[42] - "Rival" Megumi Tadokoro (BONUS)

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"Alright. I'll stop by tomorrow night then—"

Terunori Kuga nodded and said he would attend the gathering, then left.

....

When Yuuki exited the Chandra's Room, the Polar Star residents were already waiting for him outside.

"Yuuki! Congratulations on defeating Terunori Kuga!"

The Polar Star residents immediately congratulated Yuuki upon seeing him.

"Thanks, everyone. You guys head back first. I need to talk to someone," Yuuki said, looking at the other side.

Over there stood a tall, slender young woman—Miyoko Hōjō, of course.

"Hōjō-san? Makes sense; you're both into Chūkaryōri, after all! And now Yuuki's the number one Chūkaryōri expert at Tōtsuki!"

Everyone wasn't surprised to see Miyoko Hōjō. They all knew Yuuki and Miyoko Hōjō were friends, both being Chūkaryōri specialists.

Moreover, Miyoko Hōjō was quite well-known among the first years, known as the " Iron Fire Dragon Girl."

With Yuuki now becoming Tōtsuki's top Chūkaryōri expert, Miyoko Hōjō couldn't possibly not have any reaction.

"Who's that girl?" Alice Nakiri asked, somewhat on guard.

Miyoko Hōjō was undeniably attractive.

Alice Nakiri had initially thought Megumi Tadokoro was her only competition—but after seeing Miyoko Hōjō, she felt like there was suddenly another rival...

Of course, in Alice Nakiri's view, her greatest rival was still Megumi Tadokoro—

After joining Polar Star and confirming her feelings for Yuuki, Alice learned a bit about Megumi Tadokoro. The more she learned, the more apprehensive she became.

At first glance, Megumi Tadokoro seemed harmless, but as Alice investigated further, she realized Megumi was the true threat—

Megumi Tadokoro had a gentle and demure personality—and while she no longer overly panicked while cooking, she still seemed like someone easy to bully.

And it was precisely this personality that was very easy to awaken a man's protective instincts.

Besides that, Megumi completely trusted Yuuki—she was the perfect image of a doting wife and caring mother.

If they were actually to settle down, Megumi was undoubtedly the most suitable choice.

After understanding all this, Alice Nakiri felt a sense of dread. Although she had the advantage of being the "newcomer," while it usually gave her an edge over the "childhood friend"—Megumi's strengths were things Alice couldn't compete with.

"Her name is Miyoko Hōjō. She also specializes in Chūkaryōri. Kuga invited her to join his Chūkaryōri RS before, but she refused. She gave the same reason as Yuuki."

"That's how they became friends—" Satoshi Isshiki explained. He was very clear about Terunori Kuga's attempts to recruit both of them.

"Alice, you have NO idea! Miyoko-san has ridiculous strength! She can leave a footprint on a wooden floor with a single kick!" Yoshino Yuki chimed in, adding to Alice Nakiri's knowledge of Miyoko Hōjō.

It had to be said, Miyoko Hōjō was really strong—even strong enough to be almost like a special ability.

Hearing this, Alice Nakiri was quite surprised. To think this girl wasn't just beautiful, but also incredibly strong...

"Congratulations, Yuuki! You actually beat Kuga! And you even snatched the President's position of the Chūkaryōri RS!"

Seeing Yuuki coming over, Miyoko Hōjō also offered her congratulations. She was feeling quite satisfied right now—after all, seeing that annoying Kuga getting his comeuppance was enjoyable.

She didn't deny Terunori Kuga's Culinary skills, but she did deny his philosophy, which was why, even though they interacted, she found Kuga rather irritating.

"I wasn't really interested in the position, but that guy's warped philosophy was leading too many people down the wrong path. It needed to be fixed."

"By the way, Hōjō, do you want to join the Chūkaryōri RS now?"

Since he met her, Yuuki naturally extended an invitation. After all, he didn't want to waste too much time on trivial matters.

Although Miyoko Hōjō's Culinary skills weren't the best, her understanding of Chūkaryōri was correct.

"OF COURSE! Especially with you as President."

Upon hearing Yuuki's invitation, Miyoko Hōjō agreed without a second thought. Joining such research societies had its perks—

Research societies could receive funds from Tōtsuki, and since the Chūkaryōri RS was one of the largest research societies, its resources were naturally even more abundant.

With these resources, Miyoko Hōjō could improve her Culinary skills faster.

The only reason she didn't join before was because of Kuga. Now, with Kuga out of the way, she was eager to join, and with her relationship with Yuuki and her Culinary skills, she could certainly achieve high status within the club.

Such a beneficial proposition—of course, she'd agree.

"You sure agreed to that quickly. Well then, welcome aboard!"

Yuuki said with a smile.

Assistant No. 1 was in place—now it depended on whether he could rope Kuga into becoming Assistant No. 2 tomorrow night.

"By the way, there's a celebration party tomorrow night at Polar Star. I'll make that Magical Mapo Tofu again. Are you coming?" Yuuki asked.

"You're going to make that dish again?! I'M IN!"

Miyoko Hōjō's eyes lit up upon hearing this. As for whether it was appropriate for an outsider like her to attend such a gathering—that wasn't an issue. Thanks to Yuuki, she knew the Polar Star residents.

She also knew that these people were welcoming and actually preferred a lively atmosphere. She would prepare some gifts as well.

....

With that, Miyoko Hōjō left, and Yuuki returned to Polar Star. Yuuki told everyone about the party tomorrow night.

The Polar Star residents naturally all agreed. They had initially wanted to hold it tonight, but it was already too late. Plus, there would be guests. So, changing it to tomorrow wasn't a problem.

Just like that, time flew by and the next day arrived. Everyone who needed to go to class went to class.

Yuuki continued honing his Culinary skills at Polar Star.

....

Around noon, Yuuki received a call from Alice Nakiri.

She called to ask if Yuuki could make room for two more guests tonight—Erina Nakiri and Hisako Arato, obviously.

Erina Nakiri, having learned about the party and that Yuuki would be making that dish, sought out Alice Nakiri. She was very curious about the taste of the dish that made her grandfather sing its praises.

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