Li Ke rubbed his hands together, intending to move Erina to a clean room, and then do this and that, successfully familiarizing himself with Erina's track, and restarting his competitive journey.
Li Ke's hand slowly reached towards Erina's chest, and Erina, pretending to be affected, began to breathe rapidly.
It would be impossible for her not to be excited.
The two were forced apart just as they were enjoying the experience, and Erina hadn't tasted that feeling in a long time. So, when she felt Li Ke's hand getting closer and closer to her breasts, which she had always loved, Erina's breathing became not only rapid but also heavy.
But—
"Yo! Erina! I heard you brought a man back? And I heard the old man is very angry."
A woman with white hair and red eyes, whose figure was even better than Erina's, suddenly pushed open the door and entered the room, just in time to see Erina's expectant expression and Li Ke's hand almost touching her ample breasts. Erina was startled awake and immediately stood up, moving away from Li Ke's hand, causing Li Ke to cover his face in pain.
Seeing this, the white-haired, voluptuous girl couldn't help but cover her mouth, a mischievous smile spreading across her face.
"Oh, looks like I came at the wrong time."
Although she said this, she showed no embarrassment whatsoever, simply watching Li Ke, Erina, and the bodyguard who had also been startled awake and was getting up from the ground.
Erina looked at her cousin, feeling a headache coming on. She knew the cousin had come because she was worried about her being bullied by Li Ke.
But things had come to this point, he'd already done all the bullying he could, and Erina had even enjoyed it. This whole romantic comedy-like scene was just too ridiculous.
She sighed, not embarrassed, but simply indifferent.
"What are you doing here? Alice, you should be preparing for the Shokugeki, right?"
Looking at the composed Erina, her dear cousin Alice Nakiri couldn't help but gasp. At first, she felt sorry for Erina's forced mature demeanor, but after Erina disappeared and reappeared, not only was the curse of the God Tongue gone, but she had also become much more mature and reliable.
This made her, as the older sister, very dissatisfied, feeling that she hadn't fulfilled her role as an older sister.
But no matter how they investigated, all they could find was that the person who caused Erina's drastic change was named Li Ke, and judging from Erina's behavior, he was already dead.
Although Erina's medical report clearly stated everything, Alice Nakiri still wanted to know what Li Ke and Erina had gone through.
"Put away your curiosity, Alice. Perhaps it's better for you not to know too much. My relationship with Li Ke is more stable than you think, and most importantly, regardless of what you all think, I've made my decision."
Erina sighed helplessly. She looked at her cousin, knowing her cousin meant well, but the feeling of being worried for nothing still made her feel uneasy.
But she didn't dislike it.
"I just want to know who this genius cousin is who can captivate me. Is it a super chef, or a magical chef from China? Hey, you're called Li Ke, right? What's your specialty?"
Li Ke seriously considered his specialty in front of these professional chefs…
"American style Lead Sauce."
He answered, but…
Alice looked at Li Ke speechlessly, then at Erina.
"Huh? What's that? And you don't even speak Japanese? I say, Erina, you didn't speak Chinese before either, did you? How did you all end up together?"
Erina sighed again. It wasn't that she didn't trust her cousin; after all, if Li Ke really wanted to do the spice business, the cousin would find out.
What she didn't trust was the attendant the other party brought—that person named Kurokiba Ryo. She couldn't trust him.
Although he was a confidant Alice had cultivated since childhood, she didn't really know him, and he wasn't entirely a member of the Nakiri family, so necessary precautions were essential.
As for her bodyguards...
Their families all worked for the Nakiri family, for generations; their loyalty was beyond question.
"This isn't a suitable topic of discussion here."
Erina's words immediately angered Alice. She glared at Erina, knowing this was directed at her followers and subordinates.
"Fine, come home with me. I'll explain everything."
Looking at the sulking Alice, Erina sighed. She had originally planned to spend more time alone with Li Ke, but now it seemed she had to enter the cold, calculating world of interests sooner rather than later.
If Li Ke were a genius chef, marrying her wouldn't be a problem at all; it would be a matter of him marrying into her family.
But unfortunately, Li Ke's culinary talent was...thinking of the dishes he had made, Erina couldn't help but shake her head.
Just average. He couldn't compare to her, let alone be qualified to enter Totsuki Academy; graduating on his own was impossible.
Most importantly...
Li Ke actually didn't like cooking.
That alone destined him to never become a genius in this field.
Thinking of this, Erina looked at Li Ke.
"Want to go?"
"Of course! Actually, if you hadn't suddenly thrown a tantrum yesterday, I would have already told your grandfather about marrying you, and we'd even started eloping by now."
"Yeah, I was too excited yesterday."
Erina's face flushed again. She started walking and spoke directly as she passed Alice.
"Let's go. I'll tell you why after we see Grandpa."
Alice felt completely uncomfortable. This feeling of being surrounded by riddles made her want to hit someone, but out of curiosity and a sense of responsibility as an older sister, she grumbled and followed Erina.
Kurokiba Ryo, on the other hand, tactfully walked towards the school.
After all, it was a private matter for the Nakiri family, so it was normal for him not to get involved, and he couldn't be bothered to get involved anyway.
Meanwhile, Li Ke was sitting comfortably in the back of the car with Erina when Alice squeezed in from next to him, allowing him to clearly smell her pleasant scent.
However, Alice didn't speak to him directly. Instead, she looked Li Ke up and down before speaking.
"So, what is it about you, this seemingly ordinary guy, that attracted Erina?"
Li Ke found this white-haired woman quite pleasing to the eye, not only because her silver hair and red eyes were truly beautiful, but also because her figure was undeniably stunning.
However, since it was Erina's decision, in Erina's world, he would respect her wishes.
He was even more surprised that this white-haired woman could speak Chinese.
"Well, it's probably because we've been through a lot together. But since Erina wants to wait a while, I'll go along with her and wait. Besides, if I say it now, I'll just have to repeat myself later, so it's better to say it directly to Grandpa."
Li Ke's smile was gentle, yet strangely charming, making Alice, who assumed he was just an ordinary office worker, shake her head involuntarily.
"You're clearly older than Erina, aren't you? If you're so weak, Erina might bully you."
She genuinely didn't understand how Erina could have fallen for Li Ke. He was just an unremarkable middle-aged man!
His appearance was merely average, not overly handsome.
Could it be…
Alice's gaze involuntarily drifted downwards, while Erina coughed.
"Don't overthink it."
Her voice was calm.
Because the Nakiri family mansion wasn't far from the school—in fact, it was practically on the school grounds—Li Ke and his group arrived at the Nakiri residence quickly by car.
To Li Ke's surprise, an old man who looked like the leader was standing at the gate.
Erina's greeting after getting out of the car confirmed his suspicions.
"Grandpa, why are you..."
Erina looked at her grandfather in surprise; she hadn't expected him to be standing at the gate.
Nakiri Senzaemon responded to Erina's question gently, but when he looked at Li Ke, Li Ke even sensed a subtle murderous intent.
"As a grandfather, isn't it normal to want to see what kind of man your granddaughter has chosen?"
Although his eyes held murderous intent, Li Ke had no choice but to offer an awkward yet polite smile.
Although Erina was of legal marriageable age, Li Ke was significantly older than her, and he understood the murderous glint in Senzaemon Nakiri's eyes.
"Although he looks ordinary, the person my granddaughter has chosen must be a promising young man. Come on, let me see what suddenly gives you the confidence to confront me. After all, you seemed worried I wouldn't approve yesterday."
His words struck a chord with Erina Nakiri. Her hasty departure of Li Ke yesterday wasn't entirely out of anger; she also wanted to buy time for him to enter Totsuki Academy.
After all, even if Li Ke lacked talent and ability, she could still help him marry her.
"Yes, Grandpa."
Nodding to Li Ke, Li Ke, Erina, and the silent Alice entered the Nakiri family's inner room used for discussions. After everyone was seated, Senzaemon Nakiri began to speak.
"Since we're already here, let's get to the point."
He looked at Li Ke, curious to see what tricks Li Ke would pull, but Li Ke, seeing his unfriendly gaze, decided it was better to be gentler.
"Actually, I'm from another world. Erina and I didn't actually disappear; we entered a world full of zombies, and that's how we met. As for the evidence, it's this…"
After speaking, Li Ke slowly conjured a small bag out of thin air, and then took out a wooden frame, much to their astonishment.
Seeing something over a meter long being taken out of a palm-sized bag, Nakiri Senzaemon and Alice both widened their eyes.
"Not only that, I also gained magical power."
Then, flames erupted from Li Ke's palm, instantly burning the wooden frame to ashes in his hand.
At this moment, Nakiri Senzaemon was completely bewildered, his mind nearly blank.
But as a chef, he still subconsciously asked, "So, what did you eat in that zombie world?"
Li Ke instinctively took out a piece of meat sold in the store.
"This."
"Let me try it."
"Um..."
Li Ke hesitated.
"Is there something wrong?"
"No."
And so,
Li Ke witnessed firsthand the old man's clothes completely burst open.