The rest of the study session had gone smoothly, but Ryo knew he still had a drive home to get through. Alice had been watching him and Megumi closely, and he knew that she would have questions after this latest episode.
Ryo crossed his arms and closed his eyes once he and Alice were in the Nakiri limo heading back to the family house. Alice clearly wanted to talk, but for once she found herself at a lack for words. Ryo could be so stubborn, and the last thing she wanted to do was make him second guess his budding relationship with Megumi. Eventually, Ryo cracked an eye open and noting Alice's agitation, spoke up, "I know what you're trying to pull with Megumi, and you need to stop."
"Don't be so quick to dismiss my instincts! Why was Megumi so upset earlier?!"
"Because she doesn't appreciate being underestimated, and there was a misunderstanding. She thought I didn't respect her cooking abilities."
Alice sat with this response a moment. "So…she cares what you think of her cooking?"
Ryo let out an exhausted sigh, "Not everyone obsesses over romance movies like you. Some of us are actually here to cook."
Alice looked hard at her assistant, trying to determine whether he believed his own words. "If you say so."
The rest of the ride home was spent in silence. Once home, Ryo went straight to his room and decided to distract himself with his workout routine. Alice showered and retired to her own room. Sitting at her computer, Alice reviewed what had happened that day. Ryo knew what she was trying to accomplish, so she'd have to back off with him. Megumi on the other hand….. she may still be open to Alice's influence!
Eventually though, Alice took a deep breath and settled on the fact that realistically she didn't have time to dwell on this when Azami was still threatening to take over Tohtski. She would have to continue playing the long game. At least Megumi and Ryo were friendly with each other, she could at least be satisfied with that for now. Her best friend deserved happiness, and she would make sure that he had it. But priorities were priorities if any of them were going to have a future.
Alice had done her best to figure out just how Azami had planned to cheat the advancement exams. Nothing had prepared her for just how dirty the examiners were willing to be though! Azami had deliberately left it up to the examiners, just so there wouldn't be a paper trail back to him, but the intent was clear. He wanted to ensure that the rebels would produce nothing but trash. Afterall, if it didn't taste good, who could argue that they should pass?
Upon first arriving in Hokkaido, most of the rebels were overcome with excitement as it was their first time seeing snow, and bound into the white banks like elementary school kids! Alice was pleasantly surprised when Megumi lingered with her and Ryo to gently defend her friends' rambunctious behaviour. It gave Alice hope that Megumi had already warmed to her and Ryo as friends. It struck Alice that while Megumi was considered the more timid chef, Ryo was, in reality, possibly the quietest student at Tohtski in any situation outside of the kitchen. All the more reason that she needed them to get through this trial and figure out how perfect they were together!
With such a positive start to their time in Hokkaido, Alice was pleased that she and Ryo were part of Megumi's team for the first challenge. The first examiner thought she was clever by giving them bad product. But they made a big mistake putting the rebels in their own team. Between Alice, Soma, Ryo, Megumi, and Yuki the challenge was a joke! Yuki, as the natural cheerleader, hyped everyone up. After Yuki gushed over Ryo and Megumi's expertise in seafood, Megumi pointed out that Ryo had just won over Central in a salmon battle. They were all determined. And once they were given the time frame, their victory was guaranteed!
While the other students spent their time trying to painstakingly remember their class notes and second guessing their abilities, the five rebels barely needed to speak to realize what their plan had to be. It didn't take Alice long to source the nearest vendor with the specially preserved summer caught salmon. And once they were in the kitchen it only took a moment to divide everyone's duties based on their strengths.
In the end, the examiner was floored by their dish and reluctantly allowed them to pass.
As they boarded the train to their next challenge, Alice interlocked her arm with Megumi's and pulled her close to bask in their shared victory. Per usual, Ryo was nearby and eyed his boss as she dragged the blue-haired chef along with her. Luckily for Megumi, Erina also noticed Alice's smothering attention and she stepped in to help her newfound friend, resulting in yet another squabble between the two Nakiri heiresses.
The disruption at least gave Megumi some breathing room, and she shot Ryo a half smile when she caught him eyeing her in concern. To his surprise, Ryo returned the gesture. Once he was certain that Alice hadn't overstepped with Megumi, it felt nice to think that maybe Megumi could sympathize with dealing with the eccentricities of the Nakiris. He supposed Hisako would also know what it's like to be an outsider in the culinary dynasty… though truthfully, she could be as extreme as any of them.
As the rebels gathered in one of the lounge cars to resume their study session, Alice and Erina stopped their squabbling for the time being.
"Hmph." Alice struck a haughty pose while Erina left to prep their research materials. Remembering Megumi, Alice turned back to her recent teammate. "Say, when did you get so close with Erina?"
"Huh?! I wouldn't say that we're close exactly…" Megumi stammered.
"Nonsense. It's obvious that she's protective of you."
Megumi's eyes went wide at this revelation. "…I guess… after we worked together during the stagiere, Erina's been pretty nice to me…"
"I see. You really must have impressed her." Alice smiled at the shocked girl.
"No! I'm sure that I didn't do anything special enough to impress her! She's probably just taking pity on me."
"Ha! Erina does not pity anyone. You really need to up your confidence, we can't have you getting sent home just because you don't think you deserve to be here."
Megumi didn't have a response and could only clutch the good luck charm in her pocket.
Not wanting to actually upset her, Alice left to get settled for the study session with Ryo in tow. She knew that Megumi was getting better in competitions, but the shy girl still struggled to see her own skill. Hopefully that would change sooner rather than later if they were going to last long enough to defeat Azami.
Ryo didn't like seeing Megumi flustered, but Alice did have a point. He wished that he could help her, but ultimately only Megumi could push herself further.
