Food Wars!: Delicious Food of the Heavens

Chapter 66 Erina's Shame

Lin Yu held up the glass bottle containing spices.

"Alright, the most difficult part, the compound flavor powder, is now done."

1

"The rest of the smoking of applewood is much simpler."

Lin Yu took out his phone from his pocket.

"Now, all I have to do is call my roommate and borrow some applewood."

"Has your roommate finished the assignment assessment?" Hisako Shinto suddenly asked.

Seeing Lin Yu's gaze, Hisako Shinoto explained, "What I mean is, if the other person is still cooking, wouldn't calling them now be disruptive?"

"Haha! Don't worry!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Yu burst out laughing.

"Although Yiwu-kun is usually taciturn and doesn't show off his abilities."

"But everyone in Polaris Dormitory knows he's an amazing cook!"

Lin Yu looked at Hisako Shinoto and smiled teasingly, "You could even say that Ibu-kun's cooking skills are not much inferior to yours, little secretary."

"He must have finished the project by now."

"9

After saying that, Lin Yu dialed a phone number.

"Moshi, Moshi, Ibu-kun? Have you completed your assessment?"

"Okay, it's done."

A deep voice came from the phone.

"Lin Yujun, is there something wrong that you're calling all of a sudden?"

"Um, I'm a little embarrassed to say this suddenly, but Ibu-kun, I really need your help right now."

Lin Yu knew Ibu Saki's personality well, so he didn't exchange many pleasantries. After confirming that the other party had completed the task, he immediately got straight to the point.

"Mr. I remember you had a bottle of applewood shavings in your suitcase, which you used for fumigation, right?"

Yes, there is one bottle.

"I've run into a bit of an emergency, could you lend me some money?"

After Lin Yu made his request, there was almost no hesitation in responding on the other end of the phone.

"Yes, that's fine."

The voice on the phone was as concise and to the point as ever.

Lin Yu immediately breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "Thank you, I owe you a favor."

"Sure, come to my room and get it."

Lin Yu exchanged a few more pleasantries before hanging up the phone.

Lin Yu glanced at Hisako Shinto beside him, waved his phone, and smiled.

"Done!"

After obtaining the applewood from Ibuzaki Shun's room, Lin Yu and Shinoto Hisako rushed to the kitchen where Nakiri Erina was researching new dishes.

Standing outside the room, Lin Yu took a few deep breaths.

"Shina, when you go inside and see Erina, have you thought about what to say?" Lin Yu asked Shina Hisako suddenly.

"Should we pretend nothing happened?"

"Should I refuse to try and outsmart her, and instead honestly confess to Erina?"

Faced with Lin Yu's curious gaze, Hisako Shinoto gave her answer without hesitation.

"You don't need to tell me that."

"I am completely loyal to Lady Erina, so I will naturally be completely honest with her."

As she said this, Hisako Shinto's expression was very serious, and when she looked at the tightly closed door in front of her, her gaze was equally firm and unwavering.

"Even if Lady Erina is angry with me because of this, I will accept it willingly."

"As I thought... That's good..."

'

Upon hearing Hisako Shinto's reply, Lin Yu murmured something under his breath.

"What?"

Lin Yu's voice was very weak. Hisako Shinto next to him could only hear the sound, but couldn't make out what was happening.

"I said, you should go in now."

"Don't just stand there at the door, you're wasting time!"

As he spoke, Lin Yu gently nudged Hisako Shinto from behind, signaling her to hurry up and knock on the door.

"Lin Yu!"

Hisako Shinto turned to look at Lin Yu, her gaze sharp.

"No matter what, thank you for your hard work."

"I'm very grateful for your help!"

"Without you, I really don't know what I would do today..."

'

"Thanks!"

Looking at Hisako Niito, she saw the genuine gratitude in her eyes.

Lin Yu felt relieved, and realized that his efforts at noon hadn't been in vain.

"Alright, I'll accept your gratitude."

Lin Yu waved to Hisako Shinoto, "If we delay any longer, your Erina-sama will get impatient!"

"Okay! Thank you!"

Hisako Shinto nodded to Lin Yu and thanked him again.

Then, she turned around, took a deep breath, raised her hand, and gently knocked twice on the door.

"Please come in!"

A response came from inside the room, and Hisako Shinoto opened the kitchen door with the sign that read "Private Research, No Unauthorized Entry" and went inside.

In the kitchen.

Erina Nakiri stood in front of the stove with her arms crossed, her brows slightly furrowed, and a hint of impatience in her eyes.

Clearly, she had been waiting for a long time and was getting bored.

Hearing the door open, Erina Kiri turned around and saw Hisako Shinodo standing at the door with a hesitant look on her face and holding two glass bottles in her hands.

"Hisako, why did it take so long?"

Although the long wait made Erina Kiri somewhat irritable, she suppressed her emotions and her voice did not reveal the slightest impatience.

Even so, Hisako Shinoto was still so frightened that she trembled all over.

She quickly ran to Erina Kiri, bowed deeply, and apologized loudly.

"I'm so sorry, Lady Erina, for keeping you waiting!"

Because Hisako Shinto was standing very close, and her voice was so loud when she apologized that it even made Erina Kiri feel a little earache.

Erina Kiri was somewhat bewildered when she saw her assistant bow and apologize immediately upon meeting her.

Moreover, judging from the other party's posture, Kiri Erina felt that if she hadn't caught the other party in time, Shinoto Hisako might have even considered doing a dogeza (a traditional Chinese kowtow).

Faced with Hisako's series of overreactions, Erina Kiri felt a little frightened, and even subconsciously felt that her assistant... was acting a little strange...

"Alright, Hisako, I was just asking casually, don't overreact!"

Erina patted Hisako Shinoto on the shoulder, helped her up, and comforted her in a gentle tone.

"Although I don't know what happened, I don't mean to blame you at all!"

"Lady Erina!"

Upon hearing this, Hisako Shinomiya looked up at Erina Kiri, her eyes filled with emotion and brimming with tears.

"You're so kind!"

"You are simply the gentlest person in the world!"

"You, really!"

"Who flatters me the moment we meet!"

Erina Kiri ruffled Hisako Shinoto's hair, her face full of a helpless smile.

"Alright, tell me, what caused you to arrive so late?"

"Was the assessment topic too difficult? Or did something happen on the way? Why did it take so long?"

Hisako Shinoto took a deep breath, hesitated for a few seconds as if gathering immense courage, and then slowly spoke.

"Lady Erina, first of all, I must apologize to you."

"Actually, those materials you asked me to keep safe, I... I accidentally damaged them."

"Oh?"

Erina Kiri expressed her doubt and looked at the control panel beside her.

On it were the two glass bottles that Hisako Niito had been holding when she first entered the room.

One bottle contained light-colored wood shavings, while the other contained a mysterious powder with rich colors.

"I'm so sorry!"

Feeling deeply ashamed, the new household member bowed again in apology.

"Alright, Hisako, I forgive your sins."

After saying that, Erina Nakiri picked up the two glass bottles that Hisako Shinoto had brought and examined them carefully.

Then, Kirie Erina opened the glass bottle containing the spice powder.

First, I brought the bottle close to the opening and took a gentle sniff.

Immediately afterwards, Kiri Erina took out a small spoon, reached into the glass bottle, took a little bit of spice powder, and put it in her mouth.

Erina Nakiri closed her eyes, carefully savoring the proportions of each spice.

Pepper, cinnamon, cloves, basil, cardamom, fennel, sage...

"

With her divine tongue, Erina easily identified the various spices used in this blend.

But the more she tasted the different kinds of spices, the deeper Erina Kiri's beautiful brows furrowed.

"This complex spice blend..."

"The types of spices and the proportions of each spice are exactly the same as my original recipe, aren't they?"

"Why do I still feel like something's different?"

"Wait a minute... the types and proportions of spices do seem to have been slightly adjusted!"

"This adjustment was made far too subtly!"

No wonder I didn't react immediately.

Erina Kiri, who was in a state of deep concentration, stood still with her eyes closed, muttering to herself incessantly.

This made Hisako Aragaki, who had been watching closely from the side, nervous.

Hisako Shinoto felt a tightness in her throat and her hands were trembling.

When Erina Kiri opened her eyes, Hisako Shinoto quickly asked.

"What's wrong, Lady Erina? Is this blend of spices...unusable?"

"Don't be so nervous, Hisako."

Erina Kiri looked at Hisako Shirato and smiled, trying to calm the overly nervous Hisako Shirato.

"Hisako, you just said that the spice blend I originally prepared was ruined?"

"Yes!"

Erina Kiri weighed the glass bottle in her hand, then suddenly asked, "But... this blend of spices, you didn't concoct it, did you?"

Erina Kiri's gaze sharpened, her eyes meeting Hisako Shinoto's, causing Hisako to swallow nervously.

"I know Hisako is good at medicinal cuisine."

Erina Nakiri continued.

"In Chinese cuisine, medicinal herbs and spices often share commonalities."

"Your understanding and expertise in the field of spices is also quite remarkable."

"but!"

Erina Nakiri abruptly changed the subject, her voice suddenly rising in pitch.

"This blend of spices has been slightly modified from my original recipe."

"I don't think this was Hisako's doing, was it?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Hisako Shinoto felt a sudden tightness in her chest, difficulty breathing, and her vision blurred.

Lin Yu!

You bastard!

You promised a remake, so why did you change the recipe without my permission?!

You bastard! You've ruined me!

"Hisa sand?"

Seeing that her assistant seemed a little distracted, Kiri Erina spoke up to remind her.

"I'm here! Lady Erina!"

Hisako Shinoto replied loudly, then asked nervously, "Lady Erina, is there any defect in this blend of spices?"

"Will this interfere with your new culinary research?"

Seeing Hisako Shinoto's tense expression, Erina Kiri chuckled softly.

"defect?"

"I didn't say that."

Erina Kiri pulled Hisako Shinoto in front of her and ruffled her assistant's hair again.

"Hisako, don't be so jumpy."

Erina Nakiri gently reassured Hisako Shinodo.

"You're too tense! Relax!"

"yes!"

Hisako Niito breathed a sigh of relief. "As long as it doesn't interfere with your culinary research, that's good. Otherwise, I would have gladly died for it!"

Erina covered her mouth, her face beaming with undisguised laughter, seemingly amused by her little assistant's words.

"You idiot, Hisako!"

"It's just a bottle of spice powder. Even if you accidentally lost it, given our relationship, would I blame you?"

Seeing the smile on Erina Nakiri's face, Hisako Shinoto felt a warm current surge in her heart.

I felt as if all my strength had been drained in an instant, and my whole body went limp.

This feeling made Hisako Shinoto feel as if she were floating on a cloud.

"Lady Erina, you are so kind..."

"Haha, I already said, there's no need to flatter me."

Erina Nakiri gently patted Hisako Shinoto's head, then picked up the bottle of compound spices.

"Alright, Hisako, you still haven't answered my question?"

"If this blend of fragrances wasn't your doing, then who formulated it?"

"Although this guy's approach was wrong, resulting in the final product being slightly inferior to my recipe."

"However, even I must admit that the person who concocted this spice blend possesses unfathomable skill."

"This guy's cooking skills might even be... on par with mine."

'

Erina Nakiri looked at Hisako Shinoto.

"Tell me, who is that person?"

Seeing the encouragement and question in Erina Kiri's eyes, Hisako Shinoto blurted out.

"It's Lin Yu!"

"What?!"

Erina Nakiri instinctively gasped, and at the same time, she unconsciously tightened her grip, her wrist twitching so much that she almost dropped the glass bottle in her hand.

Hisako Shinomiya looked at Erina Nakiri with a puzzled expression. "Erina-sama, don't you remember me?"

"You even took Professor Chappell's class with him before."

Hisako Shirato didn't notice Erina Kiri's expression and continued talking.

"Although he is somewhat lacking in manners and disrespectful to you."

"But we really owe him a lot this time!"

"Lady Erina, please be magnanimous and don't stoop to his level, okay?"

"By the way, he's still..."

,"alright!

Erina Nakiri suddenly interrupted her assistant's incessant chatter.

"No need to say anything, I still remember him!"

When she said this, Erina Kiri's tone was laced with a hint of gritted teeth.

"hateful!"

"How could it be this guy?"

Just thinking about that guy...

The previous meetings all ended unpleasantly. Despite her seemingly lazy demeanor, she could easily lose control of her emotions with just a few words.

It wasn't just that I got angry; I think I even cried in front of him...

Ruined!

Erina Kiri remembered what she had just said.

Phrases like "I have to admit," "unfathomable," and "evenly matched" are used.

Especially since he said it in front of Hisako!

With these two thoughts swirling in her mind, Erina Kirei suddenly felt a strong sense of shame!

In an instant, Erina Nakiri's cheeks flushed a deep blush, as if she were drunk. At that moment, Erina Nakiri seemed to be truly drunk, her whole being dizzy and disoriented.

"How could it be him?"

"snort!

'

"That damned Lin Yu..."

""