Under the astonished gazes of everyone,
Manager Yoshimura truly took a piece of Sakura Cake and put it in his mouth!
As Manager Yoshimura began to chew, enjoying and swallowing it, his eyes suddenly became moist.
Everyone thought Manager Yoshimura was just tasting the food out of politeness.
Only after seeing the Manager's genuine expression did they react.
"Ghouls can eat food like this!?" exclaimed Irimi Kaya.
"Could the ingredients be...?" Koma Enji speculated that it was made from human remains.
"Ghouls can eat it!?" Kirishima Touka stared intently at the box of Sakura Cake.
And after Manager Yoshimura finished eating,
He raised his hand to wipe the tears from his eyes, clearing his mind of youthful memories, then counted the remaining osmanthus cakes in the box, took another piece, and placed it in his palm.
"The rest, two pieces each, everyone should try it."
With that, the Manager went upstairs while holding his portion.
The three remaining were left in the store in shock!
Kirishima Touka was the first to react. She widened her eyes, staggered, looked at the cake in the box, and with trembling hands, took a piece and put it in her mouth.
"Mmm~~!!"
Kirishima Touka closed her eyes, her body trembling, and tears streamed from the corners of her eyes.
No one understood the complex emotions within her at that moment.
Or rather, every Ghoul found this feeling hard to comprehend.
Kirishima Touka had human friends, and in normal social interactions, every time friends shared food, it was torture for Touka.
Mentally, she wanted to eat, but her body completely rejected it.
Because she was still young, she was far from having the impressive acting skills of experienced Ghouls.
And compared to the physical disgust,
The mental aspect was what tortured Kirishima Touka even more!
But today, everything changed!
Human food turned out to be this delicious!
Try this!
This texture!!
This deep pleasure!!!
"It's so good!" said Kirishima Touka while crying.
Koma Enji and Irimi Kaya exchanged glances, then quickly took a piece and ate it.
With one bite,
Their shock was no less than Kirishima Touka's.
Touka was crying.
The two of them at least continued to wipe their tears.
After finishing one piece, the three of them quietly took their last piece.
Kirishima Touka held the wax paper, carefully and lovingly wrapping her treasure, as if it were a rare treasure.
Now the question returned.
"What exactly is this Sakura Cake?"
At that moment, Manager Yoshimura returned after changing his clothes.
There were no signs that he had just been upstairs, staring at a photo of a young woman repeatedly, and quietly wiping his tears.
After hearing his staff's discussion,
Manager Yoshimura answered definitively: "It's human food, very normal food."
"But," Irimi Kaya was very confused: "We are Ghouls."
Koma Enji nodded in agreement.
And Kirishima Touka was very practical.
She immediately took out the food given by her friend from her bag and, in front of everyone, took a big bite.
Then...
"Ouch~!"
Everyone watched as Kirishima Touka vomited near the trash can.
Now it was confirmed.
They were fine, still normal.
This food truly had a magical effect!
Koma Enji took out his piece, looked at it repeatedly, still showing his confusion.
"Why?"
Kirishima Touka returned from vomiting, wiped her mouth, and shared her opinion.
"We're still the same as before. Could it be that the manager accidentally planted ingredients that Ghouls can normally eat?"
Touka's opinion was immediately met with different looks from Irimi Kaya.
"Totsuka Culinary Academy, the highest-ranked institution in the culinary world, has been researching food that Ghouls can normally eat since it was first announced, but they have made no progress in developing anything that Ghouls can eat."
"Outsiders claim that coffee was developed by them, but they themselves do not acknowledge it."
Until now, the only human food that Ghouls could consume was coffee.
And the simple statement from Totsuka Culinary Academy: if they could truly develop normal food that could also be eaten by Ghouls, allowing Ghouls and humans to coexist normally throughout the world,
Then the status of Totsuka Culinary Academy would no longer be limited to the culinary world and Japan,
But rather a transcendent status worldwide.
However, the results were disheartening; there was still no hope.
"So, this shouldn't be a matter of ingredients," Irimi Kaya looked at the Manager: "It should be a matter with that young manager."
Manager Yoshimura thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.
"The most likely possibility right now is that young manager."
Hearing this, Kirishima Touka couldn't hold back.
"Kamishiro Rize is contacting him; let's find her as soon as possible!"
When she said this, Koma Enji and Irimi Kaya both agreed and wanted to leave immediately.
Unlike before.
Previously, they didn't care, only fearing that Yuzuki would be eaten by Kamishiro Rize, which would ultimately lead to the discovery by the CCG.
But now, if Yuzuki were eaten, this food problem would never be solved.
Then they would have nowhere to cry and would regret it until their legs broke.
However, before the three could act,
Manager Yoshimura checked the date and time.
"It's already late. It would be rude to leave now. Look for a holiday, bring a gift, and then go."
"We are from Anteiku; don't reveal your Ghoul identity so quickly."
On the surface, they were just antiques.
Manager Yoshimura, mature and experienced, even when faced with such temptation, did not get carried away and urged everyone to be careful.
The three thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
.....
On the other side.
After heating the pan over high heat.
As Yuzuki used a spoon to drizzle melted butter over the thick cuts of steak repeatedly, creating a sizzling sound.
This "special" thick sirloin steak was ready.
Then he placed it on a plate to rest.
After resting, Yuzuki prepared the seasonings and utensils, then finally brought it to Kamishiro Rize and placed it in front of her.
"Enjoy."
Kamishiro Rize looked at Yuzuki with a somewhat greedy expression.
She thought the phrase "enjoy" was directed at her, not her steak.
Kasumigaoka Utaha, not far from her, bit her lower lip gently, her toes wiggling in dissatisfaction.
Yuzuki turned and left, preparing to make something for himself to drink.
And when Kamishiro Rize came back to her senses.
As she began to cut the steak with her knife and fork, the aroma of the meat filled her nose.
Kamishiro Rize was astonished.
This smell... why is it so fragrant? Why?
Isn't human food supposed to smell unpleasant?
Kamishiro Rize looked down; the color of the steak was beautiful. The brown surface, the Maillard reaction between the beef and the pan was so tempting.
For humans, it was nothing short of heavenly.
Kamishiro Rize quietly cut a piece of meat. Although she intended to hold back from letting it touch her tongue, she unusually licked it with her soft tongue.
Instantly, Kamishiro Rize trembled all over, her cheeks red as blood!
Kasumigaoka Utaha, from a distance, wanted to laugh but didn't dare. She couldn't say anything, as she reacted just like when she ate it, as if she were touching herself.