A youth story of a passerby at the end of the world

Yukino Yukinoshita placed the tray on the coffee table and handed each person their drink.

Uesugi Genshin's milk tea, her own black tea with Hayasaka Ai and Horikita Suzune, and Eriri and Ichinose Honami's hot cocoa.

"Thank you." Uesugi Genshin said after taking the tea, and after taking a sip, he realized it was indeed milk tea, but the sweetness was slightly off.

The sugar, which should have been a lethal dose, was not added according to the standard dosage by Yukinoshita.

"We'll be eating soon, so let's not consume too much sugar," Yukino Yukinoshita said, holding up her cup of black tea, noticing his slight surprise.

She believed that if she could eat more food, she shouldn't rely solely on sugar for energy.

"What are we having for dinner?" Uesugi Genshin asked, sipping his milk tea and lying on the sofa.

"What would you like to eat?" Yukino Yukinoshita asked, sitting on the sofa.

"Can we still choose?" Masumi Kamuro asked curiously.

"I just checked the refrigerator, and most of the food inside is still okay." Yukino Yukinoshita took a sip of her black tea. "You guys go ahead and tell me what you want to make, and I'll see if I can manage it."

If you need uncommon ingredients that can't be substituted, or if it's very complicated, then it won't work.

Hearing this, Masumi Kamuro didn't really have anything she wanted to eat, so she said, "I don't mind."

“Me too,” Horikita Suzune replied, appearing quite indifferent to worldly desires.

Honami Ichinose didn't answer immediately, but looked at Eriri and asked, "Miss Eriri, is there anything you'd like to eat?"

"...Omelette rice, I want to eat omelette rice." Eriri said softly what she wanted to eat.

“No problem,” Yukino Yukinoshita said with a smile, then she looked at Ichinose.

"I don't really have anything I want to eat," Honami Ichinose said, shaking her head. Although it was in her nature to try not to cause trouble, the purpose of this dinner was for everyone to enjoy a good meal, but she really didn't have anything she particularly wanted to eat.

When Yukinoshita's gaze shifted to her, Hayasaka Ai thought for a moment, "Well, as long as it tastes good, that's fine."

"Please rest assured about that."

Finally arriving at Uesugi Genshin's side, he said, "I'd like dessert after dinner."

"Desserts..." Yukino Yukinoshita thought for a moment, "...specifically?"

"Yes, chocolate chiffon cake," Uesugi Genshin said, raising his hand like a primary school student.

"Chocolate chiffon cake... I want to eat some too." Ichinose Honami smiled, clasping her hands together happily. She hadn't thought about desserts before, but Uesugi-kun's mention of it made her crave something sweet.

"We don't have any chocolate at home, would a regular chiffon cake work?" Yukino Yukinoshita asked hesitantly.

"Hmm." This was a critical hit to Uesugi Genshin. Without chocolate, he couldn't think of any other desserts he wanted to eat.

"How about fruit tarts?" Yukino Yukinoshita asked, remembering that there were canned strawberries in the refrigerator.

"Then please make another batch of regular egg tarts," Uesugi Genshin said, raising his hand in a low voice.

He doesn't like desserts with a sour taste, especially those spread with various jams, mainly because the jams are too "cheap" and all that's left is sourness.

"Okay." Yukino Yukinoshita nodded, then she explained her plans, "We'll have sukiyaki for dinner, is that alright?"

"Okay~" "No problem~"

No one has an opinion.

"Also, I'll make some other side dishes." With that, Yukino Yukinoshita stood up.

“Then I’ll help.” Uesugi Genshin also stood up.

“Ah, then I will too…” Ichinose Honami also stood up.

Along with her was Horikita Suzune, who was very confident in her culinary skills.

“The kitchen isn’t big; two people are enough,” Yukino Yukinoshita said, pointing to the only man present.

"You can go take a shower first." She looked at the sickly Eriri and smiled gently. "Let your bodies relax first."

All the girls present agreed.

"The rice is over there, steam it first." Yukino Yukinoshita said to Genshin Uesugi, then turned and led the others out of the living room.

Horikita Suzune helped Eriri up and followed her towards the bathroom.

Then we discovered that the bathroom wasn't small, so everyone could shower together, although we couldn't take a bath together.

It seems that only Eriri needs a bath, while Honami Ichinose stays to keep her company.

Meanwhile, Genshin Uesugi went to the kitchen, a very clean home kitchen with two stovetops, and an oven and dishwasher were also provided.

When Uesugi Genshin finished rinsing the rice, Yukinoshita, wearing a white hoodie and black casual pants with her hair in a ponytail, returned to the kitchen.

"What's wrong?" Yukino Yukinoshita asked shyly, noticing Uesugi Genshin's gaze.

"Oh, you went to change your clothes."

"Yes." She took the apron and tied it on, replying, "Oh, steam more rice, and we can make rice balls with the rest for tomorrow morning."

He readily complied, but Uesugi Genshin became curious. "Hey, your house has a traditional Japanese garden, right?"

"Yes, that's what my hometown is like." Yukino Yukinoshita was a little curious as to why she brought this up.

"Who usually cooks?"

“Most of the time it’s my mother,” Yukino Yukinoshita replied. Ah, is this person just curious about how her family cooks?

"Is it like in movies and TV series?" That would be a bit too traditional.

"You're talking about the kind of family cooking in a large kitchen with wooden windows, wearing kimonos and using modern kitchen utensils. That's exactly what it is, and my cooking skills were taught to me by my mother from the very beginning."

“A kimono…” Uesugi Genshin murmured, looking at Yukinoshita.

"What's wrong with kimonos?"

"No, I was just imagining what you would look like in a kimono."

"Ha, if you're curious, I have a kimono here." Yukino Yukinoshita narrowed her eyes and shot a sharp look at Genshin Uesugi.

“No, I’m not curious,” Uesugi Genshin said, shaking his head insincerely.

"As for sukiyaki, we don't have konjac left," Yukino Yukinoshita muttered to herself as she rummaged through the refrigerator.

"That's perfect." Uesugi Genshin smiled with delight.

"Being a picky eater isn't good," Yukino Yukinoshita said, pointing at him with her finger in a lecturing tone.

"Don't worry." Uesugi Genshin waved his hand dismissively, "If you made it, I would definitely eat it all."

"..." This made Yukino Yukinoshita lower her head, not knowing what to say. What did he mean by that?

She had no choice but to speed up her work, and changed the subject, saying, "There's still some chicken and pork in the fridge."

"Ah, besides the omelet rice, let's also make some fried chicken and fried pork cutlet," Uesugi Genshin suggested confidently.

The rice in the omelet rice is actually just soy sauce chicken fried rice.

“It’s all fried meat, which isn’t very healthy,” Yukino Yukinoshita disagreed with his idea.

“Then…” Uesugi Genshin looked through the refrigerator. “Bean sprouts with pork? Onions with pork? Scallions with pork? Or ginger with pork? No, ginger with pork is out of the question.”

I've been eating this canned food almost every day for the past month, and I'm getting a little tired of it. I'd like to try something different.

"What do you think of twice-cooked pork?" he asked, turning to look at Yukinoshita.

Chinese food? Yukino Yukinoshita smiled happily. "That's fine."

While frying the rice after it was steamed, Uesugi Genshin sighed regretfully, "It's a pity the pan is flat, otherwise I could toss it around."

By the way, adding a little oil to cooled dry rice will make the fried rice grains separate.

“A frying pan will do,” Yukino Yukinoshita said, glancing at him.

"No, you can say you want to flip the steak or something, but fried rice is out of the question." Uesugi Genshin said, embarrassed, "It's easy to spill."

"It won't spill." Yukino Yukinoshita took the pot from his hand, gave it a gentle shake, and the rice floated in the air before neatly falling back into the pot.

"Impressive," Uesugi Genshin said, clapping his hands.

"Isn't this just basic skill?" Yukino Yukinoshita said, happily fiddling with her hair after receiving the praise.

"Indeed, that's why he's so good." He doesn't bother with basic skills at all. He just learns to cook by doing it, including knife skills, which he gradually becomes familiar with while cooking. Yukinoshita is different in this respect.

The two started doing something else along the way.

"Besides egg tarts, let's make some muffins too," Yukino Yukinoshita said to Genshin Uesugi, as she fetched ingredients from various places.

“Sure,” Uesugi Genshin nodded in agreement, a look of anticipation on his face.

He thought for a moment and said, "Then I'll make some Chinese desserts too. Do you want some fried spring rolls? They're filled with red bean paste."

“Sure, we have red beans at home too.” Yukino Yukinoshita said, handing over the red beans from the cupboard.

Uesugi Genshin immediately started cooking the red bean paste, "Sugar."

Yukino Yukinoshita handed over the candy. "What kind of dough should I use for the spring roll wrappers? I'm planning to make some toast too, so we can eat it tomorrow morning."

"Oh, that also requires a kitchen appliance."

As they talked, they both started to speed up.

There's no way around it; the more we discuss the outcome, the more work we have to do.

"Could you please pass me the salt?"

"Give."

"The cake is done."

"Then please take it out and let it cool. I've already prepared the egg tarts, so we can put them in to bake later."

I need to use the stove.

"Okay, I'll move. Do you want me to make another serving of Chikuzen-ni?"

"..."

The two in the kitchen worked together in perfect harmony, preparing their own dishes while helping each other out.

It only took two hours to finish cooking dinner, and when I looked at the clock, it was already 9 o'clock.

Hayasaka, Horikita, and Ichinose had already finished showering, and the clothes they were wearing were found by Yukinoshita.

However, Ichinose Honami didn't have any suitable clothes, so Yukino Yukinoshita had to find her yukata. There was no problem with the size, since it was mainly tightened by the belt, and it could be loosened a little.

The black yukata with white cranes looks beautiful and elegant on Ichinose. Uesugi Genshin probably thinks that if Ichinose had to choose, she would prefer the pink yukata.

During this time, Hayasaka Ai glanced at the two of them in the kitchen and pursed her lips. These two were just like a newlywed couple, all lovey-dovey.

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Chapter 299: An Alternative Absolute Territory

"Alright, let's eat." Uesugi Genshin placed the sukiyaki pot in the center of the coffee table.

There's no restaurant in the apartment under the snow, probably because it's a place where one person lives alone.

There's no need for a dining table big enough for a family to eat at; it's useless.

According to her, she eats her meals sitting directly on the carpet or at the coffee table.

So tonight, everyone ate dinner around the coffee table.

"Uesugi-kun, would you like a drink?"

Uesugi Genshin peered over and saw Yukino standing in front of the refrigerator, taking out a bottle of sake. The bottle was thicker and shorter than a regular sake bottle, so it was either sake or sparkling wine.

Do you have any alcohol here?

"Yes, it's sparkling wine that my sister put here. She sometimes comes over and drinks here. So, would you like some?" Yukino Yukinoshita asked, shaking the bottle.

"...If you want to drink it, you can open it." Uesugi Genshin didn't really want to drink it, because he wouldn't be able to eat anything if he did. He had made so much delicious food, and it would be a waste to leave too much uneaten.

He was prepared to devour the rest of the food, at least... most of it.

"Then open it." Yukino Yukinoshita opened Haruno's sparkling wine, then took a few glasses and came over last.

"Who wants a drink?" she asked, sitting in her seat.

"I'd like to try a little bit," Honami Ichinose said hesitantly, genuinely curious.