Before Nicole could finish her sentence, the overwhelming aroma that wafted over made her swallow her words.
After all, anyone who has taken care of children or pets knows just how physically demanding bathing them is.
Luckily, the Silver Squad was very cooperative, which allowed Nicole, even after taking care of six of them in a row, to still have a sliver of energy left to fuss.
However, as her stamina drained, her hunger grew in direct proportion.
To Belle and Andrew's surprise, Nicole was unexpectedly good at taking care of kids.
She had started much later than Belle, yet she ended up handling one more person than her.
Although the richly fragrant, juicy burgers on the plate completely captured her attention.
However, she didn't let herself get distracted. Faced with the temptation of delicious food, Nicole's craving for Dennies overpowered her appetite, and she forcibly restrained the hand that wanted to immediately reach for a burger.
She said firmly:
"D-Don't think you can buy me off by covering my meals to pay off a debt! You still owe me for the ammo, and you can't short me a single Denny!"
Okay, maybe not that firmly.
Andrew, long accustomed to Nicole's familiar love for money, waved his hand and said:
"Relax, consider this an extra bonus for the commission."
The moment he finished speaking, Nicole pounced, grabbing a burger and starting to devour it. Between mouthfuls, she mumbled indistinctly:
"You should've just said they were free! In that case, I'll have two... no, three!"
However, Belle, who was just as exhausted, had far fewer reservations. She dove for the burgers like a starving rabbit pouncing on its food.
She snatched a burger and began to wolf it down, mumbling incoherently as she ate:
"Om nom nom... chew chew... mmmph... Andrew, your food is as delicious as ever. Lately, I haven't even been thinking about General Chop's ramen every day."
She hadn't eaten much for dinner, and on top of the severe physical exertion, Belle was gobbling down her food so fast that her cheeks puffed out like a hamster's, twitching with every chew.
"Slow down, slow down. Be careful not to choke."
Andrew first patted Belle's back gently, then took a bottle of water from his item pouch and handed it to her to prevent her from choking. Only then did he say confidently:
"My Canteen meals were already getting rave reviews back in the New World. Not only do they taste great, but they're also guaranteed cat-hair-free!"
No chef dislikes hearing praise after cooking a meal, and Andrew was no exception.
"Cat hair? Why would there be something like that in the food?"
Nicole paused mid-bite, a look of pure confusion in her eyes as she stared at Andrew.
"Don't tell me you actually learned to cook from a cat?"
Andrew's next sentence felt like it shattered her entire worldview.
"I actually did learn from cats. Where I'm from, there's a whole bunch of people who think a meal isn't complete without some cat hair in it. They say it doesn't taste right otherwise."
For a moment, Nicole's reality crumbled. She couldn't help but seriously consider whether she should go pick up a stray cat on Sixth Street and have it cook for her.
After chugging down some water, Belle finally managed to swallow the huge mouthful of burger. She breathed a sigh of relief and said.
"Ah... I'm alive again... Chew chew, Andrew, it would've been great if you'd opened a restaurant. Chew chew, then I could eat at your place for all three meals a day."
Watching Belle continue to eat even while talking, Andrew couldn't help but chuckle.
"But if I opened a restaurant, I wouldn't have time to cook whatever you wanted every day, and I certainly wouldn't have time to be your Proxy. What do you think now?"
"Mmmph... well then, it's better this way."
Though she was enjoying it just as much, Belle's table manners were like an ox chewing on peonies—a bit too unrestrained.
'I don't know why. She was pretty normal at first, so how did she get so boisterous lately? It can't be because she's been eating with me every day, can it?'
At that thought, Andrew quickly shook his head, banishing the idea from his mind.
'Impossible! Absolutely impossible! I had the best table manners among the hunters of my class! It must be Wise's fault. Yep.'
Completely oblivious to the fact that even the best table manners were still a hunter's table manners, Andrew's conscience was once again clear.
As a transmigrator who originally came from the 'Land of Flowers', being able to cook a good meal was a basic life skill.
And back in the New World, studying under the Meowscular Chef and the Grammeowster Chef not only greatly improved his culinary skills but also taught him how to make Canteen meals.
But the Forbidden Lands that came after was a place completely devoid of resources. As part of the vanguard reconnaissance team, there were hardly any seasonings or cooking utensils during the exploration of the Forbidden Lands.
The supply captain at the time said:
"Cookware? What cookware? This small frying pan and this grilling rack are your forever home. Don't even think about getting anything more."
With only these two items, even the greatest chef could only fry and grill.
Although Andrew managed to work wonders with his skills, scarcity was still scarcity. His craft could only turn the final product into something that was, relatively speaking, more palatable.
But upon arriving in New Eridu, the availability of proper cookware and all sorts of seasonings greatly enriched Andrew's arsenal of ingredients.
The moment he discovered that daily necessities here, especially food ingredients, were surprisingly abundant, his hands started itching to cook.
Not to mention he was already saddled with debt at the time. Cooking for himself was cheaper than buying food, and besides, the quality of his own cooking was guaranteed.
Having made up his mind, Andrew decisively went to the supermarket and bought a full set of cookware and seasonings. To save money, he even forged the iron wok and kitchen knife himself.
However, one evening, while explaining a commission to Andrew, Belle accidentally discovered that he could actually cook!
Before that, Belle never would have imagined that this burly man in front of her was not only skilled at slaying Ethereals, but even more skilled at chopping vegetables.
Dubious, Belle accepted Andrew's enthusiastic invitation, skeptically picked up her chopsticks, and took a bite. From that day on, freeloading a meal off him became an unbreakable daily routine.
And Andrew was happy to see someone enjoy the food he made.
Afterward, every time he saw Belle's face lit up with satisfaction from the delicious food, Andrew, as a chef, felt just as fulfilled.
Of course, after the freeloaded meal was over, Andrew wouldn't forget to prepare a portion for Wise, who was holding down the fort at Random Play.
But ever since Belle started coming to Andrew's place for meals every day, her visits to the Waterfall Noodle Shop decreased drastically.
For a while, it even made General Chop think some accident had befallen the siblings, and he considered reporting them missing to New Eridu Public Security. However, since he still saw the two of them on Sixth Street from time to time, he eventually gave up on the idea.
It wasn't until Belle came in for noodles one day that General Chop finally learned the truth from her.
Learning the reason, General Chop couldn't help but lament. He had been wary of every new restaurant planning to set up shop on Sixth Street, but he never expected that his biggest rival—who had descended from the heavens to snatch away his most loyal customer—would turn out to be not a chef, but a blacksmith!
Reality is always stranger than fiction. You never know who your true competitor will be, just like a thief who gets out of prison after a few years only to find himself utterly defeated by electronic payments.
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