Ramen

The aroma of food wafted through the square as people streamed between the food stalls. All different flavours of food from around the world were beautifully presented on the stalls.

Surprisingly, there was a man dressed in a lavish suit performing mind-blowing tricks in the kitchen of a side stall. In no time, a huge crowd gathered around his stall.

In the crowd, Lilith was holding a plate, eating a pie while silently watching a man who was cooking for her. The man in the lavish clothes was none other than Aucuses.

She and Aucuses strolled through the food stands, tasting dishes from around the world.

There really was a wide variety of food at the Lantern Festival, from grilled fish from the Southern Continent to mooncakes from the Kingdom of Night. It was a feast for her tongue.

Aucuses took her to each of the stalls and let her taste everything. It is truly an eye-opening experience. She didn't refuse it, although she hadn't been used to eating anything for centuries. But it was Aucuces who personally brought everything to him….So she decided it was time to try something new.

She munched through the dishes with Aucuses. It was an exhilarating experience, she must say. And, everyone should do it at least once in their lives.

And during their journey through food heaven, Lilith asked Aucuses something, after seeing her not-so-subtle enthusiasm for food. She asked him, if he could cook too?

Aucuses immediately nodded to her question, sporting a big smile. Then he asked quite eagerly if she wanted to try his cooking. She obviously did not reject his offer.

Then, Aucuses very politely "borrowed" a stall and started cooking. As for why she was flabbergasted, it is because Aucuses' cooking was different from what she thought. It would be better to say it was some kind of little show rather than actual cooking. His exaggerated movements as he manipulated the golden fire from the oven, as well as many other similar tricks, really opened her eyes.

Seeing him cooking caused many profound questions to arise in her heart,

How can he look great in any situation? Is this charm brought by the path of the sun? Nope! It should be natural. It should indeed be.

Lilith finally pushed her chaotic thoughts aside and looked into kitchen, focusing on Aucuses, who kept shooting a glance at her. She smiled softly in response, quite knowing that this was what Aucuses wanted to see.

She already knew Aucuses liked her. If she hadn't been wrong, Aucuses should have known about her feelings as well. Although they acknowledged their feelings, they did not dare express it to each other.

It was excruciating. She really wished she could smash the earth to release her pent up emotions.

Lilith took a piece of cake while trying to contain her surging emotions. There was really nothing she could do about the complex situation between them...

Concealment...her identity as Ombella...many others...she even had the slightest suspicion that Aucuses had already discovered her identity, which should be impossible given the efforts of the Ancient sun god and Amanises to make sure that the concealment was infallible.

Still, she didn't care about any of that in this moment. She just wants to enjoy this moment without worries or burdens. She also clearly realised that her actions were totally illogical from the standpoint of a sentient, logical, and divine God.

But, as the famous saying goes ~Love makes fool of us all~

Suddenly, people around her exclaimed , her eyes narrowed to the booth where Aucuces finished his cooking show.

The aroma of the dish immediately filled the air and made everyone's mouth water. Despite this, no one approached the stall, as they noticed the chef cooking for one, exuding an intimidating aura.

Aucuses placed a single bowl on the stall counter with two chopsticks right on the edge of the bowl.

The bowl was filled with hot ramen in a broth seasoned with miso. It had several with steak, hard boiled eggs, vegetables and toppings on hot miso.

"Come on." Aucuses invited her as he took off his apron and washed his hands. "It's ready."

Lilith walked over and sat down before everyone's envious eyes. Then her eyes sparkled at the sight of the unknown dish. It caught her attention with its aroma alone.

"What is its name, Aucuses?" She asked with vigour, picking up the chopsticks near the bowl.

"Ramen". Aucuses replied, leaning on the counter with his hands on his chin and staring at her. "Miso Ramen".

Lilith nodded, figuring out how to eat with these strange sticks. It wasn't difficult, and it only took a few seconds.

Then she began, accompanied by Aucuses' eager and expectant expression. He seemed to be more eager and anticipatory of her eating than she was.

With her nimble fingers, she smashed the chopsticks into the noodles and, with only one of her sticks, pushed it back into her mouth.

The flavours exploded in her mouth, making her hum with pleasure. It was sweet and salty one minute, spicy and sour the next. The contrasting flavours melted surprisingly perfectly in her mouth.

It was almost like a miracle. No! It's truly a miracle in itself, as it was her love who made it personally for her...

The crowd around the cabin had already dispersed in the wave of Aucuses' hands, leaving them both alone.

"How is it?" Aucuses asked, his eyes full of expectation, leaning forward.

Lilith didn't respond, instead continuing to eat the noodles.

Aucuses watched her bulging cheeks patiently. He chuckled at the sight, knowing she must be enjoying his cooking.

He sat in the chair, his elbow on the counter and palm on his chin, his gaze fixed on Lilith, dreamy.

Lilith finished it swiftly. She immediately raised her bowl and shouted. "Another one!"

She looked around and noticed Aucuses' scorching gaze fixed on her body, but she didn't care about his unbasful action any longer and let him have his look.

But that doesn't mean she's going to abandon the noddles!

"No! Continue until I tell, Aucuses."

Her yelling finally jolted Aucuses out of his trance, and he blazed through the kitchen wearing a wide smile to cook for her.

Lilith smiled, after seeing pure joy radiate from him simply by cooking her another bowl of noodles.

She waited patiently, staring at the ridiculous but wonderful show of Aucuses, which made her laugh and chuckle many times.

Her eyes slowly softened and she looked at her dolt, who had done so much for her ...

The atmosphere between them grew warm and cosy by the minute.

When the clock struck 11:55 pm, Lilith finally placed her last bowl of noodles on the counter, breathing a sigh of satisfaction. Beside her was a series of bowls stacked on top of each other.

"That's more than enough, Aucuses." She laughed when she saw him go into the kitchen again. She was still elegant and composed, despite her eating so much, which also didn't seem to affect her at all.

"How was it? Do the flavours go well together? Were the noodles soft?…." Aucuses immediately bombarded her with numerous questions as he walked towards her.

Lilith smiled when she saw him so expectant for her answer.

"It's out of this world. Now it is also my favourite dish." She replied indulgently.

"Of course." The abrupt change in Aucuses' tone and expression caught Lilith off guard. "After all, given who made it?" He persisted in his narcissism.

His narcissism. Oddly, Lilith loved the proud, narcissistic expression on his face. It also surprisingly accentuated to his already handsome face.

Lilith laughed, covering her mouth with her hands, as her heart felt so surreal and happy for this night. She didn't want it to end at all.

Aucuses leaned towards her, raising his eyebrows in a questioning look at her sudden laughter...

However, the warm atmosphere was soon interpreted by the sounds of the crowd signalling the start of the great festival.