Shirou's clones number 30 million

Minegasaki Yaeko stared at Nakiri Erina for a while, secretly thinking to herself:

Since you know you're doing something wrong, go home. Don't stay here all day long; you're just getting in the way.

After looking at the dishes on the table, Yaeko Minezaki looked surprised and couldn't help but ask:

"Did the boss change the menu today? It's all vegetarian, not a single piece of meat in sight."

"No, that's not it. Today's main purpose is to experiment with this thing."

Shirou pointed to a jar of candy on the table and said with a smile:

"This is a new type of candy developed by one of my research institutes. Each one has a different effect."

"For example, if you eat this one, for the next ten minutes, whatever you eat will taste like barbecue."

"Or, after eating this one, for the next ten minutes, everything you eat will taste like braised fish."

“This kind of thing…” Yaeko Minezaki hesitated, “It feels so strange. Everything tastes the same. Won’t it damage your taste buds over time?”

"Of course not," Shirou denied without hesitation. "In principle, it just forms a deceptive layer on the surface of the tongue to fool the taste buds and will not have any adverse effects on the human body."

Chapter 142 I never expected to become a victim.

Chapter 142, Section 143: I never expected to become a victim.

"I see. But this kind of thing...only children would like it, right?"

Yaeko Minezaki paused, hesitated, and then said:

"Everything tastes the same, um... can I try it?"

“Of course, take it yourself.” Shirou gestured with his hand.

Minesaki Yaeko took out a candy, ate it, and then picked up a bite of vegetables.

"It really feels like barbecue. Even though we're eating vegetables, it feels like we're eating barbecue."

She looked around and picked up another potato slice.

"That's true. It feels really strange. Everything tastes like barbecue, which lowers my expectations for the food."

"Is the water going to taste like barbecue too?"

Minesaki Yaeko hesitated before taking a sip of the soup; it still tasted like grilled meat.

"Boss, will the effects stack if I take multiple pills in a row? For example, one pill lasts for ten minutes, so two pills would last for twenty minutes."

"It won't stack, it will only refresh. If you eat another one when there are eight minutes left, you'll have another ten minutes to adjust the taste."

"Boss, I think only families who can't afford to eat barbecue every day and kids would like this kind of thing."

“It’s specially made in candy shape, it’s meant for kids,” Shirou chuckled, then added, “So, what do you think of this candy? Will it be popular?”

Minesaki Yaeko suddenly realized that the phone call she received during the day asking her to acquire a commercial building must have been to open a company that specialized in producing and selling this kind of candy.

"I'm not a child. Even if I say it's possible, what if a child doesn't like it? In the end, it still won't sell."

"In that case, the market research will be left to you."

"Um... I'm not the executive director of the construction company and the principal of Zhengyang Academy, am I? How did I become a market researcher now?"

"The capable should do more. By the way, I didn't ask you to go in person. This kind of thing can be arranged with just a phone call, right?"

That's easy for you to say. If that's the case, why don't you just make the call yourself? You still make me follow up.

Minezaki Yaeko muttered something to herself, then looked up with an anxious expression.

"If the market research results are not optimistic, will the candy company continue operating?"

"Let's start by producing this special candy for a while and see how it goes. If the market response isn't great, we can switch to selling other snacks. I also own several companies that specialize in producing snacks, so we can include these in that portfolio."

"If that's the case, why bother opening a new one?"

"I'm aiming for an extremely strong market response. If that's the case, the company will then primarily sell this type of candy."

Minezaki Yaeko nodded as if she understood, then said again:

"I will conduct market research as soon as possible. However, before the product is launched, the research results can only serve as a reference at most, and it is not impossible for the opposite to happen."

"Indeed, so this is just a reference."

As he spoke, Shirou took a bite of tomato and couldn't help but laugh.

"The tomatoes have turned into barbecue flavor! Personally, I would definitely buy this candy to try once it's on the market. But it's like a snack; you can't eat it every day."

Two days later, the snack, named "Dream Candy," began to appear in convenience stores and supermarkets.

Thanks to television and online promotion, it generated a great response as soon as it hit the market and was loved by students.

The main target consumers are primary and secondary school students.

However, it's just something to try out for the novelty; it can't compare to a necessity at all.

Of course, thanks to its monopoly, the profits were quite considerable.

……

Tuesday, inside Zhengyang College.

He spent the entire weekend working behind closed doors with Megumi Tadokoro to research fried chicken nuggets, but the time was too short and they were unable to succeed.

So the two agreed to try again next week.

The in-car shops have only been open for a short time, and the loss of foot traffic in the commercial street is not yet very serious; at least it can last for two or three months.

Even so, Soma Yukihira still felt an indescribable sense of urgency, so much so that he had been secretly thinking about the fried chicken nugget recipe since yesterday morning.

At that moment, Ms. Fujino, who was skilled at making Western food, walked into the classroom from outside, carrying a jar of candy in her hand.

"Today I'm going to present a new topic to everyone: how to break through the barriers of taste."

"As we all know, some skilled chefs can make dishes that are so powerful that the flavor can linger on the tongue for hours or even days."

"During that period, no matter what I ate, that taste always lingered on my tongue and wouldn't go away."

"Today, I'm bringing you a kind of barbecue candy that has a similar effect. After eating one, for the next ten minutes, whatever you eat will feel like you're eating barbecue."

Soma Yukihira instantly snapped out of his daze, staring at the jar of candy in astonishment before letting out a soft chuckle.

Interesting. I'll take on this challenge.

……

At the same time, Totsuki Academy.

"Erina Nakiri! I challenge you to a food battle and win back our club!"

"Oh...? With such a confident attitude, you must have already prepared your chips, right?"

"Of course! I am confident of victory today."

"Interesting, I accept."

A small-scale food battle soon began.

During the cooking process, Erina Nakiri noticed that her opponent had taken a jar of candy and ground it all into powder, and her expression changed slightly.

"What are you doing?"

"I...I'm using a new type of seasoning."

"Shut up! Stop talking nonsense. This candy has a taste deception effect and cannot be broken by ordinary food."

As she spoke, Erina Nakiri's anger intensified.

This candy went from the research institute to the market thanks to its own suggestion.

I never imagined that it would be used as a cheating tool in a food battle today.

Last Saturday at the research institute, Dr. Hayano said that the powder was just a byproduct of research on food-making machines that could trick the taste buds.

At the time, Erina Nakiri thought about it for a while and suggested that it be made into candy, which would probably be popular with children.

To her surprise, the candy went public so quickly; from the establishment of the company to the candy entering convenience stores, it only took two days.

Of course, what I never expected was that I would become a victim of candy.

"Even world-class chefs find it difficult to break through the taste barrier created by candy. Do you, as a chef, have any basic sense of shame for cheating in this way?"

"me……"

Knowing he was in the wrong, the opponent was speechless, and the food battle ended in a disappointing way.

Chapter 143 You Must Promise Me One Condition

Chapter 143, Section 144: You must grant me one request.

After the food battle ended, considering that there was nothing else to do on campus that day and that her car was probably already waiting outside the school gate, Erina Nakiri headed straight for the school gate.

However, after walking only a few dozen steps, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly came from behind.

At the same time, Hisako Shinto's voice also rang out:

"Ms. Erina!"

"Is there something you need, Hisako?" Erina Nakiri paused for a moment, then added, "Because I still have things to do right now, it's best not to take too long."

"What's up?"

Hisako Shinoto repeated her words, her expression extremely serious:

“The one who’s in trouble isn’t me, it’s Ms. Erina! Haven’t you been away from home all this time? I asked the Commander-in-Chief, but he always brushed me off and never gave me a straight answer.”

"Where have you been lately? I...I'm so worried about you!"

By the end, she looked like she was about to cry.

This situation, ironically, made Erina Nakiri hesitate.

"Hmm... it's not impossible to tell you, but you must keep it a secret and absolutely not tell anyone."

"Mmm." Hisako Shinoto nodded repeatedly, staring intently into Erina's eyes. "I promise I'll keep this a secret. What happened?"

“You’re not usually a talkative person, so I’ll just let you know so you won’t keep secretly following me and thinking you haven’t been discovered.”