Hayashi ate a piece.
An apple piece flew out.
Kanna caught it in the air, and so the cycle continued.
After finishing the apple, only the apple core remained.
Just as Hayashi was about to throw it away, he saw Kanna staring intently at the apple core.
"This doesn't taste good, Kanna."
Kanna still stared: "Want to try."
Hayashi shook his head helplessly: "Then try it."
She wasn't an ordinary child anyway, so it wouldn't hurt her. If she wanted to try, let her try.
Hayashi tossed it over.
Kanna caught it, chewed twice, and her delicate eyebrows wrinkled as expected.
"Not good." (Doesn't taste good.)
Then she swallowed it...
"If it doesn't taste good, spit it out." Hayashi patted his forehead helplessly: "There's no rule about not wasting apple cores."
But since she'd already swallowed it, what was there to say?
After Kanna finished the apple.
Holding her own small knife.
"I'm going to watch TV and practice."
Then she went to watch TV.
In the restaurant.
Everyone had almost finished eating.
Kirishima Touka had eaten enough and was preparing to pack several portions.
Hayashi had anticipated this.
He had already prepared them and kept them warm with his abilities.
"Here."
Seeing this, Kirishima Touka bowed gratefully.
"Thank you, Manager Hayashi."
"What's to thank?" Hayashi handed them to her.
Touka went to pay the bill.
After finishing her meal, Fueguchi Hinami saw Kanna watching TV.
So she also ran over to sit and watch together.
Seeing content about school.
Kanna looked at Hinami's age and asked: "Do you want to go to school, Hinami?"
"Yes!" Hinami nodded vigorously: "I want to study hard and get into a good university!"
"For what?" Kanna posed a soul-searching question.
"For what?" Hinami first pondered.
Then counted on her fingers: "Not to disappoint father and mother's expectations, to get along well with peers, to become an excellent person, to be helpful to Anteiku and mama, and so on. All of these."
Hinami's mentality was indeed quite mature.
After experiencing major life events, people become this way.
After a while.
Kirishima Touka finished paying, and Fueguchi Ryouko left with Hinami.
After hearing Hinami's examples, Kanna tilted her head and thought, then looked at Hayashi.
Finally, she ran to Hayashi's side and tugged on his sleeve.
"Hmm?" Hayashi looked down and asked: "What's wrong, Kanna?"
Kanna raised her delicate little face and asked.
"If Kanna studies hard and gets into a good university, will Hayashi be happy?"
"?" Hayashi looked at Kanna with surprise.
After seeing her serious expression.
He thought about it and answered seriously.
Hayashi first nodded, then shook his head.
"I would indeed be happy if you learn more knowledge and achieve higher accomplishments, but this has to make you happy too. You should be doing it for yourself while also for others, not just for others."
"You studying happily is far more important than you studying with hardship."
"As for achievements, you decide those yourself. You can want to achieve something for someone, but you can't achieve something only for someone."
"Simply put, you need to be happy, Kanna."
After Hayashi finished speaking, he smiled and rubbed Kanna's head, then left.
He went to chat with Erina.
And after getting her answer, Kanna also went back to watch TV.
But while her eyes were watching.
Her mind wasn't.
Hayashi's answer could be said to be different from what Kanna expected, but it was an answer that exceeded the standard.
How to think about it was up to the listener.
With Kanna's intelligence.
She had already realized that perhaps before going to school, she had already become "someone else's child."
Yes, "someone else's child" in the eyes of children.
Not in the eyes of parents.
The difference was...
She had an incredibly good parent.
In the restaurant.
After Erina finished eating, she first paid the bill, then saw Hayashi.
She nodded in thanks: "Thank you for the hospitality. The cuisine was very delicious."
"Good that you liked it." Hayashi responded.
Looking at the completely clean plates on the table, Hayashi nodded with satisfaction.
"You finishing everything is the greatest respect for a chef."
Erina looked at her clean plate action, blushing slightly.
She had indeed eaten too much these past few days.
"Oh right, I haven't introduced myself yet."
Nakiri Erina changed the subject: "I'm Nakiri Erina, currently studying at Totsuki Culinary Academy middle school, about to advance to high school, and also serving as supervisor for various Totsuki restaurants."
After hearing this, Hayashi could only say this was truly Erina.
Even introducing herself had that absolutely confident show-off quality.
But she indeed had the strength to back it up.
"I'm Hayashi. Currently the midnight diner's owner and head chef. That's it." Hayashi replied.
Though the content was brief, Erina gave great affirmation.
She nodded twice.
"I'd like to ask, how do you ensure quality and inject soul elements when making these dishes so quickly?"
Ensure quality? Inject soul?
Some of these things could be replicated, some couldn't.
But fundamentally.
Hayashi gave a simple answer: "Apart from talent, it's just practiced hands."
This one sentence left Erina stunned.
But thinking about it, wasn't that exactly right?
She also relied on talent!
Without the God Tongue, how could she familiarize herself with ingredients so quickly?
"What about injecting soul?" Erina asked persistently.
Hayashi shrugged: "Put your heart into it? It can't be adding some mysterious seasoning. My cooking method doesn't restrict ingredients either - anything works."
That was called personal style.
Nakiri Erina nodded helplessly.
It seemed learning this method of injecting soul was impossible.
She could only continue learning and practicing herself.
But speaking of which.
Erina looked at Hayashi and said seriously.
"Your cuisine is extremely different from Totsuki's methods - completely two different systems. If your culinary skills could be learned, then Totsuki Academy could close down."
"Though I'm a chef from the Totsuki system, I'd very much like to see culinary arts flourish in this world."
Confrontation between different systems was the opportunity for overall culinary sublimation.
Like the arms race between two countries during the Cold War.
That's what caused technology to advance greatly.
Speaking of this.
Hayashi suddenly thought of something.
"You mentioning this reminds me of someone. She's a head chef at a nearby restaurant, young like you, but because she's not a Totsuki student, she faces obstacles everywhere."
"Italy has repeatedly extended olive branches to her, but because it wouldn't be safe for her younger sister to study here alone, she hasn't left. Otherwise, she should have gone one or two years ago."
Totsuki students were VIPs at any restaurant.
Totsuki's graduation rate was less than 10%.
Though this 10% would enjoy the glory of being celebrity stars in the culinary world, the remaining second-tier students were still VIP-level existence at second-tier restaurants.
This was Totsuki's top-tier phenomenal status.
Even second-tier Totsuki students.
Were better than your worldly top-tier chefs!
This was Toka's tragic situation.
Hearing this, Nakiri Erina also opened her eyes in surprise.
"Who is she? Same age as me, also a girl? Can I meet her?"
Hayashi nodded: "Her name is Takanashi Toka. She's also a customer at my shop, but I can't say more specific information. They come to my shop often."
"Usually, she'll come tomorrow afternoon around this time. You come too, then you can chat and get to know each other."
Erina nodded seriously: "Alright!"
Hayashi had to protect customer privacy.
Just mentioning a name was enough - he couldn't say more.
The rest depended on whether Erina and Toka could get along.
Later.
Hayashi chatted with Erina a bit more, then saw her off.
Seeing Erina's enthusiastic appearance.
She would definitely come next time.
When they reached the alley entrance.
Hayashi saw her personal secretary had been waiting at the alley entrance.
After Erina got in the car, they left.
"Totsuki..." Hayashi murmured, then shook his head.
Totsuki's internal situation wasn't peaceful either.
It wouldn't be long.
Nakiri Erina's father would soon sound the horn of rebellion, carry out a revolt against Totsuki, and drive out Senzaemon.
The current Totsuki was already formulaic enough.
Everyone was studying culinary arts, detached from reality.
And Erina's father, Nakiri Azami, was even more extreme.
He was simply formulaic to the extreme.
Nakiri Azami's idea was to use 1% of top chefs to intensively research cooking recipes, while the remaining 99% of chefs didn't need any research and only needed to follow procedures step by step.
Eliminating any meaningless culinary exploration.
Meaning if these people's research wasn't good enough and couldn't reach the top level, they shouldn't waste resources.
Simply formulaic to the extreme.
Though this was later overthrown, that was a matter for later.
"Mm, going home to drink beverages."
Hayashi said nothing, just wanted to go back and lie down.
He returned to the kitchen and took out iced watermelon from the refrigerator.
Cut it quickly.
In an instant.
The entire watermelon was cut into twenty pieces.
Hayashi brought it out saying: "Time for watermelon. If no one wants it, I'll eat it myself."
"Eat eat eat!!!"
Power was petting her cat. Although the cat now got along well with Pochita and didn't want to be petted by Power, there was no escape from her clutches, so it could only be petted.
But when Power heard there was watermelon to eat.
She immediately rushed over holding the cat.
"I want two pieces!"
"Get lost, finish eating then take more." Hayashi handed her one piece.
"Okay!" Power obediently took one piece and ran back, sitting by the window eating while petting, even trying to feed the cat.
The cat wouldn't eat it.
Power took a bite and happily swayed her legs.
She looked at Hayashi.
Then thought about the debt she owed.
Felt she needed to find an opportunity to repay it, otherwise it would be too inhuman... too un-devil-like.
Nearby.
Hayakawa Aki, Himeno, and Kobeni came over.
Kobeni asked embarrassedly: "Really treating us? Watermelon is quite expensive, right..."
Coincidentally.
Himeno thought the same.
Watermelon was indeed a bit expensive.
But that was only if buying from others.
Hayashi didn't buy this.
It was procured from the system.
The system's prices weren't necessarily local Japanese prices.
It was pure cost price.
Like the lowest global price.
Buy from wherever it's cheapest!
This watermelon could have cost just a few hundred yen.
Because the watermelon's actual value was just that.
One seed, all water!
"Eat up, just occasionally treating." Hayashi didn't seem that enthusiastic.
He just wanted to eat some too, so he brought everyone along.
Sure enough.
Hayashi's lack of enthusiasm, just being casual.
Actually made everyone more comfortable eating.
If it was really daily treating.
Then this favor would be hard to repay.
Everyone took a slice and went to eat on the side.
"Kanna, Tohru, come eat too."
"Coming~"
Tohru had just finished washing dishes and came over.
Kanna ran over with little steps.
Took a piece of watermelon.
Then ran back with little steps to watch TV.
Everyone ate watermelon and chatted.
Until 8 PM.
When the time was about right.
Everyone paid and left.
Before leaving, Hayakawa Aki, Himeno, Kobeni, along with the confused Power.
All bowed in thanks to Hayashi.
"Thank you for your intervention this afternoon, shop owner. Otherwise those two devil hunters might have been very troublesome."
Seeing everyone's sincere thanks.
Hayashi nodded with satisfaction: "That's enough. Go on then. Just come eat more often in the future."
"Of course!"
Only then did everyone wave and leave.
Before leaving, Power waved and gestured with her phone.
"?"
After Hayashi went back, he picked up his phone to look.
Power: "Shop owner! This great one wants to repay the debt. What time and place would be suitable?"
"!"
Hayashi's expression was strange.
First time seeing someone wanting to actively repay a flesh debt.
Of course.
It wasn't good to keep owing this debt.
He was about to forget it himself.
Indeed needed to find an opportunity to collect it.
But there wasn't really any specific time or place.
"Hmm..."
Hayashi thought, then suddenly realized he had magic!
Wasn't this any time, any place, Happy Superman, serious case handling!
Hayashi replied: "After you get home, send me your location after 2 AM, understand?"
Power: "Got it! Boss!"
"?"
Boss?
Whatever, this way of addressing was fine too.
Hayashi put away his phone and went back.
After 8 o'clock.
Until 11 o'clock.
During this time, two groups of regular customers came.
All were served normally, nothing special to mention.
The evening continued with idle boredom.
But this was the state Hayashi liked.
Just a few customers here and there.
Not too many, not too few.
To put it unpleasantly.
Not seriously doing business, just running it for fun.
This statement was actually correct!
"Crack crack~"
By the TV.
Hayashi, Tohru, and Kanna cracked sunflower seeds together while watching TV.
When they got tired of Detective Conan, they watched SpongeBob.
If that didn't work, they watched Crayon Shin-chan.
After watching enough of that, they'd watch Naruto.
Until late at night.
Hayashi spent time this lazily.
"So wonderful~~~!"
Scrolling through his phone.
Hayashi looked at various cute girls on TikTok, his legs bouncing happily.
While scrolling.
His phone started getting messages.
Kamishiro Rize: "Hayashi-kun, I didn't see any news about your shop today. Has it returned to normal state?"
Hayashi: "Yes, the past three days were really exhausting. By the way, where have you been these days?"
Kamishiro Rize: "Then I must go eat tomorrow. These days, I've been investigating follow-up events of human experimentation. This matter involves not just the Washuu family, but other CCG higher-ups as well."
Hayashi: "Of course, one of the CCG higher-ups IS the Washuu family. But I suggest you don't investigate alone. If needed, go find Takatsuki Sen and say I told you to."
Kamishiro Rize: "I understand. Thank you for still supporting me, Hayashi-kun."
What was there not to support about this?
He wasn't contributing anything anyway, at most it could be considered physical support.
Kamishiro Rize's target was the Washuu family and CCG, while Takatsuki Sen's target happened to also be CCG.
The mastermind behind CCG was also the Washuu family.
Both had tasted dishes made by Hayashi.
It could be said they were destined to come together.
At this time.
While Hayashi was chatting with Kamishiro Rize.
Takatsuki Sen also sent a message.
Takatsuki Sen: "That little girl writer has been quite popular recently. But your shop seems to have finally quieted down. Can I come to the shop tomorrow?"
Hayashi: "Sure. She's already 18, well-developed. How can you call her a little girl?"
Takatsuki Sen: "Are you saying her measurements are bigger than mine?"
Hayashi: "???, I never said that!"
Takatsuki Sen: "Hmph, exactly. Tomorrow when I go to the shop, if she's going too, we can compare and find out."
Hayashi: "How can you say that, Eto. Although different people have different preferences, you know me - I'm an omnivore, I love eating anything delicious."
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