"And here comes our first challenger!"
A contestant had already finished and submitted his drink. While rolling the cut pearl dough into balls, I listened to the host.
"Please introduce yourself to the judges."
The first challenger accepted the microphone from a staff member and began speaking.
"Greetings, honorable judges. My name is Camille, from Kunrohan. I'm the owner of a restaurant called 'Camille.'"
"So you've come from quite far away, Mr. Camille. Now then, please introduce your drink."
"This beverage is called Duzeron Coffee. Unlike regular coffee, it contains duzeron leaves, which transform the bitterness into sweetness. Even children would want another cup."
Why would children drink coffee?
Wouldn't they be unable to sleep at night?
And drinking too much coffee was bad for the stomach and addictive too. This contestant was being pretty reckless.
Besides, coffee without bitterness wasn't really coffee anymore. That flavor was exactly why people loved it.
If a cup of coffee had no bitterness at all, it probably meant the caffeine was gone. But caffeine was the essence of coffee. How could you remove it?
"I see. What do the judges think?"
"This coffee truly isn't bitter, but aren't duzeron leaves poisonous?"
"That's correct, but duzeron leaves also have pain-relieving properties. Small amounts are harmless."
"How fascinating that duzeron leaves can turn coffee's bitterness into sweetness."
Even though I couldn't see who was speaking, judging by the order of voices, it was probably the duchess first, then the duke, then the young viscount.
Still, weren't duzeron leaves supposed to be painkillers? Why would they alter flavor?
Then a mature female voice spoke.
"That's not quite right. The sweetness comes from the milk, correct?"
"Y-Yes, Your Majesty!"
So that was Queen Ainasse.
Her very first sentence was a question.
No wonder the contestant sounded so excited and nervous after receiving the queen's attention.
"Do you know why duzeron leaves are not a doctor's first choice, despite their pain-relieving effects?"
"I do not..."
"While small amounts can relieve pain, even small doses are considered poison to children. Furthermore, one of the side effects is a false feeling of fullness. Are you trying to prevent my people from enjoying delicious food?"
"My deepest apologies, Your Majesty, I—"
"..."
That contestant was terrifying.
He'd actually served poisonous plants to children.
But honestly, the queen's words left me speechless too. The general's famous saying had clearly spread far and wide—being able to eat truly was a blessing.
Then the host asked the judge whose opinion would decide everything: the general.
"General Arakeya, what do you think?"
"You don't need to come back again."
The old man's deep voice carried a hint of anger, instantly announcing the contestant's elimination.
The host immediately changed tone to comfort him.
"Mr. Camille, what a shame. But please don't lose heart—there's always next time. Thank you for your participation."
The contestant returned the microphone to the staff and walked back dejectedly to clean up his station.
Poor guy.
"Hahaha, what an idiot."
The contestant on my right didn't say it loudly, but my sharp hearing still caught him mocking the eliminated man.
I glanced over to see what he was making.
To my surprise, he still hadn't started preparing his drink.
What was he waiting for? A drink to fall from the sky?
Whatever. He didn't seem worthy of winning anyway.
Once the pearls were rolled, I dusted them with tapioca starch so the surface would be coated evenly and prevent them from sticking together. Then I placed them into bowls and covered them with plates to keep them from drying out.
After repeating the same process four more times, all five servings of pearls were finally complete.
I looked up at the clock.
More than two hours had passed already.
So tiring.
At least the weather wasn't hot.
During that time, contestants continuously brought their completed drinks to the judges and received all kinds of evaluations—some good, some bad, and some instantly eliminated like the first challenger. Afterward, staff members would return their cups.
Honestly, I felt incredibly lucky.
Compared to the other themes, the beverage theme was far harder unless you had memories from a previous life like I did.
Sure, drinks seemed varied at first glance, but compared to actual food, the possibilities were pitifully limited.
Creativity was low too.
Wasn't it basically just adding milk, sugar, lemon slices, or something similar into coffee, tea, or cocoa to slightly alter the taste?
This world was basically at a twenty-first century level already, aside from not having carbonated drinks yet, so there really wasn't much room for innovation.
Soup, however, was different.
Even though it was also something you drank, soup could combine all kinds of ingredients to create rich flavors, aromas, and appearances.
Next, I took out the second large pot and brought a large amount of water to a boil before slowly pouring in all the pearls after shaking off the excess tapioca starch.
They needed to cook for over thirty minutes while being stirred occasionally with a skimmer to prevent sticking.
During that time, I cleaned the utensils I no longer needed.
Eventually, the pearls floated to the surface. Their outer layer had become translucent while the inside remained solid, meaning they were done.
I turned off the heat, covered the pot, and let them sit for twenty minutes.
Next came the milk tea.
I poured an appropriate amount of water into the third pot and brought it to a boil before adding black tea leaves.
Once the flavor had brewed properly, I added a large amount of milk, one cup of fresh milk, and half a spoonful of sugar before stirring everything evenly.
Meanwhile, the guy on my right had finally started preparing his drink.
To think he'd waste so much time just to make a dramatic late entrance. What a patient slacker.
Once the milk tea was done, I turned off the heat and covered the pot before opening the refrigerator and taking out the ice molds.
Without changing the refrigerator's temperature, I placed the milk tea inside to cool it down as quickly as possible.
There was no need to worry about the hot tea warming the inside of the refrigerator either. If hot air needed to be expelled, you could simply open the upper vent panel. Tiny holes along the lower section would release the heat.
Now for the final step of the pearls.
First, I dumped one tray of ice into a large bowl and added water.
Then I opened the pot and used the skimmer to scoop all the pearls into the ice water. The cold water would make the pearls even chewier.
Once the outer layer turned transparent while the center remained solid, they were ready to eat.
Next, I took the second tray of ice and brought out my custom glass cups.
Opening the lids, I placed two ice cubes into each cup.
Then I scooped the pearls from the ice water and evenly distributed them among the five cups.
Carefully timing everything, I removed the chilled—but not frozen—milk tea from the refrigerator.
Using a ladle, I poured the milk tea into the cups through a strainer placed on top to filter out the tea leaves.
After repeating the same process five times, I sealed the lids, opened the small straw holes, and inserted the glass straws.
The bubble tea was complete.
Finally, I took out the tray provided by the organizers from the station drawer, placed all five cups onto it, and removed my apron.
At last, I was done.