20XX – Las Vegas

158th John & co. Culinary Competition Venue

After final battle

"It's really a surprising show to watch, Nakiri."

"...?"

"Did... that single blow already make your frustration go away?"

"What do you want to say, Eizan?"

"Nah... It is not an important thing actually. Since you already knew Kikuchi's real situation before the competition, yet you still dragged him to be on the challenge against you. That side of you... it's quite interesting, Nakiri."

"..."

"But, is it really alright for you? To win against an already dying knight."

...

4th Plate – Scars of the Past (part.01)

In certain apartment unit,

London.

He has come back to Japan.

Nakiri Kouhei stared at those sentence written in the message which got sent by one of his trusted men. Quite unexpected news, actually. The last time Kouhei got a news about the one got mentioned in the message was the latter being in the remote place in certain country, far away from Japan.

He tossed his phone, as he closed his eyes. His right hand began massaging his temple slowly. Not long ago, he got a dream from his short nap. Actually, it was his old memory. Till he woke up, it still ringing into his head continuously.

"But, is it really alright for you? To win against an already dying knight."

Kouhei stopped massaging his temple, as he opened his eyes. He hasn't decided to do something, another message came into his phone.

He opened the message. It was photos of the one got mentioned in the text message earlier, in a place which familiar for him. Kouhei still looked uninterested when he saw each photo, but the last one.

He saw in that photo, that young man was so close to his little sister. But, it wasn't the thing that made Kouhei gripped his phone tighter than before. It was the look that young man had when he looked at his sister.

With a swift move, he dialed someone's number.

"Get me a ticket to Japan. I need it right now."

As he finished calling, he tossed his phone back to his bed. Not too long after that small device landed on the mattress, it rang. With an annoyed sigh, Kouhei got the phone. An unexpected man called him.

"Moshi-moshi, Uncle Asahi." He greeted the caller from the other line.

"I think that you're 'too busy' with your business in London that made you didn't have a time to even call your mother, yet just now one of my men said that you've booked a flight to Japan. Mind if you explain it, Kouhei-kun?"

It was unusual of his uncle to ask him that kind of long question first thing they had phone call. It wasn't Kouhei's focus actually. It was the fact that his 'sudden plan' had got caught by his uncle right after it got launched.

That old man was really something else.

"It's bother you, Uncle?"

Instead of answering his uncle's question, Kouhei chose to question the older one back. Kouhei already knew that if he told the older Nakiri about his 'unreasonable' reason about his sudden home-coming, he will got another long lecture.

"Not really. It's just... you know, in this kind of time, you're not suppose to act carelessly, Kouhei-kun. Lately, I got a news about several members of board of directors made secret meetings, and the thing they got discussed was a bit... I can called it as mind-blowing."

Kouhei became silent as he listened to each word spoken by his uncle. Truth to be told, he wasn't quite interested in Toutsuki Group's related business. The necessity of dealing with the hard-headed Nakiri Elders was something that he detest the most.

He didn't want to be Nakiri Elders' doll – like his predecessors.

"What is it?"

Tokyo - Nakiri Mansion

Asahi drew a thin smile over his lips. Even his only one nephew had said the last question with uninterested tone, Asahi still felt a bit relief that his nephew did pay attention to his long speech.

"To dethrone you from the successor seat."

There was silence followed after that revelation.

"You know, Asahi Oji-san. One thing that amazed me about you is that you're quite resourceful. Knowing that kind of top secret info, did they make Ciel as the candidate?"

Asahi leaned on his chair as he looked up at the plain ceiling above him. "Too bad, Ciel is out of their option."

"Heh~ then, who is it?"

Asahi didn't answer that question immediately. He didn't know how his nephew will reacted to the news if he told him.

"It's still a rumor though, as I myself haven't made a proper investigation about it." Asahi took a pause before he spilled out the name of the prominent candidate in the issue of their talk. "It's... Kikuchi Rei."

Kouhei felt all sounds disappeared from his surroundings except his uncle's voice which spelled out that name, which got heard continuously like a broken record. When it came to dethrone his status, he already listed several names in his head. Except that one.

Moreover, that young man wasn't a Nakiri to begin with. Just... what those directors saw in that young man to make him became the candidate?

"...hei-kun, Kouhei-kun? Are you still there?"

"... Eoh..."

"I don't know if you've already known about it or not, but Kikuchi Rei has made a comeback to Japan recently. Maybe, they will make their move soon regarding to that issue."

Kouhei didn't comment on that speech as he let it entered his right ear and went through his left ear without paying attention on it.

"Are you alright, boy?"

"... Uhm, kind of."

"You..."

You're not alright at all.

Asahi really did want to say those words. His nephew must be shocked right now. The relation between his nephew and the young man named Kikuchi Rei was not in good term to be called. And to make it worse, it seemed that his one and only daughter still hasn't gotten over of her so called first love which was ended up with the same young man in that issue.

Asahi barely got a report from one of his men that his beautiful daughter made a visit over Yukihira Diner and met Kikuchi Rei there.

"Does Ciel know about it, Asahi Oji-san?"

Asahi got back from his own reverie once he got questioned, just the right thing to remind him that he was in the middle of call with his nephew.

"Not at all."

"It's better if she didn't know, or she will... "

"Yeah, I know. But, really... you haven't answer my first question yet, Kouhei-kun."

Asahi should reminded about his first question to the younger one as it was the thing that made him initiated the call. As long as he remembered well, there's no business in Japan that needed Kouhei's appearance in near future. So, that sudden home-coming plan was really made Asahi curious.

"He met Kana."

"He? Who-"

Asahi didn't continue his question as he realized something. And he immediately knew who is 'he' got mentioned by Kouhei just now. His daughter met Kikuchi Rei at Yukihira Diner, and the last news he knew about his niece named Nakiri Kana was that girl was in training with her paternal grandfather at Yukihira Diner. So, when Asahi put the two together, he made conclusion that Kikuchi Rei met Kana at Yukihira Diner.

Asahi let out a small sigh before speaking. "You're too worried, aren't you?"

There's no respond from the other line, which made Asahi added more words after that.

"You know, Kana-chan isn't alone there. Jouichirou is there too, remember? I think, he won't reveal Kana-chan's real identity knowing the past you had with Kikuchi. Also..."

"Also..."

Kouhei waited for his uncle to continue it with so much patient which he didn't know that he had it.

"For someone who wandered around like Kikuchi, I think that man won't be stupid enough to reveal his own real identity too."

Kouhei was really wanted to trust his uncle's words just now. Just to ease his feeling. But then, the thing he saw in the photo earlier just made him anxious. And then, the probability of both his sister and Rei didn't know each real identity just made it worse.

Kouhei still remembered it well how Rei will be once he got passionate towards a girl. Then, he suddenly imagined the worst scenario once Rei knew about his sister's real identity. In the end, his sister will be the one who got hurt the most.

And he hated that possibility.

"I think, that's still won't do any good, Uncle."

Kouhei could hear through his smartphone that his uncle sighed. "Nah, it seems that whatever I want to say to you, you won't listen to it, right?"

Kouhei chose to not reply to that sentence.

"Ah, to think about it again... it's the first time that you're so worried about your little sister, Kouhei-kun."

Kouhei was like got slapped right on his face when he heard it. It was true that he rarely put his attention on his little sister. Back then, even till now. It wasn't a secret that he always gave his little sister his cold back.

"Or... it is because of Kikuchi that make you worried about her?"

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Kouhei ended the call abruptly as he didn't want to hear another words from his uncle.

Asahi looked at his own phone when he heard the call ended suddenly. He let out another sigh at his nephew's disrespectful act just now. Only one conclusion which came into Asahi's mind. That he has gotten the bull's eye by his last question to Kouhei.

It has been years that he knew about the unusual sibling relationship Kouhei had with his little sister. He didn't know when it was started, as well as the reason behind Kouhei's cold act toward his little sister whenever the latter was around.

And it got worse since Kouhei graduated from Toutsuki Academy.

"Should I be grateful that Kana-chan met Kikuchi that made him pay attention toward his own little sister?"

At the same time,

Tokyo - Sumire Shopping Precinct, Yukihira Diner

"Why... were you refused customers' request earlier?"

Rei gazed upon the tea inside his cup in silence as he recalled Kana's last night's question. A question which based on solely curiosity. The first question that girl gave to him. And for unknown reason, he couldn't spill out the answer to her.

No. To be exact, he didn't want to give that question an answer. An honest one.

As giving that question an answer, it meant that he should open up the old memory of his. The memory he has considered as a nightmare in his life. The old scar he desperately hid beneath his mask.

He was about to take a sip of his tea when he heard the light steps owned by the only one girl in that house. As he didn't have any topic to be shared with that girl, Rei chose to enjoy his morning tea in silence. It was when he was about to enjoy his tea that he heard that girl coughed.

"Are you alright, Momo-chan?"

The girl in question didn't answer immediately. Instead, she had her face full of shocked expression on it. She even thought that maybe it was a dream. But, when she felt her throat hurt because of got choked by the water she drank just now, she immediately realized that it wasn't a dream.

At the dining table she usually used to share breakfast together with her grandfather, the young man named Rei seated on one of the chairs. Brewing his morning tea with Japanese styled teapot and cups. But, it wasn't the thing which surprised Kana.

It was the way he dressed himself that morning.

Dressed in midnight blue colored night robe, with his long platinum blonde hair which usually got tied up - laid on his back without any restriction. He looked like a different person.

"Want to join me? Sensei always like my tea that he can't stopped drinking it." Rei offered without looking at her as he was focused on pouring the tea into a new cup. "I have prepared the matched sweets to the tea too, if you wanted to enjoy something sweet first thing in the morning."

Just... what kind of person is that young man Rei?

Kana asked herself that question. That young man, since the first time he stepped into the diner of her grandfather's, he always gave one surprise to another ones. He did unpredictable things.

"Or... should I make you a breakfast?"

It was that question which brought Kana back to the Earth. It was when Rei suddenly rose up from his seat and was about to walk to the kitchen set, she stopped him.

"No need. I, I don't have so many free time till the car arrived."

Kana could see a surprised look on Rei's face after she said those sentence. "Is that so? Then, have a cup of tea won't hurt, right?"

Slowly, Kana walked towards the dining table where Rei set the tea. Once Kana set herself on the chair across him, Rei served the warm tea in front of her. Kana didn't take the cup immediately, as she wasn't used to drink tea. Also, because of something else.

The unusual calm Rei in front of her.

As Kana recalled it, the young man in front of her was always full of energy. Not a second that his handsome face without a smile. That young man also quite talkative type, as he never ran out of question and story to be shared with the customers.

"Do you find something on my face, Momo-chan? You keep looking at me like you want to eat me."

"Wha-"

Kana didn't continue her supposed protest as she saw the most breath-taking smile in front of her. As she saw it, all the things around her seemed moving in slow motion as well as all the sounds disappeared. Except her fast beating heart.

What happened to her?

"The tea will lost its delicacy once it got cold, Momo-chan."

It was Rei's words which brought Kana back. With a robotic move, she took the cup and brought it to her lips. Just before she took the first sip, she took a short glance over Rei whom seemed engulfed in his own world.

Kana took a sip of the tea when she felt her face got warmer just because of looking at Rei. It was when her tongue tasted the tea that she got surprised. Never for once she experienced that kind of tea delicacy. It was always tasted flat whenever she had a tea, even in Nakiri mansion.

"I'm glad that you enjoy it, Momo-chan."

Again. Kana saw that kind of smile again once she looked up at him. Which was not safe for her heart.

She abruptly put the cup on the dining table with loud sound, which surprised both of them. And without any additional words, Kana left the place with fast steps that almost turned into running.

"Did I say something wrong?"

Kana even didn't bother close the front door of the diner with loud bang. Once she reached outside, she let out a long breath as she squatted down. She brought her right hand over her chest, to check her fast beating heart. Even after she distanced herself from Rei, it still beat so fast.

What has happened to her?

"Kana-sama, are you alright?"

Kana looked up as she heard that worried question got addressed to her. A middle-aged man dressed in black suits already stood in front of her, looked at her with his worried face.

"I...am. Should we go now, Uncle?"

An hour later,

Tokyo - Nakiri Mansion

"We're here, Kei-sama."

The one whom got called Kei opened his eyes, then cadged his sight outside the car's window. He took several seconds before unbuckling his seat belt. Once he got off of the car, he saw many teenage around his age emerged from classy cars which lined up just in front of the giant gate doors of Nakiri Mansion.

The regular social gathering of kids coming from families which involved in Japanese culinary business. This time, it got held at Nakiri Mansion.

"I thought that maybe you won't come, Kei."

A boy with tanned skin and white hair with several pinkish stripes on it, walked toward Kei.

"I did inform you in my message earlier that I will present, didn't I?"

"Yes. Just right before the meeting begin." That boy replied, then together with Kei – both of them walked to the gathering's venue.

It was a usual sight that once both of them made their appearance on the gathering, almost all of the girls' attention got focused on them. While the ones whom became the main characters of the parade, acted like it didn't bother them as they kept talking about one thing after another.

"You get taller, Kei."

"So do you, Hiro." Kei replied, then shoved a cube caramel candy to his mouth. "You get darker than I'm who busied myself in the field tend the vineyard." He added as he started texting something on his phone.

The other boy – Arato Hiroomi – chuckled at his friend's remark.

"Have you decided on your future high school?" Hiroomi asked another topic as both boys kept walking through the long corridor.

"Yes. My mom's alma mater, Soleil d'Or."

Hiroomi didn't comment on that answer immediately. Actually, he got a bit surprised by that answer. Just a month ago that he asked the same question to Kei, and the latter still haven't decided yet. Even that time, Kei looked like a boy who haven't decided on what will he ate the next hour. But just now, Kei answered that question with so much confident.

"You take Winery Major there?" Hiroomi gave another question.

Kei nodded. "And now I'm in the middle of preparing for the entrance test. It's really... stressing." Kei took a pause as he put back his phone inside his pants' pocket. "How about you? I heard that you got chosen in Autumn Election. Preparing for the assigned dish?"

"Uhm, kind of."

Kei stopped his steps as he saw Hiroomi stopped. Kei followed Hiroomi's line of sight and found a girl with rose gold hair was in the middle of talk with Arato Hisako – Hiroomi's mother.

"Say, Kei. What do you think about Nakiri family?"

Hiroomi asked without looking at his friend, as his gaze still focused on his mother. It was when he thought that Kei took too long time just for answering that simple question that he looked at Kei. What he saw from his friend was something he hasn't seen before. A cold gaze on Kei's violet eyes, as well as unfriendly face he made.

"They are... the worst nightmare."

- 4th plate – end -