Chapter 327 - The Rankings' Effect

Panda Novel

Mag scooped some rice as he asked internally, “Just tell me: how much will that grilled fish recipe cost? I’m a man with a yearly income of over a hundred million now.”

“100,000 gold coins,” the system replied calmly.

Mag’s hands immediately stiffened, and he asked, “What did you say?”

“100,000 gold coins,” the system repeated.

“Holy f*ck!!! Are you trying to rob me? You’re selling me a grilled fish recipe for 10,000,000 ¹ ? Does eating the grilled fish grant godly powers?” Mag roared internally. What kind of bullsh*t price is this? It’s unacceptable!

“The recipe is a prize item, and under normal circumstances, it cannot be sold. If you would like to forcibly purchase it, then the price will naturally be a bit higher,” the system explained, as calm as ever.

“A bit higher? You f*cking call that a bit higher? I work my a*s off, and I can only earn about 500,000 a day. Aren’t you going too far with that price?” Mag wore a sour expression as he tried to negotiate. “50,000 gold coins, that’s the most I’m willing to pay.”

“100,000 gold coins, non-negotiable.” The system remained unmoved.

Mag began to calculate in his mind. He definitely wouldn’t be able to round up 100,000 gold coins, and it would take him close to 20 days to earn even 50,000 gold coins.

Furthermore, it really wasn’t worth it just to purchase a recipe. If he continued to save up for a bit, he would even be able to purchase a strength point.

Mag soon calmed down, and responded nonchalantly, “Alright, I’m not buying it, then. Put the spicy grilled fish on the wheel, and perhaps I’ll get it with my fantastic luck.”

“Put in some extra effort to complete the mission; there are more fabulous prizes waiting for you!” the system said in a tempting voice.

At the dining table, Mag turned to Amy with a hint of curiosity in his eyes, and asked, “Amy learned the flames of extreme frost today; what magic spell are you going to learn next?”

In comparison to Krassu’s melee magic, Urien’s magic seemed to be more interesting.

Amy shook her head as she replied, “Master Turtle said that I only have to master this spell in the next two days. With this spell as a foundation, I’ll be able to cast many more spells, so this one is the most important.”

“I see.” Mag nodded in response. He didn’t really understand what Amy was saying, but if that was what Urien was telling her, then he had to have his reasons. After all, no one on the entire Norland Continent was a match for him when it came to ice-type magic.

Ugly Duckling had already jumped down from the counter, and even though it had received quite a fright, it didn’t appear to have sustained any actual injuries. At this moment, it was snuggling up against Amy’s leg, attempting to curry favor with her.

“Ugly Duckling, you have to become braver. If you don’t even dare to climb onto the counter, then that simply won’t do. Look at Big Sister Xixi; she can even run around on walls. You’re still too weak.” Amy looked down at Ugly Duckling with an urgent expression.

“Meow~” Ugly Duckling looked up at Amy with a pitiable expression as if to tell her that it was only a baby.

“Hmph, who isn’t a baby? I’m not scared of heights in the slightest.” Amy was unconvinced as she pursed her lips.

Ugly Duckling looked at Amy, then at the counter, and it hesitated momentarily before rushing toward the counter.

“Splat~”

Even with a run-up, Ugly Duckling only managed to jump up less than half a meter, upon which its head crashed into the counter. It slowly slid down the counter, and lay down on its back, looking up at the sky with a suicidal expression.

“Sigh, so be it. Looks like you’ll never become a swan in this lifetime.” Amy sighed before continuing to enjoy her meal.

Mag couldn’t help but smile, and shook his head upon seeing that. It really would be quite difficult for Ugly Duckling to become a swan.

Outside the restaurant, the sweet and savory factions were co-existing a lot more harmoniously ever since Ricky’s actions had united them.

Furthermore, due to the rankings’ effect, there were many new faces who had come to the restaurant. They were initially quite surprised by the long line gathered outside, but that was an indication that the food here really was exquisite, so they began to look forward to dining there.

Many people were reluctant to come to the restaurant due to the expensive prices, but there was still a lot of customers who simply couldn’t resist, and so they ordered the relatively cheaper roujiamo and tofu pudding.

It was exactly because of this that many old customers missed out on the limited supply of tofu pudding, and howls of anguish erupted as they heard the news.

Mag couldn’t do anything about that. 800 tofu puddings a day was already his limit. If he wanted to supply more, he would have to upgrade his body in order to improve his cooking efficiency.

Following the busy noon service, Mag went to the magic screens, and purchased 10,000 tickets from the Catering Association workers. Even though it was quite a heavy price to pay, it was a necessary sacrifice to ensure that at least one of his dishes remained in the top 30.

…

On the second day that the rankings were released, the braised chicken and rice and roujiamo still occupied the 29th and 30th spot, respectively. However, following the alliance forged by the sweet and savory factions, the 99th and 100th place sweet and savory tofu pudding had staged a resurgence, and were ranked 50th and 47th, respectively.

One restaurant with four dishes in the top 50 naturally garnered a lot of attention. It had been a very long time since such an impressive restaurant had appeared.

“Dammit… It’s still 31! Ow… That b*stard… I… I have to avenge myself!” Ricky held his swollen face, and glowered at the rankings board while his other hand was clenched into a tight fist.

His employee had two black eyes, and he said in a faint voice, “B… Boss, we should go back; there are a lot of Mamy Restaurant customers here.”

His knees were already trembling at the sight of the hostile glances being directed toward them.

“Let’s go.” Ricky’s expression also changed slightly upon hearing that. He was truly afraid after the brutal beating that he had suffered the day prior. Those people didn’t hold back in the slightest, and if there were to be a repeat of that beating, he would most likely be bedridden for a long time.

The employee only dared to speak at a normal volume after getting far away from the crowd. He asked, “Boss, are we going back?”

“No, we’re going to the Chamber of Commerce.” Ricky shook his head as he got onto a horse-drawn carriage, and said resentfully, “I’m going to make them pay for hurting me. I already reported what happened yesterday to the Chamber of Commerce; let’s see what their response is.”

…

“Boss Ricky, we’re already aware of this matter. We are currently in the process of formulating a plan as well. Just like you said, you were the one who was trying to smash the restaurant, only for the boss to send you flying as he opened the door, and you were then abused by his customers. As such, Mamy Restaurant is not at fault here. Besides, you don’t even know the identities of the customers who had assaulted you, so it would be completely unrealistic to expect the Gray Temple or the city lord’s castle to do something about this.” Within a guest all, Mars appraised the enraged Ricky with a resigned expression.

Ricky clenched his fists, and asked, “So I copped a beating for nothing? I paid for a guaranteed spot in the top 30, but my restaurant is at 31 because of that restaurant. Is the Chamber of Commerce not going to give me an explanation?”

“I suggest you don’t bring up the assault case again. As for the rankings problem, we’ve taken your money, so we’ll try to work out a plan that will satisfy you. We’ll clear away the obstacles for you so that your restaurant can enter the top 30,” Mars replied with a smile.