Please Bully Me, Miss Villainess!

Chapter 120 : Otherworldly Cuisine Two

"Hmm... I remember Evie saying that soaking the rice for a while first makes it easier to cook? Ah, right, and I need to rinse it a few times first..."

Trying hard to recall the steps she usually takes, Elsa muttered to herself about the things she needed to prepare now,

"First, mince the meat, then marinate it with salt for a bit."

This way it will be more flavorful when added to the pot, and the porridge will be easier to eat.

After preparing the raw ingredients, the rice had also soaked enough,

"Alright... let's begin!"

Elsa rolled up her sleeves, activated the fire stone on the stove, preparing to start cooking the porridge.

"...How much water should I add for it to be right?"

On this point, Evie seemed to have forgotten to mention.

She was running a fever, so she couldn't be as thorough as usual.

...I'll just go by intuition here!

Come to think of it, it's always been Evie cooking for me, I don't think I've cooked for her many times.

Thinking this, Elsa felt like she was a kept mistress who just ate and drank without contributing.

No, no, no, she should be much better than a mistress!

Now is the time to show her worth!!

As for water... adding twice as much water as usual for cooking rice should be enough, right?

Hearing the bubbling sound when opening the pot, Elsa poured in the marinated meat pieces, then covered the earthenware pot lid.

Alright... let the porridge cook for a while.

Taking advantage of this break, next she had to deal with this.

This strange otherworldly food.

Looking at the century egg taken out from the refrigerator, Elsa felt somewhat uneasy.

She washed off the black ash coating the outside of the eggshell, and with trepidation cracked open the century egg's shell.

...Ugh.

It smells so strange!

Although not exactly stinky, the century egg emitted a kind of unsettling odor that normal food would definitely not have!

Coupled with this frightening appearance, it made Elsa feel a sense of rejection from the bottom of her heart.

Although not cooked, the inside had already turned into an elastic solid, with snowflake-like cracks on the semi-transparent egg white, looking quite bizarre.

The yolk inside had turned an even more terrifying color, with only a faint semi-solidified yellow remaining to indicate its former appearance.

In terms of food, after revealing her identity as a person from another world, Evie had started to let herself go,

Due to limited storage methods, Oz Kingdom didn't have many long-term preserved foods, at most things like dried meat and fermented sauces, but Evie would often make some strange pickled foods.

Not only these century eggs, but also pickled vegetables with a strange sour taste, and once she even made a plate of very smelly fish.

"......Ugh!!"

After cutting open the century egg, a sticky green color that made one feel uneasy just by looking at it was left on the silver knife back,

How scary...

What a terrifying food~~!

It's simply a demon's egg!!

Actually, wouldn't it be fine to just cook lean meat porridge without adding this...

No, this is the food she wants to eat!

Right now, Yvonne's first wish is the most important.

And since I've already promised her, I must do my best.

Gurgle gurgle~

The pleasant sound of boiling arose from within the pot.

As time passed, the porridge had become thick, and the rice grains had all burst open,

"...Looks about right."

Turning to low heat, she added the final chopped 'demon's egg', let it cook for a while longer, then added an appropriate amount of salt and chopped green onions.

After adding the green onions, a fragrant aroma spread out.

Crack, crack, crack...

Swoosh swoosh swoosh—

Gurgle gurgle gurgle—

Lying in bed, listening to the sounds coming from the kitchen, a feeling of comfort enveloped her whole body along with the sounds.

No matter what, being taken care of is ultimately a happy thing.

With a click of the fire being turned off, a familiar aroma wafted into the bedroom,

...Is it ready?

Just smelling the aroma made Yvonne's stomach growl.

Looking expectantly towards the door.

"Sorry to keep you waiting~"

Elsa brought over the clay pot, along with a separate spoon and bowl, placing them on the table in the room.

"How are you feeling, do you have the strength to sit up?"

"...I'm not weakened to that extent yet."

Although she said this, her joints still gave painful warnings when she moved her body,

"Let me help you."

She quickly supported her back, then placed the pillow behind her, which finally made her feel a bit better.

"...Thank you."

"Evie... don't be so formal with me."

Expressing thanks instead made Elsa angry,

"If we want to live together, isn't taking care of each other the most basic thing?"

While ladling out the porridge, she said some things that made her blush and her heart race,

"You'll have to get used to it quickly, we'll be together for a long time to come... Here you go."

Be more straightforward?...

Looking at the bowl handed over, Yvonne hesitated for a moment, then made the request that embarrassed her.

"Then... can you feed me?"

"~~~Of course I can!"

This spoiled-like request finally satisfied her.

"Huff... huff..."

Blowing on it repeatedly, only after confirming it wasn't too hot did she bring the spoon to her mouth.

"Here, aah~~♡"

Yvonne opened her mouth with a red face, being fed like this seemed to have not happened since graduating from kindergarten.

...It's a bit embarrassing,

But honestly, it feels quite nice.

"How does it taste...?"

After she ate it, Elsa nervously watched her expression.

She was worried whether she had made the taste she wanted.

Because she didn't have much experience dealing with these ingredients, she had added too little water, making it a bit too thick...

"If it doesn't taste good, please don't force yourself..."

Thinking that the gentle Yvonne might consider her feelings and force herself to finish even if it tasted bad, Elsa felt very anxious.

"That's not the case—"

After eating the first mouthful, she smiled contentedly.

"You can't fake the look of something tasting good."

She took another bite, chewed slowly and swallowed, a happy expression appearing on her face.

"Huff... it's delicious."

Feelings poured into it are the best seasoning to make food delicious.

"Why don't you eat some too? I can't finish this much."

No matter what it is, when two people eat together, the taste is always better.

Although she still had some aversion to those black substances, at Yvonne's urging, Elsa also ladled a bowl for herself.

"...After getting used to it, it actually tastes quite good."

The transparent egg white was very chewy, eating it gave a cool feeling, combined with the thick porridge and the pre-marinated salty and fragrant minced meat, it had a wonderfully harmonious and unique flavor.

"Has Elsa finally understood the deliciousness of century eggs?"

After eating her fill, she finally regained some energy, even having the strength to joke with her.

"...It's just eating it occasionally!"

Regularly eating such frightening food is still a no-go!

"Next time... next time I'll definitely make you unable to say such things."

Lying back down on the bed, Yvonne started thinking about what kind of hometown specialty dish she should serve next time.

"Haha, let's talk about that after you get better..."

A whole bowl of porridge was thus finished by the two of them.

Seeing her expression finally ease up considerably, Elsa also finally showed a relieved smile.

After eating her fill, drowsiness finally set in.

Pulling the curtains for her, Elsa sat down by her bedside, gently leaving a kiss on her forehead.

"'Now then, please rest well, my lady.'"

"...Don't play such strange role-playing games!"

But she didn't seem to intend to stop this embarrassing game,

"'As a substitute to put your mind at ease, may I hold your hand?'"

She cupped Yvonne's right hand with both of hers, light dancing in her eyes.

Wait... this is?

Yvonne only then realized that she was reciting lines from the novel she had been reading recently.

"'...Do you promise not to let go?'"

Her uneasy feelings aligned with the female protagonist in the book, and Yvonne also recited the corresponding lines,

"'Will you really, really not let go of my hand?'"

She shook her head, raising the hand to her cheek, gently nuzzling Yvonne's hand.

"'Until you fall asleep, I will hold your hand just like this.'"

Putting her mind at ease, the 'lady' finally closed her eyes contentedly, falling into a steady sleep.

Maintaining their interlocked fingers, Elsa also lay down on one side of the bed, preparing to take a nap with her, spending a not-so-painful, quiet afternoon in the midst of illness.