[Deluxe]
While eating the food at this restaurant, Ian realized that the important thing was ‘reputation.’
Creep, crease.
Slicing through the steak, the juicy texture, the perfect temperature of the meat, it all melted in his mouth.
It was an unbelievably delicious steak.
“…Hmm.”
However, the emotions he felt went beyond just the taste.
‘Is it really just grilled meat that can taste this good? As expected of Restaurant Esmé.’
‘Or when else would I ever taste the food of the world’s strongest chef?’
Restaurant Esmé.
Knowing that the owner of this place would become the greatest chef made the meal even more enjoyable.
It was like his brain was being toyed with.
‘Indeed, branding is everything.’
At that moment, Lina, who hadn’t heard about this chef becoming famous, was eating seafood salad oil pasta.
Feeling Ian’s gaze, Lina smiled and offered a plump shrimp egg with her fork.
“Want to trade a bite?” “No, I’m good. How’s the taste?”
Lina, who had a briefly pouting expression, brightened up with a smile.
“It’s really delicious.”
Ian whispered softly to her.
“Just between us, the chef here is going to be one of the top chefs on the continent.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. You saw Emilia come in earlier, didn’t you?”
“Yeah, for sure.”
“Now, try another bite. See how it tastes.”
Mumble.
As Lina chewed on the shrimp, her eyes widened.
“… I think it’s gotten a little more delicious.”
As expected.
People taste food with their mouths but also with their minds.
The image in their heads can influence the taste.
“In that sense, we need to plan our strategy for selling Snowflake Fruits carefully.”
All eyes turned to Ian. Even Elena, who was busily emptying her plate, asked between bites.
“What are you talking about? Nom nom.”
“Currently, the price of a Snowflake Fruit is 1 silver, which is 100,000 krone. The same price as this steak. Quite expensive.”
Surprisingly, it was true.
It’s not that Esmé, which isn’t famous yet, has high prices.
Simultaneously, it highlighted that the price of the Snowflake Fruit was exorbitant.
But it wasn’t Ian’s fault; it was the fault of the wealthy academy students who bought it all.
While justifying himself like this.
“Reducing the price would be good, brother. If possible, to the price of a single fairy tale!”
Uhm hehe–
Elena, with her face buried in her plate, smirked mischievously.
“And if we give one free with each purchase, sales will skyrocket! Everyone will be happy! I could even quit this job and become a customer. Ooh hoo hoo…”
Moments like these made Ian doubt whether she was really a priest.
“Even if we lower it to the price of a single fairy tale, the Snowflake Tomatoes will remain at 10 silver.”
“Nooooo-!”
Elena, the mischievous worker, clutched her head in despair.
Leaving her aside, Ian explained his strategy.
“From now on, let’s reduce the number of Snowflake Fruits we sell. We’ll only sell them occasionally.”
“Wouldn’t that reduce our revenue?”
Danya tilted her head.
“No. In the long run, this will be beneficial.”
“Why?”
“By selling them occasionally and in limited quantities, we can maintain the Snowflake Fruits as ‘special.’ Everyone will want them, but only the lucky ones will get to eat them. This way, we keep the price steady and the demand high.”
This was the so-called Honey Butter Chip strategy.
“Ah. Since we have a monopoly, it would definitely be good!”
“Lina is right. Only we can produce them. Growing Frost Snowflakes requires the master’s teaching.”
Moreover, Ian needed to reduce the sales volume to survive.
Excited about making money, he had worked hard, but it was truly exhausting now.
The amount of magical power required to produce Snowflake Fruits was beyond imagination.
If he were of the frost element, it might have been different, but being of the earth element, the waste from using the elemental converter was inevitable.
Since there was no one else of the frost element who could produce Snowflake Fruits, his suffering was predictable.
In many ways, the so-called ‘Honey Butter Chip’ strategy had significant advantages.
“Oh, and about profit distribution.”
As soon as Ian spoke, Elena, with her mouth full of tomato sauce, exclaimed.
“I— Keh!”
“Finish eating first.”
“Gulp. I’m a priest serving Deus. I don’t need my share of the money. This is also a path of asceticism.”
“Truly, a priest of the Numina sect. I’m moved.”
“Ehehe.”
Elena scratched the back of her head with an embarrassed smile.
“Then, that’s settled for Elena.”
“Huh?”
“For now, I’ll give everyone 10 silver per day and a share of the club’s profits.”
Elena cautiously raised her hand.
“I can’t receive money, but I can accept goods.”
Oh, she meant she wanted something other than money earlier.
“Snowflake Tomatoes?”
Nod.
“Okay. Come to the clubroom tomorrow. It’s a day off, so I’ll make them for you. And is it alright if I give the others their money a little later?”
“Of course, but why?”
“I have something to take care of.”
It was to handle the Mystery Box.
“Dessert is served.”
Just then, dessert arrived.
Taking a bite of the cold fruit pudding, Danya muttered.
“Dessert made from Snowflake Fruit tastes better, nyah.”
Hmm.
Ian had to agree.
◆
“Check, please.”
The store, not yet that spacious, had the chef and owner, Esmé, coming out to handle the bill.
With a sharp orange bob cut, she looked to be in her mid-20s with a sharp gaze.
Ian couldn’t help but feel a bit intimidated by her aura.
As expected of someone destined to become a top chef.
Or maybe she used to be a delinquent.
“The total is 430,000 Krone.”
So, it came out to a bit over 1 silver per person?
Considering each dish was priced at 100,000 krone, it felt like they got a great deal. Later on, these dishes would be worth ten times as much, making them hard to get even at that price.
“It was incredibly delicious.”
Though it was genuine praise, Esmé’s expression remained stoic.
She asked.
“Are you in the dessert business?”
“Something like that.”
“I heard our dessert was lacking.”
Glare.
Her stare was intense and direct.
… Was the earlier aura actually a hint of killing intent?
“… Did you hear that?”
“As you can see, the place is small. I’m attentive to feedback.”
“Sorry about that.”
“Oh—.”
She sighed briefly and scratched her head.
“I didn’t mean to receive an apology.”
“I felt like I’d get hit if I didn’t apologize.”
“… Sir, what do you think of me, really?”
Crack, crack-.
She cracked her knuckles and asked.
“If I look closely, the chef is quite gracious. I must have been mistaken. Maybe I need new glasses.”
“Hoho. Indeed, don’t you think?”
“Yes.”
Haha.
She let out a small laugh and added.
“You enjoyed the main course well enough. But I’m curious.”
“About what?”
“The dessert you made. Just how good is it that you speak so proudly of it? Where do you sell this Snowflake Fruit dessert?”
Her eyes glinted sharply, showing her competitive spirit even towards a customer.
“You probably won’t get to taste it.”
“Why? Are you backing out now? How boring.”
“No, it’s just that it’s only sold inside the academy.”
“Well, I guess there’s nothing I can do about that. This old lady can’t get in there.”
Phew—.
She sighed softly.
Was she always this expressive and talkative?
Maybe she interpreted Ian’s expression as curious because she continued.
“Actually, I also think our dessert menu is a bit lacking. I want something sweet and refreshing to finish off the main course nicely.”
Hmm, that fits perfectly with Snowflake Fruit.
“I’ll bring you one if I get the chance.”
“I’ll be looking forward to it.”
It seemed Ian had unintentionally found a way to expand the ‘Dessert Research Club.’
◆
The next day.
As always, Ian’s body woke up early in the morning.
He went to the market at dawn.
He bought a few tomatoes for Elena and Danya, and some ingredients that were considered ‘high grade’ in the game.
After spending all 10 gold, his wallet felt astonishingly light.
“Now I’m broke again.”
Well, money wasn’t the main issue.
The urgent matter was preparing for the Aether Promotion Battle coming up on Monday, just two days away.
Plus, the Emilia event was overlapping with it.
“Emilia’s whisper at the restaurant. That was definitely a declaration of war.”
Outwardly, Emilia appeared infinitely proper and composed.
But as the successor of the top-ranked merchant guild, she had a basic battle mindset.
Typically, such whispers were Emilia’s trademark declaration of war.
She even scanned the team members, so it was undoubtedly true.
Thus, Ian needed to use the ‘gacha’ he had been saving.
“It’s your turn to shine.”
He carefully opened the shelf.
Inside was the cherished Number 777.
[Mystery Box]
He took it out and placed it on the table, along with the key he had found in the dungeon.
The box was fairly small, about 30cm by 30cm.
Made of dark wood, its distinctive feature was the three blank spaces carved on the surface.
[ / / / ]
When an item was placed inside and the handle on the side was turned, the blanks would spin and display numbers.
[ 7 / 7 / 7 ]
If these numbers appeared, it would be a jackpot. That’s how it worked.
“Whoo.”
How long had it been since he last did a gacha?
The tension was palpable.
And more than the tension, the excitement was even greater.
This wasn’t about drawing an item to use in the game but pulling out something he would use in reality.
Even though he knew how to increase the odds of the box,
— Gulp
He swallowed nervously.
Ian carefully inserted the key into the box’s keyhole and turned it.
The key turned smoothly.
— Click
The box opened.
