Chapter 12: Invitations

The shopping district is always lively during the mornings, from the housewives visiting different food stalls to the jolly loud voices of the store owners. I could never get tired roaming these streets because the variety of ingredients I see never fails to fill me with bliss. The familiar faces of the store owners I have been acquainted to greeted me every time I passed by. It has been three months since I came to Japan and I can already say that I am adjusting well to the people but I still encounter occasional problems due to the language barrier.

It brought me a sense of relief to see the bustling business of the district. In the distance, I saw a suspicious man following two high school girls who were buying from a nearby trinket store. Every time the girls turned their heads, the man hid behind the post box or the trashcan.

"You there! Stop stalking those students!" I yelled from the opposite street.

The girls took notice and dashed off but the suspicious man stayed in his place frozen. There was something eerily familiar about the man. I crossed the street and made my way toward him but he tried to walk away to avoid me. I saw his face after catching up.

"Old man Gerd! What are you doing here? I thought you went back to Germany."

"Don't tell Anna that I am still here." His accent was as strong as I remembered it.

"Then at least tell me why you were following those women."

He took off his cap and for a few seconds he acted nervous.

"I missed my granddaughter so much so I visited Japan to see her but she became so clingy that I remember why I sent her away in the first place. There was no time to enjoy the wome- scenery…" he corrected himself quickly under my suspicious glare.

"Who would have thought that you were just a pervert?"

"I am no pervert!" He shouted at which caught the attention of the people around us. "Why don't we talk about it at the café over there?" he pointed and subsequently pulled my arm.

The café had a very European ambience with small chandeliers dangling from the ceiling, purple wallpaper matched by purple velvety chairs. To complete the ensemble, there were a handful of foreigners inside enjoying their cup of coffee. Everybody was talking but a certain peacefulness was still kept.

"What is a student doing here early in the morning?"

A man who was sitting at the table we just passed by turned his head towards us.

"Chapelle-sensei! It is nice to see you here."

A reply never came back as I saw my teacher's face turn pale, his blonde hair looked ashen all of a sudden and his mouth opened and closed as if trying to find the words that never came to him. The eyes that showed a cold stern look was now wide open and seemed like a ghost appeared in front of him.

I looked at Gerd who was staring at my teacher and his aura has definitely changed. It was like the old man beside me was a completely different person. I could always size up a person based on my instinct and I felt a sense of tension and panic as I saw his face. It suddenly felt like I was out of place.

"It has been a long time, Roland."

"G-Gerd Scholken? Is that really you? What are you doing here? Does he know that you are here?"

Questions started flowing from Chapelle-sensei. Gerd was about to reciprocate the conversation but he noticed me and urged me to sit at the table in the farthest corner. It was clear to me that whatever they were about to talk about, it definitely did not concern me.

"We have something to talk about but let me finish this reunion with an old friend. Why don't you go sit at that table and order something for breakfast. I'll pay so just get anything you fancy."

Chapelle-sensei nodded at his words, trying to gain his composure. I sat down at the table in the corner and watched them engage in a deep conversation. There was something unnatural about the way my teacher reacted and it made me curious to know but one thing was clear, Gerd was not just an ordinary old man.

An hour has passed and I was full from all the food that I ordered. I saw Chapelle-sensei stand up and leave the building after giving me one last look. Gerd stood from his chair and headed to my table.

"I'll have some bread and butter. Thank you." He said to the waiter.

"How do you know my teacher? What is your relationship with him?"

"Well, that is the thing I wanted to talk to you about."

I gulped in anticipation.

"Let me reintroduce myself, I am Gerd Scholken. The Director of Le Cordon Blue Culinary School in Munich, Germany."

"W-what?"

'Le Cordon Blue? I have definitely heard of this culinary school before but I don't remember where… Wait, father was telling me that there are two famous culinary schools here in Tokyo, one was Totsuki Academy and the other must be…"

Gerd smiled and rested his chin under his interlocked fingers. The scars on his hands were various and burns were plastered in every space possible. He was surely not an ordinary director but a seasoned veteran inside the kitchen.

"You must be joking, right?" I asked. I couldn't think of any reason why a high caliber director would wander the streets randomly.

"Do I look like I have any reason to play with you?"

"Then why are you here? Why are you telling this to me? What do you really want from me?"

He picked up a piece of bread and spread a thin layer of butter on top then bit it and sipped his coffee.

"I just came to visit my granddaughter and check on my colleagues at Le Cordon Blue's Tokyo branch. But aside for that, I came here looking for a stone I want to polish. It's just a little of whim of mine."

"And what do you mean by that?"

"What I mean, young man, is that I am giving you an offer to learn directly from me."

Time stood still after he spoke those words. I have clearly heard what he said but I found it hard to comprehend the meaning of his words.

"Why me? There are a lot of students in Totsuki who are more deserving."

"I was weighing between you and a few other students, especially that boy Yukihira Soma, due to personal reasons. I already had a chat with him but it looks to me that his path is set on straight at Totsuki. I don't believe that you are tied to any sentiment with your school, are you?"

"Well no, but…"

He raised his hand to stop me from talking. I decided to stop since nothing in my mind made sense.

"I'm not asking for your answer immediately. Think about it and then tell me your decision later."

"I'll think about it."

"For now, I must keep a low profile or a certain someone will come follow me. I hate dealing with him and all of his bodyguards." He told me though it felt like he said it more to himself.

"Alex, where are you spending your holiday vacation?"

I looked up and Ayako was holding brochures of hot springs in the countryside.

"Could you repeat that?"

"You aren't paying attention again? I asked where you are spending your holidays."

"Oh sorry about that, I was thinking of going back home but my father tells me to stay here. He told me to go around Japan and enjoy the country."

Ayako flung the brochures at me.

"Well, Anna and I were thinking of visiting some hot springs. We wanted it to be a ladies' trip but Ling didn't want to go so I guess if you insist that much I'll-" she paused to catch her breath, and I did too to understand what she was saying.

"-I'll-let-you-come-with-me- I mean us-"

"Sorry, come again?"

Her face was flushed, probably from talking too fast. She didn't reply.

"I think it's better for me to stay here in the dorm and just practice cooking. I'd like to use this time to catch up to all of you."

"Are you sure? You'll be here alone for four days."

Takeuchi passed by as he took out a bottle of milk from the chiller.

"So Ayako's finally making a move…? Takeuchi gaped at her as he passed, then hastily moved close to me, whispering, "Alex, buddy… One wrong step, and you might end up spending your precious vacation in a hospital bed."

Realizing that he stepped on a landmine, Takeuchi ran fast like the wind. Ayako followed in reflex and seconds later, a girlish scream was heard from where I was.

'They really must be close friends. I miss my friends back home.' I thought to myself.

As I was walking outside the dining room, I bumped into Ling.

"I heard you weren't going with Ayako and Anna to the hot spring trip." I asked.

"I am not fond of such things."

The memory of her almost drowning in Totsuki Resort's pool flashed in my mind. Despite how cold she looks, one would never expect that she couldn't swim.

"Then are you going somewhere else for the vacation?"

"No, I have direct orders from the president of our club."

"Oh yeah? Me too, I'm staying over for the holiday. Anyway, I haven't talked to you about it yet. I still want to join a club. What club you are in anyway?"

"Chinese Cuisine Research Society."

I headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast as it was my assigned task for the day. As usual, Yamamori was out again but it was quiet even though it was past seven in the morning. I, at the least, expected Takeuchi and Ayako's bickering to liven up the day but nobody answered when I knocked on their doors. I realize that the vacation has already started when I saw a red big circle drawn around the current date.

Everybody has left to go spend their holidays. I went back to the kitchen and thought of cooking a dish I learned in class. I found it hard to fully understand the lectures taught in class since my senses were always attuned to Filipino Cuisine. It was my way of coping with my homesickness as I found it hard to concentrate on other types of cuisine. There was something about my country's cuisine that was not present in other cuisine, I just couldn't pinpoint what.

"Is the food ready yet?"

"Gyaaah!" I shouted. "Ling, please don't surprise me like that."

"I was standing here for a whole minute."

Ling's hair was tied back in a ponytail rather than her usual Chinese hair bun in the right side of her head. She has the habit of practicing martial arts every morning without fail and nobody disturbed her during her exercise, even the bulky Yamamori steered clear of her.

"That makes it creepier! Anyway, what do you want for breakfast? But please give me half an hour to prepare so why don't you wash up first."

"Move aside, I'll cook." She wiped herself with a towel and washed her hands.

I was left speechless by the sheer speed of her cooking. In no less than a minute, all of the ingredients and utensils were prepared then it took her another minute to cut up vegetables and some of the leftover chicken into bite-sized pieces. She took bottles of varied height from her cabinet. As agreed by each tenant of the dormitory, all of us had our own cabinet where we put some of our ingredients that can never be used without consent.

The high pressure burner was lit up and a tower of flame rose only to be hampered by her wok. Ling poured a little bit of oil and spread it evenly across the surface. She dropped minced onions and garlic which sizzled upon contact to the heated oil. A few seconds passed and the heavenly fragrance of sautéed garlic and onion filled the room. The vegetables were blanched in boiling water and were added to the wok along with the chicken and her condiments. She continued to cook for a few more minutes then thickened the sauce.

"It is done. Prepare the table."

"D-Done?! It was hardly ten minutes since you started and the food is already cooked?"

She finished a dish three times faster than I could. Her speed in cooking is admirable and there were no wasted movements as compared to the mock Shokugeki we had after the training camp. Her cooking style was terrifying. When she shot me a 'Why aren't you moving yet' look, I hastily grabbed two sets of bowls and filled them with rice and set them in the table.

"Chicken and Vegetable Stir-fry." She muttered as she placed the plate between us.

"Thank you for the food."

The first bite was enough to experience a new dimension of flavor I have never tasted before. To start off, the appearance of strips of colors mingled together made the dish vibrant. The crisp texture of the baby corn, bellpeppers, snow peas and carrots matched each other as they were coated by a sauce that gave a sweet and savory taste, but…

"I must be honest. The dish itself is very delicious but I find it just a little bit salty."

"Eat it with rice, idiot." her cold tone pieced my feelings like a paper resisting a needle.

Adding the rice, the taste was just right. No ingredient overpowers the other, everything was in balance. Ling took into account the taste of the food along with the rice to create a harmonious experience.

"Wow! I am very impressed Ling. I have learned so much just from watching you."

She was still the same. No emotions showed after being praised. The conversation ended with it and we went back to eating.

"Are you doing anything for the next few days?"

"Huh?"

It was so unexpected for her to ask about me since she always kept quiet. I was surprised by her sudden interest.

"Are you doing anything for the next few days?" she repeated.

"N-no… What do you have in mind?"

"Come with me."

"Woooooow!"

I have prepared myself for the extravagance of the school since my initial encounter with the grandness of Totsuki Resort, but looking at the building in front of me was on a whole other level. If I didn't knew better, I would have genuinely thought that I was in China. The enormous red building was lined up with pillars and covered with bright green tiles for roof. Walking up to the door, I noticed carvings of intricate designs that had a genuine vibe of an imperial castle.

"So this is the Chinese Cuisine Research Society…"

"Don't just stand there, follow me."

Looking at the building from the outside was nothing compared to the inside. It was more spacious that what I could have imagined. A large group of bald men were setting up stoves inside the building. A short student seemed to facilitate the whole activity inside. He had brown spiky hair and his bangs were long and blonde.

"I will introduce you as a hired help, do not make any mistake in saying words such as 'boy', 'small' or 'short', got it?"

"Y-yes."

Ling was more talkative than usual. She urged me to walk by her side towards the student who continued to yell out instructions.

"Place that right there and line them up neatly, dummy! Move it to your other le- Oh Ling! I'm glad you are here. These incompetents have no idea of how to do things. Who is your friend?"

"My name is Alex Ramos, we stay at the same dormitory." I answered in reflex.

He stared at me like I said something offensive.

"This small boy in front of you is Terunori Kuga, a second year. Don't be deceived by his short stature as he is the president of this organization and the current holder of Elite Council's eighth seat."

"Kuuuu... Ling! You meanie!" his attitude rivalled that of a child's.

'W-what?! She deliberately broke her own rules. How can she talk like that to the club's president? Maybe it is just her. I'd better be careful around this guy. He looks like he is playful but he is emitting a ferocious presence behind it.'

I feigned ignorance as well and played along just to be sure.

"It is nice to meet you Terunori Kuga-senpai."

"What did you say?" his attention fixated on me.

"Terunori Kuga-senpai?"

His glare kept me at bay. As I remember, I haven't done anything to get on his bad side. With a thunderous smack on my back, he placed his arm around my neck and ruffled my hair. He dragged me down to his shoulder level and I noticed how short he was.

"Your name is Alex, huh? What a good man you are." he said gleefully then faced Ling. "It is good that you brought him, I like this guy already. If only you could have brought Miyoko-chin with you, then you would have done a splendid job."

"I will try my best to recruit her."

I have never seen Ling act obedient.

"So, just go to the washroom if you are ready to shave your head bald."

"Wha- No no no no… I'm sorry but I am here as a hired help for Ling."

"Are you sure? I'll even teach you the most delicious Sichuan Cuisine you'll ever taste."

The lectures about Chinese Cuisine paid off. I remember my teacher talking about the regional cuisines of China and Sichuan was one of them. It boasted bold flavours focusing on spiciness and flower attributes of Sichuan peppercorns.

"That is true. Since you piled a whole lot of paperwork in my desk for the Moon Banquet Festival, I found it hard to organize the paperwork while computing for our budget."

"You are no fun. Fine, go do your exciting paperwork." He stuck his tongue out as we walked away.

"Haaaahhhh" Ling sighed wit slumped shoulders."It is always troublesome dealing with Kuga-senpai." She said.

"Seriously? You talked like you were above him."

"That was necessary for me to survive in this place and I would recommend for you to act the same."

Ling sure was chatty. Our friends would probably never believe me if I told them about it. We ended up in the farthest door of the hallway and upon entering, a huge pile of folders and paperwork covered the entire desk. Receipts littered on the floor and projected sales reports, list of suppliers were handed to me.

"Start working or you have to shave your head."

For the next three days, both Ling and I worked nonstop in organizing the paperwork that were ought to be done. Kuga occasionally brought us food that was made by the bald men and asked us for our opinions. Screams were heard along the hallway whenever we gave out a bad review of the food. It was best to ignore it. The dishes that were personally sent to us kept on improving with each new day that I found it scary to imagine how harsh their training was.

I opened a drawer that had a suspicious envelope marked with a 'Confidential' stamp over the words 'Autumn Festival Candidates' printed on the envelope. I was about to inspect it when Kuga barged into the room and I placed the envelope back as quickly as I could.

"Ling! Alex-kuuuun! Try some of these new dishes."

"Huh?"

Ling was asleep by the couch while I was setting aside all the bribery gifts we received each day from the suppliers.

"So fatigue finally caught up to her," Kuga's voice was mellow and serene, a complete turnaround from his usual personality "Good work with all of the paperwork. I reviewed them last night and everything is clear."

"Thank you very much."

"How much am I paying for your services?"

I have completely forgotten that my role was a hired helper. I was so engrossed with all of the work that I haven't thought about it.

"That's okay Kuga-senpai. I have gained valuable experience on the how to manage a restaurant from all of the things Ling assigned to me."

"I am really satisfied with your work here so let me ask you this… would you join the Chinese Cuisine Research Society?"

For the past few days, countless surprises came my way that I have gotten used to it. There was Gerd's offer to switch schools and study under his tutelage and also Chef Tsunozaki's invitation to work in her restaurant as well. I definitely would have been speechless with Kuga's offer but I was able to remain calm.

"Thank you very much, I really appreciate it. Unfortunately, I don't have any knowledge about Chinese cuisine. I would hate to mess up here."

"I have done my research too Alex Ramos." His tone became serious. "It is unbelievable that you have kept yourself under the radar all of this time. I think you are hiding something but of course, I have no right to barge in your personal life. Let me be clear to you, China and Philippines, in terms of cuisine is more related than you think. My offer still stands. There is no rush."

Ling woke up from her sleep and noticed that the sky outside was already an orange hue. She packed her things and said goodbye to Kuga.

"Wait for a minute, Alex." he called out as I left the building.

He threw a parcel with a flick of his wrist which I caught. It was heavy and it puzzled me to think that he threw it with only a flick of his wrist. It contained cookbooks about Chinese cooking.

"Good luck… It might come in handy for the upcoming election."

"What election?"

"Hey slowpoke! Hurry up, will you?"

Ayako was dragging me to the school since class has started. Everybody came back shortly after Ling and I arrived back at the dorm. There was no trace left of the chatty version of Ling.

"Why are we even running?" I panted.

"Well today is when they announce the participants of the Autumn Election." Anna kept pushing from behind.

"What is that about in the first place?" I asked.

Both of them paused and explained everything to me. The Autumn Election is an event for the first years where they get to show off their skills against their opponents in front of the judges who are famous in the food industry. Fame and recognition was the tip of the iceberg for the winner of the competition since the next occupants of the Elite Ten seats most likely came from the top eight contestants.

"Do you understand?" Anna asked.

"I get the gist of it."

"Then why are you still slow? Let's go!" Ayako yanked at my arm, almost pulling it off from the socket.

A huge number of students crowded in front of the board when we arrived. Some of them jumped for joy and some held their heads down and sighed. I was once again pulled as Ayako and Anna pushed the half of the crowd aside so we could get a better look. Takeuchi was already in the front when we got to the front.

"My name isn't here." Ayako was depressed when she didn't see her name in the board.

"You are not alone. I kept searching for my name too." Takeuchi mumbled.

Ayako's sadness was short-lived when Anna jumped energetically.

"I got in! I'm in Block B!"

"I'm so happy for you Anna-chan! Fight for the pride of our dorm." Ayako cheered.

While the three of them were talking to each other, I stood in my place not sure why I was even looking. Like Kuga said, I was under the radar this whole time. Nobody would notice any of my achievements. I felt sorry for myself when I felt a tug on my sleeve and Ling popped out of nowhere.

Her finger was pointed at the board.

I wasn't sure of what to think but her finger was still pointing at the board specifically under Block A.

I tried to look at where she was pointing…

"Alex Ramos"

'I was chosen to compete in the Autumn Election. My name is really there. But how?'

A/N:

Big decisions come as Alex finds his path in a crossroad. As Kuga stated, Chinese and Pinoy cuisine are closely related because of the geography. Chinese refugees flocked in the Philippines when their country was in turmoil hoping for a better future and so, a lot of Chinese restaurants opened during the late 1960's up to 1990's even establishing their own Chinatown in the heart of the country's capital city. A large community of chinese people live all around the country (I should know, since i'm part Chinese as well). If you are visiting Manila or if you live in the country, i urge you to try walking around Chinatown and you'll be sure to thank me with the delicious treats you are bound to find.

It was fun to write about Kuga. I'm gonna be honest, he is my favorite character in the Elite 10 :D

As always, i hope you enjoyed reading this chapter...

Cheers!