"Next, let’s welcome our second deputy instructor..."
Kawashima Reika’s voice reached backstage.
Applause was just as enthusiastic, and cheers even came from outside the auditorium. After all, the first deputy instructor was the top chef among the Ten Masters of Far Moon. The second deputy instructor was expected to be a fellow peer with culinary skills close to that level.
Many students in the seats leaned forward in anticipation. Could it be the second-ranked Kobayakawa Ryodan?
Under the gaze of the audience, Xia Yu gracefully stepped onto the stage, walking with a calm and composed demeanor.
Upon seeing this completely unfamiliar fellow chef, Kawashima Reika was dumbstruck, her mouth opened but she couldn’t utter the introduction, quickly lowering her head to glance at the script in her hand. "Everyone, we—we welcome Instructor Xia, Xia Yu!"
Only the name was provided, the personal history and other details were blank.
The auditorium, lively just moments ago, suddenly fell silent as a tomb.
Every student was as if choked, their cheers stuck in their throats, unable to shout no matter what.
At this moment, numerous students, as well as teachers paying attention to this class, all shared the same question.
Unlike the raucous students, a certain group from Polar Star Dormitory exchanged glances.
The man in person subtly differed from the one in the videos. Moreover, Xia Yu was dressed more formally today, wearing a well-fitted tailored suit, standing upright on the stage, serene and composed, even looking more mature than the Ten Outstanding Chief, Shi Yingshi, next to him, making the people from Polar Star Dormitory hesitant to recognize him.
Yoshino Yuuki in the back row, gently tapped on the shoulder of Morioka Makoto seated in front, leaning over and whispered: "Is that guy on the stage your childhood friend?"
"Yes." Morioka Makoto smiled slightly.
Hearing this, the group from Polar Star Dormitory was at a loss for words.
"You’ve kept it pretty deep!" complained Yoshino Yuuki. "Makki, why didn’t you tell us the other night? If we, if we had formed a bad impression of him, we might have been failed in the class test..."
"I believe you all would have passed the test."
Suddenly, Ichise Hui spoke, crossing his arms and sitting in his seat, watching the young chef on the stage with whom he had a brief acquaintance. "This test isn’t about cooking skills, but about the heart of being a chef."
The auditorium was abuzz with discussion.
Outside, a large group of Yuan Yue Academy students gathered under the broadcast screen in the plaza.
"Anyway, he’s definitely not a student from Yuan Yue, is he an instructor sent by the IGO organization? Damn, how dare he stand next to Chief Si Yingshi!"
In reality, the female host Kawashima Reika, on the stage, felt like a thousand alpacas were galloping through her heart.
Who the hell is this?!
With a purple bow embellishing her hair, the cute-looking host inwardly grumbled.
Despite Kawashima Reika’s adorable exterior, she was rather scheming; as the school’s idol, she couldn’t stand anyone else stealing her spotlight. Xia Yu, the guest instructor who had just appeared, instantly became the center of attention, causing everyone to forget about her presence.
So, to emphasize her own presence, Kawashima Reika coughed lightly and walked over to Xia Yu, hanging a smile on her face, "Hello, Instructor Xia, it seems everyone is quite curious about you. Could you greet them and introduce yourself?"
She passed the microphone to Xia Yu.
Waving his hand, Xia Yu’s face was covered with a harmless smile.
But beneath it, the auditorium went dead silent, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Seeing this, a dark smile crossed Kawashima Reika’s heart.
Far Moon Academy was no ordinary high school. Its students either came from distinguished families or possessed talents far beyond the average person. Each of them held the golden key and wouldn’t let someone, who emerged from nowhere with unknown cooking skills, become an instructor to freely critique their cooking.
The situation was awkward, but Xia Yu remained composed as always.
In fact, if you put yourself in their shoes, switching Xia Yu with someone unknown of the same age as the course lecturer, he would have the same doubts and watch with skepticism.
Sometimes, by putting oneself in another’s shoes, one could foresee many scenarios.
"Perhaps you don’t know me. I’m just an ordinary high school student and currently the manager and head chef at a small Chinese restaurant..." Xia Yu ignored the atmosphere in the hall and just spoke about himself, "Oh, and about ten days ago, I passed the IGO International Culinary Organization’s two-star chef assessment, and tomorrow I am going to participate in the three-star assessment..."
With just a few words, Xia Yu completed his self-introduction.
In reality, there wasn’t much need to say—IGO’s certification is a powerful proof.
The tenth seat of the ’Ten Masters of Far Moon,’ Tiqie Eriina, who has the Divine Tongue, currently a two-star chef.
The seventh seat, Ichise Hui, a three-star chef.
Kazasaki Tatsuki and Kikuchi Sankaku, both four-star chefs, graduated the previous term as part of the Ten Masters.
As soon as he finished speaking, the hall was filled with murmurs.
The Far Moon students’ opinions shifted instantly.
With a sensible mind, one wouldn’t doubt Xia Yu’s introduction, especially since this was in front of IGO’s Neon Department’s Shinohara Shigetaro and Reiko Lina; if he were lying, the IGO people would be the first to question him.
In the auditorium backstage, Tiqie Eriina was visibly upset.
Coincidentally, she was also participating in the postponed three-star assessment the next day.
Meanwhile, after speaking, Xia Yu returned the microphone to the hostess, Kawashima Reika.
Just as Xia Yu thought the opening was over, the system popped up a new task:
"New Task Received [Far Moon’s Grand Stage]."
"Notice: Your role as a lecturer in Far Moon and IGO two-star chef certification will not dispel doubts from Far Moon’s teachers and students. If you want to stand firm and freely conduct teaching activities in class, you must establish your authority and respect. Show yourself on the grand stage!"
"Reward: 2000 fame, Recipe for ’Heavenly Hero Grilled Bluefish’ (Purple)."
The task notification was somewhat baffling with no specific completion requirements mentioned.
But Xia Yu had experience handling tasks already.
Showcase himself on Far Moon’s stage?
Undoubtedly, that meant showcasing his culinary skills; otherwise, mere words were not enough to establish authority and respect.
"Purple recipe, ’Heavenly Hero Grilled Bluefish’..."
Xia Yu took a deep breath upon seeing the reward.
This was ’Blast Flame Chef’ Ya Kan’s signature dish—likely a special-grade recipe or higher.
Obtaining the recipe wasn’t about making something; it was in exploring and pondering the recipe process to learn Ya Kan’s insights on flame control, furthering his understanding of the "Bursting Flame" cooking technique.
A recipe is a chef’s crystallized effort. Having a signature recipe from a chef undoubtedly helped Xia Yu grasp many concepts.
For instance, Makki Morioka’s understanding in the ’Furong Crab Meat Egg’ recipe led to the creation of a dish like Emperor Crab Thick Egg Omelette. Therefore, Xia Yu didn’t necessarily have to make the original grilled bluefish dish; he could replace the ’bluefish’ ingredient based on his own understanding of the recipe.
A single recipe represents a cooking technique, not just a dish; otherwise, the significance of a recipe would be too narrow.
Xia Yu knew what to do.
Coincidentally, he had experience showcasing his culinary skills before, but this time, Xia Yu decided to set a target, or rather, establish a rival, otherwise the solo performance would be too dull.
He stopped the hostess, Kawashima Reika, and reached out, asking for the microphone back.