Chapter 258: Exceeding Expectations!
"Hehe—!"
"Such heartwarming, touching words! In my opinion, they're wonderful, so..."
Lucoa held up her phone, her other hand lightly covering her smiling lips, grinning like a fox.
"I recorded it!"
"Eh—!?"
Ryohei Tanaka turned his head in shock. Seeing Lucoa's smirk, the corners of his mouth twitched, and he couldn't help but say, "You really have too much free time!"
Good grief! Pulling a stunt like this on me?
Ryohei Tanaka was a bit speechless and also a bit embarrassed.
He paused, put his hands on his hips, and instructed Lucoa:
"Record it if you want... but don't go playing that recording for no reason."
He wasn't sure if she would do something like that just to tease him, so he decided to issue a warning first.
"Eh?"
This time it was Lucoa's turn to look surprised. She raised her hand in a "stop" gesture and said, "I can't? I wanted everyone to hear what you think of me..."
"You were really planning to play it!"
Ryohei Tanaka felt numb. He looked at Lucoa and couldn't help but retort.
Thank goodness...
He had stopped it in time!
If Yurine heard it, Ryohei Tanaka felt guilty just thinking about it.
"..." To the side, Callista, the bearded chef, and the others looked at Ryohei Tanaka and Lucoa with beady eyes.
They tilted their heads strangely, question marks practically popping up over their heads.
What are they talking about?
They didn't understand. They didn't understand at all...
...
Time passed quietly, and in the blink of an eye, it was time for the flamingo to come out of the oven.
Ryohei Tanaka put on heat-resistant gloves and walked confidently to the large brick oven used specifically for roasting flamingos. Under everyone's focused gaze, he reached out, grabbed the handle of the oven door, and pulled—
Boom—!
In an instant, a dazzling golden light, accompanied by white steam and a rich, exotic fragrance, erupted from the depths of the oven, instantly hitting Ryohei Tanaka in the face.
Caw—!
A high-pitched, clear bird cry suddenly rang out from inside the oven!
Ryohei Tanaka, who had instinctively closed his eyes against the blinding golden light, was stunned. As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw a large bird, its entire body radiating a soft golden glow, spreading its wings and soaring out of the brick oven like a phoenix rising from the ashes!
Caught off guard, he stumbled back two steps in shock.
Callista, Klinken, and the others watching from the side stared wide-eyed, their jaws almost hitting the floor.
Looking at the golden flamingo circling above Ryohei Tanaka and the brick oven, scattering specks of light, their minds went blank, left only with utter astonishment.
"...W-what is going on!?"
"Why is it glowing!? He didn't cast any magic!"
"Ah, this—! This, this, this...!"
"..."
Everyone was stunned senseless, their worldviews shattered on the ground!
Even Lucoa, who knew Ryohei Tanaka and his glowing cuisine well, suddenly opened her eyes wide, revealing those unusually magnificent, heterochromatic pupils filled with surprise.
"Hoh—! That really is unexpected!"
Ryohei Tanaka exclaimed with emotion.
The dazzling golden light in the oven lasted for a few seconds before fading into a soft, non-blinding afterglow.
In mid-air, the circling golden flamingo, along with the scattered light, gradually became insubstantial and transparent before vanishing.
Ryohei Tanaka didn't continue to stare. He stepped forward, steadily pulled out the huge roasting pan containing the Roasted Flamingo, and placed it on top of the brick oven.
He took off the heat-resistant gloves, inhaling the rich, mouth-watering aroma that assailed his nose. He glanced at Callista and the others, whose faces still bore traces of shock, or expressions of excitement with bobbing Adam's apples and looks of craving. Smiling, he held up two fingers:
"We have to wait another 20 minutes. I need to let the meat rest."
During the roasting process, the juices inside the meat are pushed toward the center by the high heat. When resting, the muscle fibers relax, and the juices redistribute throughout the entire muscle tissue.
If cut immediately, the precious juices would be lost, resulting in dry meat. After resting for a while, the meat would be incredibly tender and juicy when cut!
"O-Okay!"
The usually sophisticated Callista was no longer confident in front of Ryohei Tanaka!
The scene just now had truly shocked her. She now seriously suspected that Ryohei Tanaka was a god!
Something like the "God of Gourmet Food"!
After all, how could an ordinary person cook such a dish!
And...
Inhale—!
Callista lifted her chin slightly and took a deep breath, her expression involuntarily softening.
The rich, profound, irresistible aroma brushed over every inch of her senses like a flamingo's feather, making her body go weak. Saliva flooded her mouth like a dam bursting.
Callista unconsciously hugged herself, one hand resting by her slightly parted lips, her face revealing an undisguised expression of drooling desire.
(¯﹃¯)
I want to eat it!
I really want to taste it right now!
"..."
"Oh, oh—! Coming back to my senses, smelling it carefully, this aroma is so tempting! It's hard to imagine how delicious this Roasted Flamingo will be!"
"I'm practically drooling!"
"Just smelling this tempting aroma, I could eat two loaves of bread!"
"Mmm—! I wonder if there's a chance to taste a bite... I want to eat it so bad!"
"..."
The chefs and waitresses of the Tulip Tavern, just like their boss, were conquered by the intense aroma filling the kitchen!
Everyone's gaze seemed pulled by invisible threads, firmly glued to the gently glowing Roasted Flamingo on the roasting pan. Their faces were written with craving, their throats swallowing involuntarily.
Lucoa suddenly stepped forward, leaned close to Ryohei Tanaka, and said with a beaming smile:
"Ryohei-kun, I want to eat chicken." (Note: The slang implication is preserved)
"Hm?"
Ryohei Tanaka froze for a moment, not reacting immediately. He pointed at the flamingo and corrected her, "This is a bird."
"Fine."
Lucoa readily accepted the correction. "I want to eat bird." (Note: In Chinese slang, "bird" can also refer to male genitalia, similar to "cock" in English, adding a double entendre).
"..." At first glance, the sentence seemed fine, but coming from Lucoa's mouth, it was very problematic.
Ryohei Tanaka looked at her suspiciously. Are you teasing me?
He was speechless for a moment, rolled his eyes at Lucoa, and said, "Wait!"
I'll let you eat your fill later!
"Hai—!"
Lucoa clasped her hands behind her back and responded with a smile.
Ryohei Tanaka raised an eyebrow at her: You enjoy teasing me, don't you?
I'm very happy.
Lucoa's lips curved up slightly as she looked down at the Roasted Flamingo on the brick oven.
I want to eat!
Meanwhile, Callista asked Klinken for the detailed dipping sauce recipe and respectfully handed it to Ryohei Tanaka, saying:
"Lord Tanaka, here is the recipe you wanted!"
"..." Ryohei Tanaka looked at her in surprise, took the recipe, and smiled gently. "No need to be so formal."
After speaking, he looked down at the recipe, then took a notebook and pen from his spatial storage.
Although he hadn't hidden anything while cooking earlier, the chefs of the Tulip Tavern probably hadn't understood some of the details.
Ryohei Tanaka waved to Klinken, who immediately approached respectfully.
Ryohei Tanaka confirmed the specific local names of the ingredients and seasonings he had just used with him one by one.
He wrote down the detailed recipe for the improved Roasted Flamingo in his notebook.
Then, he tore off the page and handed it to Callista, who was looking at him expectantly. He smiled and said:
"Miss Callista, this is my improved recipe."
"Although it won't reach the standard of my cooking, it should be a significant improvement over the tavern's original recipe."
"Thank you immensely, Lord Tanaka!"
Callista's beautiful eyes lit up instantly, her surprise and joy overflowing. She took the thin page with both hands and bowed deeply to Ryohei Tanaka with great sincerity.
As for Ryohei Tanaka saying it wouldn't reach his cooking standard, Callista didn't mind at all.
Wasn't that normal? How could a human reach the standard of a god!
"..." Klinken watched the recipe in Callista's hands with a burning gaze.
Callista chuckled, handing the recipe over. Klinken received it like a precious treasure, thanking her repeatedly.
Ryohei Tanaka took out the dipping sauce recipe he just received and signaled to Callista:
"Miss Callista, could you help prepare a set of the corresponding ingredients?"
"Of course."
Callista agreed and looked at Klinken.
Feeling her gaze, Klinken looked up from the recipe Ryohei Tanaka had given him and quickly said:
"We're out of sour fruit, but we have everything else."
"Then go buy some!"
Callista immediately arranged for someone to go shopping, while instructing others to quickly gather the rest of the required materials and place them on the worktable for Ryohei Tanaka.
By the time the sour fruit was bought back, the Roasted Flamingo had rested enough.
Ryohei Tanaka's original plan was to eat it with the ready-made dipping sauce, but now that he had the recipe and the ingredients were ready, he prepared to make the sauce himself.
After all, since he seemed to have exceeded expectations this time, it would be a pity to pair it with the ready-made sauce.
He didn't want to settle; he wanted to do his best and strive for perfection—!
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