Chapter 7 A Miso Soup named "Warmth"

The hot pot game is hosted a few days later at Komore Teahouse. It's supposed to be just Thoma, Ayaka, Aether, and Paimon, but Aether ends up inviting the Almighty Shogun saying how she's never tried hot pot before so he wants her to give it a try.

Thoma isn't expecting the cause of his heartache to appear and not only is he not mentally prepared for a meeting with her he's also not prepared for her to eat the devilish ingredients he brought which will surely be the last strike that'll ruin his image for her.

Ten minutes before the Shogun arrives, Thoma rushes to buy some normal ingredients and makes it back just in time for the game to begin.

"How does this work?" The Shogun asks as she places her ingredients into the soup base boiling in the hotpot.

As Aether explains the rules to her, Thoma puts their ingredients into the hot pot carefully. Since the hot pot game ended way too soon last time, they've decided to each bring two ingredients rather than one this time to prolong the game.

"Aether…" Thoma interrupts him when he notices something that nearly causes him to drop his chopsticks.

"...?"

"What is this?"

Aether glances at the ingredient he's holding up and smiles devilishly. "A mist flower corolla. You had it before, remember?"

Thoma wants to scream at him: 'What if the Shogun eats this? Do you have a death wish!?' But he controls himself and puts it into the hotpot hesitantly, his hands shaking as he picks up a glob of slime concentrate which looks like mucus and perhaps he's imagining it but he thinks he sees it twitching slightly when he puts it in as well. Even without asking he knows Aether and Paimon are the ones bringing these devilish ingredients. Just remembering all the terrible ingredients he forced himself to eat during the last challenge brings bile to his throat.

"Okay, everybody ready?" Thoma says when he realizes the ingredients are all pretty much cooked and Aether has finished explaining the rules. "Let the hot pot game...begin!"

And so begins his venture to save the Shogun from the devilish ingredients. Ayaka goes first. Seeing she's about to take a normal ingredient brought by him, he discreetly uses his Pyro Vision underneath the table to shift the temperature of the pot and cause the soup to boil and bubbles to form, knocking the ingredient away and letting a devilish ingredient take its place. He feels bad for making his lady eat these nasty things, but he'd take an admonishment from Ayaka (and Ayato if he were to find out about it) any day over the wrath of the god.

No one notices his cheating, so he does the same when Aether goes, then Paimon, then himself. By the time it's the Shogun's turn, there are only two devilish ingredients in the pot left and the chance of getting them is less than 50%. Thoma finally relaxes thinking he probably doesn't need to use his Vision this time.

Unfortunately, it seems as if the God of Hot Pot has a secret grudge against the Electro Archon for she just so happens to pick the slime condensate out of all things. Aether, Paimon, and Ayaka all look surprisingly giddy, for they probably want others to share their pain, even if this "other" is the Almighty Shogun.

Thoma, on the other hand, nearly screams as he silently prays to Barbatos for the slippery glob to slip from her chopsticks. And when that doesn't happen and everyone's watching eagerly as the glob approaches her lips, closer and closer, he finally loses it and grabs her hand, yanking it towards him and eating the disgusting thing off of her chopsticks.

The silence that follows is just as hard to swallow.

Paimon is the first to speak.

"Oh come on Thoma! That's cheating!" She pouts, and so does Aether who crosses his arms and judges him silently with half-lidded eyes.

"Sorry guys, but slime concentrate really isn't healthy to eat, so I'm sacrificing myself for your safety."

The Shogun looks a bit lost with the chopsticks hanging in midair and Thoma wonders if he's done something wrong by eating it for her. Don't tell me she actually wants to taste that disgusting thing?

Ei does want to taste it actually. She's been craving for desserts after centuries of not eating a single thing in her Plane of Euthymia. The Dango Milk was delicious and reawakened her sweet tooth, making her want more of what the mortal cuisine has to offer. She knows the hotpot isn't sweet, obviously, but that slime concentrate looks like the sticky dango in the Dango Milk. Surely it wouldn't taste that bad?

"...Thoma, you don't need to worry about me. I've eaten weird stuff before and my body can take it."

Even though the body is made of flesh, it's still a puppet and doesn't function exactly like a human's. What harms a human body might not harm her puppet body.

"Well… If you're sure…"

And with that, Ei gets to go again. She closes her eyes and lets her chopsticks sink into the soup base, waiting until she feels something.

A round object touches her chopsticks. With slight effort, she manages to hold it without slipping and guides it to her mouth. She hears what sounds like Thoma gasping as the ingredient enters her mouth.

At first, all she can taste is the flavor of the soup, a little spicy, bitter, and sweet like cakes, a mix of flavors from the strange ingredients put into it. Then she bites into the round thing and a sheer cold explodes in the back of her head, sending stars into her eyes and paralyzing her body all the way to the tip of her toes. She forces herself to not spit out the food unsightly, and with all her courage she swallows it after chewing it a few times. Her teeth are frozen to the root when the ingredient slides down her throat, leaving a trail of ice in its wake and finally resting in her stomach like a Cryo Slime.

Every few seconds or so, a pulse of cold would cause her stomach to convulse in spasms. The familiar pain is akin to the menstrual pain she experienced when she still had a human body many centuries ago. She's long since forgotten how it feels and this reminds her how grateful she should be for no longer having a body that goes through menstrual cycles.

Ei vaguely hears someone calling her name when she keels over with her hands pressed against her stomach, sweat pouring down her face as she bites her lips to hold in her whimpers. She probably blacks out for a few seconds because when she finally has the strength to open her eyes, she sees the table cleared and Thoma holding a bowl of steaming miso soup next to her with a tense expression.

"Drink this, it'll make you feel better."

Ei removes one hand from her stomach to hold the bowl but the instant the pressure is lifted, the pain returns tenfold and she hunches over with a groan.

"Ah shit, um, here, open your mouth."

The soup gives off a leaven fragrance that drifts into her nose with an inhale, and she cracks open an eye to find the bowl right next to her face and Thoma holding a spoonful against her lips. Instinctively, she opens her mouth as he gently feeds her the soup.

The warm liquid quells the cold only a little, but it's still better than nothing.

"Do you feel better?" Thoma asks tentatively as he feeds her another spoonful.

"A little. The soup helps."

Thoma's face lights up. "I'm glad. I made it for you since it's my fault you got roped into this. I came up with the hot pot game idea after all."

"...You made this?"

Thoma nods with a proud little smile.

Ei eyes the miso soup. The hazy miso paste swirls around like the fog that envelops Tsurumi Island. The tofu is cut into bite-sized chunks, and the small piece of carrot floating in the soup is so soft it nearly dissolves in her mouth. With one sip, Thoma's sunshine smile comes straight to mind, warming her heart using the simplest of ingredients.

"Thank you, Thoma. It's delicious."

The soup is gone in no time and Ei's stomach feels better already. She isn't sure if it's thanks to the soup or the natural mechanism of the puppet's body that turns food into fodders to sustain itself, but she feels better regardless.

Ayaka, the traveler, and his flying companion return a moment later and Ei suspects they left on purpose to give her and Thoma a moment to themselves. Perhaps they think she'd feel embarrassed to show her weak side in front of multiple people, so they decide to leave only Thoma behind to take care of her.

The hot pot game wraps up soon after with Aether winning the rounds. After the employees enter the room to clear the table, the five part ways to make their way home. Thoma, however, volunteers to walk Ei back to Tenshukaku.

"You don't need to. I'm not in pain any more, and you don't need to worry about my safety. No one would attack me in my own territory." It's ironic how that last sentence has been proven wrong on many occasions, but Ei isn't about to comment on this right now.

Thoma winces. "I still feel bad for what happened."

"The miso soup makes up for it already."

"But my conscience can't take it." He murmurs, "Please, allow me the chance to redeem myself."

Words of refusal die on her lips when she catches the earnest look in his eyes, and Ei finds herself sighing in resignation.

"Okay, fine, you may accompany me."

Seeing him brighten up like a puppy brings a smile to Ei's face. Thoma's just an ordinary mortal who isn't anyone special, but there's something about that dazzling grin of his that always manages to make her feel all warm and fuzzy inside. It's a feeling she cherishes but also dreads because the last time someone made her feel this way, they died soon after.

That won't be a problem, however, because Thoma and her will never be a thing since he already has a girlfriend.

Shops are all closed when Thoma walks the Shogun back to Tenshukaku, but there are still some people lingering on the street and they all gape at them when they walk past. Thoma wants to laugh at the look on their faces and he yearns to hear their thoughts. The Raiden Shogun doesn't seem at all fazed by the attention they're receiving which strengthens his belief that she only sees him as a kid, hence her lack of perturbation by the attention of being seen publicly together with Thoma.

The walk to her residence feels shorter than he expected. The guards at the entrance glare at him warily when they see him but don't voice their inquiry due to the presence of the Almighty Shogun. They bow to her when she passes and their vigilant gazes drill holes into his back until he disappears from their view.

They didn't say much during their walk back but Thoma still enjoys the time he spends with her. Considering their differences, that's probably his one and only chance to be together with her. After this, he can say farewell to his little crush and crush it beneath his boots for good.

Before he left, Ayaka said she'll wait for him at Komore Teahouse to walk back together, so Thoma returns to the teahouse which is already void of any customers and employees. Even Taroumaru has gone to sleep.

The employees must have given Ayaka the keys so they can lock up the shop when they leave.

Thoma yawns as he makes his way to the room they ate in earlier. He has to wake up early everyday for his role as the housekeeper so he never gets enough sleep.

Perhaps it's the fatigue catching up to him and being in the safehouse lowers his guard, Thoma fails to react in time when he slides open the door and something heavy is thrown over his head, forcing him onto his knees with a startled cry as his vision goes dark.

AN: Managed to incorporate Thoma's special dish "Warmth" into the fic! *pats myself on the back*

Try and guess who attacked Thoma in the end. Hint: They have a grudge against him and they've already made an appearance in this fic.

Reviews are appreciated! See you next Saturday!