Chapter 171: Stelle's Prank and the Terrible Taste Test
After listening to the explanation, everyone's curiosity about the Great Land Beasts and the unknown Titan was thoroughly piqued.
At that moment, a familiar glint of mischief appeared in Stelle's wide eyes. A new scheme was already brewing.
Stelle quietly snuck over to Paimon's side, pulling her toward a trough where one of the massive creatures was feeding. She pointed at the seemingly ordinary, brick-red blocks of feed piled within.
With a sly smile and a voice dripping with temptation, she asked, "Paimon, do you know why the Great Land Beasts can grow so… big? And so… strong? It's all thanks to this special 'red soil' they eat!"
Paimon floated closer, eyeing the unappetizing, block-shaped objects in the trough. "Eh?" she replied, puzzled. "But didn't Miss Lucretia just say it was because of the size granted by some Great Land Titan?"
Stelle immediately adopted an air of deep mystery, as if to say, You're far too naive. The truth is much deeper than that.
She wagged a finger. "No, no, no! That's just the foundation! The real secret to their healthy growth is this red soil feed, carefully formulated by the best nutritionists!"
"They say it's not only super rich in nutrients but also surprisingly tasty! Sweet, with a unique mineral fragrance~" Stelle leaned closer to Paimon, lowering her voice as if sharing a world-shattering secret. "So, how about it? Want to try some? Maybe after you eat it, you'll grow taller and stronger, too!"
Stelle's face was a mask of wicked anticipation as she waited for Paimon's reaction.
Although Paimon was a legendary glutton who would stop at nothing to try new and interesting food, she wasn't a complete fool. Hearing Stelle's outrageous sales pitch, she put her tiny hands on her hips and hovered in mid-air, a deeply skeptical expression on her face. Her look clearly said, Keep making things up. I'm just listening. She wasn't going to be so easily fooled.
Seeing that words alone wouldn't be enough, Stelle steeled her resolve. She would have to "poison" herself to make the bait more convincing.
She strode confidently to the Great Land Beast's trough and, without a moment's hesitation, picked up one of the red soil blocks.
"I'm not lying to you, Paimon! This stuff doesn't look like much, but the taste is truly one-of-a-kind!" Stelle declared. Then, under the astonished gazes of Paimon and the nearby staff, she opened her mouth and took a loud, crunchy bite from the block.
She chewed hard a few times, forcing an extremely exaggerated expression of pure bliss onto her face, as if she were savoring the most exquisite delicacy in the universe. Her eyes narrowed into satisfied slits.
"Mmm! Hmm!" she mumbled through the mouthful. "This is the taste! That rich, earthen fragrance! The abundant mineral texture! When I was low on energy after those continuous battles in Okhema, I relied on this to replenish my stamina and keep fighting!"
After her grand performance, she even picked up a "clean," untouched red soil block from the trough and enthusiastically offered it to Paimon. Her eyes shone with sincere expectation, practically begging, Hurry and try it! Good things must be shared.
It had to be said, Paimon was indeed taken in by Stelle's self-sacrificing taste test.
She stared at Stelle's look of incredible "enjoyment," and her resolve began to waver. 'Could it be… that this brick-like thing really has some peculiar, hidden deliciousness? Stelle doesn't seem to be faking it…'
Her gluttonous curiosity finally overwhelmed her reason.
Paimon cautiously accepted the red soil block from Stelle. She brought it to her nose and sniffed carefully—no obvious strange smells.
Under Stelle's encouraging and expectant gaze, Paimon finally mustered her courage, opened her small mouth, and took a chomp out of the edge of the hard red block.
However, the taste that flooded her senses was nothing like the "hidden delicacy" she had imagined.
An indescribable, extreme bitterness instantly exploded in her mouth.
This wasn't the bitterness of ordinary herbs or coffee; it was rougher, more brutal, as if it had concentrated all the silence and desolation of the earth itself. It struck directly at the softest part of her soul, the part that longed for delicious food and warmth.
For a moment, Paimon even vaguely recalled the "hard" days when she and Lumine had to rough it in Teyvat, gnawing on dry, hard bread without any tasty treats (though, in truth, they usually ate quite well). That memory of hardship mixed with the horrific taste in her mouth, almost bringing her to tears.
"Pfft—ptui ptui ptui!!!" Paimon violently spat out the red soil crumbs, her small face scrunched up in agony. She stuck her tongue out as far as it would go, desperately trying to dispel the terrifying flavor.
But the stubborn bitterness clung to her taste buds like a persistent disease, refusing to dissipate.
"Water! Give me water, quickly!" Paimon cried, her eyes welling up with tears.
However, the triumphant laughter she expected from Stelle never came.
Paimon whipped her head around and found Stelle frantically spitting and sputtering just like her. Her expression was just as distorted, and she was even retching continuously. A waterskin had appeared in her hand at some point, and she was desperately using it to rinse her mouth.
This was Stelle's second time tasting the horrible red soil block.
She had thought she could briefly endure it to trick Paimon, but she hadn't expected the impact of the flavor to be so much worse than she remembered. Even she had been defeated once again.
But luckily… this time she had successfully dragged someone down with her.
As Paimon finally recovered, she took in Stelle's appearance, which was somehow even more disheveled and miserable than her own. The thought of rushing over to deliver a flurry of "Ora Ora" punches—which, with Paimon's tiny fists, would probably feel more like a massage—instantly vanished.
She flew right up to Stelle's face, looking at the still-retching girl with an expression of utter speechlessness and disbelief. "…Just to trick me into eating that terrible red soil block, you… you'd go so far as to suffer through it yourself?!"
While still rinsing her mouth, Stelle looked up. Her face was still a mask of pain, but her tone was self-righteous. "Of course! How could such a… 'unique'taste be'enjoyed' by me alone?"
"Good things… ptui… good experiences must be shared with your best companions! This is… uh… the Stelle Spirit of Sharing!"
For some reason, this twisted logic strangely convinced—or rather, misled—Paimon.
The gears in Paimon's little head began to turn, and she suddenly felt… that it seemed to make some sense? This "unforgettable" experience couldn't be "exclusively enjoyed" by just her and Stelle.
A wicked little thought instantly sprouted in Paimon's heart—she wanted to play the same trick on Lumine.
No sooner said than done! Paimon immediately decided to follow suit.
She picked up a new red soil block, flew back to Lumine, and did her best to imitate Stelle's exaggerated expression and tone, as if she had discovered an unmatched delicacy.
"Lumine! Look, quickly! I found something super delicious! It's the Great Land Beast's special feed! Stelle said it's especially good for replenishing stamina! You have to try it!"
Lumine had, in fact, witnessed the entire spectacle—from Stelle's initial scheme to Paimon falling for it hook, line, and sinker. Watching the miserable state of the two "victims," she had barely managed to hold back her laughter.
She had intended to save Paimon some face and pretend she hadn't seen anything, but she never expected the little fairy to learn on the spot and immediately try to trick her.
Lumine's face still held a gentle smile. She watched Paimon's earnest performance without exposing her, simply looking on with a beaming expression as if she were genuinely intrigued.
Seeing that Lumine seemed to have "taken the bait," Paimon was secretly delighted. She committed to the act even more vigorously, even forcing herself to take another tiny bite of the red soil block.
She then forced out an expression of "enjoyment" that looked more painful than crying and handed the block to Lumine. "It really is… mmm… delicious! You must try it!"
Only then did Lumine speak, her tone full of gentle teasing. "Paimon, Paimon… only a greedy and easily fooled little one like you would fall for such a simple trap, wouldn't you?"
She extended a finger and lightly flicked Paimon's forehead. "I saw through it a long time ago!"
"Eh?!" Paimon belatedly realized that Lumine had seen through her clumsy prank from the very beginning. She had been playing along the whole time, watching her bring more "bitterness" upon herself.
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