Animeverse Kitchen: My Culinary Journey Begins with Glowing Food! Chapter 1: I Was Summoned to an Anime Multiverse!

The light of dusk was fading. Only a faint afterglow remained on the western horizon as the world was gradually enveloped in a thin, hazy mist. The silhouettes of trees and buildings blurred in the gloom, creating a deep and mysterious atmosphere. An unspeakable stillness filled the air, as if all sound had been absorbed, leaving only the echo of a heartbeat and the whisper of breath.

Inside a rundown apartnt in Ota Ward, Tokyo…

"Zazas… Zazas… Naszazas…"

A creature—a beautiful, golden-haired girl from the waist up, and a snake from the waist down—chanted from a black magic grimoire, reciting a spell to summon a demon.

As her voice droned on, a circular, purple magic circle slowly materialized before her.

A dense concentration of magical energy gathered in the room, kicking up a wind that sent the lamia's golden hair flying back.

"Co forth, my loyal minion!"

Lifting her eyes to the black cocoon of light within the magic circle, the girl, Jashin-chan, was fired up. She pumped her fist, her voice boiling with excitent.

"Hurry and help take out that naturally evil Yurine!"

"...I'm ho."

The click of the front door was followed by a calm, level voice. Jashin-chan's body went rigid. Beads of sweat instantly ford on her forehead. With a chanical creak, she turned her head to look at the gothic lolita-clad girl standing behind her.

"Ah, um… let explain, Yurine… no, wait! Let make up a la excuse…" Jashin-chan stamred, flustered and at a complete loss.

But for the mont, Hanazono Yurine ignored her, her gaze fixed on the glowing cocoon.

The black light shattered, and a handso young man in a clean white chef's uniform and hat appeared in the middle of the room, a look of pure confusion on his face.

The mont he appeared, the magic circle beneath his feet vanished.

It was then that Jashin-chan snapped out of her guilty stupor.

"Damn it!"

Seeing that her plan was exposed, Jashin-chan decided to go all in. She spun back around—paused for a second with a flash of disappointnt—and then pointed a commanding finger at the newcor.

"Hey! You, kid! Help get rid of Yurine! If you don't listen to , I'll get rid of you, too!"

"..."

Ryohei Tanaka, a professional chef for two and a half years after graduating from a prestigious culinary academy, was truly and utterly bewildered.

He had gone to work at the restaurant today just like any other day. He'd just changed into his uniform and was about to head into the kitchen when he suddenly heard a voice speaking in Japanese. He'd glanced around curiously, and in that mont of confusion, his vision went black. The next thing he knew, he was here.

He stumbled for a mont before finding his footing. His eyes were imdiately drawn to two figures: a cute, topless girl who was half-snake, and, standing by the door, a petite girl in a gothic lolita dress with an eyepatch over her left eye and pretty, reddish-brown hair tied in twintails.

Ryohei's eyes went wide. He understood Japanese—he'd taught himself by watching tons of ani and certain… other kinds of action films. So when the snake-girl ordered him to help "take out Yurine," he instantly knew who these two were.

One was Jashin-chan. The other was Hanazono Yurine.

Ryohei's mind buzzed. Did I get isekai'd? Into an ani world? No, wait! I was summoned into an ani world by Jashin-chan!

He looked from one to the other in disbelief, his gaze darting back and forth before scanning his new surroundings.

"..."

Seeing the young man stare at them with a look of utter shock before examining the apartnt, Hanazono Yurine instantly "understood" the situation.

She sighed as if nursing a headache, stepped forward, and bowed deeply.

"Hontou ni sumimasen! I'm so sorry. My Jashin-chan has caused you so much trouble."

"Hey, you! Apologize properly, too!" Yurine straightened up, her face cold as she shot a death glare from her reddish-brown eyes at the lamia beside her.

"Sumimasen!" Jashin-chan yelped, bowing instinctively.

Her golden bangs cast a shadow over her face. Her sapphire-blue eyes curved into a cunning crescent as her lips stretched into an exaggerated grin, revealing two sharp fangs.

"Like I'd ever apologize!"

With a shout, Jashin-chan leaped high into the air—her tail was surprisingly springy, launching her two or three ters with a single bounce, almost hitting the ceiling. Ryohei figured she could probably jump even higher outdoors.

Speaking of which, he thought, she really is an exhibitionist. His eyes caught an eyeful of things they weren't supposed to see, and he felt a slight blush creep up his neck.

"I'll summon as many minions as it takes to finish you!" Jashin-chan roared from above.

"Die! Next year, this day will be the anniversary of your death! Finishing Move: Jashin-chan Dropkick!"

She flashed a triumphant, arrogant smile at Yurine, who simply stared back coldly. Her thick, green snake tail swung down violently, aid straight for Yurine's head.

Yurine dodged with a simple side-step.

She then pulled a large machete from a nearby corner and swung it rcilessly at the descending tail.

SLASH!

A section of the snake tail dropped to the floor, twitching, as blood gushed from the stump. A few splatters even hit the sliding door to the kitchen.

"UWAAAAAAAHHH!"

Jashin-chan clutched her bleeding stump and writhed on the floor in agony. Yurine, however, simply broke into a morbid smile, letting out a string of bell-like, chilling laughter.

This scene was pretty funny in the ani, Ryohei thought, but in real life…

Thankfully, Ryohei was a chef and used to seeing bloody scenes. He just wiped a bead of cold sweat from his brow. A normal person's legs would have given out, and anyone with a heart condition would have had an attack on the spot.

"Ahem… please excuse the display."

Suddenly rembering they had a guest, Yurine stopped laughing. Holding the blood-stained machete, she looked at Ryohei and introduced herself over Jashin-chan's agonized screams.

"My na is Hanazono Yurine. This thing is Jashin-chan… and, well, I'm very sorry, but… you probably can't go back ho."