Chapter 711: The Power of Sentiment (Patreon)

Grilling meat isn't that difficult.

In the late-night diner, there are often some snacks like frying, grilling, and roasting, with tools readily available.

Slice the refrigerated meat into thin slices and marinate it with sauce.

During this time, brush oil on the grill pan, place it on the stove and calculate the marinating time and the temperature of the grill pan. Put the meat on the grill pan and turn it over regularly.

Although it takes a bit more time compared to other dishes, there's only one customer in the store right now, so time is not a concern.

Red and yellow flames spread across the black grill pan, occasionally flickering over the edge, bursting into sparks with a slight "crackle."

The meat slices, soaked in sauce and turning brown-red, gradually lightened in color under the high temperature, with the surface texture becoming more pronounced. A drop of fat seeped from the edge of the meat slice and sizzled, releasing the aroma of sauce and meat that instantly filled the nose and stimulated the taste buds.

"Here's your grilled meat, please enjoy."

Shinji placed a pair of chopsticks, a dish of dipping sauce, and a cheap porcelain bowl in front of Aoko.

Aoko sniffed, then exhaled the breath through her nose.

"It looks pretty ordinary."

Shinji smiled without speaking. It was indeed very ordinary. Although it was described enticingly, anyone who had eaten grilled meat knew that it was the most basic method of grilling meat, nothing special.

"If you don't want to eat it, I will!"

Arcueid, sitting next door, snorted.

The princess had one good trait: with her around, there was no need to worry about waste, as she could eat everything and always conduct clean and quick decomposition work. Over time, she got used to finishing all the food everyone couldn't eat.

"Why should I give you what I ordered?"

Aoko glared at Arcueid, picked up a piece of meat, rolled it in the dipping sauce, and put it in her mouth.

At first, she remained indifferent, but after chewing a couple of times, her expression subtly changed. It seemed somewhat nostalgic, and perhaps a bit confused.

After swallowing a piece, she glanced at Shinji in surprise and picked up a second piece.

Shinji still said nothing, quietly adding more ingredients to the grill pan.

The ingredients were still the same cheap ingredients, the method was still the simple method, and the taste wasn't anything special, but in the mouth of a specific person, it had a different flavor.

In the era before Shinji's time travel, people often said that the snacks, small eats, and dishes they ate when they were young or years ago were delicious. Unfortunately, they were no longer available; otherwise, they could eat several plates. It sounded so reminiscent.

But were those things from years or decades ago really that delicious? Is there nothing comparable now?

The answer is, of course, no. If they were really that delicious and memorable, why did they disappear in the river of time? And why can't you remember when they disappeared?

So, many times, what you miss is not the long-gone food, but your past, your childhood, adolescence, or youth that only exists in memory and can never come back.

What you remember is not the taste of the food; the food is just a carrier. What it carries is a term that has been increasingly heard in later generations, even becoming a consumer product—" sentiment."

What Shinji needed to do was to awaken the sentiment deeply buried in Aoko Aozaki's heart. That way, even if it was not delicious, it would taste good, and even if the mouth was full of bitterness, the heart would still feel a slight sweetness.

Of course, Shinji's cooking skills alone were not enough to achieve this. At most, he could only achieve half. This is not to say that his skills were lacking; after all, he was specially trained in the imperial kitchen, so he couldn't possibly be bad at grilling meat.

However, no matter how good the grilled meat was, it might not be able to touch the heart of a deliberately provocative woman.

The reason it was only half was because he could grasp the taste preferences of Aoko, which were similar to those of Touko. The other half required a different kind of power, a magic that could touch people's hearts, which was what Shinji had gained during this period.

His magic was no longer limited to drawing power from thoughts. He could capture more emotions and even use his own emotions to influence others. Although it was challenging to touch the heart of a magician, he did succeed in using magic paired with food to awaken Aoko Aozaki's sentiment, and memories from ten years ago, or even earlier.

At that time, she was still a girl, living a carefree life...

"Do you have any alcohol?"

"Yes, what would you like? White liquor or beer?"

At this moment, Shinji knew he was on the right path. Even a magician is not heartless.

"Whatever, the stronger the better."

"How about trying some Russian vodka or Korean Wine?"

"You have such good stuff here?"

"Just a few small bottles. The yakuza members seem to like them quite a bit."

"I'll take them all. For the sake of the alcohol, I won't hold it against you for meddling with my mind earlier."

Even though the Fifth Magic and the Third Magic belong to different fields, a magician is still a magician. After breaking free from the memories, Aoko quickly identified the cause of her taste surprise.

"Thank you for your understanding," Shinji nodded slightly, taking out the strong liquor he had placed nearby.

Aoko roughly twisted off the bottle cap and took a large gulp, her eyes half-closed and half-open.

"The alcohol is good. Hehe, Grievance Pavilion—hmm, I might as well complain a bit too. What should I talk about?"

At moments like this, Shinji would entirely enter a state of serene detachment, like a high monk. Emptying his mind allowed him to better listen to others' hearts, and those who wanted to vent didn't need him to speak. They just needed a listener.

"Ah, I'll talk about what happened to me today. Ugh, today was awful. When I left the house in the morning, the weather was fine, but it started raining after just a few steps. I gave my umbrella to a kid who got caught in the rain after school a few days ago and haven't had time to buy a new one..."

"......"

"......"

"......"

"In the afternoon, I received a bill from the credit card company. That hateful sister of mine used my name to spend recklessly again. She spent over a hundred thousand this time, which is just too much—hey, shopkeeper, are you listening?"

"Yes, I'm listening," Shinji replied in a low voice. Not only am I listening to your words, but I'm also listening to your true feelings.

"Why do I have such a sister?"

"Because of fate. The Buddha said that it takes a hundred lifetimes of practice to share a boat, and a thousand lifetimes to share a bed. Becoming blood-related sisters requires even more, and longer."

"Then we must have been enemies for many lifetimes, so we have such a cursed relationship."

"A cursed relationship is still a relationship."

"Then I—never mind, I'm done talking. The alcohol is finished."

In front of the empty grill pan, Aoko dropped the last empty bottle and slapped down a ten-thousand-yen bill.

"That's it, I'm leaving."

"I haven't given you your change."

"Put it on the tab, I'll be coming by often."

"Thank you for your patronage—"

As Shinji spoke, Aoko had already picked up her suitcase, lifted the curtain, and walked out of the shop.

Shinji let out a gentle breath.

"She's really like the wind, just like her sister."

"Hey, Haruki, do you know her?"

Arcueid, who was washing dishes, asked.

"She should be Touko's younger sister, Aoko Aozaki," Justeaze suddenly appeared beside Shinji.

"Justeaze, contact Touko and tell her you've made a new discovery regarding the Third Magic. Ask her to come and stay with you for a while."

"What are you planning?"

"To give them a chance to vent. After all, I named this place Grievance Pavilion for a reason. Some things just need to be talked out. The sisters have been estranged for so many years, it's time to reconcile."

Aoko Aozaki, you say you wish you didn't have such a sister, but deep down, you can’t let her go.

Touko, it's the same for you.

Silly sister? Foolish younger sister? They're the same.