["Such a pity."]
Mengbao-chan said, ["The three stages of the first round are over. Currently, couple number five, contestants Seimu and Mary, are temporarily in first with 21 points."]
["Right behind them are our contestants Shirou and Artoria with 20 points…"]
"Falling behind?", Artoria's eyes looked like they were about to cut the judges down, "We clearly ate so much, why are our points getting lower and lower?"
Shirou rubbed his forehead, "Probably because we didn't interact."
They only got five points in the third stage.
"Damn it, so that's how it is?"
Even if they were only one point behind, the Ahoge King refused to accept it, and complained, "A King of Big Eaters challenge, shouldn't it be about eating, not playing house with interactions?"
'Because it's the couples bracket,' Shirou replied in his heart.
The draw of this kind of contest is the interaction.
If it were just eating, everyone would be sick of the singles bracket already.
Still, this was fine too. At least there was no risk of the hatchet.
Round Two began.
Stage One had a five-minute time limit. The staff would bring a drink and a dessert, plus two sheets of paper and two mechanical pencils.
They had to taste the dessert and drink together; talking wasn't allowed. They could only use eye contact and facial expressions to communicate how much they liked the dessert and drink.
Then they'd write it down on the paper.
The judges would score based on their performance and the actual situation.
Shirou felt this was very simple. He naturally asked, "Saber, what do you want to eat first?"
Artoria didn't answer immediately. Her bright emerald eyes watched the boy for a moment, then said, "Dessert."
"Then I'll drink first."
Without further ado, Shirou pushed the dessert over. Who knew the Ahoge King would push it back to Shirou, her expression serious as she said, "Feed me!"
"What?", Shirou wondered if his ears had water in them.
Artoria said nothing; her ahoge stood straight.
She picked up the drink and poked it against Shirou's lips, "You feed me, I'll feed you!"
"Wait—"
Before Shirou could finish, the Ahoge King hard-core shoved the straw into his mouth.
"..."
["Not easy at all."]
Mengbao-chan was watching at all times. Seeing this scene, she wiped her eyes like a doting elder, ["Contestants Shirou and Artoria have finally taken their first step. Although it's a bit unpracticed, isn't that exactly the tender beauty of two people's first time together?"]
Mary kept performing steadily.
The Umu-monster pair… better left unsaid.
Round One ended.
Ahoge Pair: 29 points. Mary Pair: 28 points. Umu-monster Pair: 20 points.
Shirou's own evaluation of the food, "Seriously speaking, the drink doesn't taste good, and the food isn't tasty. But Saber can always give me a different experience. If I had to choose with A, B, C, D, I choose (her)."
His evaluation of the Ahoge King, "In one sentence: hunger is the great enemy! She clearly hate sharing food the most, but I always feel that if it's her, even if there isn't enough, she'd still be willing to share it. It has nothing to do with good or bad."
Artoria's own evaluation of the food, "Hunger is the greatest enemy!"
'That's it?'
Her evaluation of Shirou, "A very strange person. Rather than saying he likes food, it's more like because I like it, he likes it too. That might sound a bit weird. But I always feel that if it's him, sharing food instead becomes more meaningful."
Score: 9
"Finally, after an hour of foodie interactions, the competition has come to the last, and scariest stage."
Mengbao-chan's tone grew solemn, ["Challenge the Limit!"]
["I believe many of you have already witnessed Mr. Kirei Kotomine's obsession with spiciness (pain)."]
["That's right, this stage is known as the impossible challenge."]
["Its name is: The Trial of Love!"]
Mengbao-chan spoke heavily, ["The meaning of 'trial' is: my love for you has already exceeded the limits of the body."]
["In this stage, contestants must take on Mr. Kirei Kotomine's 'on-site' personally made signature Mapo Tofu."]
["One bowl per team. Finish the entire bowl to get ten points, and you can stack them! One bowl, ten points. If you give up midway, it counts as failure, and you get nothing!"]
["I think everyone now understands why this is called the Trial of Love."]
With a sigh she didn't quite know how to describe, Mengbao-chan said weightily, ["The spiciness of Mr. Kirei Kotomine's Mapo Tofu has surpassed imagination, and our expectations."]
["If you don't want your partner to suffer pain, you can only shoulder it yourself. If both sides can't bear to see the other suffer, you can choose to share weal and woe together. Either way, it's an expression of love."]
["Important reminder: the challenge may involve life-threatening danger. You may choose to withdraw directly."]
As she spoke, Mengbao-chan spread her hands, ["Then, contestants who wish to withdraw, please leave the stage!"]
As soon as she finished, some couples who knew they had no hope immediately stood and left.
In a short while, only five couples remained on stage.
At the same time, Kirei Kotomine, with an expression of delight, worked with the staff to bring all the tools onto the stage.
"Umu," Nero placed hands on hips, chin up and chest out, "So it has come, my chance to turn the tables!"
Mash gulped down saliva. It hadn't even begun and she could already smell the spice that made saliva secrete on its own.
"Your Majesty Nero," Her voice trembled, "Can we really do this? If Emiya-kun eats one bowl, then we'll have to eat two bowls."
"Isn't that perfect?"
Nero patted her chest, "One bowl each for me and you."
"Eh?"
Mash's eyes nearly popped out, "Aren't we eating together from one bowl?"
"Umu," Nero said, "Considering that one bowl might not secure the win, we must keep someone for the end."
"Then I—"
Mash was just about to say she'd go first when Nero patted her shoulder, "No need to rush. As my great general, your battle will be placed at the end. I'll take point for you!"
"Nero… Your Majesty…", Mash was deeply moved.
———
"Shirou!"
Flames roared behind Artoria, "We can't lose either!"
"Um…", Shirou broke into a sweat on his forehead.
"The Mapo Tofu of legend that brings the ultimate sensation of pain."
Mary smiled with narrowed eyes, "Interesting."
Kirei Kotomine, in the middle of preparations, curled his lips, "One note of caution. In my venue, all cheating is forbidden. No tea, milk, drinks, or sweet desserts and snacks to counteract spice are allowed."
"Violate the rule—", the Mapo Priest announced, "and scores will be reset to zero."
"I think resetting the score to zero is too lenient," Shirou said without any warmth, "How about drinking ten litre of Mapo water instead?"
The reason he hadn't exposed Merlin earlier was precisely for this moment.
He's a very vengeful person.
"Hmm?", The Mapo Priest's dark eyes gleamed, and he looked at Shirou with added appreciation.
'As expected of Emiya Kiritsugu's adopted son, his future is promising.'
Now it was Merlin's turn to sweat profusely.
Realizing things weren't looking good, he had the urge to retreat, "Hahahaha, I suddenly remembered, this morning when crossing the street there was an old granny with no one to help her, so I'm withdr—"
Before the word "aw" of "withdraw" could come out,
A hand pressed down on his shoulder. Shirou smiled brilliantly, "Don't be scared. There's a saying: as long as you're not discovered, it doesn't count as cheating… don't you agree, Big Sister Mary?"
"...", Merlin stopped giggling.
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