Food Captive: Join the chat group Chapter 092

Mount Melk was located in a remote, uninhabited area, deep within the mountains.

Melk’s workshop stood at the summit of the mountain, with a series of steps leading up to it. Each step was extraordinarily high.

“Atashino, have you been here before?” Qin Zhou asked.

“No, I haven’t. My own kitchen knife is fine, so I don’t need a new one forged. I only meet Melk in the Zero Biotope, and I haven’t seen him in several years,” Atashino shook her head.

For a chef, as long as their kitchen knife isn’t broken, there’s no need to change it frequently. After all, one develops a bond with a kitchen knife; how could they easily abandon it?

“Have you heard of Melk the Second?” Qin Zhou asked with a smile.

The one currently taking commissions wasn’t Melk the First, but his adopted daughter and disciple, Melk the Second.

For the past six years, Melk the First had been forging the Dragon-Slaying Great Sword for Cooking Air.

“There’s a Melk the Second?” Atashino asked in surprise; Melk had never mentioned it to her.

“Melk’s adopted daughter inherited his techniques. Six years ago, when she was fifteen, she already possessed grinding skills comparable to Melk’s. She’s a grinding genius.”

“Impressive.”

Atashino couldn’t help but exclaim. She knew Melk’s technical prowess well. For Melk the Second to reach the First’s level in her teens meant she was exceptionally talented, born for this profession.

“We’re here to forge a better kitchen knife for you, partner. To do a good job, one must first sharpen one’s tools.”

Qin Zhou pulled out the Wolf King Guinness’s Fang from his spatial pocket. The Wolf King’s aura permeated the air, causing the restless beasts around the steps to scatter and flee.

At that moment, they vaguely saw their great-grandmothers beckoning to them.

“This was given to you by Granny Setsuno.”

“I have a goal: to fuse this tooth with your kitchen knife. I imagine it will become a top-tier kitchen knife on Earth.”

The Wolf King’s biting force was astonishing, and the hardness of its teeth was definitely up to par.

Qin Zhou and Atashino ran and leaped up the steps, reaching the 4000-meter peak before noon.

At the summit, a solitary stone house stood, with wisps of smoke curling from its chimney.

“Anyone home? Open the door! The IGO is here to bring warmth!”

Atashino’s mouth twitched. The IGO was a legitimate organization, wasn’t it?

“IGO personnel?”

The door opened, and a dashing “handsome young man” emerged, wearing a headband and with a cross-shaped scar under his right eye.

Atashino paused slightly. As a doctor, she immediately recognized that this “handsome young man” was a woman.

Wasn’t that binding around her chest suffocating?

“I am Melk the Grinder. What can I do for you?”

Even though this place was far from civilization, how could she not have heard of the IGO’s reputation?

“Miss Melk the Second, this is your master’s colleague,” Qin Zhou said, pointing to Atashino.

“What?!”

Melk the Second looked at Atashino in surprise. She knew Chairman Ichiryu was her master’s old friend, but she never expected her master to have colleagues, and to know her gender at that!

“Then do you know my master’s current situation? He’s a man of few words, and he’s been gone for six years,” Melk the Second asked excitedly.

“Well… Melk the First isn’t exactly a man of few words; it’s just that his voice is too quiet,” Atashino said with a helpless smile.

Every staff member in the Zero Biotope knew that Melk’s voice was so soft it was hard to hear. Only those with keen hearing, like Zebra, could make out what he said.

“?”

“So… that’s how it is?”

Melk the Second’s expression became a bit subtle. She suddenly remembered that when Melk left six years ago, his lips had moved. So, he had said something after all.

Perhaps he was explaining what he was going to do.

In other words, her worries for the past six years were entirely due to a misunderstanding caused by a too-quiet voice?

“Melk has been forging and grinding kitchen knives commissioned by Chairman Ichiryu these past few years,” Atashino explained.

“Thank you for telling me this. Please, come inside first.”

Melk the Second said gratefully, leading them into the workshop. She finally knew what her master had been doing, and her mood brightened considerably. Her attitude towards Qin Zhou and the others also became much friendlier, less distant and wary.

Various sharp kitchen knives hung on the walls. Their gleaming cold light suggested they could cut hair and slice through steel like mud; each one was invaluable.

The smooth, crisscrossing cuts on the floor and walls were made by these very knives.

“Are you here to find my master?” Melk the Second asked, pouring them tea.

“We’re here to have a kitchen knife forged and ground,” Qin Zhou said.

“Oh, I see. My master isn’t here right now. My skills aren’t as good as his, so you might be disappointed,” Melk the Second said.

She always believed her skills couldn’t compare to Melk the First’s, unaware that in Melk’s eyes, the Second had already matched the First six years ago.

“Atashino, has the number of Melk kitchen knives on the market decreased in the past six years?” Qin Zhou asked with a smile.

“No, they’re still as rare as ever,” Atashino shook her head.

She could tell that Melk the Second lacked confidence, probably because she hadn’t received her master’s acknowledgment, or hadn’t heard it.

“Second, have your commissions decreased over the years? While a brand name can attract customers, skill is the true strength.”

“I…”

Melk the Second thought back. Indeed, they hadn’t decreased, but she hadn’t considered other reasons, simply attributing it to the brand’s influence.

“Melk must have already approved of you, and he probably told you, but you just didn’t hear him.”

Upon hearing this, Melk the Second showed a wry smile. If that were truly the case, what had all her lack of confidence been for?

“Since Senior Melk could confidently leave the workshop to you, it means he acknowledges your skills.”

Atashino encouraged her; confidence was very important.

“I understand. Thank you. Since you trust me, I will grind your knife.”

Melk the Second had more or less figured it out, and her eyes now held a glimmer of confidence that wasn’t there before.

“I have materials here. Have you prepared your own, or do you want to use mine?” Melk the Second asked.

“We brought our own materials.”

Qin Zhou took out the Wolf King Guinness’s Fang. A wild aura emanated from it, and Melk the Second could tell at a glance that it was an incredibly precious material.

“What kind of creature’s tooth is this?”

“It’s the tooth of Wolf King Guinness, one of the Eight Kings of the Gourmet World.”

“This…”

Melk gently touched the tooth’s material, a troubled expression appearing on her face.

“I’m very sorry, but my current whetstones cannot process this tooth.”

The hardness of this tooth was simply too high. Even with her superb skills, she couldn’t proceed without the right tools.

“If I had Melk’s Stardust, I could probably grind it,” Melk the Second mused.

“Great! Then let’s go mining together, and I’ll take you to see Melk the First.”

“Really?”

“Naturally.”