ARIFURETA: Cooking to be the Strongest?

"How about this?" Hajime asked, handing Shin a katana-like sword.

"Hmm... a little bit off on weight?" Shin mused, returning the blade to Hajime after a few swift swings. "Durability and sharpness aren't bad, though."

"Hey, where's Old Man Regus?" Shin inquired, looking around the workshop.

"Ah, he said he could no longer teach me anything," Hajime replied, shrugging slightly.

"Since, well, I've pretty much absorbed most of his teachings."

"You really have a knack for this, huh?" Shin commented, a rare hint of surprise in his voice.

"Too bad we can't make artifacts; it seems that requires some special magic and methods that even Old Man Regus doesn't know."

It had been a week since Hajime began his tutelage under Old Man Regus, focusing on using transmutation for weapon crafting. Hajime hadn't really struggled much, as he'd mostly already mastered his transmutation magic during their special regimen. Regus primarily provided instructions and shared his vast knowledge on ores, detailing which were best suited for weapon crafting.

Material-wise, the two had no problems. They managed to bring back plenty of ores during their daily field training in Orcus Labyrinth. With Hajime's transmutation magic, digging them out wasn't really a challenge.

Hajime also managed to create a simple yet effective weapon to maximize his transmutation magic and firepower. It was a miniaturized crossbow that could be mounted on his arm and loaded with arrows coated in different poisons.

They had initially aimed for a gun, but perhaps due to a lack of compatible materials and the potential firepower it would produce, it became more practical to create weapons and tools that maximized their current strengths. With that, the two frequently tested Hajime's creations during their daily training.

The miniaturized mounted crossbow seemed convenient for Hajime. It also optimized his transmutation magic consumption even further.

With the arrows being reusable after retrieving them from the dead corpses of magic beasts, it was a perfect weapon for Hajime, whose stats mainly prioritized magic and agility.

The other day, Hajime just trapped a magical beast's legs and directly shot it in the head with the crossbow.

"Oh~ Nice shot, Hajime" Shin called out, retrieving his daggers from another fallen beast.

"That thing was tougher than the last one."

"Yeah, seems it has enough firepower to at least penetrate the Labyrinth's upper floor creatures," Hajime confirmed, reloading his crossbow with a fluid motion.

Shin, on the other hand, tested the prototype katanas and daggers.

"These daggers are way better than the junk the kingdom gave us," Shin muttered, easily slicing through a monster's hide.

"Though this katana still needs more work." The daggers were far more durable than the ones given by the kingdom, though the katanas still needed more improvements. Shizuku, seeing one of the katanas, expressed interest.

"Shin-kun, is that a new sword?" she asked, her eyes tracing its elegant curve.

"It looks incredibly balanced."

"Ah, this is still a prototype, Shizuku," Shin replied.

"Still in the testing phase." Hajime added, "Yeah, we'll let you know when it's perfected."

They asked her to wait.

The special regimen for Hajime also became optional, as he was now focusing on gaining strength through weapon development.

The other days became so similar that it almost felt like a routine.

On the other hand, the other Apostles seemed to have grown accustomed to fighting magical beasts in the Orcus Labyrinth.

"We're clearing these floors faster and faster!" yelled a jubilant male Apostle during one dive. "Keep it up, everyone! Don't let your guard down!" Commander Meld's voice echoed through the dungeon, a mix of encouragement and caution.

With Kouki, the Hero Party gang, Commander Meld, and the Elite Knights' assurance, they were getting bolder and bolder in their daily Orcus Labyrinth dives.

However, there was one particular person who seemed very dissatisfied with their current stats and growth speed. It was Hiyama.

What the hell is going on? Hiyama fumed internally, clenching his fists.

Every single day, I feel like I'm falling further behind.

Shin's status plate never changes, but it's obvious he's just hiding his true strength—he moves like a ghost!

And Hajime, a Synergist?! His stats for magic, agility, and vitality are exploding!

He's already stronger than half the Light Warriors in this class. I'm a Light Warrior, a combat job!

My growth should be superior, destined to surpass these non-combatants.

But no matter how hard I push, I can't even imagine catching up to them. It's infuriating!

Every day, Hiyama felt like the gap in strength between himself and the two—Hajime and Shin—was getting wider and wider. Though Shin's status plate still displayed the same values, it felt like it wasn't his true status.

Hajime, on the other side, had grown exponentially for a synergist, and his magic power, agility, and vitality stats now exceeded those of normal synergists and even his classmates' stats.

This frustrated Hiyama, who was a Light Warrior class whose growth should typically be higher than a mere non-combatant job class, yet he couldn't imagine surpassing Shin and Hajime.

For Shin, keeping an eye on any potential troubles, there really were no issues, and the days passed smoothly.

_______________________

On a certain garden in the Heiligh Kingdom, three ladies could be seen. It was Kaori, Shizuku, and Princess Liliana, having tea and conversation. They seemed like close friends, asking what they were currently doing and if they were alright, along with other girl talks.

To Princess Liliana's surprise, the two seemed not to partake much of the tea party's cakes and cookies.

"Are the palace sweets not to your liking, Shizuku-chan, Kaori-chan?" Liliana asked politely, a hint of concern in her voice.

"Oh no, Princess, they are lovely!" Kaori quickly assured her.

"It's just that..." Shizuku trailed off, glancing at the pouch in her hand.

They only drank the tea served, and the two always held a pouch of cookies they brought themselves.

The princess Liliana initially labeled them as normal store-bought cookies.

"How curious," Liliana murmured to her maid, watching them.

"Have you seen such cookies sold in the capital?"

"No, Princess, not that I am aware of," the maid replied softly. But every time they had a tea party like this, she became more and more curious.

She asked some of her guards regarding the cookies, but it seemed they were not sold anywhere in the Heiligh Kingdom.

Today, she could no longer hold her curiosity.

"Shizuku-chan, Kaori-chan, what exactly are those cookies you always bring?" Liliana asked, her eyes sparkling with intense interest.

"Ah, these?" Kaori smiled, holding up her pouch.

"They're called Ration Cookies."

"They were made by our friend," Shizuku added, a hint of pride in her voice.

"Oh! Your friend made them?" Liliana exclaimed, her eyes widening.

"Might... might I as to ask if I could partake in one?" she asked, a blush creeping onto her cheeks, her gaze fixed on the pouch.

Though hesitantly, Shizuku and Kaori exchanged glances, then gave some to Princess Liliana to try.

The first reaction of Princess Liliana was to note that the cookies looked just like normal square cookies appearance-wise. But with the first bite, it surprised her.

"Oh, my!" she gasped softly.

Then, in that moment, she realized the five cookies given by Kaori and Shizuku were already gone.

If she was asked what it tasted like, she would say it tasted very good, not too sweet, not too wet or dry.

Then she felt a bit of clarity and relaxation as she was eating it. She wanted more but hesitated to ask.

"They're... quite amazing," Liliana breathed out, looking at the empty space where the cookies had been.

But seeing her expression, the two decided they would try to convince Shin to give her a portion. "We'll try to get you some more, Princess," Kaori promised with a warm smile. Princess Liliana's eyes gleamed with joy after that.

"Oh, would you truly?! That would be absolutely wonderful!" she exclaimed, her regal composure momentarily forgotten.

And for some reason, Shin wondered why they asked for an extra pouch of the Ration Cookies, but not minding it, he just made another batch for the request.

_______________

On a certain morning, Shin on his daily routine of baking Ration cookies.

"Ah, shit..." Shin rarely cursed, but the word slipped out.

He had been mindlessly baking cookies, and for some reason, while dazed, thinking about how he could secretly get some meat from the boar-like magic beasts they encountered in the Orcus Labyrinth, he'd instinctively made a pound cake.

He tasted it. "Yep, it's the one," he muttered.

It was the kind he first made during his orphanage days, the "soul-ascending-due-to-happiness" type.

"Better hide and dispose of this later...." he murmured to himself, then continued to make the daily ration cookies.

After baking the cookies, he moved out to distribute them first before cleaning. He couldn't find Old Man Regus or the Head Cook to hand them their portions and the kitchen's share, so he decided to do it later and returned to clean his station.

When he came back, five people—the Head Cook, some apprentices, and Old Man Regus—were lying unconscious on the ground. The plate that had previously held the pound cake was now gone. Their faces showed a euphoric expression, as if everything was wonderful.

Shin, on the other hand, calmly cleaned the cooking station he had used. He played dumb when the five woke up. They seemed unable to remember anything after falling unconscious, except for a shared dream of a pound cake.

Shin simply told them they had just fallen unconscious for no reason and suggested they might still need more sleep.