Little Angel Abby

"Pancakes?"

The children looked at each other, their big eyes blinking, seemingly lost in thought.

Yuxian nodded. "Using buckwheat to make pancakes is not impossible, but such a choice would probably be difficult to win."

"Let's see what special things he has prepared."

Yuxian didn't believe that Ryo Hayama was simply making pancakes; he must have other ideas. With such outstanding talent in spices, it was impossible for him not to use them.

Several children quietly slipped to the side, bumped their heads together, and began to whisper among themselves.

"He's learning how to make pancakes like Abby."

"Won't he reveal that we secretly went to the kitchen?"

"Probably not. He's usually very quiet and doesn't seem like the type to snitch. Besides, he ate it too."

"What should we say if our Master asks?"

"Don't worry about the Master, the key is with Red Teacher, okay?"

"Then we'll adapt to the situation."

The children tried their best to pretend nothing was wrong and continued watching the game.

However, little did they know that others had already seen all of this.

Yuxian didn't even need to think to know that Ryo Hayama's ability to make pancakes must be related to the little ones.

However, he still pretended not to know anything, Yuxian wanted to see what Ryo Hayama was really up to.

What inspiration did he get from Abby that made him decide to make pancakes in such an important competition to compete against Nene Kinokuni, a master of soba noodles?

Suddenly, a faint smell of burning wafted through the air.

Everyone stirred. Had Ryo Hayama made a mistake in such an important Shokugeki?

I accidentally burned the pancake.

This is absolutely a very basic mistake. At the Tōtsuki Academy, the first thing anyone aspiring to become a chef learns is how to control the heat.

No matter what kind of food it is, being undercooked or burnt is absolutely unacceptable.

"What is Ryo Hayama up to?"

Even Yuxian's side couldn't figure out Ryo Hayama's actions. Of course, they didn't think it was a real mistake, but that Ryo Hayama had done it intentionally.

"Is the burnt smell meant to accentuate the aroma of the spices?"

Everyone started speculating in their minds.

In the tense and exciting atmosphere, time passed quickly, Nene Kinokuni finished cooking first.

Compared to Ryo Hayama, her movements were more skilled, and the cooking process was simpler.

But simple doesn't mean bad. The buckwheat noodles she served had a fragrant aroma, and the noodles were of uniform thickness, without a single flaw.

The three judges couldn't wait to start tasting it.

It's chewy, smooth, and refreshing, and paired with the side dishes, it's so delicious you won't want to put it down.

The noodles slid into the judges' mouths as if they were drilling into them on their own.

Nene Kinokuni stood calmly to the side, showing no reaction to the judges' reactions.

They seemed indifferent to their performance, as if it were all taken for granted.

"I never imagined that such a bowl of buckwheat noodles would come from the hands of a young girl." Master Li put down the empty bowl and exclaimed, "Even those master chefs who specialize in this craft are no better than this."

"The younger generation is truly formidable! The younger generation is truly formidable!"

Nicholas also praised it generously, "It is no less delicious than the best buckwheat noodles I have ever tasted."

"Oh, by the way, that was made by your grandfather himself. He has a successor."

Gin Dōjima looked at Nene Kinokuni with great satisfaction, and felt a strong liking for this junior from Totsuki Academy.

He said, "When it comes to soba noodles alone, no one in Totsuki can do it better than you."

Gin Dōjima's unspoken meaning was that even the top-ranked Eishi Tsukasa couldn't beat Nene Kinokuni's bowl of soba noodles.

Very high praise.

The high praise given to Nene Kinokuni by the three judges left all the audience speechless.

This is practically like announcing victory in advance.

The pressure came on to Ryo Hayama, but he wasn't affected and continued to work tirelessly.

It was as if none of the judges' words or the audience's cheers had reached his ears.

From the very beginning, Ryo Hayama was well aware of the strength of his opponent. He only needed to do all he could and didn't care about anything else.

Ryo Hayama was focused on his own world, giving full play to his abilities.

At that moment, he forgot about winning or losing, forgot that this was a Shokugeki concerning the Elite Ten positions, and simply enjoyed the cooking process.

Cooking is finished.

He placed the three pancakes in front of the judges one by one.

However, the spectators in the stands began to whisper among themselves.

Because Ryo Hayama placed a slightly burnt pancake in front of Master Li.

Seeing this, Gin Dōjima was somewhat displeased, "Hayama..."

Please try it!

"Ryo Hayama I said calmly."

Master Li stared blankly at Ryo Hayama for a long while, then suddenly burst into laughter, "I'm getting old! These young people these days are all so amazing!"

He picked up the flatbread in front of him without any hesitation and ate it in large bites, a complicated expression on his face.

Elegance vanished from this elderly man whose hair and beard were already white at that moment.

Boom!

This incredible scene shocked everyone. They couldn't understand what Ryo Hayama had done to make Master Li behave this way.

Even the usually composed Nene Kinokuni showed a surprised expression. Master Li hadn't shown this reaction when he was eating her soba noodles.

A slight ripple stirred in her heart.

What exactly did Ryo Hayama do?

Everyone is concerned about this issue now; everyone's curiosity has been piqued.

We waited anxiously and expectantly for the final result.

Who will win? The suspense has returned.

The scales of victory have returned to their starting point.

Chapter 32, Section 498: Little Angel Abby

The most exciting moment has arrived.

It was time to announce the results.

Who will ultimately win?

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the three judges each pressed the button to indicate the winner.

The results appeared on the big screen.

2 to 1!

The victor Nene Kinokuni!

"Did we lose again?" Ryo Hayama shook his head slightly. "As expected, my strength is still not enough!"

"Young man, you've done enough. Don't be discouraged."

Master Li looked at Ryo Hayama with a kind expression and comforted him.

It was clear that the vote that belonged to Ryo Hayama was cast by him.

"Losing is losing. I still have a lot to learn and I didn't do well enough." Ryo Hayama was very calm and didn't seem particularly frustrated by losing the Shokugeki.

Gin Dōjima asked, "Master Li, was there anything special about that slightly burnt pancake you ate?"

He still doesn't understand why.

Everyone pricked up their ears, eager to hear the secret, which was precisely what everyone was most concerned about.

Master Li smiled and said, "Let him say it himself."

Faced with everyone's questioning gazes, Ryo Hayama slowly explained the reason.

"Everyone knows about Master Li's life story. Because of your experiences when you were young, you have a special fondness for food cooked on a wood-fired stove."

"I just tried my best to imitate that taste."

"Mr. Nicholas once said publicly that he would try to avoid overly stimulating flavors in order to maintain a keen sense of taste."

"Therefore, I try to make the pancakes as mild as possible so that the taste buds are not overwhelmed."

"As for senior Dojima, having spent so much time in the kitchen, he must be quite averse to greasy food."

"Therefore, the flavor of the pancakes will be milder, and the texture will be appropriately coarser."

Three pancakes, three different methods, and Ryo Hayama made different adjustments based on each judge's preferences.

"Not bad!" Master Li nodded in satisfaction. "There is no such thing as perfection in the world. Everyone's preferences, tastes, and experiences are different."

What is honey to you is poison to me.

"If you can think of this, you're already ahead of most people on the path to becoming a chef."

He spared no praise for Ryo Hayama.

"This is not what I thought of." Ryo Hayama shook his head, not daring to accept the praise.

"Oh?" Master Li was taken aback. "It seems your teacher must be a top-notch culinary master!"

Ryo Hayama shook his head again. "This is something I learned from a child."

He slowly recounted what he had seen and heard in the kitchen that night.

"Her technique for making pancakes was very immature. At first, I subjectively thought that such pancakes would definitely not taste good and would only be barely edible."

"But after tasting it, I found that the flavor was surprisingly to my liking."

"Afterwards, I observed carefully and found that there were subtle differences in the pancakes in each child's hands."

"Even though it was just a very simple pancake, she carefully took into account everyone's preferences."

Upon hearing Ryo Hayama's account, Yuxian and his group all turned their attention to Abby.

"Ah! He broke his promise! He said he wouldn't tell!" Gretel was very unhappy that Ryo Hayama had revealed that they had secretly made food to eat.

Abby stood there nervously, waiting to be scolded.

Yuxian beckoned to her, "Abby, come here."

The children, showing great loyalty, stood in front of Abby, saying, "Master, you can't punish Abby! We're the ones who asked her to make things for us to eat!"

Yuxian smiled and walked over, gently hugged Abby, and patted her head.

"Abby is such a lovely little angel, how could I possibly punish her?"

Then he turned to the other children, "If anyone should be punished, it's you. You don't eat on time and you even sneak into the kitchen to eat in the middle of the night."

Abby was a little embarrassed. She said softly, "My pancakes didn't taste very good, but I'm already very happy that everyone likes them."

"Master, please don't blame everyone, okay?"

Yuxian couldn't bear to blame Abby; he was overjoyed by Abby's thoughtfulness.