Episode 329: Cooking Judging, Results Announcement

And so, the judges’ tasting(?) finally began.

They’d take a bite, think about something, then write it down on the sheet in their hand. It seemed a bit different from the usual style you’d imagine, where all the judges eat the same dish at once and give their evaluation to the person right then and there.

But with this method, won’t there be no comments on each individual dish?

「Well, I bet a lot of you are wondering about that, so let me add a little supplement!!! Regarding the cooking round, we decided not to use that standard format where the judges eat each person’s food and give a comment every time!!! That’s because, to be blunt, the judges are amateurs, so they can’t give detailed evaluations or professional comments anyway!!!!」

I kind of suspected that, but it really was as blunt as it gets.

That said, setting aside the advisor of the cooking club, I didn’t think a regular club member could pull off a stunt like that… and the people on the Prep Committee definitely couldn’t. In that sense, maybe quantifying individual impressions and coming up with a total score was the only thing they could do.

「…Don’t they usually call at least one pro for these things?」

「…If you want a pro, there’s one right there. King of Ta…」

「…No, that’s just a cosplay.」

「Anyway, staying silent is a bit awkward, so let’s try to hear at least a few comments!!!! First, from the one who seems the most reliable…」

Minamin moved toward the only teacher here, with mic in hand… Takeda-sensei, the advisor for the cooking club. She seemed to be right in the middle of tackling someone’s sandwiches, and looked a bit grim?

I wondered how she’d evaluate that… I was actually a little curious myself.

「Takeda-sensei is currently conquering Kusahara-san’s sandwiches!!! How’s the evaluation!!??」

「Hmm… we-well… I guess she’s making the most of the ingredients’ natural flavors?」

「They are exactly what they are.」

Well, if she’d at least put something she’d cooked in there, she would’ve had more to say… but there was none of that. It was 100% just ingredients, with ham, cheese, and other things that can be used as they are just shoved in. Compared to that, even I could probably make something more decent.

「Whoa, looks like a judge finally reached for the hamburg steak!!! It’s like they all planned it, they’re all starting to reach for them at once. Now, what will the reactions beee?」

「D-Delicious!?」

「Wh-what is this!? I’ve never eaten a hamburg steak this good before!!??」

「Amazing!! How did you make it like this…」

「Wait, this is way better than any restaurant around here…」

I didn’t know which hamburg steak they were eating, but the reaction was definitely the highest so far. Then again, even I get moved every time by how delicious Sara-san’s cooking is… so it was unavoidable that the judges would have this kind of reaction. Of course, the same would apply if that was Mayumi-san’s hamburg steak.

「Whaaaaa, Sa-Satsukawa-san’s home cooking!!!!」

「Damn it!!!! Even if they’re judges, I’m so jealous!!」

「A murderous aura is smoldering toward the male judges!!!」

「I-I want to eat it once, just once before I die!!!」

The more the judges made a fuss about it being delicious, the more the audience made a fuss in a different sense. But for my part, I really wanted to shout out that I’d never let them eat it. Honestly, my true feeling was that I didn’t even want the guys mixed in with the judges eating Sara-san’s food… wait, was that too narrow-minded of me?

「Mufufu… I wonder what would happen if I told them there’s a guy right here who eats it every day?」

「You’d make every guy in the venue your enemy in an instant. Then Sara would get seriously pissed in an instant, and the next moment it would be a scene of pure agony and screaming…」

「Um, Natsumi-senpai…」

It’s not exactly a joke, so please don’t say such ominous things. I really am done with any more unplanned surprises, you know?

「Kazunari, it’s okay.」

「Hanako-san…」

Hanako-san stared at me gently with a beaming smile that brought a sense of peace. That smile looked like it was telling me that no more trouble would happen… as expected of a Big sister, I’m really grate…

「Onee-chan will crush anyone who opposes Kazunari.」

「………」

Oh… that was the bad kind. She wasn’t okay at all. And my Big sister’s eyes were dead serious…

But if that really happened, Sara-san would definitely say the same thing… If I don’t treat today’s proposal like a war of annihilation, there’s a chance my future school life won’t be safe.

「Aaaaah, King of Ta… I mean!!! The mysterious old man who’s an expert on gourmet food has finally reached for the hamburg steak!!!! Now, what’s his reaction going to beee!?」

When I looked toward Minamin’s voice, it was right before King of Ta… I mean, the old man(?) put the hamburg steak in his mouth.

And after chewing it a few times, he opened his eyes as wide as possible… blinking over and over while staring intently at the hamburg steak, then hurriedly took another bite.

Then, he looked down and his body started shaking… shaking?

No way… could it be, no way!!??

「D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S (censored)」

I-it finally came out!?

I couldn’t quite hear it properly for some reason (a mysterious phenomenon), but that was definitely that legendary thing!!!!

Plus, from his wide-open mouth, all sorts of things flew out at once along with a mysterious beam of light, drawing a giant rainbow in the sky… or maybe I just felt like they did!!??

I-I don’t think you’ll know what I’m talking about, but I don’t even know what I’m…

「Kazunari, no more of that.」

「Yes, I’m sorry.」

Sorry, I got a bit too carried away. I deeply apolog… wait, I was just thinking that, I didn’t actually say anything, did I!?

「That is because I am your Big sister.」

「Oh, right…」

This is the kind of thing you shouldn’t dig into, I get it.

I don’t really get it, but I’ll accept it.

「W-why is it… I felt like I just saw all sorts of things flying out of the old man’s mouth… no, sorry, it’s nothing!!!!」

「Um… I think I saw it too, maybe?」

「Oh, me too!!」

「Wha… was that a hallucination!? What was that… just now?」

Hmm… apparently I wasn’t the only one who felt like I saw that.

Probably everyone, Minamin, and the whole audience… they all felt like they saw it too, as they were all tilting their heads in unison.

As expected of the legendary old man… quite the feat.

By the way, it’s way too late for this, but who is he anyway??

Kusahara Yutaka POV

「MAAAAAN, Vice President, thanks for the nice footage!!!!!! Sorry about that, we had a request from a certain area… oh, give the camera a wave!!!」

The one currently on the screen on stage was that man… the boy from the headquarters tent yesterday, whose name I don’t even know, who’s supposedly the Student Council Vice President.

To me, he was a trivial person who looked completely plain and dull… yet for some reason, he seemed to be on good terms with「the Nishikawa Eri.」

Honestly… even I can’t interact with her properly yet.

And that figure acting so strangely familiar with Nishikawa-san… just on that point alone, he was an incredibly unpleasant existence.

「…Haa… that Vice President was so cute earlier…」

「…You still like that kind of younger boy, don’t you?」

「…No, really, that smile was a total foul, wasn’t it? He’s not exactly a Pretty Boy, but even my heart skipped a beat.」

「…Right!? And besides, seeing Takanashi-kun singing with the kids earlier… I just wanted to give him a big hug!!」

「…Heh… I see. So that Vice President is the type that appeals to people with those traits.」

And there was one more thing I didn’t like.

There were groups of girls making a fuss about him just now.

Gentle with kids, cute smile, so what?

In the first place, being cute isn’t a compliment for a man. Especially for someone like me… well, I guess it fits that man.

Besides, taming a child or two is a simple task for me.

They are just brat… whoops, no, no.

I almost let that slip.

「Hahahaha… oh no, Kazunari-kun is quite the player. Sara’s going to have a hard time.」

「Managing Director Satsukawa?」

Managing Director Satsukawa, who had supposedly been staring at the stage in a daze, let out a small laugh while looking at the screen.

There shouldn’t have been anything funny in the current flow… no, more importantly.

「Hm? Oh, sorry. For now, there’s nothing that can be done about Mayumi’s situation, so I’ll just keep watching.」

「Ah, yes, I believe that’s for the best. B-by the way, um…」

「What is it?」

「Managing Director Satsukawa… do you know that male student?」

It might just be my imagination… but Managing Director Satsukawa seemed to mutter a name while looking at「that man」on the screen… and by his first name, no less.

「Ah, that’s…」

As he spoke, Managing Director Satsukawa’s gaze was focused on「that man」on the screen.

The dull, ordinary man looking bashful while holding a small girl.

No way… could it really be?

「Do you know that man, no, him?」

「Oh? Since you put it that way, do you know Kazunari-kun too?」

「Eh!? N-no, well… we just met briefly yesterday…」

So Managing Director Satsukawa really did know him?

No, that wasn’t the problem!!

Calling him by his first name meant they were quite close, didn’t it!?

「I see. We certainly are… whoops, sorry, but let’s leave the talk about him there. I’ll be making an official announcement about the details at the end-of-year party.」

「An-Announcement!?」

「Yes. It’s going to be a very important topic, and it’s not something to be discussed lightly here.」

「U-Understood… Then I shall wait for that time for anything further!!」

An announcement at the end-of-year party!?

What is this incredibly meaningful talk!?

To begin with, that party is an important occasion where we in the Saba Group all gather together… if it’s a talk to be announced there, it’s highly likely to be a content of corresponding importance!!

Could someone like that really be involved in such a talk!?

…No, wait, that’s impossible. I should think that his parents or relatives are the ones involved instead.

But that would mean his relatives are people close to Managing Director Satsukawa… does he have that kind of connection with Nishikawa-san as well?

If so, yesterday’s incident would at least make some sense… no, no, there’s no need to think that far ahead when I don’t know anything yet.

Anyway, the important thing now is that the man「seems」to be someone close to Managing Director Satsukawa.

And if he attends the party, the chance of meeting him again isn’t zero.

Which means… as much as I hate it, I have to be careful about how I interact with him.

And if so, yesterday’s incident was bad too…

It’s a pain, but it can’t be helped. If I meet him again, I’ll just have to throw in a half-hearted follow-up.

Honestly… I just can’t stand him…

He’s truly an unpleasant presence…

「Calculation should be finished soon, so please wait just a bit longer~~~~!!!」

The cooking judging where the old man went all out(?) was all over, and now we just had to wait for the results.

From what I could see, there was no difference in the reactions of the judges who ate the two dishes. So there’s a high chance the result is a very close race. Close enough that the difference in one person’s taste could easily flip the rankings.

And unlike the rounds before, the scores and rankings would be announced for this cooking round.

In other words, even if it was amateur scoring, how close did Sara-san get to Mayumi-san?

That result would be shown, even if it was just a rough guide.

「There’s no doubt Sara and Mayumi-san are the top two, but which one is higher…」

「True. But honestly, it’s complicated… Satsukawa-senpai wasn’t even aiming to win, but it turned into that kind of flow before we knew it…」

「That can’t be helped since the Wife’s Mother is too strong. Winning against her is synonymous with winning the whole thing.」

「Yes. But a win in the results alone probably won’t be enough for the answer to Mayumi-san’s conditions…」

「Eh!? Winning isn’t enough!?」

Todo-san and Tachikawa-san looked shocked at Nishikawa-san’s point.

Hanako-san and Natsumi-senpai looked calm… they’d realized it too, as I thought.

Yuji and Hayato seemed to have a hunch too.

「The Wife’s Mother didn’t say a single word about beating her in the Miss Contest scores.」

「Yes. Mayumi-san’s victory conditions for Sara are unknown. So even if she wins, we can’t be at ease.」

「No way… then how is Satsukawa-senpai supposed to beat Mayumi-san…」

「Is Satsukawa-senpai aware of that?」

「Sara-san is aware. But… she had to do it anyway.」

Since I realized it, there was no way Sara-san hadn’t.

And even if the conditions were vague, once our life together was put on the line, Sara-san had no choice but to accept this match.

「Sara won’t back down even against a parent if it means interfering with her life with Takanashi-kun.」

「Ah… you’re right. Even the usually calm Satsukawa-senpai gets like that when it comes to Takanashi-kun… wait? Mio-chan…」

Everyone’s eyes focused on me… or more accurately, on Mio-chan, at Tachikawa-san’s words.

Of course I’d known from the start, but Mio-chan was actually asleep… or as Sara-san would say, right in the middle of a nap.

The noise around us had settled down, and she’d just eaten some snacks. Plus, it was close to her usual nap time anyway… so it was only natural for her to hit her limit.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t see Mio-chan’s sleeping face from my angle… but her small hands were tightly gripping my jacket, and that gesture was just too cute!!

「Fufu… what an adorable sleeping face. I almost want to hold her myself if I could.」

「Ka-Kazunari, if you need to switch, tell me anytime. Onee-chan will… Onee-chan will!!」

「HEEEEEEEEY, sorry to keep you waitiiiiiiing!!! The results are in, so let’s get right to the announcement!!!! First, everyone, eyes on the screeeeeeeeeeeeen!!!」

Dudududududu…

Minamin’s shout cut through the heartwarming air, and「that」kind of BGM started playing from the speakers.

The words「Results Announcement」appeared on the screen, and the contestants, the audience, and us… as we all watched the screen with bated breath, the moment the display changed!!!!

1st Place No. 9 Satsukawa Sara 100 points

1st Place No. 10 Mayu 100 points

A perfect score and a tie!!??

「WHOA-HO-HO-HOAAAA!!! The mother-daughter showdown is actually a tie for first place with perfect scores!!!!!!! This is incredible!!!!!!!!!!」

Uooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!

A massive stir erupted from the stands at Minamin’s shout to hype up the crowd.

But for me, the feeling of happiness was stronger than surprise. Because Sara-san had grabbed a tie even after sealing her specialty,「food for me.」

Basically, that meant she’d tied after standing on the exact same stage as Mayumi-san… so this was effectively a win!!!

「A tie with perfect scores!?」

「WHAAA!? W-what happens now…」

「A tie in points, but the Wife didn’t use her true specialty.」

「Right. So emotionally, I want to say she won.」

Still, I wondered what Mayumi-san thought of this result…

Even if it was a result that didn’t affect the「real match,」I thought she might be genuinely happy that her daughter had caught up to her.

「Now, let’s get some comments right away!!!! First, Mayumi-san, what do you think of this result!!??」

「Nfufu~, I never thought it would be a tie with Sara-chan… but I guess it’s not that surprising? Sara-chan’s cooking skills have improved visibly lately.」

「Whoa, I see!!?? Then a comment from Satsukawa-san too…」

「It is not a result I am satisfied with, but if it is a tie under the same conditions, I suppose it is a passing grade. To begin with, I have Kazu…」

「ALRIIIIIGHT!!!!!!!! Thank you for the comments!!!!!!!!」

Minamin’s loud voice forced Sara-san’s comment to end, which was becoming a pattern.

She repeats the same thing every time she does an interview, so I wonder if the audience is starting to get curious too?

「Sara and Mayumi-san’s results are one thing, but I can’t help but find the last place hilarious.」

「That’s… well, I guess it was expected.」

Just like Nishikawa-san said, it would be more surprising if she hadn’t come in last with that performance.

I’d even suspect foul play. So the results on the screen were only natural, and as I looked down from the top, what was displayed at the very bottom was, of course…

10th Place No. 8 Kusahara Rena 20 points

Completely expected. Yeah.

「A gap of over 30 points with 9th place, that’s just too much… pffft.」

「Naturally, since that woman didn’t cook anything.」

Since the person in 9th place had 52 points, that meant there was exactly a 32-point difference.

But for me, the fact that she got 20 points without doing any cooking at all was the real surprise.

Even if each judge gave her 1 point, the number was still higher… which meant some people had given her more than that.

「WAIT A SECOND!!!! Why am I in last place by such a huge margin!!!! This is unacceptable!!!!」

Just as I thought, one certain person was full of complaints at the expected result… the stuck-up woman was lunging at Minamin with fury.

But the surprising thing was that she probably wasn’t just making a scene out of sour grapes… she likely truly didn’t understand.

In a way, it’s impressive.

「Hwaaa, I’m not a judge, so telling me won’t help!」

「Oh, is that so!! Then I’ll go to the judges right now…」

The second the stuck-up woman said that while shaking Minamin’s body violently… the screen image suddenly changed.

The heading「Regarding Kusahara-san’s Judging」appeared in large letters, followed by…

「Due to the lack of ingredient preparation, many items could not be scored.」

…There it was, the simple reason stated clearly.

Only natural.

「Preparation… but I made sandwiches, didn’t I!!!」

「Um, well… usually you’re supposed to bake or boil or do all sorts of things, you know? But you just used the ingredients as they were, right, Kusahara-san?」

「There wasn’t a single word about that in the rules, was there!?」

「Rules… um, by any chance, do you know what the word ‘cooking’ means?」

Minamin looked fed up and exhausted… as did the other contestants.

By the way, Sara-san and Mayumi-san had ignored her from the start and were looking this way… at Mio-chan who was taking a nap in my arms, wearing soft smiles.

So I shifted my position so they could see the angel’s sleeping face properly, and they both broke into beaming, happy smiles…

「Whoa-ho-hoaaaa, that smile is too beautiful!!!!!!!」

「A Goddess’s smile!!!!!!」

「Satsukawa-san, look this way!!!!!!!!!!」

「SARA-CHAA-A-A-A-AN!!!!」

At Sara-san’s smile, those idiots… I mean, the crowd, started their usual routine of making a scene.

A noisy Sara-san call began in no time, but of course Sara-san herself ignored it completely.

And one certain person was glaring at that scene with a grimace, her mask finally off.

「Hmph!! Cooking is not something a person in my position should be doing in the first place!! It’s a job for housekeepers and servants…」

「Um, Kusahara-san? I don’t know if you’re serious, but this conversation is being broadcasted to the entire audience, you know?」

「…Pardon?」

The stuck-up woman turned her face slowly toward the audience with a blank expression.

Just as Minamin said, every word so far had been leaking through the stationary mic… the stuck-up woman had finally shown her true self.

「Ahem… l-let me explain, in our house, I am never allowed to help even if I want to cook, you see? But as a lady’s refinement, I have always thought that would be a problem…」

「…Who does she think she is…」

「…I kind of suspected it from the start.」

「…Typical, just a pretty face.」

「…Is she just here to brag about being rich?」

Hearing such an excuse that didn’t even qualify as a follow-up, there was no way any of the audience would believe her…

Clear anti-reactions began to appear even from the regular guests around me.

I could even hear booing coming from further away…

It was over. The stuck-up woman’s Miss Contest was officially over.