The Grand Duelist

Chapter 155: Start of an Epic Journey[16]

"How fascinating..." Matthew stared at the wooden chair that Joseph reinforced with Bolster. There was a clear look of astonishment on his face. Matthew had tried all methods that he knew in his dictionary in order to damage the wooden chair but to no avail.

In other words, the wooden chair became the strongest material in the world after Joseph's enhancement!

Matthew's eyes flashed with enlightenment. When he heard that Bolster was created due to Joseph's enlightenment of the Grand Concept of Life and Death. Matthew who experienced its effects first-hand seemed to have gained some knowledge regarding the Grand Concept of Life.

He sat down cross-legged on the ground as Joseph chuckled and went to the kitchen.

He didn't try to interrupt Matthew.

He went to the kitchen and started cooking.

It was time to try and cook Pork Nilaga and Pork Adobo!

Joseph lightly smiled as he abruptly vanished from the small shop.

When he reappeared, he was carrying livestock on both of his arms.

He had decided that in order to comprehend the last half of the Grand Concept of Life and Death: Death. 

He must personally take the lives of every living ingredient that he must use.

Joseph stared at the pitiful animals. He sighed, circulated his cultivation strength, and ended their lives painlessly.

"I'm sorry, piggy... But don't worry, I'll definitely cook you to perfection with the recipe that mama and papa handed over to me!" Joseph inwardly swore as he grew focused. His eyes zeroed onto the ingredients as his hands moved like a blur, in just a few seconds... He had completed the mise en place of the vegetable and spices.

At this moment, Matthew finally opened his eyes as he let out a breath of turbid air.

The first scene that he saw was a starstruck Pixie Fairy Elizabeth.

What's going on?

He thought then he diverted his gaze towards the kitchen and found that Joseph was currently cooking something.

Damn that really smells good. Judging from the taste of that Egg Fried Rice, I bet its taste will also be top-notch!

Matthew wiped the droll that started seeping out of the corner of his lips.

He opened his mouth and wanted to speak, but then Pixie Fairy Elizabeth turned her head towards him and glared.

What...?

She seemed to be silently saying something along the lines of, "Speak if you want to die."

Matthew gulped a mouthful of saliva and suppressed his urge to speak.

He then diverted his gaze to Joseph and started admiring the way that he handled his ingredients.

Matthew was someone who liked to eat to the extent that he would pay any price, for so long as he thought that it was reasonable, to eat any delicacy in this world.

However, despite being a connoisseur when it came to eating...

Matthew was a clueless layman when it came to cooking.

But it wasn't because he found it beneath him to cook.

It was because the culture of the Kingdom and the City made it unnatural for men to cook since cooking was a job for women and a man's job was to bring the money that could be used to buy those ingredients for cooking, nothing else.

This was way even though Matthew admired Joseph at this moment, he also felt inexplicably weird staring at him. It was as if he was staring at an alien doing some cooking. 

Of course, that didn't mean that Matthew was doubting Joseph's skill.

He only felt like this because of the culture of this Kingdom and his City. 

Pixie Fairy Elizabeth had a look of excitement on her face when she saw Joseph cooking once again.

Her excitement surged and she had the urge to blabber about her excitement to someone else, but when she saw that only Matthew was here whom she disliked and Joseph was extremely focused on his work.

She decided to suppress her urge to speak and even glared at Matthew so that he wouldn't dare to try and speak lest he disturbed Joseph.

Half an hour later, the cooking process was done and Joseph finally placed the plates containing both Pork Nilaga and Pork Adobo on the elevated platform that faced the customers near the kitchen. He made a sidelong glance at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth and said.

"How about it, can you gauge what you think about the prices of these two?" Joseph had a confident smile on his face.

The cooking process for both dishes should've taken longer for they were meat dishes whose meat needed to be tenderized first.

However, after infusing the meat with the Grand Concept of Life and Death: Life. Joseph found that he could also fundamentally affect the nature of the meat like his Spiritual Energy.

This discovery excited Joseph and this made him work faster than ever before. In just about half an hour, he had completed the creation of these two meat dishes. 

Matthew's eyes brightened, he turned to face the Pork Nilaga and furrowed his eyebrows. It was because he found that the broth of the Pork Nilaga didn't really look out of the ordinary. It was just a clear broth with some root and leafy vegetables. 

As for the Pork Adobo...

The meat actually looked quite strange since it was most definitely simmered with soy sauce.

However, the aroma that it emanated was enough to rouse Matthew's appetite.

He gulped a mouthful of saliva and now had high expectations for the Pork Adobo, but before he could even stretch his chopsticks and take a piece of it.

Joseph coldly declared, "Watch where those hands of you are going..."

Matthew paused in his tracks.

He turned to look at Joseph and the eyes of this middle-aged man actually welled up with tears!

Joseph almost coughed a mouthful of blood.

Really? You're trying to look pitiful to earn my sympathy? Hmmph, just how old are you, huh? And also, I still don't even know your name!

Joseph inwardly scolded.

Unfortunately, since he needed to keep up his facade as an unfathomable expert at the Nascent Soul Realm.

He couldn't say anything.

He surreptitiously glanced at Pixie Fairy Elizabeth instead and she quickly caught on what he was hinting at as Pixie Fairy Elizabeth frowned and said.

"You... Why are you stretching those chopsticks of yours?! Have you already forgotten your sins? Hmmph! Even if we say that master forgives you, forgiveness doesn't invalidate your sins at all!" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth glared at Matthew.

Matthew was taken aback.

"Then... What should I do?"

Matthew's head became muddled with the temptation of delicious food.

Joseph's lips lifted to a smile.

Pixie Fairy Elizabeth also had a smile on her face. Joseph could vaguely see ill intent within her eyes, but he didn't say anything anymore as he silently grieved for Matthew. 

Dang, a woman's revenge really is scary...

Joseph inwardly thought.

Pixie Fairy Elizabeth thought for a moment: "Hmm... What should you do to redeem yourself, eh?" She swept her gaze across the small shop and said, "You must compensate the shop by buying brand new furniture! You and your subordinate must also advertise the shop and they must never scare any customers off this shop nor in this street!"

Matthew was taken aback when he heard her words: "I can redeem myself that easily? Okay! That's a deal! I'll do it! As long as I can eat the delicious meals here then, I'll do anything as long as it's reasonable!" He then stood up and walked towards the exit.

Joseph glanced at the entrance and dispelled the independent space that covered the small shop.

Matthew was finally able to get out of the shop and he went directly into his residence.

It was time for him to gather his comrades and have them come to this shop and have them help him with this problem.

Back at the small shop, Pixie Fairy Elizabeth's mood turned for the better.

It was because not only she got to act like she was Matthew's boss.

She also got to help her master with the problem of the shop's small customer base, along with also having the privilege to eat these delicious meat dishes first! 

It wasn't even hitting two birds in one stone anymore!

It was three birds in one stone!

How could she not be delighted by this turn of events?

She even hummed a tune that abruptly stopped when she placed her first mouthful of the Pork Adobo into her mouth.

"This..."

"M-Master... This is... what do you call this dish?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth asked in doubt, but her words were somewhat unclear for she kept on stuffing meat into her mouth.

Joseph lightly chuckled. It was always a delight for him to see someone eating his meals with gusto. 

"Its name is Pork Adobo..."

"Pork Adobo? It's my first time hearing a dish with a name like that. Is this an original dish of yours, master?"

Joseph shook his head and replied, "Nope... But that dish can be considered as the national dish of my hometown..."

"I see... Uwaaa... It's too delicious, master... The flavors are exquisite, delicate, yet bold! The tangy, savory, and ever so slightly sweet flavors of the sauce really compliment that pork well! Master! This is a masterpiece, I don't even know if I should put a price on it with how delicious it is..."

Pixie Fairy Elizabeth praised.

Joseph chuckled: "Here you go again with those exaggerations. Just put a price on the dish, no matter how expensive it is, just tell me how much you are willing to pay for a dish like this."

"How much I am willing to pay for a dish like this?" Pixie Fairy Elizabeth thought for a moment.

She raised her head and revealed all the fingers of both of his hands.

"Ten...?" Joseph whispered with some hesitation.

Pixie Fairy Elizabeth nodded her head, but she didn't say anything.

"Ten, what? Ten silver coins? Ten copper coins? Ten gold coins? Specify it!" Joseph replied.

Pixie Fairy Elizabeth revealed a smile and whispered: "Ten Spirit Stones!"

"Ten spirit stones? Woah... That's more than what I had expected."

Joseph's irritation turned into glee when he heard Pixie Fairy Elizabeth's assessment. 

Joseph actually wasn't so sure if he could bring those Spirit Stones over back to Victory.

What would happen if he brought back those Spirit Stones? W

ould they transform into something else or would they just remain as Spirit Stones? 

He was curious as to what would happen so he was quite delighted when he heard Pixie Fairy Elizabeth's assessment of the Pork Adobo.

As for the Pork Nilaga, it received an assessment of eight Spirit Stones. Even though it wasn't the same as the Pork Adobo, it was still better than the price of the Egg Fried Rice.

Matthew finally returned after about half an hour later and he brought with him about several dozens of his subordinates.

"Senior! We're finally here!" Amidst the crowd were Clancy and Hector who had a look of astonishment on their faces when they heard how their master greeted Joseph.

Their master was a middle-aged man, yet he actually addressed a young man who looked to be in his early twenties as a senior?

What the hell is going on?

Joseph turned to look at the group that Matthew brought and he made a sidelong glance at the streets behind. He found that the streets became empty and the residents who were hawking their merchandise on the street had somehow disappeared.

Joseph glanced at a nearby window and found that there were people watching what was going to happen from the safety and comfort of their houses.

Fear could be seen within their eyes as Joseph facepalmed and scolded: "You... What did Elizabeth tell you earlier?"

Matthew was confused: "Senior... She told me to advertise the shop and replace the broken furniture. I came here with these comrades of mine to help clean up the shop and carry the brand new tables and chairs that the shop requires from that nearby wooden workshop there..."

Joseph facepalmed once again, there was a look of disappointment on his face as he replied.

"Yes, that is right. That is indeed what she had said, but have you considered what the residents around here would feel seeing you guys who probably hadn't taken a bath for several months come here in such large numbers?"

"Wha..."

"Brat... What did you say?"

"Shut up!"

One of the men frowned and spoke up, but Matthew was quick to shut him down. Panic flashed across his face as he hurriedly explained: "I am really sorry about that, Senior... It seems like I have committed a blunder. I'll give them the order to return so they won't cause any trouble."

Joseph sighed: "It's fine... Since they are already here, they should just stay here for now..." He glanced at them all for a moment before he asked, "Have you guys eaten, yet?" 

Matthew wore a look of excitement on his face as he repeatedly nodded his head and interrupted one of his subordinates who was about to say that he had all eaten.

Afterwards, he opened his mouth and spoke: "No, no, no! We haven't eaten yet! Is it possible for us to order some dishes at this time?"

Joseph glanced at a nearby window and found that it was still in the middle of the afternoon.

He nodded his head and replied: "Yeah, just choose what you want to eat there and read the rules written below it too. I don't want to blacklist any of you guys, you see... Since every customer is precious." Joseph lightly smiled before he moved to the kitchen.

When Joseph disappeared...

The men turned their heads to the menu and their eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

"You what?" 

"Huh? They are actually asking for gold coins? What the... How ridiculous! A single gold coin is enough to eat three times a day at the most luxurious restaurant of Eichenwalde, yet here..."

"It is only a bowl of Egg Fried Rice? Wait, what is a Spirit Stone? I haven't heard of something like that, but judging from the price of the normal Egg Fried Rice..."

"A Spirit Stone should be quite expensive."

The men nodded their heads and they didn't know what to say.

Their master, Matthew, told them to bring as much money as they could so a lot of them brought several gold coins at once.

But when their master explained that they were about to go to a restaurant, they hid their gold coins and replaced them with silver coins. They thought that a few silver coins were enough for them to eat to the fullest in a single meal. 

However... 

An Egg Fried Rice... A single bowl of an Egg Fried Rice... Has the price of a single gold coin? What the fuck? Doesn't that mean that all of them will not be able to eat anything in this place?

The men looked somber and annoyed at the same time. But it wasn't because they couldn't eat in this small and unknown restaurant, but it was because they thought that the prices of this small restaurant were so ridiculous to the extent that it was completely absurd.

"Man this is fucking bullshit... A single gold coin for a mere Egg Fried Rice? How about he just go and rob a bank?" One of the men violently cursed. 

Matthew raised an eyebrow: "Hey, don't be quite rude. Senior is someone that we cannot possibly afford to offend."

He had this serious look on his face which shocked everyone to speechlessness.

The man who got scolded by Matthew awkwardly scratched his head and said, "Well... How about we give him the benefit of the doubt? Since master is confident about the Egg Fried Rice here then we have no right to doubt the capability of the owner." 

"That sounds like a good idea. But how do we proceed from there?" One of his comrades asked.

The man replied, "Of course, we should pool our money together then we can use that to order a bowl of Egg Fried Rice. Afterwards, we will taste that bowl of Egg Fried Rice. What do you think?"

The man turned to look at his comrade that asked him the question, but his comrade shook his head and replied.

"Baldy... Did you even read the rules?" 

"What rules? Wait, did you just call me Baldy?"

"The rules are there!" The man's comrade pointed at the plaque just below the menu: "Just read through it and you'll see why your plan is impossible to complete."

Baldy turned to look at the list of rules and he choked on his own saliva: "Uh... What? The customer is not allowed to share his own bowl of food? Not only that but, you are also not allowed to bring the food outside the store?"

"Furthermore, every customer is expected to clean after themselves? Each customer can only order one dish in a certain type a day?"

"Opening times are strictly regulated by the owner. Conflict of any form is strictly not allowed within the restaurant, but an exception is allowed if the conflict involves the well-being of the restaurant, its employees, the owner, and the customer? What does this mean?"

"And also, additional rules may be added as necessary by the owner, and those that will not abide by the rules will be permanently banned from ordering anything within the store without any possible appeals?"

"What the fuck? This is ridiculous! The customer is king! Why do we have to clean ourselves after we eat? And why are we not allow to share our own food with others?"

"And we also can't eat as much as we want since we cannot order seconds? Holy fuck... What kind of a restaurant operates with these rules?"

Baldy couldn't believe what he was saying. 

He turned to look at his master and found that there was a look of sympathy on Matthew's face.

Doubtful about what was going on... 

Baldy decided that he would take the matter into his own hands as he walked towards the kitchen where Joseph was cooking the dishes. 

However, when he was about to approach the kitchen.

A cat suddenly stopped him on his tracks.

The cat had a strangely menacing look on his face that irritated Baldy.

"What the? A cat? A cat actually dares to block my way?"

Clancy and Hector who were talking with each other jolted in fear when they heard Baldy's words.

Even Matthew's attention was attracted to Baldy.

"Fucking hell, an obedient cat does not block the way of strangers! Scram for me!"

Baldy raised his leg and was about to swing it in order to kick the cat when Matthew instantly appeared in front of him and sent a smack across his face.

Baldy flew backwards towards the exit of the small restaurant and he landed outside.

Matthew's comrades stared at him in shock. What the hell just happened? They all thought in their minds. Matthew's actions of slapping Baldy for the sake of random house cat was incredibly weird for them, if not abnormal. 

But for Matthew who finally realized that the cat was probably the shapeshifted form of Elizabeth whom he asked for an apology with all of his might. Matthew's anger erupted when he saw his subordinate about to kick the cat that Elizabeth transformed to.

Furthermore, the fact that Matthew had a rule among his subordinates to never hurt a woman if necessary.

Matthew's anger flared up and he couldn't hold himself back.

He raised his arm and pointed a finger at Baldy.

"You..."

"How dare you try to hit a fucking woman!"

He cried out in anger.

Huh? 

A woman?

The men stared at each other with weird expressions on their faces.

Even Baldy had the look of wanting to cry but had no tears to shed.

Did their master finally go crazy?

First, he was calling a young man as his senior, and now he's treating a house cat as a woman?