Fu Hua was very familiar with St. Freya Academy's shopping street.
Extremely familiar.
Li Zihan confirmed this fact after Fu Hua dragged him there.
"Is that you, Hua?"
A snack shop owner, who was clearly on very familiar terms with Fu Hua, looked in astonishment at the girl. It had been a long time since she had seen her out of the St. Freya uniform, now dressed in traditional Shenzhou formal wear.
Evidently, the Immortal, who often played gacha games in her daily life, had worked part-time here quite a bit.
Then—
The owner's eyes shifted to carefully scrutinize the person beside her.
He was a young man who could only be described as handsome.
His ink-black hair had the faint luster of black jade, and the skin of his neck was as fine as beautiful porcelain.
Because of his skin's morbid pallor, his delicate features stood out with exceptional clarity, especially his eyes, which seemed to burn with golden flames.
He was, without a doubt, a flawlessly good-looking fellow.
The little girl (?), who usually dressed so modestly, had suddenly changed into formal attire and was now strolling through the snack street with a super-attractive boy her age. No matter how you looked at it, it had to mean something.
"Ooh! Ooh!"
Just like any gossipy auntie, the slightly older shop owner became as animated as if she'd been shot with adrenaline, letting out a sound like a crowing rooster.
As she brought the dishes and pastries Fu Hua had ordered to their table, she shuffled closer to the little girl who had often worked part-time at her shop and asked in a "whisper."
"Hey, hey, is this your boyfriend?"
"He's quite the looker."
Hearing this, a light, faint smile graced the girl's face. She picked up her chopsticks and placed a piece of water chestnut cake into the bowl of the young man sitting opposite her.
The movement was smooth and ordinary, as natural as drinking water or eating a meal.
"Who knows about that sort of thing."
After doing so, she simply picked up another piece of water chestnut cake and placed it in her own bowl.
For some strange reason, Li Zihan suddenly had the illusion that he was sitting across from Miss Mei.
Miss Mei also served him rice and picked out food for him just like this.
Except, she wasn't quite as practiced and natural as Fu Hua was.
It felt rather heartwarming.
Li Zihan found, to his surprise, that this kind of tranquil feeling wasn't bad at all.
Then, he froze.
This way of interacting felt slightly… off.
His brow furrowed as he tried to figure out what kind of environment this situation was suited for.
Soon, the answer surfaced.
It was like… family.
Hey, hey, hey, what the hell is this?!
We haven't even started dating, and we've already jumped straight to the family stage?!
During the Second Honkai Eruption, he had shamelessly pestered Fu Hua into agreeing to date him, only to get a perfunctory reply like, "If there really is no danger in the future, we can try dating."
Logically speaking, the next step should have been for him to continue his relentless pursuit, build their relationship through interaction, and eventually win the girl over.
What the hell was this sudden jump to feeling like an old married couple?!
Just how many events were skipped in between?! Drag King Crimson out and have him shot!!
The young man, who had once dragged Fu Hua and Kevin to the world of Campione! out of sheer boredom and even casually gifted Fu Hua a Macaque God-Lord, now felt inexplicably conflicted.
"If you don't eat, it'll get cold."
Fu Hua's voice suddenly fell into Li Zihan's ears.
"I know."
Although he felt something was off about his dynamic with Fu Hua, Li Zihan still answered obediently and picked up the water chestnut cake in his bowl.
The taste was rather average. Most likely, to cater to the palates of the majority at St. Freya, they had added a lot of sugar, making it a bit too sweet.
Furthermore, it lacked coconut milk, and the proportion of brown sugar was a bit low.
The young man, who wasn't a picky eater but was an absolute food connoisseur, analyzed the problems with the pastry, then ate it all as if he hadn't noticed a thing.
He really didn't like it that much.
But this was, after all, the first snack shop Fu Hua had brought him to, and her relationship with the owner was clearly very good. If he were to venomously point out its flaws, both the owner and Fu Hua would be embarrassed.
However, perhaps because she had eaten even less authentic water chestnut cakes before, Miss Fu Hua seemed to be enjoying it quite a bit.
Fu Hua ate her pastry in a very demure manner. Her clean, white teeth gently bit into the cake, tearing off a small piece to chew carefully.
Overall, her pace was neither fast nor slow, giving one a sense of perfect propriety.
You couldn't tell at all that she was over fifty thousand years old, an age that far surpassed a certain purple-haired Lancer or a certain youkai sage.
"Are you thinking something very rude?"
As if she had suddenly noticed something, Fu Hua slowly raised her head, fixing her azure eyes on him.
"Absolutely not."
The young man declared with utmost certainty while giving a French surrender salute.
"Think whatever you want."
Not actually caring too much about what he was thinking, Fu Hua continued to slowly chew her pastry before setting her chopsticks down.
"Ma'am, may I borrow your kitchen?" the Immortal asked the owner. She hadn't ordered any main courses or dishes, only a pre-meal dessert from a shop that, despite selling water chestnut cakes, was primarily a Chinese restaurant.
"Zihan is a very picky eater; he doesn't like modified Shenzhou cuisine. I'd like to borrow your ingredients to make some more authentic Shenzhou dishes. I'll pay for the ingredients afterward."
She noticed?
Li Zihan, who indeed wasn't a fan of modified cuisines, narrowed his eyes. He activated his Clairvoyance, and the scene from the past ten-odd seconds replayed in his mind.
Then—
He was stunned.
The girl named Fu Hua, while eating, had never let the corner of her eye stray from him.
A peculiar feeling welled up in the young man's heart.
"Of course, no problem."
Perhaps because she was so familiar with Fu Hua, the shop owner readily agreed to her request.
Then, the magnificently dressed Immortal stood up, skillfully took an apron hanging on the wall, put it on, and walked into the kitchen.
With his astonishing hearing, Li Zihan easily caught the sounds of the girl searching for ingredients, followed by the series of noises from washing vegetables, chopping, and heating a wok.
She was… truly, remarkably skilled.
The impression I had of the old Fu Hua is fading away, the young man thought, feeling a sense of strangeness.
Then, the shop owner's actions broke his train of thought.
She took out a canister of what appeared to be high-quality tea leaves from a nearby drawer, grabbed a small handful, and placed them in a teapot to brew.
Afterward, she walked over to Li Zihan and poured him a cup of tea.
"Thank you."
Li Zihan accepted the cup and expressed his gratitude.
"Since you're Little Hua's friend, don't be such a stranger," the owner said, her face a canvas of gossip. Then, she leaned in slightly, asking with the seriousness of a concerned parent.
"So, young man, what exactly is your relationship with Little Hua?"