Sui awkwardly patted Megumi's back, trying to comfort her. "Come on, you're overthinking it. There's no way that's going to happen."
"But I'm really scared of being eliminated," Megumi sniffled, wiping her eyes.
"You're one of the top four contestants now! You should have more faith in yourself," Sui said with a smile.
"That's all thanks to you, Sui. Without your help, I wouldn't have made it this far," Megumi said, laughing softly through her tears.
"No, Megumi, you've got great potential. You just need to believe in yourself more," Sui encouraged.
"Mm-hmm." Megumi nodded firmly, her spirits lifting.
At that moment, Hinako walked over, gently cupping Megumi's cheek. "Oh, you're the girl from last time, aren't you?" she said warmly. "You're the new intern this time? That's wonderful. Just as adorable as before!"
Megumi flinched slightly, still uncomfortable with Hinako's overly affectionate nature. Ever since their first encounter during the training camp, Hinako had taken a strong liking to her, even inviting her to the restaurant back then. It was a little overwhelming for someone as timid as Megumi.
Just then, another figure appeared—the head chef of 'Kirinoya'.
"Are these the new Totsuki interns?" the chef asked, his gaze landing on Sui and Megumi.
"Yes, that's right. Let me introduce you. This is Kenro Ono, the deputy head chef of 'Kirinoya'," Hinako said, gesturing toward a stern-looking, dark-skinned middle-aged man.
"And this is Hoshino Miyuki, our tempura chef, and Kobayashi Kiyomizu, our ramen chef." She then introduced a man and a woman standing nearby. "With me included, that's the whole kitchen staff at 'Kirinoya'."
"Nice to meet you all, senpais!" Megumi quickly bowed, her nerves on full display.
Hinako smiled gently. "Well, from today onward, you two will be interns at our restaurant. Work hard!"
"What will we be responsible for?" Sui asked.
Hinako tapped her lips, thinking. "Hmm, let's see… Megumi will start by washing the dishes. As for you, Sui…"
Before she could finish, Kenro Ono cut in, glancing at Sui with a serious expression. "He can assist me. My previous assistant just quit yesterday."
"Oh, that works perfectly!" Hinako said with a grin. She turned to Sui. "Be prepared, Sui-kun. Ono-san is known for being strict. You'll have to prove yourself."
"I understand," Sui nodded, ready for the challenge.
Interns were never given chef roles right away. Most started with menial tasks—cleaning, prepping ingredients, and helping out wherever they could. Even Erina had done odd jobs during her own internship. Of course, she had taken control of the entire kitchen by the end of her first day.
"I should warn you," Kenro Ono said firmly, "I'm extremely particular about my assistants. If you can't keep up or make mistakes, I'll replace you immediately. Totsuki's reputation doesn't matter here. You're just an intern, a beginner in this kitchen. Don't disappoint me."
"I won't," Sui replied, meeting his eyes with calm determination.
Just then, the system notification sounded in Sui's mind.
"New Task:
Task Objective: Leave one of your own dishes on the menu of each restaurant where you intern.
Task Reward: A mysterious gift pack (ingredients, kitchen utensils, cooking techniques, etc.)
Task Time Limit: During the field training period."
"Leave my own dish on the menu?" Sui thought, his face growing serious. That was no easy feat, especially at such a renowned restaurant. He'd have to be promoted to a chef first. But for now, he wasn't even a kitchen assistant—just an intern.
"Well, I'll give it a shot," Sui shrugged to himself.
"Sui, good luck!" Megumi called out with a smile, offering her support.
"You too," Sui replied, shaking her hand. They exchanged a reassuring glance before heading to their respective posts.
After quickly settling in and changing into the restaurant's uniforms, Sui and Megumi officially started their internships at 'Kirinoya'.
"I'll be mainly focused on sushi. You'll assist me by cooking the rice and handling other prep work," Kenro Ono instructed Sui. "Don't underestimate rice. It's difficult to cook it perfectly."
"I understand," Sui nodded. He knew the importance of every detail in cooking, no matter how small it seemed.
Before long, the lunchtime rush hit.
"Is the tempura for table 27 ready?"
"We're running low on dishes. Is the intern still washing them?"
"Table 7 ordered two servings of tuna sushi!"
The kitchen became a whirlwind of activity. 'Kirinoya' had a two-star WGO rating and was well-known for its food, so business was always bustling. Today was no exception.
Megumi was so busy washing dishes she barely had time to wipe the sweat off her face, while Sui was equally occupied, helping wherever he could.
Even Kenro Ono, with all his experience, was sweating under the pressure. Business was busier than usual, and despite his expertise, he was struggling to keep up. One mistake from Sui could slow down the entire operation.
"I hope that intern doesn't mess up," Ono thought, concerned. With so much at stake, he couldn't afford any mistakes. He wasn't expecting much from Sui, a student after all, but he could only hope the young intern wouldn't slow him down.
"Table 10 ordered two servings of Sakura sushi!" a server called out.
"Got it," Ono replied, but his heart skipped a beat. He suddenly realized they were out of egg shreds, a crucial component for Sakura sushi. Making more would take at least ten minutes—time they didn't have during such a busy period.
"Damn it," Ono cursed under his breath, frustrated. He had been so caught up in the rush that he'd forgotten to instruct Sui to prepare more egg shreds earlier.
Just as panic began to set in, a plate of neatly cut egg shreds appeared in front of him.
Ono blinked in shock.
"What's wrong, Chef? We're running out of time. You need to make the Sakura sushi now," Sui reminded him calmly, frowning.
Ono snapped out of his daze. "Wait… Didn't I only ask you to cook the rice and prep the seaweed? Where did these egg shreds come from?"
"I noticed earlier that we were running low, so I prepared more while the rice was cooking. I guess it worked out just in time," Sui explained with a smile.