Chapter 599: Two Sides of the Same Coin (2)
Chapter 599: Two Sides of the Same Coin (2)
Gwen’s eyes sparkled. She had already burned her bridges behind her and faced only a sheer cliff. She thought she could barely breathe after clambering up, but if forced to retreat, she would only have to throw herself off. She had no choice but to win—by any means necessary.
Hugo felt the same, though for different reasons. While staying at the Grand Chef House, he constantly heard others praise Minjoon and Kaya. It was natural – their achievements far surpassed merely winning the competition, dazzling those whose goal was the trophy itself. He wanted to be successful enough to congratulate them on their accomplishments, but the reality left him feeling shabby and jealous.
Bitterly, he muttered, “I don’t want to be jealous of you, guys.”
He had to win for himself — to rise above jealousy and preserve his pride and friendships.
Ironically, on the day Minjoon announced two would be eliminated, Hugo learned he was one of them, just after cooking for an hour.
There’s a saying: even monkeys fall from trees. It means even the best can stumble if they grow complacent. Most people know this only superficially.
At this moment, Minjoon found another meaning. The monkey fell. Perhaps it sank into a lake or stumbled while running. Such things go unremarked because they’re no surprise.
People don’t expect monkeys to swim or be great runners. Like monkeys, humans can fall despite vigilance. But this was different because the monkey’s skill was climbing trees. Just as a bird is expected to fly, a monkey is expected to climb.
Yet the unexpected happened. The monkey believed he could climb well enough to occasionally fall.
Monkeys tend to lower their guard only while climbing, so the tree itself can cause their undoing.
Hugo’s confidence lay in Mediterranean cuisine.
The theme of the cooking challenge was 10 worth of ingredients?
He chose paella, a classic Spanish dish.
Minjoon had often tasted Hugo’s paella and knew it balanced seafood and meat flavours with the subtle saffron base.
The recipe: fluff rice in water; fry dried rice with garlic and red pepper powder in olive oil; add spices like saffron, basil, and bay leaves; boil briefly; then fry pre-seasoned seafood or meat with vegetables.
Though easy to explain, it’s time-consuming and tricky to prep well—making it for one person is particularly difficult.
Even this was a challenge now.
Hugo intended to add five ingredients: beef, chicken, mussels, squid, and shrimp. Typically, paella features seafood or meat, but mixing is common.
The problem? Hugo marinated each with different spices.
Even Minjoon saw the challenge. Hundreds of failures would likely precede perfect harmony. While Minjoon had a system verifying cooking by recipe, Hugo didn’t.
Still, Hugo wasn’t reckless. He’d calculated how to balance and roast all five together to bring out their best flavours.
He trusted his math. But trouble didn’t stem from his calculations.
It was a basic mistake.
Busy preparing and frying, near the end he realised he’d mismanaged the heat while boiling ingredients down. Only when the burnt smell hit did he notice.
Because of paella’s nature, the burnt flavour spread throughout. Removing burnt parts wouldn’t save the dish.
The burn wasn’t bad enough to make judges refuse tasting, but enough to ruin balance.
Hugo’s expression hardened instantly. Knowing the ruin, he stopped attempting a remake. He hadn’t prepared backup ingredients.
He knew he was finished.
Faced with a dilemma, he debated quitting or continuing. Either choice felt irresponsible. If this were his restaurant, he’d trash the dish and remake it, accepting delays over serving ruin.
But here, time was limited.
Driven by inertia, he finished and plated the dish. When called to present, he couldn’t will himself forward.
“Hugo, please come up with your dish,” Minjoon’s low voice urged.
He understood why Hugo hesitated but couldn’t leave him lingering. Reluctantly, Hugo stepped forward.
As a participant, he had to obey judges. Even with a flawed dish, he might explain and still enter finals.
Only then did Hugo realise he was a chef, not just a contestant.
He threw the burnt paella into the trash. A suppressed groan echoed. The nearby cameraman was startled; even Martin looked stunned.
Hugo clasped hands and bowed.
“I’m sorry. This isn’t a dish I can serve.”
The judges were silent. This was Hugo’s last shred of pride. He couldn’t offer the dish even he wouldn’t eat. Even if eliminated, he needed to survive as a chef. He hadn’t come merely to outlast others at Grand Chef; he’d come to prove to the judges—including Minjoon—that he was a true professional.