"All examinees who have successfully passed the first phase, please enter. Welcome. I am Menchi, the examiner for the second phase," A beautiful woman announced.
"I am examiner Buhara," The figure behind Menchi said. He's a man with a massive, mountain-like figure...
Gurgle~
A loud sound suddenly echoed, causing many examinees to look around in confusion.
Menchi chuckled, glancing at Buhara. Knowing he was clearly famished, she stood up.
"The second phase... is cooking!" Menchi declared after a brief pause.
"Cooking?"
"Hold on a minute! You said cooking? We came here for the Hunter Exam!"
Hearing Menchi, the bald Hanzo and the wrestler Todo stared at her in disbelief.
"That's right. And preparing a dish that satisfies both of us is the subject of this second test," Menchi stated matter-of-factly.
"Why cooking?"
"Because we are both Gourmet Hunters!" Menchi replied, again as if it were the most obvious thing.
"Hahaha!"
Some among the crowd began to laugh mockingly.
Takeru paid no attention to this. He simply took out two of the massive strawberries, sliced them, and offered pieces to Umaru, Gon, and the others.
"Thank you, Captain!" Umaru took a piece and ate it quickly.
"Thanks!" Gon accepted with a bright smile, taking big bites.
Killua didn't stand on ceremony either, helping himself promptly.
"Thank you," Kurapika said, a bit embarrassed as he accepted the strawberry. Perhaps due to Takeru's displayed strength and actions so far, he hesitated only briefly before eating.
Leorio, seeing Gon and Kurapika already eating, also expressed his thanks and dug in.
Soon, the two giant strawberries were consumed by the six of them. Leorio, Umaru, and Kurapika felt their stamina noticeably recovering after eating.
Meanwhile, the mockery from the crowd subsided. The test requirement was revealed by Menchi: the designated ingredient was the pig inhabiting Visca Forest Preserve. They were to catch a pig and, using the available cooking facilities here, turn it into a delicious dish.
The condition for passing was that both Menchi and Buhara had to approve of the dish.
"Even if it tastes good, appearance is also important. Don't you dare look down on cooking, understand? The test ends when we can't eat another bite," Menchi added.
"Fine, fine. Then let's get started!" Todo waved his hand dismissively.
"Then the second phase... begins!" As Buhara slapped his ample belly, a sound like a muffled drum resonated.
The crowd surged toward the forest.
"Let's go too," Takeru said, smiling at his companions.
"Let's go, let's go!" Hearing Takeru, the group eagerly headed into the forest.
On a distant tree, Satotz, the first-phase examiner, hadn't left. Intrigued by the many promising candidates, he had stayed to observe.
"What do we do? I can eat, but I've never learned how to cook!" Umaru began to panic. At home, it was always Taihei who cooked for her.
"Do your best and leave the rest to fate," Takeru replied, shaking his head at her expression.
Takeru, however, was fairly confident in his cooking skills. After all, he regularly cooked for Miu at home. Naturally, he knew a fair bit.
Whether it would satisfy Menchi was another matter. According to the story he remembered, they would later simply need to gather giant spider eggs and boil them. Still, if he could pass properly, he intended to try, as it might affect his final rating...
"Takeru, is this way okay? Will there be pigs here?" Seeing Takeru heading in a different direction from many other examinees, Gon asked, puzzled.
"It's fine. I sensed pigs in this area on our way here," Takeru answered calmly.
"Look, right over there." In less than five minutes, Takeru led them to a pink pig with an enormous nose, about three times Takeru's size, currently gnawing on the bones of some unknown creature.
"Are they... carnivorous?!" Kurapika stared at the pink pigs in shock.
The pigs noticed the intruders and instantly became enraged, charging straight at Takeru.
Sensing the pigs meant trouble, Umaru and the others instinctively turned to flee. Takeru, however, smiled, placing his hands in front of him. As the pig charged, he activated his ability, Gluttony.
The pig's impact force was converted directly into mana, replenishing Takeru's reserves.
"Paralyzing Roar!" Takeru murmured, activating another ability. The nearby pigs instantly collapsed, paralyzed...
"Everyone, I'll head back first!" Takeru waved, then effortlessly hoisted a paralyzed pig and leapt toward the venue grounds...
Gon and the others were still processing what happened, soon finding themselves chased by the now-roused Great Stamps.
They ended up leading the boars toward other examinees. In the chaos, several were gored, and a few unfortunate souls lost their lives.
However, the examinees were no ordinary people. After some struggle, Gon quickly discovered the Great Stamp's weakness: the forehead hidden beneath its massive nose.
With the fatal weakness known, many examinees fought back. Soon, numerous boars were subdued and carried back toward the venue, kicking up clouds of dust.
Takeru, the first to return, paid no mind to the commotion.
Having claimed a cooking station early, he immediately began butchering the boar. While he'd never butchered a pig before, he'd seen it done and now replicated the process. With his full concentration, the pig was quickly and efficiently dissected.
He also pondered what dishes to make. A pig offered various cuts: pork belly, tenderloin, rump, shoulder, neck meat, and more...
There were also the trotters, head, offal, and stomach… a wide range of ingredients.
Compared to farmed pork from his main world, this Great Stamp's meat was superior in texture and marbling, suggesting it could yield an even more delicious meal with proper preparation.
Surveying the ingredients and utensils, Takeru quickly decided on braised pig trotters, red-braised pork belly, and sweet and sour pork tenderloin...
Once decided, he set to work with practiced efficiency. His focused demeanor caught the attention of Menchi and Buhara, who watched from a distance with a hint of anticipation.
In stark contrast to Takeru, most other examinees simply placed entire, unbutchered and unwashed pigs directly onto grills for roasting. There was simply no comparison...
When Umaru returned hauling a pig, she was stunned to see most examinees roasting whole pigs without any butchering.
'Was the culinary level in this world really this basic?' She couldn't help but wonder.
Then, noticing Takeru cooking seriously, Umaru moved to the station next to his and began her own preparations.
It was true. Compared to her brother or Takeru, Umaru considered herself a novice. But compared to the current batch of examinees, she felt like a culinary master...
She wasn't highly skilled, so she opted for a simple pork trotter soup and grilled pork chops… dishes she felt confident she could manage without major issues.