I'm just an internet cafe owner

Liu Maoxing's situation is roughly that his knife skills and cooking speed have increased by 200%, and this is after he deliberately slowed down a bit to wait for Nakiri Erina.

However, the final result was good; the two of them successfully completed the entire game in less than half a day.

Half a day in real life felt like several days in the game. She swung her knife and tossed the wok countless times, and when she had made 10,000 dishes, she got too lazy to count them.

After such a long time, she was a little tired, but Liu Maoxing was in very good condition, and even prepared to do it again when they were done.

When she finished the game, her eyes were vacant and she looked dazed. She finally understood why Liu Maoxing's cooking skills were so good.

Without him, only familiar with Seoul.

With his already exceptional talent combined with rigorous training, let alone Liu Maoxing, any top chef he had ever eaten at in his own world could have reached this level.

But cooking for 200 people in one hour... is that a speed that a normal person can achieve?

Stir-frying is one thing, but why is he so skilled at making hamburgers, even though it seems like his first time? And the steaks? He was initially quite pleased with himself, not knowing how well-done they were, but ten minutes later he was grilling twenty steaks all by himself? And he could get exactly how well-done they wanted?

What impressed her most was that such a huge iron pot, weighing dozens of kilograms with the vegetables, could be lifted with one hand? One hand! Although you don't get tired in the game, based on her experience in the game, if you can lift it, you can lift it; if you can't lift it, you can't lift it no matter how hard you try.

The arm looked weak, just one hand! She crawled inside and tried; it could stew her.

Even in the game world, her hands started to ache after trying it for a while.

That's fine, but damn, the iron wok is non-stick and doesn't cause any flavor transfer, is that even possible?

This wasn't what she found most outrageous. What was most outrageous was that a stove made of firewood and charcoal could precisely control the temperature.

If someone had told her a day ago that this kind of furnace could precisely control the temperature, she would have turned around and left immediately, but Liu Maoxing actually made it.

That's not all, Liu Maoxing only used one kitchen knife from beginning to end? One??

In the past, Erina Nakiri could have made an excuse, saying it was a game world and couldn't be completely realistic. But ever since her God Tongue became an active skill, she had no choice but to believe it.

At the same time, she was also thinking about a question: Is the world Liu Maoxing lives in... a normal world?

In her own world, she had read countless books about cooking, but she had never seen anything about glowing cuisine, except…

When she received the notification that the shop would be closing in five minutes, she fell into deep thought as she looked at the glowing tamagoyaki she had made in the game.

"Congratulations, you succeeded too!"

Liu Maoxing offered his congratulations, while Nakiri Erina asked him with some uncertainty, "Want to... give it a try?"

Erina Nakiri's tone carried a hint of uncertainty. She had to admit that practicing at this shop for a day was more effective than practicing outside for a year—no, even several years!

It's not tiring at all, with a master chef providing guidance, and absolutely top-quality ingredients so there's no need to worry about waste. You can make as much as you need, enough for every "person." Plus, there are experts offering advice.

"Okay!"

Liu Maoxing picked up a piece with his chopsticks. Without saying much, but seeing his blissful expression, Nakiri Erina knew she had succeeded. Because before, every time Liu Maoxing finished a dish, he would only say it was delicious, never showing this blissful, happy expression.

That expression of enjoyment from the food is absolutely genuine.

This time, Liu Maoxing didn't speak, but seeing his expression, she smiled.

"Thank you very much for your guidance."

"Among three people walking together, there must be one who can teach me. I also thank you for your help, which allowed me to taste many different cuisines. I discovered that the world is really big and there are so many delicious foods."

"Little Master..."

Erina Nakiri felt a heavy weight in her heart. She felt no romantic feelings for Chef Ko, only deep admiration. This was someone who dedicated his life to cooking the best dishes. And then she looked at herself.

She could only describe herself with two words: "incompetent".

"It's closed! It's closed! Let's go!"

Just as she was thinking this, she noticed that the computer suddenly shut down, and the network administrator at the front desk started kicking people out.

Are you coming back tomorrow?

"Probably? I might even bring some friends. This place is really amazing, and I also want to try the otherworldly cuisine."

"See you tomorrow?"

"Okay! See you tomorrow."

Both of them returned to their own worlds. As soon as they returned, Erina Nakiri, wearing pajamas on the bed, looked around in confusion.

I glanced at the time; it seemed like only a few minutes had passed.

"A dream?"

Erina Nakiri initially thought she was dreaming, but her desire to continue cooking told her that it wasn't.

He got up and went to the kitchen, took out eggs and various seasonings, and turned on the stove.

A few minutes later, staring at the glistening tamagoyaki, she fell into deep thought. Looking at Liu Maoxing's self-introduction on TT, she was certain she wasn't dreaming.

"It was me... who lost."

Erina Nakiri is the kind of person who's somewhat arrogant, but when facing Liu Maoxing, she showed no arrogance whatsoever, only admiration. She suddenly realized that...

I am so insignificant. I am a modern person with all kinds of delicacies and even seasonings that did not exist in ancient times, yet I have lost so completely.

"I'll be a judge tomorrow... No problem, tonight is fine."

Erina Nakiri adjusted her mindset, searched the entire house, and found a red silk scarf to put on her head.

She did not formally become an apprentice, but Liu Maoxing's saying, "Among three people walking together, there must be one who can teach me," touched her deeply.

"Thank you for showing me what a real chef is."

Changing one's perception is both difficult and easy. When faced with someone stronger, or even someone who submits to her in her area of ​​expertise, she has no choice but to change herself.

The next day, when she arrived at school with dark circles under her eyes, her best friend Hisako Shinto...

Hisako Shirato, a short-haired pink-haired girl, is Erina Nakiri's personal secretary and childhood friend.

"Huh??? Erina-sama! What's wrong with you?!"

In that instant, Hisako Shinoto felt a pang of pain in her heart. No! She had to prepare a top-quality medicinal meal to help Erina-sama recover.

"It's nothing, I'm just too excited and my mental state isn't good."

"Something's wrong! Something's wrong! Lady Erina's tone of voice has changed!!!"

Hisako Shinoto was completely shocked. She noticed that Erina Nakiri's eyes and demeanor had undergone a dramatic change, all in just one night! What happened in one night? Had Erina Nakiri stepped into adulthood?

Waaaaah! I'm so sorry, Erina-sama, I failed to protect you.

Her heart was screaming, but Erina Nakiri said unhurriedly, "Last night... I met a strong person my age. He was very strong, so strong that... never mind, I'll tell you later. I'm going to be a judge today, right? I'm so sleepy..."

"Yes... Lady Erina."

Hisako Shinoto's body trembled. For some reason, she felt as if she had just seen an ancient behemoth open its eyes in front of her.

Chapter 363 Showdown, Golden Fried Rice from Another World (Bonus Chapter)

Inside the lobby of Totsuki Academy, Erina Nakiri stared blankly ahead. The main reason for her listlessness was that she hadn't slept all night and had also eaten eggs all night. The combination of overeating and not sleeping had left her feeling quite sleepy.

"Hurry up and finish, hurry up and finish, I want to sleep..."

Erina Nakiri stared wide-eyed at the people taking the transfer student exam.

Hisako Shinoto was still reciting the assessment requirements, but Erina Nakiri just wanted to speed up the assessment.

"Stop, bring the ingredients over."

"Yes!"

Hisako Shinoto immediately agreed and then pushed the cart full of ingredients to Erina Nakiri.

Looking at the ingredients, she picked up the eggs directly.

She looked at everyone expressionlessly: "Main ingredient: eggs. Only those who can make a dish that satisfies my palate can pass the transfer student exam for Totsuki Academy. Also, for the next minute, I allow you to abstain."

Erina Nakiri's voice was hollow and flat. She wanted to sleep; she had eaten too much and hadn't slept well all night. She regretted agreeing to become a judge. She wanted to sleep, and when she woke up, she would learn to cook from the master chef.

As soon as she said those words, the densely packed people taking the exam rushed out like madmen.

Looking at the crowd, Erina Nakiri muttered to herself, "Not one of them treats cooking as their life's work. Let's go, let's go..."

"Lady Erina! What's wrong?!"

Hisako Shinto looked at her best friend, who was on the verge of collapse, and almost burst into tears. What had she been doing last night? How could she be so exhausted?

Normally, staying up all night wouldn't cause Erina Nakiri this reaction, but last night, just before going to bed, she spent twelve hours online. Then, she learned to cook in a game world where the player's attention was completely focused, with time accelerated several times over. After that, she returned to the real world and, without a second's rest, concentrated on making eggs all night long.

The fact that Erina Nakiri can still stand up shows how strong her will is.

"Sleep~ Sleep~"

Just as Erina Nakiri thought she could finally go to sleep, a voice shattered her plans.

"Excuse me, is any type of cuisine acceptable?"

Following the sound, Erina Nakiri saw two red-haired, spiky-haired boys standing in front of her with their hands in their pockets. She shook her head, and the two boys merged into one.

Are you going to challenge me?

Because he was so sleepy, he took the boy named Yukihira Soma in front of him as his challenger.

Hisako Niito hurriedly reminded her, "Lady Erina, he is...?"

"No need to say anything more. Since you are the challenger, even in my current state, I will fight you with 100% of my strength."

"what?"

Soma Yukihira was bewildered. He was here for the assessment, not the food war! And what was with the girl's imposing aura? What did he see when Erina Nakiri put on the red ribbon? He saw a giant dragon looking down at him.

Erina Nakiri pulled out a kitchen knife from thin air and pointed it at Soma Yukihira: "Come on, unleash your full power and defeat me, or be defeated by me."

"Lady Erina!"

Hisako Shinoto was almost in tears; she could feel Erina Nakiri's life burning brightly! What was this? A final burst of energy before death?

On the contrary, Soma Yukihira was initially stunned, but he sensed this aura...

After that, his gaze became serious. He realized that this was not a food battle but a culinary exchange.

"A challenge? No problem, I'll definitely make you eat a dish that will make you say 'delicious'!"

Without further explanation, Soma Yukihira put on a white ribbon and prepared to cook.

However, while selecting ingredients, he saw a scene that captivated his gaze. He saw Erina Nakiri holding eggs in her left hand and chopsticks in her right, tossing four eggs into the air, whereupon they cracked and fell directly into the pot.

Her eyes were no longer dull as before; instead, they were focused on the ingredients in front of her, the pot, and the dish she wanted to make.