Chapter Six: Meraki
Emi looked up, eyes squinting at the sudden brightness. While they were running through the forest, the fog had cleared up, making the sun's rays almost painful.
"Well done, everyone!" Satotz lowered the gun he held. "This is the Biska Forest Garden, as well as the testing place for the Second Phase of the Exam."
Kurapika dragged his hand across his chin exhaling heavily. "Seems like we were able to catch up."
"Where are Leorio and Hisoka?" Gon glanced around.
Blearily blinking again, Emi glanced across the clearing. Amber eyes stared back, Hisoka's lips curling into a smirk.
Hisoka was right in front of her, but Leorio was no longer slung over his shoulder. Emi's gaze sharpened, her 'where's Leorio?' going unspoken but very loudly felt. Even more amused than before, Hisoka uncrossed his arms and—
He pointed to the side.
Leorio sat on the edges of the clearing, propped up against a tree looking around, dazed. Emi turned back to Hisoka, squinting. He smiled mockingly, curling his fingers as though waving goodbye to a young child.
Emi turned away with a shudder.
As she made her way over to Leorio, Emi scanned the clearing.
In the center of it stood an old-looking building, with paint on the walls that had started chipping and vines and moss making their way into the cracks.
A clock hung just under its roof. The hands indicated five minutes until noon, though Emi wasn't sure how accurate that was.
Below the clock, a pair of dark green doors—more gate-like than anything—stood imposingly, closed.
Emi turned back to Leorio, startling at Gon and Kurapika's proximity.
Other than the bruise on his cheek from when Hisoka had hit him during their fight, Leorio seemed unharmed. He looked up as their little group approached.
"What's going on?" Leorio grunted.
Kurapika lowered himself to the ground, looking over the taller man. "Other than the arm that was injured, you seem alright."
"Arm?" Emi said, confused.
Kurapika nodded, still looking at Leorio. "When we first made it to the clearing, Hisoka threw a card at Leorio. You didn't notice?"
She hadn't.
Emi looked away, ashamed. Some friend she was.
She shook her head. Given the circumstances, it wasn't all that surprising, but…
She shook her head again.
"Ow-ow-ow! Look at my face! My face!" Leorio complained.
"It's the same as usual," Kurapika said, unamused.
"What part of this is normal?" Leorio winced. "Damn!"
In the center of the group of applicants, Satotz spoke again. "Yet again, congratulations to all of you. All of you who are present now have passed the First Phase."
Emi rubbed her calves. They were already starting to throb unpleasantly.
One phase down, several more to go. She could do this.
Satotz continued. "I hope that you can pass the Second Phase. I wish you luck."
With that, he turned and headed back into the woods.
Joining Kurapika on the ground, Emi asked Gon for Leorio's suitcase. Handing it over, the boy made his way to Killua.
"Kurapika, you said that Leorio has medicines in his briefcase, right?" Setting down her bag, she scooted closer.
Kurapika nodded.
"If you know what you're doing, you're welcome to use them," Leorio mumbled.
Emi nodded, opening the case and taking out some antiseptic and bandages.
"What do you mean you followed Leorio's smell!" Killua's voice rang out from somewhere behind Kurapika, startling Emi and making her nearly drop the bottle of hydrogen peroxide.
She and Kurapika both reached for the bottle, their fingers brushing.
"Ah. Sorry." Emi nodded at the older boy.
He pressed his lips together. "It's fine." Taking the bottle, Kurapika replaced it in its case as Emi disinfected Leorio's wound, then bandaged it.
"Hey, Emi?" He called.
"Hm?" She wound the roll of gauze tightly around the cut, ensuring that it wouldn't reopen.
"There's something I wanted to ask—"
A loud… something cut him off, followed shortly thereafter by the tolling of a clock.
Emi looked over at him apologetically. "It'll have to wait for now…"
As Emi waited for his acknowledgment, she handed a suspiciously quiet Leorio a teal shirt, along with his glasses.
The gates of the decrepit building creaked open.
Emi stood up, brushing herself off, Kurapika following suit. She held out a hand to Leorio, helping him up.
From inside the building, a young woman's voice rang out. "Sorry to keep you waiting!"
A pause. "What do you think? Are you hungry, Buhara?"
The strange sound from earlier echoed again, this time slightly quieter and shorter.
Emi and the others made their way over to the rest of the applicants in time to hear a man respond. "I can hear my stomach rumbling, Menchi…"
Peeking through the open gates, Emi gaped.
Scantily dressed in a mesh cropped top and short, torn shorts, a pink-haired woman lounged on a couch, legs crossed, her bright pink hair tied up in five or so pseudo-buns clashing horribly with the mandarin-orange stained leather. And behind her…
On the floor behind her, a mountain of a man sat, easily twice the woman's—Menchi's—height.
Emi blinked. Twice.
Menchi continued speaking, turning to face the group of applicants. "That's how it is!
"In the Second Phase, we Gourmet Hunters will be your examiners."
If Gourmet Hunters were the Examiners, they would probably choose to test the applicants on something in their field of expertise…
Cooking, huh… Emi stifled a wry smile. She'd certainly jinxed herself when she spoke with Syun a week ago…
She exhaled sharply, tightening the sleeves of her jacket around her waist.
Around her, many of the other applicants murmured amongst themselves, most coming to the same conclusion as Emi.
Menchi smiled, amused. "Exactly. The topic of the Second Phase is cooking."
Around Emi, many voiced their distaste and disappointment.
Number 255 in particular was upset. "Wait a minute! We're here to take the Hunter Exam!"
A chill went down her spine. Like the time in the forest, the atmosphere felt unpleasant—sticking to her skin and making the air taste foul. Hisoka was probably up to something again; Menchi certainly looked tense.
'You can't see, but you can feel?'
Emi shook her head. There would be more time to think about that later.
"If you have a problem with that, the exit's that way." Raising an eyebrow, Menchi pointed at the woods behind the group.
She scowled. "Anyone else unhappy with this test? You're allowed to leave."
Menchi continued. "In any case, if you're staying, I don't want to hear any more complaints."
A bald youth with 294 pinned onto his chest spoke up. "In that case, what exactly are we making?" His already extremely curved eyebrows arched further.
"First," Buhara spoke up. "I want each examinee to cook a course I specify—"
"—and only the people who pass Buhara's test can take mine." Menchi continued. "As long as both of us think that your cooking is delicious, you pass."
"That can't be!" 255 protested.
'Todo,' Emi's mind supplied. 'Todo the Wrestler.'
"Delicious or not is completely subjective!"
"Even if we think it's good, if both examiners think otherwise, we'll fail!"
"Yeah! What kind of a joke is this?"
Others slowly joined in, voicing their displeasure.
Emi winced. This wasn't good. An irritated Examiner wasn't a good thing for someone who wanted to pass…
"Alright, alright. That's enough." Menchi clapped her hands as she spoke.
"Listen carefully." Rising from the couch, she placed her hands on her hips. "Just now, I said that people who don't want to take this test are free to leave."
She waved her hand dismissively. "Okay? Bye-bye."
"Bullshit!" Leorio swore. "We worked so hard to get here, and now you're telling us to go back?"
Emi breathed in deeply, biting her lips and clenching a fist. Why couldn't the others see that provoking Menchi was a bad idea?
Gon spoke up, unintentionally silencing everyone else's complaints. "Sorry, could you please continue?"
Emi breathed out a small, quiet sigh of relief.
Menchi exhaled tiredly. "Basically, as long as we say that what you made is okay, you pass.
"The test ends as soon as we say we are full," she concluded.
"The man must eat a lot," applicant 294 murmured to himself. "But the woman probably won't eat as much." Emi glanced at him in time to see him smirk. "Lots of people will probably fail this test."
She turned back to face the examiners. The bald youth had a point. She'd just have to be one of the few to pass then.
"I've never cooked before!" Leorio exclaimed.
"And now we have to pass this test?" Kurapika murmured in agreement.
Gon piped up, "I've cooked before!"
Leorio turned to the younger boy, his surprise palpable. "Really? What did you make?"
"I've made lots of things, but I'm best at tamagokakegohan*!"
"Ta-tamago…" Leorio sputtered.
"Well…" Kurapika paused. "We can't really call that cooking…"
Laughing, Leorio covered his face with his arm. "That'll be the same no matter who makes it!"
Emi turned away as Gon protested.
"So!" The man-mountain—Buhara—spoke, his voice ringing thr ough the air. "The dish I want is a whole roast pig!"
Even from a distance, his blush and salivating were obvious. "It's my favorite dish!"
Emi tightened her ponytail, collecting the stray hairs.
"You must use big-nosed pig in this forest, the Great Stamp!"
A strange rumbling steadily grew louder, and the earth shook ever-so-slightly. A drift* of pigs charged through the crowd of applicants, hitting some of them as they thundered past.
Caught up in the chaos, Emi ran in the opposite direction in an attempt to avoid injury. Up ahead, green and white blurs streaked through the underbrush, closely followed by royal and navy blue.
The boys were alright then.
Emi shook her would be fine, but she needed to figure out how to capture the big-snouted pig hot on her heels.
Emi panted heavily. She had managed to put some distance between herself and the enraged carnivorous pig, but not a lot.
That left the task of capturing and killing it.
In the distance, some of the other applicants shouted, their voices a mixture of surprise, fear, anger, excitement, and triumph.
Emi let out a long exhale.
The pigs all had enlarged snouts that curved up to cover—shield, maybe?—their faces or their heads.
She snuck a glance over her shoulder at the angry-looking pig. Its eyes were hidden by the raindrop-shaped snout, the skin hardened and tough, like armor.
Armor?
Emi peeked at the pig again. If the pigs were aggressive and fought each other constantly—for a mate, or maybe territory—it would make sense, but if not, then maybe the snout was meant to protect it? A sensitive forehead, perhaps?
She breathed out heavily. It was worth a shot.
Sorry about this, but…
Far enough away from the clearing with the decrepit building, Emi—and the pig—were surrounded by trees. To the left a particularly big one would be perfect for ambush.
Emi charged at it.
The pig, excited at the prospect of its prey running headfirst into a dead end, squealed.
Very nearly face-to-bark, Emi jumped, stepping on the tree to get more leverage and height. She flew over the pig's snout, grabbing it with a hand and swinging a leg down in a kick.
A sickening crack rang through the air as the pig's skull caved in slightly, the shifting skin and broken bones nauseating.
Still holding onto the pig's elongated pointy nose, Emi slid off its back, doubled over, and vomited into the bushes, the acid from her stomach burning her throat. With a thud, the pig collapsed.
Panting, Emi heaved again, shaking.
Two deep breaths and a swig of water later, she turned to face the swine.
Tugging at its nose, she started dragging it back to the examiners.
Removing the pig's entrails, Emi huffed, blowing the stray hairs out of her face.
Rosemary would give it a nice scent…
Tying several small branches of the nice-smelling herb around the pig using cooking twine, Emi set it above the burning embers of her makeshift fire pit.
Now to make sure it doesn't burn…
In front of the building, applicants began lining up and presenting their dishes.
Emi winced. Some looked raw, and others looked like bits of charred meat, more like coal than anything.
"You pass! And you!" Buhara's voice rumbled with satisfaction. "This is good, too!"
Gaping, Emi blinked. "Ahem. Well then…" She turned the pig over to ensure that it was getting cooked evenly.
"The biggest issue is making sure that the meat is cooked on the inside as well…" Emi trailed off.
Forty minutes later, she presented her pig.
The mountain of a man stared down at her, his big eyes strangely endearing. "Hmmm… I don't know… it's a little on the small side…"
Emi smiled tersely. "Even if that's the case, you are judging how it tastes, right?"
"I suppose…" He sighed, taking the dish and devouring it.
His eyes widened. "This is good! Probably one of the better pigs I've had today." He looked down at Emi. "You added seasonings for the flavour and scent?"
Emi nodded. "Cooking is an art form, and I wanted to do my best to do it justice." Chuckling sheepishly, she rubbed the back of her neck. "Even if I'm not that great of a cook."
"I see…" Finishing the dish, Buhara let out a satisfied exhale. "Ahh! That was so good!"
He turned to look at Menchi, nodding at her.
The female examiner nodded back.
"Alright! This part of the Second Phase is over!" Menchi walked over to a gong—they probably brought it out when Emi and the other applicants were hunting—hitting it.
"Buhara finished seventy Great Stamp whole roasts." Menchi summarized, eliciting gasps and murmurs of surprise from the applicants.
Emi raised an eyebrow and let out a low whistle. Sure, he'd eaten a lot, but that much?
"That doesn't make sense! The amount of food he consumed exceeds his own volume!" Kurapika was similarly flabbergasted, eyebrows furrowing and unfurrowing.
"It's already over. Why bother wondering?" Leorio shrugged. "It's not like knowing the answer will make any difference anyway."
"Maybe not, but it's still kinda jarring." Emi glanced over at Leorio.
The gong sounded again.
"Seventy applicants have passed the test of cooking a whole roast pig!"
Emi raised an eyebrow. Buhara really did let everyone whose pigs he ate pass. Menchi's test probably wouldn't be as easy.
"Alright!" Cheers echoed through the air, many applicants' excitement palpable.
"I'm different from Buhara; I won't be so nice with my judging," Menchi interrupted. "My test will be very hard."
The crowd quieted, listening carefully to Menchi's instructions.
The young woman started pacing, arms crossed. "For the second half of the test, I want you to make…" She stopped, turning to face the applicants. "Sushi."
Emi's eyes widened. '… decided to teach us how to make a dish called 'sushi'.'
Her hands itched to take out the diary and read the instructions Asena had left, but Menchi wasn't done speaking.
"You all seem rather confused, but it's no surprise that you don't know of it." Menchi smiled smugly. "It's a traditional dish of a small island nation.
"Let me give you a hint! Why don't we all take a look inside the building?" Menchi gestured at the doors.
Emi made her way inside, closely followed by Gon and Killua, along with the rest of the applicants.
A number of work-stations were set up, each having an oven, stovetop, sink, and selection of knives. "This is where you will cook. You will be provided with some of the necessary materials, including rice." As Menchi spoke, Emi made note of the bags of uncooked white rice on top of each station.
"I'll give an even bigger hint: I'll only accept nigiri sushi*!" Menchi continued her explanation. "You're all welcome to get started. When I've had enough, the exam will end, but until then, you can make as many sushi as you'd like!"
Emi let out a quiet breath. This was fine. She had Asena's diary to guide her.
She made her way over to a station. Setting down her rucksack in the cupboard under the sink, she washed her hands.
"How are we supposed to know what the main ingredient is?" Leorio complained loudly to Kurapika, both claiming the work-stations to her left. "I can barely imagine what it looks like!"
None of the other applicants seemed to be paying attention to Leorio's complaints, too preoccupied with coming up with their own interpretations of the dish.
"Hey." Emi spoke, her voice hushed so as not to draw unnecessary attention. "I've never personally made it, but I know how to."
"Really!" Leorio exclaimed, turning to face her. Kurapika walked over, tilting his head to the side.
Emi nodded. "My best friend left me her diary, and she had the recipe written down—or, at the very least, the basics of it. We can use that, but we'd have to be quiet about it; I'd hate for our advantage to go out the window because someone couldn't keep their mouth shut."
"Are you accusing me of something?" Leorio pursed his lips together, raising an eyebrow.
Emi shook her head. "I never said anything about you specifically." She nodded at the bald youth, number 294. "He's doubled over giggling, so I'm almost certain that he knows what it is, too."
Kurapika glanced over at the gleeful youth. "I suppose you have a point." He turned back to Emi. "I remember reading about sushi once, but the only thing that sticks out is that we need fish. Is there anything else we need to do?"
"I thi—"
"Fish? How are we supposed to find fish in a forest?" Leorio's voice echoed loudly in the large room.
Many of the other applicants turned to stare, then immediately made their way outside.
With a sigh, Emi raised an eyebrow looking pointedly at Leorio.
"Oops?" He rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry?"
Emi exhaled heavily, rummaging through one of the cupboards and taking out a large pot. "Let's go find a river, then, I suppose?"
Kurapika nodded in agreement as Leorio turned away, the tips of his ears turning red.
"Haaa…" By the bank of the river, Emi stood up and stretched, her hands rubbed red and raw, the net that she had been working on finally large enough to be able to catch a fish. "That should work well enough." Hopefully the long grasses that she'd used weren't quite brittle enough to break.
She turned to look at Gon, a wistful sigh escaping her lips.
Shaking her head, she picked up her net and the pot, setting it up slightly further upstream from the others. On the way there, a number of applicants had succeeded in catching fish: some with a stick, others with their hands, and others still finding ways to block off the stream to catch their prey.
Net successfully set up, Emi managed to catch two fish—one cylindrically shaped with an intense violet colour, and the other a simple salmon.
Emi frowned, then shrugged, relaxing. She didn't really have a way of knowing why the salmon was there at that time of year, but it certainly wasn't unlucky for her. Letting the other fish go, Emi placed the fish into the pot and made her way back to the exam area.
At her station, she worked quickly, setting a clean pot to boil water, salting it slightly. Measuring out the rice, she washed it three times, watching the white powdery substance flow away. Next to the pot, she prepared a cezve* and filled it with seasoned rice vinegar along with some sugar, letting the mixture come to a boil as well.
As she worked, Menchi had begun yelling at some of the other applicants who had begun presenting their dishes.
"No!" Menchi's voice gradually gained in volume and pitch. "No, no no! The shape is important!"
Shape, huh…
Quickly securing a piece of ginger root, Emi peeled it and thinly sliced it, placing it in a container with salt.
Briefly glancing up, Emi made eye contact with the pink-haired woman, who was holding two small sticks in her right hand. In front of Menchi on the table stood a small plate, no larger than Emi's palm, with some sort of dark sauce in it.
Emi turned to the fish, draining it of blood, then removing the scales with a knife. Neatly cutting open the fish's stomach to take out the intestines, Emi blew the hair out of her face.
'Cut the fish into bite-sized pieces, and shape the rice into a small rectangular-prismatic shape, then put the fish on top, making sure it sticks to the rice,' huh…
Moving quickly, she added boiling water to the ginger.
"Whatcha smiling about?" Leorio looked over Emi's shoulder at her fish, then gasped. "No wonder that woman didn't like my fish! It didn't look neat!"
Emi's eyebrows slowly crept up. "I'm pretty sure it's because the bones and the scales needed to be removed."
On Leorio's other side, Kurapika blushed.
"Oh, dear…" Emi shook her head, glancing between the two older boys. "Please tell me that you at least didn't serve the sushi while the fish was still alive…"
Kurapika turned even redder and Leorio rubbed the back of his neck.
"…" Emi refocused on her fish, cutting off the fins, tail, and head, then starting to remove the bones.
"Hey, Emi?" Kurapika spoke up, bringing his cutting board over to her work station and setting it up.
"Hm?" She glanced over at the blond. "Is something wrong?"
Kurapika stared down at his board, opening and closing his mouth a few times, not speaking.
"I can help you prepare your fish, if that's what you wanted."
Kurapika looked up at her, shaking his head. "No, that's not it. I wanted to ask—"
An unexpected hiss cut him off, startling both teenagers.
Emi gasped. "The rice!" She hurried over to the stove, lowering the flame and propping open the lid. Carefully mixing the rice so it wouldn't burn, she added some more water. "Sorry, Kurapika. You were saying?"
He shook his head slowly. "It's… nothing."
Emi half-frowned. "Okay…"
By then, the rice vinegar was starting to reek, and bubble intensely.
"Actually…"
Emi looked up at Kurapika who was looking at her with undisguised disgust.
"What on earth is that smell?"
"What, this?" Emi gestured to the cezve.
Kurapika nodded.
"I'm pickling ginger. My best friend who wrote down the recipe suggested that sushi might go well with something salty or sour, so I decided to give ginger a try."
"But…" Kurapika briefly paused in his cleaning of his fish from its scales. "Ginger is spicy, isn't it?"
Setting down the spoon with which she had been stirring the rice, Emi went to wash her hands. "I suppose you could say that, but…" She trailed off, pouring the ginger's hot water into the sink.
"When I was younger, my friend—the same friend who wrote down the recipe for sushi—let me try some pickled ginger. It was an interesting combination of sweet, sour, and spicy, and we both really liked it, so we learned how to make it."
Kurapika nodded. "Right, but what does that have to do with…?"
"With this?"
Kurapika nodded again as Emi spread out the ginger in a thin layer.
"In her notes about making sushi, she made a comment about how she thought sushi might go well with something sour or salty, and this was the first thing that came to mind." Emi chuckled wryly. "It's strange, isn't it?"
Both were quiet for a minute. Emi poured the reeking vinegar mixture over the ginger, making sure that it was thoroughly submerged, then turned off the stove.
"What!" A loud shout drew everyone's attention. "Nigiri sushi is just rice pressed into a bite-sized rectangular shape, with a dab of wasabi topped with sliced fish meat!"
Emi stifled a groan. Of course number 294 had to get frustrated and announce to everyone how to make the dish. She heaved a sigh.
Nothing left to do but keep working at her own pace. She turned to look at Kurapika… who wasn't there. A quick scan of the room revealed that everyone but herself and 294 were in the center of the room, clamoring for Menchi's attention.
She huffed again.
"Sorry! I'm full!"
What? Wait, no, that couldn't be right.
Emi's hands shook. She hadn't even gotten to present her dish once. More concerningly, no one had passed.
She swallowed down the lump in her throat and tried to blink away the tears in her eyes.
In… Out…
She took another deep breath.
"Miss Examiner!" She called. "What happens now, since no one passed?"
The woman leaned back against the couch. "Exactly what I said at the beginning: since none of you passed, you'll have to try again next year."
"There's no way we can ask you to reconsider, or readminister the test?"
"My answer is no, now if you'll excuse me, I need to report to the committee." Menchi took out a phone, typing in some number then waiting a few seconds.
Emi let out a shaky breath.
At the center of the room, Menchi was yelling something into the phone as some of the others tried to convince her to reconsider.
Emi shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut.
This was no place to fall apart.
One shaky breath. Another.
"Haaaa…"
She looked up in time to see Menchi snatch the phone from Gon. "No means no! This year's test is over!"
Across the room, Todo smashed through a countertop, the crash deafening.
Emi flinched, sore muscles tensing up and making her wince.
"I can't accept that." Todo's voice was low and angry. "I can't just say, 'okay, I'll go home!'"
Menchi glared back. "I've had enough complaining from this boy; I don't need to hear it from you, too."
She leaned back into the couch. "Like I said, just try again next year."
Emi exhaled slowly. Placing the dish under a cold plate, Emi gathered her things slowly and methodically.
"All you do is sit around and eat good food! What a joke!" Todo growled.
"Fine!" Menchi shot back. "Give me an hour and I'll come back with a parting gift for you! Then you'll have no reason to doubt my abilities as a Hunter!"
Emi looked up. Maybe there was still a chance that Menchi could be convinced to let them all retake the test.
Moss.
Menchi was gone for an hour to collect moss?
Emi blinked in disbelief.
It seemed that she wasn't the only one skeptical. Todo looked at the bowl of rice sprinkled with moss with disgust, spouting off something about food's only function being to satiate hunger.
Gon, on the other hand, had no qualms about trying some of what Menchi was offering.
As Gon carefully tried the dish and Leorio questioned Gon about the flavour, Emi observed Menchi.
The young female examiner stood tall and proud, her hands on her hips, posture screaming 'well? Isn't this amazing?'
To have such pride in herself and what she did… that was amazing.
A crash startled her out of her thoughts as some of the men began circling Buhara.
He swatted them away, unfazed as Todo picked him up and shoved him into the wall. Emi flinched away, edging towards Leorio and Kurapika.
"That's quite enough, don't you think, Miss Menchi?" Satotz spoke up from the doorway.
Emi startled. Hadn't he left as soon as Phase Two started?
She shook her head. There wasn't a reason why he couldn't come back or observe.
"I have no intention of changing the results of the test!" Menchi protested as a. faint humming vibrated through the air, slowly getting louder. "In this test, I wasn't testing your physical strength, but your ability to confront something unknown to you!"
"That may be so, Miss Menchi." An old man's voice echoed through the air as a blimp came into view. "Don't you think it's too harsh that no one passed?"
Packing the sushi and ginger into her rucksack, Emi hurried outside after Gon.
Right as she looked up, a man dressed in an orange robe jumped out of the blimp, landing gracefully in front of the crowd of applicants.
Emi gaped. There was no doubt about it; this man was not normal.
A normal person would have died after falling from such a height.
The man approached Menchi, his ponytail and long mustache swaying in time as his geta clicked against the earth. Menchi lowered her head respectfully.
Emi observed with bated breath. Was this her second chance at passing?
"Miss Menchi," the man spoke again. "You were testing their spirit by challenging them to something unknown through cooking in Phase Two, correct?"
"That's exactly it! That was my only goal!" Menchi burst out. "That's why I gave them such a difficult topic, but..."
"But?" The man prompted.
"I… That is…"
"You evaluated them with that objective in mind and felt that every one of them had a problem with their attitude.
"In other words, you concluded that no one was qualified to pass, correct?"
"No, some applicants made light of cooking—" Todo "—so I lost my temper." Menchi looked down. "On top of that, there was another problem when all the applicants found out how to make the dish…" 294.
She paused. "Because of that, I got angry and got too full…"
"In other words," the older man summarized. "You are fully aware that the applicants weren't tested thoroughly?"
Meekly, she answered, "yes, when it comes to cooking, I tend to lose myself…" She lowered her gaze further. "I am not fit to be a proctor. I'm sorry."
"What an honest young woman!" The man chuckled. Certainly, as a proctor, I see some problems, but it's understandable, since you are a Single Star Gourmet Hunter."
Emi tilted her head to the side quizzically. 'Single Star?'
"Let me suggest something." He raised a finger. "We will administer another test, and you will continue to be in charge of the evaluations." A pause. "However, I want you to participate by giving a demonstration. How does that sound?"
The man lowered his hand.
Emi hummed. That could've been worse. She breathed out a sigh of relief. That could've been way worse…
"So," the old man prompted. "What'll the subject be for the test, Miss Proctor?"
"The topic will be…" Menchi paused for a moment, lifting a hand to her chin, thinking. "A boiled egg."
Emi raised an eyebrow. "Just an egg?" She mumbled to herself.
"Chairman, could you take us to Mt. Split-in-Half?"
The man smiled kindly. "That can be arranged quite easily."
This was not 'just an egg'.
Anxiously peering over the edge of the cliff, Emi shuffled her feet nervously, hands grabbing at the straps of her rucksack.
A strong breeze shifted her hair, tickling the back of her neck. She shuddered.
"I wonder what's down there," Todo mumbled anxiously.
"There's a deep river at the bottom." Taking off her shoes, Menchi turned to face the cliff. "Well, I'll be going on ahead!"
As Menchi jumped from the cliff, Emi's stomach clenched unpleasantly.
Unfazed, the old man turned to explain. "She went down to get a Spider-Eagle egg, who nest in this mountain. The Spider-Eagle hangs its eggs on its strong web to protect them from the land predators living in the area."
Emi squinted, barely-there silvery lines spanning the width of the chasm glinting ever-so-slightly…
"Bring back one Spider-Eagle egg." The man finished.
Hoisting herself over the edge of the cliff, Menchi held up her egg. "Your goal is to boil one of them."
She looked over her shoulder. "You'll have to be careful though. The river's current is rather fast, so if you fall, you'll be washed out straight to the sea kilometers away."
Shutting her eyes and taking a deep breath, Emi shuffled closer to the edge. She steeled her nerves… and jumped.
The wind enveloped her from all sides, and for a brief instant, it almost felt as though she was flying.
Grabbing onto one of the sticky silver strands of web, she made her way to an egg.
Was this how Asena felt when she fell? Terrified, but exhilarated, and free?
Pocketing it, Emi made her way over to the cliff's face.
As long as she didn't look down, she would be fine. She'd be fine, wouldn't she?
Deep breaths… in and out.
Emi refocused on the cliff in front of her, eyes immediately noting the little hand- and foot-holds. Eyes widening, she reached for a crack, hoisting herself up, then immediately stretching for another. It was almost like climbing a massive tree. The cliff was just a really big stone tree!
Emi blinked, and all-too-soon and not-soon-enough she was hoisting herself over the edge. Menchi and the other examiners stood next to a large cauldron-looking pot, the water inside boiling.
The others still hadn't quite made it up though.
In the chasm, shouts of surprise and fear echoed, along with the calls of birds.
"Spider-Eagles!" Someone shouted from below, shortly followed Todo's scream for help.
"Gon!" Leorio's voice echoed.
Gon?
Rushing over to the side of the cliff, Emi very nearly fell over again.
Dangling from his fishing line, Gon, with Todo in tow, made his way up the side of the cliff.
As soon as they made it to the top, Emi reached out, grabbing her friends' hands and helping them up one by one.
"All of you have done well to make it back in one piece, but the test isn't over yet!" Menchi raised her egg. "As we said before, you still have to boil your egg. The timing is very important, so be sure not to mess it up!"
In the cauldron, some of the eggs began moving around, almost as though they were bouncing. Taking that as a sign, Emi used the net she was provided with to take out an egg.
At the same time, Buhara tensed up, inhaling sharply, confirming her suspicions.
Upon removing the eggs from the boiling water, Emi and the others waited for them to cool down somewhat, then bit in.
"So creamy, and delicious! Nothing like an ordinary egg!" Kurapika's surprise was obvious in his voice.
Emi hummed in agreement.
Did Leone do something similar when she took her Exam?
Stifling a chuckle, Emi finished her egg.
She'd just have to find Leone and ask.
"And with that," Menchi raised her voice. "Phase Two is over. Forty-two applicants have passed!"
Meraki:
to do something with soul, creativity, or love;
to put something of yourself into your work.
(5799 words—excluding A/N)
tamagokakegohan*—rice with a raw egg, often seasoned with soy sauce
drift*—a word for a group of pigs
Nigiri sushi*—lit. "hand-held sushi" or sushi that fits in a hand
cezve*—the 'kettle' used to brew traditional coffee
This chapter was inspired by the following piece:
Emi and Kurapika converse as Emi cooks: Hayashi Yuuki (Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru OST)—走るということ
I'm not going to lie, this chapter has me with quite a few mixed feelings. I'm still not entirely sure whether or not it was supposed to be more serious or lighthearted, so I guess it's up for interpretation—more so than usual, at least.
That being said, I want to say thank you all for continuing to read this piece, and for all the favorites and follows. I never expected for so many of you to be investing in my story and it's really encouraging; I really appreciate it. Thank you!
We have another review this time!
Aniee, thank you so much for your kind words! I know I don't update often, but that's just what my schedule allows. I definitely will keep updating until I catch up with the manga or the series ends—whichever comes first lol. In the meantime, I hope you keep reading and enjoying. :)