Chapter 289: Submission

Chapter 289: Chapter 289: Submission

The St. Freya was brightly lit.

When Charlotte Linlin returned to the ship carrying Ginny in one hand and Kuma in the other, followed by Kuzan with a complex expression, it naturally attracted the attention of the Crew members on duty.

"Look here, everyone," Charlotte Linlin announced loudly, clapping her hands and placing the two brats in the center of the dining room floor like trophies.

"Let me introduce them. From today onwards, these two are also This lady’s ’children’! This little squirt is Ginny, and this big dummy is Kuma. We’re family now, so look after them for me!"

"Oh—! Welcome, welcome!"

"What a cute little girl! She’s just a bit dirty..."

"Wow! Is this Kuma? He’s really tall! He looks so simple and honest!"

"Captain has ’picked up’ more children again~"

The Crew members immediately gathered around, chattering their welcomes and curiously sizing up the new members.

They were long accustomed to their Captain’s habit of "collecting children" from time to time; instead, they found it lively.

"Alright, alright, stop crowding around. Can’t you see they’re hungry?"

Ripley walked out of the kitchen carrying several plates of aromatic food and called out,

"Go wash your hands and faces first, then come eat. Linlin, really, you brought them back without even letting them clean up first."

Soon, the three of them, with clean hands and faces, were seated.

Before them was a spread of dishes prepared by Ripley: Pan-seared Sea Beast Steaks, Vegetable Thick Soup, golden crispy fried fish, soft white bread, and various fruits and desserts.

For Ginny and Kuma, who had subsisted on black bread and dried salted fish for years, this was a feast that only appeared in dreams!

"I’m digging in!" Ginny’s eyes sparkled. Ignoring all etiquette, she grabbed a steak larger than her face with her hands and took a huge bite!

"Mmm—!! Delicious! It’s so delicious!!!"

Scalding meat juices burst in her mouth, and the sensation of unprecedentedly delicious food instantly conquered her taste buds. She shouted indistinctly, tears of happiness streaming down.

Then, she devoured the food in her hands at an incredible speed, bite after bite, swallowing almost without chewing. Next, she grabbed the fried fish and bread, sweeping through the food before her like a whirlwind.

Her terrifying eating speed and appetite caused the surrounding Crew members, who were chatting animatedly, to gradually fall silent, casting astonished glances.

"Wow... this little girl... has quite an appetite..."

"She eats so fast! I’d be full after just two of those steaks..."

"Is she from a special race too? She doesn’t look like it..."

Charlotte Linlin also raised an eyebrow slightly. Seeing Ginny’s bottomless eating style and remembering how she had surrendered just for a meal, she found it funny but also somewhat understandable. It seemed she was truly terrified of hunger.

While stuffing her face, Ginny mumbled praises: "Never... never eaten anything this good! otousan! Is this really heaven?!"

Kuma sat beside her with a pile of food in front of him, but he didn’t start eating immediately. Instead, as usual, he watched Ginny gorge herself with a gentle look and a satisfied smile, as if seeing Ginny full made him happier than being full himself.

"Bear Cub!" Taking a moment from her busy eating, Ginny slapped Kuma with a greasy hand. Her mouth full, she reminded him urgently but indistinctly,

"Don’t just watch me! Eat! This is food we got by selling ourselves, don’t waste it!"

Kuma finally snapped out of it, smiled sheepishly, then carefully picked up a piece of white bread and took a bite.

The soft, sweet flavor melted in his mouth. His eyes widened slightly, and then he followed Ginny’s lead, starting to eat in large gulps, smiling simple-mindedly as he ate:

"Mm! It’s good! It’s really delicious! Thank you, otousan! Thank you, everyone!"

His appetite was equally astonishing, but compared to Ginny’s near-"devouring" speed, it seemed much more refined.

At that moment, Charlotte Linlin noticed Kuzan sitting on Ginny’s other side, looking somewhat distracted and eating slowly.

She tapped the plate in front of Kuzan, her tone teasing:

"Hey, Kuzan, eating so slowly? Can’t even compete with a skinny little girl? How are you going to become a ’future Admiral’ like that?"

Kuzan, who was thinking about the day’s events, immediately snapped back to reality.

He glanced at Ginny, who was devouring food at a terrifying speed, especially her smug eating style that seemed to say "you’re no good." A surge of competitive spirit suddenly welled up.

"Who—who can’t compete!" Kuzan said stubbornly, immediately picking up his pace. He began taking large bites of meat and gulps of soup, trying to keep up with Ginny’s rhythm.

Ginny noticed Kuzan’s "challenge," and her own competitive streak was ignited. Her eating speed increased even more, her cheeks bulging like a hamster’s, and she even found time to make a face at Kuzan.

Charlotte Linlin clapped her hands, drawing the three children’s attention, and announced:

"Listen up! For this meal, whichever of you three eats the least will be responsible for washing today’s dishes!"

In this world of generally powerful physiques, especially for those with abilities or extraordinary Talents, eating a large amount of food in a short time wasn’t a particularly shocking burden; it was more about appetite and willpower.

Upon hearing this, Kuzan immediately protested, pointing at Kuma across from him: "That’s not fair! otousan! Look at Kuma’s size! How could I possibly out-eat him!"

He automatically excluded Ginny as an "opponent," since she looked so small and thin.

Charlotte Linlin said with a smile, "Then just work hard to beat Ginny, won’t you? Or are you saying you can’t even win against a girl who’s shorter and thinner than you?"

Ginny also added fuel to the fire, indistinctly cheering for Kuma with her mouth full:

"Bear Cub! Go for it! Don’t lose to this Curly-haired brat! If you win, you don’t have to wash dishes!"

Kuma looked at Ginny, then at Kuzan, and finally gave an honest smile as he joined the "battle," starting to take the food before him more seriously.

Thus, a strange sight appeared in the dining room: three children—the thin but terrifyingly fast Ginny, the honest but prodigiously hungry Kuma, and the stubborn Kuzan—engaged in a silent "gluttony contest."

Plates were emptied and refilled; soup bowls were drained and topped up. The surrounding Crew members watched with great interest, and some even started placing small bets.

Finally, when all three could truly eat no more and slumped in their seats gasping for air, the result was obvious.

Kuzan looked at the mountain of plates piled before him—already the most he had ever eaten in his life—then at the spectacular scene of a collapsed mountain before Ginny and the equally formidable record before Kuma. A look of existential doubt crossed his face.

Ripley, acting as the "referee," suppressed her laughter as she tallied the results and announced:

"Ginny is first, Kuma is second, and Kuzan... well, he’s in last place."

"Why..." Kuzan’s eyes were vacant as he muttered to himself, his worldview seemingly shattered,

"That girl... she’s clearly so small and thin... why is her appetite more than three times mine?! This makes no sense!"

Ginny was sprawled unceremoniously in her chair, rubbing her belly which was noticeably rounder. Her face wore an expression of blissful satisfaction:

"Haaa... so full... I’ve never been this full... so delicious... long live otousan..."

She felt like the happiest person in the world right now.

After a while, having recovered some energy, Ginny suddenly seemed to remember something. She turned and looked touched at Kuma, who was also rubbing his belly:

"Bear Cub... so you can eat this much too... You always gave your food to me before... You must have never been full... I’m sorry..."

A hint of guilt crept into her voice.

Kuma quickly waved his hands and smiled honestly, "It’s okay, Ginny. That’s all in the past. Isn’t it great now? We won’t go hungry if we follow Auntie."

Hearing this, Ginny immediately sat up straight, her small face becoming incredibly solemn as she corrected him seriously:

"Bear Cub! Watch your language! That’s not ’Auntie,’ that’s our ’otousan’! Remember! You must call her ’otousan’!"

To ensure she could continue to eat well and be full like today, without ever being cold or hungry again, Ginny was determined to lead Kuma in firmly clinging to the thigh of this powerful and food-providing otousan!

So what if she had to recognize a woman as "Papa"! Compared to actual full meals and delicious food, this tiny abnormality could be completely ignored!

Ginny the pragmatist quickly completed her identity shift and began working hard to "teach" her honest companion.

Meanwhile, Kuzan, facing the mountain of dishes, felt conflicted as he listened to Ginny’s earnest teaching.

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