Tike was starting to dislike this dragon Grandeeney whom he had never met.
His words carrying obvious accusation caused a slight sting in Porlyusica's heart. She turned around, took out several rolls of parchment from the house, and continued facing Wendy: "These are things she asked me to pass on to you, two sets of Dragon Slayer Secret Art training manuals."
Wendy extended both hands, carefully took the scrolls and manuals Porlyusica handed over, and hugged them tightly in her arms.
Those few rolls of materials carrying her mother's feelings seemed to weigh a thousand jun, causing her small body to tremble slightly uncontrollably.
(Dragon Slayer Magic actually has Secret Arts!)
Watching from the side, Tike forcibly suppressed the impulse to tear the paper recording the Dragon Slayer Secret Arts into pieces and said to Wendy, "I'll train with you, so when Grandeeney sees you again, she'll be shocked by your growth!"
"Mm!" Wendy nodded vigorously, tears seemingly transformed into determination, glistening in her eyes.
(And punch her in the face while I'm at it.)—This was the second half of the sentence Tike didn't say out loud.
---
Approaching nightfall, Tike first sent Wendy home from Porlyusica's place, then went to the girls' dormitory alone, coincidentally meeting Yukino who came back from school.
Her age was still young, and she needed to systematically learn various cultural and magical knowledge at school.
Wendy was about the same age as Yukino, but she had Porlyusica, a knowledgeable pharmacist willing to tutor her privately, and Tike to practice magic with her, saving the trouble of going to school.
It had to be said, although Tike disliked Dragon Slayer Magic, the process of teaching Wendy truly allowed him to regain some confidence as a teacher.
She could really learn things from him, instead of failing to learn anything.
Before this, he could only experience a similar feeling when teaching Erza.
Tike now had some clue about the commonality between these two.
Wendy's adoptive mother was the Sky Dragon Grandeeney.
Erza's mother, Irene, also had a dragon form known as the Sage Dragon.
His mother, Moon Dragon God Selene, was also a dragon.
Therefore, only they could connect with his wavelength and learn magic from him.
Seeing Tike standing at the entrance of the girls' dormitory, Yukino greeted him politely and asked, "Did you come here to find Big Sis Kagura?"
"Not today; I came to find you."
"Eh?" Yukino was slightly stunned, obvious confusion appearing in her clear eyes. "Do you have any business with me?"
Tike hesitated slightly but still asked, "Yukino, has your sister Sorano come to find you recently?"
Hearing the name "Sorano," Yukino's originally calm eyes lit up instantly, flashing with irrepressible excitement and expectation: "Do you have news about Big Sister?"
Tike turned his head slightly, avoiding that burning gaze, and shook his head gently with apology: "Sorry, Yukino, not yet."
(Didn't the future me say Sorano would return 'soon'? It's been almost two months; how come there's not even a shadow? Could his 'soon' be calculated based on the lifespan of dragons, which easily spans hundreds or thousands of years? If so, how long do we have to wait?)
"Is... is that so..."
The light in Yukino's eyes dimmed rapidly, but after just a moment, as if to dispel this low mood, she tried hard to raise her head, squeezed out a smile on her face, took out an exquisitely shaped silver key from her waist, and showed it to the boy in front of her.
"Brother Tike, I learned Celestial Spirit Magic recently! As long as I use this kind of key, I can open the gate to the Celestial Spirit World and summon Celestial Spirits to help!"
Saying this, Yukino raised the key in her hand and chanted the spell.
"Open, Gate of the Gourmet—Gourmet!"
Soft golden light bloomed from the tip of the key. A miniature magic circle rotated and unfolded in the air. Immediately after, with a "poof" sound, a peculiar creature looking naive and holding a fork appeared in front of the two.
Almost at the same time the Celestial Spirit appeared, Tike's gaze was attracted. He stared straight at the chubby Celestial Spirit, crystal saliva even faintly seeping from the corner of his mouth.
"As expected of 'Gourmet'! This guy smells delicious just by scent!"
Stared at by this unconcealed gaze, the newly appeared Gourmet shuddered involuntarily, gripping the fork in his hand tighter.
He could clearly feel that this boy who didn't look very old had an extremely dangerous... appetite for him.
Yukino just thought Tike was joking and said with a smile: "No way, Brother Tike, Gourmet is my important partner, absolutely cannot be eaten."
Tike raised his hand to wipe the corner of his mouth, his burning gaze still locked firmly on the round Gourmet: "Then why is he called 'Gourmet'?"
"Because Uncle Gourmet is the Celestial Spirit responsible for food-related matters in the Celestial Spirit World," Yukino explained patiently. "He is very good at cooking and can make various delicious dishes just like you, Brother Tike."
"Food from the Celestial Spirit World?" Tike's focus immediately shifted from the Celestial Spirit itself to its products. "I've never eaten it before; can you let me taste it?"
Yukino turned to the Celestial Spirit beside her and requested with a respectful and affectionate tone: "Uncle Gourmet, please."
Seeing he finally escaped the fate of being served on a dinner plate, Gourmet breathed a sigh of relief secretly, then turned and went into the simple kitchen equipped downstairs in the dormitory.
Not long after, Gourmet walked out carrying a large plate. It was his best specialty—Goose Chow Mein.
This dish required taking the most tender and smooth part from a big goose, marinating it carefully with ninety-nine secret spices, then stir-frying it with noodles kneaded with strength capable of killing ten strong bulls with one punch. Stir-fried over high heat exactly seven times seven, forty-nine times, only then could this ultimate delicacy be achieved.
Tike took the fork Yukino handed over and unceremoniously forked a large mouthful into his mouth.
The noodles were chewy and bouncy, the goose meat tender and juicy, the sauce rich and mellow. Various flavors blended perfectly in the mouth, bringing ultimate enjoyment.
"Mmph! Delicious!"
Immediately after, Tike's fingers moved slightly. Magic power surged in the air. Almost instantly, a portion of chow mein indistinguishable from the original landed steadily on a pristine white plate that appeared out of thin air.
With a somewhat disbelieving expression, Gourmet also picked up a fork and tasted the chow mein replicated by Tike.
Just one bite, and the unconvinced expression on this Gourmet Celestial Spirit's face collapsed completely, turning into utter shock and admiration.
Not only was the taste identical, but it also had a restorative effect his cooking didn't possess.
Gourmet put down the fork, his round eyes staring tightly at Tike, speaking proactively for the first time:
"Are you willing to learn cooking from me?"