Hoshino Sora's cooking, whether in precision or standard, had already met the minimum requirements for Golden-tier cuisine.
What he lacked now was creation, an improved dish with over fifty percent originality, or a completely new dish from scratch.
Compared to the second option, the first was undoubtedly easier to achieve. So, Hoshino Sora decided that after this ten-match competition, he would go into seclusion until he created a Golden-tier dish.
He had too many distractions around him now, too many interferences, so he couldn't concentrate on researching cuisine. Azami Nakiri had to take full responsibility for this; if it weren't for him coming to cause trouble, Hoshino Sora wouldn't be so busy now.
[Quest Triggered]: Far Moon Reform 2.0
[Quest Description]: Azami Nakiri's establishment of the Central Culinary Organization and the abolition of seminars, research groups, and hobby clubs have caused dissatisfaction among the general students. A new reform is coming!
[Quest Requirement]: Overthrow Azami Nakiri's rule and make Erina Nakiri the true Academy Director.
[Quest Reward]: Phased rewards will be given based on quest completion. There are three stages of rewards.
[Stage One Reward]: 20,000 Reputation Points (Already obtained)
[Stage Two Reward]: Gourmet Manor Butler * 1, Gourmet Manor Slave * 10 (Optional), 10,000 Reputation Points, Golden-tier Cuisine: Boiled Cabbage.
[Stage Three Reward]: Unknown (Unlocks after completing the previous stage)
Current Reputation Points: 25,300
Sitting on the bed in Yōbi Dormitory, Hoshino Sora began to plan what he would do next: go into seclusion for cultivation, and not come out until he had researched Golden-tier cuisine. This was his idea.
At the same time, the system's notification sound rang in his mind.
Hearing the sound, Hoshino Sora's face lit up. It was finally completed! Although it was only the first stage, it was still a phased breakthrough, and it also unlocked the second stage of rewards.
Coincidentally, this reward was related to the Gourmet Manor, including the manor butler and planters he had been longing for. With these things, he would no longer have to personally handle everything at the manor!
In fact, these items were also sold in the Reputation Shop, but their prices were extremely expensive. A well-trained butler cost 20,000 Reputation Points, and the cheapest slave cost 3,000 Reputation Points.
Converted, the first two rewards alone were already worth at least fifty thousand Reputation Points!
Not to mention the final Golden-tier cuisine, Boiled Cabbage! An ordinary person, even if they hadn't seen it, had definitely heard of this dish. It was the ceiling of Sichuan Cuisine, the first dish of state banquets, Boiled Cabbage.
And for a dish that could frequently appear at state banquets, its value was evident. Although he hadn't searched for it in the Reputation Shop, Hoshino Sora estimated that this item would cost at least one hundred thousand Reputation Points as a baseline!
Opening the Reputation Shop, the lowest price for Golden-tier cuisine was fifty thousand. For slightly more famous ones, the price immediately went up. Some simple dishes could also sell for exorbitant prices there.
After a moment of thought, Hoshino Sora had his answer. This was easy to understand: the more famous and simple a dish was, the more people would know how to make it, and the more people would have high skill levels, making it harder to be the best.
It was a given fact that there could only be one Golden-tier for each dish, unless it was an improved version. However, it needed to be altered by at least fifty percent to be considered Golden-tier and coexist.
This was also the mainstream Golden-tier cuisine in the current culinary world.
Improvements to various classic dishes, forming a style of cuisine with strong personal characteristics.
Traditional, classic dishes were learned by many people, and the difficulty of reaching Golden-tier was much higher than for improved dishes, so few people would do such a thankless task.
But Hoshino Sora was different. He had the system and the Reputation Shop. Golden-tier cuisine could be easily learned by simply obtaining the recipe.
Moreover, he learned the old dishes that hadn't been improved. And when he mastered these old dishes, the difficulty of adding his own elements to develop new dishes would be greatly reduced.
For example, that Golden Shrimp Fried Rice. Because he had mastered Golden-tier fried rice, his Golden Shrimp Fried Rice already had the radiance of Golden-tier cuisine.
Its completion was much higher than the Salmon Scrambled Egg Ramen that Nukishima Tsubusu had just made, even though Hoshino Sora hadn't made shrimp fried rice many times before, let alone Golden Shrimp Fried Rice.
This was the immense influence that Golden-tier cuisine brought to its extended dishes.
"Are you asleep, Hoshino-kun?"
"Not yet. Come in."
While he was thinking, Hisako Arato's voice suddenly came from the door. Hoshino Sora immediately responded, his gaze following to the door, which was gently pushed open at that moment.
It was a girl with shy eyes.
Even though they had done it countless times, being alone and doing 'bad things' was definitely a first. She didn't know if she was lucky or unlucky to have drawn the lot for staying the night.
Although he was a man she liked very much, and she had given herself to him many times.
But, when it came to being face-to-face and alone, Hisako Arato was far shyer than she had imagined.
The feeling of her toes curling was clearly visible. Turning her back to close the door, she timidly walked into the room, looking at the tall and handsome boy in front of her. Hisako swallowed.
When everyone was together, she didn't feel anything, but now that they were alone, the ambiguous atmosphere around them made her breathing quicken, and her face had long since flushed red.
"What are you doing? I'm not going to eat you. Putting on such a scared face, if someone who doesn't know sees it, they'll think I'm a bad person, forcing a respectable woman into submission."
Looking at Hisako Arato's reserved behavior, Hoshino Sora couldn't help but tease her. A while ago, when she was with Erina, she was so open and proactive.
But now...
His lips curved slightly upwards. To be honest, compared to Alice's frankness and proactiveness, he preferred the shy Hisako in front of him, because that made him feel a sense of conquest.
That's right, the feeling of conquest!
There was also a thrilling sense of 'forcing the issue.' So, regarding Hisako's shyness, Hoshino Sora only felt excited, thinking it was the best seasoning for the night.
Of course, although he preferred shy girls, Hoshino Sora didn't dislike other types of girls. Proactive types also had their charms, but right now, he only wanted to focus on Hisako!
"Aren't you a bad person? You did that kind of thing to me and Erina-sama, and you have a flock of wives and concubines around you. If you're not a bad man like that, then who is?"
Looking at the hand extended towards her, Hisako didn't refuse and placed her hand on it, while sharply complaining as they held hands. Although what she said had nothing to do with being a bad person, it proved that he was a 'bad man.'
"Then do you hate me like this? Or do you like it?"
Hoshino Sora didn't think much of it. If she truly cared about that, she wouldn't have come tonight, but he still pretended to be hurt and asked this question.
"You're asking the obvious. If I hated it, I wouldn't have come."
An expected answer.
As soon as Hisako Arato finished speaking, she was lifted into a princess carry by Hoshino Sora. He first spun her around happily in mid-air, then gently settled her onto the bed.
"Since that's the case, where should we start tonight? By the way, you haven't showered yet, have you?"
"What's wrong? Do I smell...? I'll go wash now. I just finished physical education class this afternoon and then rushed over. I sweated a lot, so it's normal to have a smell."
Hearing Hoshino Sora's words, Hisako Arato's cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. She immediately got up, wanting to take a shower.
She wouldn't tell Hoshino Sora that she was so excited about drawing the lot for staying the night that she hadn't even showered before coming over. That would be too embarrassing!
"No need, I like this. A little sweat on you is just right; it has a strange stimulating feeling. And I can taste the purest Hisako. I quite like this feeling."
Reaching out and pulling Hisako's arm into his embrace, Hoshino Sora wasn't saying these things to be disgusted with her, but to confirm. Now that the confirmation was over, he was going to start!
"What do you mean 'taste'? Your way of speaking is so perverted..."
Hearing Hoshino Sora's words, Hisako's face showed disgust, but soon she couldn't show disgust anymore. Feeling the boy's skilled movements, her right hand had somehow already gripped the bedsheet tightly.
Shame, excitement, relief, happiness—all sorts of emotions surged in her heart, manifesting in the low moans that made Hoshino Sora even more excited, sometimes her voice rising and falling with a distinct rhythm.
——————
The next day.
Morning, 6 AM.
Chef Hoshino, who had been busy all night, woke up refreshed. Only Chef Hisako remained sound asleep in the covers.
Because she had been thoroughly exhausted last night, she just wanted to sleep a little longer. With her legs crossed and hugging the blanket, a smile on her lips, the girl looked very happy. The night's nourishment made her exceptionally charming.
Seeing this, Hoshino Sora lowered his head and lightly kissed her cheek, then changed into his clothes and left the room.
Arriving in the kitchen, he put on a clean, white chef uniform. The boy leaned on the counter, seemingly deep in thought.
Today, he planned to thoroughly research Dragon-Wrapped Tiger Belly, the dish he was preparing for the competition, and improve all its previous shortcomings.
After that day, Erina Nakiri had given him many suggestions, but he hadn't had time to try them. Now that he finally had some time, he came to the kitchen with it on his mind.
However, before making his own dish, he should prepare breakfast for them. Otherwise, after washing the large intestines, the kitchen would become stinky, and the beautiful morning might be ruined.
With this thought, Hoshino Sora took out the necessary ingredients for breakfast from his system space. They were all freshly picked from the Gourmet Manor, and both their quality and freshness were top-notch.
And the dish he was going to make today was also very simple.
Cantonese Dim Sum.
Looking at the teaching content on the tablet, Hoshino Sora skillfully began to operate. First, he was going to make shrimp dumplings, then char siu buns, siu mai, phoenix claws, custard buns...
All sorts of delicious foods gathered together. The image of the girls' happy faces when they saw the abundant breakfast made Hoshino Sora exceptionally motivated.
Arranging the sequence of tasks, Hoshino Sora worked alone in the kitchen. After 2400 seconds, the kitchen finally welcomed its first guest.
Shiina Mahiru.
She was still a bit sleepy-eyed, but when she approached the kitchen and smelled the aroma wafting from it,
The sleepiness in her eyes instantly vanished, and her steps quickened a bit. Then she saw Hoshino Sora busy in the kitchen, and she puffed out her cheeks as she strode over.
"Didn't we agree that I would make breakfast? Why did you start doing it yourself, and make it so lavishly? What time did you get up to prepare, and you didn't even call me to join you!"
Looking at the dazzling array of dim sum in front of her, Shiina Mahiru said angrily. They had clearly agreed that she would prepare breakfast, but Hoshino Sora dared to secretly make it today!
"Didn't I just think you usually get up so early to cook and get too tired, so I wanted you to rest a little longer? It's good that you're awake now. I still have an important task to give you. I believe you can do it very well!"
"What is it?" Hearing Hoshino Sora's words, Shiina Mahiru's dissatisfaction lessened a bit, and she asked curiously.
"Brew tea."
Dim sum, dim sum. How could it be dim sum without tea? Tea could be said to be the most important part of dim sum, even more important than the accompanying pastries.
"Brew tea?"
Hearing Hoshino Sora's words, Shiina Mahiru was clearly confused. Her head followed his gaze, and she saw a bag of tea leaves on the table, with a complete tea set next to it.
"Yes, brew tea. I'm making Cantonese dim sum, so tea is needed when eating breakfast. Can you handle this?"
Hoshino Sora patiently asked. He had suddenly thought of Shiina Mahiru halfway through making the food. Because he understood her well, he knew she would definitely come over to complain, so he specifically left her the task of brewing tea.
"I can, but I feel like you're just humoring me."
"How could that be? Making tea is also very important work. To brew a good pot of tea, one must invest enough energy and time."
"Alright."
Shinohiru expressed her reluctant approval, silently accepting the task Hoshino Sora had given her, and then went to the back to brew tea. Seeing this, Hoshino Sora also sped up; the timing was about what he had expected.
Soon, steaming hot Cantonese dim sum was ready.
"You've brewed the tea well. I'll go call them down for breakfast. Not bad, I didn't realize your technique was quite skilled."
Coming up behind Shinohiru, Hoshino Sora playfully touched her and noticed her practiced movements, praising her with a surprised expression. He had originally just wanted to fob her off, so he had given her the task of brewing tea.
But looking at Shinohiru's technique and the quality of the tea, her skill level was not low.
"When I was in middle school, the school had tea ceremony classes, and I was first in my class at the time."
Hearing the praise, Shinohiru said proudly.
"Is that so? That's truly impressive."
Nodding and praising her again, Hoshino Sora went upstairs to wake his wives. He had done this countless times already; usually, a shout from the hallway would bring the girls downstairs.
This time was no different, except there was no movement from his room. He went upstairs, pushed open the door, and saw Hisako Arato still sound asleep on the bed, showing no signs of waking up.
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