Abandoned in the mountains, I was adopted by a lizard ~I mastered magic and surpassed my parents, but I didn't know they were legendary ancient dragons~ - Chapter 44.2

Chapter 44.2   What happened on the way back – 2

While waiting for the competition to begin, I spent some time hunting nearby monsters to extract monosodium glutamate and disodium inosinate using alchemy magic, completing my preparations.

A few hours later:

“Let the cooking begin!”

A magically amplified announcement echoed, followed by the gong signaling the start of the cooking time.

With the signal, I, like the other chefs, headed to the communal ingredient area. This competition allowed the free use of basic ingredients provided by the organizers, such as vegetables, meat, bread, and noodles.

I selected potatoes, carrots, daikon radish, onions, pork belly from an orc, cabbage, burdock, soybeans, and wheat, and returned to my assigned cooking station.

First, I quickly froze some onions, cabbage, and burdock with ice magic and then pulverized them into powder using crushing magic. Next, I applied fermentation magic and time-space tuning magic to some soybeans and wheat to create soy sauce and mirin. Additionally, since there was no sugar in the communal ingredient area, I used alchemy magic on the remaining wheat flour to create sucrose.

With these preparations complete, I filled a pot with water, added the various vegetable powders, soy sauce, mirin, sucrose, and umami seasonings to make a broth. I then added appropriately sized cuts of potatoes, carrots, daikon, whole onion pieces, and the pork belly to the pot and started cooking.

Once it began to boil, I sealed the pot with an anti-physical barrier, effectively turning it into a pressure cooker. After simmering for a while, it was time for the finishing touches.

I sterilized the pot’s contents with sterilization magic, creating a sterile environment, then used a combination of weak cooling magic and time-space tuning magic to slowly cool the contents. After cooling, I reheated the contents to boiling.

I repeated this process several times.

“…Yes. The flavors have seeped in well.”

Tasting it, I found the flavors to be just right, so I decided it was complete.

I had crafted a simmered dish with my own unique twist, but I wondered how it would fare. I seemed to have finished cooking relatively early, so I waited for the others to complete their dishes.

Finally, about 40 minutes later, it was time for the judging to begin.

“Hmm… The seasoning isn’t bad, but there’s a bit too much pepper. Just because a spice is high-quality doesn’t mean you should use it excessively.”

“The seafood and cheese flavors are clashing. I understand you want to use rare ingredients, but you need to be careful with combinations…”

The judges, with stern expressions, were giving harsh critiques to the dishes of the chefs who went before me. Amid the tension, it was finally my turn.

“This… what kind of dish is this? Even with all my extensive research into the culinary traditions of various countries, I’ve never seen anything like it…”

One of the judges said this suspiciously as they took a bite of my simmered dish. And in that instant, the stern expression on their face transformed completely, as if by magic.

“…D-Delicious…!”

With that one word, the surrounding chefs started to buzz with excitement.

“Did you hear that…?”

“Y-Yeah… From the mouth of the ‘Guardian of Gourmet’ himself, Michelin, we heard ‘Delicious’…!”

Is a simple word like that really so rare? As I tilted my head in confusion at the chefs’ reactions, the man called Michelin asked me:

“…If it’s not too much trouble, could you explain how you made this dish?”

It’s not like I have any secrets to hide, since I’m not a professional chef.

“Well, first…”

I proceeded to explain the entire process from start to finish.

After listening to everything, Michelin clasped his head and muttered:

“No, it’s impossible. There are too many parts that defy typical cooking processes for me to understand…”

What kind of evaluation will this lead to? As I waited, he continued:

“But there’s one thing I do understand. This dish unquestionably deserves a place in the ‘Hall of Fame’.”

“Th-The Hall of Fame—!?”

The other chefs’ voices synchronized in shock at his declaration.

“Excuse me, what exactly does ‘Hall of Fame’ mean in this context?”

“W-What? Someone with your skill doesn’t know!? The ‘Hall of Fame’ means your dish will be selected for the royal family’s ceremonial feasts. With this title, even if the dish costs 1 million kururu per serving, gourmets will be eager to buy it.”

Though it sounded like an impressive accolade, I didn’t fully grasp its value. Michelin, looking somewhat taken aback, explained further.

“Hey, how many years has it been since the last Hall of Fame entry?”

“I think it was about 20 years ago…”

…Could the Hall of Fame be even more prestigious than winning first place?

With that, the judging of my dish came to an end. While the remaining dishes were being judged, I decided to wait with Jasmine in the gallery.

“The Hall of Fame… What happened to all that self-doubt when I suggested you enter?”

“I didn’t expect this outcome either.”

At that moment, a voice suddenly called from behind.

“Excuse me, the one who just made it into the Hall of Fame?”

Turning around, I saw a young girl standing there.

“Nice to meet you. I am Reich, Executive Director of Tri-Dia Trading Company. If it’s alright with you, could you supply our company with a few types of the powder seasonings you used earlier?”

Tri-Dia…?

Ah, I remember now. It’s that bank.

If I recall correctly, Tri-Dia has a major stake in that bank. For them to hold such a large share in a megabank, they must be quite a large trading company.

“Oh, Ms. Reich. Long time no see.”

“And you are… Jasmine from Bamboo Inside Construction. It’s been a while.”

It seems Jasmine knows this girl, exchanging such familiar greetings. So, the possibility of an impersonation can be ruled out.

“Alright. I don’t have much on hand, but…”

“That’s perfectly fine. We’ll determine the order quantity based on sales.”

Feeling confident in their reliability, we began to discuss the specifics of the contract.

“Hadar, why are you starting a new business after entering a cooking contest…”

Beside me, Jasmine sighed and muttered.