CHAPTER 5: A KITCHEN IN FLAMES AND THE WRATH OF THE GUARDIANS

CHAPTER 5: A KITCHEN IN FLAMES AND THE WRATH OF THE GUARDIANS

For an entire week, the Minamoto Estate (No. 1) was filled with the rich aroma of grilled fish.

Akane had officially “sealed herself” inside the kitchen.

She pushed aside her economics books, replacing them with an apron and a pair of amber eyes burning with determination. This was her revenge against the charcoal disaster from last week. She trained obsessively, to the point of losing track of time, forcing the best chefs of the family to teach her their “true techniques.”

Meanwhile, on the other side of the wall, Ren was living in absolute torment.

With his “rival” nowhere to be seen, he grew increasingly restless.

— “Akaneeee! Come out and fight me! How long are you planning to hide in there?!”

BOOM!

Twenty-three times a day, Ren charged in like a suicidal moth.

And twenty-three times a day, the Minamoto bodyguard sent him flying back out with an iron fist.

By the seventh day, the guard’s patience had completely run out.

He had just poured himself a fine cup of sake, ready to enjoy a peaceful nap—when Ren’s voice echoed from the rooftop again, nearly making him spill everything.

— “You little brat! Today you’re dead!”

This time, the guard didn’t hold back.

He unleashed a real attack.

Ren was beaten black and blue, his head swollen like a melon. The guard grabbed him by the collar and dragged him all the way to the Takeda Estate (No. 2) to “file a complaint.”

THE COLLISION OF TWO “MONSTERS”

At the gates of the Takeda Estate, Shizuka—Ren’s mother—stepped out.

She glanced at her son’s swollen face… then at the Minamoto guard.

She smiled.

A very “graceful” smile.

But the aura around her twisted the air itself.

Red light from Future Borrowing mixed with white light from Biological Control, forming a dangerous pink glow.

— “Oh my, thank you for bringing him back… I’ll make sure to ‘take good care’ of him.”

Ren saw that smile…

…and all the blood drained from his face.

Head lowered, he quietly walked inside like a drenched kitten, not daring to say a single word.

His punishment this time:

One full week of house arrest. No exceptions.

THE MISTAKE OF A GENIUS

Back in the Minamoto kitchen…

Akane wiped the sweat from her forehead and looked at the perfectly grilled fish on her plate.

A confident smile appeared.

— “I’ve finally mastered the secret of fire and fish.”

But there was one critical detail her genius mind had overlooked.

She had been practicing… on a tiny mackerel.

In Akane’s logic, cooking was a unified system.

If you know how to cook “fish,” then whether it’s a sardine or a massive sea monster, the process should be the same.

What she didn’t realize…

…was that if she ever faced that giant lake monster again,

her “15-minute perfect method”

would barely be enough to warm up… its scales.

The heroine burned with confidence—armed with flawed knowledge.

The hero was kneeling in his room—serving punishment.

And one week later…

A rematch was coming.

One that would undoubtedly end…

even more “well-done” than before.