Hello dear reader(s)...
Time flies so fast, and here this story gets its 1st anniversary. It felt like yesterday that I started writing this. Thank you, for whoever you are who has spare your time to read this story. Thanks too, for following and make this as one of your favorites story. Thanks (especially RoseAmeliaSarahNoblePond), for you who has left review(s). For silent readers out there, your attention has made my day. Of course, I hope to get more reviews in the future :)
For all of you, who has waiting for the Autumn Election, please... wait for a little longer. I still planned on posting 1 or 2 more chapters before we get into Autumn Election. So, stay tune till there, okay?
It has been (not very) long since the last time I updated this story, so... I hope to hear/see/read your review, dear reader(s)
Stay calm and healthy
- rionnaru -
Dish.17 – Does it... you?
Souma looked in awe at the invited guest on that occasion. No wonder they called it as a banquet. It was really a banquet, almost rivaled to what he had back in the training camp. Stranger faces he saw in those sea of people which filled the Tsukishiro hall – the hall where the monthly banquet always took place.
"Oho~ look who's coming? Isn't it our seventh seat of Elite Ten, Isshiki?" Souma shifted his attention to the one whom greeted his senior in very cheerful voice. A female student, upperclassmen – Souma guessed. She had long, light brown hair which got tied in twin high ponytails and two blue pins crossed each other on the right side of her head. She dressed in Toutsuki's summer uniform.
"And his chicks comrade." Another voice butted in. Souma found another student who made an appearance from behind the earlier one. A male student with messed red-maroon hair in bun. His tired eyes had the same color as his eyes. He supported a bottle with red liquid in it. Despite the hot summer already started, that boy dressed in black hoodie under the royal blue jacket of Toutsuki.
"Ohayo gozaimasu, Kozuki senpai, Kuze senpai." Isshiki greeted back the two upperclassmen whom intentionally or not were greeting him first thing they met. "It's been a while since our last meeting at monthly banquet."
The female senior nodded. "It felt like has been centuries even, Isshiki. So, since you're here." That girl walked closer to Isshiki, then grabbed his right hand. "You don't mind to lend us your hand, right?"
Before Isshiki answered, the girl already dragged Isshiki out of the group. Both of them left the red-maroon senior with the rest of Polar Star Dorm's residents whom previously tailed behind Isshiki. That senior boy slurped the red liquid in the bottle he brought as his maroon eyes looked lazily at Souma and friends.
"Let's go to your table, kids."
Isshiki followed the female senior student in silent. Since the first time he met that girl, till this second, he didn't like the vibe given by that girl.
"She got chosen as one of the participants of the upcoming Autumn Election. May I conclude that... she hasn't qualified enough to be the part of Elite Ten, Isshiki?" Kozuki An – the previous president of French Cuisine RS for three years in consecutive, the one whom stood at the top hierarchy of ciel étoilé squad, the one whom dragged the seventh seat of Elite Ten – asked without looking back at Isshiki as both of them kept walking.
"Aha... it's a bit surprising me that you're dragging me out from my kouhais just to be asked that question, Kozuki senpai." Isshiki replied back with his animated way of talk, still dodged the actual thing which got asked by the older one.
"You haven't changed at all, Isshiki. So smart with your talk." An talked back. "Nah, if you said so... than it can't be helped, then? Since in the first place, Elite Ten is a sacred organization."
It was like got humiliated. It hasn't enough time for Isshiki to inhale a fresh air, yet another sharp words came towards him – again.
"Then... why are you coming here, Isshiki? We all knew that Elite Ten never paid any attention on monthly banquet. Did you, or people upper than you, already plan on something?"
"How rude, Kozuki senpai." Isshiki replied right away. Even deep down in his heart that he can't deny on the last part of An's guess was wrong, but that thing didn't relate to his appearance in this monthly banquet. "I just... want to have fun as the summer holiday has started. Nothing malicious."
An stopped after hearing that reason. Then, she turned around. With a sneer smile, she bid a farewell. "Then, I hope you enjoy it, dear kouhai-kun."
Isshiki sighed, relieving that he had got out of the female lion's grasp. He really did take a note. Never going to monthly banquet when Kimura Haruki wasn't around. Just then, he remembered that he has left his dear kouhais with another beast of ciel étoilé squad.
Kuze Kairi – people often called him as Vampire Prince Kuze. His appearance already spoken all of the description which matched with that nickname. He always showed his tired, lazy look whenever you met him. His preference of shady places, and his dark colored clothing. Not to forget about his liking of that red drink in that bottle. The worst is his un-civil manner be it to his fellow student in his generation, moreover to his underclassmen. With all of that, Isshiki can't helped himself to wonder how he got the head assistant position in Prof. Vermillio's Bone Marrow Seminar.
"Hope that nothing happened to you all, dear my kouhais."
It was like his pray already came true once he made in to the hall that he saw all the freshmen of Polar Star Dorm still completed. Even they had engaged into several groups, having discussion about something which looked so interesting. So, Isshiki began inspecting another part of the hall. Yet, he can't belief his own eyes once he saw the same girl which did nothing other than investigating him seconds ago already turned into an elegant senior had a talk with some random juniors. So, the rest of ciel étoilé squad members.
Isshiki Satoshi – who always looked like had nothing to be feared of – actually in the middle of battle. Attending the monthly banquet was like entering the beast's lair empty-handed. It wasn't a secret that ciel étoilé squad members always be in cold war with Elite Ten members. The real reason behind it, Isshiki didn't know. But, as long as he became the part of Elite Ten, little did he knew why his seniors in Elite Ten disliked ciel étoilé squad.
The said group was filled by prominent students with such big influences among other students. Not bound by office-related-works, they spent time with ordinary students more often than Elite Ten members. While Elite Ten needed several approvals for a new policy to a certain issue, ciel étoilé squad already solved with an alternative way. They covered the missing piece of Elite Ten Council. But, it's not the thing which angered Isshiki's seniors.
It was their loyalty to Nakiri Karen.
"You will got possessed if you kept daydreaming like that, Sato senpai."
Speak of the devil.
"I thought that maybe you won't be showed up since Ruki-nii is absent." Karen added as she followed Isshiki's sight. "Yah... you've given your best dealing with one of them, I guess."
"Kind of." Isshiki replied, not really like Karen's choice of words. "I always got curious, how you and Ki-kun could chat comfortably around them."
"Then, it the same way as you whom joking around with the rest of Elite Ten members, Sato senpai." Karen replied casually as she opened a cube candy with her favorite caramel flavor. "Please enjoy the banquet till the end, Senpai."
Isshiki got himself alone – after Karen bid him that farewell. So, he decided to join his juniors' group.
"So, about the Ryuuseigun, what event you guys want to visit? Since, we can use our ticket to get into two events." Yuuki began another discussion into their group.
"Ehm... Tanabata Fest, I think that one is a must." Ryoko replied. "But, the other one I still don't know." She added, then she looked at Megumi. "Have you, Megumi?"
"Eh? I haven't, Ryoko-chan. But, I get interested in Kyusei's Doll House, a bit." Megumi answered, then she asked the one next to her. "How about you, Souma-kun?"
Souma shook his head, answering Megumi's question. "But, since it's a festival, then maybe I will choose the merriest event among all."
The rest of Polar Star Dorm members burst into laughter once they heard Souma's innocent answer. Just like Yukihira Souma they knew. Another new set of fresh cooked dish got served to their group, accompanied their lively chats. Too busy with their own discussion, that they didn't notice that their senior – Isshiki Satoshi – joined them. It was when the oldest one gave an explanation about Ryuuseigun that the freshmen kids noticed him being the part of their group.
"Then, you should gave their final event – Tanabata Fest – a visit, Souma-kun." Isshiki started. "It is... the merriest event among all the four." He added, then continued. "That's right, you all must haven't decide what event to get into as each event has its own attractiveness." Isshiki paused as he took a sip of the orange juice in front of him. "The international seminar is an annual international seminar which publicized research result in culinary studies, be it old literatures and novelties. Maybe, it will be a good choice for Marui-kun and Sakaki-chan." Isshiki took another pause as he took a cream-puff cake with bubble gum flavor in it.
"The summer exhibition is a big expo where they showed not only the products from both Farm, Veterinary Faculty and Mechanical Engineering Faculty which will be sold in the next year's Spring Bazaar. But, there is also a talk show with professionals in culinary business, an open class for several courses. They also showed the products of their business partner too. I think, it's a good opportunity for Yoshino-chan, Ibusaki-kun, Aoki-kun and Satou-kun."
"Heh? Then, what about Kyusei's Doll House?" Yuuki asked right after Isshiki finished his long explanation. "It has a weird name among the others."
Isshiki chuckled at that comment. It was the same comment he had before, since that event's name was kind of a game's name.
"It's one of the big cooking matches in Kyusei." Someone butted into the conversation. Someone unexpected to be presented in that banquet. The one whom owned the top spot of 92nd generation. Nakiri Erina, followed by her fateful secretary. Erina's purple eyes then focused on the sophomore boy. "I've questioned myself, why... Isshiki-san took all the unused invitations. And now, I get the answer."
"You're coming here just to confirm it, how generous of you, Nakiri-kun." Isshiki replied, didn't forget to give his amused look.
Erina was about to counter back, but Souma gave her another question faster than her own reaction.
"Big cooking match? Mind if you explained it, Nakiri?"
It was a new discovery. To see the always composed Nakiri Erina had her annoyed cross on her temple right after hearing Souma's request. Isshiki even didn't mind to show his amused face because of that.
"It's a cooking competition among top 30 freshmen of Kyusei High majored in Pastry Faculty." All the attention of that group focused on the pink haired secretary girl – Arato Hisako – whom volunteered of explaining the said event. "It has varied themes as well as the types of match for the competition in each stage, till the final stage where they got the champion." Hisako added. "Many critics said that it was far fiercer than Toutsuki's Autumn Election."
"I think, it's worth of a visit." Souma commented. To think that there will be a cooking competition, he can't helped but imagining just how many lessons he will got there. Even he only watched it from afar.
Megumi too. She has decided to go to that event. To be in the middle of fierce cooking match – even though she only participated as the audience – maybe it will give her a motivation.
"And... the final event of Ryuuseigun – Tanabata Festival. It may be looked like any ordinary Tanabata Fest out there, but there are special additional events in it." Isshiki got back into the conversation. All the attention got focused back on him. "Nakiri-kun has said that Kyusei's Doll House is one of the big cooking matches in Kyusei, right?" He paused, then continued at the next second. "Then, another one big match is Kyusei's Blooming Flame. It's a match between the top 3 from Kyusei's Doll House against top 3 best students of Pastry Faculty. It was an opening act of Kyusei's Tanabata Fest."
"Top 3 best students, does it mean... they have match against senior students?" Megumi asked.
"In most occasion, that is. But, just like the previous year, this year... a sophomore student made into the top 3 best students of Pastry Faculty. Nah, Kyusei had their own standard of it." Isshiki explained.
"You're quite knowledgeable about it, Isshiki senpai." Yuuki gave another of her comment.
"Ahaha... am I? But, there is still one more special event." Isshiki had his sight on Souma whom looked back at him. "It's really suit for you who love challenge, Souma-kun."
"What do you mean, Isshiki senpai?" Souma asked back.
"Shokugeki."
The familiar term for Toutsuki's students.
"Top 30 best students from both senior and sophomore, they can challenged the guests or got challenged by the guests. You must... not let that chance go, right?"
A shokugeki? Against top students of another renowned school in Japan? For real? Even at that simple thought, it already made Souma excited. Kyusei's summer festival – Ryuuseigun. He must took a stop there.
In between the endless chats here and there, Karen chose to take a short rest. She switched on her phone, and started browsing. She wasn't browsing at random things, as she already decided the site she wanted to go. The official website of Kyusei's summer fest – Ryuuseigun. Once she reached on the website, there already got posted so many things related to the fest. The detailed information to be precise. Ryuuseigun, an international scaled festival. It has been recorded as one of the biggest festival hold by high school. Moreover, this year's Ryuuseigun has been rumored as the biggest since twenty years ago.
Karen always got curious about the one whom responsible in conducting such an extravagant event. Little did Karen investigate about Kyusei, their student council had such big influence in making decisions in Kyusei High. Almost alike Toutsuki's Elite Ten. Then, Karen got frozen once she read the name of the Kyusei's current student council president.
"Kikuchi... Yuu...?" She spelled those name, as if she didn't quite sure that it was the right name of that student.
The same front name with her savior's, the one she wished to meet again. The one whom has promised to her. When she saw the picture of that student whom owned the top spot of Kyusei High, she got her lips locked completely. Her eyes didn't blink as it kept examining the features of handsome face in the picture.
A youthful, handsome face with a pair violet colored eyes with long lashes shadowed it. His handsome face got framed with chin-length yellowish platinum light blonde hair. Those face, suddenly gave her a nostalgic feeling in her heart. The thrilling, excited heartbeat like whenever she run together with her bike. The sudden warm, the sense of security, just like the one she felt that day – 8 years ago.
Bruk!
"What are you doing?!"
It was the most worried look she has seen since she stayed in the hospital. It was the loudest scream she heard since her stay in hospital. She has wished that maybe she will get it from her father – whom always stayed by her side. But, getting it from a stranger boy whom showed out of nowhere... she can't helped herself but cry.
"O...oi... daijoubu?"
Again, those worried voice. So, she cried louder. Louder and louder. Till it suppressed the annoying, frightening voices which haunted her endlessly whenever she awake. Then suddenly, she felt the warmest hug she ever had. And miraculously, all the haunting voices, her own sobs, died down. She nested her wet face on that stranger boy's chest. So warm, and she felt save just being with him. She didn't want it to end.
That night, she had the most peaceful sleep since she came to the hospital. That night, she didn't has the same dreadful dream she always had. Only his warmth which enveloped her, and his gentle caress over her back. His soft-spoken lullaby, it was the most melodious song in the world.
For the first time, she found a light.
"Please, don't cry. I will stay by your side, dear."
"Does it... you?"
