"Master~ What are you making?" Yuuki hugged Elysia from behind and rested her head on Elysia's shoulder, watching what her master was doing.
"I'm making barbecue sauce for our little party. We haven't had a welcome party for our new members yet, and now we have another little dragon bro. This is a barbecue party." Elysia stroked Yuuki's cheek as she smiled gently.
"Ooh~! We'll toast them." Yuuki glanced at the little ice dragon, but she soon lost interest. The extreme ice ability user should only be here, but an unexpected wild rival suddenly appeared.
"Master, everything is ready on the dining table." Vanessa wiped her hands with a handkerchief and came over.
"Alright, help me lift this cauldron and distribute it over several hot pots." Elysia took off her cooking gloves and let Yuuki and Vanessa take care of the rest.
A few moments later, everyone had dinner together at the dining table. They enjoyed delicious barbeques and other unique dishes amidst the peaceful atmosphere of the lake shore.
*Rustle* *Clang!* *Crunch!* *Nom-noom!*
A small commotion occurred on the other side of the table. The little ice dragon devoured his food like no tomorrow.
Gio then slapped his little bro's head because the glutton should also have eating etiquette and shouldn't disturb others.
"Ugh, my apologies. It's been eons since I ate something due to my seclusion." Lixue rubbed the back of her head and laughed awkwardly. He didn't realize that he had been tamed just because of the delicious food and mingling with the others.
"Hmm, if you want, you can hunt for fresh fish in the lake over there and grill your own barbecue. We still have the sauce and condiments. You can have a lot of deliciousness until you are satisfied." Elysia pointed her palm at the calm lake.
"..." Lixue checked the food, then at the other dishes on the table. He ate some more and felt it was not enough. He also couldn't eat everything there because the others were having dinner.
He was the only one who felt hungry despite the abundance of delicious energy-rich food.
*Swoosh* *Splash*
"I need more!" Lixue flew into the lake and threw himself into the water. He needed to hunt some fresh fish to satisfy his appetite. Because of those super delicious sauces and condiments, he couldn't stop before he was full.
"Fufu, so excited. A hungry dragon needs how many tons of meat to eat? I wonder." Nell chuckled in amusement.
"His situation is different from Gio's. Our earth dragon was fairly fine because he was sealed, while Lixue just went into his own isolated seclusion. Lixue will not stop until his appetite is satisfied." Rhea shrugged her shoulders.
A while later, the little ice dragon returned to the shore with lots of fresh fish. They were half frozen and unconscious but still alive.
"Hurr~" Lixue lit the fire and then shredded the fish into small cubes using his sharp claws before grilling them.
He only needed to apply the sauce and a few other condiments, and ta-daa, he secured tons of food supplies to satisfy his hunger. Cooking delicious meat had always been challenging. He felt he was a foolish beast who only ate raw meat for eons.
Gio and Cherub soon joined the barbecue grill event because they also wanted more.
Elysia wiped her mouth with a tissue, then brought up an important topic. "Ariel, your treatment will be carried out by the Goddess of Life. We have obtained enough materials for that."
"This servant conveys her deepest gratitude." Ariel clapped her hands in prayer and bowed slightly in respect.
"Fufu, the final touch still needs you, Ely. You are the one who secures a portion of pure life force. You are the life refiner for the finishing touch." Lifa shook her head.
"Alright. If Ariel is stable tomorrow morning, I can refine it for her." Elysia stared into her palms. She held the extra pure life energy and was ready to refine it for Ariel at any time.
"Nee, shall we visit my father tonight or tomorrow morning?" Sylvia is feeling excited. She couldn't wait to surprise her father because she was currently only one step towards Empress-level.
"We are going to visit him tonight. We have prepared a gift for him." Elysia took out a gift box from her Space Bag.
"Wow, what's in it?" Sylvia went closer with great curiosity.
"It's a secret, but I'm sure he'll be pleased with this. Don't open it." Elysia pressed her finger to her cherry lips. She had prepared several gifts for those who had worked hard to help her group.
"Please continue with your dinner. I would like to take a little walk on the shore of the lake." Elysia stood up from her seat.
"I'll come with you." Ai immediately followed Elysia away.
"I also-" Yuuki was about to join, but the Goddess of Nature prevented her.
Rhea shook her head as she knew Elysia needed quiet time. Elena and Ai were there with Elysia, so everything would be fine.
"..." Yuuki trailed off, then nodded in understanding.
The girls were more concerned about someone standing behind Zera. That maid was Number One, the leader of the Ruvoid Avatars. Some of them had no idea why that kind of entity was let loose by the Goddesses, but they needed to be a little more vigilant, regardless.
Elysia and Ai walked along the shore of the lake in silence. They didn't talk and held hands but understood each other's feelings. Elysia was trying to understand what had just happened some time ago, and Ai accompanied her twin sister with pleasure.
<| Lv. 162 | Holy Saint | Elysia | Female (21) | HP: 968,500 / 968,500 | EP: 4,601e+9 / - |>
<| STR: 357 | AGI: 487 | VIT: 551 | INT: 25,625 |>
Elysia looked down at her hand and checked her status screen. Her stats looked too broken compared to other beings at her level, but she had other thoughts.
She ascended in rank with a particular method, but it was still rushed. Just like in the case of Ella and Evelyn, they climbed several ranks in a relatively short time.
They would require even more significant and strenuous effort to level up from that point as a side effect. It was just that Elysia's situation was more lenient because she was nurtured in golden breath and countless divine resources in the time chamber.
'Ely, is there something bothering you on your status screen? It's not because Elena and I asked you to stay as you are, right?' Ai was feeling worried. She knew Elysia wanted a mature body, but everyone's choice was the young and adorable Elysia.
'Mm, it doesn't bother me at all. It's related to the Primo Star. I still can't understand what that divine artifact wants, and why there's its mini version in this divine halo.' Elysia looked up at the starry night sky and focused on her transparent halo.
'Each divine artifact has its own consciousness, but this case is different. It might be related to Primo Star's divine spirit purpose. It could have something to do with our past, destiny or something like that.' Elena heaved a subtle sigh. She also needed to learn about this situation. That Primo Star was beyond mysterious and suspicious.
'But, I'm more concerned about that four-pointed star halo. We can't store or move it. How does it work and how do we use it? The only thing you can do is make it transparent and restore its original colors.' Elena thoroughly observed the transparent divine artifact floating above Elysia's head. She also checked the changes in Elysia's body from within the Elysian Realm.
'Hmm, we'll find out the truth soon. It doesn't emit any malicious or omnious aura, so we can just leave it there.' Elysia then walked along the shore of the lake while talking light and pleasant things with Elena and Ai to put her mind at ease.
After that, they returned to the little party and joined everyone. After all, they needed to toast their new members.
"Zzz..." Gio, Cherub, and Lixue had fallen asleep with full stomachs. They were put on Nell's magic carpet because it was time for them to leave.
"Hmm, we've finished tidying things up." Evelyn rubbed her hands together.
"Huuu..." Dori looked a bit lethargic and nauseous. It made the others worry.
"What happened to you, Dori? Are you all right?" Morfina was astonished. Dori had been fine a few minutes ago.
"Ugh, I just remembered that I'm vegetarian and only eat seafloor flora, Fina. And yet, it's my first time eating meat and fish. I feel screwed now." Dori covered her mouth while holding her stomach. It's all the fault of Elysia's cooking. The day she forgot that she was refrained from eating meat due to an allergic reason has finally arrived.
"Let's bring her to our master or the Goddess of Blessings. They are the masters of healing techniques." Lyla held Dori's arm to support the sick mermaid.
"Hmm?" Elysia blinked her eyes confusedly when she saw Dori's pitiful state.
"Dori ate meat and she became like this." Evelyn told Elysia about the pitiful mermaid's situation.
"You are a vegetarian for a reason and I prepared some non-meat dishes, but you forgot your own allergy, Dori? Come here, I will help you." Elysia smiled in amusement and helped Dori to sit beside her. She put her hand on Dori's tummy and cast healing magic to relieve the allergy.
Luckily, the sickness was dealt with before it took on the apparent effects.
Dori could finally heave a sigh of relief. "Thank you, master. That's all because all your dishes look so delicious and tempting. I might forget again, so please remind me when it's time to eat."
"Alright, we'll remind you another time. Let's go." Elysia chuckled softly and covered her mouth.
She then brought everyone to Devil Emperor Dylan's palace using teleportation. Their appointment was tomorrow morning, but it was good to come early.