I'm Ornn, and I'm about to be beaten to my knees by the Man-eating Horse Girl!

'That guy really is a bastard! We have to protect Koguri. Many of the seniors at school say that trainers like him are most likely to have impure relationships with their assigned roles!'

'We must be the ones to keep things in check! Any evil will be brought to justice! Hey!'

With such complex emotions, the short, bushy-haired man became even more uneasy.

But Ornn seemed unhurried, eating his dumpling for almost a minute without uttering a word, remaining completely silent.

Tamamo Cross finally couldn't take it anymore. She turned her head and looked directly at Orn, saying, "Hey! You've finished eating, time to say your lines?"

"As a judge, what's your opinion on our Tamamo Takoyaki?"

Orn pondered for a moment, then nodded sincerely and said, "Hmm... this takoyaki is indeed delicious."

"......"

After he finished speaking, a brief silence fell over the classroom.

Tamamo Cross waited for a while, but there was still no further news.

She glared at Orn, and Orn stared back at her. After staring at each other for several seconds, Tamamo Cross finally stopped.

She pressed further, "And then? Is that all?"

Orn nodded: "Yeah, that's it."

"What? You idiot! This is our best and most prized creation! And all you gave it was a 'delicious' rating!?"

Tamamo-no-Mae grabbed her hair with both hands and yelled, "You didn't even ask for a 300-word review after eating it, you should at least have written a few lines of poetry to praise it! How could you just dismiss us with two words?!"

"No! We're not satisfied! You have to say something about your feelings!"

Orn sighed and muttered, "Why is it so complicated? Are you some old woman from Kansai?"

"Who are you calling an old woman?! Damn it! Gu Mei! Let go of us! We're going to show this guy just how much power a horsepower really is!"

Komiyayama quickly wrapped his arms around Tamamo's waist. Fortunately, Koga wasn't very tall, so once he picked her up from the ground, she could only kick her legs helplessly and furiously in the air.

Orn glanced at the dumpling, then turned to look at Nantian Longsan beside him.

He said with a smile, "Uncle Nantian, why don't you give your evaluation first?"

Nan Tianlong laughed loudly, "Haha, what can we old folks say? We're used to Xiaoyu's meatballs, so of course they're a perfect 100 for us!"

"However, for the sake of fairness in the competition, it would be best to remove my highest score!"

"Xiaomei, what do you think?"

Xiao Mei, the "King of Kids," wiped her mouth and then nodded solemnly, saying, "Yes! Sister Tamamo's dumplings are as delicious as ever! I give them 96 points!"

Komiyayama, who was holding Tamamo Cross, nodded: "Tamamo did a really good job, but since she was the first contestant to go up, I'll give her 90 points!"

"Orn, what's your review? This time, give it a score, don't just brush it off with 'delicious' anymore, okay?"

Orn stared at the plate still stained with oil, thought for a moment, and commented, "Of all the food I've eaten, these meatballs aren't actually that outstanding."

"There may be room for further adjustments in the sauce preparation. The meatballs were heated unevenly, and some sides were burnt, which will affect the overall quality of the meatballs."

Tamamo Cross, nestled in Komiyama's arms, had droopy ears, but she didn't utter a word in protest, because it was indeed a problem with her own creation.

"but,"

Orn then changed the subject, saying, "Considering the quality and variety of the ingredients used, and in such a minimalist environment, we made the most of the available materials, ultimately creating a dish that can truly be called exquisite."

"I give it 93 points, Tamamo Cross, this dumpling is really delicious."

The short, bushy-haired girl jumped down from Komiyayama's arms, glanced at the wall beside her, and scratched her head, saying, "Really... that's quite a high compliment."

"Let's make it again using the kitchen utensils there when we get back to school!"

Nantian Longsan smiled and nodded, saying, "Alright, then the first contestant, Xiaoyu, after removing my biased 100 points, has a final score of 93 points."

"Please welcome the next contestant, a brand new and glorious debut!"

Before the words were finished, the brand-new, radiant light, which had been waiting for a long time at the back door, poked its head out.

She carefully placed the soup pot, about the size of a rice cooker, in front of the judges.

Komiya looked at the porcelain bowl with curiosity and exclaimed in surprise, "Is this... hot pot fish?"

Ryuzo Minami also peeked out and said, "It looks like a fish sukiyaki, no, to be more precise, it looks a bit like the preparation steps for eel rice?"

Xiao Mei's nose twitched, she licked her lips, and said eagerly, "It smells delicious! Is this a foreign cooking method?! I've never eaten fish prepared like this before!"

Orn, however, did not look at the porcelain bowl. He looked up at the brand-new Radiance and suddenly asked, "Radiance, what's with that dark circle under your left eye that looks like you've been punched? You look like a genetically mutated panda."

Shining Bright coughed a few times, then laughed somewhat awkwardly, "Ahaha... well, benefactor, I bumped into this."

"Alright, forget about that for now! Come and try this fish I made, I don't know what it's called!"

Nantian Longsan looked at the whole fish in the porcelain bowl, its body drizzled with a brown, paste-like sauce, garnished with a few bright green scallions—it looked quite appealing.

Gently tapping the fish skin with chopsticks reveals a crispy texture, suggesting that the fish was steamed until it was about 60% cooked and then deep-fried.

Uncle Nantian picked up a piece of fish with his chopsticks, dipped it in sauce, and put it in his mouth. A sour and spicy flavor immediately filled his taste buds.

"Hmm! This is pretty good!"

"The sauce is rich in flavor, which brings out the tenderness of the fish, and the crispy fish skin adds an even richer texture to this dish!"

Komiyayama nodded and said, "Yes, it is indeed delicious, but in my memory, the traditional way of making it should be more like baking, right?"

"Could this cooking method... be a type of Chinese cuisine?"

The newly radiant figure said somewhat uncertainly, "I don't know either, but our benefactor often made similar dishes when he took us on picnics before. He always poured in a lot of oil to stir-fry, and we ended up covered in smoke..."

"I think it must be a type of Chinese food?"

Ornn also picked up a piece of fish, chewed it, and praised, "It's really good, Radiance. How did you learn how to make this?"

"Uh... I just squatted down next to you and watched you do it, and then I learned it by watching you."

Shining Brightly scratched her head and chuckled, "How was it? My benefactor, wasn't my imitation pretty good? The taste should be almost the same too!"

"Hmph, if my benefactor can praise me without reservation, then I'll reluctantly accept it!"

As she spoke, her tail began to wag from side to side, and her ears began to flap violently.

Ornn smiled and nodded, saying, "Yes, Radiance, you've certainly changed my preconceived notions this time."

"While there were areas where things could have been handled better, it's truly remarkable that we've achieved this through our own efforts."

"I give it 89 points. Although it has flaws, it's still excellent food."

"Glory, thank you for your hard work."

The newly radiant creature rubbed its eyes and exclaimed dramatically, "Thank you, Your Majesty! My benefactor! I will study even more delicious food in the future!"

Orn shook his head and said, "I would rather you think more about training. What are your opinions, Komiyama-senpai?"

Komiyayama replied, "I give it 91 points. Although the flavor of the dish was a bit strong, it didn't affect the overall quality of the food. It was very good!"

Xiao Mei looked troubled and said, "Hmm, it's a bit too spicy and salty. I'd give it 87 points!"

Nantian Longsan laughed and said, "Haha, then I'll give it 95 points. I'm getting old, so I like this kind of strong flavor."

"The final score of the newly crowned splendid contestant is 90.5 points! Please welcome the next contestant! Mejiro Ardan!"

The blue-haired girl was holding a plate with a dark yellow, dull, and opaque lump on it.

If it weren't for the radish stuck in it, he wouldn't have recognized what this thing was.

Orn forced a smile and said, "This is... carrot pudding? It's quite a food that reflects Aldan's personality."

Aldan placed the pudding in front of everyone, bent down slightly, looked into Orn's eyes, and said, "Hehe, Mr. Orn, you can't look at me with prejudice, okay?"

"As the horse lady of the Mejiro family, cooking is a required course for me. You don't think I can't cook, do you?"

"Or... are you worried that I mixed up the sugar and salt ratio?"

Feeling a little guilty as those violet eyes stared at him, Orn turned his head away.

He retorted stubbornly, "Hey, don't talk nonsense. I never said you couldn't cook, Aldan. On the contrary, I really believe in you!"

"I'll eat anything you make, Aldan!"

Although Orn said that, his actions betrayed him; he sat motionless in his chair, seemingly waiting for the other judges to take a bite and assess the situation.

If any other judges are seriously injured and fall to the ground, he will immediately rush over and use his Chaotic Cloak Hammer Technique to save them; he certainly won't be the first to suffer the consequences.

Aldan Megumi wasn't so easily fooled. She didn't say anything, just smiled and squinted at him.

Ornn had no choice but to pick up the spoon and scoop up a spoonful of pudding, putting it in his mouth first.

Surprisingly, although the pudding looked a bit intimidating, it actually tasted quite good.

Aside from the radish, which tasted like it had been soaked in salt, the pudding itself was excellent, comparable to some high-end desserts sold in dessert shops.

If the ingredients used are of higher quality and fresher, they could be auctioned off directly at the school.

He thought for a moment and gave his score: "Well, apart from the pudding's appearance being a bit terrible, it's actually quite well made. I'd give it 88 points."

Nantian Longsan nodded and said, "Similarly, I also give it 88 points."

Xiao Mei held up the sign in her hand and praised, "I give it 95 points! It's really delicious!"

Komiyayama concluded, "I give it 88 points. The appearance of this pudding is indeed... a little unsatisfactory. If you pay more attention to the appearance next time you make it, the score should improve significantly."

"Aldan's final score is 89.75 points. Now, please welcome the next contestant, Fujimasa March!"

Compared to the previous groups, the movements of the Fujimasa March were much wilder.

She walked into the classroom and slammed the lunchbox she was holding onto Orn's desk.

Then she slightly raised her chin and uttered a single word: "Eat."

Intimidated by the march's powerful strains, Orn obediently opened his lunchbox, revealing the food inside.

Komiyayama curiously peeked out and asked, "This is... pork cutlet rice?"

Xiao Mei peeked into the lunchbox and exclaimed excitedly, "It really is pork chop rice! I love it the most!"

Nantian Longsan said, "Yes, pork cutlet rice is a type of fast food, but as a dish, the most essential part should be the pork cutlet."

"Young man Orn, why don't you try that pork chop first?"

Orn held his chopsticks in his right hand, picked up a pork chop, examined it, then broke off a piece and popped it into his mouth. As he chewed, he said, "Hmm, not bad."

"March, is this your first time trying to make pork chop rice?"

A flicker of panic crossed Fujimasa's face, then she smiled wryly and said, "Auen, how did you figure that out?"

"How did you figure that out...? You figured it out from what you ate!"

Orn laughed and explained, "The batter on the pork chop is too thick! It's obvious that the batter wasn't made according to the recipe, but rather based on your own intuition, so of course it will turn out like this!"

"However, what's important isn't the food itself, but your willingness to try new things. So, while this pork chop rice may have some imperfections, the intention behind it is very good."

"My final score is... 85 points!"

Ryuzo Minamida said, "85 points."

Xiao Mei, watching the march, encouraged her, "Sister, you did your best! I give you 90 points!"

Komiyama nodded and said, "I'll also give it 85 points, so the final score for the march is... 86.25!"

"Now, please welcome our last contestant, Oguri Hat!"

Unlike the rest of Dolan's team, Oguri's entrance was quite unique, as she was the only one who arrived empty-handed.

Seeing this, Tamamo Cross, who was sitting in the rest area, couldn't help but sigh and rub her forehead, while judge Komiyama asked in confusion, "Oguri Hat contestant... where are the dishes you prepared?"

"Was it because there wasn't enough time, so they didn't prepare any food?"

Little Chestnut Hat shook her head, her face flushed red, seemingly out of shyness.

Standing in the middle of the classroom, the girl with the goosebumps hesitated for a long time before finally pulling out the only piece of work she could submit from her pocket.

It was an egg.

"Um... I originally intended to make carrot burger patties. After frying the patties, I wanted to taste them."

"By the time I realized what had happened, I had already eaten the meat,"

"Every time I want to check if the steak is cooked, I accidentally eat it, and in the end, there's no bread or ketchup left,"

Little Chestnut Hat placed the egg in front of Orn with a somewhat aggrieved expression. Her ears drooped, and she whispered, "In the end... in the end, this is all I have left. I wanted to save this for Tuorena to eat, so... so I haven't been able to bear eating it."

After speaking, Little Chestnut Hat took a step back nervously, awaiting the judges' final verdict.