Remembering the earlier moment at the entrance and hearing the invitation to share ramen, a strange fantasy suddenly flashed through the girl's mind—something she'd once overheard from fans of steamy dramas. She suddenly realized: in those shows, when one person invites another for ramen, it often implies... entwined bodies. Ariha's face instantly combusted, and she desperately tried to cover her burning cheeks with her hands.
– "What the hell are you thinking?! Such dirty thoughts! We barely know each other! And I'm only sixteen! This is unacceptable!" she mentally scolded herself.
Yet, peeking through her fingers at the prince sitting across from her—now curiously examining the kitchen—her thoughts involuntarily strayed:
– "...But he is handsome. And... I wouldn't actually mind if we really were a couple..."
Just then, her mother placed utensils and bowls on the table and took her seat opposite them.
– "I never introduced myself properly. I'm Ohari Minori—Ariha's mother," the woman said.
By the time her mother sat down, Ariha had wrestled her hormones back under control.
– "Alright, now that we're all acquainted—Mom, what's the last recorded history about Crown Prince Senko?" Ariha asked pointedly.
– "His last mention? In 1723, Prince Senko vanished before the entire royal family's eyes. And for 300 years, there's been no trace of him... Wait, no, that's impossible—" Minori's voice grew uneasy as her eyes darted to the boy.
– "Yet that's exactly what you're seeing. The real vanished crown prince is right in front of you," Ariha stated flatly.
The tense atmosphere was, yet again, shattered by a loud stomach growl.
Both women turned to stare at the prince, whose face reddened under their gaze. Ariha snorted, breaking the silence:
– "Now that Mom's finally caught up, let's eat."
She clapped her hands together cheerfully.
– "Bon appétit!" Declaring this, she grabbed her chopsticks and dug in.
The prince, never having encountered such food, cautiously mimicked her movements—while Minori followed suit with an amused smile.
With each bite, Senko's expression shifted from skepticism to quiet appreciation.
– "This... is ramen?" he finally asked.
– "Yep. It originated in Asia—the name literally means 'stretched noodles.' So we kept calling it ramen," Ariha explained between slurps.
– "'Stretched noodles,' hmm? Quite... acceptable," the prince conceded, though the slight quickening of his chopsticks betrayed his real opinion.
(The girls exchanged glances—they knew he was holding back, but even this lukewarm praise was a victory.)
Later, as they finished eating, the front door opened. Ariha's brother walked in and, hearing noise in the kitchen, poked his head in:
– "Mom, Ariha, I'm ho—... Wait. Who's *this?"