Chapter 5: A Warm and Cozy Life
At that moment, Grandpa Roger's voice echoed from the kitchen.
"Go wash your hands, everyone. Dinner is almost ready! Today I'm making my signature dish—vegetable stew."
Hearing this, Soren's heart, which had just begun to melt, instantly froze over again.
Looking at Little Irene standing before him, Soren reached out and gently patted her head.
His tone was filled with apology.
"I'm sorry, Little Irene. The old me made you and Grandpa Doug worry. That won't happen again."
Hearing this, Little Irene shook her head firmly. She looked right into Soren's eyes and said earnestly.
"We're family. So worrying about my big brother is only natural."
Wonderful things always bring people hope, like a lighthouse on a lonely sea or a star in the dark night.
"Yes, family. Irene and Grandpa Doug are my family in this new world now."
Looking at Little Irene, Soren's confusion, bewilderment, and fear melted away in an instant.
"Thank you for choosing me to be family with you and Grandpa Doug. I'm so lucky, and I'm so happy."
He smiled, took Little Irene's hand, and walked toward the table.
Little Irene's cheeks turned slightly red.
During dinner, Grandpa Doug laughed heartily, repeating over and over, "Eat more, eat more, you're at the age where you're still growing! When I was your age, I was famous for how much I could eat."
"I really am starving, but how is this actually kind of delicious? It must be an illusion, definitely an illusion."
Staring at the bowl of green soup in front of him, Soren kept shoveling it into his mouth, even though he couldn't taste what it was at all.
After dinner, Soren wanted to help Irene wash the dishes, but she refused.
Little Irene pushed Soren back to his room and ordered him to get a good rest.
"Adorable. Beyond adorable, just completely adorable. I have to protect her—I definitely will."
Lying in bed, Soren muttered the words over and over in his heart.
A new life had begun.
For the next two months, Soren was cared for like an invalid. Grandpa wouldn't let him go near the flower fields, and Irene wouldn't let him step foot in the kitchen. He actually got to experience his past life's ultimate dream of doing absolutely nothing.
Every day, after sleeping until he woke up naturally and finishing breakfast, Soren would wander around the island.
Through this period of scouting and mapping, and comparing it with his memories, he had finally gained a thorough understanding of the island.
Because it was famous for its Ziluoflowers, it was called Ziluo Island.
There was only one dock on the island, located on its eastern side. Walking inland from the dock for about half an hour brought one to the residential street.
Just past the end of the street lay the flower fields on the back mountain.
The island's other three sides were surrounded by steep cliffs and jagged reefs where ships could not approach.
Yet, strangely enough, there was no Navy garrison on the island, which left Soren with a lingering sense of unease.
He asked Grandpa Doug what they would do if pirates attacked, given that there was no Navy stationed there.
Grandpa Doug burst out laughing, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Don't be scared, little Soren. Grandpa will protect you all."
With that, he flexed his rather scrawny arm.
Soren was left speechless, black lines framing his forehead.
"Hahaha, alright, alright, I'm just teasing you. It's great that you even thought of that."
"But you see, our island only has one dock. Every other part of the island is sheer cliff, so ships can't make landfall anywhere else."
As Grandpa Doug spoke, he pointed toward the dock.
"There's also a dedicated lookout tower on the dock. If a pirate ship approaches, it'll sound the alarm immediately."
"Even though there's no Navy garrison on our island, the nearest Navy base is only two hours away, and they patrol the shipping lanes near our island once every three days."
"So, don't worry, little Soren."
"Alright." Even after hearing Grandpa Doug's explanation, Soren still felt a bit unsettled.
Thanks to his god's-eye view, to some extent he understood the cruelty of this world far better than the island's native residents.
One week later.
Soren had thoroughly mapped out the back mountain and even accidentally discovered a hidden cave nestled in its cliffs.
The cave entrance was in a very tricky spot, tightly concealed by dense vines.
If he hadn't happened to have a stomachache at that exact moment, he might never have found it.
After discovering the cave, Soren simply cleaned it up a bit and stored some bottled water inside.
"A clever rabbit has three burrows—it never hurts to be prepared. From now on, this is my secret base."
Covering the entrance back up, Soren felt his sense of security increase just a little bit.
Life on the island was rather dull, but peaceful.
Having suffered enough from the vegetable soup torture, Soren launched a fierce protest and finally won temporary kitchen privileges—which promptly became permanent privileges from that day onward.
One morning.
"What should I make today?"
Standing at the kitchen doorway, Soren muttered to himself while rubbing his chin.
"I want to eat scrambled eggs with tomatoes, Big Brother Soren!"
"Haha, kids really do love scrambled eggs with tomatoes after all! Old man I want hot pot, extra spicy broth!"
Watching Grandpa Doug roar with laughter, Soren shook his head helplessly.
"Who eats hot pot first thing in the morning like a normal person? Decided! Scrambled eggs with tomatoes, shredded potatoes in spicy and sour sauce, and rice porridge."
"Yay! Long live Big Brother Soren! Scrambled eggs with tomatoes, scrambled eggs with tomatoes..."
Little Irene flashed a triumphant smile at Grandpa Doug.
Soren looked at the crestfallen Grandpa Doug, whose face carried the childlike grievance of a man in his sixties.
Rubbing his forehead, he said helplessly.
"Fine, we'll have hot pot tonight then—a tomato and extra-spicy mandarin duck hot pot. We'll invite Ent's family from next door too, it'll be more lively with a crowd."
"Hahaha, wonderful, wonderful! I'll go tell them."
Hearing this, Grandpa Doug's expression changed in an instant as he burst out laughing and hurried out the door.
Soren chuckled softly and walked into the kitchen.
"As expected, nobody can resist Chinese cuisine. To the dietary habits of this island, it's practically a dimensional strike."
That evening, the courtyard of Grandpa Doug's house was packed with people seated around a custom-made extra-large round table.
Among them was a very pretty girl. Little Irene kept staring at her with a hint of guarded wariness.
Noticing the extra family that had joined them, Soren looked over at Grandpa Doug in confusion.
Grandpa Doug looked away, scratching his head with an awkward smile. "Hahaha, what a coincidence, Silofi happened to be there when I went over, so I invited her along too."
"Silofi is the exact same age as you, so you two can get to know each other."
Soren smiled helplessly.
"Oh well, I bought plenty of ingredients anyway. I'll go prep a bit more."
The steam from the hot pot billowed upward, blurring everyone's vision. Everyone's chopsticks darted rapidly back and forth between their bowls and the pot, giving the food a quick blow before popping it into their mouths.
"So good, so hot, so good, so hot..."
"Soren, you're amazing! Sob, I've lived this long and never eaten anything so delicious. I feel like I've wasted my whole life until now, sob..."
"Thank you, Soren! It's so delicious, thank you."
"Ent, slow down! That's the beef I just dropped in—let go, let go right now..."
Soren sat in his chair, smiling as he watched the noisy crowd, tossing out half-hearted replies here and there.
"If life could always be like this..."
A mischievous smile suddenly crept onto the corner of his mouth. Taking advantage of the moment when Little Irene wasn't paying attention, he quickly picked up a piece of meat from the spicy pot and dropped it into her bowl.
"Ow, it's too spicy, too spicy! Give me water quick, Big Brother Soren is a bad guy..."
Little Irene's face instantly turned bright red.
"I love it."