"I'll be counting on you then Head chef Jack! Cough, oh yes, before I forget, prepare some rations I can take with me for this expedition!" The Emperor was unwilling to even skip a single meal cooked by Nick.
"No problem your highness! Just go and make sure not to return without the intruder's head!! I will prepare you a food supply that could last you weeks if need be!" Nick said solemnly as he walked out of the main hall and headed to the kitchen with determination!
"Head chef, you're back?!" The other chefs in the kitchen formally saluted Nick. But inside they weren't too happy with him, ever since he had arrived not once have they seen him cook a meal as he just simply reheated what they made and turned it into a delicacy!
They didn't become cooks in the Imperial Kitchen just because the pay was high, they also wanted to learn and further their skills by learning from the famous Head chefs that were assigned to the palace! But sadly they had terrible luck on this front, the palace had three Head chefs in current employment but each one was more eccentric than the last!
The first chef only came once a week with a single meal in hand, and all the way to the main hall the man would protect that single dish with his life! And after reaching the Emperor the chef would place it on the large table in the main hall then wait and stare as the Emperor ate!
The Emperor wasn't too fond of being stared at while he was eating but he had to make an exception because this chef was too adamant! Whenever he told the chef to turn around and to stop staring the chef would say.
"How could I do that?! When a person is eating their words might lie, but their eyes don't! I have to watch you as you devour my creation, I am a mother feeding you her child, please eat my child with love!!!" The chef would say then break into tears as he rubbed the empty plate in sorrow.
The second Head chef also had his quirks! He followed his predecessor's example and only came once a week as well, but he was a person that enjoyed following restaurant trends!
The Second head chef would also bring a single dish in only once a week, then he would demand for the entire palace to be decorated, he would ask for candles and flowers this week, then silver oak with golden cutlery on the next! He even boldly demands the Emperor to dress up in a formal attire before placing his dish down on the table with a note and leaving!
The meal and note would be random nonsense every time.
Like one time the Emperor opened the cover on the dish and found that it was plan bread! And on the note, it read.
'Dear Emperor, I don't know why, but I have found that the top restaurants around the Empire have begun serving bread as a side dish with every meal! Which got me wondering, why? Why place bread right beside a highly expensive dish?!
But then I realized, it was because it's a matter of perspective! Placing plain bread that commoners usually ate right beside a meal fit for a transcendence realm expert increased the value of that bread a thousandfold!
So I have decided to experiment and see if this plane bread that usually commoners ate tasted better when served by an Imperial Head chef?! If you have any comments or criticisms on my cooking please keep it to yourself, they will ruin my creative process!'
The Emperor had squashed the piece of bread in anger at that time and chased the head chef halfway around the palace before he gave the lazy bum a beating fit for a king!
And not even a month later the man was at it again! He had demanded decoration and nagged the Emperor to dress up, then left the palace after placing his dish and a note!
When the Emperor uncovered the dish he found that it was Empty! The plate didn't have a smudge on it, showing that this plate was clean and never held any sort of food before!
Stunned the Emperor hurriedly opened the note in hopes of understanding what was going on.
'Dear Emperor, after the beating last time I have meditated and found what I need to do, and that is to stay firm in my pursuit of making the trendiest meal! You might break my body, you can break my soul, but please don't!!!
Anyway, I have found that most high-class diners around the Empire have begun making their meals in small portions! And apparently, the new trend is the poor eat a lot while the rich eat little! From what I've learned the higher your status and position the smaller you eat to show off your powerful control over your appetite!
So, today I have prepared a meal fit for someone of your status, a meal so small that you can't even see it! In fact, I'm not even sure if the plate has a meal on it! If you have any comments or criticisms on my cooking please keep it to yourself, they will ruin my creative process, but if you still insist on giving it please do so using your words, no need for violence!'
But this time the Emperor didn't chase him in an undignified manner like last time as he simply sent out his soldiers to capture him and send him to prison! And that was exactly where this Second Head chef was right now, in prison! When all he had done was chase after his dream, a dream where he can create classy meals that were both trendy and full of surprise!
Finally Nick, a chef that can not only be considered as the most talented, but also the most hardworking of the head chefs! Even though he had never cooked a single meal personally, this chef had shown the miraculous ability to drastically increase the tastiness of a dish to the point of making it addictive in mere seconds!
But this chef, which they all hoped to learn from never once cooked and simply handed out orders and only came by once a day to heat up the food they made!
The other chefs greeted Nick politely before they went back to cleaning up the kitchen. They were done for lunchtime and they were all exhausted! These chefs not only prepared meals for the royals of the palace but for the entire palace staff as well which numbered in the hundreds! So now all they wanted to do was clean up and head back to their quarters for a little break!
Nick was amazed at the work ethic of these chefs, they were cleaning up the kitchen even though they were about to mess it up again to cook for the Emperor's expedition?! Nick even wanted to tell them to stop because it would just be a waste of time but on second thought he decided against it, why disturb other people's hard trained routine?!
So, Nick sat down on a chair inside the kitchen and watched silently as the other chefs ran around cleaning the place and dumping away the trash.
"We have finished cleaning the kitchen Head chef, Have a nice rest, sir!" The Chefs all spoke in unison showing how well trained they were. If the head chef was present it was customary to greet him this way before leaving.
"Oh, okay, since you insist I will be heading back for a little rest then. The Emperor has requested that we prepare him a food supply that can last him enough for weeks, and it has to all be ready by nightfall before he departs!"
"I was initially planning to help you all through the night but now that you've told me to rest I can only listen to your heartfelt concerns and have a little nap. Thank you all, it seems even if I try to hide it, all of you can see how hard I've been working! I will be back later to reheat the meals you have cooked! Don't you guys dare to slack off!" Nick warned them before he headed back to his residence.
"Big bro Nick, you're back! Where did you go, I've missed you so much! Wuuu...big brother please avenge me! Avenge me!!" Maggi had come in for a hug joyfully at first but it seemed she remembered something traumatic as she began wailing all of a sudden.
"Huh? What's wrong?! What happened?! Did anyone touch you?! Where is that bastard Peter?! Didn't I tell him to stay here and watch out for you?!" Nick was anxious all of a sudden as he picked up Maggi and began turning her like one would turn a ball to find where it was leaking.
"Put me down brother, no one touched me, it's that smelly Emperor, he stole...he stole a bar of chocolate from my secret stash!!!" The tear gates seemed to have opened at that moment as Maggi cried a river!
"What...cough, is that all? But wait, how do you know it's the Emperor?" Nick was annoyed at the little girl for getting him worked up for nothing, but he was also surprised at how certain she sounded that the Emperor was the culprit.
"Hmph! Of course, I know it's him! Who else would leave this in place of my missing chocolate!!!" Maggi angrily took out a large paper from the satchel by her waist and showed it to Nick with an expression that said, 'Look, bro, it's that bastard I tell you!'
Nick curiously took the paper from Maggi's small palm and read the paper. It was a newsletter that had been circulating around the Empire recently,
'The Emperor is too handsome to shit on the streets! The Emperor is too cool to shit on the streets! The Emperor is too majestic to shit on the street! Kill the Impersonator that did this! Stop the liars that spread this rumor!
Now, we will be quoting the Emperor on what he had to say about this incident! "People of Nova, I have always supported you all, whether you were a noble royal that stands above the rest or a FILTHY commoner that doesn't even deserve to breathe the same air as me, I have always considered you all equally, as my slaves! So please support your master in fighting this terrible rumor! Nova Emperor out!"'
Yep, that asshole did it alright, he stole candy from a baby...Nick really admired the man.