Seeing Lynsandra naturally made Elias happy. He had thought she’d left, but here she was in the kitchen.

The scene felt like something out of his dreams.

Waking up after a long night of passion, only to find the love of his life making breakfast for them.

Elias kept his arms wrapped around her, resting his chin on her shoulder, a smile spreading across his face.

"What are you making?" he asked, as if completely ignoring the thick smoke rising before them.

"Pancakes," she answered. "But I’m not quite sure if I’m doing it correctly."

That made him snap his eyes toward the stove, and they widened at the sight of the heavy smoke. Even the exhaust fan above the stove seemed overwhelmed by it.

"Li—Liz..."

"I’m not quite sure if I should’ve used a different pan, though," she continued, utterly unbothered by the charcoal her pancake had become. "Oh, I think it’s overcooked."

With that, she gently brushed his arms off her and leaned forward to inspect the disaster in the pan. Meanwhile, Elias stood there in stunned silence, staring at her with wide eyes.

Of course... how could she know how to cook when she never needed to in her entire life?

"It’s overcooked," she sighed, turning off the stove before lifting the pan to show him. "Look. It’s overcooked, right?"

"Overcooked?" he repeated under his breath, staring at the blackened lump inside.

That’s not overcooked. That’s... burnt!

Elias bit his tongue and gulped before letting out an awkward laugh. "I can teach you."

"Okay." She nodded. "Good thing I already finished the eggs."

Lynsandra placed the pan down and picked up the plate beside the stove. She turned around, holding it with both hands, smiling proudly at her creation.

"They’re perfect, aren’t they?"

"..." Elias’s face contorted as he looked at the blackened eggs with barely visible yolks clinging to survival. Those poor yolks were desperately holding on to their identity.

His mouth opened and closed before he shook his head and blurted out, "You’re not eating that."

"Why?"

"Lynsandra, we’ve eaten eggs many times in our lives," he said carefully. "And I’m sure those are not eggs anymore."

She frowned slightly and looked down at the plate. She knew what fried eggs were supposed to look like, but she preferred them this way.

"I’m eating them, then." She shrugged and set the plate aside. "You’re not having any."

"Seriously?" he asked, and she nodded. "Lizzie, you’re sure?"

She nodded again. "A hundred percent."

"Why?"

"Why?" She tilted her head. "Why not?"

Elias studied her expression, wondering if this was stubbornness or pride. But the longer he observed her, the more he realized she truly meant it.

She liked her eggs... burnt.

Why?

Perhaps he would never understand.

"Fine," he finally gave in, huffing softly before smiling at her. "Then I’ll make us pancakes."

"You’re eating these?" she asked, watching him shrug.

He chuckled and tilted his head back slightly. "There’s a first time for everything," he said with a wink. "Who knows? It might change my entire perspective."

But alas... it did not.

After he finished making perfectly golden pancakes, drizzled with maple syrup and topped with butter, Elias bravely took a bite of her charcoal eggs and nearly spat them out instantly.

He froze in his seat, his face darkening as he struggled with the taste. Forcing it down, he immediately grabbed his glass of water and chugged the entire thing.

"Haha." Lynsandra chuckled as she watched him, holding her fork with a bite of pancake and blackened egg. "Don’t force yourself. Even Virgo and Minnie never hesitated to express their dismay at my cooking."

"Hah..." Elias panted, staring at her as she ate without issue. "Lizzie, you can’t do this to yourself."

He shook his head, looking at her pitifully. "You cannot live like this, my darling."

"Why not?" she smirked, bringing her fork closer to her mouth. "I like living this way."

And with that, she took another bite, chewing slowly and happily. Elias could only gasp as he watched her.

How could she eat that?

Still, Lynsandra finished her burnt eggs without complaint. It made him realize it was fortunate he had woken up when he did. Otherwise, she might have eaten burnt pancakes as well.

"Did you actually enjoy it?" he asked, watching her wipe her lips after drinking water. "The burnt egg, I mean."

"Yes, I’m used to it."

"Used to it?"

"Mhm." She nodded with a small smile. "I’m not saying it’s good, but it’s not bad anymore."

His brows knitted together. She had looked like she enjoyed it, but perhaps that was because of the pancakes.

Slowly, Lynsandra propped her elbows on the table and looked at him.

"There was a time when I lost my sense of taste," she shared suddenly. "No matter what I ate or drank, I couldn’t taste anything."

"Huh?" He frowned.

"One night, I went to the kitchen to cook something for myself. I only had eggs back then, so I made them," she continued softly. "I forgot about them, and they burned. I would’ve thrown them away, but out of curiosity, I took a bite."

His face twisted. "Because you couldn’t taste anything anyway?"

"Mhm. But surprisingly, I could taste it," she chuckled. "It was bitter, but it was the first thing I’d tasted in a long time."

"But last night, we tried a lot of food," he pointed out, shock evident in his voice. "And you said they were good."

"My taste buds are back now," she replied, not mentioning that they had only returned since the last moon cycle. "But I still choose to eat burnt eggs sometimes to remind myself of how bitter it was. And yet, how it made me enjoy food again."

Elias slumped back in his chair, staring at her in disbelief.

"You... you are strange," he muttered, though it only made her chuckle. "At this rate, those burnt eggs will make you lose your sense of taste again."

"I don’t think so."

"Why?"

She simply smiled and didn’t answer.

After all, what had killed her sense of taste wasn’t a single incident, but the constant suffering she endured every full moon.

Speaking of the full moon... she thought, her brows lifting slightly. The next cycle is very close.

Lynsandra lifted her gaze and met his eyes.

"What?" he asked, tilting his head. "You just looked like you thought of something."

She smiled and shook her head. "It’s nothing."

*****

[Victor and Katarina’s Home]

Katarina sat alone in her room, a twisted smile on her face. In her hand was a small jar filled with black liquid.

"Haha..." she let out a low chuckle, biting her lip. "... now all I need is—hahaha!"

She laughed until she nearly doubled over. When she finally regained her composure, she straightened and lifted the vial to eye level.

"Now I just need to make sure she gets a single drop of it." Her eyelids lowered dangerously as her lips curled into a vile smirk. "And... everything will be over."