First, one thing must be made clear.

Mika isn’t particularly skilled at cooking.

Well, it’s not that she’s bad at it—she just doesn’t put much effort into it. She gets by with the same three methods every day: boiling, grilling, and frying.

“Wow… what a cute kitchen!”

Now that she’s living with Dada and the others, including Hana, the kitchen is fully stocked with cooking utensils and seasonings. Each item has a slightly unique shape or is made of beautifully colored glass, giving the kitchen an exotic charm.

Hearing her husband’s delighted voice, Mika’s eyes sparkled.

“Right? You can use it too, Papa!”

“Eh, really? I can cook here?”

“Of course!”

She stored the large amount of sliced fish in the cooler and took out just enough for one serving. First, she quickly sliced it into sashimi. After tasting various seasonings, she decided on two options: something soy sauce-like and plain salt.

She plopped a generous portion onto a plate and set it on the table. Dada and the others weren’t opposed to eating sashimi, but since it was their first time trying Dragonfish sashimi, they hesitantly reached for it.

“Ah, huh? I thought Dragonfish would taste a bit more… muddy?”

Zurah was the first to try it. The sashimi with salt had a satisfying texture, and the umami slowly spread in her mouth. Gatt and Dada tilted their heads in curiosity but kept reaching for more.

Hana, on the other hand, seemed used to eating it. Without hesitation, she picked up a piece with her fingers and happily munched away—adorable.

“It’s pretty good, actually.”

“Mhm, mhm.”

What’s going on here…?

There was none of the distinctive taste she’d heard about.

“Let’s try cooking it another way.”

Mika stood in the kitchen and sprinkled salt on the remaining sashimi before lightly grilling it in a shallow pan.

A savory aroma filled the air.

“Just salt is a bit boring, though.”

She randomly grabbed a few spices and haphazardly sprinkled them over the fish—yet, surprisingly, the delicious smell only intensified.

Humming to herself, Mika casually grilled the fish before unceremoniously dumping the whole thing onto a plate for everyone to share.

“Wow, this is delicious!”

Drawn in by the smell, Hana reached out, picked up a piece from the edge, and smiled blissfully as she ate it.

For a moment, everyone was captivated by her smile—until Zurah suddenly snapped back to reality and hurriedly handed her a fork.

As they all happily ate, praising the food, Mika’s husband stood up.

“Alright, now it’s my turn to cook.”

It seemed like his competitive spirit had been ignited.

He swiftly sliced the remaining portion into enough pieces for everyone, lightly seasoned them with salt and spices, then coated them in flour and set them aside on a plate.

After generously oiling the pan and heating it up, he started chopping familiar-looking vegetables from their stock.

“These are cherry tomatoes, right? And carrots, potatoes… arugula? Yeah, seems like it. Oh, this is cheese! The flavor’s a bit strong, but it smells good. And… can you eat this leaf raw? It’s safe? Okay.”

Occasionally checking with Zurah, he quickly peeled the potatoes and cut them into thin strips.

Once the pan was hot, he neatly arranged the flour-coated fish in it.

He lowered the heat to let it cook through slowly.

“This stove is easy to use. It’s like an induction cooker, but a bit different?”

“It’s a magic tool.”

“Huh… the way you adjust the heat with these knobs is really intuitive.”

While chatting, he julienned the carrots into thin strips, sliced the tomatoes, and shredded the arugula to a nice length.

He took out plates of various sizes for everyone, topping the sliced tomatoes with grated cheese. Next to them, he arranged the julienned carrots, arugula, and some unknown salad greens.

By then, the fish was ready to flip, so he turned each piece to cook the other side.

As the fish shrank slightly, he stir-fried the potatoes in the center of the pan.

Once everything was cooked, he plated the fish and potatoes, poured the remaining oil from the pan into a container, and quickly mixed a few seasonings to make a sauce.

After drizzling the sauce over the fish and surrounding vegetables, the dish was complete.

“Mika… just what kind of person is your husband?”

Dada and the others were left speechless at the beautifully plated meal for six, prepared in no time at all.