Everyone at the Polar Dorm was excited for the Autumn Elections. With some of them being selected for it, they had trained quite a bit. Tomorrow, there would be an announcement about the official participant posting for all to see, and details on the event. Souma had just finished his last class, as he bid farewell to Alice and Erina, he made his way to the headmaster's office. He was called in by him for some reason.

As he was walking towards the office, he saw two students. One white haired male and a red hair female. The boy seemed nervous, while the red hair was telling him something. As they got close, the two noticed Souma. Of course going past them with no interaction would have been normal, but surprisingly the girl stopped him.

"Oh, you are that boy I bumped into. All classes should be over by now, where are you heading?" the girl asked. As soon as she said that, the white haired boy told her that they should leave as they had things to do. However, the girl just told him to be quiet and go on without her. Souma sweat dropped at the scene, as the boy just gave up with a sigh.

"I was actually heading for the headmaster's office. I was called in for something." Souma replied calmly. The word 'headmaster' seemed to have caught her attention as she got a thinking pose.

"Oh well sorry for stopping you. Just don't bump into someone else on your way, see ya." the girl said as she started walking away. Souma wanted to say something back, but decided not to. All the while, the girl had one single thought. 'Why did the headmaster call him? He isn't one to do that with just anyone.'

As Souma got to the office, he knocked and went in. Senzaemon was looking over some papers, and as soon as Souma entered, he looked at Souma as he put the papers down.

"Ah, welcome Souma-kun, I actually called you because I had some serious news. You see, Azami has started to make his move." Senzaemon said with a serious expression. Souma froze for a bit after hearing the 'Azami'. He had met him before, when he tried to recruit him for his plan. Of course Souma had rejected, but still he had spent quite some time with that man. It wasn't until later on, that he found out Azami was Erina's father. Also, hearing that name just brought back memories he didn't want to dwell over.

From what he had heard from Senzaemon, he was very strict and cruel in training Erina. Most of her current attitude towards cooking, is thanks to her time with her father. Senzaemon then continued on.

"I heard from some sources that he made contact with our 1st seat. It is quite the troubling info, I mean, what if he tries to control Erina again?" Senzaemon said as he rubbed his forehead. Souma was already seeing where this was going.

"So, basically you want my help?" Souma said as he sighed. All he got for a reply was a nod. He knew the reason for why Azami wanted to finish his plan. It had something to do with Souma himself. After all, Azami had told him of what he wanted to accomplish, he had really tried to get Souma on his side as he believed, with Souma the plan would finish faster.

{Flashback start}

"So, what do you think, Souma-kun? Join me so that we can change this rotten world.", Azami said as he extended his hand out to Souma. Souma looked at his hand before, rejecting it. Azami looked confused at his actions as he looked at Souma.

"You know, you really like to decide for others, don't you? If there is one thing you can do for me, then can you please stop saying my dad was ruined by this culinary world. He did lose his way, but my mother helped him. He was cooking happily till his last moments. He never regretted his way nor did he loath the culinary world." Souma said as he smiled at his memories with his dad. Azami then questioned Souma.

"I see, but what about you?",said Azami as he stared at Souma. Souma looked confused, so Azami decided to add on.

"What about your cooking, Souma-kun? Saiba-senpai may have found your mother, from what I heard she was special. But what about you, you are really like your father. How will you handle it, I doubt you will be as lucky as him to find someone like your mother." Azami said as he kept looking at Souma for answers.

"I won't lose my way, I-I will never stop my creativity, so that shouldn't be of any concern." Souma said as he himself sounded unsure. Azami then gained a serious expression as he spoke.

"It seems like I can't convince you. However, mark my words, this world will ruin you. That is how it has always happened. In this world, extreme talents like you and Saiba-senpai are always ruined and forced to go down a dark road." Azami said. He started to walk away, but he added on one more thing.

"It would be an insult to Saiba-senpai if I were to let his son go down in ruins, when I could have done something about it. So, I will change this world, I will morph it so that we can achieve the 'True Gourmet'. It is sad that I couldn't show it to Saiba-senpai himself, but his son will see it fully. Look forward to it, Souma-kun, with that said this is farewell for a long while." Souma could only stare at the man's back. He was thinking over what he had said. He kept thinking about what if he did lose his way, who would help him then.

{Flashback end}

Azami wanted to change the culinary world, and he would stop at nothing for it. Souma then looked at Senzaemon as he spoke.

"I will help you because my dad, he did tell me about some things. If I were to ignore this, then he would probably scold me and never let it go." Souma said as he scratched his hair. Senzaemon gained a smile at his news.

"I will always be grateful for this, I really mean it Souma-kun." Senzaemon said as he bowed slightly. Souma waved it off and then began discussing on what they could do to stop Azami.

After his discussion with the headmaster, Souma got to the dorm and he could already hear people talking. As he got in, he saw Alice Nakiri. He was really shocked that she was here. Alice didn't even take a second to notice him as she approached him.

"Yo, Yukihira-kun, I came to visit. I would've missed you, if not for Ryo and his battle antics." Alice said as she got a smile. Souma then asked her about what she meant. Alice saw his confusion as she began to explain.

"You see, when we came here. You weren't here, but we decided to wait for some time. After like 20 minutes, you still didn't come and when we were about to leave, Isshiki-senpai approached us. Well one thing led to another and once Ryo ate Isshiki-senpai's cooking, he decided to challenge him. With that said, this is where we are." Alice said as she pointed at Isshiki and Kurokiba cooking. Souma then looked over, already knowing who would win. Kurokiba was good, but he still wasn't on the same level as Isshiki. Souma then got dragged by Alice as she took him to the dinning table. They were playing card games, while waiting for the cooking to finish.

Souma joined them and after about 10 minutes, the two cooks finished. Everyone at the table was made a judge, with the most votes obviously winning. Kurokiba's dish was first to be judged, as everyone looked over it. There wasn't enough portions for everyone, as Souma hadn't gotten one. Others were about to give him some, but Alice interjected, saying she could share with him. Everyone then took a bite.

Souma saw that everyone was thrust into fantasies, like expected. As he was about to take a bite himself, Alice held up a spoon towards his mouth.

"Say ahh, Yukihira-kun." Alice said as she waited for Souma to open his mouth. Souma sighed at the action, but gave in. He took the bite and like others he was also in his own fantasy. Of course, this interaction between the two didn't go unnoticed as everyone wondered what their relation. After a few seconds, Kurokiba started getting praises, but, the boy himself didn't seem all happy. He looked over to Isshiki and told him to go next.

Isshiki then revealed his dish, everyone was bombarded with the smell. Kurokiba also looked shocked as he looked at his dish. With a gulp, everyone took a spoonful. As soon as it got in their mouth, the flavor exploded as everyone was thrust into a fantasy. They were all in a hot spring, relaxing, never wanting to leave this fantasy.

"Ahem, Yukihira-kun. How about feeding me this time?" Alice said as she opened her mouth. Souma then slowly took the spoon as he fed her. Alice moaned at the flavor. Hearing her moan a little, Souma quickly took the spoon out. He wasn't expecting that, all the while his friends were looking at the pair with a teasing smile. Souma could only sigh at that.

"So who won?" Souma asked deciding to change subjects. With that little question, everyone voted and unsurprisingly Isshiki won by a landslide. Kurokiba seemed pissed at the result but he quickly calmed down as Alice took his bandana off. Souma was always amused by how much the boy changed with a simple bandana.

"Fufu, it seems like you lost Ryo-kun. With the match done, we should leave. I met Yukihira-kun and its already getting late. We will see each other soon, bye Yukihira-kun." Alice said as she dragged Kurokiba out. After the two were gone, everyone looked at Souma.

"Soooo, what was that about?" Yuki asked as she asked Souma.

"What do you mean, Yuki-san?" Souma said as he tried to act like he didn't know anything. He regretted asking that as she just got a smirk.

"I see, so you plan on hiding your relation with Nakiri Alice. Still, to think you had already made a move on one of the Nakiris, you are amazing in your own way." Yuki said as she got nods from the other members. Souma knew fighting would just make it worse, so he gave up. He then told them that he was going to his room, as he escaped the situation.

As morning came, Souma went down and met with the other members. Megumi looked nervous as she was talking to Yuki about the election. Today, they would get more info on the event and full list of the participants. They then made their way to the academy.

At the academy, they all went to look over who was in the election. Along with who Isshiki had confirmed, Yuki and Ryoko were also in it. Souma also noticed that Alice was part of it. The Polar dorm group was then approached by some other students. The Aldini brothers, and Ikumi. Souma had got to know Ikumi through Megumi and the Aldini brothers were in one of his classes. As they started talking, Souma wished them luck. As they left, his eyes were blocked.

"Guess who?" the person said as they chuckled. Souma could feel two soft things pressing on his back, as he slightly blushed.

"Um, Alice-san?" Souma said as he moved her hand. He looked back and as he guessed it was Alice. She was smiling.

"Correct, you have gotten good at sensing me. Anyways, I was passing by and saw you, so I decided to greet you." Alice said with a smile. She actually was there just to talk to him, and had been searching for him.

"So, Yukihira-kun, where is my good luck?" Alice teasingly asked as she got close. Souma sweat dropped as he told her good luck as well. As soon as he said it, Alice's smile widened. After getting what she came for, Alice thanked Souma and went her own way. Souma sighed as he also made his way to his class.

It was finally his last class for the day. Of course, like most of the times, Souma was helping Erina. It was almost a daily routine in math class, getting sandwiched by the Nakiri princesses. Erina had become more open, as she no longer hesitated to approach and ask Souma for help.

After the class was over, Souma decided to head straight back. They were once again given a short summer break, for preparations for the election. So he was pretty much free for the whole break.

At the dorm, the participating members were already at work. Isshiki was helping train some of them. Souma then decided to head to his room quietly as to not disturb them. He laid on his bed as he started getting drowsy. In a few minutes, he had already fallen asleep.

[Time skip]

The break had gone by quick for Souma. He spent all his time trying out some dishes. With a little help from Isshiki as the judge, he was creating new recipes. Finally, the time for the election was here and Souma was looking forward to it.

At the academy, Souma and the rest who weren't participating decided to go cheer. Souma decided to go to A block, as that had the most interesting students. He went to check on and saw that the students were all already starting up. Souma noticed that the ponytail boy seemed the most interesting. Akira was his name and he was mostly focused on that single boy. Souma saw that he was excellent with spices, he could see why many believed he would win. He then looked to other places and saw Alice and Kurokiba. They all were also doing a good job. Souma was honestly impressed by Alice's skills. From what he guessed, he believed Alice was slightly better than Kurokiba and possibly on the same level as Akira.

After about 30 minutes of cooking, all the participants started to present their dish one by one. Souma wasn't surprised to see that they were all getting 50 or lower. It was when Kurokiba presented his dish that the scores began to change. As soon as the judges took a bite from his dish, they were blown away. At the end of it, Kurokiba got the first 90+ of the day. He had gotten a 93, but Souma could tell that the boy still wasn't happy with it. After him, the scores once again started going to the 40s, until Akira presented his dish. The dish had an amazing smell, even Souma could tell from afar looking at the judges reactions. Like with Kurokiba, the judges were blown away by the level of the dish. They started to eat it fast, wanting more and more. One of the judges then questioned Akira about what his secret was.

Akira on the other hand gave them a simple answer, 'spice'. Hearing his answer, Souma got even more interested in the boy. After a few seconds, Akira's score was up and he got a 94, taking the top spot in A block. Immediately after Akira, it was Alice's turn. It may have been Souma's imagination but he felt like Alice was looking at him. He waved aside the thought as the judges began to eat her dish. Alice's dish got out an even more amazing reaction, as the judges moaned in their fantasies. They were standing by the end of it. Alice gained a smirk at that and waited for her score. After a few seconds, Alice got her score, she got a 94 like Akira. Many in the audience were whispering things like 'as expected of a Nakiri' and such. Kurokiba obviously didn't feel happy about being second, as he looked at Akira and Alice with burning passion.

Souma was impressed by her performance. By this time, he was already thinking if he should start training Alice. But he decided against, as he didn't want Erina to feel left out. The preliminary round was now done, and from block A, the ones to advance were Alice, Akira and Kurokiba. Souma had enjoyed this round and he knew the quaterfinals was going to be a fun one. He looked at the group below with a smirk, before heading back. Meanwhile, Alice saw Souma leave as she gained a smirk, already thinking of a way to tease him.

After the match, Souma met up with his friends at the dorm. Megumi and Zenji had managed to get to the quarterfinals. Of course that called for a celebration, and once again the dorm was filled with party noises.

[The next day]

Today was the quarterfinals, from what he had seen. It was match between, Alice and Zenji. As Souma made his way to the hall, to watch the match, he met the girl in question. It was as if she was waiting for someone. Soon enough she saw him and approached him.

"Ah, Yukihira-kun. I was waiting for you." Alice said revealing she was waiting for Souma himself. Souma was confused as he asked her why.

"Well, let's just say I wanted a 'good luck' from you. Last time that helped a lot after all, and you even came to watch me." Alice said as she smiled. Souma then realized that she was indeed looking at him yesterday. He then gained a smile as he looked at Alice.

"I wish you the best of luck, Alice-san." Souma said with a bright smile. Unknown to Souma, Alice turned around hiding her blush. With that said, Souma told her to go to the hall and Alice thanked him, as she made her way to her match with a lot more confidence than she previously had.

As Souma took a seat, he saw Yuki and others. He approached them as they talked about things. Obviously, they were all cheering for Zenji, but Souma was on the other side. This didn't help Souma much, as Yuki smiled.

"Haha, of course you would support her." Yuki said as she added on to their previous misunderstanding. Souma could only sigh at his own mistake. After a few minutes, the two were called out. The dish would be a bento. Alice looked carefree, and Zenji was completely serious. The judge for this match was none other than Senzaemon. Senzaemon then spoke up as he told the two to start.

Alice was already using her knowledge to her benefit as she started. Zenji was slightly slower at the start. The two kept on cooking, while Senzaemon watched them stroking his beard. After some time, the two finished their dish and Zenji went ahead and presented his dish.

His dish didn't seem that special, but knowing he made it to the main tournament, it was anything but normal. As soon as Senzaemon and other judges took a bite, they were in their fantasies. It was as if they were in a school setting, eating lunch at the rooftop. After a few seconds of fantasies, the judges looked impressed. Zenji then moved back as he let Alice go. Alice approached the judges with a special type of bento case. Just from the looks of it, it looked amazing. Senzaemon then took a bite, but this time his clothes burst out. Everyone was shocked at the reaction, Souma knew what that meant. Alice smirked at her grandfather's reaction as she also went back. The judges then talked among themselves, after a few seconds, they made their decision.

'Alice Nakiri-3 Zenji Marui-0'

The crowd then started clapping as Alice just maintained her smirk. Zenji was kind of let down, that he lost but he accepted quite calmly. Alice then approached Zenji as she gave him a handshake. After the short handshake the two returned.

"Well too bad, Zenji lost. But hey, Yukihira-kun must be happy hmm..." Yuki said as she smiled at Souma. Souma was just internally cursing himself, trying to find a way to clear the misunderstanding. He then decided to leave. As he was walking, he saw Erina and Hisako talking to Alice. He really didn't want to get involved but luck wasn't on his side. Alice called out to him, and he had no choice but to go there.

"So what did you think, Yukihira-kun?" Alice asked as she waited for Souma to answer. Erina sighed at her cousin's antics as she told them she was leaving. After Erina and Hisako were gone, Alice turned back to Souma, still waiting for his response.

"It was amazing, Alice-san. As expected of you." Souma said as he praised her. Alice seemed proud of it and smirked.

"It's all thanks to your luck. Wish me luck in semi-finals, though I imagine this will just get harder." Alice said.

"Don't worry, Alice-san. I'm sure you will make it to the finals. From what I saw, as long as you don't face Akira-san in the semi-final, you will make it." Souma said as he tried to ease Alice more. Alice then decided to tease Souma a little bit.

"My my, I'm hurt. It is as if you are saying I will lose to Akira Hayama." Alice said fake crying. Souma sweat dropped at her act, he always found himself in such situation with this girl.

"I simply said it because Akira will be your greatest challenge, I didn't mean it in that way." Souma said. Alice then stopped 'crying' as she looked at Souma.

"I see, well that makes happy. Oh my, look at the time, I will have to go. Take care Yukihira-kun~" Alice said emphasizing his name. Souma also bid her farewell as he headed his own way. Now he just had to see the other matches. He couldn't wait for more, it seemed like coming to the academy was certainly a good choice. Honestly he gathered a lot more ideas in this academy, with the problems in the future pushed aside, he decided to enjoy these fun moments till they lasted.