"Since you've agreed, when should it happen? Are you going to the WGO headquarters first, or are you planning to deal with those Midnight Chefs?" Senzaemon Nakiri asked calmly.
"Let's head to the WGO headquarters first. It won't take long anyway. As for those Midnight Chefs, let them wait." Kael said, and the others nodded.
Even filtered through selection, the Midnight Chefs were still a pack of lunatics—letting them stew for a while would cool their arrogance nicely.
"In that case, I'll reply to Bunny Hair. Let's set the time for one week from now." Gin Dojima estimated the schedule.
"Perfect. A week is more than enough. And as for the theme—there won't be one this time." Kael continued.
Theme-less Shokugeki weren't rare in Japan; everyone specialized in different cuisines, so agreeing on a fixed theme often led nowhere.
In the end, a duel simply came down to whose dish tasted better. No theme meant it was fair to both sides.
After discussing the details, everyone dispersed. Tomorrow morning, Kael, Alice Nakiri, and Erina Nakiri would head to the WGO headquarters.
He didn't need to worry about travel or lodging—the Nakiri family handled everything. All Kael needed was a change of clothes.
Soon, Kael and Alice returned to the Polar Star Dormitory. The moment they stepped inside, Yuki Yoshino and the others rushed over, curious why Kael had been summoned so suddenly.
They wouldn't pry if he didn't want to say, but they were dying to know.
"Tomorrow morning, Alice and I are heading to the WGO headquarters. Erina Nakiri will be coming along too." Kael explained.
If Erina was going, then Arato Hisako would naturally accompany her. As for Sadatsuka Nao, that was uncertain—she was basically Hisako's shadow.
"To the WGO headquarters? What for? And why are Alice and Erina-san going with you?"
Everyone stared wide-eyed.
"It's for the Eight-Star Chef assessment. Things have gotten loud recently, so the WGO invited me to take the Eight-Star test." Kael said lightly.
"As for Alice, she's just tagging along for fun. Erina-san is going to see her mother."
Everyone fell silent for a moment, then nodded in understanding. Of course they knew who Mana Nakiri was—and thanks to Alice's storytelling, they also knew what had happened between mother and daughter.
Knowing Erina would finally meet her mother again, they were genuinely happy for her.
Erina's visits to the Polar Star Dormitory had never come with arrogance or a superior attitude. Combined with her painful past, everyone felt sympathetic toward her.
As for Alice… well, they weren't blind. They all knew she'd been chasing Kael nonstop, with Megumi Tadokoro being her main rival.
But poor Megumi couldn't go this time—Autumn Elections were over, but classes continued, and Training Camp would begin in a little over a week.
"Kael, how long will you be gone? Training Camp starts soon."
Isshiki reminded him.
"Don't worry. We'll only be gone a few days. We'll definitely be back within a week—after all, I still have a Shokugeki to fight when we return." Kael smiled.
"A Shokugeki? With who?" Everyone looked confused. Kael had been acknowledged as an Eight-Star Chef by both Senzaemon and Gin Dojima.
To challenge him, you'd need to be at least Seven or Eight-Star yourself. Among students, the strongest barely hit Five-Star.
No one actually believed a student was dumb enough to throw themselves at Kael.
"You know the Midnight Chefs, right? News of my Eight-Star level spread, and they took notice. A group of them has already arrived in Japan. I accepted a Shokugeki from one of them. Once I return, I'll probably have to fight several in a row." Kael summarized.
"Midnight Chefs? Those troublesome guys again… but doesn't that mean you won't be able to join the Training Camp evaluation?" Yuki Yoshino frowned.
"That won't be an issue. Kael doesn't need the Training Camp at all." Isshiki said.
"Huh? Why?" Soma Yukihira asked.
"It's simple. Training Camp is about producing visible results in one week. For Kael, that's effortless." Isshiki explained.
Training Camp was essentially a trial in restaurant management. Every place students were assigned to had problems—some were nearly bankrupt, some had internal issues—and Totsuki spent months screening appropriate establishments.
For students, these were huge barriers requiring creativity and teamwork. But for Kael Solvable with one hand.
Take Soma and Hisako's station restaurant as an example: the short stop times made it impossible to serve customers quickly—an issue Soma solved by switching to reservations.
But that only worked if the restaurant had loyal clientele.
Kael would take a more direct approach—throw out the entire menu, create a secret recipe, and serve simple snacks that could be prepped in bulk.
With his skill, they'd sell out instantly. Problem solved. Business thriving.
For Kael, these so-called "challenges" might as well not exist.
After hearing Isshiki's reasoning, everyone agreed. Training Camp was tough, but manageable. And if they could handle it, Kael definitely could.
Honestly, he could graduate now if he wanted—an Eight-Star Chef didn't need Totsuki's diploma. If anything, Totsuki's prestige benefitted from Kael, not the other way around.
That night, the dorm held a celebratory feast. With Autumn Elections over and the Polar Star Dormitory earning glory again, everyone was in high spirits.
The next morning, Kael packed his things and boarded the car Totsuki sent with Alice.
"Good morning, Kael-kun, Alice." Once inside, they found Erina and Hisako already seated. Nao wasn't brought along this time.
Hisako was quite satisfied with Nao overall—aside from being… a bit of a creep, she was obedient and efficient, saving Hisako a lot of time and letting her focus on Erina and her own cooking.
"Good morning, Erina-san. Hisako-san." Kael greeted, and Alice followed.
She'd originally planned to tease Erina, but the moment she saw Erina's expression, she behaved.
The Erina in front of them had none of her usual Ice Queen aura. Instead, she was all worry, unease, and nervousness—her face practically broadcasting her emotions.
Both Kael and Alice knew exactly what state she was in.
Alice always wanted to surpass Erina in everything, but seeing Erina like this, even she couldn't bring herself to joke.
"Don't worry, Erina. You're going because Aunt Mana asked you to come. That alone means she wants to see you. And remember, you weren't the one who did anything wrong here."
Alice said gently.
"I know that, but…" Erina lowered her gaze.
Knowing was one thing; feeling it was another. Parents and children naturally had distance between them. No matter who was right or wrong, facing a parent could make a child shrink back.
Even if Erina had every reason to confront her mother, that didn't change the instinctive pressure of family—the unspoken looks, the tiny expressions that could shut a child down instantly.
"Do we have a deck of cards? Let's play something and distract ourselves." Kael suggested.
"I have one!" Hisako's eyes lit up.
She'd been struggling to comfort Erina the whole time, and Kael's idea was perfect. After all, Erina's two favorite pastimes—secret ones—were shoujo manga and poker.
"Erina, why are you hesitating? Isn't poker the thing you're best at?" Alice teased lightly.
"Huh? How did you know?" Erina blinked, completely stunned. She thought she had hidden that flawlessly.
"I literally watched your secretary bring you shoujo manga and poker cards for months. Do you think I'm blind?" Alice rolled her eyes.
Hisako was discreet, but repetition made it obvious—especially since Alice watched Erina constantly.
Erina's face turned bright red. Her carefully hidden little hobby had been exposed—and apparently Alice had known for a long time. The embarrassment made her curl up internally.
"Relax. Everyone has their own hobbies. I read novels and play games when I'm off." Kael said.
He understood why Erina felt embarrassed—her public image was that of an aloof, flawless prodigy, but she secretly liked shoujo manga and casual games.
It was like imagining a CEO sneaking off to grind mobile games. The contrast alone was enough to fluster anyone.
Under Kael's gentle push, Erina joined the game. The four of them played proper poker in their seats, and slowly, Erina's tension eased.
When they reached the airport, they boarded a private jet—nothing surprising given the Nakiri family's wealth.
Since there were attendants on board, they put away the cards and switched to chatting and discussing cooking techniques as they traveled toward the WGO headquarters.