Chapter 748 I Have a Long Reflex Arc
The entire royal kitchen abruptly fell silent. All of the chefs turned to the attendant in unison with shock etched on their faces.
“H-how is that possible?!” Vasir’s jaw dropped to the ground as he struggled to process what he was hearing.
Nandel’s eyes rolled over into the back of his head, and he fell backward like a dead weight. Thankfully, one of his student chefs was standing behind him, and he hurriedly caught Nandel before he could fall to the ground.
Everyone had their own guesses about whom the award for the best dish of the day would be presented to, but none of them had imagined that it would be awarded to a completely unknown chef from Chaos City.
A tall and thin chef standing beside Bellmann strode forward with incredulity etched on his face as he yelled, “That’s impossible! Are you sure you’ve delivered the correct message? How could an unknown chef like him be given this award? Are you sure His Majesty didn’t present this award to Chef Bellmann instead?”
“Exactly! Master has won this award for nine years in succession; how could he possibly lose?”
“Master cooked over 10 dishes today, but that man has only cooked three! There must be something wrong here!”
All of Bellmann’s students stepped forward to question the verdict with enraged expressions.
Many other chefs also chimed in with their protests. Compared to having a chef from Chaos City win the award that was sought after by everyone, it was clearly much easier to accept Bellmann winning the award again.
At this point, Bellmann had also stopped wiping down his cooking bench. There was a hint of dejection on his face, but his eyes were devoid of anger or indignation.
The attendant paused in his footsteps in the face of the rioting chefs. He was one of the king’s most trusted servants, so he was naturally aware that Bellmann had been the king’s favorite chef for over a decade. However, the black horse on this occasion was simply too much to contend with. Even Bellmann’s dishes paled in comparison to his, but the suspicions being raised by Bellmann’s students were quite justified.
However, questioning the king’s decision was a sign of disrespect, and that was quite a serious matter. As such, a stern look appeared on the attendant’s face as he looked at everyone. He said, “His Majesty adjudged the spicy grilled fish to be the best dish of the day in front of all of the guests in the palace; there’s no doubt about that. All three of Mr. Mag’s dishes have received glowing praise from all of the guests, and he completely deserves to win this award. His Majesty has even made an exception by allowing him to appear in the palace, and if you ask me, that’s a clear indication of just how much His Majesty enjoyed Chef Mag’s dishes. Furthermore, Mr. Mag is not some unknown chef; he was invited to cook for His Majesty by His Highness, the second prince, himself.”
The attendant’s words were like a bucket of cold water, immediately dousing the riotous flames that had erupted in the kitchen, and all of the skeptical chefs immediately fell silent.
It was quite clear now that Mag had indeed received the award for the best dish of the day. However, what came as even more of a surprise to everyone was that Mag had been invited here by the second prince. If they had known about this beforehand, no one would’ve dared to look down on him.
A chef from Chaos City had beaten all of the top chefs across the entire Norland Continent.
This was most likely going to be the most incredible news story in the cooking world this year.
“Wow! Uncle Mag is so badass!”
“He was cooking by himself this entire time, yet he still managed to win the award for the best dish of the day! Uncle Mag is my idol from now on!”
Lukaka and Luluka looked up at Mag with admiration shimmering in their eyes. To them, this accolade was something that they could only strive for in their dreams, yet Mag had crushed the entire field of competition and won the award in an extremely convincing manner.
Lukaka still had yet to pick his jaw back up from the ground as he stared at Mag, and mused, “I guess this is why you should never judge a book by its cover…”
The attendant made his way over to Mag. He was surprised by just how young Mag was, but he still smiled, and said, “Please come with me now, Mr. Mag. His Majesty and all of the guests in the palace are still waiting.”
Barring any mishaps, this young chef was most likely going to be the king’s favorite for many years to come.
Of course, if the second prince were to inherit the throne, then it was quite likely that he would become the top dog in this kitchen.
Mag removed his apron and merely nodded with a calm smile as he followed the attendant out of the kitchen.
Was he not happy?
No, he was over the moon!
He was naturally overjoyed that he had completed the system’s mission. He felt as if a sword hanging above his head had just been removed, and he was filled with relief and elation.
Mag nodded at Kalulu and his sons with a smile before departing. He was quite fond of this chubby trio.
As for all of the resentful and envious expressions on the faces of the other chefs, they only worked to fuel Mag’s elation.
All of them clearly wanted nothing better than to beat him to death, but they were simply unable to do so, and the sight of their frustration filled Mag with joy.
Just as Mag was about to exit the royal kitchen, Bellmann wiped his hand dry with a hand towel before offering his hand to Mag with a smile. “Congratulations, Chef Mag.”
Mag paused in his footsteps and hesitated slightly at the sight of the smiling old man. He then accepted his handshake with a smile of his own, and replied, “Thank you.”
“Even though I didn’t get the honor of tasting your dishes, I can tell by their names that they must all be very interesting dishes. I hope all young chefs can be as creative and innovative as you. That would be vastly fortunate for our cooking world.” Bellmann looked into Mag’s eyes with a genuine expression of gratification on his face.
“I’m sure it will be.” Mag smiled and nodded in response.
Bellmann’s smile widened as he released Mag’s hand, and said, “Go on, then. Getting the award for the first time is quite exciting, so make sure to savor the moment. It won’t be as exhilarating when you get it for a second or third time, as I’m sure you will.”
“Sure.” Mag nodded in response. He had developed a positive first impression of this skilled yet benevolent old man.
After exiting the royal kitchen, the attendant led Mag toward the palace, instructing Mag on some key points of etiquette along the way.
This was his first time facing the king, so Mag made sure to commit all of these points of etiquette to memory. After all, in a feudal society like this one, any misstep could result in punishment by decapitation.
Right at this moment, the system’s voice sounded within Mag’s mind. “Ding! Congratulations on beating all of the best chefs of the Norland Continent and securing the best dish award with your spicy grilled fish! You will receive the super reward package, which consists of a single opportunity to temporarily return to the height of your powers, as well as an upgrade of the restaurant to level three! You may check the right you’ve unlocked following the upgrade when you return to the restaurant!”
“Holy f*ck!” Han Li couldn’t help but exclaim upon hearing this.
“Hmm?”
The attendant up ahead turned to Mag with a perplexed look.
A slightly awkward expression appeared on Mag’s face as he explained, “Sorry, I have a long reflex arc, which means my reactions are rather slow. The excitement of meeting the king for the first time has only just caught up to me.”