~ As Usual Every 100 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter!
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"No problem. After all, I wouldn't want to miss out on meat like this either—"
Yuuki nodded. He would definitely go, even if the person was someone he had made up. He had to at least make it look convincing.
The next day, Yuuki went to the market, though he just wandered around by himself. Upon returning, he told Gin Dojima he couldn't find the person.
Gin Dojima was somewhat disappointed by this, but he didn't lose heart. Instead, after having Yuuki describe the person's appearance, he sent others to keep an eye on the market.
Yuuki, meanwhile, returned to his normal study routine, also using a Small Bait for fishing once each day. However, catching good things wasn't so easy.
Compared to catching special ingredients like White-Haired Cinderella Beef—most of the time he caught rather useless items.
....
As time passed, a month flew by in the blink of an eye.
Yuuki had also made quite a name for himself at the Totsuki Resort, earning the nickname "Inferno Chef."
This title primarily came from the fact that he had named his own special ability "Inferno," so others simply used his ability as his moniker—eventually settling on "Inferno Chef."
This title was recognized by almost all the resort's guests and staff, mainly because the dishes Yuuki made were so distinctive, as if they were branded.
Yuuki's specialty was Asian cuisine. Although there were many chefs at the resort who specialized in Asian cuisine—Yuuki's dishes had a unique characteristic: they were extremely "Fiery."
Because Yuuki often used his Inferno ability when preparing dishes, the resulting food had a unique, explosive flavor, such that anyone who tasted it could immediately recognize it as his creation.
News about Yuuki's special ability gradually spread, so Yuuki received a lot of attention during this period. Many guests who came to the Totsuki Resort were specifically there for his dishes.
Especially in the last few days, the number of guests at the resort was incredibly high; the customer service phone lines were nearly overwhelmed.
After all, the resort had publicly stated Yuuki's situation: he was only interning at the resort and would return to school when the term began. So, as the start of school approached, the resort was packed to capacity.
Yuuki welcomed all comers.
After all, such high-intensity cooking was beneficial for his improvement—It was precisely because of this that, besides the title "Inferno Chef," Yuuki also had another nickname: "Stamina Monster."
His stamina seemed endless—as if it would never run out. If it were any other chef, such high-intensity cooking would have them exhausted and collapsed after a day or two at most.
But Yuuki managed to maintain this pace for a whole month, which truly earned him the "monster" label.
During this time, Ryō Kurokiba had even tried to compete with Yuuki. Although Yuuki didn't plan to have a match with him, Ryō could try to compete with Yuuki in other aspects. But in the end, Ryō Kurokiba was so thoroughly outclassed he was left speechless.
This state of affairs lasted less than a week before Ryō Kurokiba gave up. Yuuki was simply out of his league in every aspect.
Alice Nakiri was also very surprised by this. After all, to demoralize Ryō Kurokiba to such an extent was indeed quite incredible; it was the first time she had seen Ryō so crushed.
"Your internship ends tomorrow, and you'll be returning to life at Totsuki. How has this period felt?"
During a meal, Gin Dojima looked at the three of them and asked.
"It's been great, very fulfilling. Although it was busy, my cooking skills improved quickly. With a little more time, I should be able to reach the Third Class Chef level."
Yuuki said with a smile. He had experienced the feeling of being a top student—because effort yielded results, he completely ignored the hardship involved.
In the face of such gains, any hardship could be directly disregarded.
"That's by your standards. Actually, with your current culinary skills, you could already be considered a Third Class Chef!"
Gin Dojima shook his head. He found that Yuuki's standards for himself were very strict.
Yuuki felt quite helpless about this. Whether he was a Third Class Chef or not wasn't determined by external judgment, but by The System.
His standard was The System's standard—Only by gaining The System's recognition could he obtain Growth Bait.
Otherwise, as Gin Dojima said, he could indeed already be considered a Third Class Chef, all thanks to the help of Food Honor and Evolving Touch.
The development of his Evolving Touch also progressed very smoothly with Totsuki's support. A large quantity of ingredients from all over the world was continuously shipped over, supplementing Yuuki's tactile database.
Previously, he lacked sufficient knowledge accumulation—so even if he used his Evolving Touch to analyze dishes, while he could identify how many different ingredients and seasonings there were, he couldn't recognize them all.
But now, although Yuuki wouldn't dare say he could analyze every dish and secret recipe in the world, he could definitely analyze over ninety-nine percent of them.
Of course, the most crucial element was still Food Honor. Although Food Honor itself didn't improve very quickly, the enhancements it provided allowed his other aspects to improve rapidly.
Yuuki also used Food Honor to quickly shore up his weaknesses. Soon, he would be able to meet The System's standard for a Third Class Chef.
It could only be said that The System's standards were high.
Yuuki estimated that if the international culinary world also adopted this standard—many Third Class Chefs would probably be demoted back to the Senior Chef level.
....
"Only a stamina monster like you would find it fulfilling! But interning here for a while, my cooking skills have indeed improved faster than when I was at Nakiri International," Alice Nakiri grumbled, then had to admit that such high-pressure practical training was indeed very effective for honing skills.
Previously, at Nakiri International, although she participated in various activities and competitions, she had never actually worked in a real restaurant.
"That's normal. High-pressure training is the best way to stimulate potential. And you three have also experienced the next two special courses in advance, so to speak," Gin Dojima said with a smile.
"The Training Camp and the Stagiaire, right?"
As a Nakiri, Alice Nakiri knew what Gin Dojima was talking about. Not just her; actually, most Totsuki students knew.
After all, every batch of students had to go through these special assessments. However, they could only know the general content; the specific details were adjusted every year and were full of uncertainties.
This internship at the Totsuki Resort was equivalent to combining the Training Camp and the Stagiaire.
Of course, experiencing it in advance merely accelerated their growth—with their culinary skills, they had no need to worry about such assessments.
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~# Keep the chapters coming — Support with Power Stones!
~# Every 100 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter
~# Add to Library!