"Young Master Yoshino Takashi." On the top floor of the Yoshino Grand Hotel, the former IGO staff member Maeda Masho was bowing and scraping before a young man on the sofa in a private room. Behind the youth stood two sturdy bodyguards in black suits.
Unlike Harano Katsuya's refined and gentle demeanor, the blond young man, Yoshino Takashi, had a streak of ruthlessness in his features. He snapped his fingers, and one of the bodyguards placed a briefcase on the table and opened it.
An entire case of ten-thousand-yen Fukuzawa Yukichi bills gave off a pleasant inky fragrance.
"Here is fifty million yen."
"Thank you, Young Master Yoshino Takashi. I wish you a resounding victory." Maeda Masho smiled obsequiously and was about to step forward to clutch the briefcase to his chest, bowing repeatedly.
"Let's go." The bodyguard made a gesture of invitation and led Maeda Masho out of the room.
Not long after Maeda Masho left, Yoshino Takashi stood up and spoke to the remaining bodyguard in the room. "Ryohei, you and Tahei have been with me for quite a few years now, haven't you?"
"Yes, Young Master."
"Then consider that fifty million your bonus for all your hard work over the years."
"Thank you, Young Master!"
As they spoke, the bodyguard who had left returned to the room with the briefcase. The only difference was that a corner of the case now bore a sunken, bloody handprint.
Yoshino Takashi waved his hand, dismissing the two bodyguards.
His gaze then fell upon the computer screen on the table, which was playing the Group B battle of the Akihabara Summit Battle.
Unlike the Group A battle, the Group B battle could only be described as tragic.
More than half of the thirteen chefs had submitted their dishes, yet not a single one had scored above 140 points.
Colson was, needless to say, a tough critic; the tongue of IGO Hokkaido's chief food critic was not so easily conquered.
The formerly high-scoring angel, idol Takagaki Kaede, had lost her previous affable demeanor. Her beautiful face wore an expression of someone tasting something that was tasteless, but a pity to throw away; the highest score she had given in Group B was a mere 70.
And as for the seemingly friendly but actually strict Miko Chiba, Chiba Eda, there was even less to say. From the very first chef to serve their dish, she had given every single contestant a score of zero.
Yoshino Takashi's expression darkened. He knew the root cause of all this was undoubtedly that chef from the end of Group A who had popped out of nowhere with three perfect scores.
Although that chef's right hand was likely severely frostbitten, he… still posed a huge threat.
"This timing, however, can be exploited," Yoshino Takashi said, stopping the two bodyguards. "Wait. Go do something for me."
"The last chef to serve his dish in Group A. Find a way to take care of him."
The two bodyguards stopped in their tracks, their sunglasses failing to hide the shock on their faces.
"Young Master, have you thought this through? He's a chef that Mr. Colson holds in high regard."
The International Gourmet Organization, IGO, had always adopted a zero-tolerance stance towards malicious incidents targeting chefs outside of cooking duels. Once discovered, the chef's license would be immediately revoked, all assets of the infringing party frozen, and harsh criminal penalties awaited both the perpetrator and the one who ordered the act. It was no wonder the two bodyguards were a bit intimidated.
"Idiots! Who told you to kill him?!"
"Find a way to check the extent of his right-hand injury. If you have a foolproof plan, break his left hand to keep him from competing." Knowing the severe consequences, even Yoshino Takashi didn't dare to pluck the tiger's whiskers.
"Did you hear me?! I said his left hand!" Yoshino Takashi emphasized it again. "And show some restraint when you do it. Break a bone and send him to the hospital, sure, but don't be too brutal, understand?"
The two bodyguards had never heard such a bizarre request for roughing someone up. Break a bone and send him to the hospital, but don't be too brutal?
"Understood, Young Master Yoshino." The professional training of bodyguards Ryohei and Tahei told them: if you don't understand what the boss says, then don't pretend you do. Go home and figure it out. Never, ever show the boss that you didn't understand.
"Haranoya, thriving only because it got its start early… by what virtue or ability does it get to sit above Yoshinoya all these years?"
"Harano Katsuya, if the aging time of the bluefin tuna slips from your control, what kind of dish could you possibly make then?"
"When I return from my studies at Tōtsuki, it will be time for your Haranoya's destruction."
Yoshino Takashi muttered to himself as he stared at the computer screen.
Within the magnificent private room, darkness began to stir.
===
In the evening, Mo Bai walked out of the hotel side-by-side with Gokou Ruri, clutching the red handprint on his face.
Seeing Mo Bai's dejected look, Gokou Ruri couldn't help but ask, "Does it still hurt?"
"Yeah." Mo Bai nodded with a grunt in response. It wasn't just his face that hurt, but also a little heart named 'Dignity' that was dripping blood.
He, a tall man of 1.8 meters, had actually been slapped to the ground by a fourteen-year-old girl.
"Hmph, who told you… who told you to say those strange things?" The words of apology on the tip of her tongue transformed into a tsundere-like sharp tongue. Recalling the scene, Gokou Ruri's baby-fat cheeks still felt faintly hot.
"…" Not wanting to get slapped again, Mo Bai wisely chose to remain silent.
It had been a sunny afternoon. Warm, golden light spilled into the room, and a gentle breeze rustled the pure white curtains.
The eyes of the young man who had beaten up the flasher to protect her glinted with persistence and determination, and his voice carried a magnetic quality that made one's heartstrings tremble.
The moment he opened his mouth, the clamor from outside the window gradually faded away.
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime request."
Gokou Ruri stared directly at the young man. The scene, like something out of a romance novel, made Gokou Ruri's heart pound like a frightened deer. Before her eyes was a labyrinth of a thousand blooming flowers, and she had completely lost her bearings…
Until— "Can you cook? It doesn't matter if you can't, you just need to clean shellfish and remove their sandbags."
"You're good enough as a handyman," the young man said with a cheerful laugh.
The labyrinth of a hundred vibrant, multi-colored flowers shattered in an instant. Flying into a rage from shame and embarrassment, Gokou Ruri glanced at the brightly laughing young man and his hands on her shoulders, and the girl raised her palm.
"Smack!"
Nothing more needed to be said.
"Are we going out to buy ingredients?" Gokou Ruri flexed her slender, slightly sore wrist. After slapping Mo Bai, she had proceeded to slap him around several more times with her culinary skills, which were far more mature than her age would suggest, for calling her a 'handyman'.
Children from poor families mature early. As the eldest daughter, Gokou Ruri had long since unlocked her cooking skills. They might not be on par with a master chef's, but her food was definitely edible.
"No, Old Wang's son will handle the ingredients."
"We're mainly going out to buy a phone this time."
"A phone?"
"Things are bound to come up at the shop in the future that will require us to be in contact. Just think of it as an employee benefit."
Mo Bai, who believed in self-preservation, understood the principle of spending money to avoid disaster.
He hadn't forgotten that the Gokou Ruri before him was one of the people he had ghosted. Judging by the combat power of the slap that had landed on his face, if Gokou Ruri went into her dark transformation—Mo Bai felt it was better to focus on the more beautiful things in life.
"It's just pocket change, pocket change."
Mr. Wallet suffered a heavy blow.
________________________________________
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