Ari was visiting Sophia in her mansion, and she immediately fell in love with the new heated floors there. Afterward, the jaguar shared her latest progress with the princess and how she had terribly embarrassed herself by hugging Anna during their sleepover in a way that had ended up being way bolder than she had planned to. Once the two were done with that, the duo went to the kitchen because Sophia wanted to train her cooking skills.

“Okay, seriously, I need this heated floor in my room in the castle…” Ari was looking down at her feet with a longing expression. She was wearing her boots again because running around in tights only would ruin them pretty fast, not to mention that it’s rather slippery. However, she was still able to feel the warmth rising up her legs. “I love it sooo much!”

“Hehe. The queen’s coming over in a few days to take a look at it. I do have a feeling that she’s going to like it, too, so it might end up in the castle eventually.”

“I see…” She was still looking at her feet. “Even so, no one’s going to notice if you secretly install it in my room, you know?”

“You’re quite greedy for someone who’s supposed to be timid.”

“T-Those are two entirely different things!” The jaguar tried to justify herself. “I-I warmed up to you, s-so there’s no need to be reserved, is there?”

“Sure~.” Sophia smiled at her. “Still, as a tip, how about you add a please to your question?”

“E-Eh…?” The black-haired girl looked bewildered over the sudden reversal of their personalities. “I-I didn’t…?”

“Nope, you just got excited about it~.”

“I-I’m sorry! I didn’t want to be rude! Okay, let me rephrase it… I love those heated floors, could you please think about the possibility of installing those in my room in the castle? I would deeply appreciate it.” There wasn’t even a hint of sarcasm in her earnest plea.

“Wow, you sure know how to switch your attitude fast.

“Ahaha… I-I blame Anna for that…” She came up with a weird excuse. “I’m normally a lot more formal …”

“Hmm… Maya also always blames me when she gets out of character, but why do I feel like it’s your actual character showing instead?”

“That’s… well, you might have a… slight point… Being timid with strangers makes me formal, but I get more casual with people I’m comfortable with… Like Anna… or you. Stupid tigers, knowing how to push my buttons…”

“I wouldn’t call us stupid if we’re able to get out your playful side~. I also hope that I’m never going to push as many buttons of you as Anna does.”

“Don’t worry about that.”

“Great!”

“By the way, I bet Anna would come over to my room more often, too, if my floor would be heated there.”

“Sneaky, I like it.” Sophia applauded her craftiness. “But, on the other hand, you have fewer reasons to cuddle close to her for warmth.”

“Ah.” Ari hadn’t thought that far.

“A dilemma, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” She only nodded.

“Alrighty!” The tiger dropped the topic. “Let’s get to the cooking!”

“Sure!” Ari was also happy that she wanted to focus her attention on something else. “Do you have the ingredients already, or do we have to go shopping? Ah, just in case, I brought some shrimps with me. I got them on the way to here. They’re in a box with ice in the hallway.”

“Really? You’re the best! Thanks! Other than that, we should have anything here. Maya likes to keep everything stocked.”

“Butter, too? That one likes to get rancid fast, after all.”

“Sure~.” Saying so, Sophia pushed one of her hands into a purple portal before pulling out a pack of butter. “Nice and cool~.”

“How…?” The jaguar looked confused.

“You know my storage magic, don’t you? You really wanted it, too, right?”

“I still want it! That’s the whole reason I wanted to learn chantless magic, and we had that little accident, after all!” She got loud.

“R-Right, that happened…”

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“No, why is it cold?”

“Ahh… I have an extra room inside my storage thingy that I filled to the brim with ice. There, I stuff all our perishable foods into. Every now and then, I replace the ice for fresh one.”

“Sophia.” Ari stared right at her with a serious expression.

“Y-Yes…?” The tiger retreated a step away from her. “D-Did I overdo it again? Is it something I shouldn’t mention so freely…?”

“No. Well, kind of…” She rephrased it slightly. “But I don’t care about that! I want it!”

“Ahh…” Sophia’s expression relaxed again. “Sure… Oh, how about I show you how to use the storage magic as a reward for teaching me how to cook. I’ll throw in creating ice for free, too.”

“Hmm…” Surprisingly, Ari didn’t seem too thrilled about the suggestion.

“No? I thought you’d like it…”

“I, uhh… was still hoping for heated floors as a reward… The dilemma of cuddling aside, I still need it in my life!”

“More than the storage magic that already caused to change your life forever?”

“Uhh…”

“Wow… Also, the materials needed for the heated floor are pretty expensive.”

“I-Is that so? It’s okay, I saved up a little, anyway!” She seemed very determined about it.

“Again, wow.” The blonde had nothing else to say. “Wait with the heated floors for Kira, okay? If the queen comes, there’s a 100% chance she’ll bring Ellie along. If my adorable little princess notices what’s going on, the whole castle will be fitted with heated floors a day later.”

“You think so?”

“Neither Kira nor I are able to say no to whatever Ellie wants. The little one also likes to take naps as much as I do. The moment she notices the comfiness of our floors here, she’ll be a goner.”

“That is true… I’ve found the little princess napping all over the castle already. Okay, I’ll take the storage magic as a reward. I look forward to it, and thank you very much in advance for sharing the magic you invented with me.”

“Hehe.” Sophia let out a small chuckle. “You’re very much welcome. Ah, but it might become a joined training session. I’m the only one who can use it at the moment. Not even Maya or the wolves are able to use it. I might try to teach all of you together.”

“Fen’s a bit scary, and I don’t know Aura that well, but I don’t mind at all! Maya seems like a nice girl with a great sense of humor, so I look forward to it.”

“Great sense of humor, huh?” The tiger grinned at her. “Don’t let her fully awaken your inner S. Or do, Anna’s into it, after all. Also, Fenny only looks scary he is… or became super docile~.”

“Alright, where do you have the kitchenware? We need a pot to boil the pasta and a big pan for everything else.” Ari had no intention to address the S issue. “Well, the pans are hanging on the wall over there, so…”

“Ahaha, smooth.” Sophia’s smirk only increased, but she played along. “Pots, huh?” She tilted her head while looking around. “No idea.”

“You have such a nice kitchen, and yet you don’t even know that…?”

“A-As I said before, Maya does all the cooking… I want to help, but she regularly even bans me out of the kitchen when she’s in here… I help her with washing the dishes afterward, but other than that…”

“Okay, that scores some points with me. You’re willing and even help clean up once your cat’s finished with the cooking. Good job.”

“T-Thanks…” She wasn’t sure how to feel about this kind of praise. “Okay, how about that one!” The tiger pointed at the cupboard right next to where Ari was standing.

“This one?” The jaguar looked to her left and opened the cupboard Sophia was pointing at. “You’re good.” It was indeed the right one, and she pulled a big pot out of it.

“I do get lucky from time to time.” The blonde awkwardly scratched her cheek. “Okay, where do we get started?”

“Preparations, my dear tiger.” Ari entered teaching mode.

“Hmm… I don’t know why Fenny doesn’t like to be addressed like this… It feels pretty nice.” Sophia seemed to be into it. “Preparations? As in getting the ingredients ready?”

“Among other things, yes. You also can start firing up the stove if you use the wood-powered one.”

“Which one’s easier to use? Wood or magic?”

“The magic stove is ready in an instant, but it’s also easy to mess up by pouring too much power into it, which then burns whatever you’re cooking on it. With the wooden one, you have to supply enough wood to keep the temperature high enough. Savory food also tastes a bit better because it gets a whiff of a smokey aroma while cooking.” She gave her a quick rundown. “I recommend the wooden stove.”

“Alright!” Saying so, the tiger opened a portal to her storage again and pulled a couple of logs out of it.

“Is there anything you don’t have in that storage of yours…?”

“Only things I haven’t found and bought yet.”

“Wow…” She looked envious again. “I can’t wait to learn it myself!”

“Do I just put it in there and light it?” Sophia pointed at the slightly sooted opening below the stove.

“Pretty much.” The jaguar nodded. “Start with three logs and add another one every now and then.”

“Okay.”

“Let’s see…” While the tiger was busy getting the stove going, Ari looked through the other cupboards to get a cutting board, some plates, and a few knives to prepare the ingredients. After that, she went to the entrance hall again to get the box with the shrimps she had brought along.

“By the way…” Sophia glanced at the white box with a complicated expression. “Are those shrimps already shelled, or…”

“No.” She shook her head. “The ones who used in the castle were already prepared and ready to go, but those are whole, and we have to shell and prepare them first. Actually, if you cook them with the shell on, the sauce gets even more aroma, but that’s too complicated for a beginner.”

“I-I see…” Her expression worsened even more. “S-Still in the shell, huh…? That means all those little legs and stuff is still attached, too, r-right…? Eyes, as well…? Y-You have to rip off the head, r-right…?” She turned slightly pale.

“Twist and rip, yes.”

“Uuh…” The tiger started squirming.

“Seriously…?” Ari noticed her reaction and couldn’t believe it.

“Urgh… They look kinda insect-like, and I hate insects! Shrimps are delicious, but I hate how the whole thing looks! Having to shell them is another topic entirely…”

“You… You’re scared of insects…?”

“I-I just hate them!”

“You’re scared of them, aren’t you?” The black-haired girl could read her like a book.

“Uuh…” She turned her head away in shame.

“You sure are adorable.”

“L-Leave me alone…” Sophia’s cheeks turned red in embarrassment.

“Do it for Maya~. I’m sure she’ll love it when you cook for her.”

“That’s unfair!” There was little she could say here.

Afterward, the tiger needed a few minutes to tackle the shrimps with the help of Ari, and the actual cooking preparations could finally start.