Honkai: Oh No, I’ve Become the Herrscher of Corruption?! - Chapter 78

Side Story – Warm Rice Ball

Outside Yae Village, lush grass flourished while fallen petals danced in the air. A small river flowed gently by.

Cherry blossoms bloomed along both banks, and as a soft breeze passed, the petals fluttered into the river, dyeing the water a delicate pink.

A small boat drifted lazily on the water. Yae Sakura stood at the helm, guiding the vessel with a long pole. Meanwhile, Yae Rin and Kallen lounged against the boat’s edge, listening to the cheerful chirping of birds and feeling the warm breeze against their cheeks—pure bliss.

Yae Rin glanced between Kallen and her sister, sensing an awkward tension in the air. Maybe I shouldn’t be here, she thought.

Noticing Rin’s discomfort, Kallen and Sakura quickly struck up a conversation with her.

“Um, Kallen… since you and my sister are… that kind of relationship now, should I call you…?” Rin trailed off, suddenly realizing something odd.

“Brother-in-law”? But first of all, she’s a woman, and… Based on what she’d observed of their married life, her sister seemed to be the more assertive one.

Then… “sister-in-law”? Wait, that somehow sounds even weirder.

“Rin, don’t overthink it,” Sakura said, setting the pole aside and sitting beside Kallen, letting the boat drift with the wind. “Since Kallen and I are together, she’s just like me—your sister.”

Rin looked at Kallen, then nodded seriously.

The three continued chatting and laughing until the sun climbed high overhead.

“Oh, it’s getting late. Sakura, you promised to teach me how to make rice balls today,” Kallen said eagerly.

With a soft smile, Sakura opened a wooden tub beside her, releasing the fragrant aroma of steamed rice into the air.

“All the ingredients are here. We can start now. Rin, you join us too.”

“Mm!” Rin and Kallen followed Sakura’s lead, dipping their hands into the cool river water to moisten their palms.

“Wet your hands a little more, then take some salt and rub them together like this.”

Sakura scooped a spoonful of salt into her palm and scrubbed her hands gently, as if washing them.

“Take a portion of rice, make a small indentation in the middle, and place a pickled plum inside. You can make rice balls with any filling you like—tuna and green onion, salmon with sesame and dried seaweed flakes—but today, we’re keeping it simple with salted plum.”

“I see. I understand now!”

Hearing Kallen’s confident declaration, Rin couldn’t help but glance over—and her eyes nearly popped out of her head.

If what she and Sakura held were normal portions of rice, Kallen’s portion was several times larger than theirs combined. She cradled it in her hands, the mound nearly touching her chin.

“Uh… Kallen, that might be too much rice,” Sakura said hesitantly.

“But I wanted to make one of those giant rice balls you made for me before!”

Seeing Kallen’s excitement, Sakura’s brows furrowed with concern.

“It might be tricky for your first try. Let me help shape it into a triangle.”

Kallen, however, frowned, pouted, and muttered with absolute confidence:

“No! If I just follow your steps, I’ll definitely get it right.”

Rin stifled a giggle behind her sleeve.

Kallen is so cute… No wonder my sister adores her. If she kept acting like this every day, they’d both be so happy.

Her imagination ran wild—Kallen snuggling into Sakura’s arms, whining sweetly—and her smile widened.

Sighing at Kallen’s stubbornness, Sakura continued the lesson:

“Hold the rice with your left hand, and with your right, shape it into a plump triangle while rotating it. Be careful not to squeeze too hard, or it’ll become tough.”

Once shaped, Sakura took a rectangular sheet of seaweed and wrapped it around the rice ball.

“Like this—fold the sides over to cover it. And there, a pickled plum rice ball is done.”

With the demonstration over, it was time to test their skills. Sakura first checked Rin’s work. Since her hands were smaller, her rice ball was more petite, but otherwise identical.

“Good. Kallen’s looks nice too.”

Seeing her sister’s genuine smile, Rin turned to Kallen—and immediately understood what it meant to “lie with a straight face.”

Kallen hadn’t shaped hers at all. Instead, she had wrapped the enormous rice lump in multiple layers of seaweed, turning it into something resembling a dark-green bowling ball.

“Ah, this is Kallen’s first rice ball. I’m sure it’ll be delicious,” Sakura said warmly.

“You should be the judge of that,” Kallen replied, placing the “bowling ball” into Sakura’s hands. Before Sakura could react, Kallen snatched up Sakura’s own rice ball and took a big bite.

The weight of the rice ball brought a comforting fullness. For the first time, Sakura realized that rice balls could feel so substantial in her stomach.

Kallen licked her fingers, surprised.

“Huh? It’s still warm. I thought it’d cool down right away.”

A faint blush colored Sakura’s cheeks. She set down the half-eaten rice ball, gently placed her right hand over Kallen’s left, and leaned in until her lips were just centimeters from Kallen’s ear.

“That’s because… while shaping it, the rice ball also absorbs… the warmth of your hands.”

Her breath tickled Kallen’s ear, sending a shiver down her spine. Kallen’s face flushed even redder than Sakura’s.

Pleased with Kallen’s flustered reaction, Sakura started to pull away—but Kallen, emboldened by something, suddenly surged forward, capturing Sakura’s lips in a deep kiss and pinning her down.

“!!!”

Rin, who had just finished her rice ball, covered her eyes with both hands—only to peek through her fingers a second later.

However, Kallen’s momentary victory was short-lived. Sakura pushed her back, and as if remembering Rin’s presence, the two stopped just before things escalated beyond a PG-13 rating.

“Hmph!” Kallen let out a playful huff before resting her head on Sakura’s shoulder and closing her eyes. Sakura, no longer in the mood to tease, wrapped her arms around Kallen and slowly drifted off as well.

Understanding the moment, Rin quietly picked up the pole at the stern and steered the boat onward.