"Yes, Kael-sam!"
The moment Kael agreed, Bunnyhair lit up with joy. She jumped to her feet and moved right behind him like a perfectly trained assistant.
"You don't need to be that fast. Go pack your things first."
Seeing her glued to his back already, Kael sighed lightly. Bunnyhair didn't say a word—she immediately went to gather her belongings.
Her absolute obedience made the other Midnight Chefs grit their teeth.
And they were mad for one reason: Bunnyhair wasn't just strong—she was gorgeous.
Among the younger generation of Midnight Chefs, the two most beautiful women were Bunnyhair the Rampaging Queen and Sarge.
They were the two untouchable goddesses of the Midnight Chefs… and now one of them had been taken away by Kael. Worse, it was a goddess who basically gave herself away for free.
Of course they were furious, but what could they do? Bunnyhair herself lost to Kael. If she couldn't win, none of them had any chance.
As for trying to assassinate him? Absolutely not.
Midnight Chefs always paid attention to the disappearances of those who tried. Everyone who attempted to come to Japan to cause trouble for Kael was stopped by WGO before even arriving—either arrested or outright killed.
The number who escaped intact could be counted on one hand.
Even the few lucky enough to reach Japanese soil were promptly dealt with by the Nakiri family.
So right now no one in the Midnight Chefs dared to target Kael in secret. Not unless they had a death wish.
And even if someone succeeded, what then? The moment the truth came out, they'd be hunted by both the Nakiri family and the WGO. Not many could survive that kind of retaliation.
In short: anyone who tried to play dirty with Kael died miserably. The only way to beat him was a head-on Shokugeki.
Or wait until Kael eventually left Japan—because out there, the Midnight Chefs ruled. But who knew how long that wait would be?
Still, not everyone cared about losing Bunnyhair. Many had their eyes fixed squarely on Kael instead.
Kael had gone to the WGO, been acknowledged as an Eight-Star Chef, and his Examiner was none other than Mana Nakiri. That much they had already confirmed.
Now he'd even defeated Bunnyhair. His value just kept shooting up.
It felt like a jackpot accumulating more and more prize money. The stronger Kael became, the bigger the reward for beating him.
Naturally, this only made the Midnight Chefs even crazier.
Normally you'd think people wouldn't challenge someone far stronger than themselves. But this world was full of lunatics—just like extreme sports junkies who willingly risk their lives for the thrill.
Same logic here. Even knowing they couldn't win, Midnight Chefs would still challenge Kael.
To them, Kael looked like a winning lottery ticket worth billions.
Kael, of course, noticed the hungry stares from the stands. And he didn't reject challengers—in his eyes, they were all walking ATMs.
They brought him experience points, fame, and even extra rewards. Money didn't matter much these days, but if people insisted on delivering it to him, why would he refuse?
They saw him as a growing jackpot.
He saw them as guaranteed-win scratch cards.
"These guys are insane," Claude muttered, watching the chefs scream challenges toward Kael.
"Can you blame them?" Malcanta said. "Whoever beats him becomes famous overnight. Even if Kael eventually surpasses everyone, people will still remember he once lost to you. That temptation is insane."
Then he turned to Asahi Saiba.
"Boss, aren't you going to challenge him too?"
Asahi sighed. "It's not the right time. And I don't have enough chips to entice him."
Despite living as a Midnight Chef for a while, his foundation was still too weak. With so many challengers piling on, everyone had to raise their stakes. Anything he put up would barely make a splash.
"True. The next guy who challenges will definitely need to offer more than just a small stake." Claude nodded. "But since we're here, boss… maybe it's time to go after the other targets?"
Their real mission wasn't Kael. They came to Japan to recruit other Midnight Chefs. Since they couldn't challenge Kael, they had to resume their original plan.
"Yeah. Go deliver the challenge letters."
The three of them left the arena.
And they weren't the only ones thinking that way. With so many Midnight Chefs gathered here, challenge letters started flying everywhere.
Midnight Chefs were nothing like the Dark Cooking Society. They had no supreme leader like Kaiyu to unite them. They were scattered across the world, usually never meeting in one place.
So with so many gathered here at once, of course they were going to settle scores.
Shokugeki Bureau immediately began receiving wave after wave of Shokugeki applications between Midnight Chefs.
Senzaemon even added a rule: they could bet anything they wanted—anything except money. As long as both sides agreed, the Bureau would allow it.
For the past few days, things had been quiet because everyone was waiting for Kael's match with Bunnyhair to end.
Now that it was over, chaos erupted.
But none of this had anything to do with Kael.
He was already back at the Polar Star Dormitory with the others—Bunnyhair following behind like a loyal shadow.
She didn't stay at the dorm, of course. It was a school facility, not open to outsiders.
"Here are your options," Kael told her. "One, find a place to stay near Totsuki. There are plenty of rental houses and guest homes around."
"Two, join Totsuki as a teacher. With your skills, you qualify. Then you can live on campus."
Bunnyhair answered instantly. "I choose the first option. I'll stay close by. If Kael-sama needs me, I want to be available immediately. If I become a teacher, you might call for me and I wouldn't be around…"
Her loyalty was shining so brightly it was almost blinding. She planned to live right next to the school just to be on standby for him.
Kael had essentially won a max-loyalty follower from a single Shokugeki. Not bad at all.
"One Shokugeki and you get a gorgeous follower? You're ridiculous," Daigo Aoki groaned once Bunnyhair left. Shoji Sato nodded beside him, also seething with jealousy.
At the dorm, Megumi Tadokoro, Alice Nakiri, and Erina Nakiri already hovered around Kael constantly.
And now he had a stunning follower glued to him too?
They were normal men—of course they were jealous.
Alice and Erina exchanged looks. They both saw the same thing in each other's eyes:
Danger.
Alice dragged Erina into the hallway to discuss urgent matters.
"You saw it. That Bunnyhair woman practically wants to cling onto Kael forever. She listens to everything he says—Kael speaks one sentence, and she'd probably give him everything she owns."
"And that's not even the worst part," Alice continued, deadly serious.
"She's just the first one. A signal. An invasion warning."
She was regretting her decision now. She was the one who suggested Bunnyhair as a Shokugeki opponent in the first place.
Who would've guessed that a woman with such a violent Special Ability would turn out to be this obedient—and hand herself over so easily?
Worse, she was only the beginning. There could be ten Bunnyhairs. A hundred. It sounded exaggerated, but the logic was real.
Once Kael kept fighting Midnight Chefs—who brought money, experience, and occasionally themselves—there was no guarantee there wouldn't be more who "volunteered" like Bunnyhair.
That was the real crisis.
Because of this panic, the girls didn't even ask Kael about his knife technique like they planned. They rushed to Alice's room instead.
"I have an idea," Erina said through gritted teeth. "Go get Megumi."
She suddenly remembered a scene from a shoujo manga.
A girl trying to win a guy's heart. Competitors everywhere. So she joined forces with a few close rivals to form a temporary alliance.
She didn't win alone, but at least she didn't lose either.
Erina had finally gotten her foot in the door with Kael. She wasn't about to be pushed out now. The best plan was to ally with Alice—and Megumi.
They were all from the Polar Star Dormitory. Might as well form a united front against outside threats.
Alice agreed immediately. She knew Megumi well. Sweet, honest, good-hearted—someone who wouldn't sabotage them and would only help.
So Alice rushed to Megumi's room and knocked.
"Ah? Alice-san? Did you need something?" Megumi opened the door, confused. She had felt the crisis brewing too, but she was too pure to think deeply about it.
Alice grabbed her wrist. "Come to my room. We need to talk. Now."
She dragged Megumi down the hall at full speed.
Megumi stumbled into the room and blinked.
"Erina-san? You're here too?"
Erina was already sitting stiffly on Alice's futon.