Zongman I fight weirdness in everyday world

Upon hearing this, Shoko Nishimiya couldn't help but ask curiously.

"But... shouldn't being able to cook be better than not being able to?"

Yotsuya Miko, Rio Futaba, and Haruna Amano, the members who joined the club earlier, shook their heads at Shoko Nishimiya's naive words.

"Wrong, utterly wrong, Shoko. You're thinking too simply. You haven't witnessed true horror yet..."

"Ahem, everyone be serious."

Shizuka Hiratsuka moved a chair, sat down with her legs crossed, adopting a laissez-faire attitude.

"Do whatever you want. Anyway, only our class is using this classroom today."

"Hiratsuka-sensei."

"What is it, Makise-kun?"

Kurisu Makise looked at the various cooking utensils on the table, her brow slightly furrowed, and asked with slight bewilderment.

"Where are the beakers and measuring flasks? Without those, how can we cook?"

Shizuka Hiratsuka was first stunned, then her pupils gradually dilated, and her lips slightly parted, as if she couldn't believe her ears.

Beakers?

Measuring flasks?

Are you filming Breaking Bad here? This is a home economics classroom, not a chemistry lab...

Before Shizuka Hiratsuka could express her shock, she heard Yui Yuigahama mutter to herself.

"Sichuan peppercorns... Houttuynia cordata... small chili peppers... Aren't there any of those... It would be great if we had some Mexican ghost peppers... Without any seasonings, how can we make an exquisite dish..."

And Marin Kitagawa's words were relatively normal.

"I like fried rice, so let's make fried rice."

But before Shizuka Hiratsuka could breathe a sigh of relief, she saw Marin Kitagawa take a bag of unfinished potato chips from the side as if struck by a sudden idea, clapped her hands, and said with a smile.

"Then let's have cucumber-flavored potato chips with soy sauce fried rice!"

Shizuka Hiratsuka was completely dumbfounded just listening to it.

She looked at Yoru for help, but unexpectedly, the latter immediately said.

"Well... since you three are so enthusiastic, let's have Shizuka-kawaii be the judge of this cooking competition. It's not just me saying, Shizuka-kawaii's taste in food is definitely top-notch!"

"Really? That's great, thank you, Hiratsuka-sensei!"

Shizuka Hiratsuka was dumbfounded. It took her a long time to react. Looking at the enthusiastic appearances of Yui Yuigahama, Kurisu Makise, and Marin Kitagawa, she couldn't bear to break such youthful enthusiasm and could only nod with a forced smile.

"Okay... no problem..."

Immediately afterward, Shizuka Hiratsuka cast a murderous gaze at Yoru, gritting her teeth and saying.

"You want me to die, don't you..."

Before Shizuka Hiratsuka could finish speaking, Yoru said with a smile.

"Oh, and I almost forgot to mention, I promised Saika Totsuka from the tennis club that I would participate in the competition and just casually bring back the first place in the national competition for our Sobu High School."

Hearing this, Shizuka Hiratsuka instantly changed her expression, switching from gritting her teeth to a gentle smile, and said softly.

"Oh my, as expected of my most outstanding student, you must get first place!"

"Shizuka-kawaii, your face is so ugly."

"Hmph, isn't it because of you? You clearly have the strength to achieve glory, but you've always been slacking off?"

Shizuka Hiratsuka raised her chin, looked at Kurisu Makise, Yui Yuigahama, and Marin Kitagawa, who were busy cooking, and said nonchalantly, propping her chin with one hand.

"It's just being a judge. As long as it's not burnt or raw, I don't believe it can be that bad, no matter how bad it tastes?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Shizuka Hiratsuka felt the surrounding air suddenly quiet down.

She turned her head and found that Rio Futaba, who usually wore a poker face and whose expression and eyes never showed any fluctuations, was now looking at her with an unprecedented and very admiring gaze, and even gave her a thumbs up.

"Hiratsuka-sensei, I admire your courage."

Miko Yotsuya also stepped forward and gently patted Shizuka Hiratsuka's shoulder, her golden eyes even revealing a hint of emotion.

"Hiratsuka-sensei, you are the best teacher, we will never forget you."

Shizuka Hiratsuka listened to these words, her face full of mixed emotions.

Is this letting me be the judge of the cooking competition?

Why does it feel like...

It's like reading a eulogy?

Chapter 395: The Ultimate Art of Cooking, Monday Stuck in a Loop

While Yui Yuigahama, Kurisu Makise, and Marin Kitagawa were busy making dark cuisine, all with a strong momentum, wanting to determine who was the real master of dark cuisine, Rio Futaba pulled on Yoru's sleeve and took him to the corridor outside the classroom, lowering her voice.

"Although this is your decision, I still want to say, letting Kurisu Makise act with us... is very likely to expose our identities, right?"

"Our identities can't be hidden anymore."

Yoru waved his hand and said softly.

"Have you forgotten the list provided by Suzuha Amane? Rio Futaba, Kazusa Touma, Setsuna Ogiso, Haruno Yukinoshita, Yukino Yukinoshita, Light Yagami, Natsumi Suga, Takeshi Aoki, Kaguya Shinomiya, Chika Fujiwara, Eriri Spencer Sawamura, Utaha Kasumigaoka, Hizuru Minamikata."

"You yourself are on it. Kazusa, Setsuna, Yukino, the four of you are all students of Sobu High School this year. And Haruno, she is an outstanding graduate of Sobu High School."

"Moreover, Chika Fujiwara, Eriri, Utaha Kasumigaoka, Kaguya Shinomiya, these people have all had interactions with our Sobu High School."

"And then there's Natsumi Suga, she reported on things about me, and in the future became an assistant to 'Mask'. With so many clues combined, even if there is no one in SERN who is good at reasoning, as long as there is someone still at a normal level of intelligence, they should be able to guess that the true identity of 'Mask' is someone who has interactions with everyone on this list, which is me."

Seeing Yoru's nonchalant and even interested expression, Rio Futaba frowned slightly and said in a serious tone.

"What time is it already, and you still think this is a game? If they expose your true identity..."

"What can they do?"

Yoru said with a chuckle.

"It's not that Lelouch Lamperouge enacted relevant laws in the future, thus legitimizing our actions, but rather that people wanted us to continue acting, which allowed that law to pass. If SERN is foolish, they'll think my true identity is my weakness, but if they're smart, they should understand it's my constraint."

"When I no longer need to deliberately protect my true identity, my actions will become much more convenient."

"Before SERN confirms they have the ability to kill me, they won't make such a foolish move, exposing themselves to an even more terrifying enemy."

Hearing this, Rio Futaba wore an indifferent expression, only lowering her voice to say.

"But if they know your true identity, they'll likely carry out assassinations, so… you still need to be careful."

"I know."

Night Star nodded, ruffled Rio Futaba's long, gray, curly hair, and said with a smile amidst her embarrassed and angry expression.

"We can perform death retrospectives here, and Mikoto even uses a glitch-like method to ensure she can sense the life and death of every member. Plus, with our absolutely overwhelming power, honestly, I don't even know how we could lose."

"We'll win."

Looking at Night Star's unwavering, absolutely confident demeanor as he spoke, Rio Futaba sighed softly, then revealed a hint of a smile.

"Yes, we'll win."

… …

Twenty minutes later, in the home economics classroom.

Even when discussing SERN, such a mysterious, large-scale organization with clandestine funding from multiple countries, whose traces even L couldn't easily grasp, he remained fearless, full of confidence, and once again issued a declaration of absolute victory. Night Star, embodying invincibility, looked at the three dishes on the table in front of him, a look of great trepidation on his face, even beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

"This…"

Shizuka Hiratsuka also examined the three dishes on the table, her expression somewhat complex.

Judging solely from the presentation… Marin Kitagawa's fried rice was definitely the worst.

Soy sauce fried rice? That was normal enough.

But the potato chip crumbs that Marin Kitagawa had sprinkled on the surface of the fried rice, Shizuka Hiratsuka couldn't even imagine the taste.

Soft, salty fried rice paired with crispy potato chips, and cucumber-flavored ones at that, with a hint of sweetness, what kind of experience would that be?

The key was…

"Why…"

Shizuka Hiratsuka looked at Marin Kitagawa, her expression complex.

"Kitagawa-san… why did you add cucumber-flavored potato chips to the fried rice?"

Marin Kitagawa tilted her head slightly, looking puzzled, as if Shizuka Hiratsuka had asked a very strange question, and replied matter-of-factly.

"Because I didn't finish the potato chips, so I just added them."

Shizuka Hiratsuka: "… What you said makes so much sense, I don't even know how to refute it…"

Didn't finish them, so you added them?

Then why don't you just move the vending machine over here and mix all the items from the vending machine with the soy sauce fried rice and be done with it?

What kind of dark cuisine is this?

Next, Shizuka Hiratsuka looked at the salad made by Kurisu Makise.

Hmm, it looked normal.

But…

Why were there natto, peanuts, walnuts, and other strange things in the salad?

Just as Shizuka Hiratsuka was pondering this question, Kurisu Makise also wore a thoughtful expression, muttering to herself.

"It's a pity… there aren't more ingredients… the nutritional content of this salad, after all, can't quite meet my requirements, but it's barely acceptable."

"Um…"

Shizuka Hiratsuka tugged at Night Star's sleeve, leaned close to his ear, and asked in a low voice.

"Can this Makise-san's cooking… really be eaten?"

Night Star asked meaningfully.

"Think about it carefully, she even used the term 'nutritional content,' can it be delicious?"

"Hmm… that makes sense…"

Shizuka Hiratsuka really found it hard to imagine, a salad with natto, peanuts, walnuts, and some strange seasonings… how good could it taste… if it wasn't too bad, Kurisu Makise would already be considered a culinary master.

Finally, she turned her gaze to the dish made by Yui Yuigahama.

"Eh? Yuigahama-san, what you made… seems quite normal?"

What Yui Yuigahama made was the common type of cookie, decorated with chocolate chips on the surface. During the making process, Shizuka Hiratsuka also noticed that the other party's cooking skills were very skilled and professional, obviously the type of girl who often cooked at home, which completely relieved her.

Thankfully, there was still a normal one.

"Shizuka-sensei."

Yui Yuigahama smiled gently, but that sweet and gentle smile, which was no different from usual, now reflected in the eyes of the knowing Overlimit Club members, was as chilling as a demon's intent.

Wearing two gloves, she carried a tray with the freshly baked cookies on it, walked up to Shizuka Hiratsuka, and said with a smile.

"I poured all my feelings for you into this dish. I already feel that this is another peak masterpiece in my cooking career!"

Hearing the familiar phrase "peak masterpiece," Night Star's body trembled, feeling like he was about to have PTSD.

In this world, there weren't many things that could break this strongest exorcist, but besides the situation of those he cared about, the thing that could break him the most was Yui Yuigahama's cooking.

Shizuka Hiratsuka, on the other hand, was fearless in her ignorance, looking at the cookies on the tray with interest.

"Oh? Really? Thank you, Yuigahama-san, then I'll try yours first…"

"Shizuka-sensei, wait!"

Although Mitsuha Miyamizu didn't understand Kurisu Makise and Marin Kitagawa's cooking skills, she had tasted the sweets made by Yui Yuigahama before.

Good heavens, that bite almost shattered her illusions about the big city.

Mitsuha Miyamizu was, after all, too kind, and really couldn't bear to see this single, older female teacher with a cute appearance and interesting personality foaming at the mouth and convulsing later, so she said cautiously.

"Why don't you… try the other two people's first?"