"Yes," Erina nodded, contemplating the task before them. "This exam seems to be a test of how well students can maximize the value of their dishes using limited ingredients. Since the value is expressed in price, each student's skills will be clearly on display for everyone to see."
"So, our talents will be judged by a price tag? That's interesting," Alice mused, a smirk on her face.
Meanwhile, Megumi, looking pale and trembling, muttered, "Do we really need to put a price on our dishes?"
"We don't need to worry about competing with others," Erina added calmly, "We just need to pass the exam." It was clear she was reminding the group to focus on the task at hand, despite the pressure of the competition.
"Miss Erina is right. Let's just take the exam quietly and do our best," Isshiki said with a friendly smile.
"Exactly," Eishi agreed with a nod, his expression calm.
However, Eizan sneered, "I just can't stand those arrogant first-years."
"Agreed," Saitō Sōmei said coolly. "It's time they learned how to respect their senpais."
"See? Even Saitō-senpai is with me on this," Eizan added with a grin.
Watching these two stir up tension within their team, Isshiki and Eishi could only sigh helplessly. On the other side, Erina rubbed her temples, clearly exasperated by the brewing drama but too uninterested to intervene.
Meanwhile, other students had already entered the convenience store to begin their exam.
"Let's head in too," Sui suggested, and Erina nodded in agreement.
"This is a rare chance to go head-to-head with the Elite Ten," one student murmured. "You guys better not hold us back."
"I should be the one saying that," Akira responded coolly.
Terrified, Megumi quickly added, "I'll do my best, I swear!"
As they began examining the ingredients, Erina noted, "The vegetables and meat are fairly average, but they're fresh." There was a wide variety of basic ingredients, along with condiments, canned foods, snacks, and other items that could be creatively repurposed.
"Can we use these pots and pans too?" Sōma asked, holding up a simple pot from the store.
"Of course. All cooking tools must be sourced from the convenience store," Erina explained, surveying the limited options.
"They're all so basic," Alice frowned. The convenience store's kitchen utensils were far from the cutting-edge equipment she was used to for her molecular gastronomy dishes.
"So now you see the limitations of molecular cuisine, Alice? The equipment requirements are too demanding," Erina said, seizing the opportunity to lecture her cousin.
"Shut up, Erina! Stop underestimating me!" Alice puffed up her cheeks, frustrated.
As students began submitting their dishes for evaluation, the tension grew. The chief examiner, Dojima Gin, stood ready to taste and price each dish. His experience as a hotel head chef made him more than qualified to assess the results.
After sampling a student's fried chicken nuggets, Dojima paused, then asked, "Do you think your fried chicken nuggets are worth 3,000 yen?"
"N-No… they're not," the student stammered, turning pale. Fried chicken nuggets typically cost a few hundred yen, perhaps a thousand at most.
"Your fried chicken tastes decent, but it doesn't belong on a high-end restaurant's menu. At best, it's something you'd find at a roadside fast-food stall," Dojima Gin said. "So your price is... negative 1,000 yen."
"N-Negative... 1,000?" the student repeated in shock.
The other students were equally stunned. Could the price really go negative?
"Why... why negative?" the student asked, still stuttering.
"Don't you have to account for the cost of ingredients?" Dojima Gin replied, not mincing his words. "Not only did you fail to create something valuable, but you wasted resources. So, your final price is negative 1,000 yen."
The student's teammates were visibly disheartened. If their dish had been priced under 3,000 yen, they could have at least tried to make up the difference. But with negative assets, their challenge had just grown significantly harder.
"You still have an hour left," Dojima Gin said, offering them a glimmer of hope. "You can try again, but be careful not to create more negative assets."
The student and his group hesitated, unsure if they should proceed or give up.
"Our biggest enemy might just be our own teammate," one student muttered under his breath, glancing nervously at his peers. The rest of the students shared the same fear. In this exam, teammates could either be an asset or a liability.
"Hey, I think you should stop cooking," one student told their teammate bluntly. "Leave the rest to the four of us."
"W-Why?" the teammate asked, his face pale.
"Because you're not good enough. I thought you could at least break even, but now I'm worried you'll drag us into negative assets," the student replied coldly.
"Yeah, let us handle it from here," another chimed in, clearly displeased.
The atmosphere among the students was growing more tense by the second. Watching from a distance, Sui raised his voice deliberately.
"Don't worry about what others are doing, just focus on making your best dish, Megumi."
"Thank you, Sui," Megumi replied, moved by his encouragement. "I'll do my best!"
Time flew by as more students submitted their dishes for evaluation.
"2,500 yen."
"4,000 yen."
"1,000 yen."
"Negative 500 yen."
Each dish was judged, and the students' talents—or lack thereof—were laid bare for all to see.
Finally, Sōma removed his headband, signaling that he was the first of the Elite Ten candidate team to complete his dish.
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