Menchi, look! They're back."
"Finally, some meat to eat."
Standing atop the stone steps, Buhara immediately spotted Lan Fei and the others returning with the massive Horned Mad Boar. His eyes sparkled with anticipation.
At the forefront, naturally, was Lan Fei.
"It's time to demonstrate my culinary skills," Lan Fei said calmly.
"Fortunately, I just acquired the culinary techniques from the Young Master Chef's system reward."
He quickly located the nearest cooking station and dropped the enormous Horned Mad Boar with a heavy thud.
"Lan Fei, this pig's huge. I say we roast it whole!" Gon suggested, dragging his boar straight toward the open grill.
"Yeah, that's definitely the fastest cooking method," Killua agreed, pushing his own boar up. "If we control the fire well, it'll taste pretty good too."
Kurapika, however, frowned slightly.
"The test uses boar meat as the ingredient. It never stated the whole boar had to be used. A full roast might be fast, but flavor-wise, large cuts like that are hard to cook evenly."
"Don't care anymore," Leorio chimed in. "We need something with appearance and flavor? That's not easy unless you're a pro. We're candidates, not master chefs!"
He too began roasting his boar whole, following Gon and Killua.
Boom!!!
Huge fires flared up as Gon, Killua, and Leorio's grills roared to life.
Kurapika's warning wasn't wrong.
And Lan Fei, knowing in advance through his system's preview function that this round would see every candidate eliminated, understood the pitfalls of roasting a whole boar—quick, yes, but risky in terms of even cooking and flavor retention. He had tried to subtly warn Gon, but the test was individual—he couldn't directly help or instruct others, or risk disqualification.
This round, like in the manga's Phase Two of the Hunter Exam, was a test of individual cooking technique and creativity. The gourmet hunter Menchi had no intention of going easy.
Lan Fei turned to the ingredients beside him.
"The components are complete… Then let's go all out and make a Whole Boar Feast."
With the advanced cooking mastery he'd obtained from the system, Lan Fei was fully confident he could process every part of the Horned Mad Boar swiftly and precisely.
Swish!
A massive cleaver flew into the air and landed perfectly in his hand.
In his mind flashed a memory from his system's database—Ren from Chūka Ichiban! executing the Ox Azure Dragon Slash. That same elegance and precision would now be applied by Lan Fei to this boar.
Just as Lan Fei and the others began preparing their meals, the remaining candidates returned one after another with their own Horned Mad Boars.
"Wait… those five are already cooking?"
"No way! We have to speed up."
"Damn, if the examiners are too full to eat, we're done for!"
The fragrance of Gon and the others' roasted boars had already filled the air, stirring up panic among the latecomers.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Menchi—arms crossed and standing above them all—was drawn to Lan Fei's cooking station.
His knife moved with dazzling precision and elegance.
Even among the most refined gourmet hunters in Hunter x Hunter, such knife work was rare.
"His cuts… they're clean, well-balanced… that's not just showmanship. He's processing the entire boar optimally."
Her eyes narrowed as Lan Fei's blade work divided the massive carcass into perfectly portioned cuts—loin, rib, belly, jowl, organ meats—each placed into separate pans for different preparations.
"Flawless butchering," Menchi murmured.
"Menchi, look at that kid," Buhara gasped. "This kind of technique… even I'd hesitate to say I could do that. His sense of proportion… almost mathematically perfect!"
"It's a pity he won't choose to be a Gourmet Hunter," Menchi sighed. "But now I'm really looking forward to the taste."
"Lan Fei! My roasted whole boar is ready!"
Before Lan Fei could plate his dishes, Gon cheerfully wheeled his charred boar to the judges.
Lan Fei sighed deeply. He knew the outcome before it happened.
The surface was too crisp, parts even scorched black.
Menchi took one look and waved her hand dismissively.
"Too charred. Overcooked. Disqualified!"
"Huh?! That fast?"
Gon scratched his head. "So strict… I'm the first one out, huh?"
"No sense letting it go to waste!"
Buhara, without hesitation, dived into Gon's roast and began devouring it enthusiastically. "Tastes fine to me!"
"Poor kid…"
"Wasn't it still pretty good?"
"Too harsh, isn't it?"
"I thought it smelled amazing!"
Murmurs spread among the candidates.
"I'm done too," Killua said, pushing forward his roast.
Menchi took a small piece and shook her head. "Undercooked. The skin's soft. Disqualified."
Killua shrugged. "Kinda expected that."
Leorio was next. The inside of his roast was raw in the center.
"Not even properly heated. Disqualified!" Menchi scolded with a furrowed brow.
"I'm done as well," Kurapika stepped up confidently.
Menchi raised an eyebrow. "Giant boar burger?"
The layered meat patty stacked between grilled buns looked appealing, drawing her curiosity. She gently tore a bite.
Ptui!!
"What is this! The seasoning balance is awful!"
"Disqualified!"
Kurapika winced and stepped aside.
Within half an hour, every remaining candidate had submitted their dishes—none passed. Every dish was ruled unqualified, either from poor cooking technique, underseasoning, overcooking, or failure to elevate the ingredient.
Now, only one candidate remained: Lan Fei.
He had returned first—yet he was the last to finish.
But that was understandable. He wasn't making a single dish, he was preparing a full boar banquet, utilizing every part of the creature.
"Hey, what the hell?"
"Everyone got eliminated just like that?"
"This is only the second phase of the exam!"
"Using gourmet hunters' standards on amateurs is totally unfair!"
"Yeah, we should protest!"
"You can't just eliminate everyone!"
Just as complaints were about to boil over—
"I'm finished!"
Lan Fei's calm voice cut through the noise.
Swoosh!
In a heartbeat, every pair of eyes turned toward him—Gon, Killua, Kurapika, Leorio, and the eliminated candidates.
All of them held their breath.
This was their last hope.
He had spent the longest time, used the most complicated method.
Could Lan Fei really satisfy Menchi?
Would he pass?
Everyone waited.