Shirou Versus Lancer

"Headmaster Armstrong! Teachers! Let us have some too!" a group of burly men shouted.

"Principal, what do you think? These young men are about to participate in the quarterly competition," the male Housemistress Teacher asked, turning to the principal in charge.

"Hmm. We have enough ingredients! We bought two pigs, one cow, three lambs, five or six chickens and ducks, and three boxes of vegetables! If our chef is willing, why not?" the principal readily agreed.

"Really? Thank you! Principal Armstrong! We knew you were the best, the best of the best!" the athletes shouted excitedly.

"Hehe, no need to flatter me, this is the Armstrong family's tradition of generosity and magnanimity passed down through generations!" The principal raised his arms to show off his muscles and said with a big laugh.

"Let's line up now!" So the members of the soccer and rugby teams joined the exchange students' line.

"Ugh, don't come any closer! There are so many of you guys, we don't have enough to eat!" the girls complained.

"Enough with the nonsense! Everyone is equal before meat!" a rugby player yelled.

"This is an art department exchange event; you guys are totally outsiders," the girls said, unwilling to back down.

"Are you looking down on team sports? Are you looking down on the Olympics and the World Cup?!"

"Hey, stop making noise, ask the chef himself what he wants!" shouted the PE teacher, who was also in line.

"Oh right, the chef's name is 'Shirou,' isn't it? Can we have some too?"

"Please!" the male students from the physical education department pleaded.

"Okay, sure," Shirou agreed. After all, they had already come over, and it would be too heartless to refuse. At his speed, plus the 20 or so people from the two sports teams, they should be able to handle it.

"Ah... I knew it would turn out like this," Shizuka Hiratsuka said, covering her face.

"Haha, after all, Shirou is known at school as a man who never refuses anyone's requests," Sawako said with a laugh.

"A man who can't say no? He's kind of handsome," her fiancé said with a smile.

"Yes, but you can't be a man who can't say no, the kind without any morals, okay? Come on~!" Sawako smiled and picked up a piece of pork tenderloin, holding it to her fiancé's lips, saying sweetly.

The male teacher took a bite of the meat, wiping away cold sweat as he thought, "Why is it that just changing the wording seems to completely change the evaluation?"

After the exchange students had all walked away satisfied with their plates of barbecue and smoked meat, it was finally the turn of the male students from the Physical Education department. They discussed it briefly, and then the tallest one, the rugby captain, raised his hand and said, "Anyway, each member of the soccer and rugby teams, give us 3 pounds of each type of meat!"

"3 pounds?! Over 1.2 kg?" Shirou exclaimed in surprise. When did Britain barbecue restaurants start charging by weight?

"Just give me that brisket that's half lean and half fat!"

"The chicken wings are ready to eat, right? Hurry, hurry, chef!"

"Give us ten bags of roasted corn each!!"

The male students from the Physical Education Department had their eyes gleaming with greed, like a pack of hungry wolves, emanating a terrifying aura that made the students who wanted to join the queue behind them afraid to come closer.

Shirou had been observing all this, frowned, then unleashed the head chef's authority, and roared back, "You! If you want to eat, you'd better wait quietly! Line up properly!"

"Yes!" The members of the football and rugby teams were stunned and stood frozen in place, answering in unison. For some reason, for a moment they seemed to feel that the person standing opposite them was not the boy who made the foreign barbecue delicious, but their coach who trained them every day.

Even now that they've realized their mistake, they still don't dare disobey the boy's orders. So the obedient male students from the physical education department quietly lined up, and the students behind them were able to follow.

"That's good." Shirou nodded and continued cooking. He wasn't without experience cooking for ferocious, ravenous people; he could manage to mess around himself, but causing trouble for others was unacceptable.

The boy carrying kitchen utensils was more than three times more imposing than his usual kind and harmless demeanor.

"Shirou... so cool~!" The girl, with a chicken wing in her mouth, exclaimed, clasping her hands together.

"Shirou... so cool~!" The girl took a big bite of the crispy on the outside and tender on the inside smoked beef and said with a look of ecstasy.

"Shirou... it's so delicious." The girl stared at the barbecue being flipped in the boy's hands, a mysterious liquid involuntarily drooling from her mouth.

"Meat! Meat!!" The carnivorous boys held chunks of meat and grabbed Skewers, taking a big bite.

"Now I finally understand why Shirou is so popular," said the man with the side-swept bangs.

"No, I think everyone here understands," the man playing the piano said.

"Sigh... I can't compete." The lone boy sighed.

"Instead, let's find a way to bring him to the boys' dormitory to make breakfast!" the boys shouted in unison.

"Yes! Yes! This is it!!"

"What are you talking about?" The boys from the Bristol Branch School next door looked over curiously.

"We mean, we're inviting Shirou to the boys' dormitory," the man with the side-swept bangs repeated the plan in English.

"Wow! Wow! You guys are geniuses!" the boys from the Bristol Branch School exclaimed in surprise.

"Let's join hands and make this wish come true!" The boys high-fived and shook hands with each other, sharing the same spirit. The friendship between the two branch schools in Europe and Asia seemed to have been elevated to a new level during this outdoor barbecue!

From 10:30 a. m. to a little after 12:00 p. m., the beef, pork, lamb and other meats and vegetables were all eaten up by the teachers and students.

In terms of gaining the approval of the teachers and students of Bristol, he certainly accomplished a great deal. Not only the teachers, but even those troublesome male high school students looked at him with much friendlier expressions.

But... but, the busy young man forgot the most important thing.

"Shirou ~!" A cool, ethereal voice came from behind. The girl's voice was flat, but Shirou could still hear a hint of anticipation and joy in it.

Looking back, there indeed was the petite and adorable, but incredibly voracious, dragon head maid, Artoria, who had arrived.

"Ah..." Shirou suddenly remembered something. Looking around, he saw a shiny iron plate and empty iron racks, all gleaming in the sunlight. Not only was there no meat, but even the three boxes of vegetables, corn, and potatoes, had been completely eaten.

"Shirou? Have we already finished lunch?" Artoria looked around in confusion, then her eyes widened in shock, her golden pupils turning gray as she stared blankly at the boy.

"Wait, Artoria, calm down! Calm down!" He could sense Artoria's grievances. The girl's dissatisfaction was rapidly building up, and if left unchecked, it would soon erupt like a dragon breathing fire!

Chapter 167 Shirou vs. Ria

Faced with expectations shattered by harsh reality and outcomes completely different from what was imagined, people react in various ways. It is often at this moment that a person's magnanimity is revealed.

A wise sage might choose the method with the least loss to remedy the situation.

A positive and optimistic person might accept this outcome and seek new opportunities to take on new challenges.

A person of low character might choose to constantly shirk responsibility and blame all problems on the mistakes of others.

If it's a tyrant, it seems he's prepared to punish the world that caused all this.

At this moment, Artoria clearly felt the malice emanating from the world. Just like the Britain she had painstakingly protected, there were always troublemakers trying to cause chaos. Now, even eating a meal couldn't be allowed to go smoothly?

"Why? I came here at the cafeteria's designated mealtimes. Why is there nothing here? Why do all the people here look so satisfied?"

"Why am I the only one who came here hungry... I was so looking forward to it..." Artoria lowered her head gloomily, muttering to herself. The black aura emanating from her body was so powerful that even the demonic Vortigern would have to admit defeat.

"Yes, there is! There's delicious food! I'll go get the ingredients right now!" Shirou said, pressing down on the girl's shoulders.

"Really? Eat until you're satisfied?" Artoria looked up, her eyes regaining their hope.

"Okay! I'll eat until you're satisfied! Trust me!" Shirou reassured the girl, determined to save the school.

"Okay! You sit here for a while, I'll take care of it!" Shirou said, running over to the male teacher and asking, "Teacher! Teacher! Is there any other food around here?"

"What's wrong? Is anyone still hungry? Although the portion isn't quite enough for this many people, with the corn and potatoes, everyone should be full," the principal said.

"Please, the head maid came over before she even ate," Shirou said.

"What! The head maid!" The teachers' expressions changed, and even the principal stood up in fright.

Everyone looked toward the chairs by the barbecue grill, where the blonde girl was sitting quietly playing on her phone.

"Gentlemen! Quickly gather the ingredients and bring all the best materials here." The principal looked sternly at his teachers and said with a wave of his hand.

"There's still a huge pile of flour in the warehouse, I'll go get it," the PE teacher said.

"Oh, there's some bacon in the refrigerator in the boys' dormitory kitchen," the male dormitory supervisor said.

So all the male teachers pitched in and once again brought back a considerable amount of flour, sugar, milk, eggs, and even bacon.

"Shirou, I'm hungry," Artoria said.

"Yes, yes, almost done!" Shirou knew how terrifying the girl was at this moment. In her altered state, she was much more unstable than usual. As the tyrant in full mode, who knew what she would do if she really got angry.

A hungry wolf cub can be scolded, and a starving tiger will act unreasonably and cause trouble, but if a dragon is extremely hungry and gets angry, the consequences are unpredictable.

To quell the girl's anger, Shirou was fully prepared. He added charcoal to the bottom of the iron rack again and lit the iron plate on top. At the same time, he also ordered rice and a rice cooker and started cooking rice.

Cut the freshly brought potatoes into slices, leaving the ends slightly uncut. Then, place slices of bacon into the slits, spread with sesame oil and seasonings, and bake in a clay oven. In just fifteen minutes, the accordion potato and bacon dish is ready.

Meanwhile, Shirou worked on the sizzling hot griddle, mixing flour and milk to create a thick liquid, which he poured directly onto the oiled griddle. In less than two minutes, he flipped it over and cooked it for another minute, thus completing his homemade egg pancake.

Artoria seemed to be venting her resentment at being left out and not being able to eat the smoked and roasted meat, and the girl began to eat heartily.

Shirou used all his skills, constantly mixing flour, beating eggs, adding spices and side dishes, making teppanyaki, dorayaki, pies and other dishes to eat on the spot.

However, the girl's appetite was like a bottomless pit. No matter how much the boy prepared, within minutes, the food on the table would be devoured by the girl, leaving the plate empty.

After the rice was cooked, Shirou made some stir-fries and fried eggs to serve with Artoria. Once the rice had cooled down a bit, he added fried bacon and a sauce to make a simple and convenient garlic bacon and lard fried rice.

Sunlight streamed into the courtyard, shimmering golden on the boy's body. Despite it being winter, fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

Artoria glanced at the boy, who was already sweating profusely, and said, "Shirou, that's enough. I'm full."

Only then did Shirou put down his knife and spatula, sitting down in a chair, panting heavily. He had spent an hour and a half cooking for the teachers and students at the Bristol Branch School, from 10:30 to 12:00, including preparation time.

To satisfy Artoria, Shirou worked from 12:30 until after 3:00 in the afternoon, serving one person was more tiring than serving a group of people.

"Oh!" The people around applauded, whether in admiration of the boy's superb skills or in amazement at the head maid's extraordinary appetite, it was hard to tell.

The students felt an even greater respect for the hardworking teenager.

After that, before the boy had even rested for an hour, the bells rang again from the blue-domed tower.

Clang, clang, clang, clang...

Four sounds.

"It's already this time..." Shirou gave a helpless wry smile. There's a British folk song that Britain, 'When the bells toll four times, everything in the world stops for tea.'

The bell didn't ring at 2 or 3 o'clock before, so it's clear that the bell was set to ring at this special time.

"Well then, teachers and students, the tea and refreshments are ready. Let's enjoy afternoon tea time," Shirou said politely to those around him, now acting as his butler.

"Wow, you've prepared so well!" the principal praised the male teachers.

"Did you make tea and snacks, Shirou?" The female teachers happily shook hands with him.

"Since I brought quite a lot of ingredients, I might as well make some for afternoon tea as well," Shirou explained.

"Shirou, I want afternoon tea too," Artoria said, raising her hand.

"Huh? But Artoria, didn't you just finish eating?" Shirou exclaimed in surprise.

"Hmph, as long as it's converted into magic power, I can digest it all. I can eat as much of the food Shirou makes. I only stopped eating because you were tired," Artoria said, turning her head away.

"Well, thank you for being so kind," Shirou said, wiping his sweat.

As Shirou poured milk into the exquisite porcelain teacups on the tray, the snow-white nectar flowed from the bottle's spout and dripped into the cups. The boy's hand, holding the milk bottle, slid from left to right, ensuring not a single drop missed.

The milk poured evenly into each cup, as if flowing through clouds and water.

Then add sugar cubes, and finally pour in the brewed black tea. Stir with a small spoon, and serve to each seat.

The school's teachers and students can leisurely spend an afternoon drinking black tea, eating snacks, and chatting.

Yes, Britain doesn't have a rich food culture; it certainly couldn't capture the essence of Chinese cuisine like "A Bite of China," the local customs and traditions—a fact even Britain themselves jokingly admit. However, this country boasts a unique afternoon tea culture.

In the 18th century, at the Sun Never Sets Empire's power, the tool for the nouveau riche and nobles to compete in wealth and status was none other than tea! Even though the royal family imposed a tariff of nearly one-fifth on tea, it could not stop the wealthy from pursuing it. At that time, being able to afford afternoon tea was a symbol of status.

In British novels of that era, one could often see scenes of the protagonist gathering with friends and family for afternoon tea, along with other British nobles and wealthy merchants.

Nobles and ladies would use imperial porcelain teapots made in China to brew the finest Chinese tea, eat snacks, and chat about the romantic escapades among the aristocracy that only the upper class knew, while playing with the exquisite porcelain teacups.

This is similar to the kind of pretentious, ostentatious displays of wealth in modern novels, where characters wear shorts and flip-flops to a dealership to buy a luxury car or a Louis Vuitton bag for their girlfriends.

Before tea trees were cultivated in Britain, the finest tea from China was more precious than gold when it was transported Britain, and Bristol was then Britain's largest and most prosperous port. As descendants of those who first encountered these things, it's easy to imagine their love for afternoon tea.

Of course, in modern times, the luxurious porcelain and tea sets displayed in the porcelain shops on the streets of Britain, although you can still see traces of Chinese porcelain craftsmanship, have long been produced by porcelain artisans from various European countries. And you can only see real Chinese porcelain in museums or antique dealers around the world.

Here, the gentlemanly teachers sat at a small Round Table on one side, while the ladylike teachers sat at another table on the other side, chatting about topics that interested them.

Shirou stepped forward and lit the pipes for the principal and teachers with a match. He lit one for the principal and one for a teacher, extinguished the burning match in his hand, then took a new match from the box, lit it, and lit the next teacher's pipe.

The principal and teachers, observing the boy's actions, understood that this was not the kind of etiquette that could be achieved simply through good upbringing. They asked, "Shirou, have you received professional butler training?"

"Yes, I studied with a butler in Finland, the 'Land of a Thousand Lakes,' for a short time," Shirou replied politely.

"That's a Nordic country, so it seems the lady your teacher serves isn't from an ordinary family. You already possess skills that would make you a royal butler. Among the butlers I know who have been in the profession for over ten years, no one does it better than you," the principal said approvingly.

"Yes, Finland is a wonderful country. There are lakes everywhere, surrounded by lush vegetation. You can swim in the lakes in the summer, and even though it's covered in ice and snow in the winter, it still has a unique charm. I learned a lot there," Shirou said with a smile.

"If someone is that kind of talent, we would certainly welcome them to our school dormitory for an exchange program," a teacher nearby chimed in.