HTACS 80

Chapter 80

After a strange conversation, Ayla went back with the brooch—sometimes happy, sometimes angry.

Anyway, she accepted it and left. She said things like “An item with three magic options… if mishandled, it could be a spark for war,” but in the end, when she pinned it to her chest, she went *ehe* and smiled as she put it on.

After Ayla left, I activated the party system again.

**【Which category would you like to check?】**

**【You have selected Party Perks.】**

**【Would you like to receive the Party Perk?】**

This is a perk given when you first form a party in Act 2.

In other words—a reward given with the message: “Don’t forget that from now on, the party system is active, and you need to strengthen not just Kelterus but the entire party!”

You can only receive the perk once, but as party level increases, you can choose other things.

Additionally, as party proficiency increases based on party characteristics, more traits or skills are granted. So to clear D/Z SAGA, it’s important to master this party system and utilize party skills well.

The perks I usually set up in Act 2 were things like ‘Additional stat bonuses based on party tier’ or ‘Perk Skill: Use My Body as a Shield!’

The former was calculated to inflate stats by putting Eve von Lohengrin and Isolde in the party—commonly called stat-bloating. The latter was a skill used for “Kel-dun-tank”—wrapping Kelterus in immunity gear and throwing him in.

But now I can’t use either. I can’t get stat boosts, and if I tried Wolf-dun-tanking, I’m confident I’d get pummeled by a slime and die in 2 seconds.

So it’s wiser to focus entirely on crafting, production, or buffing.

For Ayla’s strengthening, and for Wolfram von Lohengrin himself.

So the skill I chose was—

**【Today I’m the Chef】**

This one’s fairly useful.

It’s decent and serviceable.

**【You have selected the party skill ‘Today I’m the Chef.’】**

**【Would you like to learn it?】**

**【Yes / No】**

“Hmm. Hmm. Heh. Hoo…!”

**【You have learned the party skill ‘Today I’m the Chef.’】**

**【You have learned the party skill ‘Eye for Ingredients (Lowest).’】**

**【You have learned the party perk ‘Increased cooking success rate based on party Agility.’】**

Ah, right.

This one can be learned and canceled.

If I can use it, I should use it. If I can get it, I should get it.

Why would I have any reason not to?

Anyway.

Thank you for all three.

Thanks.

—

After getting top marks in one subject during midterms—even if it was just one subject—Wolfram von Lohengrin’s academic treatment becomes quite lenient.

It’s similar to how professors don’t interfere with Nephti going around looking for work even after getting top marks.

There are people like Garbage Trash who view it with displeasure, but those gazes can’t be helped. If you stand out in group activities, you’re bound to get side-eyes. I suppose since D/Z SAGA is a Korean-made game, that kind of thing is embedded in the world’s foundation.

So the reason I’m saying this is—even if Wolfram von Lohengrin receives sidelong glances from those around him, he can mostly skip classes without major issues in credit acquisition.

Whether in the Magic Department or Knight Department, students attend classes religiously to build connections and risk their lives to catch the eye of other nobles at least once—but Wolfram has no need for that, which is a huge advantage.

So I used my remaining time to pick up a thin frying pan to utilize my newly acquired skill.

Normally, I’d use a heavier wok, but if I did that, Wolfram might just *poof* and die from the weight.

Anyway.

‘Today I’m the Chef, activate.’

Instantly, my head went *whir*. This skill consumes 2 MP in one go and always brings dizziness. Immediately after, recipes began inputting into my mind. Let’s start cooking.

It’s a more difficult dish than I thought, but right now I’m confident I can pull it off.

It also seems like a pretty fun dish to make.

Bread. Lettuce. Pickles. Onions. Battered fish. Sauce made from beans.

And just as I reached out to the ingredients, the convenience store door swung open.

“S-Senior, please help us!”

“…I-I’d also like to request help.”

“Ah, hello, Senior… Could we ask for a little help?”

“……”

The colorful chicks, having finished their classes, barged into the convenience store.

Tch.

Can’t be helped.

“First, sit down. If you have concerns, I’ll listen.”

It’s a bit unfortunate to waste 2 MP, but listening to juniors’ concerns is also a senior’s duty.

Vanilla and Yogurt looked at the frying pan in my hand with wide eyes.

“Senior, were you cooking? Then you can help us after you’re done!”

“…I agree. We trust your cooking, Senior.”

You little brats—I was just offering to help!

Wait, before that—aren’t you just looking forward to eating?

“Ah, haha. I’m sorry, Senior. …But you can help us after you’re done cooking.”

……?

Even you, Mille-feuille?

—

The dish I made was simple yet required meticulous work.

First, make sandwich bread with Magical Sweets, trim the edges, and fillet the fish—carefully removing bones before coating in egg wash and batter to fry.

Meanwhile, soaking onions in cold water to remove some of the spiciness would be even better.

Then spread mayonnaise on the bread, layer onions and lettuce, add tartar sauce made from a bean blend and fish cutlet. In my terms—fish katsu. Top with mustard, cover with bread, and finish.

**【Fish Cutlet Sandwich Complete!】**

**【8T】**

**【A fish cutlet sandwich. Enhanced by the ‘Today I’m the Chef’ skill. Grants +11 Agility bonus. When consumed by a party member, Water Resistance and Refreshing effect slightly increase.**】

Hmm. Turned out well.

This is the party skill ‘Today I’m the Chef.’

When activated and used to cook, you can enchant the food.

Normally, you’d need to raise ‘Magical Chef’—the counterpart to ‘Magical Patissier’—but since cooking in a party is such a huge benefit, they added it specially.

Anyway, as I nodded in satisfaction at what I’d made, the two beside me started fidgeting.

“Ooh…”

“Wow…”

The green chick and the yellow chick drooled as they stared intently at my work.

“Hey, hey, Senior is working hard. Okay?”

The pink chick said that, but she couldn’t take her eyes off the sandwich either.

Hmm. In times like this, the best thing to say is—

“…Want some?”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

“………Yesss.”

—

“Wow, this isn’t meat but it’s really delicious! …I, I could live on just this!”

“…Yeah. Since it’s not meat, it suits the taste of forest-born elves. I agree. I could live on just this.”

The green and yellow ones started eating the sandwich with tears in their eyes.

“It’s not meat so it suits my taste”? Were elves vegetarians? These little details weren’t in the setting book, so it piqued my interest.

“Yogurt, do forest-born elves only eat vegetables?”

“No? We just have a hard time digesting meat by nature. I guess you could say our stomachs don’t accept it. That’s why we settled in forests—to easily get beans and tree fruits… or so the story goes.”

So it’s genetic.

And living in the forest was also a survival choice…?

“Ah. I’ve heard that among city-born elves, there are those who eat meat without issue.”

“I see.”

So Regina Sierra, who’s always invited to social gatherings and never orders special menus during meals, was born with a stomach strong enough to handle meat. Another small mystery solved.

“Thanks for the answer. Have one more each.”

“Wow! I didn’t even answer anything! I’ll gladly take it!”

“I’ll gratefully eat. Vanilla, give me half of that.”

While the two chicks ate enthusiastically, Mille-feuille nibbled at hers with a serious expression.

“He’s this good…? Can I cook better than Senior? No, I know it’s a difficult path. Let’s do our best. I decided to catch up. I’ll keep trying.”

What is she talking about now?

Anyway, after finishing the meal, we finally got to the main topic.

“So, what do you mean by ‘help’?”

At my words, Vanilla suddenly remembered and quickly opened her mouth.

“Ah, well, you see. So. It’s really big trouble. No, really, it’s a huge deal!”

“…Vanilla, just shut up. You’re going to give the listener a headache.”

“What! That’s too harsh! It really is a big deal, Senior! And Mille-feuille, you think I can explain it too, right?”

“……”

“Why are you looking away! Ah, don’t meet my eyes! That lukewarm, warm gaze! It’s like the village elders saying ‘Our Vanilla can do it if she tries’! Don’t look at me with those eyes!”

“…Tch. Personal Silence.”

“Mmph!”

Yogurt flicked her finger, forcibly silencing Vanilla. Ignoring the muzzled dwarf, the elf chick adjusted her glasses and spoke seriously.

“A big incident has occurred in the first-year Common Department.”

“A big incident? What happened? Explain.”

“Yes. It was the day before yesterday. The weather has been warm lately, so most students eat lunch at the school cafeteria during lunch break. They eat quickly and take a nap.”

“Hmm. That sounds pleasant.”

“But the result was anything but pleasant. One first-year student complained of abdominal pain yesterday and collapsed on the spot from exhaustion.”

“No way.”

“Yes. That ‘no way.’ Analysis showed the cause of exhaustion was food poisoning. With the warmer weather, there must have been a mistake in ingredient management.”

Yogurt’s explanation continued briefly.

The weather had warmed up, and students with food poisoning appeared.

They’d have to discard all ingredients that might spoil and reorder.

Naturally, the cafeteria would also need disinfection.

Ingredients are distributed equally to each building, so this requires enormous effort.

It would take about a week for students who can use Cleanse magic to gather and disinfect the cafeteria.

And another week for the reordered ingredients to arrive.

“So in other words—we won’t be able to use the school cafeteria for a week.”

“That’s quite a big deal.”

“Yes. And the three of us are regulars at the cafeteria too, so it’s a huge deal. At this rate, we’ll starve at lunch.”

“Aren’t there other restaurants nearby? …Ah, they’ll be absolutely swamped.”

“…Yes. As far as I know, about 20,000 students use the common cafeteria attached to each building. Imagine 20,000 people suddenly flooding the nearby market all at once. You couldn’t even go out, let alone eat. Today was especially hellish. In the end, we couldn’t eat anything.”

“Mmph! Mph! Mmph!”

“…Yeah. It was really tough.”

At Yogurt’s words, Vanilla also nodded, and Mille-feuille agreed.

If even the patient Mille-feuille said that, it must have been truly hard.

“So. What’s your request?”

“Can we buy meals you make as boxed lunches for a week? It’s not a lot of money, but we’ll pay properly.”

“Mph! Mmph!”

“…I know it’s presumptuous, but we’re asking, Senior.”

Yogurt bowed her head seriously, Vanilla grunted her greetings, and Mille-feuille also bowed.

Using my cooking as boxed lunches.

“…Hmm.”

“Is it difficult? …I’m sorry. Daring to ask such a thing of an imperial family member.”

“No. It’s the opposite.”

“Pardon?”

“I’ll decide the menu myself. It’ll be about the same level as today’s sandwich—will that work?”

“Thank you!”

“Mphmphmphmph!”

“…I’m truly grateful, Senior!”

Don’t mention it.

Convenience stores are supposed to sell boxed lunches, triangle kimbap, and sandwiches too.

“I’ll have to start making them for tomorrow’s lunch right away. Wait a moment.”

“…Thank you so much, Senior!”

“Mphmphmphmph!!”

“Amazing… As expected… Yeah.”

—

After 20,000 people flooded the nearby market, the Common Department—from Building 1 to Building 10—became absolutely packed during lunchtime without anyone having to say a word.

Hungry first-years. First-years who want to eat and rest. And first-years who want to kick a ball around afterward—all turning into beasts and sprinting to nearby restaurants. It’s truly a horrifying sight.

But among them, the wise ones brought boxed lunches, sat on benches, chatted in small groups, and enjoyed a relatively leisurely lunchtime.

And among them were the current first-year celebrity 【Iron Fist】 Mille-feuille von Sabre, along with the other two who had decent grades.

Referred to among first-years as the 【Trinity Rookies】 of the 【Wolfram Crew】, they were firmly at the center of first-year attention. Even these three, now celebrities, had chosen the wise approach.

Other first-years eating boxed lunches on benches watched them with half-interest, half-curiosity. Not because they wanted to see them eat—but because they were curious about what kind of boxed lunch they brought.

A celebrity must be special in everything—from their thoughts to their actions to what they eat!

A true celebrity must always prove themselves!

“Hmm… Yeah. Delicious!”

“Yeah. Amazing, Senior.”

“I wonder what ingredients they used?”

What they were eating was clearly sandwiches.

But the sandwiches others imagined were just simple rations—black bread with a slice of meat stuffed inside.

But in those sandwiches were steak. Not only that—egg sandwiches packed with eggs, and fish sandwiches that seemed to have fish fillets. Colorful, vibrant sandwiches.

They had elevated simple rations into a meal, adding style and flavor.

“Ah, Vanilla, Orange. Want a smoothie?”

And on top of that—three bottles of colorful drinks with a faintly sweet aroma!?

The students there looked at their own meager boxed lunches. So meager. In nutrition, in calories!

“Ah, really… Really, wow…”

At those words,

the sound of drool echoed around them.

*Gulp.* *Hah.* *Wow…*

“…Is that—is that the prince’s crew’s meal…?”

“No joke. Really…”

“I, I want to join too. Just seeing that…”

“Ah, really, what are we, eating black bread from the snack shop…?”

“Don’t say it. It gets depressing.”

And so, today too, the Wolfram Crew was writing another small page in legend.