Genshin Impact: Watch me turn the tables and kill my servants at the start!

When Fanes entered the kitchen in the backyard of Narukami Taisha, he saw a scene he would never forget for the rest of his life.

A pink fox is squatting in front of the stove, its hind legs upright and its front paws skillfully holding a spatula, shoveling plump pieces of fried tofu into the pot of hot chili oil and Sichuan peppercorns.

The smoke and spicy aroma rose together, her tail tip swayed slowly behind her, and her ears twitched occasionally to avoid the splashes of oil.

On the cutting board next to the stove were chopped scallions and minced garlic, and in a small bowl next to them was a prepared sauce; everything was in perfect order.

Faenes stood in the kitchen doorway, watching this scene for at least five seconds, only one thought playing on repeat in his mind: A fox is cooking for itself. A fox is cooking for itself.

Lei Yingdian arrived a step later than him, peeking half her body in from the other side of the corridor. Her purple eyes lingered for a moment on the pink pom-pom in front of the stove before she spoke, her tone carrying a sense of surprise that she hadn't known about this place after knowing you for so many years.

"Divine Child, I never knew you had this skill. Your cooking looks quite impressive."

As Yae Shinko spoke, she leaned over to touch the little bit of flour stuck to the tip of Yae Shinko's ear.

Yae no Miko put down the spatula and took a step to the side, barely avoiding Lei Yingdian's outstretched hand, letting out a short but clear growl from her throat.

Yae no Miko's current fox form only conveys basic emotional tone through her vocalizations, but even through half the stove, Fanes could tell that the low growl roughly translated to "Don't touch me! I'm in a bad mood right now."

Yae no Miko's tail was taut and straight, her ears were pressed back and flattened, and she gripped the spatula with her front paws again to stir the fried tofu in the pot, mixed it with the chili oil, and put it on a plate. She then swept the edge of the stove with the tip of her tail in dissatisfaction.

Fanes stood by and watched her place the plate of glistening, oily, spicy tofu on the low table, then take a bowl, fill it with white rice, and place it next to the plate. The whole process was seamless. Finally, the pink fox took a half step back, smoothed the fur on its chest that had been slightly smoked by the cooking oil with its front paws, and then looked up at Fanes. Its purple pupils held an arrogant expression that said, "It's done, you can eat it." The tip of its tail swayed slightly behind it.

Fañez looked down at the plate of fried tofu. It was glistening with red oil, and the surface was covered with a dense layer of crushed Sichuan peppercorns and dried chili pepper pieces. Even before getting close, you could smell the pungent spiciness that hit your nostrils.

Fanes looked up at Yae no Miko and said, "Didn't I say I don't eat spicy food?"

Yae no Miko squatted on the edge of the table, her two front paws crossed on the table in front of her, her chin slightly raised.

Although she now only has the face of a fox, Fanes could completely read what she wanted to say from that expression—three parts arrogance and seven parts smugness, the whole fox exuding an aura of "take it or leave it."

The purple pupils even carried a hint of "Weren't you so arrogant yesterday?" The tip of its tail flicked lightly behind it twice, as if to say, "If you can even take a bite, I'll admit defeat."

Lei watched the whole thing from the side, his gaze shifting from the spicy fried tofu to Fanes' face, his tone carrying an air of "I can't eat this, so you can do your best."

"The goddess usually doesn't cook spicy food. Since she made you a spicy one, it must have been made especially for you. Would you like to try it?"

Fanes glanced at the plate of fried tofu glistening with red oil, then at Lei Yingdian's "I'll just look and not eat" expression, and silently took a step back: "No need. I'll wait for the Fools to bring the food."

Lei Yingdian tilted his head after hearing this: "Delivering meals? Zhi Dong's side even provides meal delivery?"

Fanes pulled a prototype out of his pocket and waved it: "Communication equipment. I just messaged my colleagues at the outlying island base and asked them to send over a normal meal. It should arrive in about an incense stick's time."

Yae no Miko perched on the edge of the table, her two front paws still crossed, her ears slightly turned to the sides. The "three parts arrogance and seven parts smugness" in her posture had been slightly diminished, replaced by a scrutinizing look that seemed to say, "You're quite good at finding a way out for yourself." But she didn't stop her; she simply lowered her head and licked her paws, pretending not to care.

Just then, Lei Yingdian pitifully said to Yae no Miko, "Miko, I want to eat tricolor dumplings!"

Yae no Miko had already turned around and started rummaging through the cupboard. After opening the cupboard door, she took out a white porcelain plate with several strings of tricolor dumplings neatly arranged on it. The pink, white, and green glutinous rice dumplings were strung on bamboo sticks, and their surfaces were slightly glossy with sugar frosting.

Carrying the plate back to the table and sitting down, Yae no Miko placed the tricolor dumplings in front of Lei Yingdian. She even used her front paws to push the plate towards Lei Yingdian, then squatted down beside her and looked up at her. Her posture was natural and practiced, as if she had done it countless times.

Lei looked down at Tuanzi, then at the fox squatting beside her, then bent down to pick up Yae no Miko and place her on his lap. He kissed her furry belly, his voice filled with undisguised satisfaction: "Miko, you're so good."

Fanes sat across the table watching this scene, his expression as if he were watching an absurd play. He glanced at the fox being kissed on the belly in Ray's arms, then at the plate of glistening, spicy tofu in front of him, and after a moment of silence, he spoke.

"No, why are you treating her differently? Giving her a belly kiss while cooking spicy food for me? Forget it, I'm giving up. I'll just wait for the Fools to bring the food."

While waiting, Lei started eating the tricolor rice balls. She held the bamboo skewer in her hand and took small bites. A little sugar frosting clung to the pink rice ball at the corner of her mouth, and her expression carried the quiet and contentment unique to someone focused on sweets.

Fanes sat opposite her, watching her eat her second skewer, and then watching her pick up her third. Finally, he couldn't resist reaching out and grabbing a white dumpling from the plate. He did so quickly, as if afraid of having it snatched away, and stuffed it into his mouth.

The glutinous rice ball bounced on my tongue; it was sweet, sticky, and smooth, coated with a thin layer of syrup, even better than the one from Qiusha Qiantang.

Before Fanes could even swallow after chewing a couple of times, he saw Lei Yingdong hug the entire plate to his chest. His purple eyes stared at him intently, a fierce protectiveness in them, and his voice, muffled behind the dumpling, murmured, "Ugh...this is mine!"

With the half-eaten dumpling still in his mouth, Fanes paused for a moment before swallowing it, then said, "I only ate one, is it really that big of a deal? You're being too possessive of your food."

Lei Yingdian pulled the plate closer to his chest, his posture conveying a sense of righteous indignation, as if to say, "You're trying to steal mine before your takeout has even arrived: Go eat your fried tofu."

Fañes glanced at the plate of spicy fried tofu on the table that hadn't been touched yet. A thin layer of red oil had formed on top, and Sichuan peppercorns and dried chilies floated densely on the surface.

"No, I still need to grow. I won't eat this kind of food that has no nutritional value."

Yae no Miko lifted her head from Lei Yingdian's lap, her purple pupils narrowing noticeably when she heard the words "no substance," and her ears flattening back for a moment.

The front paw pressed lightly on Lei's knee, a gesture that roughly translates to "I've done everything for you and you still complain it's not nutritious enough."

Fanes saw her defiant expression, looked down at the plate of fried tofu, and then looked up at Yae no Miko.

"That's true, think about it. If Inazuma's productivity were even a little bit better, people would be serving you proper roast chicken, braised pork, and sweet and sour fish. You wouldn't have to come all this way to squat in front of the stove yourself frying tofu, right?"

Yae no Miko's ears twitched, but she didn't make a sound. However, her tail swept halfway behind her, as if she was thinking or holding back.

Just then, the sound of wheels rolling over stone slabs came from outside the kitchen, followed by the sound of a side door being pushed open from the outside.

Two soldiers dressed in Fools uniforms pushed a food cart across the threshold, on which more than a dozen dishes were neatly arranged.

Steaming hot steamed fish, braised pork ribs with rich soy sauce, golden and crispy fried shrimp balls, vegetables piled high with sauce, a bowl of clear chicken soup, and two side dishes and a bowl of rice piled high on the side.

The aroma of the food instantly overwhelmed the original smells of oil and spiciness in the kitchen the moment the food cart was pushed in, and the sweet fragrance of the tricolor dumplings was completely swept away.

Fanes jumped off his chair, walked to the food cart, looked at the row of dishes, and nodded in satisfaction. "Thanks for your hard work. Put it on the table. Oh, and grab some supper on the way back! Put the bill in my name."

Two soldiers carried the dishes one by one to the low table, arranged them neatly, saluted, and left. Fanes returned to the table, sat down, ladled out a bowl of rice, picked up a piece of braised pork rib, chewed it a couple of times, and squinted his eyes in satisfaction.

Lei Yingdian sat opposite her, holding her plate of tricolor dumplings. Her gaze slowly moved from the dumplings to the row of steaming dishes on the table, and then slowly from the dishes to Fanes' face.

Lei's expression gradually shifted from "I'm eating dessert" to "What is he eating?", then to "Why is he eating so well?" She looked down at the last skewer of dumplings on her plate, then looked up at the row of steaming dishes opposite her. When she finally spoke, her tone was one of extremely restrained, yet extremely genuine, confusion.

"Wait... why is he eating better than me? What is that he's eating? That plate of meat looks even better than what I ate at the castle tower!"

Fanes picked up a piece of braised pork rib and put it in his bowl. He looked up at Lei Yingdian and said, "If you want some, General, I can share a piece with you."

Lei looked at the last skewer of dumplings in his arms, then at the row of delicious-looking dishes opposite him. After a moment of silence, he put down the plate, cleared his throat, and resumed his dignified posture as a general: "...Then one will do."

Fanes picked up the fattest piece of pork rib from the plate and handed it to her bowl. Lei picked up the bowl, looked down at the glistening, dark brown rib, picked it up with her chopsticks, took a bite, chewed it a couple of times, her eyebrows twitched slightly, and then she took a second bite.

The plate of tricolor dumplings was left untouched on the corner of the table, and no one even glanced at it until the steam dissipated. Yae no Miko perched on the edge of the table, watching the course of the meal. Her purple pupils swept back and forth between the piece of pork rib in Lei Ying's bowl and the mountain of dishes piled up in front of Fanes, then she silently curled up her tail and buried her face between her front paws, as if she had decided to temporarily withdraw from this "power struggle at the dinner table."