The Last Gathering of the Cooking Club
Early morning, the training ground attached to the Astra estate. Just like I’d seen in some manga, I was doing push-ups while balancing on a single finger, counting in my head. One million and one, one million and two. Of course, I hadn't actually done a million and two. Isn't there an unspoken rule that if you're doing push-ups, you *have* to start counting from there? After hitting a respectable number, I stood up and gulped down a glass of water. Getting up early to train my body had become my daily routine.
I’d learned the basics during Academy training, but working out alone made me realize just how incredible my physical capabilities had become. Doing push-ups on one finger was as easy as morning stretches. I hadn't measured it properly, but I could probably hit a 500kg total in the big three lifts without breaking a sweat. All that power coming from these slender arms—if the guys at the gym who were grinding away at their upper and lower bodies saw this, they’d probably faint from disbelief. To them, this would be nothing short of fantasy.
Regardless, there was one troublesome aspect to all this. I was training because I wanted to get stronger, but having never lived in this body before, I had no idea what kind of routine I should be doing on my own. I’d tried the classic 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and a 10km run—risking hair loss and all—but that barely put a dent in my stamina. I couldn't just spend all day throwing punches into the air, hoping for some miraculous effect... Maybe I should have asked Eve-sensei for advice when I had the chance.
Just as I was lost in thought, my phone rang. Since I only had a few registered numbers, I checked the screen, and sure enough, it was the person who occupied most of my call history.
"It's fine, Mei. I've been waking up early lately, so I was right in the middle of a workout."
I answered Mei's question with a smile. Thank goodness, Mei, who had been poisoned by mana, had recovered her health without any major issues thanks to the quick response. It had been a while since we’d seen each other due to the Academy's temporary closure, but we had been keeping in touch quite frequently. Still, she usually called around evening; I wondered what brought her to call so early in the morning. As if she knew what I was thinking, Mei got straight to the point before I could even ask.
"Say, Scarlet. Are you free today? Leonor-sunbae wants to see everyone and grab a meal together."
That worked out perfectly. Thinking it would be a good chance to meet the cooking club members and maybe get some advice on my training, I asked her, "I'm free anytime. Where are we meeting?"
"Well, sunbae said to come to her house."
***
I headed to the meeting spot to go to Leonor's house with Mei. She must have arrived earlier than the promised time, as I saw a familiar face waiting in the distance. When I ran up to Mei, who was adjusting her glasses in her neat casual clothes, she greeted me with a faint smile.
"It's been a while. You haven't had any trouble, right?"
"Of course not. More importantly, I'm so relieved to see you look like you're in good health. I was really worried."
"I told you over the phone several times that I was fine, you worry too much. Honestly, from my perspective, I was more worried about you. I heard there was a huge incident right after I regained consciousness, so I was worried you might have pushed yourself too hard and gotten seriously hurt again."
I scratched my head and gave an awkward laugh at her pointed remark. She had witnessed me lose my arm right in front of her, so it was understandable. Mei chuckled at my reaction, then started walking. "Let's head to sunbae's place first. We can talk plenty once we're there."
I nodded and obediently followed her.
"...This is it?"
"Yeah, according to the address sunbae sent, this seems to be the place."
At Mei's words, I looked up at the house. An oriental-style building that looked like it belonged to a noble lady. And yet, the one living there was a tanned blonde girl... The irony made me chuckle. Honestly, in the past, I would have been nervous about visiting such a luxurious-looking house, but these days, I was living at Sylvia's estate, which was even grander, so I pressed the doorbell without any hesitation.
After a brief wait, the door opened with the sound of rapid footsteps. "You're here! Come on in, everyone."
I involuntarily gasped at the sight of Leonor. A tank top and dolphin shorts. And perhaps because of that, her violent physique was even more pronounced. It was her house, so she could wear whatever was comfortable, but seeing Leonor in such an outfit left me with nowhere to look. Mei seemed to have similar thoughts, as she turned her head and cleared her throat.
"What are you doing, not coming in? The food's going to get cold, hurry up."
"E-excuse me."
As we hesitated, caught off guard by the spectacular sight, Leonor urged us in with a wave of her hand. We hurried inside, and I couldn't help but gasp at the breathtaking scene unfolding before me.
"Wow... Whoa..."
Leonor's outfit was quite shocking, but it couldn't make my heart race more than the sight before my eyes. Mei seemed to feel the same, as she spoke with a look of pure amazement.
"Did... did you make all of this, sunbae?"
"Heh, I put in some effort since you guys were coming. What do you think?"
It's incredible... I gave Leonor a thumbs-up, filled with emotion. The table was overflowing with all sorts of dishes; I couldn't even guess how many hours she had spent preparing them. The meals at Sylvia's estate were delicious, of course, but they were so high-end that they felt a bit burdensome. But the dishes Leonor had prepared felt like genuine home cooking. Seeing dishes like braised short ribs, which took a lot of time and care to make, I swallowed my saliva and asked Leonor, "Sunbae, I'm grateful, but didn't you spend too much time on this? I feel bad that you went through all this trouble for us..."
"Ahaha, if you're going to be that modest, wipe the drool off your chin first. I did it because I wanted to, so don't worry about it. Besides... well, I have something I want to tell you guys."
Leonor hesitated slightly as she spoke. She wore a somewhat sorrowful smile as she continued. "The thing is, I think the cooking club will be disbanded once the Academy reopens."
"What? That's..."
Mei exclaimed in shock. I was surprised for a moment, but I nodded with a regretful face, as I had thought that might happen. After everything that had occurred, it wouldn't be strange for the club to disappear... Leonor spoke with a troubled expression.
"It was a club that was only possible because James, the cook, allowed us to use the kitchen... but since that happened to him. Plus, even if a new cook comes, they said they'll restrict access to the kitchen to a minimum number of people for security reasons. Even if the cooking club survives, I don't think we'll be able to enjoy our activities in the kitchen like we used to..."
I sometimes had nightmares about that day, so I could understand her feelings. She had spent a long time with Mr. James, so she was probably hurting more than I was. As Leonor fell silent, Mei muttered with a gloomy face, "Then... is the cooking club over? I didn't get to see it much, but it was fun when we all gathered to cook..."
"...It's really a shame."
Even though I was mostly the designated eater, I hated only being on the receiving end, so I had planned to treat them to my secret stir-fried bean sprouts someday—to think this would happen... As Mei and I expressed our disappointment, Leonor, who had been looking down, spoke to us.
"I said I had something to tell you. You have to listen until the end."
Leonor spoke to us as we tilted our heads. "...I mean, I haven't known you guys for that long, but I really liked you. Come to think of it, the time I spent doing cooking club activities with you guys was the most fun I've had lately. So... I have a favor to ask..."
Leonor blushed slightly as she spoke to us. "If you guys are okay with it, even if it's not a cooking club activity, can we gather like this and eat together sometimes? I worked so hard on this food today to ask you that... what do you think?"
She looks like a total delinquent, so why is she so cute? While I was having that thought, Mei nodded vigorously beside me. "I... I'd love to! I'm totally in favor! I'm not good at dealing with people, but I was hoping I could get close to you, sunbae..."
Mei looked at me with longing eyes as she answered. You don't have to plead like that. I owed them both in my heart anyway, and if that's what they wanted, I had no reason to refuse. Thinking this, I said to Leonor, "I'd love to, too. I want to stay on good terms with you, sunbae, in the future."
"Ah... what a relief..."
Leonor muttered as if she were truly relieved, then smiled with slightly reddened eyes. Was she that happy? I chuckled at her appearance and said, "Sunbae, are you crying?"
"Who's crying! I'm not, so don't get cocky and just eat your food!"
"Yes, yes, of course."
"I said I wasn't crying!"
"Ahahahaha."
Laughter didn't stop throughout the meal. It was a time when I could finally forget my worries and anxieties for a while.
***
After the meal, while we were doing the dishes together—ignoring Leonor's protests that guests should just sit still—I asked Leonor and Mei how I could get stronger. Mei looked at me with eyes that said she was hurt and muttered, "Scarlet, that's a very painful question to ask someone weaker than you..."
"No, I'm genuinely curious about what kind of training I should do on my own to get stronger..."
When I answered, flustered by Mei's reaction, Leonor, who was listening nearby, chuckled and said, "Honestly, if I knew that, both you and I would have already become strong. Even though I'm considered quite strong among my peers, most of the time I have no idea what I should be doing when I train alone."
"Is that so..."
So getting stronger really isn't easy... As I said that with a disappointed look, Leonor smiled and said, "Well, I don't really know, but an expert in that field happens to be at home today, so wait a moment."
Leonor said that and shouted loudly toward somewhere. "Dad!!! Come out for a second!"
"...What is it. You told me not to come out at all because your juniors were coming today..."
At the same time as Leonor's shout, a voice that sounded thoroughly sulky was heard from the side. A man with the same blonde hair and brown skin as Leonor was standing there. As if he had appeared along with the sound. I realized who the helper Leonor mentioned was and let out a dry laugh. Leon Lionil, the fastest hero, also known as the one followed by sound, and Leonor Lionil's father—who was undoubtedly one of the top five strongest heroes in this world—was wearing the face of a hurt father.