Chapter 364: Thanks For the Meal

Chili peppers can indeed warm up the consumer’s body, but normal chili peppers are ineffective against the frosty energy in Vivian’s body. In fact, eating too much of it will instead cause discomfort for her. Could it be that aside from the chili peppers in this dish, there’s something else that’s able to combat the frosty energy? Michael thought to himself as he picked up his chopsticks, and took his first bite of grilled fish.

So spicy!

Michael’s eyes immediately widened. The spicy juices enveloping the fish immediately erupted in his mouth. These were definitely not ordinary chili peppers!

He felt as if countless tiny needles were piercing his taste buds, making his tongue instantly go numb!

This numb yet spicy sensation was completely different from what he’d experienced when eating spicy foods in the past. It was a very special and certainly not unpleasant feeling.

He bit down through the crispy fish skin, and then into the succulent flesh, upon which an incredibly fresh flavor spilled onto his palate. This was the flavor of saltwater fish!

Due to the fact that Vivian was quite fond of fish, he would often order saltwater fish to be delivered to him. However, most of them were dried fish, and only when employing a flying steed could fresh fish be delivered. It was very difficult to keep the fish fresh, and even with his lofty status, he was still only able to dine on fresh saltwater fish once a month at most. After all, he couldn’t ask someone to make the trip for him just because he wanted to eat fresh fish.

Furthermore, this grilled fish didn’t have any small fishbones, and it was even more delicious than the saltwater fish he had tasted in the past. Just having a saltwater fish of such quality transported from the ocean to Chaos City probably cost more than the dish’s 1600 copper coin price tag.

He had initially thought that the grilled fish was a little expensive, but he felt like it was well worth the price now. He would be happy to buy a raw fish of this quality at this price, let alone one that had been cooked into such a delectable dish.

The spicy flavor erupted in his mouth, and as he swallowed, he could feel a surge of scorching heat flowing down his throat. After entering his stomach, that scorching sensation spread through his entire body, and he felt as if flames were incinerating the excess frosty energy and humidity in his body. All of his sweat glands opened up in unison, and sweat was expelled from within. A cloud of water vapor rose from his body as if he was in a sauna.

So this dish really can expel frosty energy! Michael abruptly opened his eyes. Even a normal person like him had so much humidity and frosty energy expelled from his body, so he could imagine the effect that regularly consuming this dish would have on Vivian.

He’d initially been skeptical about the dish, but he was a true believer now. The rush of heat wreaked havoc within his body, but it wasn’t a painful feeling. Instead, it felt as if he was being bathed in warm water, making for a very comfortable experience.

If Vivian can eat this spicy grilled fish every day, then her body should be able to slowly recover. She won’t have to undergo the painful magic treatment again, and she won’t have to continue suffering from her condition, either. This restaurant… It has to keep operating. Michael looked up at Mag as he if were looking at his savior. The despair and powerlessness that he bad been burdened with for many years were suddenly lifted from his shoulders.

Mag met his sparkling gaze with a smile. From Michael’s expression, it appeared that he was very pleased with the spicy grilled fish. In that case, it would be easier for him to bring up the issue about the food competition rankings. There was only one day left, so if he couldn’t make it back onto the rankings board tomorrow, then his food competition mission would end in failure.

“Boss, get me some rice. This grilled fish is so delicious, it must have some rice to complement it.” Michael laughed heartily as he turned to Mag.

“Alright, please wait for a moment.” Mag went back into the kitchen, and quickly re-emerged with a pot of rice.

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Michael scooped himself a large bowl of rice, and ate it along with the fish as a blissful smile appeared on his face. This flavor was simply irresistible.

Throughout the past few years, he had constantly been living under a shadow of self-criticism, unable to forgive himself. After shedding that heavy burden, he felt like he was floating on a cloud, and the meal was all the more enjoyable for it.

Mag stood off to the side and looked on in silence. The lord of Chaos City—one of the men who stood at the pinnacle of the entire Norland Continent—was sitting in his restaurant, and eating his grilled fish. There were probably very few people that would believe him even if he tried to tell this story.

He was the lord of Chaos City, but also a father.

From his expression, Mag could deduce that the spicy grilled fish would most likely benefit his daughter, and that made him feel quite good about himself as well.

I’m a chef, but I feel like a doctor, Mag thought to himself.

After eating an entire grilled fish and a large pot of rice, Michael put down his chopsticks and burped with contentment. It had been a long time since he had taken that long to eat a meal. However, the food was simply too delicious to be in a rush—it would be a waste if he hurried through it.

“Thank you, Mag. Thank you for making such delicious and miraculous spicy grilled fish.” Michael looked at Mag with a genuine expression of gratitude.

“You’re far too kind, City Lord. It is the duty of us chefs to present good food to our customers,” Mag replied with a smile. He was contemplating how he was going to bring up the issue about the Aden Square food competition without making it seem too abrupt.

“Thanks for the meal. I still have some things that I need to do tonight, so I’ll be taking my leave now. I’ll be back to taste your other dishes next time.” Before Mag had a chance to say anything, Michael had already gotten up from his chair, and placed a dragon coin along with six gold coins onto the table before departing from the restaurant.

“Eh? City Lord, I told you that this grilled fish is on the house. You’re not a customer; you’re a fellow father.” Mag picked up the money, and ran out after him.

“That’s not my payment for the meal; it’s just a small gift to you so you can buy some treats for your little girl,” Michael responded with a smile before leaving.

“I didn’t even get a chance to talk about the food competition rankings…” Mag murmured to himself as he looked at Michael’s departing figure. However, it appeared that the city lord really did have something important to attend to, so he couldn’t just ask him to come back.

Looks like I’ll just have to give up on this mission, then. If I file a report to the city lord’s castle, it’ll probably take at least a few days before the matter is brought to Michael’s attention. By then, everything will already be too late. Mag sighed, and shook his head in a resigned manner. He had thought that the mission would be simple to complete, but he was stumped at the last hurdle.

After closing the door, Mag had a look at the clock, finding that it was already 10pm. He went upstairs and brushed his teeth before going to bed. He didn’t think too much about the issue. After all, there would surely be more missions in the future, which would provide more opportunities for him to unlock the Haagen-Dazs ice cream recipe.

…

As Michael climbed onto his horse-drawn carriage, he instructed, “Let’s go to Robert’s manor first. He and I will go to the city lord’s castle together.”