Chapter 55
The Great Chaos Course was a success.
But before putting it straight on the menu, there were naturally a few things to consider.
Marie tossed out a comment.
“If the mages enjoy it, ordinary guests might find it frightening.”
“I thought so.”
She was right.
I came to a conclusion while looking over the Great Chaos Course materials.
“We’ll only include some of it in the regular course.”
Estelle raised her head.
“Only some?”
“Yes.”
“But the full course was well received too.”
“By the mages, anyway.”
“Mages are guests too.”
“Special guests.”
Estelle looked a little disappointed.
I could understand her. From a researcher’s perspective, the Great Chaos Course must have been a fascinating toy box.
Twisting the senses, separating temperatures, trapping aromas, making sauces burst, and throwing color and flavor out of alignment on every plate.
It was fun for the person making it too.
But guests were not research subjects.
At least, once you charged them money, you couldn’t treat them like lab mice.
“It’s too stimulating for ordinary guests. They might be surprised once or twice, but if the entire course keeps being strange, it gets tiring. They came to eat, but they might feel as though we’re constantly playing with their senses.”
Marie nodded immediately.
“Right. It’s delicious, but I think they could get tired rather than excited about what strange thing will come next.”
“That’s why we’ll focus on dessert.”
Elysia asked,
“Why?”
“Dessert is where you’re allowed to play around a little.”
I turned a page in my notebook.
“Cold milk cream inside hot bread, fruit sauce with its aroma trapped inside, little bursts of sweetness in the mouth. Things like that stay in people’s memories when they come at the end of a meal. But if we keep confusing them through the main course too, they’ll get exhausted.”
Elysia nodded with satisfaction.
“Then we’ll add it as a dessert option to the regular course, and reserve Great Chaos for the Mage Tower or special reservations.”
“Yes.”
“And the price?”
I thought for a moment.
“We’ll add a small surcharge when it’s included in a regular course. We’ll keep Great Chaos at 550 gold for now, then raise it next time depending on the circumstances. The Mage Tower has plenty of money, after all.”
Elysia’s eyes curved gently.
That was the face of someone who had smelled money.
“Good.”
Estelle still looked a little reluctant.
“What about the color-reversal soup?”
“Mage Tower exclusive.”
“The rain in the mouth?”
“Special course.”
“The backward-burning fire…”
“That too is for the special course.”
Estelle quietly wrote in her notebook.
“Ordinary people… are no different… from monkeys…”
“Stop acting like the final boss!!”
Molecular gastronomy—or rather, magical cuisine—had now become one of Maison Monbel’s weapons.
But weapons should not be swung around indiscriminately.
If you keep waving a good knife in front of guests, it becomes intimidation rather than cooking.
You could sell it for more if you only brought it out when necessary.
Just as we were finishing sorting everything out, Uncle Bernard came in holding a letter.
“Kyle.”
“Yes.”
“It’s a challenge.”
The kitchen fell silent.
I blinked.
“From whom?”
“It says Oldren.”
The seal on the letter belonged to House Servan.
The moment I saw the name, I remembered our previous competition.
“Oh, that guy?”
He had certainly been skilled.
He might have been dragged into it by his master’s vanity, but he had cooked properly.
He hadn’t acted disgracefully after losing, either.
At least as a chef, he was worthy of respect.
I opened the letter.
I slowly began reading the invitation, written in an extremely polite tone.
To Kyle Pratt.
I have thought long and hard since our last competition.
I lost, and I do not consider that defeat shameful.
However, since that day, I have found myself reconsidering what kind of person I want to be as a chef.
As a result, I asked Viscount Servan to let me resign, and His Lordship graciously approved my request.
I am deeply grateful that the viscount supported my new challenge and even provided considerable assistance in opening a restaurant, so I am opening a new restaurant in the Servan Viscounty.
The restaurant is called Oldren’s Table.
It is not a restaurant meant to imitate Maison Monbel; I intend to welcome guests in my own way.
Before opening, I would like to show you my food once more, Kyle Pratt.
This is a challenge, and also an invitation.
I read the letter to the end and was silent for a moment.
Marie asked,
“What does it say?”
“Mr. Oldren is opening his own restaurant.”
“That chef from back then?”
“Yeah.”
“He wants to fight again?”
“It kind of sounds like it, and kind of not.”
Elysia took the letter and read it.
Her expression was wary at first, but soon softened a little.
“He’s more polite than I expected.”
“Yes.”
“It sounds like it was sent by a chef, not a viscount.”
“That’s right.”
Uncle Bernard asked quietly,
“Are you planning to go?”
I did not answer immediately.
The Servan Viscounty lay beyond the capital, so getting there would take time.
We couldn’t close Maison Monbel just to go there, so we would have to set aside a day off.
Besides, this wasn’t something that would make us money.
And yet, strangely, I was curious.
Someone who had been pushed around by his master’s vanity in another person’s kitchen was opening a restaurant under his own name.
For a chef, his own restaurant was not merely a place of business; it was a valuable opportunity to properly show the dishes he had learned to make.
That was worth seeing.
Of course, I had no intention of letting him win.
A chef could be kind, but there was no need to be nice when it came to a competition.
I folded the letter.
“Let’s go.”
Marie’s eyes widened.
“Really? You’re going to have another cooking competition?”
“We’ll see what happens.”
“Are you going to let him win?”
I looked at Marie.
“Me?”
“You’re not, right?”
“No. Absolutely not.”
Marie nodded.
“I know.”
Elysia said,
“We need to be careful this time. Viscount Servan acted before because of his pride. Even if Oldren is sincere, the viscount might make the whole thing bigger than it is.”
“I know.”
“And if you go, that restaurant will become famous immediately.”
“I suppose it will.”
“That might be what he’s after.”
I nodded.
That was possible.
No, it almost certainly was.
But was that a bad thing?
Oldren was opening his own restaurant and inviting the chef who had beaten him before to build his reputation.
If he had truly prepared good food, he deserved at least that much.
The problem would be if the food was a mess.
Then I wouldn’t go easy on him.
“I’ll go and try it. If it’s good, I’ll say it’s good, and if it’s no good, I’ll say that too.”
Marie muttered,
“That’s the scariest part.”
“Why?”
“Because you really do say things like that.”
Elysia thought for a moment before speaking.
“Let’s keep the group as small as possible. Kyle, Bernard, and Marie, at most.”
“What about you, my lady?”
“I’m going too.”
“You said to keep it small.”
“I’m Maison Monbel’s representative.”
She was probably just going because she was curious.
Marie looked like she knew that too.
“You’re curious about Oldren’s restaurant too, aren’t you, my lady?”
Elysia smiled calmly.
“From a business perspective.”
“That’s a really convenient thing to say.”
“Yes. It is.”
I sensed a slight edge in the conversation between them, but simply assumed that was how they were.
That evening, I wrote a polite reply.
I would accept the invitation and visit the restaurant before its opening.
However, if he wanted a competition, we should establish the criteria properly and do it later, so neither of us would have any regrets.
A few days later, we decided to head to the Servan Viscounty.
We went on a day off, but since it was a long round trip, we decided to use an extra day as well.
I checked my chef’s knives.
I didn’t know whether a cooking competition would actually take place.
But a chef heading out after receiving a challenge couldn’t afford to pack his knives carelessly.
Marie saw me and said,
“You look exactly like you’re going to war. Anyone seeing you would think you were a knight who’d received a challenge to a duel.”
“We’re going to look at a restaurant.”
“But what if there is a fight?”
“Then I’ll win.”
“Figures.”
“Besides, chefs and knights are both people who wield knives, when you think about it.”
I closed the knife sheath.
Even just from the restaurant’s name, Oldren’s Table, one thing was clear.
Putting his own name on it meant he had no intention of running away.
I didn’t dislike chefs like that.
But I had no intention of letting him win.
I would find out what kind of restaurant had opened in the Servan Viscounty, what the chef had learned after his defeat, and whether the reason he had invited me back was really the food.
I muttered as I climbed into the carriage,
“I’m always happy to accept a rematch like this.”
Judging by all that, I didn’t think there was much chance of me becoming the villain here.
Thankfully, it didn’t seem like I’d be turning Oldren’s head into a sandwich or yelling at Marie to come down and take a look.