The reason Kaito was able to "subdue" Marcarita came down to two main points: his strength, which far surpassed hers, and his exceptional cooking skills.
After tasting Kaito's cooking just once, Marcarita was completely hooked. She swore she wouldn't return to her own universe until she had memorized every single recipe he knew.
And when Kaito cooked, his efficiency was frighteningly high. Every ingredient floated mid-air—washed, sliced, and tossed into pots all at once.
His immense mental power allowed him to multitask flawlessly. Each dish's timing and seasoning were perfect. In no time, the entire table was filled with an assortment of dishes.
Marcarita gazed at the dazzling spread before her, her expression that of a complete food addict. She reached for a glistening sweet and sour rib with her chopsticks—only for Vados to smack them away.
Vados shot her a sideways glance and said coolly,
"Did you forget your manners again? What do you say before eating?"
Marcarita froze for a moment, glanced at Kaito, and under his amused gaze, pressed her hands together obediently.
"Thank you, Kaito-san! You've worked hard!"
Kaito smiled and nodded. Marcarita giggled, picked up her chopsticks again, and shouted,
"I'm digging in!"
But just as she reached halfway, a sudden knock echoed from the door. Vados gave her a gentle head tap and said,
"Hold it. We have a guest."
Marcarita looked like she was about to cry.
All I wanted was a bite of rib! Why is that so hard?
Frustrated, she dropped her chopsticks and snapped,
"I'll get the door! I wanna see who's got the nerve to show up right when we're about to eat!"
With that, she stormed off, her twin tails swishing furiously behind her.
Eighteen tugged on Kaito's sleeve and asked,
"Could it be Seventeen's back?"
Kaito shook his head and exchanged a look with Vados.
"No. This guest isn't simple. Their presence is well hidden."
Then, Marcarita's voice came from the door.
"Whis? Why are you here again?"
Whis stared at her, clearly exasperated.
"Why can't I come? This is my universe, you know!"
Marcarita, however, wasn't intimidated by Whis at all. She huffed proudly,
"What do you mean your universe? I go wherever I want, no matter which universe it is!"
"Fine, fine! But could you move aside? I've got something important to talk about today!"
"Hmm… can't you come back later?"
Whis blinked.
"Why? What's going on inside that I can't see?"
He never would have guessed that Marcarita simply didn't want one more pair of chopsticks at the dinner table.
Before she could answer, Vados's voice drifted from inside the house.
"Oh, Whis—it's you. Come in, we were just about to eat."
At the mention of food, Whis immediately perked up, brushed past Marcarita, and stepped inside.
"No wonder it smells so good! Perfect—let's eat while we talk!"
Marcarita rolled her eyes, then hurried after him—only to find that her seat had already been taken by Whis.
Kaito, ever considerate, brought over a small stool for her. Despite her reluctance, Marcarita quietly sat down, eyes fixed longingly on the dishes.
It was Whis's first time witnessing Kaito's cooking skills. He rubbed his hands together eagerly.
"Everything looks amazing! Kaito-san made all this?"
Vados chuckled softly.
"I was shocked the first time too. Don't just stare—try some."
Polite as ever, Whis looked at Kaito for permission. Once Kaito nodded, he immediately dug in with excitement.
Seeing that, Marcarita couldn't hold back any longer and joined the feast.
Within minutes, the group devoured everything. The plates were cleaner than Marcarita's face.
Whis rubbed his full stomach, letting out a satisfied burp.
"That was incredible! I didn't expect Kaito-san to be this skilled!"
Marcarita scooted her stool closer and reminded him,
"Whis, stop gushing and start talking. Didn't you say you had something important to discuss?"
Whis froze. Right—he'd been so busy eating that he'd completely forgotten his universe-threatening mission.
He quickly explained what the Grand Priest had told him. Of course, he conveniently skipped over the part where he was supposed to evaluate Kaito's character.
After all, someone who cooked food that good couldn't possibly be a bad person—or so he reasoned.
As soon as they heard that the universes might be erased, the expressions on Vados and the others turned grim.
Eighteen looked worriedly at Kaito and asked,
"Kaito, what kind of god is this 'Zeno'? Erasing universes on a whim? He sounds even worse than that rabbit-looking one from last time!"
The three Angels immediately panicked, waving their hands frantically.
Marcarita, who sat closest to Eighteen, was so startled that she covered Eighteen's mouth and whispered anxiously,
"Don't say things like that! If the Grand Zeno hears you, we'll all be done for! We won't even have a chance to use the Super Dragon Balls!"
Kaito frowned. This was definitely troublesome. He personally didn't fear Zeno's erasure—but Eighteen and the others did. They were native beings of the Dragon Ball Universe, and if Zeno lost his temper, they wouldn't stand a chance.
A cold glint flashed in Kaito's eyes. Zeno was indeed an unstable element. He was already considering whether to eliminate him preemptively.
But he didn't know Zeno's true power. If he acted rashly and things went wrong, it would be far from amusing.
For now, it was best to follow Whis's advice and gather the Super Dragon Balls as insurance.
Whis, oblivious to the thoughts running through Kaito's mind, continued discussing the Dragon Balls.
Vados suddenly interrupted,
"All right. I already have six of the Super Dragon Balls. If needed, I can bring them right now."
Marcarita gawked at her in surprise.
"You've collected that many already? Impressive! No wonder you've always stayed calm whenever I brought this up—you were prepared all along!"
Vados gave her a sidelong look.
"Our universe's strength can't compare to yours. Naturally, I had to prepare ahead of time—especially after what happened to those other six universes."
"You've got a point! But still, our universe is definitely the strongest!"
Once, Vados might not have been able to argue with that. But now things were different.
She glanced at Kaito and said calmly,
"Is that so? Then tell me—if your universe is the strongest, how do you account for Universe 7, the one with Kaito?"
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