Food Wars, my food not only glows!

　"So, the total score is 100 points for all five of them, old man."

　"Well done, as expected of our Xiao Hui!"

　The middle-aged man clenched his fists and couldn't help but cheer when he saw the high score given by the judges. Other audience members were also watching intently.

　Tadokoro Megumi looked at the judges on the stage, her fists clenching slightly.

　Although she didn't think her grades would be bad, she still felt nervous before the results came out. The judges who kept her in suspense were really malicious!

　19

　The scoreboard in front of the second judge lit up, causing the audience to hold their breath and stare intently. The next judge, Chihiro Orie, gave her a score of 18.

　The remaining two lights also lit up at the same time, namely 18 and 19.

　18, 19, 18, 18, 19

　Total score: 92 points.

　Ranked second.

　"Ninety points! Another one scoring over ninety!"

　"That's amazing! I never expected another dark horse to emerge at the last minute!"

　"I never expected this unknown guy to suddenly jump to second place. This is really big news."

　The crowd erupted in uproar as they watched the name surge to second place and the scores following it. Everyone stared at Tadokoro Megumi with utter astonishment.

　There are just too many shocking facts happening today.

　First, all the transfer students, led by Zhang Chen, achieved excellent results, crushing the group from Totsuki Academy to advance. Then, an unknown student forcefully took second place.

　Absolutely brilliant!

　"Teacher Bai Yuan, I did it."

　Looking at the score in front of her and listening to the cheers of the audience behind her, Tadokoro Megumi's eyes welled up with tears. In her hand, she held a talisman that would bless her with academic success. It was given to her by her family and was the driving force that supported her before she met Bai Yuan.

　Thinking back to before she left for the far moon, her parents encouraged her, everyone saw her off, and everyone was looking forward to her going to a wider world.

　But she disappointed them.

　For three years in junior high school, I was always at the bottom of the class.

　Every time her mother asked her how she was doing in Totsuki, she wanted to tell her countless times that she wanted to go home, but the words would always be cut short by a stubborn smile.

　He smiled and said everything was normal.

　But I shed tears alone in the dead of night.

　Later, she met the man who would change her life.

　Noticing Shiro Awaken watching her from the audience, Tadokoro Megumi flashed an extremely bright smile, as if to tell him that she had done it.

　No matter how muddy her past may have been, she shines brightly on stage now!

　"But if that's the case, and the eighth-place score is the same, shouldn't we hold a live vote?"

　Suddenly, someone asked this question.

　At the same time, everyone's attention was focused on the large screen in the sky, where the names of Mito Ikumi and Mimasaka Subaru were flashing.

　This means that the audience needs to vote to select one person to advance.

　"There was even this part..."

　"Tie scores are quite rare in previous years."

　"But they say it's the audience's choice, so how exactly will it be done? Is it a vote?! But we haven't even tasted the food, how can we vote..."

　After the rules were clarified, the audience below immediately started discussing among themselves.

　Since they haven't tasted the dishes prepared by the contestants, they naturally don't know who to vote for. Are they just going to choose whoever they like the most?

　It's not impossible, but this is too frivolous!

　"The two of you will make the dish again, and the staff will divide it into 21 small portions and distribute them to the audience in the first two rows for the final vote."

　Just as the situation reached a stalemate, Bai Yuan's voice suddenly rang out, drawing everyone's attention to him as he stepped forward.

　"Who is this guy?"

　The audience was filled with questions.

　"Teacher Bai Yuan."

　When Bai Yuan jumped down from the stands and stood on the field, all the students bowed slightly and respectfully called out his name.

　"No need to be so polite. In short, let's start a new round of cooking using the method I just described, and let the audience be your judges."

　Bai Yuan waved his hand, not liking all this formality; he just wanted to know the final results of the advancement.

　Subaru Mimasaka is skilled at imitating and replicating other people's dishes. It's unclear whether he's competing alone this time or has become someone else's participant.

　"They've actually moved on to the voting stage. Looks like we need to get a little more serious."

　Looking at the figure that everyone was watching in the crowd, Mimasaka Subaru's eyes were deep, and he took two steps forward: "I am willing to accept this scoring method."

　“I can accept that.”

　Mito Ikumi naturally wouldn't refuse Shiro's request, especially since she didn't think she would lose. She looked at Mimasaka Subaru with a fighting spirit on her face.

　"Then let's get started."

　After they finished speaking, the two returned to their respective cooking stations. Bai Yuan found a secluded spot to sit down and calmly observed everything before him.

　"Who is that guy? How come he settled everything as soon as he arrived? And he seems to have a lot of prestige among the students."

　Chihiro Orie looked at Shiro Awakening with curiosity in her eyes. Who exactly was this man? With such prestige among the students, he must be no ordinary person!

　"I've never seen him before. There are so many teachers at Totsuki Academy, it's normal not to recognize a few. However, I can sense that he is very strong."

　The fat old man rubbed his belly, looking intently at Bai Yuan, sensing a unique aura of strength emanating from him.

　"Bai Yuan...Bai Yuan!? I remember before we tasted the whole lamb shumai, the waiter who brought the food said that the dish was made and given to us by Teacher Bai Yuan."

　Recalling the words of the players on the field, as if he had thought of something, the tall, thin man suddenly spoke, a look of horror flashing across his face.

　silence.

　The five judges suddenly fell silent.

　The person they wanted to see was right in front of them. They had imagined what the person would look like, but they never expected that the other person would be so young, probably only in their early twenties.

　How can someone in their early twenties make dishes like that?

　With the taste still lingering in their mouths, they carefully memorized the face, planning to give it a formal visit after the competition.

　It is very impolite to strike up a conversation abruptly.

　Think of this.

　The judges regained their focus and turned their attention to Mito Ikumi and Mimasaka Subaru.

　However, if someone were to observe their eyes now, they would notice that they are focusing more of their gaze on Mito Ikumi.

　Clearly, they were more curious about the other person's cooking.

　"let's start."

　Looking at the few lamb chops and pork tenderloin left in front of her, Mito Ikumi's face flashed with seriousness. The two had the same score, and she had to perform better than the previous one to have any chance of winning!

　Cut the lamb chops, pork tenderloin, and beef fat into slices of similar thickness, then stack them alternately and tie them tightly together with cotton thread.

　Take a large bowl and add minced garlic, minced ginger, sliced ​​onion, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, honey, cooking wine, cumin powder, black pepper powder, salt, and olive oil to make a marinade.

　The meat is tied up and pricked thousands of times with tiny silver needles before being put into the marinade. This is the fastest way to marinate and infuse the meat with flavor.

　"So that's how those different kinds of meat are combined; no wonder they have such a wonderful texture!"

　Watching Mito Ikumi's actions, Sentawara Orie had a look of sudden realization. She had actually combined three kinds of meat together; no wonder the taste was so unique.

　"If it weren't for this main event"

　The question was about mutton; her score could have been much higher.

　Watching Mito Ikumi's actions, the fat old man couldn't help but sigh.

　The dish prepared by the other party only made up half of the ingredients with lamb, relying on the combination of the flavors of the three types of meat to create an exceptionally novel and unique dish.

　As for the other side.

　"I never expected that Mito's opponent would be Subaru Misaka. He likes to thoroughly investigate the students he has his eye on, and then provoke, intimidate, and use every means to drag them onto the stage of a duel."

　However, he probably doesn't dare to be too presumptuous now because of Professor Bai Yuan's presence, otherwise he would definitely start a food battle!

　Both in Division B, Ibuzaki looked at Mimasaka Subaru and slowly spoke, his brows revealing a hint of resentment, clearly indicating that the two had known each other for a long time.

　"Beer-braised mutton".

　Looking at Mito Ikumi not far away, Mimasaka Subaru uttered four words.

　"what?"

　Mito Ikumi was puzzled. Why was the other party telling her all this? Did he want her to go easy on him?

　"A dish that Professor Baiyuan once demonstrated in class uses boneless lamb shoulder, which has a unique flavor and a certain amount of fat."

　He turned his gaze to Mito Ikumi. Since he didn't know that she would be his final opponent, he hadn't done any research or investigation beforehand. However, he figured that the cooking techniques taught by Hakugen would be more than enough to deal with her.

　After all, the other party was trained by Bai Yuan.

　"Teacher Baiyuan's method is to remove the fat from the surface of the lamb shoulder, chop it up and set it aside, and then cut the lean meat into pieces the size of a baby's fist."

　Add the fatty lamb to a cold pan and cook over medium-high heat to render out its fat. Then add the lamb chunks and stir-fry until browned. Finally, use a slotted spoon to remove them and place them in a large pot.

　Subaru Mimasaka explained as he cooked, always keeping in mind the dishes taught by his teacher, Hakugen, and never forgetting them even now.

　"Add chopped onions and garlic to the remaining mutton fat in the small pot, stir-fry, then add beer and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper, then pour into a large pot with 5 sprigs of thyme and 5 bay leaves. Simmer over low heat for 70 minutes."

　Next, skim off the surface fat and add an equal amount of starch, stirring well.

　Add 250 grams each of potatoes and carrots to the pot and continue to simmer for 30 minutes, until all the ingredients are tender. Then, add the mixed mutton fat and cornstarch to thicken the sauce.

　This method of preparing beer-braised lamb fully utilizes the aroma of lamb fat and beer, requiring no complicated seasonings and truly preserving the original flavor.

　"That's how Teacher Bai Yuan makes it, but I can't replicate that flavor. So I replaced the beer in the beer-braised lamb with pineapple beer to enhance the flavor and achieve a unique and better taste."

　After the food was put into the pot, Subaru Mimasaka first looked at Hakugen, then at Miyoko Hojo, who was gritting her teeth, and a mocking expression appeared on his face.

　"Teacher Shirabuchi, there's something I'm curious about. Can Subaru Mimasaka really make the same dishes as you?"

　Hisako Shinto looked at Shiroyuki with a puzzled expression, her voice filled with curiosity. The other party was imitating his cooking, yet he didn't react at all.

　"How is that possible? No matter how well he imitates him, he could never make the same dish as Master Bai Yuan, not even one ten-thousandth as good!"

　Before Bai Yuan could speak, Nakiri Alice spoke first, her voice filled with disdain.

　No matter how good Subaru Mimasaka's imitation skills are, he can't replicate the Flowing Light Cuisine. There's no particular reason; it's simply a matter of skill level.

　"His ability can only replicate the dishes of mediocre chefs. Against truly skilled chefs, he has no chance at all."

　After watching for a while, Erina Nakiri also spoke up.

　Although Subaru Mimasaka followed the same steps as Hakubuchi in preparing the dishes, the timing of cooking and the condition of the ingredients used that day were all crucial factors affecting the final taste of the dishes.

　These small details cannot be simulated through tracking unless he has super vision, and Bai Yuan is cooking in sync with him.

　"This kid is quite interesting. If he trains his visual abilities properly, awakening super vision is not impossible."

　Unfortunately, his method is wrong; it won't train visual abilities. If he continues training like this, he'll never awaken supervision and will only ever be a despicable imitator.

　As Erina Nakiri and Alice Nakiri discussed, Shirabuchi also turned his attention to Subaru Mimasaka, silently watching him cook.

　He had heard of and witnessed the other party's abilities.

　By imitating a person, you can master the dish they have learned, and then improve that dish in a food battle to make it even more delicious, thus achieving the goal of winning.

　This is actually a very clever approach, because it increases the base score by adding something under the same conditions.

　If the opponent's innovation capability is weak, they will be ruthlessly crushed and defeated.

　"Extra-vision, can this be awakened through training?"

　Noticing the deeper meaning in Bai Yuan's words, Nakiri Alice said with some excitement, her eyes sparkling with a unique light.

　Erina Nakiri, upon hearing this, had a subtle expression and stood aside without saying a word.