Erina nearly flinched with everyone else the moment Rindo abruptly slammed her hands down on the prepared kitchen set in front of her, but careful training allowed Erina to maintain her poker face. Inwardly though, she was dying.
"How pretentious!" Rindo hollered towards the gathered crowd while winking at her.
No! No stop it! Erina resisted the urge to grab Rindo and drag her out of the room if only because it would reveal her unease in the face of the frosty gazes directed at them. Worse, she'd even spotted the two that had nearly killed her the prior night. One wrong move and a year from now this would be the anniversary of her death day.
Rindo, what the hell are you doing?!
Erina pursed her lips and clenched her fists, doing her best to keep up her façade of calm. She wasn't just some naïve girl who would tremble at a corner at the first sign of trouble. Only when there were no options left would she be reduced to such a state, and if she did nothing this was precisely what might happen.
Think. Act. Do.
She sucked in a breath and cleared her mind. Her doubts and anxiety lingered, but her self-preservation skills sky-rocketed in the face of danger.
First, she needed to observe and understand what she was dealing with.
Along with Rindo, she was standing on a podium fitted with a modern kitchen and appliances that were placed randomly as if the people themselves didn't know what they were used for. Shirou had explained the limited understanding most magi had of the mundane world, but this set up reflected every point he'd made…a fridge was facing backwards, the hinged front pressed up against a wall.
Don't think about that. Just don't think about it and focus. Erina stressed. At any other time, she would have words with whoever was in charge of handling this kitchen, but right now it wasn't important.
Rindo's words had riled several faces in the crowd of magi.
The closest comparison Erina had of the magi seated across from her, each with their own prepared kitchen space, was that they reminded her of aristocracy or the filthy rich. Arrogant, obtuse, and utterly unwilling to be demeaned. Some were already visibly incensed, faces reddening while veins popped over their necks.
This wasn't the first time Erina had seen such reaction. It was a common sight she'd seen whenever she disapproved of a prideful chef's signature dish. The only difference between then and now though was that there were no guards to protect her from any sudden outbursts.
Left unsaid, but many of the magi that composed the Gluttony institute were made of second and third-rate magi. They were already scorned by first-rates, and they could endure it because they were inferior, but coming from Rindo and Erina whose accomplishments weren't even known, how could they endure such insult to their pride?
Rindo was playing with fire. Literally.
The gaze of the same man who'd lit his arm on fire the previous evening had turned murderous. The woman who controlled the puppet shared in the man's sentiments and carried an equally terrifying expression. The fact that they'd come to blows in a conflict over food left Erina with little confidence that magi like them wouldn't act out.
This had to be remedied quickly because such people had short tempers. Hidden from view by the kitchen set, Erina snubbed Rindo's foot and glared at her to stop any theatrics.
Erina didn't know what Rindo was trying to accomplish here, but this wasn't the time for showboating or insulting the crowd to better engage them.
Rindo coughed into her hand. Something about the desperation flickering across Erina's features subdued her enthusiasm. "My apologizes, let me rephrase myself. If you know its taboo to ask about our 'magecraft' like you said, then why ask?"
"That is…"
None of the magi present had a response to that and could only trail off. Even the host that had brought Erina and Rindo seemed put off.
Good. So, send us back already!
Erina was praying in her mind that these people could be reasonable. Shirou himself said that if there was one thing that was respected among magi, it was the privacy of their craft. No matter how ruthless magi were, they still adhered to certain principles and this was one of them.
"Though I suppose if you really need a demonstration then I can accommodate."
RINDOOO! Goddammit! Are you helping or trying to kill us! And again, with the wink? What is even going on in your mind?
Expectedly, the magi revealed expressions of relief at Rindo's words, many even calling her gracious as they were indeed pushing things a bit far.
Erina took this opportunity to whisper into Rindo's ear, but all that came out was a hiss of frustration. If her thoughts could kill, then she would be wringing Rindo's neck right now.
"Don't worry. I got this," Rindo assured. "I know we don't have any superpowers like the rest of them, so we must have been scouted as special chefs and just have to prove ourselves." In a way she wasn't wrong as the Gluttony institute fully dabbled in the culinary arts, but…
Noooo! Erina's mind blanked at the answer Rindo had arrived at. You? You were just at the wrong place at the wrong time. You're a tag-along! Stop making things more difficult.
As much as Erina wanted Rindo to take back her prior words, the damage had already been done. Every magus present in the room was staring at Rindo with anticipation, many had even taken out notes and old-fashioned feather quill pens.
"No magecraft," Erina cut in, fulling knowing that there were certain things Rindo wasn't privy to. Moreover, it was a fact that neither of them knew how to use magic, or 'magecraft' as Shirou had called it, in the first place. "As you all know, it's taboo to ask for another's craft, but we'll be fine with showing you the methods for cooking. For any specifics, I'm afraid we can't be of help and only Shirou could answer your inquiries."
After some consideration and confusion from Rindo's part, the host of the current assembly reluctantly nodded his head in acceptance.
"Understandable. It's a shame the Dean couldn't be invited today." The man that had escorted Erina and Rindo could only sigh in disappointment while speaking. "Then, please go ahead and demonstrate what you can."
Given tacit agreement, Erina gestured for Rindo to do her thing while Erina made her way to stand at the foot of the podium facing the crowd.
"I specialize in meats, namely exotic kinds," Rindo specified with a grin before looking towards the nearest Gluttony institute representative in a Victorian-esque suit. "What do you have in terms of supplies? If you don't have anything rare, I can work with ordinary meat as well."
The representative listened to Rindo's words, and scoffed at the mere premise that a collective of magi would be undersupplied. The man snapped his fingers, a crisp noise echoing out before a rotating magic circle appeared over his gloved palm. The sigils shone brightly, revolving over a center formation that glowed softly in the low lighting.
Erina caught herself staring, and promptly checked to make sure if anyone noticed, but she was safe since everyone's attention were still focused on Rindo.
Erina speculated that Rindo herself was likely floored with what she was seeing, but unknown to Erina, Rindo had already seen Shirou with a glowing knife before and managed to keep her poker face.
From the glowing sigils hovering over the representative's palm, a mass gradually began to appear in the form of a crocodile. It was thrashing and kept trying to bite the representative's neck with its serrated teeth.
Erina and Rindo were thoroughly floored. They'd both seen common magicians pull animals from hats, but this was different. There was no trick involved here.
A sheen of sweat was glistening over the representative's face, revealing how exhausting this spell was.
It was frankly amazing to summon a living animal at will, but from the expressions of the other magi present, this wasn't anything special.
"Will this suffice?" The representative asked, startling Rindo out of her daze while feeling secretly jealous that she didn't have a special power like she'd just seen.
"Yes," Rindo maintained her air of calm. However, when the man attempted to give her a live crocodile directly still thrashing and growling, she had to draw the line. "I can't cook it while it's alive."
The man shrugged. "Then kill it. Surely an aspiring magus and student of the Dean should be capable of this."
Rindo grew confused at the wording, blinking her eyes dolefully. She just had to open her mouth and ask. "What's a ma-"
"It's precisely because we're students of the Dean that we can't do this." Erina quickly interjected when she sensed Rindo about to make a mistake. Not caring for what expression Rindo was making, Erina pressed on nervously, cold sweat trailing down her back. "We aren't students due to our standing as magi…we're third rates who still struggle with the basics."
If Erina were to have just said what she did in the Clock Tower, then she would surely be scorned and belittled, but what she got in the Gluttony institute were several snobbish looks of empathy and understanding.
"Cooking is what matters for the craft, and that's why we were taken in as students," Erina clarified, thinking on her feet.
It was a logical point that couldn't be refuted. In fact, many magi began to make 'assumptions' about why Shirou was camped out near Totsuki Academy, a cooking school. Perhaps he was looking for potential students of the craft? However, as soon as this thought came, it was dismissed.
Totsuki Academy was part of the ordinary world. Even the act of taking a student there would be taboo because it would be the same as introducing a non-magus from an affluent background to the world of magecraft. Which fool would be dumb enough to break the laws of the Mages Association?
The more likely reason was that the Dean might be sticking near Totsuki to learn better cooking techniques which falls in line to what Erina had just said prior.
"Fine," the representative of the Gluttony institute directly beheaded the crocodile with a simple spell, thoroughly shocking Rindo as the blood splattered over the floor.
The representative didn't even flinch or react to what he'd just done. Instead, covered in caiman blood, he walked up to Rindo and placed the spasming ingredient on her prep table.
Erina noticed how quickly the playfulness left Rindo's visage at this moment. Her complexion had gradually paled at the representative's cold actions and the lack of alarm from the crowd.
"E-Erina?" Rindo called out unsurely.
Finally realize what situation were in?! Erina swallowed nervously, and subtly shook her head while urging Rindo to just go with it.
Don't underestimate the ability of one of Totsuki Academy's Top Ten. Rindo's ability to cope with high stress wasn't to be belittled. "Then I'll begin," she said robotically.
Erina watched as Rindo chose not to question what just happened and instead proceeded to prep her new ingredient for cooking using the tools provided at her station.
Rindo cut along the side of the scales and over the limbs before peeling the skin back and beginning the bleeding process over the provided industrial sink.
Meanwhile, the magi watched on without blinking an eye. Still, there were those that were dissatisfied. "Isn't this just simple cooking?" One of them asked.
"Simple?" Rindo's ears twitched before she narrowed her eyes sharply. It was the first time her specialized exotic cutting techniques had ever been called 'simple,' but a part of her was still too shocked about what just happened to raise an objection. This would be up to Erina.
Speaking of Erina, she was doing her best to resist the urge to bite the nail of her thumb while furiously thinking for an explanation.
Think of it as a manga. Ordinary common sense doesn't apply here. The genre is supernatural, action, mystery, and cooking, so work from there.
"Simple cooking?" Her tone naturally adopted the haughty air of her upbringing. This would ordinarily be enough to offend the recipient as it seemed like she was looking down on them, but to other magi, they saw no problem with the tone. "That's where you'd all be wrong since preparation is key," Erina chided lowly, not trusting herself to raise her voice and allow the undertones of nervousness to show. "The effectiveness of this culinary craft depends on the skill of the chef. As you all should know, magecraft is made of intricate components that make up a whole?"
Erina sounded like she was asking herself a question rather than making a statement. This was because she was. All supernatural/magic manga had specific systems of magic that adhered to certain principles. If she remained vague enough, and acted like she knew what she was talking about then this could work- maybe.
Outwardly, she was calm, but inwardly, she was desperately observing the magi around her in hopes that no one would refute her. Seeing a few nods, she gradually began to feel surer of herself.
Suddenly Hisako had become her queen and saviour in this moment.
Whoever said manga isn't real is a fool! It's clearly a façade meant to reveal the existence of magic in plain daylight but no one believes it…or maybe that was the plan? Should she try practicing the Kamehameha? Were ninja's real too? How devious. Perhaps all these things were true and there was one secret organization trying to monopolize and discredit the information to horde everything for themselves. Thoughts for later.
Erina cleared her throat after realizing that she'd been silent for too long.
"Cooking magecraft is made up of a process as well. Look at Rindo. The way she handles a knife and cuts along the striations of the caiman's muscles allows for clean separation of the meat and bones. If I'm correct, the way my teacher cooks is by injecting his magic energy into the food. If so, carelessly butchering the quality of the meat or cooking ingredients will limit the magical yield." Erina spoke with confidence and analytical prowess like a real member of the moonlit world. This was a bluff however, since she was essentially paraphrasing and taking ideas from different manga she read. Only a true Otaku could do such a thing as cherry pick information from her favorite stories, but Erina would never use that title herself.
Out of the corner of Erina's eye, she couldn't help but spot Rindo looking at her differently in a new light. There was a 'so that's what it was' expression on her face.
Was she actually believing the bullshit she was spewing? Erina's brow twitched, but couldn't offer any explanation. In any case, her words caused the magi to seriously mull over them.
Magi were all scholars in a sense, and many grew intrigued.
"May you elaborate?" They asked while Rindo moves from prepping the meat to turning on the stovetop. Rindo was working in a daze of sorts.
"Ahem," Erina cleared her throat. Alright, manga magic systems. It's all on you now. "You see, when inserting magic energy into the food created, you have to be careful and delicate during preparation. There are certain techniques such as tenderizing meat or finely dicing vegetables into even shapes. The application of magic can then begin since it can be spread evenly. Think of it like surface area. You can cover an object with magic energy, but if you flatten out the object, you can coat it more evenly. Proper technique would even allow for magic energy to seep into the composition of the food ingredients like how my teacher does it. Then there are searing techniques, baking times, and making sure the magic output in the food remains stable over the course of cooking. This is to prevent 'leaks' from improper handling of the food which can let the magic energy seep out."
"Really?" The voice came not from the magi around Erina, but behind her at the central podium where Rindo had stopped working in awe to question her.
Whhhhhyyy! Why are you the one asking?!
Erina felt the urge to scream, or cry at this point. What sort of partner would continually make things more difficult for their teammate?
"Of course," Erina had no choice but to answer confidently.
"Then how would this compare?"
This was exactly when an intrigued magus stepped forward and offered Erina a plate of cake that was clearly baked by said magus. The magus was a woman of short stature and build with a riding crop attached to her waist and a gauntlet on her left hand. She had a fierce and valiant demeanor, which must explain why the moment she made her presence known, the other magi parted like the red sea and began whispering heatedly to each other about 'how did this disaster end up here,' and 'how did no one notice.'
Erina stared at the offered cake, and then to the woman who was waiting on her assessment with an impatient frown. This woman would not take well to being played.
Stay calm. Collected. You are a Nakiri. Act like it.
Left with little choice, Erina could only swallow the bullet due to all the attention on her, and took a careful bite of the cake.
And then it hit her.
She gagged, spitting the piece of cake onto the floor just to try and get the taste out of her mouth. Of course, she felt a swell of mysterious energy that caused her clothes to flutter which must have been the injected magic, but compared to Shirou's food, this was garbage. For a moment, she forgot herself and defaulted to her base setting as a harsh judge.
"What is this rubbish?" She spat out in contempt. She was Erina Nakiri, when was the last time she'd been served something in which she couldn't even swallow?
A hushed silence immediately descended at her words, the woman's brows knitting together before she snorted while looking at the cake spat out onto the floor. No matter how unaffected the woman seemed, there was a hint of unwillingness in her features as she strived to be the best at anything that she deemed worthwhile. "Clearly, this was a failed and subpar attempt at this new field of study, but I made that rubbish. Is it really that awful?"
If the woman didn't look so serious, Erina could have sworn that she was pouting like a house wife who's cooking was called trash by their husband.
She knew this was probably a horrid idea to offend anyone in this gathering, but she had her principles when it came to food.
"Rubbish is still rubbish." Erina refused to lie. Besides, she was convinced that if she showed weakness, then the jig would be up. Unknown to her, but no magi would blame her if she took a step back…or a thousand. However, she did not which earned her a hint of grudging respect from the woman, and awe from the others.
"What gives you the right to judge?" The woman took on a lighter, yet sterner tone.
Qualifications to judge? Was this woman joking? Erina took this as a matter of pride and dignity.
"My craft." She boasted, turning her own unique skill into a magic one. "It's called God Tongue which is why I'm my teacher's best student. I can discern everything about food from the moment I taste it which naturally means I can judge best. Your cake, though pleasing to the eye, was too dry, meaning that you must have left it baking for too long. Furthermore, the balance of flavours was off to the point that it tasted salty. This means that your ingredient measurements weren't accurate enough or you confused sugar for copious amounts of salt. The magic energy seemed passable," she tacked on as this was the main appeal of Shirou's cooking that needed to be replicated. "However, it could be better. Both if the cake actually tasted good, and if you were able to retain more magical energy inside the food. Being as you've hardly passed in both endeavors, what is this cake if not rubbish?"
The woman looked lost for words, but the insinuation that she'd done something as stupid as mixing sugar for salt stung. After all, sugar was a component in tea, and Magi weren't ignorant enough to not know what sugar was.
No magi dared laugh. Due to the status of this woman, one had to actually ask when was the last time she'd made any food on her own? The answer was evident as an attendant walked up to Erina and took the plate of cake away before bowing.
By this point, there was a kind of awkward tension in the air. The only sound present was Rindo who had just finished cooking the caiman. With her job done, she made her way to stand next to Erina.
A silence ensued for what felt like hours to Erina. Not even the other magi nearby dared to make a sound.
"You may leave," the woman suddenly said- no commanded with a stern huff. Evidently, this was the first time this woman had suffered a loss in years.
Erina was glad to comply with the request, but she chanced a look at the magi around her which the woman noticed.
"They will not bother you." The woman narrowed her eyes on the others. "After all, I have a task for you, and who would dare try to say otherwise?"
If it were possible, the gathered magi seemed to shrink even further back, not daring to offer a rebuttal.
Erina nodded stiffly, grabbing Rindo by the sleeve and fully intending to leave right there and then. However, just as she'd dragged a silent Rindo to the exit of the room, the woman suddenly called out again.
"My name is Lorelei." The woman spoke with pride and class. "Although I've satisfied myself with this prompt lecture, do tell your teacher that this is his final warning. If he dares makes me wait any longer, I shall visit him personally."
"R-Right," Erina didn't care what she was saying and just agreed if it meant getting out faster.
Without anymore fanfare, Erina made a hasty exit with Rindo.
Somehow, they'd survived this harrowing predicament.
With Erina and Rindo gone, Lorelei's eyes drifted towards Rindo's cooked meal. Casually, she walked over and took a bite, her eyes widening as the flavour of sauces and seasoning left a pleasant tang in her tastebuds. She felt no increase in magic reserves at all, but wasn't too bothered with it as it was stated that no magic would be used. This was all clearly just culinary skill.
Savouring the taste in her mouth, Lorelei grew curious and took a bite out of her own cake held up by her attendant. She cringed inwardly, but refused to spit out her own creation in front of others.
For the first time in a long time, she suddenly felt as if she were lacking in talent.
Her desire to bind and rope Shirou underfoot suddenly increased several folds.
He would be hers if he knew what was good for him, and if not...
Let the hunt begin.
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