Chapter 58: Brother-in-law
The Midnight Chefs, Noir.
This was the collective name for chefs who provided food for meetings of national VIPs and the underworld.
They never appeared on the public stage, wielding their knives only in the shadows. In exchange for enormous fees, if they served an unsatisfactory dish that failed to please the client, being shot on the spot was an everyday occurrence.
These were chefs who literally bet their lives on every dish they prepared.
Both in resolve and skill, they operated on a level incomparable to chefs from the surface world. In a fair fight, surface chefs had virtually no chance of winning. Each had mastered special cooking techniques referred to as "supernatural abilities" in order to survive, so anyone with half-baked skill couldn't even stand against them.
And right now, inside a certain building in America, multiple "Midnight Chefs, Noir" stood on the field of battle.
To them, who refused to form alliances, even those in the same position were enemies. It was a dog-eat-dog world where everything was kill or be killed.
However, there are exceptions to everything.
There was one man who had gathered the "Midnight Chefs, Noir"—who should never have formed a group—into a single organization. A man who, using overwhelming talent, sense, and skill, had brought these wild, eccentric experts under his command.
His name was Saiba Asahi.
Despite being only twenty years old, this monster had used his ability and charisma to take control of many "Midnight Chefs, Noir" and built a major force in a short time.
The ability he possessed was "Cross Knives," which allowed him to manipulate various cooking tools simultaneously. It was a terrifying power that let him use any cooking implement and instantly acquire the techniques of opponents he defeated. Its true value shone when he wielded different tools in each hand, propelling him to the top of the "Midnight Chefs, Noir."
He had only one goal.
To become the strongest chef in the world.
The strongest when both the surface world and the underworld were taken into account.
What Saiba Asahi was aiming to obtain for that purpose was the existence who would become the Queen of the culinary world—Nakiri Erina.
Unaware that this was his only mistake.
"…Th-This… can't be… It's impossible…"
Inside the kitchen within the building, one man was drowning in despair. He had collapsed to his knees, with no strength left even to stand. His already pale skin had lost even more color, taking on a sickly pallor.
The owner of this building and the boss of the organization using it as a base. The leader who commanded the "Midnight Chefs, Noir" Saiba Asahi could not accept the defeat he had been handed.
Strength had left his arms and legs. His vision was unstable from mental shock. His focus refused to settle, swaying meaninglessly left and right.
It had all started one hour earlier. A single intruder who had stormed the base alone was the beginning of everything.
His face was hidden by a hood and mask, so Asahi couldn't see it, but from the voice and build, he was clearly male. To Asahi, who lived in the underworld, intruders like this were nothing new. Since his name had started to spread, he assumed it was another "Midnight Chef, Noir" sent to assassinate him.
And, as expected, the intruder declared to Asahi—"I've come to crush you."
Laughing at how straightforward his world was, Asahi gladly accepted the challenge. The intruder had also agreed that the judges would be from their side, so there was no reason to refuse. Thinking it would be a good way to kill time, Asahi faced the intruder with a light heart.
However, his subordinates stepped forward, saying they couldn't let their boss be challenged so directly. Every "Midnight Chef, Noir" in this base was utterly devoted to Asahi, so it was only natural they would act to spare him any trouble.
First, one of the most skilled subordinates stepped forward.
And was instantly defeated.
Then two, three, four at once—the intruder overwhelmed them all with an overwhelming difference in skill.
Even as he watched his subordinates fall, Asahi never doubted his own victory. He was convinced that if that level of cooking was their full strength, there was no way he could lose.
But the result was a crushing defeat.
Not a single one of the dishes Asahi had created could surpass the intruder's. They were completely shattered.
This was no longer a matter of "skill."
Just as an ant cannot defeat an elephant, or a lizard cannot defeat a dragon, there was an absolute, undeniable gap in power between Asahi and the intruder. It would not be an exaggeration to call it a difference in rank as living beings. For the first time in his life, Asahi—the genius who possessed rare talent—was made to understand that there was someone he could never defeat.
His polished technique, his sense, his talent—everything he had built up was denied. As a chef, Saiba Asahi had been dealt a complete and utter defeat.
"…Wh-Who… the hell… are you…?"
Forcing his trembling lips and throat to move, he let out a voice so weak it was unthinkable for his usual self. With the last of his pride, he asked the intruder standing right in front of his collapsed form.
Upon hearing Asahi's voice, the intruder let out a small sigh, then removed his hood and mask. Under the dim lighting appeared black hair and East Asian features. As a Japanese-American, Asahi instantly confirmed the intruder was Japanese. Sweat poured down him like a waterfall as he clenched his teeth, trying to suppress his terror.
Completely unconcerned with Asahi's agitation, the intruder cracked his neck with a few crack sounds, as if shaking off some fatigue. He was utterly natural, showing not the slightest sign of tension.
"…Haa, that was stuffy. This is the first time I've cooked with my vision so blocked by a hood and mask. Well, it wouldn't have made much difference even if I was blindfolded."
"Wh-What are you…? Who the hell are you?"
To Asahi's faint voice, the intruder's lips curled upward.
Looking down on his opponent with eyes that saw through everything, he replied.
"Santoku Shogo. Nice to meet you. Brother-in-law."
***
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