10x Rewards: Becoming Invincible With My Sign-in System

Aegon had made plans to eat outside since he was curious about the cuisine of the Empire, but Cali ended up dragging them back to her home.

Initially, she was hesitant about taking them there, but when the talk shifted to eating in a restaurant, she suddenly became enthusiastic about homemade food.

Although Aegon got the feeling that she didn't say that because of the food itself, he didn't point it out and simply followed her home.

Along the way, he felt a gaze fixed on him and frowned. 'Hecte, do you sense something?'

[No, Boss. Is something the matter?]

'No, it's fine,' Aegon replied, choosing to ignore it for the time being. Soon, he felt the gaze fade away. It had only lasted a couple of seconds, but it left him uneasy. The only good thing about it was that he didn't detect any hostility, only curiosity.

'Weird! Did that guy come to check again?'

The moment Luna stepped inside the house, her eyes flickered around every corner before she smiled in delight. Once she was done inspecting, she said, "This is really good."

"I doubt Cali chose this," Aegon said as he stepped inside and walked straight to the kitchen.

"Hey! I also have good taste," Cali protested weakly, even though she knew well that her taste was terrible in most things.

"Stop lying to yourself. It isn't something to be proud of," Xavier said, patting her back, only to earn a smack and a scowl from his sister.

"Don't act like you're some sage of wisdom with that face. It's like watching a frog spout nonsense."

Aegon ignored their banter and started preparing a quick meal after washing his hands. All the while, he kept an eye on Cali, trying to understand the current her better.

'She's talking more to avoid the awkwardness between her and Luna. And that idiot Xav is helping her. In normal situations, his brain works at the speed of a snail, but now he's suddenly a Galestrip Horse.'

He shook his head and began cutting the potatoes. Just then, a pair of fair hands entered his vision and snatched the cutting board and knife from him.

Without even looking, he knew who it was, Luna was always this considerate. She couldn't stand by idly while someone else worked for her.

"What do I do?" she asked softly, holding back her emotions.

This was supposed to be her home, a place filled with warmth, yet for some reason, all she felt now was coldness.

"Nothing for now. She won't open up, so we'll have to do something ourselves, but I don't want to pressure her," he replied. "Let's just eat for now."

Luna only hummed in acknowledgment.

As Aegon continued cooking, his eyes fell on a bowl filled with green plums. He absentmindedly picked one up and tossed it into his mouth, only to immediately regret it.

His face twisted, and he shivered slightly at the intense sourness. But when he noticed Luna approaching, he composed himself despite feeling like throwing up all the plums in the bowl.

He even chewed one more plum and then offered them to Luna with a calm look. "Have some. They're good."

Luna raised an eyebrow, clearly suspicious, but still took one and bit into it, only to cringe hard as her whole body tensed up.

Just as she was about to hurl insults at Aegon, she saw Cali and Xavier coming over and quickly fixed her expression.

"What are you guys eating?" Xavier asked, practically jumping over the window sill, but Aegon's quick kick sent him back to his place.

"Plums. They're super tasty," Aegon said, offering the bowl while casually taking another bite.

"Do you take us for idiots?" Cali asked, pointing at the plums. "They're too green and obviously sour. I bought them by mistake."

"Nah, they ripened up. They taste delicious. Trust me," Aegon said with a smirk. "Well, it's your loss if you don't want to eat. We'll enjoy them ourselves."

"They're good!" Luna added, taking another bite to play along.

"Really? Then don't hog them all," Xavier said excitedly, grabbing three plums at once. Aegon and Luna exchanged a glance, their expressions unreadable.

The next moment, Xavier popped all three plums into his mouth simultaneously and closed his eyes. He froze for a brief moment before a strange moan escaped his lips.

"Hmm! This is heavenly! Give me more!"

Cali stared at the blissful expressions on their faces, suspicion clear in her eyes. But despite her doubts, she found herself tempted. Now that she looked closely, the plums didn't look that bad.

Hesitantly, she stretched her hand, picked up one plum, and took a bite…

The next moment, all four of them rushed to the basin and spat everything out, washing their mouths repeatedly as the unbearable sourness clung to their tongues.

That was how bad the plums were.

Cali chugged down a full glass of water before glaring at Aegon. "It was you, wasn't it?"

"What? I'm innocent," Aegon said, avoiding her eyes.

"You!!" Cali pointed at the others, who were also busy cleaning their tongues. "You all played me and made me eat those horrible things!"

"It's your fault to begin with," Xavier retorted quickly. "Who told you to buy those plums?"

"It was a mistake!"

"Then eat your mistake!"

"Don't make me spank your butt, little brother."

Xavier instantly hid behind Aegon, who was trying and failing hard to suppress his laughter. The moment he saw Cali's furious face, he burst out laughing.

The other two joined in, laughing at each other's misery. Even Cali couldn't stay angry for long and eventually laughed with them.

After that, the four of them had dinner together, and it turned out to be far more peaceful than any of them expected. Cali even seemed to have relaxed, no longer minding Luna's presence.

Once the meal was done, Xavier and Cali were assigned the task of cleaning the dishes while Aegon and Luna relaxed in the hall.

"Thank you."

Aegon turned around to see Luna smiling softly. Her gentle, loving expression was one he had grown all too familiar with.

"Say that again and I won't help you," Aegon said nonchalantly as he stood up. "Anyway, I'm heading back to my room. Don't disturb me unless it's important."

He had already wasted several days without practice, so now he wanted to return to the world of magic. There were many things he wanted to test and also a new spell he needed to examine.