Chapter 143: The Father-in-Law Gets Knocked Out!
It was a classic Japanese kitchen, with natural wood cabinets and matching wooden floors. The dining room and kitchen were connected in an open-plan design, making the entire space feel bright and airy.
Ryohei Tanaka looked around curiously before walking into the kitchen. He approached Hanazono Yo, who was busy at the stove. "Auntie, let me help," he offered.
Yo looked up, a strand of hair falling from her ear. She brushed it aside, her eyes curving into a gentle smile. "Didn't we agree that I would be the one to host you today?"
Earlier, when they had been talking about his glowing cuisine, Ryohei had mentioned cooking lunch. Although she was very tempted, Yo couldn't possibly let her daughter's boyfriend cook on his very first visit. She had already turned him down.
"I'm not doing anything anyway, and I really enjoy cooking," Ryohei replied with a smile. He glanced at the ingredients on the counter—there were neatly cut, palm-sized salmon fillets, fresh-looking vegetables, and both deboned and bone-in chicken thighs. Yo was currently deboning the last of the chicken. In a bowl nearby, some clams were soaking in water, purging their sand.
"What are you planning on making?" Ryohei asked curiously. "Why don't I cook, and you can guide me through the recipes? I'm quite interested in the cuisine and cooking methods of other countries," he added.
"Well, if you put it that way..." Yo looked at him, surprised by his sincerity. She hesitated for a moment but finally relented with a graceful smile. "Then I'll have to trouble you."
"I've prepared the ingredients for Teriyaki Chicken, Salt-grilled Salmon, Fried Chicken Karaage, Chikuzen-ni, and Clam Miso Soup," she listed, setting down the deboned chicken thigh and stepping aside. "You can take over from here?"
"Okay!" Ryohei agreed and walked into the open kitchen.
"Why don't you start by deboning the rest of the chicken, just like I was doing," Yo instructed as she went to the sink and turned on the tap to wet her hands. She squeezed out some lemon-scented dish soap, rubbing her hands together to create a fine lather.
"Got it." Ryohei naturally slipped into the role of a "student," ready to do whatever his future mother-in-law said.
He picked up a chicken thigh and placed it on the cutting board. He first made an incision down the middle until he hit the bone. Then, he cut the tendons on both sides, flipped the meat over, made one more cut, and the bone separated perfectly from the flesh. The movements were fluid and seamless, the entire process taking no more than a dozen seconds.
Yo, who had just finished rinsing her hands, watched with wide eyes. "Your knife skills... are incredible!" she exclaimed.
"Practice makes perfect," Ryohei said with a modest smile, adding internally, 'And a little help from my cheat system...'
Yurine stood between the kitchen and the living room, her hands resting on the counter. A proud smile spread across her face as she watched her mother praise Ryohei. She glanced at the rice cooker already humming away in the corner and thought with a hint of regret, 'If Tanaka-kun had made it, the rice would have been even more delicious...'
...
"Waaah... Damn it! That horoscope was a total lie! I'm broke again!"
Jashin-chan, with two wide streams of tears flowing down her face and a much thinner wallet hanging from her neck, slithered out of the "Life Theater" arcade.
"I knew I shouldn't have played! Oh, God of Time! Please turn back time to before I went in!" she prayed with open arms, but her prayers went unanswered.
"Jashin-chan."
A soft, sweet voice called out.
"Ah... my ATM!"
Jashin-chan didn't even need to turn around to know who it was. She looked over with a delighted expression. Before her stood Medusa, wearing a pair of delicate, gold-rimmed glasses.
"I was just on my way to find you all," Medusa said, walking forward gracefully. She lifted the shopping bag in her hand, a bright smile on her face. "I brought a super-rare ingredient today—Dark Unicorn tenderloin!"
To thank Ryohei, she had spared no expense and gone to a great deal of trouble. Although Ryohei had told her to just bring any local specialty, she couldn't possibly do that.
"You really splurged!" Jashin-chan said, her eyes wide as she stared at the shopping bag. That stuff wasn't just expensive; it was practically impossible to find. She'd only eaten it a handful of times in her entire life.
"Anyway—!" Jashin-chan clasped her hands together and bowed her head to Medusa. "Medusa, please lend me 50,000 yen! I'll pay you back double!"
"Well, I suppose..." Medusa glanced at the arcade next to them. She took her wallet out of her small purse and gave Jashin-chan a sidelong look. (￢_￢) "But you have to promise me you won't play pachinko anymore."
"I promise!" Jashin-chan grinned without a moment's hesitation.
"I don't know what to do with you," Medusa said with a helpless sigh, handing Jashin-chan the 50,000 yen.
...
Shinjuku, Hanazono Inari Shrine.
Ryohei had finished preparing lunch.
"Aha—!"
With a hearty laugh, Hanazono Toshio entered the dining room, his nose twitching. "Lunch smells especially fragrant today!" His eyes fell upon the dining table, and he immediately understood, a look of fascination on his face. "So this is the famous glowing cuisine? How magical!"
The dishes on the table were all common, home-cooked fare, yet they were emitting an unbelievable light.
"Tanaka-kun cooked all of this himself. You're in for a treat," Hanazono Yo said with a smile as she placed two bowls of sekihan (red bean rice) on the table.
"Indeed," Toshio agreed, nodding as he inhaled the rich, enticing aroma. He then went to the kitchen to wash his hands. By the time he was done, Hanazono Kentaro had also arrived.
The family soon took their seats. The grandfather sat at the head of the table, Ryohei and Yurine sat together, and Yo and Toshio sat together.
"Let's eat!" the old man said, picking up his chopsticks. The others followed suit.
Toshio started with a piece of the teriyaki chicken. The moment it entered his mouth, he was utterly stunned.
'...This is too good!'
The chicken skin was fried to a glistening crisp, coated in a thick, rich teriyaki sauce. With the first bite came a satisfying "crunch," followed by an explosion of savory juices. The chicken meat was so tender it practically melted in his mouth, each fiber saturated with the perfect sweet-and-salty sauce. The sweetness of honey, the richness of soy sauce, and the fragrance of ginger and garlic unfolded in layers, unleashing a storm of flavor on his tongue...
The impactful deliciousness was like a heavy punch, striking straight at Toshio's soul.
BAM—!
In a daze, he saw a giant fist in a red boxing glove flying toward his face, too fast to dodge.
The next second—
The father-in-law was knocked to the ground.
It was a clean, decisive defeat. He didn't stand a chance.
~~~
Get early access to 20+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
~~~
Every 5 new reviews = 1 extra chapters
Every 150 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter