"Boss, the rankings board has already been updated, but…" Yabemiya immediately blurted out after entering the restaurant, but her words suddenly faltered as she caught sight of Mag.Mag was holding a platter with four bowls of tofu pudding on it, and his eyes lit up upon hearing that. He turned an expectant gaze toward Yabemiya, and asked, "So? Did our restaurant"s food secure some good rankings?"
Even though it was only the first day that the rankings board was released, that set the tone for the days to come. The restaurant had set a new record high in profits the day prior, and that was a lofty mark that would be difficult to exceed unless he released new dishes or became more powerful.
Amy, who held Ugly Duckling, was full of confidence as she said, "Father"s food must have taken all of the top spots! It"s the best food!"
"Um… I"m sure there must have been an error with the voting process. Boss" food is clearly the best, a hundred times more delicious than the rest, but… but…" A difficult expression appeared on Yabemiya"s face, and she averted her eyes from Mag"s expectant gaze. She wrung her hands together and desperately wanted to console him, but she couldn"t find the words to do so. Her cheeks were completely flushed, and she didn"t know what to say anymore.
Sally walked in. She took a glance at the verbally constipated Yabemiya before informing, "Braised chicken and rice was number 29, la zhi roujiamo was number 30, Yangzhou fried rice was number 72, sweet tofu pudding was number 99, and savory tofu pudding was number 100. Our restaurant has five dishes in the top 100."
Sally"s expression was also a little strained. In her eyes, Mag"s food was the best in the world. Such delicious food should dominate the top five on the rankings board. Even though she had never tasted the savory tofu pudding, she was certain that it was most definitely good enough to claim the fifth spot.
Yabemiya and Sally both appraised Mag with concerned looks. Even they were feeling quite wistful, so Mag had to be very dejected. They could imagine how terrible it had to feel to cook such delicious food, only to receive no acknowledgment and respect that he deserved.
"Father, are you alright?" Amy was also quite concerned about Mag.
"The braised chicken and rice was ranked 29? And the roujiamo also made it into the top 30? All five of our dishes made it into the top 100?" Mag was elated after hearing Sally"s report.
"Hmm?"
Yabemiya and Sally looked at Mag with puzzlement and surprise. They had thought that he would be very dejected, but it appeared that he was very pleasantly surprised instead.
"That"s right. That was today"s rankings board. It should get updated at 7am tomorrow," Sally confirmed with a nod.
"That"s great! Seeing as we achieved such good results on the first day, we have to maintain this standard. At the very least, we have to ensure that the braised chicken and rice and roujiamo remain in the top 30." Mag nodded with a content expression. He was not putting up a strong front and feigning his elation.
He was a bit more knowledgeable about the Delicious Cuisine Rankings than Sally and the others. The rankings were decided according to the number of votes given, so just having delicious food was not enough. Without a sufficiently large customer base, even if all of their customers gave them five-star ratings, it would be very difficult to secure good rankings.
Compared to the other large restaurants, Mamy Restaurant had a far smaller customer base. As such, having two dishes in the top 30 was already a result that went beyond his expectations. Even though those two dishes only just made the cut, he didn"t really mind, as he only wanted to complete the system"s top 30 mission.
Yabemiya and Sally were both very confused. They were unable to understand why Mag wasn"t angry, but was quite ecstatic instead.
"Come and have some breakfast. Due to your exceptional performance of late, from this day forth, an extra tofu pudding will be provided as part of your morning work meal." Mag didn"t bother to explain anything as he placed the tofu puddings one by one onto the table. He then looked at the two of them with a smile, and asked, "What else would you like this morning?"
"I want a roujiamo," Yabemiya said as she raised her hand.
"I want a Yangzhou fried rice." Sally was full of antic.i.p.ation.
"Alright, coming right up." Mag nodded with a smile before turning toward the kitchen.
Yabemiya and Sally looked at each other, only to find that their joy was mirrored in one another"s eyes. Nothing was more blissful than being able to enjoy such delicious food first thing in the morning.
…
At the entrance of the magic potion shop, Urien held a handful of grain, and was feeding Black Coal. He heard the sound of approaching footsteps, but he didn"t turn around as he said, "There"s water in the room; feel free to help yourselves."
"Thank you for saving us." Xixi and Lulu bowed deeply toward Urien in unison.
Urien slowly turned around and appraised them with a solemn expression.
"You two are dryads," he said in a deep and indisputable voice.
Xixi and Lulu"s expressions changed at the same time, and Lulu stepped forward to s.h.i.+eld Xixi. Both of them stared at Urien with nervous expressions.
"Don"t be so tense. I may not be a good person, but I"m not a bad person, either." Urien tipped the grain in his hand back into a little jar, and sat down in a lounge chair. He looked at the dryad couple with slightly narrowed eyes, and asked, "What relations.h.i.+p do the two of you share with Freuden?"
"The Great Dryad? You know Master Freuden?" Xixi"s eyes immediately lit up as she emerged from behind Lulu.
Lulu was also quite surprised, but he still appraised Urien with a hint of caution in his eyes. They were the only two dryads left on the Norland Continent, so very few people would be able to identify them, and even fewer would know the name of the Great Dryad.
"I do. Back when that old man was about to die, he asked me to help him find two younglings. He said that those two will be the hope of the dryads. Seeing as the World Tree is in your body, you two must be the ones he was referring to." Urien nodded as he turned his gaze on Xixi.
Xixi and Lulu"s expressions changed again. They were already very surprised that he was able to identify them as dryads, but they were even more stunned that he knew about the World Tree. The World Tree was the final hope of the dryads, and they had never told anyone about it.
"Freuden asked me to give this to you." Urien reached for a little green box that was about the size of a hand, and gestured for Xixi to take it as he said indifferently, "My name is Urien. Perhaps you two have heard my name before."
"Lord of Ice Urien!"
Lulu and Xixi"s eyes widened in unison as they stared at the hunched old man that was lying in the lounge chair.