Chapter 554: Reservation (6)
Chapter 554: Reservation (6)
“Minjoon, do you have anyone in mind as the winner here? Do you think Peter or Hugo could take it?” Martin asked quietly.
Minjoon hesitated briefly, then shook his head. He already knew the outcome of this contest. He couldn’t even remember if Hugo and Peter were participating this time, but he was certain neither would win.
Martin pressed on, “Then who do you expect to win this season?”
“Michael Ohr,” Minjoon answered simply.
The most likely champion was a professor of physics at Harvard University, over forty years old. Due to his unique background, Martin was familiar with him. If the professor survived the preliminaries, Martin planned to highlight his extraordinary career.
Minjoon had identified him as the probable winner. Curious, Martin asked, “I remember him because I was impressed a professor could cook so well. So, are you rooting for him?”
But Minjoon shook his head again. Puzzled, Martin frowned. If Michael was the likely winner, why was Minjoon cheering for someone else?
“Then, who do you support?”
“Gwen Queen.”
“Oh, that woman?”
Martin recalled Gwen vividly. She had a unique story: a former drug addict from Los Angeles who used cooking to go cold turkey. Her skin was rough, and she was thin, but she cooked very well. She was among the participants Minjoon and Martin seriously considered as a frontrunner.
By the way...
Martin gazed at Minjoon with a strange look. Gwen Queen—she wasn’t exactly like Kaya, but both had faced hardship. Was Minjoon sympathetic because of her background? Probably, but his regard for Gwen was different from Martin’s.
Gwen wasn’t a prodigy chef, but no one matched her dedication and determination to succeed. Minjoon believed she could at least reach the semifinals, given her passion. Both viewers and participants began to believe she might win. Gwen herself thought so.
In the end, she lost to Michael—finishing second.
To Minjoon, second place wasn’t a huge deal.
He muttered to himself, Actually, I don’t like her.
She was not someone he could accept. In many ways, she belonged to the kind of person he hated most.
One month after placing second, she took her own life.
Minjoon didn’t know what made her decide that. Speculation was rife. The most convincing theory was that she committed suicide because she was runner-up, not winner. Minjoon believed this was probably true.
As he recalled, Gwen seemed pushed to the edge. Every interview showed her mumbling nervously, as if pursued. She treated this competition as her last chance — failure meant the end.
Many thought she took things too seriously. Few believed someone who overcame addiction and stood tall could bet everything on one competition. But they were wrong.
She saw even second place as failure.
Minjoon understood. Compared with the winner, the runner-up gained nothing significant—only fleeting attention, perhaps a decent restaurant job. But when the show neared its end, almost everyone thought Gwen would win. Her unwavering resolve impressed them far more than Michael’s skill. In popularity, she eclipsed him.
Viewers’ expectations swayed her mood. Near the broadcast’s end, she looked confident—though unsure at first, as she reached the finals, victory seemed certain. But it crumbled when she lost.
Minjoon couldn’t imagine how devastated she felt, losing after believing she had found new hope through her brilliant performance. Yet she struggled on for a month, battling defeatism. She fought desperately to survive. Minjoon wanted to believe that.
What could he do now?
I have to be harsh on the participants.
Minjoon resolved this as he evaluated dishes. Though people said he spat harsh words, it wasn’t true. More accurate was that he restrained his temper. He often criticised dishes but rarely attacked chefs’ attitudes. Unless a chef presented a shockingly bad dish, like Nathan, or was foolish about basic skills, he didn’t cross the line.
Had he not known Gwen’s fate, he might have softened with her, fearing to hurt her. Yet no Grand Chef judge praised her lightly. Perhaps they felt she deserved respect for going cold turkey? But how could she not grow arrogant with constant praise and comfort from everyone—even the judges?
Maybe someone wanted to influence opinions so she could win. But Minjoon thought that pointless. Even if she won, there was no guarantee she wouldn’t fail later. If she crumbled under failure, winning or runner-up didn’t matter.
He had no desire to promote her to the champion. If he wanted, he’d treat all participants the same. His job was just to ensure the machinery worked smoothly.
“Well, I have some expectations for this contest,” he murmured.
Of course, Gwen was foremost in his mind.
And he intended to be tough on her.
“The theme for this mission is mackerel!” Joseph announced loudly.
At the same time, a large object covered with cloth was unveiled: a tank holding over a hundred mackerel. The fish opened and closed their mouths, and participants stared blankly, looking even duller than the fish.
“Man, I’m screwed!” someone groaned.
Kaya giggled, watching them with amusement; she found their reactions cute.
Judging by their expressions, she thought the theme was perfect.
Cooking fish at home was tough, with complicated processes. Most here had cooked fish only occasionally as a hobby.
They were in a worse position than Minjoon and Kaya had been. The question was whether they could remove the strong fishy smell from bluefish like mackerel.
They had one hour—far too short—to do everything: trim, cook, and plate.
Some participants already feared elimination, looking gloomy.
“Fish is a fundamental ingredient every chef should handle,” Minjoon said calmly.
“It’s no exaggeration to say cooking fish well determines your future here. If you can’t cook fish, you won’t survive later missions.”
He didn’t mean to encourage giving up, only to remind them of the reality and significance of the challenge ahead—to weed out those unqualified. After seeing the mackerel, many seemed to have realised if they were ready or not.
Of course, not all looked dismayed. Half appeared relaxed, as if they had some experience with fish. Whether they had ever killed and trimmed live fish was another question.