Chapter 73

“Rion, let me help you.”

Fujiwara Aoi did not refuse and nodded gently:

“Mm.”

Some time later, an alluring sweet fragrance gradually drifted out of the oven; it was the unique scorched fragrance produced by the fusion of flour and butter at high temperatures.

“Ding——”

“Ding——”

The successive timer prompts rang out crisply in the classroom.

Koizumi Yuna clapped her hands and raised her voice to remind everyone:

“Time is up—now everyone can take out the cream puffs!”

She didn't forget to remind them carefully:

“But remember to wear heat-insulating gloves, otherwise you will get burned; be sure to pay attention to this point!”

“In addition, don’t forget to squeeze in the cream after taking them out, otherwise they will just be ordinary little breads.”

Saionji Nanase heard this, light of expectation shining in her eyes, and couldn't wait to pick up the thick heat-insulating gloves, just about to reach out to take the cream puffs in the oven.

At this moment, Natsume Chikage naturally took the gloves from her hand.

“Let me do it.”

He was looking forward to verifying the equipment effect more than anyone else, and put on the gloves neatly, preparing to take out the finished product.

Saionji Nanase was stunned for a moment, then her eyes smiled into two crescent moons:

“Mm-hmm.”

Natsume Chikage pulled open the oven door, and a wave of scalding steam carrying an increasingly rich fragrance rushed toward his face; the fragrance carried the sweet greasiness of caramel and the mellow thickness of cream.

“Be careful of the heat.”

Saionji Nanase reminded him softly from the side, unconsciously taking half a step back.

“Mm.”

Natsume Chikage carefully took out the baking tray; the golden cream puffs were arranged neatly on the tray, their surfaces presenting perfect cracked patterns, emitting an alluring luster.

Fujiwara Aoi, who was to the side, had already picked up the piping bag and was performing the final process on the unfinished “cream puffs,” her movements not proficient, but exceptionally serious.

Natsume Chikage also took the tools and squeezed cream onto his work.

【Cooking production successful, cream puff flavor increased by 20%!】

【Cooking production successful, cream puff flavor increased by 20%!】......

At the same time as the prompt sounded, Natsume Chikage immediately smelled the fragrance emitted by the cream puffs he made, which was far more alluring than the works of Saionji Nanase and Fujiwara Aoi; it was a sweeter fragrance that was fuller and richer in layers.

The other two clearly noticed this as well, and they both showed confused expressions—why were Natsume Chikage’s cream puffs so fragrant?

Koizumi Yuna saw that the students had finished their production one after another and announced happily:

“Since they are all done, everyone can taste the cream puffs made by yourself and other classmates.”

“However, be careful, wait until they cool down a little before eating, and definitely don’t get burned.”

Saionji Nanase, Fujiwara Aoi, and Natsume Chikage all tasted their own works at the same time.

Saionji Nanase took a small bite gently, frowned slightly, and always felt that something was missing.

Fujiwara Aoi tasted her work carefully, and a look of satisfaction flashed on her cold face.

And Natsume Chikage closed his eyes and tasted the warm cream puff in his hand—the crispy outer skin made a slight cracking sound between his teeth, the cream filling inside was cold and dense, and the rich milky fragrance and vanilla breath permeated his mouth, the sweetness just right.

He even began to doubt whether he was a dessert genius who had been buried.

After tasting, the gazes of Saionji Nanase and Fujiwara Aoi fell on the plate of exceptionally fragrant cream puffs made by Natsume Chikage at the same time. The golden cream puffs shone with an alluring luster under the lights, and the fragrance emitted seemed to be silently inviting them to taste.

Saionji Nanase leaned over to sniff the cream puffs made by Natsume Chikage and said slightly surprised:

“The cream puffs you made, Xia Xia Xia Mujun, feel much more fragrant than the ones we made.”

“Can I taste one?”

“Conversely, I also hope you can try the cream puffs I made, Xia Xia Xia Mujun.”

Natsume Chikage nodded and said:

“According to what the teacher said, now is the mutual tasting time.”

“It goes without saying that I will try the ones you made, and you can also try the ones I made.”

Fujiwara Aoi’s cold face didn't say anything, but she nodded slightly, clearly also wanting to taste the ones Natsume Chikage made.

Saionji Nanase said happily:

“Mm-hmm, then let’s all start tasting each other’s!”

Saying that, the two girls took out the tool knife for cutting bread, carefully divided the cream puffs made by the three of them into three equal parts, one portion for each person, and handed them to each other.

Most Japanese girls have small appetites.

The two of them had just eaten a whole cream puff, and if they ate two more, they were afraid they wouldn't need to eat lunch at noon.

And Natsume Chikage didn't have the small-appetite habit of Japan.

If it weren't for having no money, he would definitely start every meal at ninety percent full.

Natsume Chikage tasted the cream puffs made by the two.

Saionji Nanase’s cream puff outer skin was crispy, the cream filling texture was light, and the sweetness was moderate; it was actually quite good.

Fujiwara Aoi’s cream puff was relatively more ordinary, the outer skin was slightly thicker, the texture was on the harder side, and the cream was also whipped a bit too much; the taste couldn't be said to be good...

However, Natsume Chikage recalled her flustered production process just now, thinking that it was already good that it could successfully take shape now, and he shouldn't expect too much about the taste...

But he didn't expect that Fujiwara Aoi, who looked like an all-around girl who knew everything, was actually so clumsy in cooking, counting as a kitchen killer.

Conversely, Saionji Nanase, looking like a naturally cute girl, was actually orderly in the kitchen; he thought that whether it was making desserts or cooking, she must be an expert.

And Fujiwara Aoi and Saionji Nanase also began to taste the cream puffs made by Natsume Chikage.

When they took the first bite, both of them had different reactions.

Saionji Nanase’s eyes lit up instantly; the moment she took a small bite of the cream puff, the crispy outer skin shattered in her mouth, the cold and silky cream filling immediately gushed out, and the rich milky fragrance and just-right sweetness bloomed on the tip of her tongue.

She looked at the cream puff in her hand and praised it directly without concealment:

“Delicious!”

“This is the first time I’ve tasted such delicious cream puffs!”

Fujiwara Aoi tasted a small bite first, then her expression was slightly surprised—the outer skin was thin and crispy, the filling was full, and the milky fragrance was rich but not greasy, completely different from what she had expected.

But soon she returned to her usual coldness, just evaluating it faintly:

“...It’s okay.”

And Saionji Nanase, at this time, blinked her lively eyes, looked at Natsume Chikage, and said with expectation:

“Xia Xia Xia Mujun, are the cream puffs I made delicious?”

Fujiwara Aoi didn't speak, but she was also looking at Natsume Chikage.

Natsume Chikage spoke with high emotional intelligence:

“Both of yours are very delicious; they are at a level where you could open a shop.”

Fujiwara Aoi tucked her hair behind her ear, clearly feeling that this was a response she could naturally get.

Saionji Nanase was very happy, and those large, lively eyes smiled into crescent shapes.

And at this time, the home economics teacher, Koizumi Yuna, took the student list and came to each group one by one, scoring the group members based on color, fragrance, and taste as the grade for this home economics class.

Soon, she came to Natsume Chikage’s group.

After smelling the fragrance, Koizumi Yuna pointed to the dessert made by Natsume Chikage and asked curiously:

“Who made this?”

“It feels very fragrant.”

Saionji Nanase pointed to Natsume Chikage and smiled:

“It was made by Xia Xia Xia Mujun.”

Koizumi Yuna blinked and curiously cut a small piece to taste.

The moment the cream puff entered her mouth, her eyes widened instantly:

“Delicious!”

“You unexpectedly have a talent for making desserts, Xia Xia Xia Mujun!”

She wasn't lying.

Tasting all the way down, it really was the one made by Natsume Chikage that was the most delicious.