Space twisted for a moment.
Then the three of them reappeared in a quiet back alley near World Kitchen, hidden between stacked crates and storage warehouses.
The lively sounds of the harbor market echoed in the distance as if nothing unusual had happened.
Erika looked around first.
"…World Kitchen again?"
Akira dusted off his clothes like they had merely returned from a walk.
"Well, yeah. We still need to buy a house."
Erina stared at him.
"…A house."
Akira nodded casually.
"I told you, right? If we're coming back to this world, we need a base of operations, so we have to prepare it before we leave."
Erina crossed her arms.
"And when exactly are we leaving?"
Erika also asked,
"Is the mission over?"
Akira muttered,
"Let me check."
Then he opened the system quest window to see how it was going.
[Mission]
Side Quest: Gather Ingredients.
Objective:
Obtain Rainbow Fruit from the Toriko world within the time limit.
Difficulty: B
Time Limit: 1 day
Reward:
×1 B Rank Gacha Ticket
+ 200 Star Credits
Restrictions:
No restrictions
Bonus Reward:
??? (Hidden)
Remaining Time: 18 Hours
Mission Progress: Completed.
Akira shrugged.
"We still have plenty of time left, but should we wait here for all 18 hours?"
Selena's voice chimed in telepathically.
"Well, the mission is complete. You can either wait until the time runs out, or I can pull you back right now."
Akira thought for a second.
"We'll head back after we buy the house. By the way, sister, I forgot to ask before, but what's this hidden bonus reward?"
Selena replied,
"It's a hidden quest. Not one of those hidden achievements, but an actual hidden quest. Meet the right conditions, and you'll earn extra rewards."
Akira asked,
"What's the quest about then?"
Selena sighed.
"It's hidden, brother."
Akira pressed,
"There has to be a clue, right?"
Selena explained.
"It's mostly related to the main quest. Think about it yourself."
Akira muttered,
"Main quest… hmm…"
Erina hesitated, then asked,
"What about the Rainbow Fruit? Are we eating it?"
Akira answered,
"For that, I need to get back to my lab to make something with it."
Erina was shocked.
"Why do you go to a lab to cook food?"
Akira explained,
"Well… just to be sure. A single drop can turn a swimming pool into rich juice, so I have to treat it carefully."
Selena added,
"The castle's kitchen has plenty of high-end equipment. You can also buy more from this world if you want."
Akira blinked.
"I never knew our castle even had a working kitchen. Makes sense though."
Erina suddenly spoke up, voice laced with disbelief.
"Wait… you have a castle?"
Akira nodded like it was obvious.
"Well, I am a prince, so of course I have a castle. Didn't I tell you I work as the prince of Asterisia?"
Erina looked completely lost.
"But… a country named that doesn't even exist…"
Erika smiled softly and patted Erina's shoulder.
"Relax, he's a prince, but the country has like three people. Don't worry about it."
Akira protested immediately.
"Hey! What about my robot army? What about your crows? They all count, right?"
Erika waved him off with a teasing smile.
"Sure, sure. If you say so."
Erina muttered under her breath, still dazed.
"…He's actually a prince?... But everything else he said until now is true…"
Akira clapped his hands, completely unbothered.
"Well, we have to find our new lair today, so come on."
He stepped out of the alley and pointed dramatically toward the bustling city.
"Now then… Let the property hunt begin."
Erika sighed beside him.
"…Please let it be normal."
A short while later, the three of them stood inside a real estate office near World Kitchen.
Akira had found the place after a quick search on his custom phone—it had surprisingly good reviews.
Maps, property boards, and miniature models of strangely designed houses filled the room.
Behind the desk sat a sharply dressed agent with slicked-back hair and the confident smile of a man who could sell land to anyone.
Akira placed both hands on the desk with complete seriousness.
"I'm looking for an evil castle."
The agent didn't even blink.
"Certainly, sir. Any preferred region?"
Akira thought for a moment, nodding thoughtfully.
"Somewhere with dramatic weather, maybe a hidden lair inside a volcano, and a proper throne room too."
The agent adjusted his glasses smoothly.
"Those are quite rare… but we do have a few listings."
Erina stared, her expression one of pure disbelief.
"…What kind of market is this?"
Before Akira could enthusiastically continue, Erika stepped forward and calmly placed a hand over his mouth.
"We need a normal house."
Akira muffled a protest behind her palm.
"But… the aesthetics…"
Erika ignored him completely, her tone firm but warm.
"Preferably isolated, with surrounding land. Close enough to Toriko Harbor for convenience, but far enough for privacy."
The agent's smile widened, clearly appreciating the shift.
"Any other specifications?"
Akira, finally freed from Erika's hand, added sadly,
"…And a place to conduct experiments too."
The agent nodded without missing a beat.
"Ah, now that I can help you with."
He pulled out several thick folders and spread them across the desk with practiced ease.
"I have a few excellent options that might suit your needs."
A short while later, the agent drove them to the first property.
House 1: The Skull Castle
They stood in front of a towering cliff-side skull castle with a dramatic drawbridge mouth and perpetual bad weather.
Akira's eyes sparkled.
"It's perfect! It even has a throne room!"
Erika said,
"No."
Akira dramatically pulled out a sword and struck a pose.
"By the power of Greyskull… I HAVE THE POWER!"
Erika immediately shut it down.
"I will not live in a skull castle."
Erina looked horrified as she peeked into the kitchen.
"Is this a kitchen or a medieval torture chamber?"
The agent smiled awkwardly.
"The previous owner had… unique taste."
Akira declared,
"I'll take it!"
Both girls said "No" in unison and dragged him away.
House 2: The Volcano Lair
Next was a luxurious hidden lair straight out of a James Bond movie villain's secret base—built inside an active volcano with many secret rooms.
Akira's eyes sparkled again.
"This is great. Look, it even has a rolling villain chair."
Akira sat in the rolling villain chair and spun around dramatically.
"You're a kite dancing in a hurricane, Mr. Bond."
Erika crossed her arms.
"Yeah, no. I will not live inside an active volcano."
Akira asked innocently,
"What's wrong with it?"
Erika deadpanned,
"I can't even take a walk outside without getting cooked alive."
Erina muttered,
"The kitchen is not bad… but—"
The volcano let out a low, threatening rumble.
Both girls said "No" again and dragged him back to the car.
House 3: The Old Mansion
An elegant-looking old manor in the misty hills.
Erika asked the agent,
"It's a beautiful mansion, but why is it so cheap?"
The agent replied smoothly,
"Well… some say it's haunted."
Akira walked further inside and nodded.
"Look, Erika, this one even has ghosts inside. Great for aesthetics."
Erina, walking beside him, asked nervously,
"What ghosts? Where?"
Akira pointed casually.
"Right behind you."
Erina screamed.
"AHHHHHHH!"
Erika stepped in and also saw them—a pale woman, a small child, and even a black cat, all huddled together in the corner of the room, clearly scared.
Erika got spooked and grabbed Akira's collar and the panicking Erina.
"We are not living in a haunted house!"
Akira protested,
"Why are you scared? You're part vampire. Look, they're even more scared of you!"
Erika looked, and the ghosts flinched immediately.
But Erika screamed,
"I said, we are not living in a haunted house!"
And dragged them away.
House 4: The Giant Tree House
A cozy residence built entirely inside a massive ancient tree.
Akira tilted his head.
"Hmm, it's actually cozy… but we already have a portable tree house, and this one is even smaller than mine."
Erika considered it.
"Yeah, but the area is good. It even has a lake behind it."
Erina looked at the kitchen and suddenly jumped back with a shriek.
"Ahhh… Bug!"
Akira turned and saw a huge centipede crawling out of the kitchen and immediately got creeped out.
"Why is there a bug in the house?!"
The agent explained,
"These bugs are a local delicacy. They live inside the tree and drink its sweet resin, becoming tasty themselves. In fact, this tree bark is full of them and their eggs."
He moved a piece of furniture, and more little bugs crawled out.
Akira immediately freaked out and launched himself onto Erika's back like a koala.
"Leave! Leave! I don't want to stay a minute more here!"
Erika patted his head soothingly.
"Fine, fine, let's leave."
She carried him out while Erina followed, still shocked.
"What happened?"
Erika explained,
"He just really hates bugs."
So this house was also rejected.
After the fourth rejection, the agent finally brought them to the last property right as the sun was about to set, with a knowing smile.
"And this one… it's a bit special. Came on the market recently."
They stepped out of the car, and the view took their breath away.
A beautiful tropical seaside villa sat on a private stretch of beach, surrounded by lush forest with a distant mountain view.
The house itself had large windows, open spaces, and—most importantly—a massive gourmet kitchen with ocean-facing counters and professional-grade equipment.
The agent added,
"It even has an underground high-tech lab, perfect for experimentation, and it comes with the nearby area too. For a surprisingly good price."
Erika's eyes softened as she looked at the layout.
"This one has good space, privacy, and the location is perfect…"
Erina's chef instincts kicked in hard.
Her eyes lit up at the kitchen setup.
"…The counters are excellent. The ocean view while cooking… not bad at all."
Akira grinned.
"It has expansion potential too."
Then he frowned.
"But why is it so cheap?"
The agent explained,
"It's listed as a foreclosure from a failed Seiseya research base. The previous owner tried to recreate a rare ingredient, but something went horribly wrong."
Erika asked,
"Wait, what went wrong?"
The agent smiled.
"Nothing too dangerous. In fact, you can see it will appear around this time."
Just then, as the sun began to set, something magical happened.
The sea started to glow with a breathtaking blue bioluminescence.
Erina asked, stunned,
"What is that?"
The agent replied,
"The failed experiment. They created a slime-like creature that secretes a substance making the sea glow. It's absolutely beautiful, but the substance doesn't taste good and drives local fauna away. Good thing the slime only lives on this private beach."
Erika asked cautiously,
"It doesn't have any other dangerous side effects, right?"
The agent assured them,
"No, they're not really dangerous."
The three of them looked at each other.
Erina said softly,
"The view is nice… and the kitchen is great too."
Akira nodded.
"Yeah, there's even a lab and some failed experiment here."
Erika smiled.
"Yeah. The area is close to Toriko Harbor, isolated, and because of the slimes there are no dangerous animals nearby. This is good."
They agreed.
This was it.
The agent smiled brightly.
"Shall we schedule the paperwork?"
Akira shook his head.
"No need to schedule. We'll buy it right away—at full price."
And so, after returning to Toriko Harbor and finishing the paperwork, they finally had a base in this world.
A short while later, the three of them walked out of the real estate office, paperwork completed and keys in hand.
By the time they stepped outside, the sky had gone dark.
The harbor lights glimmered in the distance like scattered stars.
All three of them looked exhausted.
Even Akira was quieter than usual.
He walked with his hands in his pockets, deep in thought.
"…Hidden quest…"
He replayed Selena's words in his mind.
Related to the main quest.
Main quest… Gather ingredients.
Suddenly, he stopped.
"…Oh."
Erika looked up tiredly.
"What?"
Akira turned immediately.
"We need to buy more ingredients."
Both girls stared at him in disbelief.
Erika sighed.
"Akira… we're exhausted."
Erina looked equally drained.
"Can't this wait?"
Akira raised both hands in a placating gesture.
"Relax. I'll go alone."
With a flash of magic, the three of them were transported to the tropical villa.
Warm sea air greeted them instantly.
The glowing shoreline shimmered outside the windows.
Akira stepped back toward the teleport circle.
"I'll be quick."
Then he vanished again.
For a moment, the villa fell quiet.
Selena's voice echoed gently in their minds.
"Don't worry, he probably figured something out about the hidden quest. You two should freshen up and change back into your original clothes. Time has been paused in your world, so you'll return to the exact same place and position you were in before we left."
Erika nodded tiredly.
"Okay."
Erina, still processing everything, hesitated for a moment before asking,
"…You said he has multiple fiancées, right? How does that even work?"
Erika blinked in surprise.
"What?"
Erina quickly looked away, cheeks faintly pink.
"Don't misunderstand. I'm just… curious. Polygamy is illegal, after all."
Erika let out a long sigh.
She knew Erina didn't have romantic feelings for Akira.
But curiosity was often the first crack in the wall.
"…It's complicated," she said.
"I'll explain later. For now, let's just change."
Meanwhile, Akira had teleported back to World Kitchen alone and was on a last-minute shopping spree, grabbing every interesting low-to-mid capture level ingredient he could find.
When he finally returned to the villa, he found both girls already changed—
Erika back in her school uniform, Erina in her elegant dress.
Akira looked down at himself.
"Oh, right."
Then he used a quick spell to freshen himself up and changed back into his tuxedo.
Selena's voice rang out clearly.
"Countdown starting. Returning to original world in 3… 2… 1…0..."
A soft light enveloped them.
In the blink of an eye, they were back in their original world—
Standing in the exact same spot and position they had been in before the entire Toriko adventure began.