The strongest anime shop owner

"What exactly is this guy planning? If he watched my match against Aldini... I completely predicted the dishes I would make in that match... If he watched that match, then why can he say something like that?" Sure enough, Mimasaka Subaru wasn't having a change of heart; he just wanted to know what gave Soma the confidence to say such things. In reality, Mimasaka Subaru was overthinking it. Soma was the kind of person who acted impulsively, almost like he was doing things one step at a time without considering the consequences. Although that's what he said, he did have his own plans.

"Oh, right, Mimasaka...! I'll skip one more step for you while I'm at it." Mimasaka was full of doubt when Su Luo said this, but he quickly understood.

Soma pointed to his bowl and said, "The theme is Western main courses, right? I... I'm going to make this."

"You said you want to...do this...?" Soma's actions were indeed beyond what ordinary people could keep up with. When Soma said this, everyone was completely stunned. Even Mimasaka stammered, "When Soma said this, I understood what Soma meant by what he said earlier."

"I'm already full, you guys can chat as you like." After looking at them, Su Luo realized there was nothing else to do. Since she was already full, she might as well go back to sleep. As for Soma, there was no need to worry about him at all. Like his father, he was a creative talent. So she stood up, ignored everyone, and walked towards the door.

"Hey! Su Luo-kun..." Watching Su Luo leave without a care, Yoshino Yuuki really didn't know if Su Luo and Soma were still related. After hesitating for a moment, she wanted to call Su Luo back, probably hoping that Su Luo would persuade her or something.

"Oh, right, Mimasaka, if he's made up his mind, let me know. If he's not going to do it, then don't come looking for me. I hate flies the most." Halfway there, Hajime seemed to remember something, so he turned around and said. As for how to contact him, Su Luo didn't say. Anyway, Mimasaka is omnipresent, so there's no need to worry about not being able to contact him. As for what followed, anyone with common sense would understand the meaning. Plus, given Mimasaka's title of "King of the Tracker" and his various actions, it goes without saying that it's all too clear.

After saying that, Su Luo felt it wasn't enough, because everyone knew what kind of person Mimasaka was, so she added, "I won't cook any dishes before the competition, so even if you follow me, it won't do any good. You should save your energy for Soma."

"What...!" After hearing Su Luo's words, everyone no longer doubted whether Su Luo and Chuang Zhen were biological brothers. Damn, with these personalities... who would dare to say they weren't related? Step forward, and I promise I won't kill him. But seriously, what are you two brothers up to? Everyone felt completely bewildered.

"Really? Even though that's what you said, I still won't give up following her." Damn, did she have to be so blunt?! After hearing this, everyone was speechless. It was clear that Mimasaka Ang didn't believe Su Luo's words.

"Whatever." Su Luo didn't have time to pay attention to Mei Zuo'ang. However, the thought of her every word and action being monitored by others made her feel uncomfortable. But since the other party didn't accept it, she decided to let him be. After saying this, Su Luo went out the door to take a shower and go to bed.

"Hey, little brother, wait for me!" After Su Luo walked out, Ryoko Sakaki followed behind and called out to Su Luo who was walking ahead.

"Is there something you need? If not, I'm going to take a shower and go to bed. Otherwise, I don't want to go to any parties later. I can't handle it. As a good kid, I should go to bed on time." Su Luo asked with some confusion when she saw Sakaki Ryoko following her. After all, shouldn't she be paying attention to Soma's situation in this situation? He's such a worry.

Su Luojun, is it really okay to act so cute?

"Aren't you really going to sponsor Soma? After all, he's your older brother. And also, aren't you worried at all?" Ryoko Sakaki asked, looking at Su Luo who was calm and seemed to be doing nothing.

"Worried? What's the use of worrying? As for the financial aid, even if I were willing, he wouldn't accept it." Su Luo shook her head slightly, thinking of Souma's personality, and said.

"Why?" Ryoko Sakaki asked curiously.

“Everyone has their own principles. Since entering the culinary industry, one must be prepared for all sorts of things. No matter the wind or rain, one must always strive for higher goals. If one doesn’t even have this much courage, it means that one was never ready to enter the culinary profession. But I know that although he has a very easygoing personality, I know that he has long been prepared.” Su Luo held up one finger and explained seriously.

"Really?" After hearing Su Luo's words, Ryoko Sakaki fell silent for a moment, and it was unclear what she was thinking. However, she quickly reacted, smiled, and hugged Su Luo tightly. Her soft breasts pressed against Su Luo's neck, squeezing and deforming. "Wow! I didn't expect my little brother to be so cute when he's serious."

"Let me go! I'm going to take a shower and go to bed. Judging by the time, Iroha-senpai should be back by now!" Su Luo felt the softness on her neck and smelled the fragrance emanating from that body. Her cheeks flushed. After all, no matter what, an adult's soul lived in that body. After breaking free from Sakaki Ryoko's embrace, she hurriedly ran away.

Watching Su Luo flee in a rather disheveled state, Ryoko Sakaki covered her mouth with her hand and couldn't help but laugh.

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Chapter 201 Hayatsuda

The next day - morning

ding dong~

Soma was the first to get up today. Of course, some others had already gone out quite early. While Soma was washing up, the doorbell of the Polaris dormitory rang.

Although a week was given, classes were still required, so there wasn't much time left.

Soma was already planning his time while washing up, but he was quickly interrupted by the doorbell. He wondered, "Who is it? Coming to the Polaris dorm so early in the morning?"

After opening the door, a boy came into Soma's view. Soma looked him over and even wondered what he was. He saw that the boy had a camera hanging on his chest, binoculars hanging on his thigh, and something that looked like a recording device in his hand.

"Yukihira! Senpai! It's the real Soma! That's amazing!" When the boy saw that the person who opened the door was Soma, he immediately showed an expression of admiration. However, before he could finish speaking, Soma grabbed the boy's arm and cleanly and neatly knocked him down.

"Why did you suddenly attack me?" Caught off guard by the sudden attack, the boy clutched his aching wrist and looked at Soma with teary eyes.

"Uh, sorry, sorry. I thought you were a truly upright spy, but it seems I misunderstood." Even an idiot would know it was a misunderstanding after seeing this. However, Soma's apologetic tone was quite casual. After apologizing, although he didn't know who he was, since he was here, he must have something to do, so he asked, "So, what brings you here so early?"

"My name is Hayatsuda! I'm a member of the school newspaper club! I'm in charge of delivering the morning paper." At this moment, Hayatsuda gave a brief self-introduction, then took out a newspaper from his hand and handed it over.

Mitsuki Hayatsuda - Totsuki Academy School Newspaper, third year of junior high school.

"The school newspaper?" Soma took the newspaper, looking at his puzzled expression, clearly unaware that Totsuki Academy had such a thing.

Totsuki Academy Newspaper - A school newspaper that gathers all kinds of information on and around the school. Published (almost) daily, it covers a wide range of topics, from special reports on public events like the Autumn Selection and interviews with top chefs to small, everyday things like energy-saving tips. A must-read for anyone involved in the academy! - Excerpt from Totsuki Academy Publications Department's "History of January"

“The Totsuki Academy Newspaper has been published since the academy’s founding, making it a newspaper with a long history!” Hayatsuda explained.

"Oh, that's amazing. I didn't know such a thing existed." Soma exclaimed after hearing Hayatsuda's words, then looked at today's newspaper. On the front was a large picture of Su Luo, Soma, and Mimasaka. As the current food festival was undoubtedly the most important event, it was inevitable that something about the food festival would appear.

The newspaper headline read that contestants Mimasaka, Soma, and Su Luo were about to compete. Mimasaka and Soma would not only compete in their match but also engage in a food war—a first in the Autumn Selection's history of two food wars! Mimasaka had already defeated the Italian expert, Takumi Aldini, in the first round of the fierce battle. Most predicted Soma's defeat. Furthermore, this tournament was the first in history to end in a draw among the top four, meaning the remaining matches would be three-way battles. Considering all these factors, only Su Luo, known as the "Devil," could rival Mimasaka. Although the match hadn't been seen yet, it was sure to be incredibly exciting. Let's look forward to it!

"Also, Senior Soma, I'd like to ask if Senior Su Luo is here?" As he said this, Hayatsuda craned his neck to look inside. Although Su Luo was younger than him, he was still considered senior in terms of both cooking skills and experience, even though it felt a little awkward to call him that.

"Oh, you're looking for Xiao Su Luo? He's probably still sleeping. What do you need him for?" Seeing Hayatsuda craning his neck to look inside, even though he didn't know what Hayatsuda wanted, it seemed he was looking for Su Luo, probably a friend or something. Although Su Luo was his younger brother, he didn't know much about him, even less than his own father.

"There's something I need to ask of Senior Su Luo." Hayatsuda tapped his cheek with his index finger, his eyes darting left and right, and said in a low voice with his head down. It wasn't that he didn't want to say it, but he didn't quite understand Soma's personality and was afraid of offending him. His purpose in coming here was to interview Su Luo, but whether it was in the newspapers or elsewhere, interviewing Su Luo seemed to be the best option. However, facing Soma, who was also a contestant, he didn't dare to be too explicit.

"Oh, then come with me." Given Soma's personality, he immediately treated Hayatsuda as Su Luo's friend, so he didn't ask any questions and led Hayatsuda in, heading towards Su Luo's room.

"That's the one," Soma said, pointing to a door in front of him.

Upon hearing Soma's words, Hayatsuda immediately ran over and knocked on the door, but there was no response from inside.

"No need to knock. Xiao Su Luo doesn't have class this morning. Whenever he doesn't have class in the morning, he usually doesn't wake up until after 9 a.m. If you have anything important to say, just go in and call him." Soma didn't expect Hayatsuda to be so impatient. Seeing him knocking on the door, he couldn't help but say this. After saying this, Soma took out his key and went to open the door.

Actually, it seems that almost everyone in the dormitory has a key to Su Luo's room, but Su Luo doesn't care at all, since she won't do anything shady inside anyway.

"Soma-senpai, isn't this a bit inappropriate? If Su Luo-senpai hasn't woken up yet, I can come later." When Hayatsuda saw Soma's action, she felt that if she disturbed her senpai's rest because of her, it would definitely leave a bad impression, so she quickly spoke up.

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Chapter 102 Su Luo's Room

"It's alright. Almost everyone in our Polaris dormitory has a key to this room, just for waking up Xiao Su Luo," Soma said, waving his hand dismissively.

Ugh! After hearing this, Hayatsuda was speechless. To be honest, something felt off.

While Hayatsuda was worrying, Soma opened the door. Although it was early morning, the curtains inside blocked out the sunlight, making the room seem somewhat dim.

Upon entering, Su Luo immediately drew back the curtains, and bright sunlight streamed in at lightning speed, illuminating the previously dim room and exposing everything inside to the two of them.

In Su Luo's room, there was a large bookshelf filled with various figurines. On the other side was a large-screen TV, which, instead of being for watching, was for playing games. Piles of various plush toys were stacked around and under the bed. On the bed, Su Luo was wearing an adorable mouse-themed cloak pajama set, the same style worn by the female protagonist in the anime "Himouto! Girl". She was also holding a large white plush toy in her arms. Although she hadn't been a shut-in for many years, she couldn't shake off her old habits. Now, she could only be described as a pseudo-shut-in.

"Wow! Su Luo looks so cute sleeping! He's like a completely different person from when he's outside." When Hayatsuda saw Su Luo's adorable sleeping appearance, his eyes lit up. He hadn't expected the mature and casual Su Luo to have such a side to him. It completely overturned his image in other people's eyes. Seeing this, Hayatsuda couldn't help but take out his camera and snap several photos of the sleeping Su Luo, taking pictures from every angle. While taking pictures, he thought to himself, "Haha, this is big news! If it's like this, hehe..."

"Uh..." Looking at Hayata, who was frantically hitting Su Luo, Su Luo was momentarily speechless. He had absolutely no idea what was going on. However, even the most clueless person would understand that this person was definitely not Su Luo's friend. He didn't understand why Hayata was hitting him so violently, but then, as if suddenly remembering something, he quickly stopped Hayata's actions—or rather, he pounced on him and pulled him down. At the same time, he thought to himself, "I have to stop him! I have to stop him! Otherwise, I'm doomed! I'm still so young, I don't want to die!"

"Ouch, it hurts! What are you doing?" Hayatsuda rubbed his injured arm, completely bewildered by what had happened.

"Oh, sorry, sorry, you'd better not film anymore, I don't want to die!" Seeing this, Soma realized his actions were a bit rash and apologized. Compared to this, just thinking about Su Luo's rage was terrifying. Soma had done the same thing back then, and Su Luo chased him with a kitchen knife for a long time. According to Su Luo, "As a chef, you should die in the kitchen. Ending your life with a kitchen knife is the only way to live up to your spirit as a chef. So, go die, Onii-chan!!!" It was because of that incident that his cute little brother became unlovable and stopped calling him Onii-chan. It's all tears when you think about it.

"Why can't we take pictures?" Hayatsuda asked, puzzled. However, Soma would never ask such a question.

"No, absolutely not, there's no reason why." Soma wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. After seeing that Hayata had stopped taking pictures, he breathed a sigh of relief. This was something he definitely couldn't talk about. Then he went to call Su Luo. However, he seemed to have forgotten something very important: he hadn't deleted the photos from the camera yet.

Soma didn't say a word, he just went up to Su Luo and kept shaking her like a sieve, and then he just kept shaking her like that.

"Soma-senpai, what are you doing?" Hayatsuda looked at Soma's actions of waking Su Luo up and really didn't understand what he was doing. Shouldn't you wake someone up by calling them? Is shaking like this really going to work? Most importantly, Su Luo hasn't woken up even after shaking for so long.

“You don’t understand.” Soma didn’t say much, because even if Su Luo was noisy in the system space, he could block out the sound. But if he kept shaking her a lot, Su Luo would have to get up if he didn’t want to come out of the system space with pain all over his body.

Sure enough, it wasn't long before Su Luo couldn't take it anymore and logged out of the system space. Upon seeing that it was Soma, he immediately flew into a rage: "A man who's lost 600 games, if you don't have a reason to wake me from my bed, hmph!"

"No, it wasn't me looking for you, it was him." Upon seeing this, Soma quickly waved his hand and pointed to Hayatsuda standing to the side.

"Senior Su Luo, I..." Hayatsuda quickly spoke up after seeing Su Luo looking in his direction.

"Alright, no need to say anything more, I know who you are." Su Luo interrupted Hayatsuda before he could finish speaking.

"What!? Senior Su Luo has actually heard of me? This is so lucky!" When Su Luo said that he knew him, Hayatsuda felt like he had been hit by a pie, and a bright smile appeared on his face. He thought to himself that if this was really the case, then the interview would definitely go very smoothly. However, fantasy is beautiful, but it is too far from reality.

"I've heard of her. She's a member of the school newspaper. That's just a nice title; frankly, she's just a handyman. It's like the boss and the cleaning lady in a company. People like that will never have the opportunity to report on important things, so they're generally not valuable at all." Just as Hayatsuda was feeling happy, Su Luo's words froze Hayatsuda's smile, which hadn't yet fully blossomed. Instantly, she seemed to be struck by lightning, turning into a stone statue. A lonely, cold wind carrying a few withered leaves blew by.

"Oh, by the way, what did you want to see me about?" Su Luo asked again after saying that, although she probably already knew something in her heart.

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Chapter 103 No Plans to Develop Recipes

"That's right, just as Senior Su Luo said, so... I'm begging you, Senior Su Luo, I hope you can let me accompany you in the process of developing the dishes, because I want to be a reporter who can work independently, please!!" Although she was discouraged, Hayatsuda didn't want to lose this opportunity, so she bowed deeply to Su Luo.

"Hmm, to be able to say that under such circumstances is truly admirable... However..." After seeing Su Luo say this, Hayatsuda looked at Su Luo with great pleasure, seemingly about to agree, but then said, "Impossible!"

“Senior Su Luo, I…” How could Hayatsuda give up so easily? After all, some things, as long as you persevere, will always have a chance.

"It's not that I don't want to, but even if you come along, it won't make a difference. I have no plans to develop new dishes," Su Luo said casually, shrugging her shoulders.

"What?!" After hearing Su Luo's words, Hayatsuda was instantly stunned, his mouth agape, looking utterly incredulous. "This...this can't be real, can it?!"

"Of course it's true." Su Luo said calmly, "As for the dishes, I have no intention of developing them at all. Don't ask me why, you'll find out during the competition."

After hearing Su Luo's words, I suddenly felt that Su Luo was about to forfeit the game. I don't know what he was thinking.

Just as Hayatsuda was about to say something, Su Luo waved her hand and said, "Alright, you've wasted a perfectly good morning like this. You guys are really doing a disservice."

As Su Luo finished speaking, she shook her head slightly, looking as if the children were hopelessly unteachable: "Sigh, these young people nowadays..."

"Senior... what do you mean by 'we wasted a perfectly good morning'? Does your 'perfect morning' mean sleeping? Do you even have the right to say that, you bastard! And what do you mean by 'we young people'? Don't make yourselves look so haggard!" After hearing Su Luo's words, Hayatsuda felt like a bunch of mythical beasts were running through his mind, and he was completely speechless.

"To be honest, someone had already contacted me before you, so if I said the same thing to him, then it goes without saying that you're the only person you have a chance to interview." The food festival is a large-scale event at the academy, and it's normal for the contestants to be interviewed. As someone with a high win rate in this match, Su Luo would naturally have people specifically looking to interview him. How could it be someone as insignificant as Hayatsuda? However, Su Luo still pointed to Soma beside him and said to Hayatsuda, "However, although this man who has lost 600 matches has not been given any hope by anyone..."

"Little Su Luo, I already told you, don't call me the man who lost 600 games, call me Onii-chan! Also, I only lost 490 games, not 600! And finally, what does it mean to have no hope given to you by anyone!?" Soma said angrily while rubbing Su Luo's temples with both hands after hearing this.

"Ouch...it hurts, it hurts, I know, I know, let go quickly." Su Luo grimaced and rubbed her temples with both hands after Chuangzhen let go, saying with some pain.

“Um… Soma-senpai, this newspaper… um… it seems… that’s what it says.” Hayatsuda, who had been silent, jumped out. He was a little hesitant to speak, so his voice was somewhat timid, afraid of upsetting Soma, since their only hope now rested on Soma.

"Really?" It was obvious that Soma hadn't read the newspaper carefully when he took it. He picked it up and glanced at it, then complained, "What? They wrote such a bad review of me. The people at the newspaper are really awful."

“Um… um… Soma-senpai, it’s not just what the newspapers say… the outsiders…” Hayatsuda’s weak voice came through again at this moment, but after saying that, she continued, “Even so… I was moved by you the first time I saw you during the selection!… Especially in the first round of the official competition! Facing the champion candidate, Alice-senpai… you weren’t afraid at all, and you won a great victory! So, I hope that in the coming week… could I have a close interview with you? And…”

"Not scared at all!?" Upon hearing this, Su Shi was speechless. He wanted to say, "Soma doesn't seem to be scared at all!"

At this point, Hayatsuda lowered her head, paused for a moment, then suddenly raised it again, looking at Soma with passionate enthusiasm, and said, "I also hope that through this experience, I can become a reporter who can work independently. Although I don't know if I'll get the chance to publish a story! But my desire to follow Soma-senpai is genuine! I... I will do my best to interview! Soma-senpai! Please take good care of me!"

"Holy crap, are you kidding me? This talent is enough to make him an Oscar winner." Looking at Hayatsuda's passionate words and performance, Su Luo was speechless. He spoke as if it were the truth. If Su Luo hadn't been out of luck, he probably wouldn't have... Hey, Hayatsuda-kun, where's your integrity? And also, don't talk like it's the truth, okay?

"No!" However, Soma simply turned his head away and refused mercilessly. So, no matter how well you speak, the result is... utterly useless.

"..." Hayatsuda.

"Alright, you can stay here if you want. I'm leaving now. Honestly, such a small thing has wasted so much of my time. I'm going to have breakfast now. Bye-bye." Seeing that they didn't seem to be leaving, Su Luo clearly didn't want to stay any longer and freeload. After scratching her slightly messy hair, she went out.

Although Soma rejected Hayatsuda, Hayatsuda used all her charm and skill to eventually win him over.

Soma also made a lot of trial dishes, but he still felt that they were not very good. So he wanted to find someone to taste them. Then he thought of Erina Nakiri, who has the God Tongue, and took his dishes to her for her to taste.

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Chapter 204 The Competition Is About to Begin

Unbeknownst to them, across from their room window, Senzaemon Nakiri was watching them. Behind him stood Satoshi Isshiki, who said to Senzaemon, "Commander, thank you so much for your assistance in the first round of the selection. I will be troubling you to serve as the chief judge again in the final round."