Food Wars, My Dishes Don't Just Shine

As he put the mille-feuille cake that Liu Yu handed him into his mouth and savored its exquisite taste, Soma Yukihira's body trembled slightly, as if he had been bombarded by countless cannonballs. It took him a long time to exhale a long breath.

However, Liu Yu clearly saw that he clenched his fists and his face was full of resentment. Obviously, he only said he was convinced, but he was not convinced at all.

"Thank you, I will carry your share and win the final championship."

Seeing Soma Yukihira's expression, Liu Yu smiled. Regardless, she had won the match and advanced to the finals!

The next battle will be between Megumi Tadokoro and Hisako Shinoto. I wonder who will be her opponent.

Filled with anticipation, Liu Yu turned her gaze to the audience, first smiling at Wang Jing who had been watching her, then looking at Tadokoro Megumi and Shinto Hisako, her eyes filled with obvious fighting spirit.

No matter who her opponent is, she will definitely win!

"It's good that Yukihira Soma and Liu Yu have decided the winner. Next up is Megumi and Hisako. I remember their theme was taro."

Due to time constraints, the match between Megumi Tadokoro and Hisako Shinto was moved to the evening. The theme for the final was drawn on the spot, and then they were given a week to prepare for the final match.

Of course, the third place will be decided that afternoon, but that's not what everyone cares about. Everyone knows that Mount Everest is the highest peak, but who knows who's second, third, or fourth?!

"You two go back and get some rest. You can take a nap. Don't put too much pressure on yourselves. I look forward to your performance."

Seeing Tadokoro Megumi and Shinoto Hisako walking towards him, Shirabuchi stood up with a smile, then patted them on the shoulders.

"Teacher Bai Yuan, I will do my best."

"I will also try my best, at least to fight a battle I won't regret!"

"Talk is cheap; show your true colors and fight it out on the field!"

Hearing their words and seeing their burning eyes, Bai Yuan's voice carried a hint of inner strength, instantly igniting their passion.

This kind of healthy competition is what he most wants to see.

After all, intense resentment is the best nourishment, which can promote their rapid growth. And the victors will also work hard to avoid being caught up, just to leave an even bigger gap.

Chapter 207: The final match of the semifinals, Tadokoro Megumi vs. Shinto Hisako.

"It's a pity that Yukihira-kun lost. Now, only Megumi is left in the Polar Star Dormitory. Keep going, Megumi, you are the last hope of the Polar Star Dormitory!"

In the audience area, where the Polar Star Dormitory members were gathered, Yoshino Yuuki and Sakaki Ryoko surrounded Tadokoro Megumi as she walked towards them, their faces full of excitement.

Although the others didn't speak, they were also watching her intently, hoping that she could achieve a high ranking in this competition and bring glory to Polaris Dormitory!

"Don't worry, I've made all the necessary preparations."

Looking at the expectant eyes of everyone, Tadokoro Megumi spoke softly, neither guaranteeing that she would win nor saying that she might lose.

Judging the outcome too early is disrespectful to both her and Hisako Shinto.

Moreover, Hisako Shinoto is very strong, and she also has Erina Nakiri as her assistant. Before the results of the match are announced, she dares not say that she is guaranteed to win.

The outcome of the match between the two is roughly even.

"Go back and rest for lunch."

"That's right, we need to be in good spirits for the duel!"

Although everyone is a student of Hakubuchi, their relationships vary in closeness. For Yoshino Yuuki and Sakaki Ryoko, Tadokoro Megumi is definitely closer.

Tadokoro Megumi was surrounded by people. Since the competition was scheduled to start in the afternoon, they decided to go back to the Polar Star Dormitory to rest before coming back.

"Lady Erina."

On the other side, Hisako Shinto saw Erina Nakiri waiting for her outside the stands and immediately ran over to her.

"Let me rest in the back lounge. There's a bed there where you can take a nap. I'll prepare lunch for you myself."

"Ok!"

Hisako Shinoto nodded vigorously, enjoying the other person's concern without any burden. Erina Nakiri was truly exceptional to her; otherwise, she wouldn't have followed her.

"Let's go back too. We watched a great game today, and the game this afternoon is probably going to be just as good. There might be even more people coming then."

Watching Tadokoro Megumi and Shinoto Hisako leave, Shirabuchi also got up from his chair and then pulled his hand out of Nakiri Alice's arms.

His arm still had a faint fragrance lingering on it, warm and very comfortable.

"Well, once this match ends this evening, we'll know the finalists and the theme. It's a pity it has nothing to do with me; in the end, I'm just a spectator."

At this point, Alice Nakiri seemed to remember something and lowered her head, looking quite disappointed. Then, she glanced at Bai Yuan out of the corner of her eye.

"Alright, your time to shine will come when the Fujian Youth Chef Competition arrives."

The chefs coming will all be top-tier, or at the very least, first-class chefs capable of preparing top-tier dishes. You'll definitely have a blast.

Bai Yuan could easily see through Nakiri Alice's little scheme, so he reached out and ruffled her hair, assuring her that she would be the center of attention in the future.

There was no way around it; the summer selection at Totsuki Academy was too low-level, and having Alice participate would be nothing short of bullying, and it wouldn't provide any training benefits whatsoever.

Erina Nakiri did not participate for this reason.

Are you also going to participate in the Fujian Provincial Youth Chef Competition?

Walking along the path by the pond after leaving the moonlit sky, as if she had thought of something, Alice Nakiri looked at Bai Yuan with a subtle expression, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.

"I'm just doing this for fun, and it's normal for someone my age to participate in a youth culinary competition. Secondly, I want to recruit some promising newcomers."

Looking at the lotus flowers in the pond to his left, where a few black swans were playing, Bai Yuan expressed his thoughts.

He was actually indifferent to the development of the Dark Cuisine World before. After all, he initially created the Dark Cuisine World just to make up for his regrets. Power was just an external force to him, and he only needed it to do so.

But now he has changed his mind. After hearing Zhou Tai say that the Food World is about to open and many rare ingredients will flow out from it, he has other ideas.

Top-quality ingredients are limited in quantity; if others get more, he gets less. To obtain more and better quality ingredients, besides having sufficient strength, one's background is also closely related.

In other words, the stronger he becomes in the world of dark cuisine, the more rare ingredients he will obtain in the future, and the more experiments he can make, which is a good thing for him.

"Since you're going to participate, I'll try my best to remain undefeated before I meet Brother Bai Yuan."

Hearing Bai Yuan's words, Alice Nakiri was somewhat surprised but didn't say much. She just smiled and looked at him.

"You lost too. Didn't you say you were going to dominate Totsuki and crush everyone? You're already done for in the semifinals?"

At the entrance to the Moonlit Sky Gate, Takumi Aldini leaned against the door, watching Soma Yukihira emerge, his gaze on him somewhat complicated.

"At least I'm better than you who was eliminated in the first round. I managed to make it to the semifinals."

Soma Yukihira glanced at Takumi Aldini and said with a hint of sarcasm, then walked straight ahead without intending to say anything more to him.

"I was just unlucky to lose the first round. What are you going to do now?"

Despite Soma Yukihira's coldness, Takumi Aldini persisted and followed him, abruptly asking the question beside him.

The two became acquainted through conflict, as Takumi Aldini was extremely displeased with Soma Yukihira due to Takumi's outrageous remarks at the start of the school year.

Coincidentally, the two had been assigned to the same class just two weeks prior, so he took the initiative to challenge Soma Yukihira, and the two ended in a draw.

"To put it another way, are you really willing to accept this?"

"What can we do? We're not as skilled as them. We'll just go back and work twice as hard to win next time."

Upon hearing Takumi Aldini's words, Soma Yukihira acted quite nonchalantly.

He had tasted Liu Yu's cooking, and it was unbelievably good. It was something he couldn't possibly compete with right now, so even if he didn't want to admit defeat, he had no choice but to.

"When will we get another chance? The Fujian Youth Chef Competition in China is open to anyone under 30. Let's go and participate!"

Takumi Aldini's voice was filled with excitement as he spoke, blocking Soma Yukihira's path and making him stop to listen to him.

"The Fujian Youth Chef Competition, you mean the competition that Teacher Bai Yuan talked about in the square on the day the list of selected contestants was announced, right?"

Looking at Takumi Aldini blocking his way, Soma Yukihira felt somewhat helpless, but he still stopped to listen to what he had to say.

"That's right. I checked the official forum. All you need to do is pay the registration fee in advance, go to the venue on the day of the competition to participate in the preliminary round, and if you pass, you can enter the main competition."

"Preliminary rounds? Main competition?"

It means it's the same as here.

Upon hearing Takumi Aldini's words, a hint of doubt and surprise flashed in Soma Yukihira's eyes. Could it be that Totsuki's tournament was modeled after China's?

"They are different, or rather, they are very different."

Take the preliminary rounds as an example. In Chinese cooking competitions, the contestants are given a recipe and a large quantity of ingredients on-site, and they are required to modify the dish according to the recipe within one hour.

"Do you modify the dishes on-site and then prepare them?"

Soma Yukihira was amazed. Compared to the Totsuki Culinary Academy's selection competition, the difficulty of modifying and serving dishes on the spot was much higher.

"That's right, this is just the preliminary round. The later rounds will be even more exciting. If you follow the whole round, your cooking skills will definitely improve a lot!"

Takumi Aldini looked excited. Even if he didn't participate in the competition, it would be good to broaden his horizons, since it was a contest between top chefs.

"I already know what happened, so why did you come to find me?"

Soma Yukihira voiced his doubts: with so many students at Totsuki Academy, including his own younger brother, why didn't Takumi Aldini go to them instead of him?

"You can fight me to a draw, which proves that your strength is comparable to mine. Plus, I happen to be going to China and need a partner, so I found you."

As he spoke, Takumi Aldini looked at Yukihira Soma with great enthusiasm. Soma had just lost an important match and was feeling frustrated, with nowhere to release his pent-up passion. Takumi Aldini's chances of winning him over were not low.

Actually, he had already contacted quite a few people before, but none of them were willing to travel far. Now he could only try his luck with Soma Yukihira.

"Going to China...?"

Soma Yukihira hesitated slightly. If he could, he wouldn't want to run that far, but the race really excited him.

"The competition is held during the fall break, which provides enough time for travel to and from the venue. The airfare is also affordable for a normal family."

Seeing Yukihira Soma's interest and hesitation, Takumi Aldini went on to say more.

"Oh right, there's also the issue of airfare that needs to be resolved, and thinking about it carefully, accommodation will also cost a lot of money."

However, to his surprise, Soma Yukihira's brows didn't relax; instead, they furrowed even more. After his father passed away, the allowance he received was barely enough to survive, enough to buy ingredients for the competition, and nothing more.

"Um??!"

Hearing Soma Yukihira's whisper, Takumi Aldini was full of doubt. Was it that this guy didn't want to go, but that he didn't have enough money?

There are even poor people coming to study at Totsuki Academy!?

“I’ll go with you, but you need to help me calculate how much this trip will cost. I’ll earn enough in the meantime.”

As he spoke, Soma Yukihira looked at Takumi Aldini. He had a skill and could naturally make money, but he needed some time to prepare.

"Okay, I'll send it to you on LINE later."

Upon hearing Soma Yukihira's words, Takumi Aldini looked at him with some complicated feelings. He knew that not offering financial assistance would hurt the other man's pride.