"That surprised you? This isn't even Kael's full strength. He can haul a few hundred kilos through a forest like it's nothing."
Alice kept bragging about Kael, sounding like a proud wife boasting about her husband's abilities.
Everyone had gone numb by then; no one expected Kael to be that terrifying.
The conversation about Kael soon wound down and turned to other people—naturally including Soma Yukihira, who grated on Erina Nakiri's nerves.
But when they learned that Soma's father was none other than Saiba Jōichirō—the very man who had taught her in the past—Erina froze in confusion.
"What's wrong with her? She was fine a second ago."
Soma asked, puzzled. Why had Erina changed the moment she heard who his father was?
"It's because of something from before. After Erina's parents left, her grandfather invited Saiba Jōichirō to teach her for a while. After that, Joichiro-senpai became Erina's idol."
Although Alice and Erina didn't get along, Alice knew a lot about her cousin—there were even photos of Jōichirō in the Nakiri household.
"I see. So that's why Erina acted like that before!"
Everyone finally understood, and right then Erina snapped back to herself—only to want to crawl into a hole and disappear.
People see others through filters—Erina had always viewed Soma with a tint of dislike because of how he'd provoked her before. Whatever he did, she refused to think well of him.
But that filter had been shattered. This was the son of her idol—the product of her idol's teachings—so rejecting Soma would be tantamount to rejecting Saiba Jōichirō himself.
Once that hit her, the resentment evaporated. That didn't mean she now idolized Soma; without the shared history from the original story, she still wouldn't be overly favorable. At best, her feelings toward him shifted from disdain to treating him like any ordinary person.
Time passed quickly, and the atmosphere of the Polar Star Dormitory slowly drew everyone in—even Erina Nakiri. Especially because the ever-friendly Yuki Yoshino immediately latched onto her without hesitation.
The whole thing felt foreign to Erina. Usually, people tried desperately to flatter her, curry favor, cling to her status.
No one here cared about any of that. Not just Yuki—everyone in the dorm was like that.
For the first time, Erina felt like she wasn't the Nakiri heiress… just another person.
"So? Not bad, right? You've never experienced anything like the Polar Star atmosphere before!" As Erina softened up, Alice slipped over. She'd been watching Erina's reactions the whole time.
This time, Erina was surrounded by peers. Shiomi Jun and Daimido Fumio might be adults, but they had zero 'elder authority' energy. Everyone was relaxed, so Erina naturally loosened up too.
"I finally understand why you chose to live here. It isn't just because of Kael… the atmosphere here is amazing."
Erina had no choice but to admit it. She genuinely liked being here, and her ice-queen persona was beginning to melt.
"If you like it, why not move in? Everyone in the Polar Star Dormitory would welcome you."
Alice genuinely cared about Erina. When they were kids, Erina stole her toys and criticized her cooking, sure, but Alice was still the older cousin—of course she worried about her.
She could see how much Erina enjoyed this environment. Maybe living here long-term could soften her harsh mindset and heal some of the wounds she carried.
"I… I'll think about it."
Erina almost said yes right away. But remembering the 'persona' she'd maintained these years, she hesitated.
She believed she would one day shoulder the Nakiri family. If she grew too soft, it might hurt the family's future.
Her best example was her grandfather, Senzaemon. He seemed kind, but he was known as the Food Demon King. No gentle leader could keep the culinary world in line. That fearsome authority was partly an act—one Erina tried to imitate.
But her imitation wasn't nearly as good. She worried that if she stayed in this warm atmosphere, she wouldn't be able to keep up the act. And if that mask slipped… others might see her as easy to push around.
Even though Senzaemon was still around, the Nakiri family's future would eventually fall to her and Alice. Erina didn't want to flounder when the time came.
Seeing her hesitation, Alice didn't push further. Too much persuasion would only backfire.
The party lasted until three in the morning. It was so late that no one went home—they all stayed in the Polar Star Dormitory for the night. With how well-stocked the dorm was, even Fumio Daimido didn't object.
Even though everyone slept late, they were up early to help Isshiki Satoshi today.
Staying up wasn't a big deal—most young people were night owls anyway.
This time, the group included Kael, Megumi Tadokoro, Alice, and—after getting curious—Erina Nakiri. Naturally, her aide Hisako Arato followed, and as her subordinate, Ikumi Mito insisted on coming too. Which meant Sadatsuka Nao tagged along as well.
More wanted to join, but Isshiki stopped them. Too many people would overwhelm the kids. Seven was more than enough.
Shiomi Jun and the others headed off to meet Senzaemon instead—talks like that required the Director himself.
"You're all here? Good, let's head out."
Isshiki, already waiting downstairs, greeted them.
"Wait—who are you, handsome guy?"
Ikumi Mito stared hard at him. And honestly? Everyone else had the same thought.
Gone was last night's questionable apron look. Isshiki now wore a tailored suit, holding a briefcase—he looked like a polished young executive.
He was already a very handsome man. Without his usual… eccentricity, he easily reached 'dream guy' levels.
"I just changed clothes. No need to act so shocked," Isshiki laughed.
"Changed clothes? This is like changing whole identities!" Alice groaned, then glanced at Kael. She suddenly wondered how Kael would look in a suit. With his looks and the body he'd built through medicinal baths, he might look dangerously good.
After some teasing, they departed. With two Nakiri heiresses present, they didn't need taxis—chauffeured cars were already waiting.
"Must be nice. No receipts, no hassle. I wish I had a private driver," Isshiki joked as he stepped out of the car.
"With your skill, it wouldn't be hard," Erina said. "Sendawara Orie from Haubi Foods has invited you more than once, remember? If you agreed, the company would gladly assign you a car and driver."
Isshiki shivered. He was afraid of Orie—her charm was overwhelming. And he didn't believe she liked him. She liked his talent. He wasn't ready to sell himself off that easily.
That was life: the talented get courted, while everyone else fights to get in the door.
"Alright, the kids are yours. I'm going to teach the aunties next door."
He led them to two connected classrooms—one full of rowdy little kids, the other full of middle-aged women.
The moment Isshiki entered the second room, the aunties swarmed him like he was a celebrity.
"Isshiki-senpai really is popular…"
"With that outfit, he's deadlier than any weapon to these middle-aged women.," Kael remarked—women liked handsome men just as much as men liked beautiful women,
"True… but what do we do? These kids clearly don't want to learn anything."
The classroom was chaos. Kids ran in every direction. Their parents had signed them up, of course—because in this world, being a chef was the ultimate career. Parents didn't care whether the kids actually liked cooking.
It was just like those forced 'interest classes' from Kael's previous life. Kids would much rather stay home and play.
"Easy. Just give them something they like."
Kael pulled out his Seven-Star Knives. A flash of blade light later, the carrots on the table transformed into toys—giant robots, monsters, flashy weapons for the boys; cute animals and anime characters for the girls.
Immediately, the children froze, mesmerized.
" Onii-san, you're amazing! You can turn carrots into toys! Even our teacher can't do that!"
Wide-eyed, they crowded around him. Kael quickly put his knives away—those blades were too sharp for kids. One slip and a finger could go flying.
"Good grief. He even knows how to handle kids."
Watching nearly the entire class gather around Kael, the group felt speechless. They had spent all their time training, not learning how to wrangle hyperactive children.
"Not all of them." Hisako pointed.
One girl sat alone, playing on her phone, completely uninterested. She seemed more mature than the others—maybe that was why the carrot toys didn't impress her.
"I'll talk to her," Alice said.
But after a few minutes, Alice trudged back in defeat.
"No good. She won't even look at me. She said her family has chefs, so she doesn't need to cook. She's definitely from a wealthy household."
Alice sighed. Honestly, the girl's mindset wasn't wrong. In this world, chefs had incredibly high status, but that didn't mean every career was meaningless. Not wanting to be a chef was perfectly valid.
Her parents… probably didn't agree.
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