Zhang Zikai was roused from his sleep by a delicious aroma. As he opened his eyes, he realized he was in an unfamiliar place.
It looked like a four-bedroom house, but the decor was dated. Despite the number of rooms, the total space wasn't even as big as his own living room.
His stomach growled. Following the enticing smell, Zhang Zikai's gaze drifted toward the kitchen.
A man and a woman were busy inside, working together seamlessly like a young couple.
The woman was stunning—so beautiful it almost felt unreal. Even though she wore an apron, it was clear she had no clue how to navigate a kitchen. She had already broken a plate...
The man seemed to be the one doing the actual cooking—and he looked very familiar...
Wait a second, isn't that Lu Chen?
Who am I? Where am I? What's going on?
Why are my hands taped up?!
Why can't I speak?!
When someone is under extreme psychological stress, they might suffer temporary memory loss. Poor Zhang Zikai suddenly recalled everything the moment he saw the face of the culprit—Lu Chen.
"!"
"!!"
...
As the delicious aroma filled the room, Lu Chen, still wearing an apron, carried out the dishes.
"Chicken soup's ready—!"
He looked at the four dishes and a bowl of soup on the table and nodded with satisfaction. This might just be the most luxurious meal he'd had since returning to this world.
(Sweets didn't count.)
Ei sat down eagerly—this would be her first successful cooking experience.
(If handing over plates and condiments counted.)
"Everything's ready—why aren't you eating?" Lu Chen shoved a spoon into Raiden Ei's hand.
"Drink the soup. Try your own cooking."
"Mm." Raiden Ei remembered she had personally chopped up that chicken.
She scooped up a spoonful of golden broth and gently blew on it.
Her cherry-colored lips tentatively touched the surface to test the heat, then quickly pulled back—she looked adorably cautious.
Lu Chen rested his chin on his hand, quietly enjoying the sight of Ei sipping her soup. When she let out a satisfied "mmm," his mouth involuntarily curved into a smile.
"Stop staring at me and eat something yourself." She passed him a chicken drumstick.
"Alright~" Lu Chen bit into the drumstick.
As the two ate, a system notification appeared.
[Achievement Unlocked: Raiden Shogun Really Can Cook]
[Condition Met: Cook with Raiden Ei in the real world and successfully create a delicious dish]
[Achievement Reward: 150 Primogems, 150,000 real-world currency]
So this really was Raiden Ei's first successful attempt at cooking...
Not an easy feat...
Lu Chen glanced at the still-blackened kitchen wall and felt rather proud of himself.
...
"Chen."
"Hmm?"
"Didn't we forget something?"
"Did we?"
Just as Lu Chen finished his second drumstick, Zhang Zikai—still tied to the sofa—finally couldn't take it anymore.
First terrified, then exhausted and starving, now he had to sit and watch others eat?! Zhang Zikai had never suffered this kind of torment in his life.
What's worse, the two of them weren't just eating—they were feeding each other like lovebirds!
Zhang Zikai glanced at the stunning girl sitting across from Lu Chen. Wasn't this guy confessing to Zhao Xiaohan just a few days ago?! Who the hell was this girl at his house now?
What a scumbag.
"Alright, I'll stop messing with you." Lu Chen smiled as he walked over to the sofa.
He peeled the tape off Zhang Zikai's mouth and cut the tape binding his wrists.
"You—what's the meaning of this?!"
Zhang Zikai shrank into the sofa, rubbing the red marks on his wrists.
"Eat first." Lu Chen returned to the table and patted the seat beside him.
Zhang Zikai, as if possessed, sat down. He stared at the fragrant chicken wing on his plate, suspecting Lu Chen had laced it with poison.
And who could blame him? Lu Chen's behavior was just too bizarre.
"You're not planning to kill me to shut me up, are you?"
"Don't be silly! You're my new friend." Lu Chen patted his shoulder with a serious tone.
"This is my last meal, isn't it?" Zhang Zikai's face collapsed.
He didn't dare take a bite!!
Raiden Ei burst out laughing. As the ruler of Inazuma, she had probably laughed more in these past few days than she had in the last few centuries.
"Alright, enough messing around." Lu Chen's face turned serious. "Everything you went through today was your own doing. If you hadn't provoked me, the kind-hearted me would've used Plan A—you wouldn't have suffered at all."
"Plan A?" Zhang Zikai vaguely remembered him mentioning a Plan B before.
"That's not important now. I need your help with something—something only your father, as a school board member, can do."
"...What is it?"
Lu Chen glanced at Raiden Ei. "Help her enroll in our school."
"Huh?" Zhang Zikai thought he'd misheard.
"She's transferring to our school?" He pointed at Raiden Ei. "Just let her take the entrance exam, what's the big deal? Is she a bad student or something?"
"It's not about whether she's a good student..."
Lu Chen didn't even know where to begin.
Ei had been studying diligently, and with her smarts, she'd definitely catch up. But the sooner she could enroll, the better—he needed to grow stronger quickly.
The bigger problem was...
She was undocumented.
A traveler from another world. If she wanted to enroll at Haizhou without being exposed, she'd need someone on the inside—someone like Zhang Zikai's father.
Lu Chen laid it all out simply. Zhang Zikai's jaw dropped wider and wider, like he could fit an egg in his mouth.
"Unknown identity..."
"Superpowers..."
"Going undercover in school..."
Zhang Zikai felt like the entire world had lost its mind.
"Is it you who's crazy, or is it me..."
"You've got to be kidding me. Okay, sure, I had someone block you in the parking lot—that's on me—but this is going way too far..."
Lu Chen was still smiling as he gently asked, "How's your nose doing?"
"Mm... It's a little better. It wouldn't stop bleeding at first, but then..."
Before he could finish, Lu Chen's fist met his face.
"Ah—!"
Zhang Zikai clutched his nose as blood poured out, tears streaming down from the pain.
"Lu Chen, you psycho! Why'd you hit me?!"
The dining table fell into silence. Zhang Zikai, holding his nose, turned away.
Lu Chen stared at him expressionlessly.
"What I mean is—this isn't a request. It's a threat."
Zhang Zikai wiped away the blood and tears, pitifully taking the tissue Raiden Ei handed him.
"I'll do it! Okay?! I'll do it, alright?!"
He cried, "Don't just say arrange a superpowered beauty—if you wanted me to arrange a god from the heavens, I'd still have to say yes..."
"You said it!" Lu Chen gave a cheerful smile again.
Zhang Zikai looked at that smile, completely crushed. If his life was doomed to misery, then this must have been the day it all began...