In the end, the emerald light slowly faded.
Revealing the full brilliance of the Comet Fried Rice.
Mana and Anne could only stare in awe.
"Amazing…"
Anne covered her mouth, her voice trembling. "It's astounding… I still can't believe it. That the fried rice actually glowed…!"
Her eyes were locked on the dish, its still-warm steam rising like mist from a sacred altar.
"And that final move—when the rice flew through the air like a comet… it wasn't a trick. It was real… it was magical."
She turned to Mana. "Even when I had Buddha Jumps Over the Wall last time, it didn't have this kind of effect!"
Mana nodded slowly.
"The ingredients are simple. Humble, even."
"But this dish… it's beautiful. Like something out of a dream."
She couldn't remember the last time she'd been this stunned by food. Especially food this basic. Spinach, bok choy, rice, salt, and lard—how could that become something that shimmered like a falling star?
It defied logic.
It defied science.
It defied the curse of the God's Tongue.
Mana composed herself. Her trembling hand reached for the spoon.
She dipped it into the glistening green rice, scooping up a small bite. Just enough to taste.
She hesitated.
Her stomach remembered pain. Her mouth remembered disappointment. Her body remembered nausea. Every meal was a gamble—a punishment.
But then… she closed her eyes, and took a bite.
Chew.
Chew.
The moment the rice touched her tongue, she paused.
"…!"
The texture was perfect. The grains were fluffy yet chewy—holding their shape without being dry.
The sweetness of the spinach, the crisp bite of bok choy, the mellow richness of lard—all of it bloomed like spring flowers in her mouth.
It was… alive.
The simplicity of the dish only emphasized its depth. The vegetables tasted like they'd been grown in the cleanest air, kissed by the sun, watered by the purest spring.
Each chew released more juice. More aroma. More flavor.
She could taste the earth in the bok choy.
She could feel the sunlight in the spinach.
And through it all, the fried rice carried an echo of warmth. Like a meal made by family, in a quiet countryside kitchen.
Mana blinked in disbelief.
"This fried rice…" she whispered. "It's not supposed to taste this good."
Her God's Tongue activated instinctively, analyzing everything.
Texture: perfect.
Flavor harmony: flawless.
Balance: divine.
Aftertaste: addictive.
Every sensory note was not just satisfied—it was enraptured.
This wasn't just a well-made dish.
This was a masterpiece disguised as common food.
The more she ate, the more confused she became.
"Where… where are the flaws?" she murmured. "There must be something wrong. There always is."
"Did… my God's Tongue malfunction?"
She frowned.
Then scoffed.
"Hmph. No. One bite isn't enough to judge."
With the stubbornness of a critic and the hunger of a woman starved for joy, she scooped up another bite.
Then another.
Then another.
And then, it happened.
As she swallowed her second spoonful, a warmth ignited in her chest.
It spread—slowly, then all at once—through her entire body.
A foreign sensation. One she hadn't felt in years.
Satisfaction.
Her eyes widened.
No nausea.
No pain.
No rejection.
Only… bliss.
A warmth coursed down her throat, pooling in her stomach like a sunbeam lighting up a frozen cave.
She gasped.
The world around her started to fade.
Inside her mind, a new vision bloomed.
A vast, empty cosmos.
Silent. Dark. Infinite.
She floated in the void—alone, trembling, surrounded by cold starlight and loneliness.
Then—
A comet.
Green and radiant, it streaked across the sky above her. A breathtaking arc of light against the abyss.
In its wake, the universe changed.
Stars blinked awake.
Galaxies unfurled.
Nebulas danced.
A garden of celestial beauty bloomed in the sky.
And in that moment, she understood:
This dish didn't just feed her body.
It awakened her soul.
Mana jolted back to the real world, gasping for air.
Her body was flushed.
Her skin shimmered with a healthy glow.
Her eyes sparkled like polished gemstones.
"Ah…"
"What's… happening to me?"
She clutched her chest. Her breathing quickened.
"So hot…!"
She could feel the energy coursing through her veins—cells coming alive, muscles regaining strength, her entire body breaking free from a years-long slumber.
"My body… it's burning up!"
"It's… too much!"
But it wasn't pain.
It was power.
Vitality.
Hope.
She wasn't just tasting food.
She was being reborn.
The Comet Fried Rice had done the impossible:
It conquered the God's Tongue.
And more than that—
It saved Mana Nakiri's life.