Chapter 61: Combees

The next moment, an explosion of flavor erupted on his taste buds.

The cool, smooth texture of the noodles was accompanied by an intense seafood taste, like a raging storm sweeping across the sea. 

Suzuki Shoichi was astounded. He never imagined that a young teenager could create a dish far superior to anything he, a ramen chef with decades of experience, had ever made.

After a while, Suzuki lowered his head in defeat and said with difficulty, "I... lost."

With those words, it was as if all the strength drained from him. He left the restaurant slowly, shoulders slumped.

Once he was gone, Uncle Laat nervously approached. "I heard the chef from the ramen shop across the street was here. Did he cause any trouble?"

"Nothing to worry about," Erina replied calmly. "Just another defeated rival."

To Erina, beating a chef of Suzuki's level was hardly worth mentioning.

Soon, it was closing time.

"Sui, thank you so much for your help today. I haven't seen our restaurant this busy in a long time," Uncle Laat said with a grateful smile. Despite the hectic day, his spirits were high.

"Uncle, it was nothing, really," Sui replied, smiling. After all, he had grown up under Uncle Laat's care, so this small favor meant little to him.

"Oh, by the way," Sui remembered something, "I've already taught Luna how to make Galaxy Noodles. I also wrote down the improvements for the other dishes and gave them to her."

"Really? Thank you so much!" Uncle Laat's face lit up with joy.

"Haha, it's no big deal," Sui chuckled. The process for making Galaxy Noodles wasn't too complicated. Even if Uncle Laat couldn't make it as perfectly as him, the dish would still be a hit with customers.

With that signature dish and the improvements in the rest of their menu, Sui was confident Luna Family restaurant would be just fine, even without his help. And most importantly, Suzuki Shoichi, the chef across the street, had been thoroughly crushed, his confidence shattered.

"Well, we'll be heading out now," Sui said, waving as he and Erina left the restaurant.

"Take care!" Uncle Laat and his family waved them off, watching until they disappeared around the corner.

——

When they returned to the apartment, a familiar system sound echoed in Sui's mind.

"Mission complete. Reward: Combees."

"Combees? Another Pokémon?" Sui murmured to himself.

However, he didn't summon the bees right away. Instead, he took a long, relaxing bath, drank a glass of hot milk, and handed his laundry to Erina, who gritted her teeth in frustration. Only then did he head to the kitchen to release the Combees.

A moment later, a strange creature appeared before him, about the size of a human head. The Combees looked like Combeehives connected together, much like the "Three Moles" from Gremlins.

As soon as the bees saw Sui, they buzzed happily and affectionately nuzzled his face.

"Haha, good boy," Sui chuckled, petting the bees as he opened their ingredient description.

——

—Combees (Pokémon)

—Food Grade: B 

—Ingredient Description: A trio of honeycomb-shaped creatures adept at collecting pollen and producing honey. The honey they brew is incredibly sweet, delicious, and nutritious, making it a valuable cooking ingredient. 

Origin: Pokémon

——

"It make honey?" Sui's eyes lit up. Honey was a versatile ingredient, perfect for desserts and many other dishes.

"Yes, it's recommended to release the bees into the wild. They will gather pollen and produce honey on their own," the system explained.

Sui nodded. The area around Tōtsuki Academy was lush with forests, an ideal environment for raising bees. As for their food source, they could rely on the honey they produced.

When Sui left the kitchen, Miltank and Chansey came running over excitedly, circling him. Spotting the bees, the three Pokémon quickly bonded, playing together joyfully.

Since Sui had been feeding them almond cabbage every day, both Miltank and Chansey had grown close to Sui.

Sui suddenly remembered that he should now have access to purchasing both Miltank and Chansey directly through his fantasy food atlas. He decided to check the prices.

However, when he saw the prices, his expression darkened.

"A Miltank costs 10 million yen? And Chansey is about the same. Even the Combees are 8 million? So expensive!"

"Yes, because they're production-based ingredients, not consumable ones," the system explained.

Sui sighed. It made sense. Ingredients like cream matsutake were used up as soon as they were prepared, but Pokémon like Miltank could produce ingredients regularly, making their value much higher.

——

"Huh? What a strange bee!" 

At that moment, Erina came downstairs, looking surprised. She had never seen anything like the Combees before—and they were so large!

"Erina, have you finished the laundry? You didn't ruin anything again, did you?" Sui asked.

Erina gritted her teeth, clearly irritated. "It's done!" she snapped.

Sui nodded and then turned to the bees. "This will be your new home. You can build your nest outside and collect pollen from the mountains."

The bees, being intelligent creatures, chirped happily and flew off to build their nest.

"What clever bees!" Erina's eyes sparkled with interest. "Hey, Sui, can you give me some of their honey when it's ready?"

"Sure," Sui agreed. "But it'll take a few days."

It usually took about 15 days for pollen to turn into honey, and even though the bees were faster than ordinary ones, it wouldn't be by much.

Their slower production likely explained why they were priced lower than other Pokémon.

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P.S. These are advanced chapters as I'll be focusing on working on more chapters.