[88] - Freeloaders Gather at Polar Star (BONUS)
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"Mom!"
While others were praising Yuuki, Alice Nakiri, standing behind Leonora Nakiri, whispered.
Hearing this, Leonora naturally understood Alice's meaning. Seeing that no one around was paying attention to them, she quickly picked up a slice of fish and put it into Alice's mouth.
The speed was so fast that no one else reacted; only a very few people noticed.
Yuuki, watching this, was a little speechless. Clearly, both mother and daughter were quite proficient at this maneuver.
"Delicious. And this domineering Culinary Heart... should I say, as expected of Yuuki?"
Feeling this Culinary Heart, Alice Nakiri admired Yuuki even more. Yuuki's Culinary Heart had truly broadened her horizons.
....
The final result, without a doubt, was Yuuki winning the championship, even getting a gold medal in the process. This gold medal actually contained real gold inside.
It had to be said, the Nakiri family was truly loaded.
Although the entire gold medal wasn't made of pure gold, its value was still considerable. After all, Tōtsuki only held the Autumn Elections once a year, and only one person could get this gold medal.
With the final award ceremony concluding, the Autumn Elections officially ended.
This Autumn Election had practically become Yuuki's personal stage. Although the other Polar Star residents were also outstanding, they couldn't compare to Yuuki.
People would only remember the champion.
As for the others, they wouldn't leave much of an impression. Of course, this was only the students' first exposure to the wider world; there would be plenty of such opportunities in the future.
"Hurry up, you guys! We HAVE to celebrate properly tonight!" Yoshino Yuki urged everyone to return to the dorm.
They had already decided to celebrate the results of the Autumn Elections that night.
....
"Yuuki, wait up!"
Just as everyone was about to head back to Polar Star, a voice called out.
Turning around, they saw Gin Dojima.
"D-Dojima-senpai?!"
Seeing it was Gin Dojima, everyone was a little surprised.
"Good to see you all again! You're all from Polar Star, right? Perfect, let's go back together. I haven't been back to Polar Star in a while!" Gin Dojima said with a smile.
He also came from Polar Star.
Having recently heard from Yuuki that Jōichirō had visited, Dojima also decided to find some time to visit.
This current opportunity was perfect.
Gin Dojima usually had a lot of work, being the manager of Tōtsuki Resort, so finding the time to come back and visit was quite difficult.
"Dojima-senpai is also going back to Polar Star? AWESOME!"
Hearing this, everyone was quite happy. After all, Gin Dojima was a senior to Yuuki. Although not blood-related, they knew Dojima looked after Yuuki quite well.
Moreover, Gin Dojima was a Polar Star alumnus, even after graduating.
At this moment, Alice Nakiri, along with Leonora Nakiri, Senzaemon Nakiri, Erina Nakiri, and Hisako Arato, also walked over.
"Yuuki~ Can I bring a few more people to tonight's party~?"
Alice Nakiri widened her eyes and spoke to Yuuki in a cutesy, almost childish, voice—this tone made Yuuki shiver involuntarily.
"I don't mind, but it depends on what everyone else thinks."
Yuuki looked at the other Polar Star residents. Hearing this, they all nodded immediately.
Besides Hisako Arato, those Alice wanted to bring along were all Nakiris.
They knew very well that the reason Yuuki was asking them was out of respect for their opinion, but they were at Tōtsuki now, the Nakiri family's turf! And those people were Alice's relatives!
How could they possibly disagree?
So they collectively agreed.
Thus, Polar Star's party gained a few freeloaders—
And everyone even got to ride in the private car provided by these VIPs back to Polar Star, no walking needed. Walking from here back to Polar Star would also take some time.
However, while in the car, Yuuki received a call from Satoshi Isshiki—
—and after hearing what Isshiki had to say, Yuuki fell silent.
At this time, Satoshi Isshiki hadn't joined them, not because he had stuff to deal with, but because he had been cornered by the other Elite Ten members when he returned backstage.
These people were shamelessly trying to invite themselves over.
Yuuki didn't even need to think to know their true intentions—
The Autumn Elections had just ended, and the top three were all from Polar Star, so Polar Star would definitely have a celebratory banquet.
This also meant they would have the opportunity to eat Yuuki's cooking!
Precisely because of this, these people shamelessly mobbed Satoshi Isshiki, trying to get through to Yuuki via him. Completely unable to refuse them or escape, Isshiki could only call Yuuki.
"Whatever. There are already quite a few guests coming; might as well have them all come at once..."
In the end, Yuuki didn't refuse.
These guys had done this more than once already. Polar Star had received a mountain of gifts recently. He would be making those dishes tonight anyway. It didn't really matter if it was a little more or a little less food.
If you're going to herd a sheep, might as well herd the whole flock, right? In that case, it was better to have them all come.
Hearing Yuuki's reply, Satoshi Isshiki breathed a sigh of relief. While Yuuki wouldn't have blamed him if Yuuki had refused, them being allowed in was obviously the better outcome.
"Alright, everyone! Yuuki said yes! Now, please, get out of my way..." Satoshi Isshiki looked at the people surrounding him, rather exasperated.
"REALLY? That's GREAT! I'll send people over with gifts right now!"
Hearing this, the Elite Ten members quickly sprung into action, packing all sorts of gifts and sending their underlings rushing towards Polar Star.
....
Yuuki, after hanging up Isshiki's call, called someone else—Miyoko Hōjō, of course, his number one assistant.
Having Miyoko Hōjō manage the Chūkaryōri RS for him really was worry-free. So, he called this capable subordinate over.
....
"Gin! Long time no see!"
Fumio Daimidō, having already received a call beforehand, was prepared. After all, among the people coming this time was Senzaemon Nakiri himself; she naturally had to be more careful and respectful.
Although Polar Star did have an independent budget system at Tōtsuki, and the school couldn't really interfere with them, they did have ways of setting rules. The Polar Star Dormitory in the original story was almost demolished by Etsuya Eizan.
"It's been a while, Fumio-san!"
Gin Dojima smiled after seeing Fumio Daimidō and gave her the gift he had brought.
"As expected of you, Gin! Always bringing gifts. Unlike that brat Jōichirō—only coming back ONCE after all these years—and empty-handed at that!" Fumio Daimidō couldn't help but complain about Jōichirō.
Actually, she didn't particularly care about the gift itself. She was merely complaining that he didn't visit often.
"HAHAHA! If he actually brought a gift, I'd think it wasn't him!" Hearing Fumio Daimidō's complaints, Gin Dojima laughed out loud.
Based on his understanding of Jōichirō, it was impossible for that guy to bring a gift. If he didn't take anything from Polar Star, it would already be commendable.
"Right. If he brought gifts, it wouldn't be him. Have a seat." Fumio Daimidō said with a smile.
After getting the call, she had brought quite a few chairs out from the storage room—after all, there were so many more people coming.
Three Nakiris, Hisako Arato, and Gin Dojima—that was five people.
Besides them, the other Elite Ten members, and Miyoko Hōjō, whom Yuuki had called.
Combined with the Polar Star residents, that was several dozen people. Without preparing extra chairs, there wouldn't be enough seats.
"By the way, Gin, I called Jun earlier; she'll be here soon. That child too—living right here in the school, yet she hardly ever comes to visit this old woman!" Fumio Daimidō complained again.
Knowing Dojima was returning, and with so many guests, she also called Jun Shiomi.
"Jun, huh? You know her personality. I reckon besides classes, she's probably cooped up in her place researching spices all day long," Gin Dojima said with a smile.
Jun Shiomi was a serious Spice fanatic; once she began researching, even ten oxen couldn't pull her away. So, her not visiting Polar Star wasn't surprising.
....
Greeted by the Polar Star residents, the guests all quickly took their seats. The Polar Star residents then went into the kitchen—
Although the main dishes would be prepared by Yuuki, they couldn't just do nothing. They planned to help out and make some of their specialties to entertain the guests.
"Erina, Hisako, go help out too." Senzaemon said, asking Erina and Hisako to help.
This was partly to build a closer relationship and partly because while the elders could sit and relax, the younger generation still had to show some effort and help out.
Hearing this, Erina Nakiri, without another word, led Hisako Arato to the kitchen.
Although the Polar Star residents repeatedly said there was no need for their guests to help, Erina Nakiri's mindset had already been somewhat changed by Yuuki's dishes. Plus, with her grandfather's words, she still chose to stay.
This also surprised Alice Nakiri a bit. After all, based on her understanding, Erina was a super tsundere.
If her offer to help was rejected, considering Erina's usual personality, she would definitely have left.
But now, this cousin had actually stayed with a thick face, which quite surprised Alice.
However, she didn't care much about it and continued with her preparations.
....
The other guests also soon arrived at Polar Star.
Quite a few intended to help out in the kitchen, but because there were too many people, in the end, all guests were shooed out.
Polar Star was now even livelier than in the original story. However, a few people weren't here: Takumi and Isami Aldini, and Ikumi Mito.
Originally, these people should have had some connection to Polar Star because of Soma Yukihira and thus been invited over. But now, with Yuuki's presence, their connections with Soma had diminished, and naturally, no one invited them over.
"It's really lively! Ever since the Golden Age, fewer and fewer people stayed at Polar Star. It's been a while since there were so many guests!" Fumio Daimidō said, observing the situation in the kitchen.
"Isn't that because your standards were too high? Otherwise, Polar Star wouldn't have been short of students." Gin Dojima said, somewhat amused.
He was naturally also very clear about Fumio Daimidō's operations all these years.
"Polar Star was painstakingly established by you all! Those without skills couldn't casually enter—that would have ruined Polar Star's reputation!"
"And it's proven that this old woman's decision was completely correct. This generation will become a new era, surpassing even your Golden Age!" Fumio Daimidō said with a smile.
The Golden Age was no longer her ultimate goal.
Now, reviving the glory of the Golden Age was a certainty. What she aimed for now were even greater achievements.
"This generation truly IS very strong. Even without Yuuki, they're still exceptional." Gin Dojima nodded.
This generation was the Jewel Generation. For this generation, the Nakiri family had invested considerable effort. So, the high quality of this generation was inevitable.
And within them, there was an unparalleled Yuuki. The worth of this generation, Gin Dojima felt, was probably unprecedented and likely never to be seen again.
"Fumio-san, can you tell me about Alice's situation here?" Leonora Nakiri then asked about her daughter.
Senzaemon Nakiri and Gin Dojima were also chatting, which made another group of people feel rather awkward...
This group was the Elite Ten.
Because the kitchen couldn't accommodate so many people, they had been kicked out.
Now, sitting with these VIPs, they were more or less somewhat reserved.
Although they were Elite Ten members, their so-called "Elite Ten" status meant nothing in front of these prominent figures.
After all, after they left school, the Elite Ten halo would be gone; their authority would naturally also vanish.
So, saying they weren't feeling any pressure would be a lie.
But they couldn't just leave either, so they could only chat quietly at the side.
Among these people, the most uncomfortable was undoubtedly Miyoko Hōjō.
Everyone here was a big shot to her, and she was also someone who couldn't help out in the kitchen.
Sitting alone at the side, she felt like a stray dog who had wandered into a wolf pack.
Although Miyoko Hōjō's Culinary skills were pretty good, she was currently only an Intermediate Chef.
Everyone else here, besides her, were at least Senior Chefs...
After a while, as everyone finished cooking, this awkward atmosphere was finally broken. Miyoko Hōjō secretly made up her mind: when receiving such invitations in the future, she'd absolutely ask clearly what was going on.
If there were such important people again, she definitely wouldn't come, not even for Yuuki's cooking.
On Yuuki's side, he remade all the dishes from his recent competitions, ensuring there was enough for everyone to eat. After that, he didn't make any other dishes but left the rest to the other Polar Star residents.
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