Ding ding~
A crisp text message sound rang out; your morning angel Sagisawa Fumika is now online.
Mo Bai opened his eyes, staring blankly at his surroundings. It took him a long while to come to his senses.
"So it's morning already." Mo Bai yawned, looking somewhat listless.
It had been a week since he used his Authority to build a greenhouse for the three little ones in the Ice Continent. For the past week, he spent his days studying the seasoning and processing of fish in Hua nation cuisine with Zhang Yu, his noons tasting dishes from various restaurant heads, and his nights immersed in the Mental Time Chamber researching dishes using Dream Ingredients from the Ice Continent.
With the time alternating between the two sides, his biological clock inevitably struggled to adapt.
"Haa~" Another huge yawn. Mo Bai wiped the sour tears from the corners of his eyes and pulled open the curtains.
"Head Chef Zhang Yu, morn... Eh?" The rotund figure usually practicing boxing in the small courtyard was missing.
"Did Head Chef Zhang Yu go out so early today?"
"Oh, right. He said last night he was going to receive someone on behalf of Dōjima Gin today."
Just as Mo Bai was wondering, the phone on the bedside table started vibrating again.
"The restaurant's number?" Mo Bai pressed answer. "Hello?"
"Chef Mo Bai, are you free right now?"
"I am, what's up?" Not needing to work at the stove like ordinary recruits, Mo Bai could be considered the idlest employee in the entire Tōtsuki Resort.
"A Gourmet Investigator named Miyamoto Yayako wants to see you."
"Okay, I'll be right there."
Hearing this name, Mo Bai immediately recalled the female investigator who completely ignored Wang Yao.
That incident had left quite a deep impression on Mo Bai.
"Uh... the investigator said that won't be necessary, since she is the one visiting you."
"That works too. Sorry to trouble you to bring her over."
"What does an investigator want with me?" Hanging up the phone, Mo Bai frowned slightly.
Thinking it over, there was only one thing that could bring a Gourmet Investigator to his door—the matter of the drug-ruined Yoshino Takashi had been exposed.
But this respectful attitude was completely wrong!
Given her style of not even glancing at a Qilin-level Chef like Wang Yao, if he really was in trouble, she should have kicked open the courtyard gate and stormed in with a bunch of sunglasses-wearing lackeys to arrest him on the spot. That would be fitting for her upright and uncompromising image.
Indeed, Mo Bai held Miyamoto Yayako, who had humbled Wang Yao, in very high regard.
Worried, Mo Bai quickly changed his clothes. Just as he finished brushing his teeth and washing his face, a crisp knock came from the courtyard gate.
Opening the gate, Gourmet Investigator Miyamoto Yayako's model-like figure—curvaceous with long legs—was fully revealed under her outfit of a suit jacket, short skirt, and black stockings. Between her brows lay a heroic spirit distinct from other women.
Her gorgeous violet eyes added another layer of haughty aura to her.
Even though Miyamoto Yayako standing before Mo Bai now had her thin lips slightly pursed, seemingly having something difficult to discuss, her capable and decisive temperament remained unchanged.
Young and vigorous, Mo Bai found it faintly difficult to control his gaze, which was gradually sliding towards the deep valley due to the height difference.
"That was close." Realizing it in time, Mo Bai broke into a cold sweat.
Fortunately, she didn't notice, otherwise the consequences might be...
"Investigator Miyamoto, please come in." Mo Bai hurriedly stepped sideways to make room, welcoming Miyamoto Yayako into the small courtyard.
"Miss Shinzono Kaoru, would you like to come in and sit for a while?" Mo Bai asked, looking at the waitress's name tag.
"I'm still on duty, so I won't." The cute, round-faced young lady blinked and, while Miyamoto Yayako wasn't looking, made a 'fighting' fist pump gesture at Mo Bai.
Watching the waitress trot away, Mo Bai was a bit confused.
"Huff huff~ Xiao Xi, sorry to trouble you."
Returning to her post, Shinzono Kaoru was breathing rapidly, her flushed round face looking like an apple one couldn't help but want to bite.
"It's no trouble, but where did you go in such a rush?" The girl called Xiao Xi hurriedly handed over a bottle of water.
Shinzono Kaoru downed half the bottle in one breath. Her breathing gradually calmed, but her expression remained exceptionally excited.
"Hey hey, Xiao Xi, did you know? Chef Mo Bai actually got a Gourmet Investigator girlfriend."
"Hah? Where did you hear that from?"
"I didn't hear it, I saw it with my own eyes!" Shinzono Kaoru stared with her round eyes, puffing her cheeks to add persuasiveness to her statement. "I even led her to Chef Mo Bai myself."
"That beautiful investigator even brought her luggage!"
"Brought luggage?!" Xiao Xi instantly seized the key point.
If they were a couple and she brought luggage, wasn't there only one answer—cohabitation!?
"Hiss! Too exciting, too exciting, I'm blushing just thinking about it." Xiao Xi covered her beet-red face, her little head filled with who knows what kind of lewd thoughts.
"Co-co-co-cohabitation!?!" Only then did Shinzono Kaoru realize the implication. Meeting a boyfriend with luggage—wasn't that just cohabitation? "B-But Chef Mo Bai is eighteen!"
"Guhehehe~ You're still young, you don't understand. Eighteen is exactly what makes it good." Xiao Xi made a strange slurping sound, her eyes glowing with a green, predatory light.
As the hottest sensation in Tōtsuki Resort, Mo Bai not only had an astonishing background (Chiba Shrine trainee) and chatted happily with numerous restaurant chefs, but he could also create glowing cuisine that was awe-inspiringly mysterious to countless employees. Naturally, he attracted the gaze of many.
Moreover, Chef Zhang Yu kept Mo Bai by his side every day. Anyone with eyes could see that Chef Zhang Yu intended to groom him as a successor. In the eyes of many staff members, it was only a matter of time before Mo Bai became a Head Chef.
With these two factors combined, Mo Bai naturally became the center of conversation among the staff.
The gossip about Mo Bai getting a beautiful Gourmet Investigator girlfriend quickly spread radially to the surrounding theme restaurants.
"Achoo achoo achoo!"
Mo Bai suddenly sneezed three times in a row. Dense as he was, he could tell Miyamoto Yayako's purpose for coming this time was unusual.
One large and one small suitcase, a black cloth bag on her back suspected to hold knives, and that difficult-to-express struggling look—Mo Bai had the feeling she looked like someone seeking refuge after losing their family fortune.
But a beautiful investigator seeking refuge with a teenage chef she met only once? Is that possible?
"Investigator Miyamoto, do you have business with me?" After serving tea and water and finally settling down, Mo Bai couldn't contain his curiosity.
"I..." Miyamoto Yayako's expression changed several times. Just as she was about to speak...
A thunderous sound rang out between them.
Guuu~~~
"..."
Facing such an awkward scene, even Miyamoto Yayako, whose aura of capability was off the charts, could only lower her head and pretend to count ants, and Mo Bai could see her fair ears turning completely red.
"Hahaha~ Sorry you had to hear that. I woke up late and haven't had breakfast yet." After a dragging, long silence, Mo Bai voluntarily took the blame. "Would I have the honor of having Investigator Miyamoto critique a dish or two?"
________________________________________
Get rewarded for helping with our community goals!
🎯 Reward for all: +1 bonus chapter at 50 Powerstones.
🚀 Tier Reward: Help us reach 20 members for +5 chapters on all stories!
👻 Join the crew by searching Ms. Medusa on (P). You know the spot! 😉