Food Wars, My Dishes Don't Just Shine

For Erina Nakiri and Alice Nakiri, Totsuki Academy was merely an insignificant stepping stone. Now that it had served its purpose, it was only natural for them to leave.

“Of course I know that. After you came, Erina’s potential was fully unleashed.”

Not only did he become a master chef in a short period of time, but he was also able to make dishes that were close to star level, and it wouldn't be long before he was promoted to a higher star level.

If we stay in the far moon region indefinitely, it will take at least two or even three years to achieve this.

Senzaemon Nakiri's voice was tinged with emotion. He had witnessed Erina Nakiri's progress firsthand; she was changing every single day.

During his more than ten years at the Far Moon Palace, he only reached the level of a first-class chef. However, after less than a year by Bai Yuan's side, he became a special-grade chef, which shows the difference between the two.

An excellent and all-around mentor can help a disciple grow at the fastest speed.

"The main reason is that she is indeed talented. If God Tongue is properly developed, it will not be weaker than Super Taste, and in some ways it may even be slightly stronger due to the sensitivity of her body."

As if he had just thought of something, Bai Yuan praised Nakiri Erina's talent.

He used to think that God Tongue was an inferior version of Super Taste, since it had obvious flaws. But after spending so much time with it, he realized that God Tongue was not an inferior version, but a mutated version of Super Taste.

Tasting delicious food can trigger a certain reaction in the body, making the perception of seasoning flavors more acute—isn't that just a mutated, enhanced version?!

Even for ordinary people, developing an extraordinary sense of taste requires constant training to master.

Erina Nakiri's God Tongue allows her to judge the deliciousness of food from birth, thanks to her powerful physical senses that can accurately tell her.

Is this dish delicious or not?

Chapter 389 Boss Bai, let's go get a room.

"The God Tongue is a curse for our Nakiri clan. If Managi had met you back then, she probably wouldn't be in that inhuman, ghostly state now."

Thinking of his daughter, who was far away in WGO and hadn't returned home for years, Senzaemon Nakiri's voice choked with emotion. If his little Managi had met Hakubuchi instead of Azami Nakiri, perhaps the ending would have been different.

But he also knew that this was impossible.

After all, when Nakiri Managi was of marriageable age, Hakugen was just a baby.

Even if you do encounter one, you'll at most just say "cute."

Now that Bai Yuan is the husband of Nakiri Erina and Nakiri Alice, no matter how much he dislikes Nakiri Azami, he can't bring himself to make Nakiri Managi go on blind dates with men a decade younger than him. That would be immoral, and he simply can't bring himself to do something so shameful.

It's a pity, if only Bai Yuan had been born a decade or two earlier.

"It's a curse, but also a blessing. The key lies in how the owner uses it. Erina is also very concerned about Ms. Managi's current situation. When we meet, I will go to visit her together."

Bai Yuan naturally had no idea what Nakiri Senzaemon was thinking. After listening to his story, a stunningly beautiful face appeared in Bai Yuan's mind.

Managi Nakiri, mother of Erina Nakiri.

Although he also possesses the God Tongue, he has little talent in cooking and is only a top-tier chef. The dishes he makes are not even satisfactory to himself.

However, because she possesses the God Tongue, which allows her to easily discern whether a dish is delicious or not, she has been highly valued by the leader since joining WGO. More than a decade later, she has finally become the final boss, and with a single sentence from the high platform, she can control the fate of countless chefs.

After all, it is the legendary WGO, a holy land in the hearts of countless chefs.

“You’re right. The key lies in how the user uses it. If used well, it’s not a curse, but an extraordinary aid. If I had the Tongue of God, I might be able to go even further now. Truly, life is unpredictable.”

Upon hearing Bai Yuan's words, Senzaemon Nakiri also spoke with emotion.

Although he was the eldest son of the Nakiri family, he was of average talent and did not inherit any of the Nakiri family's abilities except for the "transmission" that represented his identity.

However, thanks to his amazing perseverance, he still reached the level of a master chef before the age of twenty-five. He was a late bloomer and honed his culinary skills slowly in Totsuki Culinary Academy, which is how he grew to his current level and eventually inherited the position of head of the Nakiri family.

If he had possessed a talent as formidable as the God's Tongue back then, he might have been able to touch the legendary Special Grade Seven Star...

"Talent is only one aspect; the key is the chef's willingness to improve and become stronger."

As long as your belief in becoming stronger is firm enough, you can climb step by step to the top and become an unparalleled chef.

Senzaemon Nakiri's words also touched Bai Yuan.

Everyone believes that he possesses such strength because of his outstanding talent.

But only he himself knows that everything he has is something he earned through hard work.

If he hadn't aspired to become a dragon chef, he would have been tortured to death back in the dark culinary world, and how could he have grown to be so powerful today?

"The belief of the strong is indeed the foundation for their rise to the top, but talent is also indispensable. If we have to say, belief determines a person's upper limit, while talent determines their lower limit. Talented people can surpass others even if they lack belief in the early stages, once they develop belief later. Conversely, if a person with belief lacks talent, then they truly have no talent."

Looking at the innocent-looking Bai Yuan, Senzaemon Nakiri shook his head helplessly.

It's normal for someone who hasn't encountered any bottlenecks in their culinary studies to have such naive ideas.

As someone with average talent, he clearly has more insights into this matter.

It's truly enviable how talented people can access such a world.

"...Have some tea."

Faced with Senzaemon Nakiri's question, Hakuyuan was speechless for a moment, not knowing how to refute it. After thinking about it carefully, he realized that it was indeed true, so he picked up the teacup in his hand.

"Drink tea."

Seeing Bai Yuan's appearance, Nakiri Senzaemon also stopped worrying about the issue and silently picked up his teacup, took a sip, and finished the rest of the tea.

"It's getting late, I'll take my leave now."

Seeing that Shiro was about to pour him more tea, Senzaemon Nakiri raised his hand slightly to stop him. That was enough; if he drank any more, he probably wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.

"Walk slowly."

Watching Senzaemon Nakiri's retreating figure, Hakugen rose to see him off.

He escorted her to the door and watched her figure gradually disappear into the distance before returning home.

"They actually won all of them. Those guys are indeed quite strong, but based on the strength they showed in the competition, they are still a bit lacking to represent Totsuki."

As the sun set, Erina Nakiri and her two companions walked back to the villa.

Thinking back to the match between Soma Yukihira and the others, Erina Nakiri's voice still held a hint of doubt.

Although those guys showed decent skills in the competition, they were only decent; they were still a bit lacking when it came to representing Totsuki in the competition.

Putting aside other things, there are quite a few members of the Elite Ten who are stronger than them.

As one of the Elite Ten, no one knew the strength of her predecessors better than her.

"You should ask Brother Bai Yuan for details when you get back."

However, a match of this caliber isn't enough to truly assess their strength. To gauge their real power, we'll have to wait for a top-tier expert like one of the Ten Heroes to make a move.

Alice Nakiri's voice rang out from the side.

Because their opponents were not strong, Soma Yukihira and his companions took care of them all without much effort.

Such a duel was less of a competition and more of a coaching session.

"Those guys are probably getting restless now. Being slapped down by a few freshmen is not only a slap in the face, but also a trampling of their pitiful self-esteem. It's impossible for them not to seek revenge."

"Only under such circumstances will they fight with all their might, take concrete actions to reclaim their glory, and let people know that their dignity is inviolable."

Erina Nakiri and Alice Nakiri each shared their thoughts on the current situation.

The list of participants for the school exchange competition has always been handled by the Elite Ten.

But last year, when Hakugen-sensei came to Totsuki Academy, at the request of Senzaemon Nakiri, this task became his responsibility, and he was in charge of arranging the personnel for the battle.

Now it's turned out like this.

If the Elite Ten personally participate and prove that Soma Yukihira and the others are inferior to them, and ultimately obtain the spots to fight, then the person who will bear the most pressure will be Hakuyu.

To put it mildly, it's called misjudging people; to put it more seriously, it's called favoritism and corruption.

Although Hakugen and Yukihira Soma and others didn't have any particular interaction, that didn't stop them from thinking in that direction.

Otherwise, why would someone who is clearly inferior to the Elite Ten be on the battle roster?

Of course, given the influence Bai Yuan has generated in Far Moon over the past year, such comments, even if they exist, will not be numerous, but they are still something that attracts criticism.

"I wonder what Brother Baiyuan is planning... I hope those guys can do their job and not get Brother Baiyuan into unnecessary trouble."

Looking up at the gradually yellowing sunset, Erina Nakiri sighed softly, a hint of confusion in her eyes. What was Hakugen thinking...?

Despite being the closest person to her, she couldn't see through this man at all.

"Since I've known him, Brother Bai Yuan's decisions have never been wrong. Let's let things play out for a while, and we'll see the outcome later."

Compared to Erina Nakiri's bewilderment, Alice Nakiri's demeanor was noticeably more composed, because she believed that Shirai could not possibly make such an obvious mistake.

There must be a reason why he did this.

As for the reason...

"arrive."

Taking out her key and opening the door, Alice Nakiri was the first to squeeze inside, shouting loudly towards the hallway, "I'm back!"

Is nobody home?

As Alice Nakiri finished speaking, there was no sound from inside the villa for a long time, so it was clear that no one was home. Erina Nakiri asked in confusion as she changed her shoes.

"He must have gone out on something, or maybe he went to buy ingredients for dinner."

Hisako Shinto sat in the entryway, and as she spoke, she reached out and took off her boots, revealing her jade-like feet encased in black stockings.

"I don't know, anyway, I'll take a shower first. I'm exhausted after a day of classes."

After putting her shoes in the shoe cabinet, Alice Nakiri walked straight to the bathroom, humming a light tune as she went.

"Let's go see if there are any leftover ingredients in the kitchen, and make something to fill our stomachs."

Although she also wanted to take a bath, she couldn't argue with Alice Nakiri since she had already gone in. So, Erina Nakiri turned to Hisako Shinoto and said...

"it is good."

Hisako Shinoto simply nodded in response.

The two then went to the kitchen together and began preparing appetizers to tide them over.

"Damn it! They actually took away my right to represent Totsuki in the competition and let those brats in the first year participate instead! Are they insulting me!?"

Tokyo, a business center.

In front of a towering skyscraper, Eizan Etsuya saw the message and threw his tablet computer, which hit the wall with a crisp sound of shattering glass.

His face was full of anger, the veins on his arms were bulging, and his whole demeanor was clearly off.

The person who came to deliver the message was trembling with fear, complaining inwardly about his bad luck. He had lost a game of rock-paper-scissors and had to deliver this message, hoping not to incur the other person's wrath.