not, there were no more pieces of pie left to eat.

“My meat pie… the last remaining piece…”

I wanted to let my friends taste it so much…

“Selian…”

As I mourned the meat pie that met its end on the cold floor, Selian somehow found her way back beside me.

Hearing her voice right next to me, I turned to find a drop of drool hanging from her mouth.

Then, she swallowed it as if she had found something delicious.

“I like El better than that! El is tastier!”

U-Um, Selian? Wait…!

“Eep!?”

Suddenly, she pushed me down, climbed on top, and began biting my earlobe, licking my neck.

I tried to push her away, but each time she took a taste of me, a thrilling sensation shot through my body, causing me to weaken.

“Ugh… help…”

Realizing escaping by my own strength was impossible, I reached out to where the other friends were, seeking help.

But for some reason, they all shielded their faces with both hands, peeking out just enough to watch.

“Well, since Selian bravely ate that, I suppose that’s some leeway…?”

Yuli muttered incomprehensibly.

Stop just watching and help…

“Hehe… So this is the taste…”

“Um…”

In the end, I was freed only after Selian, exhausted from all the commotion, fainted.

Even in her sleep, she continued to suck on my fingers.

…What on earth just happened?

*
“Oh, you’re awake?”

By the time I had cleaned up the chaos from our little adventure, Selian rubbed her eyes and got up.

“Hmm…? Did I fall asleep?”

“Don’t you remember? You suddenly…”

“Wah! Wah!”

Suddenly, Anne intervened between us, waving her arms and shouting loudly.

What is with Anne’s sudden outburst?

Selian seemed to suffer a headache from Anne’s loud voice, pressing her fingers to her temples and squinting her eyes.

“Ugh… I feel like something is coming back… Anyway, I’m sorry for suddenly falling asleep when we were supposed to have a cooking competition. Let’s get started quickly.”

“Huh? What are you talking about? We already finished tasting everything.”

“What? Tasting? We haven’t even started cooking yet. Oh! You must have finished while I was asleep. What a shame. I really wanted to try El’s dish…”

What on earth is Selian talking about?

“My dish was only tasted by Selian. Just a bite, though.”

“What do you mean? I don’t even remember eating or seeing any dish…”

“I’m talking about the meat pie. Since the other friends couldn’t eat even a single bite, can you express its flavor even a little?”

Of course, even with Selian’s outstanding vocabulary, it would be incredibly hard to articulate the taste of my incredible meat pie.

But if Selian explained it, Anne, Yuli, and Mariel would be able to imagine the flavor to some extent.

“Huh? Meat pie… hic!”

Suddenly, Selian hiccupped loudly.

“Why am I… hic! Hiccupping…?”

In the end, due to Selian’s unexpected hiccup, the taste of my meat pie would forever remain a mystery.

…Well, I could always make another meat pie later.

No, not just one. I should make enough for all my friends and Mariel so they can eat heartily.

Next time, I’ll make sure to take my time and put even more effort into it than this time.