The Rise of the Black Plain

After some time walking along the beachfront of Jalene City, Minos and Abby had finally arrived in front of the local cooking school.

This place exhibited a very refined exterior, in a modern construction style, filled with glass and smooth shapes, in a 6-story building. Each floor was smaller than the one before, making this place look like a series of cylinders of different radius, running from the base, the largest, to the top, the smallest.

On one side, someone could see through the glass a series of tables spread over large spaces on each floor, right beside the sandy beach. The view from that point was magnificent, where it would certainly be nice to have a meal while enjoying the beauty of the sea.

At another point, on the opposite side of the building, you could see kitchens and people already cooking on some of the six floors of this place. These were well-lit places, with decorations typical of these spaces, and the cooks also dressed appropriately.

Anyway, the local culinary school building looked very open to the public, with its transparent structure.

And in front of that place, there was a big square, opposite the beach, with several drawings on the floor and some statues here and there, including a clock in the middle of that place.

'Interesting.' Minos thought this after seeing this building.

In this place, there wasn't any kind of identification. Just the different food fragrances should already be enough to indicate which place this was.

Finally, while the two were standing in that square, in front of the main entrance to this building, several people came and went from that place.

Many of them looked very young, probably the lowest-level cooks who were still learning the art of cooking. But other individuals seemed very ordinary and were already heading to the refectories.

In this building, there were six refectories divided by the classification of cooks in training. Naturally, the biggest one was the one on the first floor, since the cooks in this place were low-level grade-1 professionals.

And this group was the most numerous, for obvious reasons...

As for the top floor of the building, the smallest of all, it was where high-level grade-2 cooks could train their techniques for the first time. However, this part of the building rarely works, as it was not easy for chefs to reach level 56, the minimum level for this classification.

...

Minos and Abby didn't take long looking at the beautiful view of that place and soon entered the first floor of this culinary school, where there was a large entrance hall.

This place wasn't that big, but it had a small reception area with a few attendants, restrooms, side exits to the refectory, kitchens, and stairs for those going to the upper floors.

There was a good decoration in that entrance, with some city images and renowned dishes from that place.

And eventually, the two youths approached those attendants that were there when one of those people said. "Hello, welcome to the Jalene City Culinary School. How can I help you?"

After hearing the soft voice of this attendant, who was wearing a uniform similar to other people in this place, Minos coughed and then said. "Ehh, we would like to do business with this culinary school. So, I would like to speak with the person responsible for this place."

"Oh? Maybe you want to register someone at our school, is that it? If that's what you mean, we'll only accept new cooks in 1 year. And there aren't enough vacancies for everyone who wants it, so it's tough…" The young attendant was just talking when Minos interrupted her, moving his head in denial.

"You got it wrong. I'm not trying to buy a vacancy in this place for one of my cooks." He said this with a smile on his face. "I heard that this place is very renowned and has great professionals in this spiritual profession. So, I would like to do a certain deal with this organization that maintains this place."

"Then, that's it..." She commented in a low voice as she looked to the side to confirm something with her colleagues. She then said. "Sir, it's not easy to find the director of this culinary school. He is important, and he often goes out to get ingredients and cook in his own restaurant. But some elders can attend you."

"Would you be interested?"

Minos then nodded in agreement. "Yes, that works too."

"OK. Wait a moment, and I'll see if someone can see you now."

After that, Minos and Abby stayed in that place, waiting for the return of the woman who had attended them while observing the refectory through a glass wall.

There were already a few people around, sitting in several different spots in that place, eating happily. And even though it was still morning, some dishes were already being served there.

While Minos and Abby waited, waiters passed by that place, pushing trolleys with various plates and dishes.

In the refectory, there was a part where each customer could serve themselves, taking whatever they liked best.

But from what he and Abby had heard, not all floors worked on this same scheme. After all, with fewer cooks training, food quantities dwindled, and service naturally became more personalized.

Customers had a menu where they could choose what to eat, rather than a place with a wide variety of dishes.

...

After a few minutes of waiting, the young woman who had attended them returned to her post and told Minos and Abby. "You can go up to the 4th floor. Once there, ask the reception to speak with Elder Caesar. He is the only one available at the moment."

"Hmm, I understand. I appreciate your help."

Minos and Abby then proceeded to the floor of this building where the low-level grade-2 cooks worked, the place they had been appointed.

And soon, they had got there.

...

At first glance, the place looked a lot like the first floor of this building. Still, in addition to being much smaller, the aromatic quality of the fragrances on this floor was much higher than on the first.

But the place wasn't luxurious or anything like that. In fact, the items in the refectory and reception were of the same quality as those on the first floor. After all, this was not a restaurant but a place of learning.

The kitchens could even be better equipped, as there would be a difference in the level of cooks, but the same was not true for the rest of the place.

The 'clients' of this culinary school were the guinea pigs of these cooks. People who agreed to pay for first meals made by newly promoted cooks, professionals that usually made inevitable mistakes that would make these foods unfeasible to be sold...

But it was nothing too serious or something to spoil the dish.

Certainly, for people who were used to cooking their own food, without the use of spiritual techniques, such a thing would be far superior in terms of quality!

But for those customers who would typically pay for these dishes, such mistakes would prevent them from spending their crystals on these products. So, cooks often used places like these to comprehend their new abilities without throwing away their ingredients.

Due to all of this, there wasn't a need for a luxurious venue, as usually, high-end people wouldn't come here. However, the quality of the service was not bad, in fact, it was excellent!

No one eating on the 4th floor of this building would feel in an inadequate or inappropriate place. No, the view was beautiful, and the decor was very nice.

Anyway, it didn't take long, and Minos and Abby were directed to where the elder Caesar was, a place on the side of the building where the kitchens were.

Obviously, this place's elders and leaders had offices, and the building had internal structures that any construction like this would have. For example, there were classrooms for young people to learn from more experienced individuals and a library.

And the couple soon passed in front of many of these places until they reached that individual's room.

Pa! Pa!

Minos knocked twice on an open wooden door before finally entering the place.

And after hearing this, the old man in that place turned his face to Minos and Abby and asked. "Are you the youths who want to do business?"

"That's right. Nice to meet you, Elder Caesar. That is my friend Abby, and I'm Minos." He introduced Abby and him before closing the door of that place and taking a seat in one of the chairs.