Everyday Life Starting with Food Wars

"I'll definitely win next time."

Takumi extended his fist and bumped it with Soma Yukihira's.

"Sure! I'm ready anytime!"

Chapter 82: The Semifinal Questions

"So, the final winner is—Soma Yukihira!"

"The quarterfinals of the Autumn Selection Tournament have now concluded!"

"The four players who have successfully advanced to the finals are: Chen Yuxing, Hayama Ryo, Kurokiba Ryo, and Yukihira Soma!"

Following Kawashima Rei's announcement, the audience began to discuss it enthusiastically.

"All the contestants who made it to the final four in this selection tournament were from Group A; all the contestants from Group B were eliminated..."

"Yeah, with the two transfer students, plus Hayama Ryo and Kurokiba Ryo, the top four in Group A are still just as strong in the main tournament."

"How exciting! I feel like the semifinals are going to be even more intense."

"I'm so curious about how the four teams will be grouped for the next round of the semifinals. I want to see Chen Yuxing and Ye Shanliang's match. They were tied for first place in the preliminaries."

"I'd love to see a showdown between two transfer students, especially since they're both members of the Polar Star Dormitory. An internal battle like that would be really interesting."

At this moment, all the lights between the moon and the sky suddenly went out, and the audience members who were talking also stopped.

A new spotlight shone on the stage.

A figure in a black uniform appeared there at some point.

Ruishan Zhijin is also.

The ninth seat of the Totsuki Ten Masters.

He took the microphone and walked to the front, scanning the entire venue before speaking: "Ladies and gentlemen, the autumn selection competitions have all been very exciting."

"As one of the top ten, I am very pleased to see juniors like you. This fall election has made me look forward to the final result."

He pushed up his glasses and casually glanced in the direction where Soma Yukihira was.

"The list of the top four has been released. Let me explain the schedule for the upcoming matches."

"The athletes have a week to rest and prepare."

"Next week, also between the moon and the sky, the semi-finals of the autumn selection competition will be held."

"During this period, the match-up groups and competition questions will be announced by the management bureau tonight or tomorrow."

"Please make good use of this week, four contestants. That's all."

After finishing his speech, Eizan Etsuya handed the microphone back to Kawashima Rei, who had returned to the stage, and left without looking back.

"Thank you for the explanation, Senior Ruishan!"

Kawashima Rei took the microphone, flashed a bright smile at the audience, and said, "The first round of the main competition for this autumn selection tournament has come to a complete end! Thank you all for your support!"

"Let's meet under the moon in a week!"

The lights between the moon and sky also turned on at just the right time.

The audience and contestants all got up and started walking towards the exit.

When Soma Yukihira walked out of the player's tunnel, everyone from the Polar Star Dormitory was already waiting outside, and Yuuki was holding up the banner she had made.

"Soma! You're really something!" Daigo Aoki rushed up to him and hugged his neck as soon as he came out. "You actually made that kind of culinary disaster and even made the Commander's clothes rip off. So why did it taste so bad when you made it for us?!"

“That’s right, Daigo and I were completely your guinea pigs! Do you know how scared we were when we first saw you take out the strawberry jam and peanut butter? Not to mention the smell of that scent that I still can’t bear to think about…” Shoji Sato chimed in with his own comment.

"Alright, alright, stop complaining!" Yoshino Yuuki pulled the two apart and walked to the center to announce, "No matter what, Soma won the final victory!"

"This is the semifinals! Hehe, half of the four strongest first-year students in the entire Totsuki Academy are in our Polaris Dormitory! This is simply a historic moment!"

"Let's celebrate for A-Xing and Soma!"

"We must have another celebration banquet tonight! Everyone, show us your best skills!"

Upon hearing the words "victory celebration banquet," Marui Zenji jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, stammering, "Wait, wait, wait, wait..."

"I must make this clear in advance! You absolutely cannot go to my room today!"

"I haven't even had time to clean up after yesterday's celebration banquet! Absolutely not today!"

Everyone burst into laughter upon seeing Marui Zenji's expression.

Ryoko Sakaki said gently from the side, "Alright, it seems that Zenji is really scared of us. But if we're not in Zenji's room, where should we go to celebrate? I think Granny Fumio will think we're too noisy if we celebrate in the hall."

"Oh, what's so hard to choose?" Soma Yukihira walked over, put his arm around Chen Yuxing's shoulder, grinned and said, "Just come to my room. Anyway, my room is quite big. Everyone can just come to my room."

"And I can also personally let you taste my secret sauce in the room! Let you also experience the inspiration Ah Xing gave me."

Upon hearing this, everyone suddenly fell silent.

"Soma...Soma, the secret sauce you mentioned isn't......"

“That’s right!” Soma Yukihira gave a thumbs-up and smiled brightly. “It’s the Yukihira Squid Sauce that received so much praise in today’s competition!”

"I've left an even better sauce in my room than the one fermented during the competition, for everyone to come and taste. It's an absolutely divine flavor that transcends all boundaries!"

"No—!"

Daigo Aoki and Shoji Sato both let out screams and turned to run away.

Chen Yuxing reacted quickly, grabbing both of them and dragging them back. "Tonight is our Polar Star Dormitory's celebration party, how can we miss the two of you? Besides, Soma's sauce made the headmaster's clothes rip, so many people want to eat it but can't get it."

"Ah Xing! You're a monster! You definitely want to see us both half-dead! Help—"

Amidst a cacophony of howls and wails, everyone in Polaris Dormitory happily returned to their dormitories.

Half an hour later, Soma Yukihira's room was also packed with people.

Several old newspapers were spread on the carpet, and everyone sat around the frying pan in the center.

Soma kept stirring the dough inside. If you ignore the weird dark brown sauce on the side, it's actually quite good.

"Almost done! Everyone, get your plates ready!"

Soma Yukihira shouted excitedly, then picked up the black sauce next to him and opened it.

"Pfft-"

An eerie, indescribable smell filled the room.

It has a mixed aroma of seafood, the sweetness of peanut butter, and the sweet and sour smell of strawberry jam.

Upon smelling the aroma, Tadokoro Megumi immediately covered her nose, tears welling in her eyes: "Is this really edible...? The smell is so much stronger than what I smelled this morning..."

Yoshino Yuuki quickly hid behind Sakaki Ryoko and muttered, "This smell is really terrifying. I suddenly understand Daigo and Shoji..."

"Dawu... Zhao..."

She turned her head and saw that Daigo Aoki and Shoji Sato were already showing signs of fainting.

"Oh, it's delicious! As Ah Xing would say, it smells bad but tastes good. Isn't that what stinky tofu in Chinese cuisine is like...?"

Soma Yukihira didn't seem to care about everyone's reactions. He poured the sauce into the pot and heated it up. As the temperature rose, the aroma became stronger and stronger.

"I feel there's still a difference. The taste of your sauce is even more exaggerated than that of canned herring." Miyoko Hojo looked at the food in the pot with some disdain.

"You'll know once you try it!" Soma evenly coated the pancake with the prepared sauce, then cut it into two portions and walked over to Daigo and Shoji: "Freshly baked Yukihira-ryu special sauce squid pancakes!"

"Daigo, Shoji, you've helped me taste the dishes so many times before, so the first one should rightfully be yours."

Knowing they couldn't escape this ordeal, the two could only tremble as they looked at the lump of dark brown sauce on the plate and took it with shaky hands.

"Let's eat! The judges are fine, I believe we'll be fine too!" Daigo Aoki tried to convince himself, then gritted his teeth and, with a look of grim determination, picked up a pancake with his chopsticks and stuffed it into his mouth.

Seeing that his good brother had eaten, Sato Shoji followed suit and ate as well.

"Um?!"

Daigo Aoki suddenly looked at the food on the plate in disbelief. "The outer pancake is so crispy, and this sauce... It smells nauseating from the outside, so why does it taste so delicious..."

Shoji Sato nodded in surprise: "Yeah! It's incredible. It's made with ingredients that are completely unrelated and shouldn't even be put together at all, but it actually tastes so good!"

Everyone else in the room, except Chen Yuxing, was stunned by the sight of the two of them.

"Is it really that amazing?" Mito Ikumi took a plate from Yukihira Soma's hand with some skepticism and carefully took a bite.

Then her eyes lit up, "It's really true! This fermented smell is so fresh!"

After tasting it, Zenji Marui also shared his opinion: "It's hard to imagine that this is made with peanut butter, strawberry jam, and squid liver. It feels just as good as some other top-quality sauces, but the presentation is really not great."

"Hehe, I told you it was delicious, I didn't lie to you, did I?" Soma Yukihira glanced at everyone smugly.

The remaining people also joined the "Dark Cuisine Tasting Competition," and they ate and chatted about the competition.

Just as everyone was chatting enthusiastically, the door was suddenly pushed open with a bang.

It was rare for Isshiki Satoshi to be dressed so formally even in the Polar Star Dormitory, and he was carrying a file folder in his hand.

"Are you all enjoying Soma's special cuisine?" he said with a smile. "It seems I've arrived at just the right time."

"Isshiki-senpai!" Yoshino Yuuki immediately stood up and pulled Isshiki Satoshi inside. "Come and try Soma's cooking! It does smell and look terrible, but it tastes really good!"

"Then I won't stand on ceremony."

Isshiki Satoshi picked up a piece of bread and tasted it.

"Yes, that's a really good method, the sauce is perfectly balanced..."

Ryoko Sakaki poured a cup of tea and handed it to Satoshi Isshiki: "Speaking of which, why are you only getting back now, Isshiki-senpai? Did the meeting go on until so late?"

“Yes, after all, the first round of the Autumn Selection is completely over, and we need to prepare for the semi-finals and finals in advance.” Isshiki Satoshi took the teacup, took a sip, and then looked at Chen Yuxing and Yukihira Soma: “I also brought back some relevant information.”

Isshiki Satoshi picked up the file bag and shook it: "This contains the group assignments and questions for the semi-finals. It was supposed to be given to you tomorrow, but since Hoshino, Soma, and I are all from Polaris Dormitory, we brought it over early."

Upon hearing this, the room fell silent, and all eyes were focused on the file folder in Isshiki Satoshi's hand.

"Oh! So what's the final group assignment?!" Soma Yukihira suddenly stood up and rushed to Satoshi Isshiki, his eyes burning with fighting spirit. "Tell us quickly, Isshiki-senpai! I really can't wait to know who my opponent is!"

"I won't keep you in suspense any longer." Isshiki Satoshi opened the file folder, took out the papers inside, and placed them on the table.

"The first match of the semifinals is between Soma and A-xing, and the second match is between Hayama Ryo and Kurokiba Ryo."

"As for the topic, it's Western cuisine."

After hearing the group assignment, everyone was silent for a moment, and then erupted.

"Eh?!!"

"What? Aki and Soma are going head-to-head in the very first match?" Daigo Aoki exclaimed.

"In that case, wouldn't there be an internal war within the Polar Star Dormitory?" Sato Shoji was also somewhat bewildered.

Soma Yukihira was the first to react; he turned to look at Chen Yuxing and smiled.

"Hahaha! I've finally waited for this!"

Soma walked up to Chen Yuxing, staring intently at him and extending his fist. "Yuxing! I've wanted to have a proper match with you ever since the start of the semester! Although I'd love to meet you at the top of the finals even more, there's nothing I can do about being drawn in the first round! Let's have a fair and square competition!"

Chen Yuxing couldn't help but laugh as he looked at the fiercely competitive Yukihira Soma in front of him. He raised his fist and bumped it with Soma's, saying, "I'm also looking forward to our match."

"But the topic is Western cuisine... I really have no clue about this." Chen Yuxing looked at another piece of paper on the table.

“That’s true, but there’s still a week until the competition, so we can think about it slowly,” Soma Yukihira said, scratching his head.

"Alright, I've sent the questions and group assignments. You guys continue celebrating. I'll go back to my room to change and then come over."

Isshiki Satoshi stood up, but as soon as he reached the door, he turned back to look at the two of them as if he had just remembered something.

"Oh, by the way, I'll also give you a little hint about the judging panel this time."

"The commander-in-chief is still present, and the other four are all old acquaintances of yours."

Chapter 83 New Missions, Markets

The celebration lasted until very late, and everyone helped tidy up their things before going back to their rooms.

After returning to his room, Chen Yuxing did not rest immediately. He took a shower and then sat on the bed.

With a thought, a book radiating golden light unfolded in his mind.

A cookbook.