"We have an announcement for all esteemed guests."
"The Moon Feast Festival's first day, all sales figures up to 6 PM have been compiled. Next, we will announce the rankings for each area."
The loudspeakers on both sides of the Moon Feast Festival street suddenly blared, startling the surrounding people, and their attention was completely drawn to it.
"First, for the Main Avenue Area, the third place is... Shiomi Research Lab's 'Curry House,' second place is Aldini Mass Restaurant's outdoor branch, and first place is... Chinese Snacks opened by the Chinese exchange students!"
"The Chinese exchange students haven't gone back yet?"
Hearing the voice from the loudspeaker, Hoshino Sora muttered to himself. Since he hadn't encountered them for a while, he thought those guys had gone back.
But the Autumn Elections are over, what are they staying here for?
"Next, we will announce the rankings for the Central Area. Third place is... Spicy Sichuan Cuisine Restaurant, second place is Spanish Cuisine Research Society's 'El Fuego.'
And then... first place is Chinese Cuisine Research Society's 'Kuga Restaurant,' with more than double the lead over second place, claiming first place with an absolute advantage!"
Third place, huh? It's better than I imagined, thanks to the old customers who came to boost the popularity. But tomorrow's situation should be much better, especially with the top three title.
However...
Trying to win against Kuga Senior with just this is more or less unrealistic.
I must introduce impactful, innovative dishes!
Moreover, merely getting first place in the Central Area is not enough. He raised his hand and opened the mission interface. Last night, the system gave him a mission: he had to compete in sales, the sales of all three areas.
[Mission]: King of the Moon Feast Festival
[Mission Description]: After the practical training ends, Far Moon begins preparing for the School Festival and sends invitations to elite individuals from all walks of life. This will be an incredibly grand banquet.
[Mission Requirements]: Participate in the Moon Feast Festival held by Far Moon. Winning the overall championship of the "Central Area" allows you to choose one of the following rewards. Winning the overall championship of all three areas grants all rewards.
[Mission Rewards]: ① 10000 Reputation Points ② Cooking Skill: Immortal Wine Brew ③ Cooking Skill: Spice Equation ? Spice Inequality (Advanced)
Ten thousand reputation points and two cooking skills that sounded top-tier. Hoshino Sora was certainly not content with only one of them. He was a little greedy; he wanted them all.
"Only third place? Although this result is still good for the first day, the gap is actually more than double..."
Hearing the broadcast, Alice couldn't help but complain, a look of dissatisfaction on her face. In her heart, Hoshino Sora's cooking had already surpassed Kuga Terunori's.
"Finally, announcing the rankings for the Gaotai Area. Third place is Eri Nai Nakiri, second place is Akikubo Momo Senior, and first place... how can this be, it's actually an outside school shop, 'Dark Cuisine.'"
With a hint of disbelief in her voice, Kawashima Rei carefully checked the statistics to ensure there were no errors, then broadcasted the news to everyone.
What kind of shop is Dark Cuisine? I've never heard of it...
Such thoughts emerged in the minds of the Far Moon students, especially Hoshino Sora. His expression changed slightly, and his body stiffened. He didn't seem to recall this shop in his memories of Food Wars!
Could it be Azami Nakiri? Has he teamed up with the Dark Cuisine World of Neon and attacked? Thinking carefully, this seems to be the only possibility, but this plot is a bit off.
Although he had forgotten most of the plot due to the passage of time, Hoshino Sora clearly remembered that the Dark Cuisine World appeared after Azami Nakiri, at which point the latter had already fallen.
Saiba Asahi, Crossed Knives. At that time, the opponent defeated the original strength ceiling, his dad, and even took his chef's knife. This plot was heavily criticized by anime fans.
According to the timeline, the opponent shouldn't appear this early. So who exactly is it? Or which organization...
His brain worked rapidly, and a non-answer answer appeared in Hoshino Sora's mind. If it wasn't the Dark Cuisine World from Neon, then could it be from China?
Thinking carefully, the probability of this is very high. After all, where there is good, there is evil; where there is black, there is white. If a small country like Neon has a Dark Cuisine World, it's impossible for a large country like China not to.
But what is China's Dark Cuisine World doing here?
Organizations like the Dark Cuisine World always act only when there's profit to be made. Since they chose to participate in this event and appeared so high-profile, there must be interests they seek within Far Moon.
However, one cannot be so absolute. What if it's just an ordinary civilian organization? Although the probability is very, very small...
"Whew..."
Letting out a long breath, Hoshino Sora turned his gaze to Kitagawa and Alice, who were chatting.
As the saying goes, when the boat gets to the bridge, it will naturally straighten. As long as he has the strength, he can easily handle anything that happens.
The Gourmet Cell wasn't evolved for nothing. The powerful strength of his body now made him like a little superman. Even facing an armed thug, he was absolutely confident he could take them down!
"What's wrong, sitting here alone?"
Walking over to Yuigahama, Hoshino Sora asked patiently. He had noticed this child was a bit off in the morning, but because the shop was busy, he didn't pay attention.
Now, after so long, she was still like this. Even Hoshino Sora, no matter how slow, realized something was wrong, so he went forward to comfort her, holding the girl's hand as he spoke.
It was icy cold.
"It's nothing, Sora brother."
"You don't look like it's nothing, and your hand is so cold. Come here, I'll warm it for you."
Hoshino Sora tucked Yui Yuigahama's hand into his clothes, using his body to warm her. He asked patiently, but she remained silent and wouldn't speak, as if she had something difficult to say.
"Anyway, the shop is closed for the night, let's go for a walk."
"Eh..."
After a moment of silence, Hoshino Sora suddenly suggested. Without waiting for her agreement, he pulled her hand and stood up, then left the shop.
Walking along the Central Area street, although the first day's sales figures had been tallied, many stalls were still hawking. Hoshino Sora went up and bought some skewers, found a spot, and sat down.
"Eat. No matter what's bothering you, eating something delicious can make you feel better. Let's eat and talk."
He placed the skewers on the table. The rich aroma made the girl's appetite soar. She took the meat skewer he offered and ate it heartily, pairing it with a sip of soda when thirsty. She looked utterly carefree!
Seeing this, Hoshino Sora's hanging heart relaxed by half. Since she could eat, it meant it wasn't a major issue. Since it wasn't a major issue, it would be relatively easy to solve.
"Sora brother, what kind of person am I in your heart?"
Eating skewers and drinking soda, looking at Hoshino Sora who was patiently accompanying her, Yui Yuigahama suddenly asked, with a rare seriousness in her eyes.
"Gentle and considerate, loves sweets, speaks without much caution, cooking is incredibly bad, appearance and figure are excellent, easily influenced by others, and her weakness is her ears."
Counting Yui Yuigahama's strengths and weaknesses on his fingers, Hoshino Sora remembered them all very well.
"Don't say the last one!"
At the end, Hoshino Sora suddenly leaned in close, whispered something into Yuigahama's ear, then bit her earlobe with his lips, instantly making her body tingle.
"I will, I will."
Hearing Yuigahama's words, Hoshino Sora said in a very annoying manner, his cheerful tone making the girl reach out to hit him. In an instant, the atmosphere became incredibly lively.
"Actually, I'm worried that after you have so many girlfriends, Sora brother, you'll neglect me. The other sisters are all more beautiful and excellent than me, they can do everything, and only I am like an idiot."
"How could that be? As I just said, I think Little Yui is truly a wonderful girl. It's my honor that you would even consider me. As for your worries, they're not unfounded. With so many girls, it's indeed hard for me to take care of everyone.
However, I will try my best to balance it. Anyway, our lives are long, and the time we spend together will also be long. I will use my actions to make you feel happy."
"I already feel very happy now."
Hearing Hoshino Sora's words, Yui Yuigahama quickly said, feeling the warmth of the young man's embrace, her heart rate slightly quickening.
"Huh..."
"They actually left us here to have a secret rendezvous."
"So mean!"
"Exactly! They left us at the shop and went to eat barbecue with their girlfriend. What a clever plan."
Familiar voices came from behind him, and a soft pressure settled on the back of Hoshino Sora's head. Smooth hair cascaded down his cheek, golden in color. It was immediately clear who was behind him.
At the same time, the chairs at the table were pulled out, and everyone from his shop gathered around.
"Ten more skewers of party squid, twenty hot dogs, ten chicken wings, thirty lamb skewers, thirty beef skewers, ten ginkgo nuts, ten saury, roasted pig trotters, roasted brain flower...
What do you guys want to order?"
Pointing at the menu, he ordered a large number of dishes from the waiter. Afterwards, Hoshino Sora looked at the stunned group and asked tentatively.
"You've ordered so much, do we even need to order more?"
"Theoretically, I can finish all of this myself, so there's no need to worry about waste."
Because he possessed Gourmet Cell, Hoshino Sora found it difficult to feel something called satiety. The delicious food he ate would only be converted into energy and absorbed by the Gourmet Cell in his body.
However, it hasn't evolved in a long time.
From evolving to Level 4 after eating Master Mao's cooking, it's still Level 4 now. Although he could clearly feel himself getting stronger during this period, he never reached the point of qualitative change.
Perhaps, to advance to Level 5, he can only wait until he eats golden-grade cooking again.
But how many people in the world can make golden-grade cooking?
— — — — — — — — — —
"We're actually first place? It seems Far Moon isn't that great after all."
Looking at the latest Far Moon newspaper, it recorded the Moon Feast Festival's first day sales rankings. Their shop was ranked first, with sales exceeding second place by millions.
"Isn't that normal? After all, they're just students. If we can't even beat them, wouldn't we become a joke in others' eyes?"
Hearing the man's words, Lixin said coldly. Was this something to be proud of? It made it seem like they had gone through immense hardship to win.
Although they indeed relied on food tastings to draw customers into the shop, and then used supreme deliciousness to make them uncontrollably place numerous orders, resulting in extremely high consumption.
They created the greatest wealth with the fewest customers.
"Indeed, after all, they're just snot-nosed kids, brother. You don't need to be so happy, do you?"
"You're right, off work, off work."
— — — — — — — — — —
"Speaking of which, isn't your schooling important?"
His steps paused. Hoshino Sora suddenly thought of something: it wasn't the weekend right now. What about the schooling these few people were missing? Would he have to pay for their tutoring later...
"The whole school is on holiday these few days because of the Moon Feast Festival, so we could come and accompany Sora."
"Ah?"
With both arms held by Yaxiang Lixiang, Hoshino Sora's expression froze slightly upon hearing Ya Xiang's answer.
"You didn't know? As a very famous event in Tokyo, schools are usually on holiday during those days for the Moon Feast Festival, to allow students to experience true gourmet food without regret."
Yuigahama explained softly. Because this was a world centered on gourmet food, business, politics, and even national destiny were closely related to it. Therefore, when Far Moon held the Moon Feast Festival, elementary and middle schools usually had holidays.
Various sectors of society would also increase their lunch break time.
"There's such a setting? I never really paid attention before..."
Thinking carefully, he seemed to have indeed had holidays during his school days for some event, but he didn't care at the time, only thinking it felt great, because the world of Far Moon was too far removed from him.
"Yes, we only found out recently too. We used to think it was just a free holiday."
"As long as it doesn't delay your studies, that's good. So, tonight, you all..."
At this time, sending them home one by one, they would probably get home in the early hours of the morning, and then having to wake up early tomorrow to come back wouldn't leave much time for sleep.
"Stay at my place. My house is big, and there are many independent rooms, all regularly cleaned."
Hearing Hoshino Sora's hesitant words, Alice immediately raised her hand to volunteer. Need a place to stay? Her place was fine, don't underestimate her exquisitely decorated small villa!
"Is that okay? Won't it be a bother...?"
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