The initial taste is cold and sweet.
The middle taste is sweet and sour, and the aftertaste turns into a sweet and spicy flavor.
The sweetness is subtle, the sourness is fruity, and the spiciness is a mild, sweet heat.
The coldness makes each flavor understated.
Blended in the noodles, it fits perfectly.
Clear.
Refreshing.
Smooth.
Bouncy.
And as for the side dishes.
Spicy sauce, beef slices, kimchi, apple slices, cucumber strips, pear strips, boiled egg, fried egg strips, chicken meatballs, pine nuts...
Not all are necessary, but the more, the better!
So, to the Director and others, Megumi's cold noodles seemed like:
A perfect combination of ice jelly, cold noodles, and side dishes.
Eating cold noodles is refreshing, like turning on an air conditioner. To describe it in one phrase: "It cools your heart."
However, the mistake is that the cold noodles initially taste sweet.
Although the sweetness is faint, masked by the vinegar's sourness, a sensitive tongue can still detect it.
Moreover, Megumi's cold noodles, with their meticulous preparation and variety of side dishes, would be overwhelming for many. Not to mention, the seasoning for cold noodles is subjective—everyone has their preference!
...
"Udon noodles, first of all, don't taste as good as regular noodles."
"Regular noodles, when digested by saliva in the mouth, produce maltose, giving a sweet taste. Udon noodles, with less starch content, don't taste as good."
"You did your best to adjust the Takamatsu udon, making this cold noodle dish as valuable as possible."
"But your skill is only enough to make me burst my clothes."
"After that, it's hard to impress me further!"
Hearing the Director's heartfelt evaluation, Megumi didn't argue but humbly accepted it.
Finally, the result of the second round of the quarter-finals was announced:
3:0
Alice won decisively.
"Yay! I made it to the semi-finals!"
Learning that her molecular cheese noodles overwhelmingly defeated Megumi, Alice was thrilled.
"Sigh!"
"I guess this is as far as I go!"
Megumi scratched her head, not at all discouraged.
...
During the day, the tavern usually kept its doors closed.
If customers passed by during this time, they'd see a "Resting" sign on the door.
Of course, around 7 o'clock, the sign would change to "Preparing."
Noon.
The sunlight was no longer bright.
From the second-floor balcony, Zane noticed a girl dragging a suitcase.
She kept pacing in front of the tavern.
Sometimes, she thought about ringing the doorbell, but her hand would stop mid-air and pull back. Her hesitant look showed she was emotionally struggling.
"Huh? Why is she here?"
Seeing Hisako alone at the tavern, Zane was surprised.
He hurried downstairs to open the door and invite her in.
...
"Zane."
"I... I came..."
As soon as the door opened, their eyes met.
Seeing the familiar figure, Hisako's gentle voice turned sour.
She sniffed, trying to control her emotions, but eventually, she couldn't stop crying.
In the end, she couldn't hold it anymore and cried in Zane's arms!
"What happened? Did you have a fight with Erina?"
The sudden situation stunned Zane. He gently patted her shoulder and asked with concern.
But Hisako, still emotionally overwhelmed, kept crying. After about ten minutes, she gradually calmed down and pushed away from Zane.
"My relationship with Lady Erina isn't..."
Hisako tried to explain.
But Zane suddenly smiled and pointed to her cheek, "You have some snot there."
"What?" Hisako froze.
Her hand instinctively touched her face and found something sticky.
Instantly, her face turned red. She felt like all the most embarrassing things happened to her today.
"Clean your face first."
Zane kindly handed her a clean tissue.
"Mm!"
Blushing, Hisako took the tissue.
She turned away from Zane, wiped her face, feeling more embarrassed and grateful.
...
"Zane, am I useless?"
"I couldn't even beat Alice's follower. Is everything I've been pursuing wrong?"
Facing Zane again, Hisako couldn't help but voice her worries.
After leaving the competition venue, her biggest problem was:
She had no place to stay!
Hotels, apartments, inns—none gave her a sense of security.
The world is vast, but she felt like she had no safe place to rest.
Wandering?
Definitely not.
Returning to Totsuki Academy would be even worse!
So, in desperation, she thought of Zane's tavern.
"You did great."
"Following someone isn't wrong."
"In competitions, there are always winners and losers, so the outcome itself doesn't matter."
"When you compete with a belief, give your best, and enjoy following Erina, it's a joy."
"Life is short. Being happy is what's important."
"Why care about others' opinions?"
Looking at the sad Hisako, Zane gently touched her cheek and comforted her.
"But!"
"I'm still troubled."
"I've been following Lady Erina's footsteps so diligently, but I haven't improved much."
"In this autumn selection, I didn't win the first place in Group A in the preliminaries, and I lost to Ryo in the quarter-finals."
"With such results and skills, how can I face Lady Erina?"
Hisako clenched her fists, her tearful eyes filled with regret and frustration!
...
"Just in time, you're here."
"I just developed a new dish. Would you like to try it?"
Zane, knowing that words wouldn't help her understand, decided to use another method to help her.
"A new dish?" Hisako paused, touching her stomach.
She remembered that she hadn't eaten properly all day due to the quarter-finals.
Now reminded, she realized she was a bit hungry.
So, she nodded.
"OK, wait here!"
After saying this, Zane turned and went to the kitchen to prepare the new dish.
...
Bouncy Soft-Shelled Turtle Soup.
The preparation is simple yet complex.
First, boil the turtle, remove impurities, and season with light salt. Then, place it in a hollowed-out cantaloupe and steam it.
But the big challenge of this dish is:
How to remove the earthy and fishy taste of the turtle?
Many chefs use brine, white wine, milk, ginger slices, etc., to remove the turtle's taste.
However, these methods aren't perfect and take a long time.
Zane slaughtered the turtle, drained its blood, cut it open, and removed the innards.
He boiled water, blanched the turtle for about 5 minutes.
After taking it out, he peeled off the skin.
Then he cut off the head and tail, washed it under running water.
Next, he used cantaloupe, salted plum, and brine to neutralize the turtle's taste.
This de-fishiness method was unprecedented, leaving Hisako stunned!
Afterward.
He placed the turtle soup-filled cantaloupe in the fridge.
After cooling, the soup solidified, locking the turtle's flavor inside.
Finally, the perfect Bouncy Soft-Shelled Turtle Soup was ready.
...
Cantaloupe.
Turtle.
Most people wouldn't think to pair these ingredients.
Even Hisako, skilled in medicinal cuisine, never had this idea. Yet Zane's Bouncy Soft-Shelled Turtle Soup used these as main ingredients.
Though puzzled, Hisako gently picked up the cantaloupe with "turtle jelly."
Touching the cantaloupe, she felt a warmth in her palm.
"Huh? Wasn't it cooled?"
"Why... why is it warm?"
Instantly, Hisako was amazed.
She had just used turtle meat to make a burger.
She knew some dishes use the ingredient itself for serving to maintain the original flavor.
But this Bouncy Soft-Shelled Turtle Soup, still warm after cooling, defied logic.
Naturally, it went beyond her understanding!
...
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Next.
As she lifted the cantaloupe's lid.
A bright golden light burst from inside, illuminating the tavern.
"So magical!"
"The soup inside the cantaloupe... is solid?"
Immune to glowing dishes, Hisako eagerly took a spoon and touched the "turtle jelly."
"Such strong bounce?"
The jelly bounced the spoon away.
Hisako was stunned.
The dish's name included "bouncy," but she never imagined it would literally bounce objects.
"So strange, what's going on?"
"Cantaloupe and turtle together is odd enough, but it's solid and incredibly bouncy."
"Wait, even the ingredients... could it be..."
Talking to herself, Hisako grabbed another spoon.
She scooped a piece of jelly and tasted it.
...
The jelly-like texture.
As soon as it entered her mouth, she tasted the rich turtle flavor.
Even in her dreams, Hisako wouldn't think that turtle soup in a cantaloupe could taste so unique—pure, not greasy, with a light fragrance and texture.
"Brine
, salted plum, cantaloupe..."
"These neutralized the turtle's taste, bringing out its fresh flavor."
"The jelly, made with a special method and cooled, has incredible bounce."
"And this bounce gives an amazing chewiness."
"Impressive!"
"So impressive!"
"Using turtle and cantaloupe to create such a stunning dish is unbelievable!"
"But why?"
"Why does the jelly have such strong bounce?"
Cantaloupe and turtle are common ingredients. Hisako, an expert in medicinal cuisine, knew this.
She watched the cooking process closely, thinking it was simple.
With her skills, she could taste some secrets.
But she couldn't understand how the jelly's bounce was strong enough to bounce a spoon.
Then, her hungry stomach growling, Hisako stopped overthinking and devoured the dish, leaving all worries behind!
Soon, she finished the Bouncy Soft-Shelled Turtle Soup.
Putting down the empty cantaloupe shell, she licked her lips and felt her energy returning.
Yes!
Her whole body.
Felt more energetic!
...
"So magical, this dish didn't use medicinal ingredients."
"Why do I feel so energized, like it restored my stamina?"
Yes.
It wasn't an illusion!
Hisako truly felt.
After eating the Bouncy Soft-Shelled Turtle Soup, a pure vitality spread through her body.
"This... this soup... Zane, did you add edible gelatin to act as a gelling agent?"
"Only with edible gelatin could the soup solidify into jelly with such bounce."
Understanding, Hisako excitedly asked.
"You know me. I never use chemical additives." Zane smiled and shook his head.
"What?"
"Then it's just the turtle itself..."
Hisako's eyes widened!
----------
For 10 advance chapters: patreon.com/angelictranslating