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It was safe to say that cooking occupied a very important part of life. One couldn’t live without eating and drinking. Cooking made that experience more enriching.
Bluntly put, one could survive without cooking.
There was a ti when people ate raw vegetables and at. But could that truly be called a human life?
Why were humans, dwarves, elves, and countless other races grouped together in the category of “people?” It was because they lived like people, not like beasts.
However, just as people had different food preferences, races also had varying tastes.
Here, the won had two choices. One was to cater to the Commander’s taste.
The other was to captivate the Commander’s taste with their own cooking. The two seed similar, but they were fundantally different approaches.
Naturally, Yuren chose the latter.
‘The Commander has been working hard lately. He must be exhausted. Then I should make sothing that will energize him.’
Naturally, the only food that ca to Yuren’s mind for boosting energy was at.
Of course, Yuren’s cooking consisted mostly of picking up and eating at. But she felt that wouldn’t be enough.
‘Besides, it feels like the Commander has been avoiding lately.’
If even the oblivious Yuren noticed, it ant Hans was deliberately avoiding her.
Fortunately, Yuren dismissed it as her imagination. The Commander wouldn’t avoid her, would he?
Putting aside such useless thoughts, Yuren wandered through the nearby forest in search of at.
Excessive hunting of wild animals was prohibited. Overhunting would deplete the forest’s resources.
This wasn’t a rule imposed by Hans, but a common practice in other nations as well. There was a reason poaching was prohibited.
However, Hans had given permission this ti. They needed ingredients, after all.
“Isn’t that a nice-looking boar?”
“I spotted it first!”
“Ruby?”
She spotted a boar rustling nearby.
Yuren licked her lips and was about to capture it, if a giant hamr hadn’t slamd down in front of her.
But Yuren didn’t even flinch. She simply turned her head towards where the hamr had been swung. There stood Ruby, her eyes gleaming.
Yuren chuckled and said,
“It doesn’t matter who spotted it first. What matters is who catches it first.”
“…Tsk!”
“What kind of language is that for a forr Commander?”
“I’m sick of being bound by titles!”
“I agree.”
No bloodshed.
This rule wasn’t just for the cooking competition, but because Hans had emphasized it strongly. None of them wanted to displease him by disobeying.
Then, there was only one way.
Without a word, Ruby and Yuren dashed forward.
Surprisingly, the boar didn’t run away. Or rather, it couldn’t, overwheld by their presence.
The poor boar could only hope for a swift, painless end. And naturally, the first to reach the boar was Yuren.
Ruby gritted her teeth. No matter how hard she trained, she still couldn’t beat that monster.
However, she hadn’t given up yet. The mont she gave up, everything would be over.
‘I learned that from the Commander!’
She had lost her mother to her father, and her holand had hunted her relentlessly.
Yet, the girl had resolved to carry on, even mimicking her mother’s speech patterns.
It was a form of imprinting. Emotions inevitably dulled over ti. That’s why she needed a trigger. To rember her mother and to never give up on revenge.
She needed that imprint. But there was soone who made her forget even revenge. Ruby had learned a lot from the Commander.
The indomitable fla that never gave up, even in the most desperate situations.
In that mont, flas ignited on Ruby’s hamr. She swung it down, striking the ground.
Boom!
With a trendous roar, the poor boar was engulfed in flas.
Yuren stared blankly at the scene. The blazing flas, reflecting Ruby’s will, had completely incinerated the boar without touching the surrounding forest.
“…What the hell was that?”
Ruby grinned and raised her middle finger at Yuren.
“If I can’t have it, neither can you!!”
She couldn’t match Yuren’s speed yet. But if she gave up now, Yuren would get the ingredients first.
So, after much deliberation, Ruby had made her choice. If she couldn’t have it, neither could her rival!
That was the indomitable will that never gave up!
…If Hans had seen this, he would have been appalled.
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“Real cooking is done with fruits.”
Unlike Yuren and Ruby, who were preparing at dishes, Clara was preparing a secret Elven dish she had learned from her mother.
Clara was slightly worried because the Elves weren’t on good terms with the other races.
But she quickly changed her mind. The Commander wasn’t petty enough to nitpick over food.
He was more of a magnanimous person. He had even invited the Elves to the Alliance eting.
This gave Clara a sense of responsibility. She didn’t want to lose face in front of the Commander if her food was criticized.
So, she prepared ticulously.
‘Clara, I’ll entrust this recipe to you.’
‘This is…?’
‘It’s a secret Elven recipe I’ve written down.’
‘I-is it okay for a judge to give this?!’
‘The recipe doesn’t matter. It’s your skill that counts.’
“…That’s right, damn it, that’s right.”
No matter how good the recipe, it was the cook’s skill that mattered when it ca to gathering ingredients and preparing the dish. And most of the recipes Cluna had given Clara were unusable.
The ingredients weren’t available here, or they required traditional Elven cooking tools. It was practically all of them. But Clara didn’t give up.
She had also learned a lot about cooking by observing her mother. She knew how to substitute ingredients and tools, even if she didn’t have the originals.
“This would have been a disaster if I had relied solely on the recipe.”
Clara easily grasped the aning. It was a provocation, asking if she could truly execute the recipe with her own skill.
Clara’s competitive spirit soared.
‘Alright, let’s do this.’
“Um, excuse . Could you give that root?”
“Bayard? What are you doing here?”
“I-I’m preparing my own dish, you know.”
It wasn’t strange. Unlike the Dwarves and Dragons, who primarily ate at, the Beastn balanced their diet with at and vegetables.
Of course, at was the main course.
There were also vegetable dishes that even Elves could enjoy. But that was a separate issue. This particular herb was a necessary ingredient for Clara’s dish.
“Sorry, but I need this.”
“T-then where can I find it?”
“You should be able to find so around here. It’s not common, but it’s not a rare ingredient either.”
“Th-thank you. A-and be careful…”
Bayard retreated surprisingly easily, but her last words lingered in Clara’s mind.
‘What did she an?’
Just then, a stray spark flew from sowhere and landed on the herb.
“Huh?”
Before she could react, the herb was completely incinerated. Yet, her hand was completely unhard. The implication was clear.
🚨 Important Notice 🚨
); }
Clara’s gaze followed the trajectory of the spark. As expected, two won stood there. One was a large, imposing figure, and the other looked like a child.
“What the hell is this bitch doing here?!”
“I’m sorry! There was a slight miscalculation!”
“Miscalculation? Did you just say miscalculation?”
How could a miscalculation result in burning the ingredient without touching her hand?
Knowing it was bullshit, Clara couldn’t help but feel enraged.
“Wait, I understand your anger, but we don’t have ti for this.”
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
“Think about it. The others must be ahead of us by now.”
“That’s…true.”
“We’re at a disadvantage. So, we need to start over from scratch. Don’t you think?”
“…”
It was a sophistry that surpassed even Ruby’s nonsense, but Clara, blinded by rage, didn’t care. Her deliberation was brief, but she reached the sa conclusion.
If I can’t do it, neither can you.
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[Translator Notes]
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