"Basic Taste Perception?"
Looking at the transparent panel that had appeared before him, Fang Ye showed a trace of surprise. He clearly had not expected to awaken a new skill under these circumstances.
Judging from the description,
it seemed that only by consuming special-grade dishes representing all five tastes—sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and umami—within a single day could one unlock the ability known as Basic Taste Perception.
The conditions were rather harsh.
If it were only a matter of eating dishes embodying the five tastes, that would have been manageable—those could all be encountered in everyday life.
The real difficulty lay in the words special-grade.
Even though Fang Ye had not yet truly entered this world's culinary circles, he had watched Cooking Master Boy. A Special-Grade Chef was basically already the leading authority of an entire region.
Ordinary people simply could not come into contact with someone like that.
Could he have done it on purpose?
Thinking back to how Liu Anqing had tidied up after class, picked up his stainless-steel thermos, and quietly left, Fang Ye found that thought surfacing in his mind.
As the former head chef of Juxia Lou, Liu Anqing most likely knew methods unknown to ordinary people—ways to stimulate a normal person's potential.
Forget it. No point overthinking.
No matter what, now that I have this skill, what I should do next has become much clearer.
Looking at the brand-new ability on the system panel, Fang Ye's lips curved slightly upward.
Judging from the skill description, this was basically a starter-edition version of super taste. As long as he kept grinding its proficiency, sooner or later it would evolve into something deeper.
Wasn't that exactly what the proficiency system was for?
"Let's head back."
Leonora Nakiri called out.
In the next moment, Alice Nakiri ran over to her side. After waving goodbye to Fang Ye and Erina Nakiri, the two left the quiet room one after the other.
For children, energy was naturally limited, so their lessons were scheduled only for a few hours in the morning. The rest of the day belonged to them.
"We should go too, Ikaros."
There was no point in staying any longer. After Leonora left with Alice, Fang Ye turned to Ikaros, who was already standing by, prepared.
"Yes, Master."
Ikaros gave a small nod, then spread her arms and picked Fang Ye up, drawing him snugly against her chest, her soft fullness turning into his pillow.
Though Fang Ye felt a little embarrassed, he did not resist. After all, he was still a child. More importantly, Ikaros's embrace really was very soft—and pleasantly fragrant.
After a full day of lessons and a very full stomach, his body swayed slightly with Ikaros's movements on the way back, and drowsiness gradually overtook him.
By the time they reached the room, Ikaros was just about to set Fang Ye down when she realized he had already fallen asleep in her arms, breathing in slow, steady rhythm.
So she had no choice but to lift her hands again instead of lowering them. She went to the wall closet, took out the bedding, spread it quickly, then laid Fang Ye down and covered him with a thin quilt.
After that, she knelt beside him and watched him sleep with open eyes, like a knight guarding her prince, unwilling to leave his side no matter what happened.
·
·
Day after day passed.
Before he knew it, that tiny body had grown, and the date on the calendar had advanced by two full years.
One morning—
"Morning, Alice."
Dressed in a little farmer's outfit and standing at the edge of the Nakiri family's vegetable garden, Fang Ye waved toward Alice Nakiri in the distance and walked over.
"Fang Ye, you're here so early."
Looking at Fang Ye—wearing a wide-brimmed sun hat, a long-sleeved breathable shirt, sturdy work pants, and even rain boots—Alice greeted him in return.
"It's been a while since I came out to the vegetable plot, so I couldn't help looking forward to it. By the way, Erina still hasn't come back? I remember she went up to Hokkaido, right?"
There was curiosity in Fang Ye's voice.
Because Mana Nakiri had fallen ill with anorexia, young Erina had gone in her place to visit restaurants across Japan, and by now she had been away for three months.
During that time, she had visited quite a number of places, using the keen analytical ability of her God Tongue to offer highly constructive evaluations. Because of that, she had earned quite a bit of praise.
Even living here at the Nakiri estate, Fang Ye occasionally heard passing guests talking about her, singing Erina Nakiri's praises—beautiful, kind-hearted, sincere, and serious about cooking.
Given time, she would undoubtedly become the brightest rising star in Japan's culinary world.
Before Azami Nakiri's influence warped her, Erina really was a good kid.
Whenever someone asked her for advice, she answered with a smile. She never looked down on anyone's cooking, and she loved cuisine with a fair, wholehearted heart.
Fang Ye sighed inwardly as the image of the Erina from the original story—willful, arrogant, domineering, and overbearing—rose in his mind. That version of her had truly not been likable.
Compared with the little angel she was now, she felt like a completely different person.
Looking at it now, that personality had most likely just been a protective shell she developed under all the pressure bearing down on her from the outside.
There aren't many years left before the story where Azami imprisons Erina. When that time comes, I have to do something—at the very least, I can't let her be all alone again.
As a child living under someone else's roof, Fang Ye had very little power to change the decisions made by adults.
But he could still move between the cracks and do what he could, so that Erina would not have to suffer quite so much.
After all, Azami's confinement was not outright abuse. It was more a form of psychological control.
And the best way to break that kind of control was to give her the strength of friendship.
"Fang Ye! Fang Ye! Stop ignoring me!"
"Hm? What is it?"
Hearing Alice call out to him—and feeling his body being shaken along with it—Fang Ye finally came back to himself. He looked at her with mild confusion.
"What were you thinking about? I called your name forever and you didn't react at all!"
When he turned, he was met with a puffed-up face like an angry blowfish. Alice Nakiri looked thoroughly dissatisfied, clearly unable to accept being ignored by him.
"I was thinking about Erina a little. It's been a while since I've seen her."
Fang Ye answered honestly.
"I see... I miss her a little too. Next time, let's ask if we can go along with her. Here, try this tomato—it's sweet and sour and tastes amazing!"
As she spoke, Alice held out a tomato with a bite already taken out of it. Its surface was still beaded with moisture, so it had clearly been washed only moments ago.
"All right."
Taking the tomato Alice offered him, Fang Ye saw the expectant look in her eyes and bit into it without hesitation.
In the next instant, his entire face twisted.
"Tch—so sour!"
"Hahahahaha! That's what you get for ignoring me—you fell for it~"
Spitting out the absurdly sour tomato while sticking out his tongue, Fang Ye glared at Alice in annoyance. By then she had already run off, laughter like silver bells trailing in the air.
"The main reason that tomato is so sour is insufficient sunlight. Adequate photosynthesis is the foundation for producing sugar.
"The tomatoes you're eating may look fine, but they grew under the shade of too many leaves. On top of that, they were given too much nitrogen fertilizer and watered too often, so the flavor turned out very sour."
An old man in a straw hat came striding over from the distance.
Beside him walked a slender little girl in a plaid skirt and a knitted vest.
Golden hair fluttered lightly in the breeze.
If that wasn't Erina Nakiri, then who else could it be?
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 135)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 110)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter67)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter85)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 60
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 65
From Junkman to Wasteland 50
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 35
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 40
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 37
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