Food Wars: Let him cook

"Dylan Sensei, you're teasing me again!"

Hearing Dylan's slightly teasing words, Kikuchi Sonoka's face visibly reddened, her heart pounding "thump-thump" violently.

"This isn't teasing at all; these are my sincere words. Speaking of which, Sonoka, you're so cute, you can be a bit more confident."

Dylan reached out and gently pinched Kikuchi Sonoka's cheek. Looking at her delicate face, he was in a good mood.

After chatting all night yesterday and seeing the young woman's affectionate actions when they met today, he naturally understood her feelings for him.

"Me... cute? Hehe."

Hearing Dylan's words, Kikuchi Sonoka felt as if she had been electrocuted, her whole body tingling. She quickly released her arm from his, her lips curving upwards unnaturally.

She could clearly feel her cheeks burning. No doubt, her face must be very red right now!

"Whew~ Ah, youth!"

Rindo Kobayashi whistled, arms crossed and a smile on her face, putting on the air of a seasoned veteran sighing at the youthfulness of young boys and girls. However, what she received was a knuckle sandwich from Dylan:

"If you keep spouting nonsense here, you won't get any of the morning tea later."

"I'm sorry, I was wrong, Dylan Sensei!"

Seeing Dylan's slightly displeased expression, Rindo Kobayashi performed a lightning-fast kowtow, striking a pose of begging for mercy, her bow low enough to offer a glimpse of "spring scenery."

"Tsk, the 'Ecstasy of Food' indeed."

Dylan took a careful look for a few seconds, and after confirming he couldn't see more, he withdrew his gaze and immediately put on a serious expression: "Everyone sit down and rest."

After saying this, Dylan paid no more attention to Kikuchi Sonoka and returned to the cooking station with the ingredients.

After that brief cooking session, his own interest in cooking had been piqued. Of course, more importantly, he was starting to miss the Cantonese morning tea from Guangzhou.

Shrimp dumplings, char siu bao, shrimp siu mai, red rice noodle rolls, steamed chicken feet with black bean sauce, honeycomb tripe, steamed pork ribs, boat congee, and so on...

Thinking of this, Dylan placed the Seven-Star Knives horizontally on the cooking station, then arranged the ingredients by category and took a deep breath.

The next moment, his speed suddenly increased.

At first, those around him could still clearly see his movements, but later, all they could see were afterimages.

And as he quickened his actions, the scene instantly became so quiet you could hear a pin drop. The four of them stared intently at Dylan's movements, unwilling to miss any detail.

However, Dylan's speed was simply too fast. By the time they came to their senses, he had already finished cooking, putting every cooking station to use.

"While we wait, there's something I need to make clear to you all first."

Glancing at Rindo Kobayashi, who was wandering between the various cooking stations, ecstatically sniffing the aromas, Dylan turned his head to look at Kikuchi Sonoka and the others.

"Inviting you all over this time wasn't just for show. I want you to stake your Elite Ten titles and compete against the top five from this midterm exam. By the way, here's a piece of advice: don't underestimate them just because they're in the middle school division. Their skills aren't much different from yours. In other words, if you lose, you might very well have to hand over your Elite Ten seat. If you're scared, it's okay to leave now."

Dylan looked at the four people before him, stating his purpose for calling them: not for a food tasting, but to stimulate Erina Nakiri and the others.

In Tōtsuki, everyone aspired to be in the Elite Ten. Using the Elite Ten status as motivation for the winners was perfectly suitable!

"Stake our Elite Ten titles? Playing for such high stakes... Interesting."

Hearing Dylan's words, Rindo Kobayashi looked away from the cooking station, a surprised expression on her face, but she didn't refuse.

"Tōtsuki's academic culture has always been about competition. If they can defeat me, it's only right that I yield my Elite Ten seat."

Satoshi Isshiki's voice rang out, filled with strong confidence. If he lost the match, he naturally wouldn't cling to the tenth seat of the Elite Ten.

The Elite Ten seats were, from beginning to end, prepared for the strong!

"I have no objections either. If anyone has the ability to take my seat, let them come."

Eishi Tsukasa also spoke. Although he wasn't skilled in other things, he had absolute confidence in his cooking.

"Dylan Sensei, you said the top five would compete against us, but there are only four of us. Could it be that another Elite Ten member hasn't arrived?"

Kikuchi Sonoka asked with a puzzled expression. She had no objection to this rule either, for the same reasons as the others.

Indeed, who among those who became Elite Ten members wasn't confident in their own abilities?

"I am also among those being challenged."

"Who would challenge you! Isn't that just asking for a beating?"

Hearing Dylan's words, Rindo Kobayashi immediately retorted. A chef who wasn't even special grade challenging a chef who was at least Seven-Star?! Were they crazy?!

"Don't worry, someone will challenge me."

Faced with Rindo Kobayashi's retort, Dylan, however, chuckled. A charming face appeared in his mind, and he spoke with ample confidence.

"Dylan Sensei, when this is over, can you have a match with me?"

Hearing Dylan's words, Eishi Tsukasa, who had been silent, suddenly spoke, his eyes burning with fervent fighting spirit as he looked at him.

He hadn't challenged him earlier because he felt it would be somewhat disrespectful to Dylan. After all, he was currently just a first-grade head chef and was afraid the other party would take it as an insult.

But now, Dylan was willing to compete with those from the middle school division, proving he didn't consider being challenged by weaker individuals an insult.

Thus, the desire to challenge him rose again.

"Tsukasa, you want to challenge Dylan Sensei?"

Hearing Eishi Tsukasa's words, Rindo Kobayashi covered her mouth, then lowered it, a helpless expression on her face. As expected, that was Tsukasa for you.

"Challenge me? Not just anyone can challenge me. What price can you pay?"

Dylan looked at Eishi Tsukasa with a half-smile. He had accepted the challenge last time purely because he was in a good mood and caught up in the excitement, but now his mood was just average.

"What do you want? I can give you anything! As long as you have one match with me."

Eishi Tsukasa said earnestly. He could clearly feel that if he could fight Dylan, he would definitely gain immensely!

"I won't make it difficult for you. If you lose, then after graduation, you join the Dark Cooking Society and serve the darkness for ten years. How about that?"

Looking at Eishi Tsukasa, Dylan also felt a stirring of appreciation for talent and proactively extended an olive branch.

"Dark Cooking Society?"

Hearing Dylan's words, the few people present were somewhat puzzled. They looked at each other when this was said, and only breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that the others didn't know either.

That was a scare; they thought they had fallen behind the times.

"That's right, the Dark Cooking Society. A newly established culinary organization in Shanghai, China. If you lose, you must fight for the Dark Cooking Society for ten years. Can you accept such conditions?"

Dylan wasn't surprised by their confusion. The current Dark Cooking Society was just starting. It would be strange if it immediately became a household name.

"I accept."

Without much hesitation, Eishi Tsukasa nodded heavily and said affirmatively.

Although he didn't know what kind of place the Dark Cooking Society was, Dylan Sensei most likely wouldn't trick him. Even if he was tricked, he was willing to pay the price.

There probably weren't many special-grade chefs in the world who could consistently produce 'Flowing Light' cuisine, especially one so young. In the future, he might even advance further.

And above Seven-Star Special Grade…

Eishi Tsukasa didn't dare to think further.

"Then let's set the time for after this midterm exam ends. You can come find me then."

Seeing such a decisive Eishi Tsukasa, an appreciative expression appeared on Dylan's face. This was the kind of decisive subordinate he needed.

Indecisiveness was no good for cooking.

"Perfect timing. Let's start eating morning tea."

Smelling the increasingly rich aroma in the air, a smile appeared on Dylan's face.

"Have you heard? The rules for the midterm exam have changed!"

Three people were walking together, heading towards the designated floor, now a place for student Shokugekis, chatting as they went.

"What? The rules have changed? Did they increase the number of people who pass?! I knew it! How could only fifty people pass out of over a thousand? It must have been a smokescreen to push us!"

Hearing the girl beside him, the boy said with an excited expression. His rank was 93rd, unable to move up or down, stuck in the most awkward position.

If the number of passing spots really increased, he would definitely hit the jackpot!

"What exactly has changed?"

Another girl spoke quite rationally.

"It has nothing to do with us eliminated ones. It mainly concerns the top fifty; their rules have changed."

The girl who initially brought up the topic spoke, a bitter smile on her face.

How could the school possibly change the rules specifically for them, the eliminated ones.

"The rules for the top fifty have changed? Are they planning to eliminate more? That would be too cruel!!"

Although he said that, the two girls could see the schadenfreude in the man's expression.

"Quite the opposite. The new rules are to protect the top fifty contestants. Their ranking matches will only change their rankings, not affect their points. In other words, even if the fiftieth place challenges the first place, nothing will happen if they lose. Of course, if someone after fiftieth place challenges them and loses, their points will still be cleared. If they win, it will only cause the challenged to drop in rank, and they'll still have a chance to fight their way back. Furthermore, in this midterm exam, the top five contestants on the points leaderboard can challenge the Tōtsuki Elite Ten. If they win, they can inherit their Elite Ten seat and become a glorious member of the Elite Ten Council!"

When mentioning the Elite Ten Council, the girl's face showed a fanatical expression, because that was the status all Tōtsuki students dreamed of!

"The reward for the top five is challenging the Elite Ten?! Would the Elite Ten be willing to accept such conditions that are completely unfavorable to them? That's the Elite Ten, hey!"

The boy's face was full of shock, his mood quite complex.

"Since the school offered this as a condition, they must have persuaded the Elite Ten with some kind of compensation, so you don't need to worry too much. But I'm so envious! Just by winning, you can become an Elite Ten member. An Elite Ten member from the middle school division, there haven't been many of those in Tōtsuki's history, right!"

The other girl said enviously, already fantasizing about herself becoming an Elite Ten member, being sought after in the academy.

Just thinking about it made one tremble with excitement!

"Stop being envious. The Elite Ten are the ten strongest students currently enrolled in Tōtsuki. Even if challenged, they are not afraid, let alone easily replaced."

The girl who delivered this news was a bit speechless. Who were the Elite Ten? If they were so easily replaced, they wouldn't be the ones holding those seats.

"That's true. But no wonder, I was saying, why are the first and second on the points leaderboard fighting? So the penalty for losing is just a change in ranking, and there's no penalty even if the challenger loses..."

Standing at the entrance of a kitchen, the three of them stopped, looking at the ongoing culinary duel inside, their faces filled with envy.

"The theme is pork. Such a broad theme, what kind of dishes are these two planning to make?"

Looking at the large screen hanging in the air, the surrounding people discussed animatedly.

Inside the kitchen, the spare cooking stations had been moved to the periphery, connected end-to-end, forming the most natural partition.

And in the middle of the partition, two cooking stations were placed opposite each other.

On either side of the cooking stations stood Erina Nakiri and Alice Nakiri, poised for action. Dylan sat between them, a small table in front of him, serving as the judge for their match.

Although formal matches usually required three judges, because they had sufficient trust in Dylan, neither of them invited anyone else.

"Alice, this match is my battle of redemption! I will fight with all my strength to defeat you! Prepare to lose!"

Wearing a chef's uniform that extremely accentuated her figure, Erina Nakiri looked at Alice Nakiri with her arms crossed, a fierce fighting spirit burning in her eyes.

"Calling me 'sister' is actually a disgrace to you? Hehe, bring it on!"

Hearing Erina Nakiri's words, Alice Nakiri couldn't help but get a little angry, then sneered.

Originally, she had planned to hold back, so Erina Nakiri wouldn't lose so embarrassingly in front of everyone, but now it seemed unnecessary.

"?"

Looking at Alice Nakiri's expression, Erina Nakiri couldn't help but feel a bit stunned. Did this girl misunderstand something?

The two of them had never displayed any sisterly affection; what was she getting angry about now!

"Hmph."

Seeing Erina Nakiri's bewildered expression, Alice Nakiri snorted lightly, then turned her face away and looked at Dylan.

"Dylan Sensei, the theme is pork. The cooking time and dish restrictions will be set by you."

"The theme is pork, limited to plum blossom pork. The cooking time is two hours. There are no other restrictions. Let the match begin."

Hearing Alice Nakiri's words, Dylan nodded and then stated the restrictions for this assessment.

Since it was just an ordinary match, he only limited the type of meat.

"Plum blossom pork? Such a familiar ingredient. In that case, let's make that dish!"

Hearing Dylan's words, Alice Nakiri closed her eyes and thought for a moment. A dish appeared in her mind, a dish that was unforgettable after tasting it just once.

Today, she would improve it her way!

Thinking of this, Alice Nakiri sprang into action, jogging to the ingredient areas on both sides and selecting a good quality piece of plum blossom pork.

Erina Nakiri stood beside her. While choosing plum blossom pork, she also picked two apples, an onion, and a carrot from the side.

"It seems you're planning to make Western cuisine."

Onions and carrots hold a similar position in Western cuisine as ginger and garlic do in Chinese cuisine. Therefore, upon seeing Erina Nakiri's choice of ingredients, Alice Nakiri immediately guessed the dish she intended to cook.

It was a very classic Western dish: Apple Braised Pork Chops.

However, foreigners usually used pork loin or tenderloin for this dish; she had never tried it with plum blossom pork.

"Make an extra portion for me to try later. I'll also leave an extra portion for you."

Thinking of this, Alice Nakiri said to Erina Nakiri, her voice revealing a hint of lightheartedness, clearly not taking her too seriously.

"Got it. Hurry up and make your dish!"

Watching Alice Nakiri's departing figure, a glint flashed in Erina Nakiri's eyes. She then quickly took a few ingredients from the ingredient area and hid them at the very bottom of her ingredient basket as her trump card.

This time, she would definitely win!

Using traditional apple braised pork chops against Alice Nakiri? She wasn't that foolish! At the same time, she didn't think this girl would be so easy to deal with.

"Hmph hmph hmph~"

On the other side, Alice Nakiri didn't notice Erina Nakiri's unusual behavior. Humming a little tune, she placed her selected ingredients on the cooking station.

At the same time, the sound of wheels grinding on the floor was heard. Alice Nakiri looked up and saw hotel staff pushing her molecular gastronomy machine on a large trolley.

It finally stopped beside her cooking station. They skillfully unloaded the molecular gastronomy machine, plugged it in, and then pushed the trolley away from the scene.

"Is it molecular gastronomy after all?"

Seeing the molecular gastronomy machine, a wary look also appeared on Erina Nakiri's face.

She had lost to molecular gastronomy last time—molecular fish gelée tartlets. It was a very mysterious flavor; it was truly hard to imagine that such a taste could exist in reality.

Molecular gastronomy was not to be underestimated!

"Give it 100% of your attention, Erina. After this month of training, my skills have improved by at least 30% compared to when I dueled you."

Her fingers gently caressed the molecular gastronomy machine. Although she hadn't touched molecular gastronomy for some time, she could clearly feel that she was improving.

It was a very subtle feeling. After further mastering the basics, it fed back into her molecular gastronomy, thereby further sublimating her skills.

If she had just barely reached special grade before, then now, she had taken a firm step towards becoming a One-Star Special Grade Chef. She just needed a little more polishing to truly enter the ranks of One-Star Special Grade Chefs.

Erina Nakiri took one last look, then lowered her head, an aura emanating from her entire body as she focused all her mental energy on the dish before her.

Picking up the kitchen knife placed nearby, she sliced the pork shoulder into large pieces, then added onion, carrot, brandy, and black pepper to marinate it.

After completing this step, Erina Nakiri began to prepare the apples, as well as the ingredients she had secretly taken later when Alice Nakiri wasn't looking...

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