Chapter 15: [FGO]: 15
When Loki saw a certain figure pushing out a cart, she immediately sprayed the wine in her mouth onto the face of the werewolf opposite her and then shouted loudly.
"Hey! Loki, what are you doing! I'm going to kill you!"
Werewolf Bete, who was inexplicably sprayed with wine, was instantly furious.
Loki's attention was not on him. Ever since several young ladies in maid outfits came out from the back kitchen pushing carts, her usually squinted eyes had opened wide, staring fixedly at one particular figure.
That figure was none other than Loki's lifelong rival, Hestia.
"Tch! So you recognized me, huh?"
Hestia pouted and muttered softly.
In an instant, Loki dashed over to Hestia with the speed of a hundred-meter sprint.
"Oh my! Oh my! Isn't this Shorty!"
"What's this? The dignified goddess has fallen to being a server?"
"But this outfit does suit you quite well~ On that vulgar body of yours, it's quite [provocative]~"
"Why don't you just wear this and come work for our Familia, you poor~ goddess~"
At this moment, the goddess Loki had completely transformed into a street shrew, loudly mocking Hestia with all her might.
The members of the Loki Familia nearby looked on as if they were witnessing a different goddess.
Unable to bear it any longer, Hestia launched her counterattack.
She proudly thrust out her chest, causing her formidable assets to shake violently, nearly making the eyes of several male onlookers pop out.
"Thank you for your kind offer, but I must decline! As for you, Loki..." Hestia glanced contemptuously at Loki's flat chest.
"Even if you wore this outfit, people would just think you're a cross-dressing [pervert]! You flat~ goddess~"
"Ugh!"
Loki was instantly dealt a crushing blow, collapsing to the ground in tears.
Hestia laughed heartily.
Her laughter provoked Loki, who immediately got up, glaring fiercely and pounced on Hestia.
"Damn it! Today I'm going to flatten those excess fats on your body!"
"Who's afraid of who!"
Thus, the two genuine goddesses brawled like shrews, grabbing at each other's faces and hair.
In the distance, some adventurers who were drunk and unafraid of trouble cheered loudly.
After all, a brawl between two goddesses was a rare spectacle, more exciting than any entertainment show!
"That's enough entertainment for now."
Ryou, who couldn't stand it anymore, pulled them apart.
"Goddess Hestia, don't forget what you promised me," Ryou said to the still resentful Hestia, who instantly deflated.
Seeing this, Loki squinted her eyes, "Who are you?"
"You want to poach, but you don't know who I am?"
Ryou's face showed a faint smile.
Loki looked him up and down, noticing his clean chef's uniform, and suddenly realized, "You're the mysterious chef!?"
At this moment, Riveria and Ais walked over.
Ais, without a word, grabbed Loki by the collar and dragged her back to her seat. Riveria, looking embarrassed, said, "Sorry, our goddess has caused you trouble."
"It's fine, please return to your seats. My cooking will start soon," Ryou replied nonchalantly, waving his hand.
Knowing that bringing Loki and Hestia together might result in this scene, he did it anyway for some twisted enjoyment.
After all, how could an animation compare to a live demonstration?
Riveria scrutinized him with a probing look, but the cool and serious elf said nothing and returned to her seat.
For a specific purpose, Ryou had prepared the most impressive live cooking demonstration to leave a deep impression on the Loki Familia.
The seats reserved for the Loki Familia were arranged in a circle, with a large space left in the center where a uniquely designed grill was set up.
In the center stood a long iron skewer, powered by a rotating mechanism fueled by magic stones, with a pedal to adjust the speed. The grill, also fueled by magic stones, was positioned vertically around it.
Anyone who has been to Turkey would recognize this setup as the famous Turkish doner kebab!
Syr pushed a cart loaded with various types of meat to the side. The cart contained the usual pork, duck, beef, lamb, chicken, and fish commonly used in Turkey, as well as some rare dungeon monster meat.
These meats had been specially prepared with different cuts and marinades.
With a confident smile, Ryou stood a few meters away from the grill, beside the cart.
He picked up a large piece of meat and gently tossed it, landing it precisely on the iron skewer in the center, without spilling any marinade.
He continued to toss pieces of meat, creating an unusual tower of meat in the air.
In less than a minute, he had placed five to six hundred kilograms of meat from the cart onto the skewer, forming a tall and wide meat tower, without spilling a single drop of marinade on the ground.
The lower-level members of the Loki Familia cheered loudly.
But the mid-tier members at level LV5 and above narrowed their eyes.
To achieve such precision required perfect control of strength, coordination, and vision.
Even for them, only skilled individuals like Ais and Finn, with their extraordinary attributes, could manage such a feat.
The problem was that the person opposite them was just a chef, and based on their perception, his level was not high at all.
This meant that his technique surpassed theirs, which was quite alarming.
Thus, a variety of curious, probing, and puzzled glances were directed at Ryou's back.
Especially Ais, whose eyes were locked onto his back, as if trying to decipher something.
Ignoring the complicated feelings of the Loki Familia members, Ryou's cooking show officially began.
At his command, the grills around him began to emit blue flames, directed at the large meat tower in the center.
Ryou immediately stepped on the pedal, manually controlling the rotation speed of the skewer.
Although magical flames were more stable than ordinary flames, they were also much hotter, so careful attention was needed to avoid burning the meat tower.
Otherwise, the show would turn into a joke.
In less than five minutes, the high temperature of the magical flames caused the meat tower to emit a rich and enticing aroma.
"So fragrant!"
"This smells like beef!"
"Nonsense, it's chicken!"
"Wait, I'm smelling pork here! Hold on, now it's duck!?"
Ryou smiled slightly—this was just the beginning.
"Hestia, Number One!"
As soon as the meat was perfectly cooked, Ryou shouted without looking back.
"Oh, right!"
Startled by his performance, Hestia sprang into action, grabbing the spice dish labeled Number One and placing it in Ryou's hand.
Without glancing at it, Ryou took a handful of the brown spice, gave it a quick toss, and sprinkled it over the meat tower.
The flames grilled the spice, mixing with the aroma of the meat, releasing a rich and enticing fragrance.
"Number Five!"
"Number Three!"
...
Ryou didn't stop, continuing to instruct Hestia to bring various spices, sprinkling them onto the meat tower.
Surprisingly, despite being one or two meters away from the meat tower, the spices seemed to land evenly all over it as if they had eyes.
Ryou seemed like a masterful conductor, using his incredibly agile hands to blend the spices and meat into a symphony of intertwined aromas.
"It's done!"
Ryou exclaimed, then picked up a small, cleanly washed curved knife about the size of a dagger.
It was time to showcase his real skills.
Ryou took a deep breath and then swiftly moved the knife, slicing through the meat column with precision.
Thin slices of roast meat, delicate as cicada wings, immediately fell apart like a stack of blocks. He flicked his knife, causing the meat slices to fly into the air.
Before he had started roasting, a large empty platter had been placed in the center of each table.
The meat slices obediently landed on the platters, arranging themselves into the shape of flowers.
Ryou continued to cut the roast meat, making sure every table received its share, and even set aside a portion for the staff.
In the astonished eyes of the onlookers, the slices of roast meat formed larger and more three-dimensional flowers on the platters.
Ten minutes later, each table had a giant meat flower made from various types of roast meat.
"What is this?"
"Amazing!"
"It smells so good! I can't wait any longer, I'm starting!"
"Beautiful!"
Even Finn, the captain of the Familia, couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
"Please."
As soon as Ryou finished speaking, someone immediately picked up a fork and speared a piece of roast meat.
"Ow! It's so hot!"
Some impatient members quickly put the roast meat into their mouths, only to burn their tongues and start sucking in cool air.
Even though their tongues were burnt, they were unwilling to spit out the incredibly delicious meat.
"It's so good!"
"I've never had roast meat this delicious!"
"I'd be willing to die right now just to taste this!"
"Damn it! Don't grab it! That's mine!"
Members of the Loki Familia couldn't help but exclaim in astonishment, and some even nearly fought over the roast meat.
Even the Familia's main deity, Loki, was devouring the roast meat and drinking wine with abandon, looking completely carefree.
Even the main members of the Loki Familia couldn't resist the ultimate deliciousness of the roast meat feast.
"Mmm, this is the best, I can't take it anymore!" said a certain flat-chested Amazon girl, frantically stuffing large amounts of roast meat into her mouth.
"Damn it! No matter how good this is, it won't take away my love for the captain!" said a certain well-endowed Amazon sister, though her face was flushed as she continued to shove roast meat into her mouth.
"Damn it! Don't think you can tempt me with this!"
This was a certain tsundere werewolf, cursing with his mouth but not stopping his hands from spearing the meat.
"So delicious~ Just as soft and tender as Miss Ais's lips~ Hehehe~"
This was a certain yuri-obsessed elf girl, her eyes vacant, face blushing, and drooling at the mouth, clearly lost in her fantasies.
Even Ais, who rarely showed any change in expression, felt the flavors of the various roasted meats sweep over her as soon as she put a piece into her mouth. It wasn't chaotic at all; instead, it was like a beautifully orchestrated symphony.
One slice of roast meat felt like eating an entire banquet composed of various roasted meats.
A rare smile appeared on Ais's usually expressionless face.
"Ais is smiling!?"
Tiona exclaimed loudly.
Members familiar with Ais also showed surprised expressions. Apart from her usual blank face and occasional looks of dissatisfaction or shyness, almost no one had seen Ais smile.
That's why people often saw her as pseudo-stoic. In reality, she was just lacking common sense and didn't know how to express her feelings.
"Tch!"
The werewolf Bete, who secretly had a crush on Ais, immediately showed a hint of displeasure.
The object of his affection was smiling because of a cook's dish. A flicker of jealousy ignited in Bete's heart.
Even the three leaders of the Loki Familia couldn't help but be captivated by the deliciousness of the roast meat.
However, unlike the regular members, their seasoned minds quickly forced them to break free from the endless temptation of the roast meat, as they had discovered something alarming...
"Riveria!"
Finn called the elf mage with a serious look, signaling her with his eyes.
Years of tacit understanding allowed her to immediately grasp the meaning in her old comrade's eyes. She nodded subtly without showing any emotion.
"Gareth!"
Finn then turned to the dwarf uncle.
"I'm getting old~ The young folks nowadays are truly frightening..." Gareth didn't respond directly but instead sighed, then resumed drinking and eating meat.
But Finn had gotten the answer he was looking for. He instinctively bit his thumb and began to think.
Unexpectedly, their main deity Loki spoke up, getting straight to the point.
"Hey, young man over there, are you interested in joining my Familia?"
The previously lively and joyous atmosphere suddenly fell silent.
As one of Orario's largest factions, it had been a long time since Loki, the main deity of the Loki Familia, had personally invited someone to join the Familia.
After all, unlike the free-ranging Freya Familia, the Loki Familia focused on exploring the Dungeon and had no energy to nurture newcomers.
For Loki to personally invite someone, she must have been very impressed with their talent.
As the captain, Finn opened his mouth but didn't say anything, seemingly in silent agreement.
The Amazon sisters nearby, and even the usually expressionless Ais, showed a hint of longing in their eyes, clearly indicating that Ryou's roast meat had thoroughly conquered everyone present.
Other patrons in the distance showed envious expressions. Joining the Loki Familia was like a dream come true for ordinary adventurers.
As for the shouting Hestia, claiming Ryou was hers first, she was selectively ignored.
Hestia Familia? What's that? Can you eat it?
Ryou immediately started to think.
Attracting the attention of the Loki Familia was his original goal, and joining them seemed like the best way to achieve his objectives.
After a moment, Ryou spoke...
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