Chapter 331

And so, the Cooking Duel began once again.

Unlike the first duel, the second duel had a change in rules.

Kurt’s trick from the first duel.

Shail argued that if both cooked simultaneously, they could just copy each other’s dishes, leading to a stalemate.

In truth, Kurt copying Shail’s dish wasn’t to force a draw, as Shail had claimed.

Imperial cuisine.

Kurt knew the duel was important, but upon hearing that term, he unconsciously wanted to learn more about the dish.

After pondering how to learn more in such a short time.

He concluded that a draw would be the solution.

If it ended in a draw, they would have a rematch.

And with each rematch, he could observe and learn more about the Empire’s culinary culture.

The moment he thought of that possibility, Kurt unknowingly copied Shail’s dish.

…

Or perhaps Shail’s argument was correct.

Regardless, Shail’s argument led to a change in the duel’s rules.

Instead of cooking simultaneously, they would take turns proposing dishes, and the other would have to cook it.

With such a rule in place, Shail was confident he wouldn’t lose.

Thus began the second, and new first, duel.

Shail explained the new rules before the duel.

“Alright. Then let’s begin the first duel under the new rules. The cooking method will be taking turns proposing dishes, and the opponent must cook the proposed dish. The choice of dish is up to the opponent, and since we’ll be cooking separate dishes, the evaluation will be based on the judges tasting and scoring the dishes. Additionally, since we’ll be assigning each other’s dishes, if a high-difficulty dish is made, we’ll add a difficulty score. Agreed?”

“Hmm. Seems fine. Let’s do it.”

“Then let’s begin. I’ll cook first. Please decide what dish I should make.”

“Hmm… Let’s go with dessert.”

“Dessert, you say…”

Shail made a subtle expression at Kurt’s suggestion.

“Why? If it’s impossible, I can change it.”

“No, it’s possible. Let’s start right away.”

Shail said and immediately entered the kitchen.

…

…

…

And after a while.

Clatter.

“Done. It’s finished.”

Shail came out with the completed dish.

As he presented the dessert, he inwardly smiled, confident of his victory this time.

‘Hehe. Choosing dessert as the challenge… I can guess why he made that decision… but it was a foolish choice.’

Why did Kurt suggest making a dessert?

It wasn’t hard to guess.

For the wealthy nobility, desserts might be common, but for ordinary commoners, desserts were a luxury.

For commoners who often ate hard rye bread and thin soup due to financial constraints, desserts made with soft flour, which were several times more expensive and half the portion, were a rare treat reserved for special occasions.

‘So, he thought I wouldn’t know how to make such a rare dish and would panic. What a sneaky trap.’

Since he couldn’t win by copying anymore, he decided to propose a dish the opponent couldn’t make.

But there was a huge flaw in that sneaky trap.

As the head of the Delphine Marquisate, one of the Empire’s great noble families, Shail had amassed wealth that rivaled anyone and had culinary skills that could match professional chefs.

In other words, Shail had the knowledge and skill to make desserts.

‘So, your sneaky trap didn’t work on me. Hehehe.’

Moreover, it wasn’t just that.

The moment Shail completed the dessert, the meaning of that sneaky trap (?) was completely flipped.

“Wow… I’ve never seen this before. What is this dessert…?”

“Inside this transparent glass, there’s a substance that’s not liquid, layered so brilliantly.”

“It’s truly a beautiful dish. What is this dessert called?”

The judges, filled with anticipation and curiosity, asked Shail.

“This dessert is called sorbet. It’s a type of dessert made by freezing fruit juice and sugar to create a sweet, icy treat. Hmm. Since the sorbet will melt, let’s explain while eating.”

“Su-sugar! You used that precious ingredient!”

“No wonder it sparkles so dazzlingly! It’s the sparkle of ice! Using sugar and ice… What a luxurious dish!”

“Let’s taste it quickly! The sorbet will melt if we don’t!”

At Shail’s explanation, the judges, their eyes sparkling with anticipation, lifted their spoons.

That was the completely flipped meaning of the trap.

It was a rare dish that most people couldn’t make or had never seen, but once made, it was a bonus in itself.

The taste of a dessert that ordinary people couldn’t easily access, the expensive ingredients that were hard to come by, and a foreign, high-end dessert whose name and recipe were unheard of.

And finally, his culinary skills added to it.

Slurp.

Gulp.

“….!!”

“Th-this taste…!”

“How is it? Does the dessert suit your taste?”

“Wooow! The sorbet is melting in my mouth! No, ice melting is natural, but this isn’t just ice…! Yes! This is snow! The texture is like snow!”

“I can’t believe such a cold yet soft-textured dish exists in this world! I never imagined a dessert with this taste and texture could exist!”

“W-wait! Each layer of this sorbet has a different color… Could it be that each layer has a different flavor!? Each layer having a different flavor is so astonishing!”

The result was obvious.

The judges were ecstatic, nearly in a frenzy, over the sorbet’s taste.

They couldn’t hide their amazement and kept exclaiming in admiration.

“…It seems my dessert was to your liking. More than I expected.”

Seeing the judges’ reactions, Shail smiled, sensing victory.

Accepting the trap set for him and countering it cleanly by presenting an excellent dessert to the judges.

That was his cooking.

‘In the end, no matter how sneaky the trap, it’s useless against overwhelming skill. Even if you’ve reached the master level, you should know that simple common sense. Hehehe.’

Feeling good, Shail continued to speak to firmly secure his victory.

As with the steak course before, the more you know about the dish, the more you can enjoy its taste.

Just as knowing more about a painting’s background in an art gallery allows for a deeper appreciation, knowing more about a dish allows for a better understanding and savoring of its flavors.

“First, this sorbet consists of three layers…”

“From the top, lemon, predatory water, and melon, right?”

“You…?”

At that moment, Kurt interrupted Shail.

“Considering the overall color of the sorbet, you arranged it to start with a refreshing taste to stimulate the appetite and finish with sweetness. A very thoughtful arrangement.”

“…!?”

“Not only that, to create the sorbet’s soft texture, you didn’t just grind the ice once. You ground it, froze it again, and repeated the process to create air layers. At least three… no, four times. Using conventional methods would take too long, so you must have used magical means like magic stones or artifacts to quickly freeze the sorbet…”

“How did you…!?”

Shail couldn’t hide his shock at Kurt’s words.

After just a few bites of the sorbet, Kurt was detailing the cooking process as if he had watched Shail cook.

…

…

…

Meanwhile, Kurt, savoring the sorbet’s taste and guessing the recipe, thought to himself.

‘Hmm. So this is Imperial dessert. Asking for dessert was a good move.’

Gulp.

Munch munch.

‘Delicious.’