Multiverse Gourmet Hunter

After returning to the Food Wars world, Haruto finally allowed his taut nerves to relax completely.

He flexed his slightly numb arms a few times, dropped onto the sofa, and soon fell into a deep sleep.

Over the next several days, Haruto returned to the peaceful rhythm of life at Totsuki.

He spent most of his time in the kitchen, cooking various dishes and preparing for the upcoming Moon Festival.

Before he knew it, the opening day had arrived.

The sky had barely begun to brighten when Totsuki Academy’s main plaza was already packed with uniformed students.

On the stage, Kawashima Urara held a microphone with her usual energetic smile. Her bright voice carried through the speakers and echoed across the entire plaza.

"Thank you all for waiting! I’ll now explain the rules for this year’s Moon Festival!"

As she spoke, Urara raised three different tickets and waved them in the air.

"This year, all transactions at the Moon Festival will use three types of special tickets! The Plum Ticket is worth 500 yen, the Bamboo Ticket is worth 1,000 yen, and the Pine Ticket is worth 10,000 yen!"

"All guests must exchange cash for these tickets in advance before making purchases at any of the student-run restaurants. The tickets can only be used inside Totsuki Academy during this year’s Moon Festival."

"They will also serve as the sole proof of each restaurant’s revenue, so please make sure to keep them safe and don’t lose any!"

"And one more thing! The deadline for submitting your daily sales report is six o’clock every evening!"

Once the rules had been explained, the entire student body began singing Totsuki Academy’s school song.

Haruto naturally just moved his lips without making a sound.

He had absolutely no idea what the school song was.

When the final note faded, Nakiri Senzaemon stepped forward to the center of the stage.

"It is time!"

"I hereby declare the 92nd Totsuki Academy Moon Festival officially open!"

The plaza erupted into deafening cheers.

Students who had been waiting eagerly for the announcement immediately scattered, sprinting toward their assigned restaurants and stalls throughout the academy grounds.

Guests would begin entering soon.

If anyone fell behind on their preparations and delayed opening, they would only have themselves to blame when customers started passing them by.

Haruto, meanwhile, moved leisurely through the crowd toward the Hillside Area.

...

Compared with the other two districts, the Hillside Area was quiet and peaceful, with much less noise and a more relaxed atmosphere.

Haruto opened the door to his restaurant and first checked all the ingredients he had prepared in advance.

Bright, glossy Berry purée.

Chilled Moomoo Milk.

Neatly stacked bags of Warm Wheat flour.

Glass jars filled with shimmering Sweet Honey.

Everything was exactly as it should be.

Haruto rolled up his sleeves and began making Poffins.

Before long, tray after tray of golden, fluffy Poffins emerged fresh from the oven. Their surfaces carried just the right amount of browning, while the insides were soft and delicate when broken apart, releasing the fresh sweetness of Berries into the air.

The main product Haruto had prepared for the festival was a Poffin with a mild beautifying effect.

Since Poffins could be stored for a reasonable amount of time, Haruto simply baked one hundred portions in advance.

Once they had cooled completely, he packaged each serving individually and arranged them neatly inside a custom-made vending machine.

Printed clearly across the white machine were the words:

Totsuki Elite Ten Ninth Seat Suzuki Haruto’s Beauty Poffins

And beneath that, the price was written just as plainly.

One Pine Ticket per serving.

Haruto patted the side of the vending machine and nodded in satisfaction.

If all one hundred portions sold, that would be one million yen in revenue.

Even after subtracting the ingredient costs, he would still make a comfortable profit without having to stand around managing the shop himself.

With that taken care of, Haruto left his restaurant and began working his way through the food being sold around the festival.

He had absolutely no intention of spending all five days of the Moon Festival trapped behind a counter.

An annual culinary event like this was meant to be eaten through from one end to the other.

And to their credit, the students confident enough to open restaurants during the Moon Festival were all genuinely skilled.

From smoky Japanese skewers to delicate French pastries, almost every stall had its own distinctive ideas and specialties. Even the occasional dish that fell a little short was still comfortably above average.

Haruto thoroughly enjoyed himself.

Of course, he did not bother joining every line he saw.

Whenever a particularly popular stall had an absurdly long queue, he simply skipped it.

The Moon Festival lasted five full days.

There was plenty of time.

Haruto had just stopped beside the road and accepted a fresh box of takoyaki when a familiar, carefree voice suddenly came from nearby.

"Yo, Haruto-kun?"

Haruto turned.

Kobayashi Rindō was standing there with a grilled squid skewer between her teeth and several takeout boxes hanging from one hand, looking at him in confusion.

"Aren’t you running a shop in the Hillside Area? What are you doing wandering around here? Don’t you need to watch your restaurant?"

"Running the shop was never really the important part."

Haruto swallowed the takoyaki in his mouth and answered with complete seriousness.

"For an annual food festival like this, the proper thing to do is eat your way through every stall."

Rindō’s puzzled expression instantly brightened.

Still biting into her grilled squid, she burst out laughing and slapped Haruto on the shoulder.

"Now you’re talking! I knew you were interesting! The Moon Festival is absolutely supposed to be eaten from one end to the other!"

After laughing, however, she still remembered to give him a warning.

"Just don’t get too carried away. If your restaurant ends up operating at a loss, you can still get expelled, you know."

"Don’t worry. I’ll be fine."

Haruto smiled, completely unconcerned.

His restaurant’s sign was simple:

Elite Ten Self-Service Dessert Shop

The words Elite Ten alone were enough to attract plenty of customers who knew what they were looking at.

There was no chance one hundred servings of Poffins would fail to sell.

Seeing how confident Haruto was, Rindō did not bother asking any more questions.

She waved her grilled squid excitedly.

"Then I won’t hold you up! I still need to grab one of those limited whole roasted lambs over there. If I’m late, they’ll be gone!"

The moment she finished speaking, she dashed away with her usual boundless energy.

Haruto shook his head with a smile and continued exploring.

Without realizing it, he eventually reached the busiest part of the Central Area.

This was where Kuga’s Chinese Cuisine RS restaurant and Yukihira Soma’s stall were located.

One glance was enough to reveal the difference between them.

A seemingly endless line stretched in front of Kuga’s restaurant. Staff members stood near the entrance calling numbers through microphones, while customers crowded both inside and outside.

The sizzling of woks, the chatter of diners, and repeated exclamations of praise blended together into such a roar that it seemed capable of lifting the roof.

Directly across from it, Soma’s little stall was almost deserted.

Pepper buns sizzled on the grill, releasing an enticing aroma that drifted far down the street, yet not a single customer had stopped to ask about them.

Haruto was not surprised in the slightest.

He wandered over to Soma’s stall and leaned casually against the counter.

"Soma, looks like you’ve got absolutely no customers."

"Yeah."

Soma did not look discouraged at all.

If anything, he seemed perfectly calm.

"I wasn’t expecting to have the place packed on the first day anyway. This was always going to be a long game."

As he spoke, Soma picked up a pair of tongs and grabbed two freshly baked pepper buns that were still steaming.

He held them out toward Haruto.

"Just came out. Want to try them? I adjusted the recipe a little."

Haruto accepted them.

The pastry was still hot in his hand, but he did not care and immediately took a large bite.

The freshly baked crust was golden and crisp, breaking apart with an audible crunch as flaky crumbs scattered downward.

Inside, the meat filling was saturated with its own juices and carried a powerful aroma of black pepper mixed with the natural sweetness of scallions.

The spice was strong enough to brighten the flavor without becoming harsh, while piping-hot meat juices burst into Haruto’s mouth with every bite.

He could not help narrowing his eyes in satisfaction.

"Pretty good. Strong flavor, and you nailed the crust too."

Haruto finished the first bun in only a few bites.

Then he immediately reached for the second.

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