Jaden had used the Curse skill many times.
He had used it on people.
But he had used it on cooking far more often.
Through repeated use, he discovered something very clear.
-The effect of Curse on cooking was simple.
It made food taste bad.
No matter whether the dish was originally good or bad, once Curse was applied, the end result would be unpleasant.
The only difference lay in degree.
-How unpleasant it became.
For example, if the dish was made by Erina.
Because of her God's Tongue, the sensation of "unpleasant" would be amplified to the extreme.
It wasn't just bad.
It was nauseating.
It made the person eating it feel physically ill.
As for Etsuya Eizan...
Jaden stood to the side and watched calmly as Eizan finished plating his dish and placed it in front of the three judges.
Etsuya Eizan straightened slightly and began his introduction.
"Although they look like ordinary fried chicken nuggets on the outside, their flavor will be very different from what you're used to."
"The taste also changes drastically depending on the sauce."
"I've specially prepared three sauces. Please enjoy."
The three judges smiled politely.
"As expected of the chef known as the Alchemist..."
The middle judge spoke first.
Under the lighting, the fried chicken nuggets gleamed with a golden sheen, reflecting light like polished metal.
The smile on his face deepened.
He picked up his chopsticks and selected a piece.
"Oh~ the texture already feels different from regular fried chicken nuggets."
While speaking, he confidently put the nugget into his mouth.
And bit down.
Clang-
"-So hard!"
A sharp cry escaped him.
The nugget fell straight out of his mouth and hit the table with a dull thud.
The two judges beside him saw it clearly.
A tooth mark.
Cleanly imprinted on the surface of the nugget.
The two exchanged glances.
Then they sighed.
Judging was their job.
To maintain fairness and impartiality, as long as something was technically edible, they had to try it.
Whether it was the instant noodles earlier.
Or this so-called "Philosopher's Stone."
-Thinking back now, those instant noodles were wonderful.
In their hearts, they had probably already sent Etsuya Eizan's ancestors to heaven several times over.
But outwardly, they set down their chopsticks and picked up knives and forks.
They tried to cut the nugget.
It didn't move.
One of the judges turned and said something to the O-uchu staff.
Moments later, a waiter brought over a saw.
Only then was he able to cut it open.
After sawing it apart, he pressed the chicken with his hand.
It wasn't as hard as some ultra-dense alloy.
But its hardness was easily comparable to metals like gold.
"Heh. As expected of the Alchemist."
The judge said it again.
But this time, it wasn't praise.
It was pure mockery.
This had already gone beyond what a human could reasonably eat.
They even suspected it might cause food poisoning.
Without further discussion, the three judges silently picked up Jaden's instant noodles instead.
Each took a bite.
Hmm.
They were over-soaked.
But still-
At least they were edible.
When they first arrived, their mindset had been-
We must pursue excellence in flavor.
After seeing the three bowls of instant noodles, it became-
Taste the Alchemist's dish, and while we're at it, educate this inexperienced newcomer. It's our responsibility.
And now...
Hmm.
As long as it's edible.
So when the judging phase officially began, none of them hesitated.
All three votes went to the same person.
The winner of this Shokugeki-
Jaden Yuki.
Jaden wasn't surprised.
But Etsuya Eizan slammed both hands onto the table.
"-I can't accept this!"
He roared.
Jaden moved faster than anyone could react.
With a swift motion of his chopsticks, he picked up a piece of the fried chicken nugget and stuffed it straight into Eizan's mouth.
Then-
Clang-
"Ah-!"
Eizan bit down.
Pain shot through his face.
He couldn't even speak.
Jaden squatted beside him.
"If you're not convinced," he said calmly, "then eat all of your..."
He paused briefly.
"...right. Your Alchemist-forged chicken nuggets."
Etsuya Eizan knelt there.
On the floor, the nugget with the tooth mark lay quietly.
He stared at it for a long time.
Finally, he let out a weak, powerless sigh.
"I... lost."
Hearing those words, Jaden looked at him.
Eizan didn't even have the strength to feel resentment.
Originally, Jaden had planned to give him a lethal Curse that would erupt days later.
Now, he didn't even feel the need.
Most of Etsuya Eizan's spirit had already been crushed.
Moreover, the Shokugeki Management Bureau held an extremely high position in this world.
It was a global organization.
If Eizan wanted to continue being a chef, he would spend the rest of his life working for Jaden.
Even so-
With Eizan's business acumen, ten percent of his income was still enough to live comfortably.
At that moment, Jaden finally understood Kaguya Shinomiya's mindset from earlier.
Getting ninety percent of someone else's efforts for free-
-It felt amazing.
And more importantly, it was a crucial step toward his ideal lazy life.
A cornerstone.
So Jaden silently thanked Etsuya Eizan.
Then he turned and left without looking back.
The Shokugeki Management Bureau would handle everything else.
As for him-
Jaden took out his phone and checked the time.
"It's almost noon..."
The assessment at Totsuki Resort only lasted through the morning.
According to Erina's plan, her work should be nearly finished by now.
Thinking this, Jaden ignored the noise still echoing behind him.
He slipped his hands into his pockets and walked toward the O-uchu kitchen.
"Erina should be there."
"I'll check how things went."
"And if she succeeded, I'll find a chance to apologize before she returns to Totsuki."
As for himself-
-He wouldn't return to Totsuki.
After sending Erina back, he would visit the old man, Yuki Yugi.
He would also send Ohya Ken a volume of A Certain Magical Index and discuss a few things with him.
And then-
-Then he could finally go home and lie down.
He should organize everything properly.
And then, carefully, seriously-
Maybe over several years.
Maybe even a decade-
Think about how he wanted to live the rest of his life.
...
Totsuki Resort.
Dojima Gin looked at this year's assessment results.
Many promising students barely exceeded two hundred portions.
Some who should have passed were stuck just over one hundred.
He sighed.
"The Director warned me," he muttered, "but I didn't expect Erina to do something like this..."
He knew the scores were meaningless.
There were simply too few customers.
Reaching two hundred this time depended entirely on luck.
Most of the customers had gone to Erina's side.
If they judged strictly by these numbers, most students would fail.
Still-
This re-assessment could serve as justification to bring Erina back.
But before that-
Dojima Gin glanced sideways at Shinomiya Kojiro beside him.
-They needed a reason to silence the others.
And-
-Shinomiya needed someone to shake him up.
So.
"Shinomiya," Dojima Gin said, "come with me."
"The results of this assessment are invalid."
"Let's go see what Erina did across the street."
With that, Dojima Gin turned and left.
Shinomiya Kojiro nodded calmly.
"I understand."
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