Astral Online: Cursed by the Demon Lord to Become the Strongest Beautiful Girl, I Rapidly Grow and Dominate with Cheat Skills Despite Being the Weakest Profession - Chapter 120
Chapter 120: Stall Theme
With Shio, the strongest chef I know, joining us, we quickly decided that the main theme of our stall would revolve around food.
The next thing we had to figure out was what kind of dishes to serve at the stall.
Surely it’s not good to stand and talk in the middle of the road for a long time, and we didn’t want others to overhear our conversation, so I suggested we move somewhere else.
Ever the thoughtful sister, Shio recommended a café she liked, and led us to a small one located on the main street of the Hephaestus Kingdom.
When we opened the wooden door and stepped inside, the place was small but had just enough space to feel comfortable. It didn’t seem like they were expecting a lot of customers, with only two tables for four people and about five stools at the counter.
The dragon girl shopkeeper was so shocked to see Alice that I thought she might collapse, but we just gave her a polite nod and ignored her reaction.
Scanning the room, we took the most discreet corner table with four seats. Sora and Kuro sat next to each other on one side, while Shio, Alice, and Satanas squeezed together on the long bench seat on the other side. As soon as we sat down, the menu screen popped up automatically.
We ordered something that looked like coffee, while Satanas ordered juice and something resembling ice cream.
After briefly explaining to Shio how we ended up participating in the food stall event, we finally grabbed our coffee-like drinks and got down to business.
“There are a few things we need to keep in mind, but the most important factor is that we’re working with a festival food stall. I think what customers want most is convenience, plain and simple,” I said.
“But that’s not the only issue. There’s more to consider. Even though it seems we can order the tools and the stall for free, the real problem is that we’ll have to source the ingredients ourselves. If we’re aiming for first place, the food needs to be made from ingredients we can acquire in bulk and that don’t take too long to prepare. That really limits our options,” Shio added.
“Uh, how about just skewering the meat and grilling it? Wouldn’t that be enough?” Kuro chimed in, a bit nervously, raising her right hand to interrupt our conversation.
By the way, Alice and Satanas had been unusually quiet. They seemed to realize they were out of their depth in this discussion and had retreated into their own world, playing cards without a word.
Turning my attention back to Kuro, I shook my head in response to her suggestion.
“We’ve got a ton of ?Lesser Dragon? meat that’s going to spoil soon, so sure, we could just grill it on skewers. But that won’t work,” I explained.
“Really? Why not?” she asked.
“The cost performance is fine, but there’s nothing new or exciting about it. Plus, I’m sure other stalls will be offering the same thing.”
“The festival stalls often have similar items.”
“…Kuro, if two stalls at a festival offer the same thing, it splits the crowd. Some people might want to compare them, but it’s generally best to avoid having similar offerings. Think about it this way: if three stalls were all selling the exact same cotton candy, you wouldn’t buy one from each, right?”
“Ah, I see.”
“Well, unless you have some unbeatable advantage that guarantees a win, even if the items overlap. For example, having a famous name attached to the stall or a celebrity selling the goods.”
Kuro and Shio both turned their gazes toward me, piercingly.
Without them needing to say a word, I knew exactly what they were hinting at.
“Of course, we’ll fully leverage Alice’s and my name for this. But if we’re going to put our names out there, I can’t allow the food to be half-hearted. My pride won’t let me.”
“…So, does that mean you already have a plan in mind, big brother?”
“Well, I hate to admit it, but I don’t have a great idea yet. Still, based on my experience with the countless VR games I’ve played and the dishes I’ve eaten in them, I think we should focus on the texture of the Lesser Dragon meat.”
Taking one piece out of the inventory, a cube of meat appeared in the palm of my left hand.
It had a rich, reddish color, mostly lean. From the times I’ve eaten it before, I’d say the texture is similar to beef tenderloin—soft and tender.
But the most incredible part is the intense flavor packed inside.
With a bit of modern culinary knowledge, adding one or two extra steps to its preparation could elevate this meat to something truly exceptional.
“As Kuro said, this meat, if properly prepared and grilled on skewers, is good enough to be the star of the stall. But it feels like a waste to just grill it as-is, even if it’s high-quality.”
“Tenderloin, you say… Tenderloin is usually best served as steak, right?”
“Or maybe roast beef?”
“Roast beef at a festival stall sounds interesting, but isn’t it a bit too complicated…?”
Hmm, no matter how much I think, nothing comes to mind.
Maybe it’s best to go with what Shio and Kuro suggested and just grill the meat.
While I was pondering this, a woman in her 30s brought over a dish with ice cream.
All she had to do was scoop the ice cream and bring it over, but it sure took a long time after we ordered.
She placed the plate in front of Satanas with a polite “Thank you for waiting” and then followed up with “Please take your time and relax” before walking away, bowing slightly.
On the plate were just two small scoops of ice cream in unusual colors.
I couldn’t help but chuckle at how much time was spent on something so simple.
Satanas, however, was thrilled. Under Alice’s guidance, she sliced the vanilla-colored ice cream with a knife and speared it with a fork to eat.
Then—
“It’s crispy and delicious!”
What…? Crispy ice cream?
Curious, I asked Alice what exactly Satanas was eating.
The dragon princess explained, “It’s called fried ice cream. You coat the ice cream in breadcrumbs and fry it in oil. I used to eat it a lot with my mother—it’s an unusual frozen treat.”
Fried in oil?
At that moment, an idea struck me like a bolt of lightning.
“Shio!”
“Oh, how did I not think of that!? If we have oil and something like beef, we can totally make *that*!”
Shio’s face lit up in realization, nodding excitedly.
Kuro, on the other hand, seemed unfamiliar with the dish, perhaps because it’s not something she’s used to overseas. She couldn’t grasp what Shio and I had in mind.
Leaving her behind, Shio and I exchanged a wicked grin.
“Hehehe, if we have oil, we can definitely make *that*.”
“Then let’s add a little twist. Kuro-chan, Alice-san, could you give me a moment? I’m thinking of making this dish with the Lesser Dragon meat…”
Shio whispered the details of the dish to them.
After listening, both of them looked a bit surprised at first, but then they smiled, finding it interesting.
“That sounds delicious!”
“Great, let’s do it!”
It seemed like they were excited to join in after hearing the plan.
However, there was still a problem.
“It’s the 13th today, and the festival is on the 17th. We don’t have much time left. It would be risky if Shio is the only one cooking, so Kuro and I will head back to the capital, Yggdrasil, right now and at least acquire the ?Cooking? skill.”
“Got it.”
“Yes, you’re right. There’s a huge difference between having the skill and not.”
Alright, that settles it. Now we know exactly what needs to be done.
But still, one more move is needed.
At that moment, Sora decided to play one of her long-held trump cards.
“Let’s also visit Kirie-san. I just remembered there was an interesting update added recently.”
“An interesting update?”
With Kuro, Shio, and Alice now all curious, Sora smiled and told them it would be a surprise once they got there. With that, the group left the café.