Always Improving

"This joke turned out to be quite successful..." Elf suppressed a laugh. "Rizu is one thing, but I can't believe even Homura fell for it!"

"No kidding!" Homura quipped. "When she said Ogata Fumino earlier, her eyes lit up and so convincing. How could I not believe it?"

"After all, it does sound really good." Fumino retorted. "Even though it was a joke, I genuinely think the name is fantastic."

"So... that's why Homura believes it, huh?" Elf pondered, "So when joking, you should say things that even make yourself feel moved?"

"If that's the case, can you really be sure you're just joking?" Homura countered. "Saying things that even move yourself—if you can't resist the urge, you'll end up acting on them directly. That wouldn't be a joke anymore."

Elf: "..."

"Fair point..." She shook her head, "Then, forget it!"

"Eh! Furuhashi-san, that's not soy sauce!" Nanami suddenly exclaimed.

Fumino looked embarrassed. "Oh... sorry, got distracted!"

"So, take this opportunity to learn." Homura chuckled. "If you don't take advantage of this chance to learn more, where will you go to learn in the future?"

"...Can't I still come to ask you for advice?" Fumino hesitated.

Homura: "..."

With a speechless expression, he could only say, "Of course you can..."

===

""Itadakimasu!""

"What is this?!" Uruka's face turned slightly red, her voice filled with disbelief. "It's so delicious?!"

"No doubt about it!" Miyako nodded incessantly. "I've never had anything so delicious before. I can't even imagine why Minamiya-sensei's cooking skills are this good!"

"Impressive..." Rizu's expression shifted, contemplating. "If my dad's udon could reach even one-third of this level, the restaurant's business would skyrocket."

While eating, Fumino wore a cute smile and said, "It seems I'll have to frequently consult with Minamiya-kun. As long as I can learn a little, my dishes won't be embarrassing anymore."

"Actually..." Elf had a shocked expression. "I'm the most surprised... I've known Homura for just over half a month, but his cooking skills seem to improve every single day. There's no end in sight. How can I possibly catch up?!"

"Don't worry... I can't keep improving forever you know." Homura reassured.

Well, it wasn't exactly reassuring, considering his cooking skills were already at level eight. There was only a slight room for improvement, and the rest depended on finding a way to break through the limits of each level.

"That's something someone who improves every day would say..." Elf rolled her eyes. "Do you think that's believable?"

"What's unbelievable about it?" Homura shrugged. "These ingredients will eventually reach their limits in terms of research, right? The taste and everything can't keep getting more delicious. So, cooking skills do have their limits..."

'Unless there are some legendary ingredients of course.'

But that was just a sarcastic remark in his mind.

"Reaching the limits of ingredients?" Elf looked at him as if he were a freak. "Isn't that even more discouraging than simply improving every day?!"

"It seems like Nii-san was born to discourage other people..." Sagiri also agreed with Elf. "He learns everything extremely fast, and now he knows so many things that it's impossible to count them all."

"Elf-chan, it's better not to compare yourself to my Nii-san because it can be discouraging for anyone..." Sagiri advised. Hearing Sagiri's words, Elf bit her lip in frustration. "Although that's true... how could I..."

"It's decided! I'm going to become the world's top novelist!" Elf declared with determination. "If I give up just because I feel discouraged, how will I ever succeed? I not only have to catch up, but I also have to keep up!"

"Exactly!" Homura laughed heartily and gave a thumbs-up. "That's the Elf I know. Your never-give-up spirit is what will lead you to success."

"Then I'll gladly accept your good wishes..." Elf rolled her eyes once again and began devouring her food.

===

After dinner, Homura, who had just finished tidying up the kitchen, came out and saw Rizu checking the time.

Homura asked, "Leaving already?"

"Well... although it's not polite to leave right after finishing dinner, it is getting late, and I should go back to the shop..." Rizu replied.

Indeed, even if others weren't in a hurry to leave, Rizu had limited free time due to running the family's shop. Moreover, she was also focused on studying and aiming to get into her dream university, which further reduced her leisure time.

Homura had suspected more than once whether dedicating all her time to books and having mechanical interactions with other people only in the shop contributed to Rizu's lack of understanding of human psychology.

But since he had the thought, he might as well mention it.

"Ogata-san, may I give you a small suggestion that might be helpful to you?"

Upon hearing that it would be helpful to her, Rizu immediately became more serious.

"Please, Minamiya-san, go ahead!"

"Give yourself a bit more free time. Use that time to hang out with Furuhashi-san and your friends, interact with more people, and preferably have more conversations. It will be very beneficial for you." Homura advised.

"Simply memorizing things from books won't be effective. Understanding human feeling is something difficult to describe; only by personally engaging with people can you gain the most effective insights."

Fumino added, "Yes, Ri-chan, Minamiya-kun is right. Although I don't understand why it's so hard for you to grasp the psychology of others, precisely because it's challenging, you need to have more interactions. Even at school, I hope you can talk to other classmates. It would be wonderful."

"In short..." Elf chimed in with her opinion, "Chatting is a crucial means of understanding someone's inner self. Even I, with my God's Eyes, need to learn more through conversation. And you, Rizu, need it even more!"

Seeing everyone giving their suggestions, Rizu nodded earnestly. "I understand. I'll discuss it with my dad!"

"By the way, what is God's Eye?" Rizu suddenly asked.

"That's my special and powerful skill!" Elf proudly thumped her chest.

"In simple terms, it's the ability to understand what kind of person someone is by reading what they write..." Homura explained quickly, fearing that Elf's chuunibyou terminology would confuse everyone even more.

"That's amazing!" Rizu's eyes sparkled with astonishment. "If I had God's Eye..."

"Ri-chan..." Fumino said helplessly, "That's something I can do too..."

When it came to judging people based on their writing, is there anyone more talented than Fumino?