At the entrance of the Good Hunter Restaurant, a large cart was parked, stacked high with all sorts of fresh ingredients and seasonings— everything needed to make Golden Fried Rice.
Lumine and Paimon were busily helping Sara unload.
Thanks to the three of them working together, the cart was emptied in no time.
"Thank you both. Once it's ready, I'll treat you to Golden Fried Rice."
Sara said gratefully.
"Yay! Finally, we get to taste the glowing dish!"
Paimon was practically bouncing in excitement.
She and Lumine had been waiting since the afternoon just for this moment.
At long last, their wish was about to come true.
"You two sit and rest a bit, I'll go start cooking now."
With that, Sara went into the kitchen.
Even with the recipe, she still needed to get a feel for it.
Otherwise, the result wouldn't be anywhere near as delicious.
It was early evening in Mondstadt, and the restaurant wasn't too crowded yet.
Lumine and Paimon casually picked a table and sat down.
The moment they sat, Paimon pulled out her handheld console and started gaming.
But her experience wasn't going smoothly at all.
Even though she barely cleared the first stage, she kept running into trouble in the second.
For example, the monsters turned back after hitting walls— and Paimon never noticed, dying to that over and over.
And then there was a cliff section:
sometimes platforms rose from below, sometimes they descended from above.
Every time she reached it, she hesitated— and by the time she moved, it was too late.
Once again, she fell.
Seeing Paimon sulking, Lumine couldn't help but laugh.
"Haha, you're really bad at this! If it were me, I'd have cleared it already!"
She had watched Paimon play all afternoon.
She already knew the layout of stage one and stage two like the back of her hand.
If she took the controls herself, she was sure she wouldn't die like Paimon.
Those monsters? Easy to dodge.
The piranha plants? No problem.
That cliff? Just a simple jump!
Only Paimon could be this much of a scrub.
Typical cloud gamer confidence.
"Hmph! Fine then, you try! Let's see how amazing you really are!"
Paimon huffed, shoving the console into Lumine's hands.
After all, it's different when you actually play yourself.
Anyone can talk big while watching.
Even when Boss Han played, it looked easy— just make Mario jump around, right?
But when Paimon tried, it was a disaster.
She couldn't even count how many times she died.
"Alright, just watch and learn. I'll show you how it's done!"
Lumine took the console, confidence radiating off her face.
But reality rarely goes as smoothly as one imagines.
Soon, Lumine was dumbfounded.
"No way… how did I jump so high and still hit the Goomba?!
Why do these monsters suddenly turn around?!
And why is this cliff so long?! I even ran for it, and I still came up short?!
Is this game rigged against me?!"
After dying in all sorts of ridiculous ways, Lumine started doubting herself.
She knew where the traps were, yet she kept failing.
If Han Feng were there, he would've said only one thing:
Her brain had learned, but her hands hadn't.
"Hehe, see? You're even worse than me!"
Paimon crossed her arms proudly.
Watching Lumine suffer made her feel so good.
Indeed—
the most fun part of gaming was watching someone else fail even harder than you.
Right now, Paimon was basking in smug superiority.
After all, she had cleared the first stage.
This weakling had no right to mock her.
Lumine of course hated seeing Paimon's smug face.
But she had no comeback— so she threw herself into playing, determined to prove herself.
"Hey, you two are here too?"
A cheerful voice came from behind.
They turned around.
It was Venti, with the Meicoomon beside him.
"Bard, you finally remembered your cat?"
Paimon teased.
She still remembered how carefree Venti was at the comic shop—
he had completely forgotten about his pet back then.
At Paimon's jab, Venti could only smile helplessly.
He hadn't meant to forget, really.
It was just… he got too used to slacking off.
Luckily, the Meicoomon had still been waiting for him at the tavern.
Though it had been upset.
In the end, Venti had to promise it Golden Fried Rice to earn its forgiveness.
Hearing this story, Lumine chuckled.
"Well, then your timing's perfect. Sara's cooking it right now—it should be ready soon."
"Ehe, what a stroke of luck."
Venti grinned.
Not too early, not too late—just in time.
Right on cue, Sara emerged from the kitchen carrying a tray.
"Sorry to keep you waiting—Golden Fried Rice is ready."
"Yes! Finally! Now we get to see what a glowing dish looks like!"
Paimon's eyes sparkled.
Lumine and Venti leaned forward eagerly as well.
"Alright—time to unveil it!"
Sara smiled faintly and lifted the lid.
In an instant, a brilliant golden radiance burst forth, illuminating the night sky.
The light was dazzling in the darkness, so much so that people passing by stopped in their tracks.
"What's that glow?"
"No idea… looks like it's coming from the Good Hunter."
"Good Hunter? What's going on in there?"
"I saw it—it was from a dish!"
"A dish?! You're saying food is glowing? No way!"
"I swear by the Anemo Archon, I'm not lying!"
"Then I have to see this for myself!"
While the crowd outside buzzed with curiosity,
those at the table were left utterly stunned.
"So this is a glowing dish… incredible!"
"As a bard, this is the first time I've ever seen food so dazzling. It's breathtaking."
"Sara, you're amazing!"
Lumine and Paimon were both filled with admiration.
To think she had actually recreated a dish from the comics!
"I just followed the knowledge in my mind. There's still much room for improvement."
Sara quickly waved off their praise.
"The one truly deserving of respect is Boss Han.
This recipe came from him, after all."
Only after cooking it herself did Sara grasp just how extraordinary it was.
Her respect for Han Feng grew even deeper.
Now she was certain—
Boss Han was no ordinary man.
He had to be a true Special-grade Chef.
Otherwise, how could such a recipe exist?
And how could he draw such an incredible food manga?
Boss Han… was definitely a hidden master.
~~--------------------------
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