To make a dish that truly satisfies someone, good ingredients are necessary. Right now, no matter how you look at it, there's just not enough.
Hachiman, however, stayed calm. For Hikigaya Diner, this kind of thing had become routine. After all, when business was good, it always came with one problem—every ingredient sold out by the end of the day. At those times, even with only a few things left, Dad and Komachi would still make dishes that amazed every customer.
And clearly, it was finally his turn to face that. Being able to adapt on the spot is really what being a chef is all about, isn't it?
"Grandma Fumio, this might take a while."
Grandma Fumio just waved her hand casually:
"As long as you can make something that satisfies me, I can wait until tomorrow if I have to."
Off to the side, Megumi Tadokoro, who had seen Hikigaya's cooking skills before, felt a bit confused. Sure, making a fine dish does take time, but with only these leftover ingredients, what could he possibly make that's fancy? And what could take that long?
So, both Megumi and Grandma Fumio simply thought Hikigaya was being modest.
But the truth was...
Hachiman took out some flour, checked that there was enough to make a decent amount, and began his work by hand.
Since there was no staple food, turning the flour into noodles seemed like a good idea. Normally, for a Totsuki Academy student, this huge task would take just a few minutes... But Hikigaya? He was in no rush at all.
Grandma Fumio thought: "Now I get why this guy said it'd take a lot of time. By the time he finishes turning that flour into noodles, the sky will be dark... How did Totsuki Academy accept a student so bad at handwork?" Her expression clearly showed disappointment, but since he'd already started cooking, even as the dorm mother, she couldn't stop him.
Megumi finally understood why Hikigaya said that earlier. During this afternoon's cooking class, she was in charge of prepping the ingredients, and even the weakest students in Totsuki could finish this in about 15 minutes. But Hikigaya...
Uh... It's hard not to wonder how this guy even got into this school.
Hachiman's focus could only be described as terrifying. Once he started cooking, nothing could distract him. Everything he did seemed like he had rehearsed it in his head a hundred times already.
He kneaded the flour into noodles while heating water in the pot, then tossed in the seaweed and salted fish.
Tadokoro Megumi's face showed an expression that could only be described as complete confusion: "He…, what kind of dish is he even making?"
At the same time, Grandma Fumio noticed Hikigaya's student file on the counter. Under that report, there was only a photo of him with those dead-fish eyes and…
"Yesterday? This guy's only been a chef for two days?"
Tadokoro Megumi was instantly drawn to Grandma Fumio's words. When she saw the culinary experience listed in Hikigaya's file, she was completely stunned.
"What's going on… How is that possible? How can someone enter Totsuki on their second day as a chef? No… judging by his techniques, they really are only at a basic level… It really does look like just two days, but…"
"How… how is this possible!"
"Grandma Fumio, what's wrong…"
"Hikigaya family… could it really be the Hikigaya family… No way it's such a coincidence…"
"Hikigaya family?"
"I'll explain later, but if he really is from the Hikigaya family, if he's that guy's son, then it's possible he really just started in the culinary world."
Tadokoro Megumi felt like her entire worldview had shattered. She couldn't make sense of anything she was hearing.
She looked back at Hikigaya's file. His name was…
"Hikigaya Hachiman…"
This was the first time she learned Hikigaya's full name, and by now, she couldn't understand him at all.
Ever since she was a child, she had loved cooking. She even took charge of cooking for her family. Back in elementary school, she was known as the best cook in her village. With the dream of improving her skills, she came alone to Totsuki Academy at just twelve years old to start three years of training.
In the blink of an eye, three years passed. She hadn't been expelled, but she was at the bottom of her class, always feeling like she was hanging off a cliff. Someone who had been learning to cook since childhood was nothing more than an ordinary student here.
But…
Hikigaya Hachiman standing before her was completely different.
Totsuki's records never make mistakes. They're so precise they even note the exact age when a student made their very first dish. But…
Hikigaya Hachiman's record said…
Yesterday.
She couldn't understand it. It defied all normal logic.
He had just become a chef two days ago, yet he already earned high praise from Chef Chapelle. In Tadokoro Megumi's mind, only two words could describe this.
Genius… a true genius.
But if Hachiman knew what Tadokoro Megumi was thinking, he would immediately deny it.
He never thought of himself as a genius. All he did was memorize the steps his dad and Komachi followed when they cooked, then recall them when he needed to.
Compared to him, real geniuses were people like Erina, who showed amazing talent from a young age, or maybe… someone like Yukinoshita, who had just started cooking yet already earned great honors.
Half an hour passed. Normally, Grandma Fumio would have been impatient and urged him to hurry up. But today, she seemed like a different person, quietly waiting for his dish.
At the stove, Hachiman gently lifted the lid off a pot filled with dried fish and seaweed. The aroma of the broth spread through the entire kitchen, reaching the noses of the two onlookers.
Without any unnecessary movements, he simply tossed the freshly chopped garlic and onions into the pot for a quick sauté.
On Grandma Fumio's face, an expression of complete confusion finally appeared:
"Even if he's that guy's son..."
"As a beginner chef, trying to precisely control the timing of multiple ingredients at the same time is just impossible."
"Even being off by one second will affect the taste. What a shame... I could have waited."