The instant that single drop of Century Soup fell in, an aurora began forming above the massive pot.
This was indoors—otherwise, the aurora's scale would've been large enough to blanket all of Gourmet City.
There was simply too much Century Soup in this pot. Even confined to this room, the spectacle was overwhelming.
"It's finished… A hundred years of persistence, finally complete."
Setsuno smiled as she gazed at the soup.
Ever since she'd tasted the Century Soup Master Jiro brought back a century ago, she'd been completely captivated by that beauty.
If their Full-Course Menus hadn't already been completed, they probably would've added Century Soup to them without hesitation.
A Full-Course Menu might sound like just a list of dishes—but in truth, it was the final key.
After consuming eight dishes, the Gourmet Demon within would temporarily awaken. From there, only two outcomes existed.
Either the host would be devoured, allowing the Gourmet Demon to fully resurrect.
Or the host would devour the demon instead—turning it into nothing more than their appetite, fully fused with their existence. Even if the host died, the Gourmet Demon would never revive again.
The decisive factor lay in the Full-Course Menu.
Only by collecting and eating eight ingredients perfectly suited to oneself could the demon be swallowed. Miss even one, and the host would be consumed instead.
None of that was a concern for Kael.
The three Gourmet Demons inside him were little more than puppets. Even without a Full-Course Menu, he had no risk of being devoured.
After watching the pot for a moment, Setsuno used a clever burst of force to draw out two portions of Century Soup.
She handed one to Kael and drank the other herself.
Kael didn't hesitate.
Even though both were Century Soup, they were fundamentally different versions. He was curious—could this one activate his Gourmet Cells again?
The moment he drank it, that familiar surge of happiness swept over him.
This time, Kael controlled his expression instantly.
Setsuno, however, didn't.
Her face twisted into a grin so utterly shameless that Kael couldn't help shuddering when he saw it.
Beyond that, the flavor itself was vastly different from the Ice Hell version.
Many of the ingredients weren't the same at all.
And as a result—
Kael's Gourmet Cells activated once more.
Thankfully, he'd prepared in advance, covering himself with a massive black cloth. Muscle expansion meant torn clothes otherwise.
Once his ID was ready, he planned to make some money and buy proper high-quality outfits.
He couldn't keep exploding his clothes every time his cells activated.
When the activation ended, Kael put his clothes back on and removed the cloth.
His Gourmet Cell level had reached 55.
The increase didn't look huge—but the higher the level, the harder it became to advance. Without special ingredients, leveling up grew exponentially more difficult.
So this boost was far from insignificant.
"If Granny Setsuno's version works… then Komatsu's might too."
"And for me as well—I might even discover an entirely new way to make Century Soup."
Kael's eyes lit up.
The ingredients Setsuno used were very different from those in Ice Hell. Many of the original ingredients in the Ice Hell Gourmet Showcase had already gone extinct.
She'd found substitutes.
Komatsu's version would be different again.
In the original story, Komatsu simply didn't have the money to obtain the high-grade ingredients Setsuno could. He used what he could access himself.
Even with Setsuno's guidance and occasional help, his Century Soup was still unique.
Kael planned to give Komatsu some Century Soup later.
With Komatsu's Food Luck, he'd definitely create a version uniquely his own.
Kael could then get a portion of that.
On top of that, Kael himself could develop yet another completely different version.
That meant two more Gourmet Cell activations.
That was huge.
One of those could be saved to break through the level 100 barrier.
Level 100 was a true dividing line—the greatest boundary between the Human World and the Gourmet World.
In canon, countless Gourmet Corp elites were stuck just short of it. So many failed at that final step, which showed how difficult it truly was.
Toriko and the others advanced quickly only because they were protagonists. Their Food Luck was on an entirely different level.
Gourmet Corp simply couldn't compare.
Food Luck often aligned with order and balance.
Stajun had Food Luck—but it was stolen from Toriko, and he eventually returned it.
Why did Gourmet Corp suffer such catastrophic losses later, to the point of becoming a shell after the Ingredient War?
Because Food Luck never favored them.
IGO, on the other hand, despite heavy casualties, crippling injuries, and even possession—
Survived.
Because Food Luck was on their side.
They were saved in the end.
That was the difference.
Kael wasn't worried about losing his Food Luck.
First, he was broken.
Second, he stood on the "good" side.
He wouldn't end up like Gourmet Corp.
"Your appetite must be impressive," Setsuno said. "Come on. I'll take you to pick some ingredients first."
"Oh—how are you planning to transport and store all this?"
"There's no need to worry," Kael replied. "One of my Gourmet Demons has a special ability—it can open a unique space. I'll store everything there."
"As for housing, once my ID is ready, I can handle that myself."
Living arrangements were never an issue.
Anywhere in the wild worked—he could just take out a villa and rest.
As for monsters?
A bit of aura release, and nothing would dare approach.
And even then—Behemoth was more than enough to guard the place.
Besides, there weren't any powerful beasts nearby. The Human World was still humanity's domain, carefully settled away from truly dangerous monsters.
"That's an incredibly convenient ability," Setsuno said with envy.
"If we'd had something like that back in the Gourmet World, things would've been much easier."
So many beasts in this world were colossal.
Even in the Human World, kilometer-scale giants existed.
The Regal Mammoth from the First Biotope was the perfect example.
In the Gourmet World, monsters far larger than that were everywhere.
Transporting those ingredients after capture was a nightmare.
Human bodies were simply too small by comparison.
That was why, in the Gourmet World, captured ingredients were usually eaten on the spot.
It also explained why Setsuno had so few Gourmet World ingredients here.
Kael's ability allowed him to stockpile massive quantities in advance.
She didn't know how large his space was—but the fact he could store so much spoke volumes.
"You don't need to worry about a place to live," Setsuno added. "I'll arrange one for you later."
In her eyes, Kael was a clear potential investment.
A young man who knew restraint and priorities—she'd be foolish not to build goodwill.
Right now, compared to her or Master Jiro, Kael was nothing.
But the future?
He might surpass them.
His potential was no less than the Four Heavenly Kings—his current strength already exceeded Zebra's.
Among the younger generation, Setsuno believed only Teppei could truly match him.
"Then thank you very much, Granny Setsuno."
Kael could clearly feel her goodwill—and accepting it was exactly what he wanted.
They began selecting ingredients in her kitchen.
The moment Kael touched an ingredient, he recorded its scent using Devil's Sense of Smell, then stored it directly in his space.
That space was effectively limitless.
If only it allowed farming and breeding—he could've become entirely self-sufficient.
Even as simple storage, it was already more than enough.
Watching him store ingredient after ingredient, Setsuno couldn't help being astonished.
This kind of ability had never appeared in this world before.
As he worked, Kael refined his own Century Soup formula in his mind.
He'd memorized both versions perfectly.
Right now, it was like an incomplete puzzle.
With each ingredient recorded, he filled in another piece.
If he later found something better, he'd replace it.
Hours passed in selection.
Soon, it was mealtime.
"It's time to eat," Setsuno said. "Since you're a guest, I'll cook a few dishes."
"But since you're a chef too—you should cook some as well."
She was very curious about Kael's cooking.
His Gourmet Cell level marked him as a powerful hunter—but he was also a chef.
Setsuno herself was the same. When Master Jiro wasn't around, she acted as a Gourmet Hunter as well.
In the Human World, people who walked both paths weren't rare.
But reaching mastery in both?
That was exceedingly uncommon.
And Kael seemed like the type who could.
Cell levels were easy to judge.
Cooking skill wasn't.
"Of course."
Kael understood she was testing him—and welcomed it.
After all, she was the top chef in the Human World.
Even a bit of guidance would be invaluable.
They moved to the stoves.
Setsuno took one side, but her attention stayed fixed on Kael.
Kael pulled out his chosen ingredient—
Ice Snow Leopard meat.
Captured back in Ice Hell.
It was officially classified as inedible.
Kael didn't buy that.
With qi at his disposal, there was no way he couldn't cook it.
"Ice Snow Leopard meat?!"
Setsuno froze for a moment before recognizing it.
She could cook it herself—but the result was mediocre at best.
The effort simply wasn't worth it.
Kael having the meat wasn't surprising—he'd been to Ice Hell, after all.
What shocked her was that he planned to cook it.
This was notoriously difficult meat, with poor flavor.
Her curiosity was fully piqued now.
She wanted to see exactly how Kael planned to handle such a troublesome ingredient.
Meanwhile, Kael had already begun circulating his qi.
It flowed directly into the Ice Snow Leopard meat—
And the meat began to change at a visible pace.