3rd Round (7)

Chapter 91: Episode 37 - 3rd Round (7)

Michiko Keiko and the rest of her team had worked on cleaning up their booth. After they'd sold out in under 35 minutes, the competition was still going on as the other teams had 4 hours left for the day. The plaza was still lively and busy as people of all ages wandered around to different booths to have a taste of the prestigious students' desserts. Most people had come for the sole purpose of trying out Team Michiko's unique Pumpkin Cake or Team Tennouji's famous Egg Tart. After realizing that the popular teams they'd come to the plaza for had already sold out their dishes for the day, the customers were a bit disappointed but looked forward to getting there quicker the next day. Regardless, they still enjoyed the fair and bought other teams' dishes.

As Team Michiko was cleaning up their booths—a tall man dressed in a white tuxedo with a white hat that covered his bright blonde hair and face—stood in the middle of the plaza, staring at the team's Pumpkin Cake shop from afar with an older looking man dressed as a warlock with a mustache and glasses. Just the aura they gave off was to be feared and some people looked at the duo with curious eyes. As the two men stood from afar as onlookers, no one suspected their identities.

"The Halloween Fair this year is pretty hyped up. To incorporate the 3rd round into it, it's a very daring thing, Chairman Moriyama," the handsome blonde-haired man spoke to the older man next to him.

They looked at all of the activities occurring during the fair and not just the 3rd round which played a part in it. They could see couples, the elderly, students, and families enjoying the Halloween fair at St. Marie Academy.

"Ah, yes. The school board and I decided that it would help publicize the students to gain more popularity by helping them get the first-hand experience in selling their desserts to the masses if they were to open their own shop someday," Chairman Moriyama explained to the young tall man.

"I can see that Michiko Keiko's team is doing extremely well, matching up with Tennouji Mari's team who are 3rd years in high school," the blonde white man noticed as both shops were sold out.

"It's amazing, isn't it? Michiko Keiko's team is only in its 2nd year, but they've gathered such a large number of support and popularity from the public; Not only are there students, but the locals here as well. I assume that most of them had watched the broadcasting on television and decided to come here to try out their dessert," Chairman Moriyama explained in amusement. "If we consider how long Michiko Keiko has been here, she's been gathering a large following in just a few months of her transfer. At this rate, she may be as popular, if not even more popular than your student, Tennouji Mari—Presently or in the future."

"Well, I'm not surprised," the man in white said nonchalantly with a small grin on his face.

"What do you mean?" The chairman asked him.

"Right after we judged her and accepted her into the academy, I immediately checked her student profile because a thought lingered on my mind after watching her bake with that amount of speed and precision. She reminded me of someone so I was curious," the man explained.

"Who did she remind you of?" Chairman Moriyama questioned.

The blonde-haired man dressed in white with a hat obscuring his face turned to look at the chairman dressed as a warlock.

"Doesn't she remind you of someone?" The man asked sternly.

"Ah, well now that I think about it, as I saw her work and techniques, I guess you could say that she reminded me of someone but I put that thought in the back of my head," the chairman expressed, putting his hand thoughtfully on his chin and stroking his mustache. "I thought it couldn't be 'her' so I just concluded that that girl is naturally talented."

"But what I've found out from her student report was that she never expressed any interest in baking. Michiko Keiko was described as a "quiet and studious student" but she'd never joined any cooking clubs at her previous school," the man said to the chairman.

"And you're saying?" Chairman Moriyama raised his eyebrow.

"Her father and stepmother had claimed that Michiko Keiko hadn't baked in 6 years yet she decided to do the entrance exam and enter this challenging school with a high level of skill that we both observed. That's not something someone can just not do for years and master perfectly 6 years later. Does that not sound strange to you?" The man in white pondered seriously.

"It does sound strange but we've been told by her parents that she'd practiced for the entrance exam and that it was her dream to become a patissier," Chairman Moriyama responded.

"Yes, but you and I both know that her skills and techniques cannot be undermined as just a girl with a raw skill who could quickly pick up on baking at that level—What I'm saying is that she must've had someone that taught her those techniques professionally at a young age."

"Hmm, there could've been someone that taught her, but what are you getting at? What does this have to do with her student report?" Chairman Moriyama pondered but he was still confused by the man's words.

"Once I looked at the student report, I noticed that her biological mother's name was still on the report. If you can recall, her mother was said to have passed 6 years ago and I could only come to this one conclusion after suspecting her skills and appearance—Michiko Keiko… is the daughter of the world-famous Ella Fournier." The man in white was deadly serious and the chairman was at a loss for words.

"T-That can't be! Ella Fournier died but she never had a child!" The chairman exclaimed in disbelief.

"Many people may not know, but as Ella Fournier was teaching me at the St. Marie Academy branch in France, she resigned as an instructor at the age of 22 to get married to a Japanese man who was a prosecutor," the man explained. "At that time, they could have conceived a child and hid her child's existence for whatever reason."

"But that doesn't mean that Michiko Keiko is Ella Fournier's child!" Chairman Moriyama said in disbelief.

"As I saw in that student report, Michiko Keiko's mother's name was written as "Ella F.". If that doesn't give it away, then the fact that she looks almost identical to her late mother may."

"U-Unbelievable!" The chairman was now officially distraught at this news. After making those connections, it was hard to believe that that was not the case. "E-Ella Fournier had a daughter? Then why is she hiding her identity?"

"We're in no place to assume why she's hiding her identity as Ella Fournier's daughter, but I know that that student report had officially confirmed my suspicions," the man in white said.

"You're right. We've already breached her privacy of discovering her hidden secret, but all of that is her personal business. We have no right to interfere on her personal matters."

"I am aware, but Ella Fournier's death is the thing that's bugging me," the man in white expressed.

"But didn't Ella Fournier die because of a traffic accident 6 years ago?"