Chapter 25：Extremely hungry. (1/2)
I look back to see Jett and Charles standing by the doorway.
They look so stunned that I let go of Ren immediately.
Not knowing what to say, I turn around and decide to go out of the room before they ask me anything that'd too awkward to answer.
As soon as I step out, a voice coming from the side says, ”Okay! So for the last challenge, the venue is mostly set up now. Please follow me.”
Holy shit! Someone up there loves me, after all.
What wonderful timing! I breathe a sigh of relief.
Now I don't have to worry about being asked for a while at least.
I quicken my pace and follow after the staff personnel that's guiding us.
* * * * *
Bright lights enter my eyes as we go through a huge curtain. I squint a little and let them adjust.
Yikes!
It's not only blinding, but it's so hot here! Is the entire studio just filled with spotlights and lamps or something?! It almost feels like all my make-up's going to slide off if I'm not careful. Well, just exaggerating, of course, but...
Near the center, I see two temporary steel kitchen islands that have a lot of equipment set up for our next challenge. In the back, there are ingredients available for our use.
If this wasn't obvious enough already, the next challenge will involve cooking.
I'm decent enough if I could say so about myself, so hopefully, we have a fair chance of winning.
* * * * *
”Welcome back to 'I Challenge You!' It's been one heck of a ride so far, huh?!”
The crowd screams in response.
”Is everyone ready for the LAST challenge?! 'Cos I CERTAINLY ammm~!” The host's voice echoes as he shouts into the mike.
”A recap: So far, each team has two wins with one loss each, putting both of them on a draw! Now, the last one is meant to change that, but if both teams STILL end as a draw, they will have a choice of whether to split the prize money or go for another tie-breaker.”
”And now for our next challenge, it's the one you are probably ALL waiting for! It's time for 'WILD GUESS GASTRONOMY', one of the most popular segments in our show!”
The emcee pauses as he adjusts his posture.
”Since this is a VERY, VERY, VERRYYY special episode, there's going to be yet, another twist! To those who are quite new to the show, I'll explain the basics of this challenge as well.”
”Unlike other cooking shows, you don't have to be a talented chef to win this challenge.”
”Each team is expected to make one dish and make sure they have an extra plate for taste testing purposes.”
”To clarify, it can't just be something like a soft-boiled egg or just pan-fried pork chop and call it quits, for example. There have to be multiple elements or at least, enough complexity to whatever it is you've decided to make.”
”Once you're done cooking, you and your teammate will taste-test the extra dish yourselves. You'll be given a scoring sheet to indicate how much you'd rate your dish 1-10. 1, of course, being the worst.”
”They're professionals in the food industry, so they'll be quite strict with their evaluation and won't hold back. The goal here is to have your grade match as closely to theirs as possible. The team who wins will get 0.5 points.”
”So... now for the twist! Special caviar containing some ghost pepper chili extract will be placed randomly in the extra plate you'll be eating. It'll be very hard to spot. Only the team who happens to avoid it will gain another 0.5 points.”
After talking so much, the host seems a bit beat. ”Phew! I hope that made sense as that was a lot to explain.”
”Are you still with me folks?!” He tries to check on the audience to see if he hasn't lost them.
People whistle and scream to prove that they're still listening. They must be way too excited to see us suffer again so they don't want to miss a single thing.
* * * * *
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{Jett's POV}
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We're all so busy with food preparation and cooking; but for almost the entire time, Ren has been absent-mindedly staring at Rysia.
It's really pissing me off, to be honest.
I've felt very uneasy ever since I saw them doing something very questionable in the waiting room.
Is there something between them? Why was Rysia doing that? Is there something she's not telling me?!
It didn't seem like she was interested in him at all.
I could tell that Ren genuinely aggravates her and she doesn't enjoy his advances.
Feeling anxious, I look towards Rysia and see her busily going about their makeshift kitchen.
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{Jett's POV end}
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* * * * *
I wipe my brow as we're almost done with the Vietnamese Lemongrass Pork Vermicelli Bun.
I've been cooking the meat in low heat for some time now. Doing it this way is almost like it's slowly marinating in the sauce.
It's just about the right shade of brown, so I think it's time for me to remove it from the pan for now.
The smell of garlic, shallot, soy sauce, lemongrass, fish sauce, and caramelized meat, wafts in the air.
It's making me extremely hungry.
My stomach growls as I start to take out the perfectly boiled rice vermicelli out of the pot.