Was she getting back at him for not replying last time? Cho Min Joon laughed bitterly and closed his phone. He had no intention of pressing her for an answer. He would find out later anyway.

It cant be Marco

Who else was on that team? Cho Min Joon traced his memory. The only contestants he was close to were Hugo and Marco, and it was a little iffy, but he recently became closer to Jacob as well. Other than that

It doesnt matter who it is.

Aside from those 3, he wasnt very close to any of them, and to be honest, he wouldnt be sad no matter who got disqualified. He just wished it wasnt the three of them. Of course, they would have to part eventually, but he wanted to delay it as much as possible.

But things always went the opposite of what he hoped. When the van arrived at the Grand Chef House and they went up to their accommodations on the 4th floor, they saw Jacob coming out with his things.

Cho Min Joons face stiffened for a moment before it loosened up again. If he had to leave, he didnt want to send him off in a worrying way. He spoke in a calm voice, Are you leaving?

Yeah. Its too bad.

Did you say your father cooks French food? Does that mean youre going to work at your fathers restaurant again?

No, I dont think so. I realized its different working at my fathers restaurant and working elsewhere. Ill end up getting scolded, but I have to start paving my path.

Cho Min Joon smiled and felt relieved inside, but he felt anxious, too. Marcos gourmet baking level was 7 and Hugos was 6 but Jacobs was 5. If he made one slip, it was going to be hard for him to get back up. It wasnt common for chefs to have high gourmet baking levels, but level 5 was even lower than that of Cho Min Joon.

If I had competed in that disqualification round

Just thinking about it made him shiver. Cho Min Joons gourmet baking level was only 4. He would have been disqualified. His cooking level might have made up for it But that wasnt going to be enough to save him.

Cho Min Joon showed a sad smile.

See you.

See you. I hope you last.

Jacob was about to walk off when he paused. Jacob and Anderson met eyes. Jacob was actually closer to Anderson than Cho Min Joon. It probably began when they were doing the mission against Kayas team. It was a short time, but they grew quite close.

And that might have been why not many words were needed. Anderson kept it short.

Good work.

I hope you win, Anderson.

Jacob showed a bitter smile and started walking about, but no one followed him. Seeing him off would have made him feel even more uncomfortable.

As soon as Jacob disappeared, Cho Min Joon let out a sigh. Anderson looked around with a sharper gaze than usual. Andersons eyes scanned Kaya at first, but it then moved on to Marco who was beside her. He spoke in a higher voice, Why did Jacob get disqualified? Explain this to me.

He put cheddar on his apple pie and put it in the oven.

What?

Anderson couldnt believe what he heard. That recipe was a failure without even having seen the result. Apple pie with cheese. Those two things didnt go together no matter how talented a chef was.

He immediately understood why he was disqualified. Anderson sighed. Kaya glanced over at Anderson before looking at Cho Min Joon. Just as she was about to speak, Chloe approached him.

How was the three-star?

Perfect.

Cho Min Joon offered a short answer. There was no need for any more words. It was perfection. That word accurately depicted the meal they enjoyed. Adding any more words to it would only make things messy. The dishes contained everything that cooking was supposed to be about.

It sounded simple, but anyone who loved food could understand how much experience, effort, and care was required to make the perfect dish. Chloe looked confused at first, but she then spoke in understanding.

Youre so lucky.

Cho Min Joon responded with a smile. It was a truly happy smile. Chloe blankly stared at his smile before turning her head. Kaya spoke in a sullen voice.

Dont smile, you pig.

Do I need your permission to smile now?

Im jealous. I hate it when people eat delicious food without me.

You have a horrible personality. You should feel happy for your friends.

I hate it even more if its a friend.

Kaya stared at Cho Min Joon. Cho Min Joon smirked and sat on the sofa. The other contestants gathered around him. They were curious about the three-star restaurant. They showered him with questions.

What dishes were they?

Did you meet the chef? What did they say?

How much did the course meal cost?

Cho Min Joon lifted his hand. He then spoke in an annoyed voice, Why are you asking me? Ask the others.

Because you have a sensitive palate. You probably tasted it better. Tell us.

Im not sure. I dont know how to describe it

Okay. Then give us a score. What were they?

He expected this question. Even Martin asked him to score the dishes. Cho Min Joon responded with a smile. He didnt bother pausing.

There was a 10-point dish.

Everyone exclaimed in response. They knew just how stingy Cho Min Joon was with his points. The 7-point and 8-point dishes were amazing, too, so 10 points meant a great deal. Just hearing it gave them an idea of how it was.

The conversation lasted a while. He didnt want them to feel so sad about Jacob leaving, so he exaggerated more than usual, but that didnt mean he made things up either. Three stars were the dream of all chefs, but due to the price and lack of amount, it wasnt easy for middle-class people to approach.

And the contestants were no different. They all dreamt of becoming chefs, but most of them were average people with little to no experience in cooking. Even Chloe was a student at law school.

They chatted until past midnight. Meanwhile, they got so hungry that they even made snacks. They werent going to have a mission for another few days, so it was okay for them to stay up just this once.

As it got later into the night, they started opening alcohol bottles. They were supposed to be used for cooking, so they werent great alcohol, but they got the conversation going.

Will we be able to make food like that?

That was what Hugo said. He was drunk, so he looked ahead of him with squinting eyes. No one knew what he was looking at. It could have been the champagne or the tiramisu beside it. Cho Min Joon took a sip of his mojito and spoke. It was non-alcoholic.

Successful chefs say effort is all it takes but who knows. The advice of successful people and the ones who failed are bound to be different, but hearing it from successful people is probably more useful

Failed chefs Wait, that doesnt sound right. Its not like the chefs who didnt get Michelin stars didnt make effort. Very few people in this industry make no effort at all.

In response to Hugos response, Anderson nodded. He then said,

Besides my parents, I know a few people who have three-star restaurants. One of them got three-stars at 30 and maintained it for almost 10 years, and then he committed suicide. Apparently, he was afraid of dropping to two stars. If its that burdensome to have three stars I dont want it. I just want to cook.

But your food gets evaluated. Even if you try not to think about it, you have no choice. Dont your parents feel the same?

Im not sure. Im sure they feel pressured, but theyre not the type to be swayed by other peoples opinions either, but then again, even if they have a hard time, they probably wont tell their children about it.

Anderson took a sip of his wine. As time went on, his face became as red as the wine. Cho Min Joon opened his mouth in worry. He didnt really like alcohol, so he didnt have any, and as a result, Cho Min Joon was just fine.

You guys will wake up as zombies at this rate. Maybe you should stop.

Shut up. If youre not going to drink, just shut up and eat your snacks.

Dont say I didnt tell you so.

Cho Min Joon put a biscuit in his mouth. The lime scent of the biscuits Marco made was the type that he could never get tired of. He then said, Ugh, I have to improve my gourmet baking skills, but its not easy.

I thought people in your country dont really bake.

For us, its more of a snack than a meal, and not many people make it at home.

Thats good. That means youll take the fall for us if we have a baking mission next time.

Cho Min Joon smiled bitterly at Anderson. He couldnt deny it.

I just have to pray there wont be a baking mission.

Do you want me to teach you?

Whoa, seriously? Youre never this nice.

He would have been thankful if Anderson taught him. After all, he was a level 7 just like Marco. Anderson spoke in a sad voice. Because of the alcohol, his voice shook more than usual.

Now that Jacob is gone No one can deal with my personality except you.

Then fix your personality. Both you and Kaya.

Dont compare me to her

I can hear you. Shut up.

Kaya spoke in a cold voice at a table a little further away from Anderson. Although Kaya didnt drink much, her face was very red. Anderson smiled. He was obviously drunk.

Are you going to beat me up if I dont?

You dont know how tough I can be because of your gentle upbringing, huh?

Gentle upbringing, my ass. I had a rough life, too. Youre always like this. You always think anyone who lived with some money never had any worries or hardships.

I doubt you ever had to use leftover cabbage from your market to cook.

In response, Anderson shut his mouth. He shook his head and got up.

Ugh, forget it. Im going to go to bed. You guys keep drinking or do whatever you want.

Anderson wobbled over to his room. Kaya stared at him with her cheek against the table. Cho Min Joon let out a sigh.

You look drunk, too. Go to bed.

No. Dont tell me what to do. You think you can boss me around because Im poor?

See? Youre drunk.

Cho Min Joon propped his arm on Kayas shoulder and got up. Chloe, Marco, Joanne, and the others were all passed out, too, but Kaya came first. They were too passed out to cause any accidents. Kaya walked as if she was being dragged. Cho Min Joon sighed.

You shouldnt drink like that. In America, you have to be 21 to drink. That means youre underage.

Dont be so strict. Didnt you drink when you were my age?

No.

Youre no fun.

Kaya grumbled. Cho Min Joon knitted his brows and grabbed on to Kayas arm even harder. Kaya stopped walking. He then said, Walk properly.

No. I dont want to. Have you seen cows getting dragged into the slaughterhouse?

Were not going to a slaughterhouse. Were going to your room.

Cho Min Joon pinched Kayas hand. Kaya screamed and glared at Cho Min Joon with resentful eyes.

I hate people who use violence

That wasnt violence.

This is why alcohol is bad. That man was also drunk when he hit my mom right in front of me, and he called himself my father. Alcohol is bad.

It was Kaya who drank, not Cho Min Joon, but he didnt say anything. When he dragged her up to her room, she stared blankly at the ceiling. Cho Min Joon sighed.

I understand because youre drunk

Ill kill you.

Cho Min Joon stopped talking in response. He stared at Kaya. No matter how drunk she was, that was uncalled for. Kaya opened her eyes as widely as possible and glared at him.

Im going to get rid of all the obstacles getting in my way. I wont get disqualified again. I wont go down again, not even in life. Just you see. Watch how far up I go. Im going to kill you all.

When Cho Min Joon tried to say something, Kayas eyes closed and she fell on the ground. Cho Min Joon immediately helped her up. Her freckled nose, and her flushed cheeks. He saw the tears dripping on top as he asked, Are you that scared?

But Kaya didnt hear him.