Miracles in a Lifetime

VI • COOKING ☓ EGGS ☓ THE TRUTH

     "You all fail!" Menchi exclaims with disgust after tasting all the dishes.

     I've never cooked in my life, let alone ate actual food, all thanks to my childhood of torture and training. I didn't even know what a stove looked like until this exam. It's a wonder how I survived the past eleven years.

     I blankly stare at the now-broken stove in front of me as I slouch on the provided stool.

     "Do not worry, Tenshi-sama," Ren says with comfort. "It's not your fault."

     I send a small smile Ren's way and he immediately gives me one back, as bright as usual. I pet his head and he snuggles into my touch.

     "Tenji-san! What're you doing?" Without waiting for an answer, Gon yells, "Let's go inside the blimp!"

     ... Huh? I look at Gon with a dumbfounded expression of which he cannot see.

     "The chairman of the Selection Committee, Netero-san, made an entrance and told Menchi to redo Phase Two because everyone wasn't supposed to fail," Ren explains in a hushed tone. I nod once in understanding and follow Gon inside.

     As I pass the old man observing all the contestants as they board the blimp, our eyes lock for a couple seconds and he gives me a seemingly fake smile. From the look in his eyes, I could tell that he was quite curious of me.

     Once Gon and I get settled inside, he explains what's going on.

     "Menchi-san is taking us to Mount Split-In-Half right now. We're gonna be boiling eggs," Gon says. I clench my teeth as my blood pressure rises, causing a tick mark to form. Boiling eggs? Really?

     The blimp finally lands and once we exit the plane, I notice that the mountain is literally split in half. I walk over to the edge of the cliff and look down to see large webs.

     "Now, everyone. If you look over the edge, you'll see a Spider Eagle's web." Everyone walks over to the edge with curious gazes, and their eyes widen once they see the abyss.

     I see something in the distance below, and my gaze focuses on to large eggs spread about in clusters of the web. I smirk in amusement as I watch Menchi get carried up by a draft of wind after jumping down to get an egg. Following her, I jump down and land gracefully on one of the strings of web. As I balance myself and search for one of the clusters, the web bounces as more people jump onto it.

     I quickly jump from web to web with agility as I reach one that's more steady than the ones I've tested. The strings shift and stretch as the weight of more and more people stress the web.

     "At this rate, the webs are going to snap," I whisper to myself.

     Waiting a little longer, I calmly analyze and search for the right moment to go for the eggs and when the wind's current will come again.

     "Now!" Gon exclaims as everyone else jumps down. Surprised that he could tell, I jump further and grab several more eggs before getting thrown up into the air, higher than most since my physique is quite small compared to the average person.

     I land on the ground with a quiet tap and throw an egg to the contestant closest to me — badge number #255. He struggles to catch it out of shock, looking at me with wonder and confusion, but I ignore him.

     Getting out the other two eggs that I caught, I prepare a station and boil them with Gon. I wish I could talk to him and his friends... They're fun to be around.

     Once the eggs are finished boiling, I hand one to Ren and nibble on mine to taste it. My eyes immediately open wide.

     Oh my, this is so good!

     Since it's my first time eating, I gobble it up like a famished beast. I unconsciously smile and lick around my mouth for the little mess that I made.

     "Delicious!" I say with a melodious tone, forgetting about why I didn't want to speak for that moment. Ren looks at me with shock, and after a couple seconds, a relaxed expression adornes his face.

     "Cute," he mumbles with a faint blush.

     "Ah-! Tenji-san spoke!" Killua exclaims.

     A few moments of silence pass.

     "Wait... Tenji-san is a girl!?"

EDITED ON: Wednesday, November 27th, 2019