How much Loya can eat, I'm afraid even he does not know. After all, he can no longer be called human, but a humanoid dragon. Thinking about being gluttonous at night... No, overeating... After eating and drinking, Loya is full of expectations for the duel at night.
The training in the afternoon was much more complicated than in the morning because the navy was preparing to fight against pirates, so fighting skills such as hand-to-hand combat and swordsmanship required a lot of practice.
Fighting Training Room
Loya casually banged on the sandbags in front of him, producing a "pop" sound as he used his fists and legs to launch the sandbags like cannonballs. From time to time, he sucked the saliva from the corner of his mouth.
Seeing this scene, although the major general was very dissatisfied with Loya's inattentive performance, he did not say much. By the time he arrived at his position, he had already received some inside information.
Loya's performance in melee combat was very rough, but his overall quality and fruit ability were very strong. The training in the recruit camp had not had much effect on him. To balance the group, the major general did not give him separate training.
Finally, the instructor shouted the dismissal password.
The news that Loya was going to duel with Ms. S in the cafeteria had spread among those familiar with the matter. The recruits in the boot camp were very excited. Every day was a repetitive and busy training session, so a group of them surrounded Loya as they headed to the cafeteria.
Zefa did not stay in the boot camp in the afternoon. He had just gone to the Warring States Office to confirm the actual combat assessment of the recruits in a month. When he returned home, he passed by the boot camp and saw Loya surrounded by a crowd entering the cafeteria.
"What are these guys doing?"
The cafeteria tables were moved by the chefs, leaving only two in the middle. One had cutlery on it, meant for Loya to eat later. The other was full of ingredients and stoves, where Ms. S would cook food on the spot to ensure the fairness and openness of the duel.
Ms. S stood with her arms crossed, a spoon in one hand and a spatula in the other. When she saw Loya walk in, surrounded by recruits, a confident smile spread across her face.
"It's still too late for you to admit defeat. Otherwise, you won't be able to eat later, and it will be embarrassing with so many people watching."
Loya walked to the opposite side of her, fastened the napkin around his neck, and his eyes were full of fighting intent: "Stop talking—let's serve!"
"Hmph, have the guts!"
A middle-aged chef stood up, stepped between the two, and held a spoon like a microphone. "First of all, welcome to this showdown. If anyone is hungry, we have curry prepared over there, please help yourselves. Now, I'll announce the rules of the game."
"First, if Loya has not finished eating one portion of food, he cannot eat the next one. At the same time, Ms. S cannot make unpalatable food that does not meet the standards of a chef. If anyone fouls on either side, the game will end."
"Secondly, Ms. S must finish her first serving of food within five minutes of the timer; otherwise, she will be deemed to have admitted defeat."
"Thirdly, the two sides must not hinder each other in any form or for any reason; otherwise, the game will end."
"The outcome of the game is determined as follows: When Loya has eaten the last food on the table, if Ms. S's next food has not been cooked, Loya will win. If the remaining food on the table exceeds the food that has already been cooked by one-third and the number is greater than or equal to five, or when Loya can't eat anymore, then Ms. S wins."
"Do you have any objections to this?"
"No."
"I do not either."
Hearing Ms. S's words, Loya gave her a disdainful look. "Do you want to choose something simple, or won't you be able to keep up?"
"Humph! Arrogant brat!" Ms. S countered, not to be outdone. "Even if I cook according to the meals normally served in the cafeteria, it will only be you who can't keep up!"
"Let's read the newspaper on a bicycle—let's see!" Because there was no such creature as a donkey in the world of One Piece in the original book, Loya had to change the vocabulary of this common saying.
Just make up your mind.
Anyway, Ms. S was provoked, picked up a potato, and nodded to the middle-aged chef serving as the referee. "Stop talking nonsense; let's start!"
"Okay... Okay." The middle-aged chef wiped the sweat from his brow, then raised the kitchen utensils in his hands seriously.
"3!"
"2!"
"1!"
"Clang! The competition~~~ Start!"
With the crisp symphony of metal, the game officially began.
Ms. S threw out the knife and quickly chopped a large basket of potatoes, the knife skillfully dancing between the vegetables.
"So fast! As expected of Ms. S; this hand speed cannot be achieved without decades of skill."
"Yes, and look! Those potatoes are evenly sized and even peeled! That's amazing!"
Listening to the discussions of the "commentators" next to him, Loya also became serious. He turned the magic power in his body, letting the stomach acid start to secrete in large quantities, and carefully stared at Ms. S's movements. "This old woman should not be underestimated!"
Ms. S skillfully chopped vegetables, turned the pot, and stir-fried them. In less than four minutes, she neatly dried and fried the meat of the sea beasts and placed it in front of Loya.
The air was filled with a strong aroma of meat, causing the onlookers to sniff greedily as their stomachs began to growl.
"Please use!"
Ms. S finished speaking briefly and turned back to continue the preparation of the next dish.
"Oh!" Loya picked up a plate of dried sea beast meat and poured it directly into his mouth without using chopsticks. Before he could chew a few times, a large plate of food was swallowed. Then he picked up the next dish and repeated the action.
"This kid is still hiding at noon..." Seeing Loya's bold eating method, Ms. S's eyes narrowed, and she turned the heat to the maximum, speeding up her movements.
"Okay... awesome, both sides."
"Yeah... I didn't expect Loya to eat so much. At noon, I thought someone was joking."
Almost at the moment when Loya finished the last plate, another string of well-sized barbecues was placed in front of him. He and Ms. S exchanged serious glances.
"It's not very easy to deal with—this kid (this old woman)."
The game continued to heat up, and the recruits onlookers cheered while eating curry. Under Loya's influence, they also developed a big appetite.
Zefa stood outside the window, watching the lively scene inside. Several times he wanted to rush in to teach this group of undisciplined boys a lesson, but he held back. In the end, he smiled relaxedly and shook his head. "Forget it, let them make trouble... Who hasn't been young yet?"
He then turned to leave, his silhouette elongated by the setting sun.
The people inside didn't know that General Zefa, the iron-faced instructor, had just been outside. Otherwise, they would have been so excited to cheer for both parties that they might have scattered earlier.
As time passed, the game reached a fever pitch. Loya's speed began to slow down, and Ms. S was also sweating profusely. The labor-intensive skill of flipping the pot could be omitted.
A group of cooks were busy clearing the empty dishes from Loya's table, all casting admiring glances at him.
As a chef, what could be more comforting than having your food eaten cleanly by your guests? At this moment, Loya gained the respect of all the chefs in the cafeteria of the recruit camp. This was probably something he never expected.