Springvale Plaza, in front of the temporarily erected ring.
"So you are going to have a cooking competition with a chef named Brock?"
the quartet had just finished explaining the wild boar incident to the Hunter Leader Dulaf, and upon returning, they saw Xiangling confronting a chef.
Lumine and Paimon stood nearby, their faces displaying expressions that read, "Now this is going to be good."
"What a mess..."
Jesse rubbed his forehead in pain.
He really wanted to suggest going straight to Liyue, but Xiangling had already accepted the challenge with a confident pat on her chest.
Elliot's eyes suddenly lit up: "Why don't we join too? We're just sitting around anyway."
"You guys are joining too?"
Xiangling turned around in surprise.
"Yes, but we're competing independently."
Elliot pulled a chef's hat from who knows where and put it on.
"The team name will be..."
"The Otherworld Gourmet Research Society!"
Matt answered quickly, simultaneously conjuring a banner printed with the name, which also featured a chibi version of the quartet beating up an Abyss Mage.
Lumine narrowed her eyes: "Wait! You guys aren't going to just conjure the finished product, are you?"
She had personally witnessed this group pulling a Manchu Han Imperial Feast out of thin air.
Zane adjusted his mask and stated righteously, "This is a cooking competition, of course we will follow the rules."
"No time to lose, let's go gather ingredients!"
Xiangling jumped up excitedly.
the quartet instantly vanished, leaving behind four exaggerated dust trails:
In Jesse's direction, a burst of leaves exploded
Elliot's path left a string of footprints
As Zane disappeared, the light of a magic circle flashed
Matt literally stomped a meteor crater into the ground
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Lumine choked on the dust and coughed continuously.
"That speed is too ridiculous!"
"We can't fall behind!"
Xiangling grabbed Lumine's wrist.
"Lumine, Paimon! Let's go!"
"Ah! Wait for me!"
Paimon followed closely behind.
[Jesse's Chapter: Adventure in Xiong Ridge]
A certain familiar pine forest.
"The stinky bear isn't around, time to work!"
Guang Touqiang carried his Chainsaw, humming a tune as he walked toward the target tree.
Just as the Chainsaw let out a "buzz"—
"Thud!"
A round object accurately struck his shiny forehead and bounced into his hand.
"Ouch! What is it?"
He looked down, his face instantly turning pale: "A w-Wasp Nest?!"
"Buzz, buzz, buzz—"
The furious swarm poured out, instantly stinging Guang Touqiang until his head looked like a hedgehog.
"Help!!"
He threw down the Chainsaw and bolted, a cloud-like swarm following him.
Jesse lightly descended from the treetop, picked up the Wasp Nest, and skillfully extracted the Honey.
As he jarred it, he didn't forget to stick a label on the bottle: [Xiong Ridge Special Supply: Guang Touqiang Edition]
[Elliot's Chapter: Cat and Mouse Game]
A certain cartoon-style kitchen.
Elliot stealthily slipped in through the window, just in time to see Jerry running for his life holding a giant piece of Cheese, with Tom chasing after him aggressively.
"Snap!"
With a Sleight of Hand, Elliot instantly swapped it out for a Plastic Cheese.
Jerry, completely unaware, joyfully dove into his mouse hole.
"Click!"
After the sound of shattering, Jerry looked at the plastic shards filling his mouth and angrily kicked the Plastic Cheese out of the mouse hole.
Tom laughed gleefully, slapping the floor, but was consequently fitted by Elliot with the "Anti-Catch Cat Suit"—four mini Anemo Cubes securely fixing its paws.
"Perfect~"
Elliot weighed the real Cheese in his hand, then swiped a Steak from the refrigerator.
"And I'll help you guys promote some neighborly relations~"
[Zane's Chapter: Today's Menu for the Emiya Family]
A certain private residence in Fuyuki City.
"So, the sauce needs to be simmered until this consistency."
Emiya Shirou demonstrated the cooking steps, cold sweat beading on his forehead—the masked "student" behind him gave off too much pressure.
Zane diligently took notes, when he suddenly heard a "grumble."
He turned to see Artoria sitting upright, yet her stomach was rumbling louder than thunder.
"If Saber is hungry, she can have some snacks first."
Shirou hurriedly brought out the reserve food.
The next second, Zane's notebook suddenly emitted a bright light.
When the light faded, a plate of glowing cuisine appeared on the table: [Teyvat Special Supply: Satisfying Salad MAX Edition]
Artoria forked a piece into her mouth, and her pupils instantly widened in shock: "Th-this is..."
"Nutritionally balanced and filling."
Zane adjusted his mask.
"Comes with an added Element Recharge effect."
[Matt's Chapter: Star Dome Tea Party]
Xianzhou Luofu, Buyehou Teahouse.
"Stelle, look! What is that!"
March 7th's camera almost dropped to the floor.
Stelle's eyes widened: "No way... the art style is wrong, isn't it?! We've crossed universes!!"
The seven-meter-tall Electro Lawachurl was bending down to order from the staff: "Ten cups of immortal's delight tea, extra sugar."
"Die, beast!"
The Cloud Knight's spear stabbed Matt's back, breaking into two pieces with a "ding."
After casually sticking the Cloud Knight into the ground, Matt turned to look at March 7th and Stelle, scratching his head: "Want... want to drink together?"
When the Astral Express Crew came back to their senses, there was an extra-large cup of Milk Tea on the table, with the label on the side reading: [For the children with pink and gray hair - Left by Matt]
When the quartet returned to the plaza with their respective "trophies," Xiangling's team had also returned fully loaded.
After handing the hunter Olaf, whom they found on the road, over to Dulaf, Paimon floated ahead, excitedly announcing: "We found the legendary Frozen Millennial Boar!"
"Has everyone prepared their ingredients?"
Xiangling ran over full of energy, but froze when she saw the quartet's materials.
"Um... Mr. Matt, what are you holding?"
"immortal's delight tea!"
Matt proudly held up three steaming, chilled drinks.
"Shipped from Xianzhou Luofu!"
Zane's mask was crooked: "We're here for a cooking competition, not a drink competition!"
"What does it matter~"
Elliot had already set up the grill.
"Anyway, our Honey Steak is definitely going to win!"
The competition officially begins.
The three groups of contestants showcased their unique skills:
Traditional Faction: Brock's Team
Dutifully stewing Springvale Wild Boar
The assistant precisely controlled the heat nearby
Innovative Faction: Xiangling's Team
A Cryo Regisvine and Slime Condensate were performing a bizarre waltz in the pot
Lumine was in charge of controlling the temperature using Elemental Power
Paimon... Paimon was secretly eating the ingredients
Otherworld Faction: the quartet
Jesse brushed Honey onto the Steak with a brush
Elliot used a thunder hammer to double as an induction cooker
Zane was mixing a better sauce
Matt... was distributing Milk Tea samples to the judges
Final Judgment
When the three main dishes were placed on the judging panel:
- Brock's traditional stew moved Dulaf to tears: "It tastes like Mom's cooking!"
Xiangling's innovative dish left Olaf weeping profusely.
the quartet's Honey Cheese Rolls... literally blew the judging panel sky-high (physical).
(Only then did Elliot realize the Cheese he took was a trap set by Tom)
"The champion of this competition is—"
Dulaf, sporting an afro from the explosion, announced.
"Xiangling's Team!"
"Yay!"
Xiangling raised her hands happily.
Although the quartet lost, their Milk Tea was voted "Best Creative Beverage."
Matt was currently surrounded by the children of Springvale: "Uncle Electro Lawachurl, can you conjure another cup of Milk Tea?"
"Call me Gege! I'm not that old! (╯°□°）╯"