Chapter 169
Haruto gazed up at the enormous black Charizard with a deep sense of accomplishment.
He had raised this Pokémon himself.
Now, however, it was time to leave.
After returning to Professor Oak’s laboratory, Haruto said goodbye to both the professor and Lorelei.
Professor Oak was clearly reluctant to see him go. He would have loved nothing more than to continue studying the black Charizard, but he understood that Haruto could not remain in this world forever.
"Come back and visit whenever you have the chance."
The professor looked at him expectantly.
Thanks to the ingredients Haruto had brought, his recent days had been more fulfilling than they had in years.
"Take care."
A trace of reluctance appeared on Lorelei’s face as well.
Their time together, especially the repeated training battles, had left a deep impression on her.
"I’ll come back when I have time."
Haruto waved to them.
A moment later, he vanished from the Pokémon world.
Somewhere within a hidden dimension, Arceus abruptly opened its eyes and looked in the direction Haruto had departed.
It remained silent for a long moment.
Then Arceus closed its eyes once more and returned to its slumber.
Haruto naturally knew nothing about any of this.
After leaving the Pokémon world, he traveled through the Toriko world, the Hunter × Hunter world, and the Delicious in Dungeon world in succession.
He needed to finish developing the Gourmet Restaurant.
By the time he finally returned home, Haruto looked thoroughly exhausted.
He examined the Gourmet Restaurant, and satisfaction spread across his face.
At last, the pocket realm had begun to resemble a true paradise of its own.
A vast, vibrant forest now covered the entire space.
There were all kinds of Berry trees from the Pokémon world.
Meat Trees and Wine Palm Trees from the Toriko world.
Dryads and Mandrakes from the dungeon world.
Land Mine Mushrooms from the Hunter × Hunter world.
Countless living creatures moved leisurely among the trees.
Gentle Pokémon wandered through the forest, while roasted whole pigs grazed peacefully despite the delicious aroma of cooked meat drifting from their bodies.
There were also Basilisks, Strawberry Turtles with terrible attitudes, Heavy-Nosed Wild Hogs, and many other unusual creatures.
Together, they formed a unique paradise of ingredients that belonged to Haruto alone.
After inspecting the Gourmet Restaurant, Haruto slowly exhaled.
Completing the realm had consumed an enormous amount of time and energy, and he had fought several battles along the way.
Even though delicious food allowed him to recover his stamina quickly, he still felt deeply tired.
It was clearly time for a proper rest.
Haruto returned to Totsuki Academy.
The sight of the many students walking through the school grounds finally allowed his constantly tense nerves to relax.
After several days of rest, his accumulated exhaustion had disappeared, though Haruto remained as lazy as ever.
One morning, warm sunlight streamed through the windows of Polar Star Dormitory.
Haruto rubbed his stomach and prepared to head toward the kitchen.
As he passed through the main hall, a heavy knock sounded from the front door.
Haruto raised an eyebrow, walked over, and opened it.
A tall, broad-shouldered figure stood outside.
Mimasaka Subaru.
Haruto frowned, already having a rough idea of why he had come.
"What do you want?"
Mimasaka had spent the past several days secretly following and observing Yukihira Soma. If he had finally appeared at the dormitory in person, he had most likely decided to make his move.
Seeing the obvious lack of welcome in Haruto’s eyes, Mimasaka gave him a faintly regretful smile.
In truth, he was extremely interested in Haruto, especially the knife Haruto used.
Both its material and its sharpness were unlike anything Mimasaka had ever seen.
He desperately wanted to challenge Haruto to a Food War and claim it for himself.
Unfortunately, Eizan Etsuya had already ordered him to target Yukihira Soma first.
Once he had accumulated enough bargaining chips, he could challenge Haruto afterward.
Even then, their real objective was not Haruto’s knife, but his rare ingredients.
"Relax. I’m not here for you."
Mimasaka spread his hands casually.
"I came to see Yukihira Soma. Go tell him I’m waiting."
Haruto was not surprised.
Still, he clearly noticed the undisguised greed in Mimasaka’s eyes.
He had obviously already been marked as the man’s next target.
Unfortunately for Mimasaka, he would probably never get that opportunity.
"Wait here."
Haruto had no interest in wasting words with him. He shut the door and headed toward Polar Star’s kitchen.
Soma was standing before a counter, staring thoughtfully at the ingredients laid out in front of him.
When Haruto told him someone had come to see him, Soma wiped his hands with a curious expression and walked to the entrance.
The moment he saw the person waiting outside, his face turned serious.
"You. Mimasaka Subaru."
Soma naturally recognized the man who had taken Takumi’s treasured knife.
Mimasaka met his hostile gaze with a confident smile.
"Yukihira Soma, I came here today to challenge you to a Food War."
"The wager will be the knife you use most often."
"And I’ll stake the knife I won from Takumi."
Even as he spoke, Mimasaka had already prepared countless methods to force Soma into accepting.
He could provoke him with what had happened to Takumi or insult the reputation of Restaurant Yukihira.
One way or another, he intended to make Soma agree.
To his surprise, Soma did not hesitate for even a moment.
"I accept."
Mimasaka paused, caught off guard by the immediate answer.
Soma continued before he could react.
"But I’m adding another condition. You return all ninety-nine knives you took from the chefs you defeated."
Watching from nearby, Haruto smiled faintly.
The stage now belonged to Soma.
After a tense exchange, Mimasaka finally accepted the added condition when Soma offered to stake his entire future as a chef and never enter a kitchen again if he lost.
The moment Mimasaka departed, Polar Star Dormitory erupted.
"Soma! Have you lost your mind?! If you lose, you’ll give up being a chef—are you seriously going through with this?!"
Yoshino Yuki grabbed Soma by the collar and shook him violently.
"That wager is way too big!"
Tadokoro Megumi stood nearby, staring at Soma with open anxiety.
"Soma-kun, this is far too dangerous..."
"All you needed to do was win back Takumi’s knife," Sakaki Ryoko said, unable to understand his decision. "Why would you gamble your entire future as a chef?"
"As long as he wins, none of that matters."
Haruto remained completely calm.
He had plenty of confidence in Soma.
And even if Soma somehow lost, it was not a serious problem. Haruto could always step in and clean up the mess.
"Exactly! I’m not going to lose!"
Soma finally tore himself free from Yuki’s grip and shouted with complete confidence.
"Even so..."
Marui Zenji pushed his glasses up his nose, his expression grave.
"Mimasaka Subaru’s ability to track and imitate other chefs is terrifying. He won’t be easy to defeat, Soma. You absolutely cannot underestimate him."
"I can provide you with a selection of ingredients," Haruto said bluntly. "With those, losing would be almost impossible."
If Soma used the ingredients Haruto supplied, victory would be virtually guaranteed.
Soma shook his head and firmly refused.
"No."
He wanted to defeat Mimasaka directly through his own ability.
Only under pressure like this could he break through his current limits and take another step forward.
"Don’t be naive."
Haruto’s expression turned serious.
"Eizan Etsuya, one of the Elite Ten, is backing Mimasaka."
"I previously sold Totsuki a considerable amount of rare ingredients. Knowing Eizan, he has almost certainly kept some for himself."
"He may not let Mimasaka use them, but you can’t afford to ignore the possibility."
Soma fell silent for a moment before slowly nodding.
If that were true, then he needed to prepare for every possibility.
He reached a decision.
If Mimasaka used special ingredients, Soma would accept Haruto’s help.
But if his opponent competed fairly, then Soma would rely entirely on his own skill and defeat him head-on.
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