Chapter 384

After some discussion, Azami Nakiri’s team selected Rindo Kobayashi, Momo Akanegakubo, and Somei Saito for the third round.

On Erina’s side, everything proceeded according to Haruto’s earlier arrangements. Erina, Tosuke Megishima, and Satoshi Isshiki temporarily withdrew to rest, allowing Takumi Aldini, Ryo Kurokiba, and Akira Hayama to take their places.

“Your job is pretty simple,” Haruto told the three, his expression unusually serious. “You don’t have to force yourselves to win. Just do everything you can to exhaust your opponents. Make them work as hard as possible and push them into showing as much of their true ability as you can. Understood?”

“I’m definitely going to win!”

Takumi looked at Haruto with determination burning in his eyes.

Neither Ryo nor Akira said anything, but their expressions made it obvious that they had no intention of entering the competition merely to lose.

Haruto patted each of them on the shoulder without saying anything further.

After all, there was nothing wrong with having dreams, even if those dreams were probably going to be crushed.

The matchups for the third round were soon announced.

Rindo Kobayashi vs. Akira Hayama

Momo Akanegakubo vs. Ryo Kurokiba

Somei Saito vs. Takumi Aldini

The moment the round began, Takumi, Ryo, and Akira launched into their cooking with remarkable intensity.

Their determination was obvious, and the quality of their dishes was more than enough to force their opponents to take them seriously.

Although all three ultimately lost, they pushed Rindo, Momo, and Saito into using everything they had. By the end of the round, the three Elite Ten members had expended considerably more energy than anticipated.

“Nice work. You completed your assignment perfectly,” Haruto told Takumi and the others when they returned.

Unfortunately, none of the three looked particularly pleased with that assessment.

Losing was still losing, and they had all entered their matches hoping to win.

…

For the fourth round, Erina’s team sent out Soma Yukihira, Terunori Kuga, and Megumi Tadokoro.

Azami’s side, meanwhile, replaced Momo Akanegakubo with Eishi Tsukasa, bringing the First Seat into the competition.

The new matchups appeared on the screen.

Rindo Kobayashi vs. Megumi Tadokoro

Eishi Tsukasa vs. Soma Yukihira

Somei Saito vs. Terunori Kuga

“Damn it! Tsukasa’s the one I wanted to fight!”

Kuga stared at the matchups with obvious frustration.

Haruto glanced at him and replied calmly, “Well, if you beat Saito, there’s still a chance you’ll get to face Tsukasa later.”

With Soma’s current level of skill, even a sudden burst of inspiration during the match probably wouldn’t be enough to overcome Eishi Tsukasa.

That meant if Kuga could defeat Saito and remain in the competition, there really was a possibility that he could challenge Tsukasa in a later round.

“All right, then! Bring it on!”

Kuga immediately perked up, his frustration replaced by renewed fighting spirit.

The fourth round turned out to be exceptionally intense.

All three members of Erina’s team displayed remarkable culinary ability, pushing their opponents far harder than anyone had anticipated.

Megumi, who had once been painfully shy and lacking in confidence, showed none of her usual hesitation. She prepared the comforting regional cuisine she knew best, pouring everything she had into the dish.

Although she ultimately lost to Rindo, Megumi forced her opponent to fight at full strength to secure the victory.

Soma’s confrontation with Tsukasa was equally spectacular.

Even though Soma eventually suffered a narrow defeat, his performance was impressive enough to leave Tsukasa considerably more exhausted than before.

As for Kuga and Saito, their match became an all-out battle in which neither side held anything back.

Saito narrowly emerged victorious, but the effort took such a heavy toll that he was practically exhausted to the point of collapse when he left the arena.

There was no chance he could fight at full strength again anytime soon.

And that was precisely the kind of result Haruto had been aiming for.

…

In the fifth round, Erina returned to the arena alongside Satoshi Isshiki and Hisako Arato.

Their opponents were the three remaining available members of Azami’s team.

Erina Nakiri vs. Eishi Tsukasa

Satoshi Isshiki vs. Rindo Kobayashi

Hisako Arato vs. Momo Akanegakubo

Once the matches began, Hisako practically abandoned any serious attempt to win her own confrontation.

Instead, she devoted nearly all her attention to supporting Erina.

That assistance ultimately proved decisive, allowing Erina to overcome Eishi Tsukasa and secure an extraordinary victory against the First Seat.

Meanwhile, Rindo fought with everything she had left, but her condition had deteriorated considerably after two consecutive rounds of exhausting competition.

Against Isshiki, who had recovered his energy and was competing in excellent condition, she eventually suffered defeat.

Hisako, on the other hand, paid the price for dividing her attention. Having concentrated so heavily on helping Erina, she lost her own match against Momo.

With that, Azami’s team had only two contestants remaining: Momo Akanegakubo and Somei Saito, the latter of whom was still almost completely exhausted.

The sixth round followed shortly afterward.

Erina and Tosuke Megishima stepped into the arena once more.

This time, the outcome held little suspense.

Erina defeated Momo without much difficulty, while Megishima secured victory over the worn-out Saito.

And with those final two defeats, the Régiment de Cuisine came to an end.

Erina’s team had won.

Azami stood motionless, his expression dark and gloomy.

Despite his obvious unwillingness to accept the outcome, there was nothing he could do.

He had lost.

No matter how bitter he felt about it, the result was final.

“Hey, Azami! Long time no see!”

A familiar voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts.

Joichiro Yukihira approached with a cheerful grin and casually threw an arm around Azami’s shoulders.

Then he waved toward Gin Dojima.

“Come on, let’s go have a drink! It’s been years since we’ve all gotten together. I think we’ve got plenty to catch up on!”

Azami struggled against Joichiro’s grip a couple of times, but in the end, he could only allow himself to be dragged away.

With the competition finally over, the spectators and contestants gradually began leaving the venue.

…

After returning to Tokyo, Haruto headed home.

When he opened the door, Kagura was sitting on the sofa, casually flipping through a gourmet magazine, while Kanna sat quietly beside the window.

Both turned at the sound of the door.

“Welcome back!”

Kagura greeted him with a delighted smile.

She had good reason to be happy.

During Haruto’s absence, the quality of their meals had fallen considerably. Now that he was finally home, they could look forward to enjoying his cooking again.

Kanna was clearly pleased as well. Although she remained as quiet as ever, her gaze stayed fixed on Haruto.

“Yeah, I’m back.”

Haruto nodded before getting straight to the point.

“I’m planning to visit another world next.”

“Another new world? That’s great!”

Excitement immediately appeared in Kagura’s eyes.

Every world they visited offered different scenery, unfamiliar creatures, and entirely new flavors.

For Kagura, that was more than enough to make the prospect of another journey appealing.

Haruto opened the entrance to the Gourmet Restaurant and had Kagura and Kanna enter first.

Then he approached a new World Gate and stepped through.

…

The next instant, the sounds of honking cars and bustling crowds filled his ears.

Haruto looked around.

Towering buildings lined the streets, their glass façades reflecting the midday sunlight. Cars filled the roads, while pedestrians hurried along the sidewalks.

A convenience store nearby was playing popular music, and a steaming oden display stood near its entrance, releasing faint wisps of white vapor.

Everything looked perfectly ordinary.

Haruto extended his senses through the surrounding area, and a slight frown appeared on his face.

There was neither magical energy nor spiritual power in the atmosphere.

In that respect, this world was remarkably similar to the world of Food Wars!

“Don’t tell me this is just an ordinary world.”

After considering the situation for a moment, Haruto opened the Gourmet Restaurant and brought Kagura and Kanna out.

Then the three began exploring the city.

Their first stop was one of the most luxurious Western restaurants in the area.

The head chef possessed excellent knife skills, and the steak they ordered had been cooked with precise control over the heat.

Unfortunately, that was about all there was to say.

The food was good, but there was nothing particularly extraordinary about it.

Afterward, Haruto deliberately sought out the city’s most famous food street.

The three ate their way along the street, trying an impressive assortment of snacks and local specialties.

There were plenty of different dishes to choose from, but as far as Haruto was concerned, their quality was merely acceptable.

Everything was edible, but nothing especially memorable.

The cuisine here clearly lacked the extraordinary characteristics he had encountered in other worlds.

There were no dishes that glowed like those in the world of Cooking Master Boy!, nor did the food produce the exaggerated, almost aphrodisiac reactions so common in the world of Food Wars!

Once Haruto had confirmed that the local cuisine was thoroughly ordinary, the three spent the rest of their time exploring the city.

They visited parks, shopping malls, libraries, and various other public places.

Throughout their exploration, Haruto kept his senses extended, constantly searching for anything unusual.

Unfortunately, he found nothing.

There were no monsters, no people with supernatural abilities, and not even any particularly impressive martial artists or trained fighters.

Everyone they encountered seemed perfectly ordinary.

People went to work, returned home, bought groceries, cooked dinner, and carried on with their daily routines.

Their lives were peaceful, predictable, and almost painfully normal.

After thinking things over, Haruto decided to visit an internet café and investigate the world through its news and information networks.

He spent some time browsing reports from different countries, hoping to find some indication that this world might have something unusual to offer.

Unfortunately, the news was just as ordinary as everything else.

Most of the domestic reports concerned everyday matters such as traffic accidents, neighborhood disputes, family issues, and shopping-center promotions.

Even the most widely discussed story he found was simply about an office worker who had been stabbed by an attacker in broad daylight and subsequently died from his injuries.

Haruto tried searching for urban legends, paranormal incidents, unexplained mysteries, and anything else that might point toward the existence of supernatural phenomena.

The results were thoroughly disappointing.

Most were sensationalized articles written to attract attention, while the rest concerned supposed mysteries that had already been exposed as hoaxes.

He couldn’t find a single credible lead.

“Looks like this really is an ordinary world.”

Haruto sighed in disappointment.

A modern world without supernatural powers or distinctive cuisine held very little appeal for him.

There was nothing here that could help him improve his cooking, and nothing that would contribute to his personal strength.

He might as well never have come.

“So, are we leaving as soon as we can?”

Kagura looked toward him.

“Yeah.”

Haruto nodded.

“There’s no reason to stay. Once the World Gate is ready, we’ll head straight back.”

…

Three days passed.

At last, Haruto sensed that he could leave this world.

He had Kagura and Kanna return to the Gourmet Restaurant, then prepared to activate the World Gate.

However, just as he was about to depart, his expression suddenly changed.

A strange fluctuation had reached his senses.

It was extraordinarily faint, yet unmistakably distinct from anything he had detected during the previous three days.

Haruto paused, then slowly smiled.

“And here I thought this really was an ordinary world. Looks like I’ve finally found something interesting.”

Apparently, something unusual had been hiding beneath the surface of this seemingly mundane world after all.

Without further hesitation, Haruto followed the mysterious fluctuation.

It eventually led him to a school.

Classes had already ended for the day, although some students were still lingering on campus.

Following the source of the energy, Haruto entered one of the classrooms.

A single glance was enough for him to understand why the fluctuation had caught his attention.

An elaborate pattern had appeared across the classroom floor.

Countless intricate lines intersected and connected, forming a complete magic circle.

“What the hell is going on?!”

“W-What is this thing?!”

Several students wearing school uniforms stood inside the formation, staring at the glowing patterns beneath their feet in panic.

Haruto studied the magic circle with raised eyebrows.

It was a teleportation formation.

Although its structure differed considerably from the teleportation magic he knew, he could still recognize the spatial energy gathering within it.

More importantly, that energy had already reached its peak.

The formation was about to activate.

As for where it intended to send the people caught inside, Haruto had no way of knowing.

The high school students were desperately trying to escape.

However, whenever one of them approached the edge of the formation, its glowing boundary repelled them and forced them back inside.

Haruto considered the situation briefly before making his decision.

He would enter the teleportation circle himself and find out where it led.

After all, he’d finally discovered a trace of the supernatural in a world that had initially seemed completely ordinary.

A mysterious teleportation circle with an unknown destination was considerably more interesting than simply returning home.

Besides, the existence of magic proved that there was more to this world than he’d first assumed.

Under the stunned gazes of the trapped students, Haruto calmly stepped into the increasingly brilliant magic circle.

“Hey! You—!”

One of the students had barely opened his mouth when the light suddenly intensified.

A blinding white radiance erupted from the formation, swallowing the entire classroom in an instant.