51 Comet Fried Rice (2-in-1)
"Lady Mana, I understand your desire to taste dishes."
"Although the results of this recent assessment were disappointing, there was actually an unexpected gain - I found a chef who can conquer the God Tongue!"
In the end, looking deeply at Mana Nakiri, Anne subtly said.
"Are you saying..."
Upon hearing this, the usually calm Mana Nakiri was stunned on the spot.
After a few seconds, she recovered and grabbed Anne's fragrant shoulder tightly, excitedly asking, "Who? Who is it?"
"The owner of a tavern."
Anne began to recount everything she had seen and heard at the tavern to Mana Nakiri.
She truthfully described Zane's appearance, his tavern, and the dishes he cooked, making sure not to miss any details.
Especially when talking about the "Cassava Bean Curd," she used exaggerated words to describe it.
As Mana listened...
She surprisingly became interested in this mysterious Zane.
"...Mana."
"If he uses premium ingredients, I believe Zane can create many amazing dishes that will satisfy your God Tongue!"
Anne finished saying this with conviction.
"So, you mean this owner, Zane, is not moved by fame or gain; he simply wants to present the best side of dishes to the customers?"
"Interesting, such people are truly rare in the culinary world these days!"
Mana Nakiri eventually made up her mind: "Anne, buy two tickets to Japan immediately. I want to fly back overnight."
"What? Now?"
Anne's mind almost collapsed at this sudden decision. She had just returned from Japan, and now she had to go back there?
"Yes, I can't wait to see this chef again!"
Mana Nakiri nodded quickly.
"Alright, Lady Mana, I'll arrange it right away."
Seeing the eager look on Mana Nakiri's face, Anne, tired as she was, could only agree.
Then, she left the room to purchase the plane tickets.
"Ten years... I wonder..."
"How is Far Moon Academy now? How are Erina and her father doing?"
Resting her head on the window again, gazing at the beauty of the night sky, Mana Nakiri couldn't help but sigh softly.
--------
Midnight, 12:00 AM.
As Rin Kobayashi left, the tavern finally closed.
"Ding dong, successful sign-in."
"Ding dong, congratulations, host, for acquiring a new special recipe, Comet Fried Rice!"
Comet Fried Rice, a dish originating from "Chuuka Ichiban," is a fried rice dish that glows the most due to added fluorescent agents.
Yes, when this dish is freshly cooked, it erupts with a vibrant green light from above, resembling a comet, creating a stunning effect!
However, despite its fancy name, it's quite a simple fried rice dish - spinach, rice, and bok choy are the three main ingredients.
This Comet Fried Rice dish got its name because it is dropped from above during preparation, creating a comet-like effect.
In the original story, Liu Mao Xing used this dish to restore the villagers' vitamin C levels rapidly, making them healthy and strong again.
Therefore, this new special recipe was truly like a treasure in Zane's eyes!
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Customers at the tavern were mostly worn out from a busy day and were tired both physically and mentally.
At such a moment, having a dish that could restore their vigor and vitality would quickly win over their hearts.
"Great, this Comet Fried Rice recipe is very timely."
Having obtained the Comet Fried Rice recipe, Zane couldn't hide his inner joy anymore and smiled.
Although the tavern's daily customer flow was not high at the moment, within just over a month since its opening, Zane achieved many unexpected accomplishments.
Even his own skills were visibly growing rapidly.
"In this situation, I should consider hiring an employee to help me."
Thinking about it, Zane couldn't help but stretch his lazy bones.
Then, as usual, he cleaned up, and went to bed!
--------
Early in the morning, a light mist spread throughout the Totsuki Academy.
The sun, having just risen from the east, peeked through the clouds and began to gaze upon the earth.
"Slow!"
"So slow!"
Inside an extremely luxurious villa.
Sitting on the sofa, Erina Nakiri grew more anxious as she waited.
She glanced at the front door from time to time, occasionally getting up to pace around, unable to sit still.
"It's been 2 hours since she left, why hasn't Hisako returned yet?"
Erina's gaze was fixed on the spacious door, anxiously hoping that Hisako, who went out to buy manga books, would appear before her.
Ding-a-ling, ding-a-ling...
Suddenly, the doorbell rang.
Erina Nakiri felt a surge of ecstatic excitement, as if a wave of joy was washing over her, making her feel light and soft all over.
She was like a happy little bird, quickly "flying" to open the door, and cheerfully asked, "Hisako, did you bring back 'Honey and Clover'?"
"Huh? Why are you here?"
Seeing the person in front of her, it wasn't Hisako Arato.
Instead, it was the silver-haired Alice Nakiri. Erina was stunned for a moment.
Then, her expression turned extremely cold, saying in a nonchalant tone, "If you're here to challenge me to a Food War, you can leave. I won't accept it."
"After all, I'm currently the Tenth Seat of the Elite Ten, and our statuses are not on the same level!"
"Erina, you really haven't changed a bit over these years."
After glancing at Erina, Alice withdrew her gaze and said, "Don't worry, I'm not here to challenge you to a Food War."
"Alice, then why are you here?"
Erina frowned, clearly becoming wary of Alice.
"Why are you saying that, we're cousins, can't I visit you without a reason?"
Seeing Erina's reaction, Alice mischievously chuckled.
—----
Shortly after, despite Erina Nakiri's attempts to stop her, Alice actually walked in on her own.
Entering the villa's living room, she was immediately drawn to its spaciousness.
The prominent feature was a set of comfortable sofas, made of high-quality genuine leather, with a deep and textured color.
On the walls hung exquisite artwork, and the floor was covered with carefully selected luxurious carpets, soft and comfortable!
Clearly, the decorations and interior design of the entire living room were very elegant and artistic.
Alice, who had just entered, immediately saw a manga book on the soft sofa, and was momentarily stunned!
"Ah!"
Behind her, Erina suddenly shouted, rushing to take away the manga book.
She tried hard to act calm, but her flashing eyes and blushing face clearly showed her embarrassment and anger!
Seeing Erina's strong reaction, Alice's expression became one of astonishment.
...
"Erina, is that tavern owner very handsome?"
As the atmosphere turned a bit chilly, Alice had no choice but to sit on the sofa and ask.
"You mean him?"
"He must be quite handsome, right?"
Thinking of Zane's handsome face and his signature dishes like the Spring Rolls of Reincarnation and the Ascending Dragon Dumplings, she felt her heart flutter!
"Oh, how is his cooking skill?"
Seeing Erina's reaction, Alice was once again taken aback.
She thought to herself: Could what Grandpa said last night be true?
"His cooking skills? No doubt, they surpass mine!"
Erina replied without hesitation.
Later, realizing her nerve, she widened her eyes.
Looking at Alice in disbelief, Erina asked in shock, "You... you just returned to Totsuki last night! How do you know about Zane?"
"In this family, you are not the only granddaughter, Erina. I went to Grandpa's place right after arriving at Totsuki last night."
"Then, in our conversation, I learned about the tavern. But it was late, so I didn't want to disturb Grandpa's rest by asking further."
Erina explained truthfully.
...
"It's unbelievable."
"A tavern owner actually surpasses you, Erina?"
She remembered when she laboriously made a dessert as a child, only for Erina to describe it as "extremely bad."
This incident may have been forgotten by Erina, but for Alice, it remained an indelible painful memory.
From then on, their relationship deteriorated, and Alice gradually set a goal for herself:
One day, she must make a delicious dish that would make Erina acknowledge her skills!
Therefore, upon learning that the tavern owner could surpass Erina, the mysterious figure Zane became a shocking revelation to Alice.
"Boring, are you here to see me admit defeat to someone else?"
"Do you have that free time to think about your cooking skills and strive to pass tomorrow's school admission exam!"
Facing Alice, Erina crossed her arms and responded tersely.
"The school admission exam?"
"Don't you know I'm a special admissions student?"
Alice replied nonchalantly.
Far Moon Academy's admissions range is quite broad each year.
It's not limited to students like Megumi who directly advance from middle school, but many individuals working in the food industry, provided they meet the age criteria.
For example:
The owner of the Soma Restaurant, Soma Yukihira.
The heir of the Aldini Restaurant, Takumi Aldini.
This resulted in most ordinary people with shallow family influences and not working in the food industry being essentially eliminated from the entrance exam.
Of course, aside from choosing to apply to Totsuki, one can also enter the academy through recommendation letters!
Like Alice, she was recommended by her mother, Leona Nakiri, to study at Totsuki, not having to participate in the entrance exam.
...
"Whatever."
"If you are interested in the tavern, just go check it out yourself."
"I believe that rather than trying to challenge my current position, Zane's cooking might be worth studying and challenging for you."
Erina didn't show too much surprise about Alice being a special admissions student.
She just hoped her cousin would leave soon, as it wouldn't look good if Hisako, who went out to buy manga books, returned to this scene.
"All right, I will go."
"However, I don't know the exact location of that tavern, so..."
"What do you mean?"
"Do you want me to take you to that tavern?"
Hearing Alice's words, Erina was slightly taken aback.
She wanted to refuse and was even hesitant to acknowledge Alice, but she was truly afraid that if she didn't agree to this request, Alice might linger here endlessly.
So, with reluctance, Erina sighed deeply and reluctantly nodded in agreement.
...
In the evening, around 6 o'clock, the sky wasn't completely dark yet.
The faint twinkling starlight still illuminated the mysterious night as usual.
At this moment, the tavern surely hadn't started its business.
As the owner, Zane, usually dined at this time.
He brought out a jar wrapped in lotus leaves, not containing Shaoxing wine, but a delicious dish: Buddha Jumps Over the Wall.
He then reached out to lift the lotus leaves from the jar, releasing an extremely rich aroma that exploded like a bomb, wafting through the entire tavern with a captivating presence.
Even the neighboring Shunkatei restaurant, which had just closed, was impacted.
"What's that scent? Mm, it smells so good, it seems to be wafting from the tavern..."
The owner, Sonoka, couldn't help but sniff the strong scent in the air, quickly discovering that it was indeed emanating from the neighboring tavern.
As a chef, she knew that creating such a strong aroma in a dish required a high level of skill.
Theoretically, the more fragrant a dish is, the more delicious it will be.
"Could it be that Zane is creating a new dish again?"
Thinking this, Sonoka's stomach growled involuntarily.
After hesitating several times, she gathered the courage and headed towards the neighboring tavern...
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Last 2 in 1 chapter for a while cause, I'm currently drafting about 10 chapters in advance and I need a chapter to actually count as a chapter and not 2.
