"Make way, make way!"

"How much per kilo?"

"Is there a discount for buying in bulk? What's the lowest you can go?"

"Give me the biggest one you have!"

Before five in the morning, the Uogashi fish market was already a hive of activity. A web of warm-toned lights illuminated the entire market, making it bright as day. The market was teeming with people. Vendors rushed back and forth, transporting freshly caught seafood. Sharp-eyed purchasers from various restaurants carefully inspected and selected their ingredients. And weaving between the stalls were early-rising homemakers, old men, and old women. The air was thick with the overlapping sounds of inquiries, haggling, and vendors hawking their wares—a constant, unbroken chorus. Anyone who came to the Uogashi market could feel its incredibly vibrant atmosphere.

"It's so lively!" Yurine said, looking around in amazement. Though she was a local, this was her first time visiting a place like this.

"Yeah, it really is. It's full of energy," Ryohei agreed, his eyes curiously scanning the stalls on either side. Fish, shellfish, shrimp, and crabs were all neatly sorted and displayed. The variety was dizzying, and everything looked incredibly fresh.

"Whoa, this red sea bream looks amazing!" Ryohei said, walking with interest toward one of the stalls. The madai on display were all over 30 centimeters long, with long tail tips, a vibrant light-red color, and crystal-clear eyes.

"You can tell at a glance that it's wild, and caught not too long ago," he murmured to himself.

"You've got a good eye, young man!" the stall owner, a bearded man with a hachimaki tied around his head, called out, giving him a thumbs-up. "Wild sea bream, fresh off the boat less than three hours ago. Want to buy one?" Spring was the best season for red sea bream, especially April and May, when they were at their fattiest.

"Yes, please. Just give me a bag, I'll pick one myself," Ryohei said, holding out his hand.

"You got it!" the owner replied, quickly handing him a plastic bag.

Witnessing this exchange, Yurine confirmed something she had already suspected: Ryohei truly loved cooking. He got genuinely excited when he encountered high-quality ingredients. In these moments, he could even be a little childish. A small smile graced her lips, and she walked over to him with her hands behind her back.

"For red sea bream, a length of 35 to 40 centimeters is optimal. That's when the meat is most delicious and the texture is at its best," Ryohei explained as Yurine approached. He selected the highest-quality fish from the pile and held it up for her to see. "Take this one, for example. It's 38 centimeters long and weighs 1.75 kilograms."

His eyes were a ruler, and his hands were a scale.

"That specific?" the stall owner asked, looking over in surprise.

"Go ahead and weigh it, sir," Ryohei said, simply placing the fish in the bag and handing it over.

"Alright, let's see then," the owner said with interest, placing the bag on his electronic scale.

"Whoa!" His eyebrows shot up when he saw the weight. He re-entered the price per unit and handed the bag back. "That'll be 4,550 yen. You're amazing, young man. What do you do for a living?" The bearded man was curious. What kind of job gives you that kind of eye and feel?

"I'm a chef," Ryohei replied, counting out the cash from his wallet. The wild sea bream from this stall was a steal at that price. You'd never find it for that cheap in a supermarket or a regular market.

"Then you must be a very skilled one!" the owner said, giving him another thumbs-up. That talent alone was proof that he wasn't just an ordinary cook. "Want to look at anything else? All my seafood is fresh and reasonably priced," he added enthusiastically as Ryohei and Yurine started to leave.

"We're just going to look around a bit more. It's our first time here," Ryohei said, politely declining.

"Alright. Feel free to come back if you think my stuff is the best!" The man's personality was perfect for business. Ryohei gave him a nod and then led Yurine away. The moment they were out of earshot, he held up the bag. "Tonight, I'll make this one fish in three ways for you guys."

"Which three ways?" Yurine asked, her reddish-brown eyes looking at him expectantly. She was genuinely curious. In Japan, there was a saying: "Among flowers, the cherry blossom is king; among fish, the sea bream is revered." In the temple of Japanese cuisine, sea bream had always held a god-like status. The most common preparations were sashimi and sushi, but there were also grilled sea bream, pan-seared sea bream, sea bream tempura, sea bream miso soup, and sea bream over rice. It was a versatile ingredient that was delicious no matter how you cooked it.

"A fish of this quality would be wasted if we didn't make yukuai," Ryohei began. "Yukuai is the original version of your sashimi, but the seasoning is a little different. Then, we'll have salt-grilled fillets, and a soup made from the head and bones with tofu."

Ryohei had never formally studied Japanese cuisine; he hadn't even mastered all eight of China's great culinary traditions. His [Glowing Cuisine] skill didn't magically grant him knowledge he didn't have. It only deepened his understanding of what he already knew and gave him an incredibly sharp culinary intuition.

"That makes me look forward to it even more!" Yurine said, her eyes sparkling. She knew his cooking wouldn't disappoint, but a completely new dish she had never tried before was even more exciting.

Ryohei just smiled.

Afterward, the two of them continued through the market, buying abalone, clams, swimming crabs, sakura shrimp, and even a large Ise lobster. In the end, Yurine had to physically drag Ryohei away to stop him from buying more.

Suddenly, the aroma of cooked food wafted through the air. Ryohei stopped. "Yurine, should we get some breakfast here?" Even he had moments when he didn't feel like cooking. The restaurants in the outer market were just starting to open for the day. The Uogashi was divided into the inner market, where they had just bought their seafood, and the outer market, a ring of famous local eateries.

"Sure. What do you want to eat?" Yurine thought that eating out once in a while was nice. It was a different atmosphere from eating at home.

"Let's just walk around and grab whatever looks good," Ryohei suggested.

"Okay."

The two of them strolled through the outer market, ending up with a feast of sushi, tempura, grilled prawns, grilled king crab legs, and grilled scallops. They hit up several famous shops and had a very satisfying meal.

Throughout their breakfast, Ryohei and Yurine both tacitly ignored the existence of Jashin-chan. And when they left, they didn't bring any food back for her.

A well-fed bastard who has nothing better to do than cause trouble should be starved for a few meals. It would serve her right for making a mess of things all the time.