Mag strode into the palace with a benevolent and mature smile on his face. His impeccable chef’s suit was spotlessly clean, and he didn’t look like a chef who had just walked out from a kitchen at all.

  “He’s got the looks and he can cook; is this what the perfect man looks like?”


  “I’ve always wanted to marry a man who’s a good cook, but all good cooks are old men. I didn’t think there would be such an exceptional chef who’s so young and handsome!”


  “Father, after receiving this award, he’s going to be rewarded with a dukeship, right? Will I be able to marry him then?”


  All of the young female guests’ eyes lit up. To think that there could exist such an exceptional chef who was also so young and handsome; he was absolutely irresistible! All of the female guests were struggling to keep their legs closed!

  These shameless women! How dare they gawk at my man like that! Irina cast a cold glance toward all of the lovestruck women, and a dangerous light flashed through her eyes.

  All of the women felt a chill run down their spine in unison, and they looked around in bewilderment, but were unable to identify why they had been struck by such an ominous feeling.

  Mag also had a hint of a smug smile on his face after hearing all of the praise from the female guests present. He was still ecstatic about beating all of the best chefs across the Norland Continent and receiving such a fantastic reward from the system, so he was starting to get a little carried away upon hearing these words of praise.

  However, he suddenly caught sight of the cold expression on Irina’s face, and he felt as if he had been teleported straight from a scorching desert to the coldest part of the South Pole. His smile immediately stiffened on his face, and he shuddered involuntarily before hurriedly adopting a serious expression.

  Holy f*ck! I forgot she was here! Mag’s heart rate had suddenly spiked through the roof. He felt as if he had just brushed shoulders with death.

  Hmph! You’d better not let me catch you again! Irina withdrew her gaze, but she was still feeling rather irritated. In the past, Alex had no eyes for any woman other than her. However, it appeared that he had become not just a chef in the past three years, but also a chick magnet!

  Mag turned his attention to Amy and gave her a wide smile. Even though they had been apart for an entire morning, Mag wasn’t worried in the slightest about whether Amy was hungry or not.

  With all of this delicious food being served in the palace, there was no way that she was sitting on an empty stomach.

  Amy waved at Mag with a joyful expression on her face, but she was smart enough not to call out to him.

  Mag then caught sight of Luna, and he nodded in her direction. The man sitting beside her was most likely her grandfather, a man whom Alex recalled to be a rambling alcoholic.

  Byron looked at Mag and heaved an internal sigh. I didn’t think that he would truly be so young. If his multiplication table could enter widespread usage, his name would go down in the history books for sure.

  All of the other officials were also quite surprised to see that Mag was such a young man.

  One had to realize that Chef Bellmann was already over 60 years old, and had been the head chef of the royal kitchen for close to 30 years, yet he had just lost to a young man who appeared to be no more than 30 years of age.

  Mag wasn’t nervous in the slightest. He had been in much more nerve-racking scenarios than this in his past life, so there really was nothing for him to be nervous about here.

  However, he did manage to find quite a few familiar faces in the palace as he sifted through Alex’s memories. Most of the officials gathered had already pledged their allegiance to either Josh or Sean. However, there was also quite a considerable proportion of them who hadn’t picked either prince to side with. They were either fence-sitters or were loyal only to the king.

  In Mag’s eyes, this was like a more serious version of a battle for a family’s inheritance. However, the stakes were much higher, and the winner would be inheriting an entire empire rather than a family. It was a pity that he didn’t have any brothers in his past life with whom he could battle for the family inheritance. In the end, he inherited several tens of billions of dollars without any competition, and it felt rather anticlimactic.

  Mag turned his attention to the two princes, who were both drenched with sweat and chugging down ice water, and his mood was lifted significantly.

  Josh forced a smile onto his face as he met Mag’s gaze. Even though he was still suffering quite a bit, the good news was that Sean was suffering just as much. Most importantly, the king had been very happy with Mag’s dishes, and that further boosted his chances of inheriting the throne.

  Mag gave a rather apologetic smile in response, but there was not a single hint of apology in his heart.

  As for Sean’s furious and resentful gaze, Mag completely ignored it.

  That’s what you get for trying to assassinate me! This is just the beginning. According to the system’s warning, anything above three times insanely spicy results in a qualitative change. You can say goodbye to your as*holes!

  The attendant led Mag to the center of the palace before respectfully backing away.

  Mag composed his expression before extending a respectful bow toward the king, “Mag pays his respects to His Majesty.”


  The king was also rather surprised to see how young Mag was, but he didn’t let it show as he raised a hand, and said, “You may rise, Chef Mag. I didn’t think a man as young as you would be able to cook such delicious dishes.”


  Mag stood up straight again and adopted a modest expression as he replied, “Thank you for your kind words, Your Majesty. I’m still sorely lacking in experience compared to many of my senior peers. I am really honored to receive such a prestigious accolade.”


  Compared to Alex’s memory of the king three years ago, Andre seemed to have aged significantly. His inky black hair had turned completely gray, and there were many more wrinkles on his face.

  However, he was still exuding an air of undeniable regal majesty as he sat atop his throne.

  He was like an elderly lion king; even though he was past his prime, he could still guard his own territory if challenged.

  Mag wasn’t sure about whether he had played a hand in the incident from three years ago. However, at the very least, he had covered up for the two princes, so he was guilty of involvement by association at a minimum.

  The king shook his head with a smile, and said, “Even though you’re indeed quite young, you have well and truly reached the pinnacle of the culinary arts. All three of your dishes were simply exceptional, so there’s no need for you to be overly modest.”


  Mag withdrew his gaze in a respectful manner as he said, “You’re far too kind, Your Majesty.”


  Josh put down his jug of ice water; the scorching sensation in his throat had already abated slightly. He adjusted his robes slightly before smiling as he said, “Father, Chef Mag’s cooking skills are by far the best in Chaos City, and he had defeated the incumbent number one chef of Chaos City at the time prior to coming to Rodu. The fact that you have decided to award his grilled fish as the best dish of the day is further testament to his exemplary cooking skills.”


  “I can tell you put a lot of effort into finding such an exceptional chef, Josh.” The king nodded before turning to Mag as he said, “Chef Mag’s cooking skills are the best I’ve ever seen, and he is very deserving of the best dish award. I’ve decided to reward him with 1,000 dragon coins and to instate him as the head chef of the royal kitchen with immediate effect.”


  All of the officials in the palace burst into an uproar upon hearing this.

  Mag lowered his head in apology, and said, “Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty. Unfortunately, I already own a restaurant in Chaos City, so I won’t be able to remain in the royal palace. As such, I must refuse this reward.”