Erina went completely numb hearing Jibril's words. Running thousands of kilometers in an instant? Good grief, that was absolutely absurd.
After drinking the potion Ren Isana gave her, she paused in momentary confusion. *Blueberry flavor? But what are these strange ingredients inside?* Erina's heart was full of curiosity.
Still, the effects were incredible. Just swallowing it made the pressure in her brain vanish. Erina hurriedly stood up; she had been in quite a sorry state just a moment ago.
Ren glanced at her and immediately said, "Let's go. Keep up. We might just get to drink an unprecedented soup today."
Thinking of the items he had brought along, the corners of Ren's mouth curled up slightly. *I can use Granny Setsuno's route to connect with the IGO while I'm at it. After all, the IGO are the ones calling the shots in this world.*
Hearing Ren say this, Erina quickly followed. Led by Ren, she and Jibril entered the town. The city was incredibly bustling right now, and the aromas of various foods flooded Erina's nasal cavity.
It made her swallow hard. *Is this the culinary level of this world? Good heavens, just smelling it makes me feel hungry.* The realization left Erina quite shocked.
She couldn't find a single flaw in these fragrances. Just from the smell alone, she understood that this was a realm she couldn't even begin to touch. She kept her eyes on the shops in the city as she trailed behind Ren.
It seemed they had come to the right place this time. Erina grew excited at the thought, her curiosity about their destination peaking. *What kind of person is a legendary chef in this world?*
*What kind of dish can a chef standing at the absolute pinnacle create?* Pondering this, Erina quickened her pace behind Ren. The trio soon came to a halt in front of a shop.
Erina stared blankly at the rather plain-looking storefront before her. *Here? But it doesn't look like it's open for business, does it?*
Just as the thought crossed her mind, Ren rang the doorbell.
It didn't take long for the door to open. An old woman appeared in the doorway, looking at Ren's group with a puzzled gaze. "Can I help you?"
This person was none other than Granny Setsuno. Although her restaurant only opened once a month and exclusively served acquaintances, and it wasn't even dining hours yet, she had just welcomed a few people she had never seen before.
"Hello there, Granny Setsuno. My name is Ren Isana. This is a gift I brought for you, please accept it." After speaking, Ren released the Wall Penguins, using his magic to keep them immobilized.
Setsuno's pupils shrank as she watched Ren conjure living creatures out of thin air, but once she saw clearly what they were, her astonishment deepened. *How did this person know I was missing these?*
She looked Ren up and down, unable to hold back her question. "Little ones, who are you? Where did you come from?"
In her eyes, Ren, Erina, and Jibril were all just children. She was now incredibly curious about the origins of these three. The other party seemed to know her very well.
"We come from another world. We happened to know that Granny Setsuno's restaurant was opening today, so we came to visit." Ren had no intention of hiding anything, directly stating their origins.
This scene instantly shocked Erina, who was standing to the side. *Is he really being this direct? Aren't you supposed to hide your identity when going to another world? And then slowly figure things out as you go!*
Things were not developing the way she had expected. The manga she read always featured protagonists frantically hiding their identities, but what was going on with Ren? He just blurted it out?
*Don't tell me those manga authors are just making things up without ever having been to another world?* Erina couldn't help but mutter in her heart. However, she didn't speak up, simply watching the situation unfold quietly.
Granny Setsuno was immensely surprised by Ren's words. She sized Ren up, then her gaze fell upon Jibril. At this moment, Jibril wasn't hiding her wings or her halo.
One look was enough to tell she wasn't human, and she didn't possess any Gourmet Cells either. Then there was that blonde little girl, who was excessively weak. *From another world? It seems something I'm unaware of has happened out there.*
"I see. Come on in first!" The other party had brought what she needed, and they were guests from another world to boot. Naturally, she wouldn't turn them away at the door, immediately ushering them inside.
Seeing this, Ren promptly brought the Wall Penguins along and entered Setsuno's restaurant. Once inside, he asked, "Granny Setsuno, where should I put these Wall Penguins? These few should be the last ones left in the world."
Hearing Ren's words, Granny Setsuno chuckled. "Sorry for the trouble. Follow me. My dish is just about finished anyway. Since we have guests, let's bring it to absolute completion today."
Although she was full of questions, she wasn't in a hurry. Instead, she led Ren toward the place where she was cooking the Century Soup. As for the matter of other worlds? She would just let Ichiryu and the others handle it later.
Ren and the other two followed Granny Setsuno into a basement. The moment she stepped foot inside, Erina's legs gave out. An incomparably overbearing aroma surged into her nasal cavity, and her saliva began to secrete wildly against her will.
Jibril was in the same boat. However, while Erina was able to control herself by frantically swallowing, little Jibril had completely lost all sense of image. She stared eagerly at the massive pot, drool continuously dripping from her mouth.
Seeing her embarrassing display, Ren was left speechless. He reached out and slapped her chin shut, silently telling her to rein it in. It was far too unseemly.
Setsuno couldn't help but smile at their reactions. She turned to Ren and said, "This is a dish I've been trying to replicate. It was only missing one crucial ingredient, and I never expected you to actually bring it to me. Can you tell me how you knew what I was missing?"
She voiced the doubts in her heart. Ren hadn't just accurately found her place; he had also delivered the exact ingredient she had been searching for. This made her incredibly curious.
Since Ren claimed to be from another world, where did he get this information? Granny Setsuno was quite puzzled.
"The world told me. I possess the ability to read information from the world itself, so I knew you were replicating the Century Soup and went out of my way to find these penguins." Ren didn't hide anything, directly stating the reason.
Hearing that Ren could read information from the world, Granny Setsuno was thoroughly amazed. "Now that is quite an extraordinary ability. But little Ren, you shouldn't go around telling just anyone about your powers~!"
After learning of Ren's ability, Granny Setsuno marveled at it, but also made sure to warn him. If people with ulterior motives found out, Ren would find himself in a lot of trouble.
Being able to read information from the world meant that Ren could find any ingredient in the world he wanted. Such an ability was simply too shocking for the mundane world.
"I only said it because I trust you, Granny Setsuno." Ren smiled. Of course, he wouldn't just blab to anyone. It was precisely because he knew her character that he was being so frank.
Setsuno nodded and didn't say anything more. It seemed Ren had learned quite a few things from the world. In that case, she could rest easy. Moreover, since Ren had come specifically to find her today, he probably knew who she was planning to host, right?
Ren said he was from another world and had come out of his way to find her. Perhaps he wasn't here for her, but for Ichiryu. With this thought in mind, Setsuno began to process her dish.
Seeing this, Erina stared intently at her operations without blinking. When she saw the old woman extract saliva from the mouths of the penguins Ren had brought, she blinked. *Penguin drool can be used in cooking?*
*But... it smells so good.* As Setsuno extracted the penguin saliva, Erina suddenly noticed some subtle changes in the air. *This is ridiculous. What on earth is going on?*
"I've been preparing this pot of soup for a long time, but it's always been missing this crucial ingredient, leaving it in an imperfect state. Today, I can finally make it perfect." As she spoke, Granny Setsuno dropped this core element into the pot.
The moment the Wall Penguin's saliva fell in, the aroma of the entire pot of soup instantly detonated. When that overbearing scent erupted, Erina's legs gave out, and she nearly collapsed.
Seeing this, Ren was quick to catch her in his arms. He then reached out and directly sealed her senses of taste and smell with magic, preventing her from being overwhelmed by the domineering aroma.
However, she had already caught a whiff of it. That scent was thoroughly branded into her mind, leaving her unable to recover her senses for a long time. She remained limply held in Ren's embrace. It wasn't that Ren was trying to take advantage of her; rather, she desperately needed him to lean on.
"This little girl's situation is a bit special, isn't it?" A hint of confusion flashed through Setsuno's eyes as she saw Erina's state. *She ended up like this just from smelling it? That shouldn't be right... Even if she's weak, she shouldn't go weak in the knees just from a scent, right?*
"Her tongue's sense of taste is dozens of times stronger than an ordinary person's. Coupled with the fact that she's a chef herself, she was essentially knocked dizzy by the aroma." Ren, of course, knew her situation and hurriedly explained.
After hearing Ren's explanation, Setsuno suddenly understood. "I see. It seems she hasn't learned to control her talent properly. But that's alright. This old woman will help condition her in a bit."
Having figured out the situation, an idea immediately formed in Setsuno's mind. She didn't dwell on it further, instead focusing intently on tinkering with her Century Soup. Now, only the final step remained.
While she was concentrating on finishing the dish, Ren directly handed Erina over to Jibril, who was standing to the side with a bizarre expression on her face. Ren had sensed several powerful auras entering from outside.
Just as Ren passed Erina over, two figures walked in from outside. Ren turned to look: a robust, blonde old man and a rather short old man with a pompadour carrying a liquor bottle. These two were none other than Ichiryu and Jiro!
Power Stones, reviews, and comments— really helps a lot
Want to read ahead? Get access to 50+ extra chapters on my Patreon:
patreon.com/Aragai_Sama