Chapter 137: The Billion Bird
The Cooking Fest, a festival of food held once every four years. On this day, the streets of the Human World were basically empty. Only the top 100 chefs in the World Chef Ranking were eligible to participate. Komatsu was qualified, though his ranking was currently on the lower side, temporarily at 88th.
"Brunch, if you don't go to the competition now, won't you be late?"
At Kenji's house, Brunch sat drinking wine brewed from Rainbow Fruit, his face looking even redder than usual.
"No need to rush. I'll overtake them one by one."
"Atashino, you're not participating in the Cooking Fest?"
Brunch was very confident. After all, the old geezers at the top of the rankings wouldn't go all out in a competition like this; they were masters of controlling their scores.
"No, I don't have any interest in it." She was famous for being a genius surgeon, not for her culinary skills.
"Brunch, have you seen Zebra in the Yōshoku Realm?"
"You mean that guy? I've seen him. His skills as a Gourmet Hunter are decent, but not many chefs would want to be his partner," Brunch said flatly.
"Alright, it's about time for my appearance."
"Are you two really not going?" Brunch asked one last time before leaving.
"We're not. Good luck," Kenji said with a wave of his hand.
The Cooking Fest was, at its core, a competition between chefs. For someone like him with no real cooking skills, it would just be watching from the sidelines. The Gourmet Corp.'s target was now NEO, and Midora was chasing Joie, so no one would be coming to disrupt the festival.
Kenji and Atashino tidied up and went to Ichiryu's garden.
"Kenji? Atashino?" Ichiryu took off his sunglasses, a little surprised.
"Uncle, take us to eat your Full Course Menu." Before heading to the Gourmet World, he wanted to taste Ichiryu's Full Course, even though only the final main dish, the Billion Bird, was a relatively normal ingredient.
"Hmm? Kenji, my Full Course Menu is made of ingredients for surviving a famine. The Billion Bird... its taste isn't particularly delicious." Ichiryu explained that since Midora hadn't launched his Meteor Spice, there was no famine in the Human World, and the ingredients of his menu were still sealed away.
"We still have to taste it to find out," Kenji said. The world thought you had to scare the Billion Bird to make it lay eggs quickly, but only by showing it recognition and kindness could you get it to lay an incomparably delicious egg.
Ichiryu nodded. Since his junior nephew wanted to try it, he wouldn't be stingy. He vanished in an instant.
Before long, Ichiryu returned with his entire Full Course Menu.
Appetizer: Million Seeds
Soup: Eboshi Turtle Tears
Salad: Princess Straw Seeds
Drink: Lord's Rice Snow
Fish Course: Mitarashi Kelp
Meat Course: Harmless Bug Larva
Dessert: Dried Ranran Melon
Main Course: Billion Bird
The other dishes all served to bring about the birth of the Billion Bird. Of Ichiryu's entire Full Course, only the main course was normal food.
"Alright, this is my Full Course Menu. Even Don Slime complains to me about what kind of decent person has a menu full of these kinds of ingredients," Ichiryu said with a laugh.
"Uncle, if you're not a good person, then there probably aren't any good people left on this planet." Ichiryu's personal charisma was acknowledged even by the Gourmet Demon Don Slime. His lifelong goal was to let everyone eat their fill, to let everyone, rich or poor, sit at the same dinner table and happily enjoy a meal.
"Kenji is right, President," Atashino said in complete agreement.
They built a nest, incubated the egg, and the bird hatched.
The Billion Bird's body was chubby, giving it a silly and cute feeling. It looked like it couldn't fly, and it had a wobbly ahoge on its head. After eating the fish course and the metamorphosed meat course, the ahoge on the Billion Bird's head instantly grew longer.
"Long time no see."
Ichiryu knelt and gently stroked the Billion Bird's head. This was the creature he had confirmed as his main course long ago. Even with just one Billion Bird, the people of the Human World could survive a famine.
The Billion Bird looked up. It didn't recognize Ichiryu, but it could feel his kindness.
"This must be a special cooking ingredient," Atashino said thoughtfully, rubbing her chin. The Billion Bird was a species that lived in ancient times and was thought to be extinct. She never thought she would see one.
"If no one could cook it, then my Full Course Menu would be worthless," Ichiryu nodded.
"Billion Bird, you, who have been acknowledged by President Ichiryu, are not ordinary. You possess a value that surpasses other ingredients. When disaster strikes, you are the hope of humanity," Atashino said sincerely. This small body carried a gift from ancient times.
"Thank you for appearing in this world."
This was a heartfelt sentiment, not an act. Kenji watched quietly. He believed his chef could do it. Although both scaring and showing recognition were ultimately for the sake of eating, the effects were certainly different.
"Chirp, chirp—"
The Billion Bird sensed Atashino's sincerity and cried tears of joy.
SWOOSH!
The next second, the Billion Bird spread its wings. In an instant, a pair of incomparably brilliant, giant wings unfurled, like those of a phoenix, shining brightly.
Ichiryu was a little surprised. He hadn't expected the Billion Bird to have such a form. Although he had seen it before, he had never seen this state.
(The manga didn't describe Ichiryu and the Billion Bird in detail, so we'll just assume Ichiryu has never seen this.)
So uncoordinated... Kenji was speechless. Although the wings were gorgeous, they didn't match the body at all. They were completely out of proportion.
FLAP!
The Billion Bird flapped its wings and soared into the sky. Anyone who knew about it would have found this unbelievably bizarre. After all, it was common knowledge that the Billion Bird couldn't fly, just like how Groudon can't fly.
"This is..." Ichiryu reached out and caught the egg the Billion Bird had laid. He was utterly shocked. This egg was completely different from the one in his collection. Its aroma was mellower, and it was much more beautiful.
Don Slime: That smells so good! Ichiryu, I smell a fragrance that excites my cells!
Ichiryu's Gourmet Demon, Don Slime, spoke up. The scent of the Billion Bird's egg was so potent that even it couldn't help but appear.
"Crack."
Ichiryu eagerly cracked the Billion Bird's egg into a container. The contents were as translucent and jiggly as pudding, shimmering as if sprinkled with gold dust, and radiating an incredibly rich aroma.
"Time to eat."
Ichiryu couldn't wait to taste it, slurping it down in an instant.
BOOM!
The delicious liquid egg entered his stomach. A deliciousness as thick as the Earth's crust caused Ichiryu's muscles to bulge, and a power like a planetary storm erupted from him.
Atashino was forced to take several steps back. This aura was too exaggerated; she was almost blown to the ground. Ichiryu was truly worthy of once being the world's strongest. A single move from a peak powerhouse was the limit for other strong fighters.
"It seems this ingredient is very much to your taste, Uncle," Kenji said with a smile. Although the manga showed a panel of Ichiryu holding a wine glass, he had probably never eaten the egg of this evolved Billion Bird. The energy inside Ichiryu's body now was beyond imagination. An Ichiryu like this, carrying Don Slime and fighting NEO... NEO would be no match for him. He could probably even defeat NEO with just his own body.
Kenji took a sip. His hair instantly grew longer, and his eyelashes became even more curled.
Good heavens. It makes you girlish.
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