Instinctual knowledge
The Polar Star dormitory was filled with a lively atmosphere. The tenants of the dorm had led a rebellion against Nakiri Azami's central administration, along with Nakiri Erina.
One chef was especially in high spirits. Yukihira Sōma had earned the prestigious and coveted first seat of the elite ten, though he still didn't believe he deserved it. Most of all he was happy the dorm was safe and his friends could be happy. He was enjoying a chat with the Aldini brothers, when someone knocked on the main door. The redhead rose exclaiming "I'll get it" as he moved towards the entrance hall. He was met with quite a lot of protesting, one in particularly stood out.
"Don't bother Yukihira-kun. It's probably just Alice and Kurokiba-kun returning. This celebration is about you in particular." Sōma had never expected to hear this from the newly-appointed headmistress, whom he'd gotten a bit closer to in the last quarter of the school year.
He retorted with a grin on his face "It would be impolite not answering the door when someone knocks, Nakiri… There's no butler to do it for us at the dorm." Sōma could see her getting red as a tomato as he left the room.
As he opened the door a chilly wind crept itself inside the building. Even though he had decided to answer the door, Sōma was certain Nakiri was right in who the knocker was. This was the reason he began his sentence without checking "Oh you've made it back Naki…"
The person in front of him was definitely not Nakiri Alice. He was at least 6'5*, and even though it was in the middle of winter he had a healthy tan. Maybe he was one of the Nakiri bodyguards, he certainly had the build for it. The redhead immediately scrapped the idea as the stranger was dressed more like a teacher than a guard. Dressed in a pair of denim jeans, a plaid shirt with a suede blazer on top he stood in the entryway.
Sōma, completely taken aback, asked who he was in broken English. This was apparently unnecessary as the stranger answered in Japanese and in Keigo* no less. "Hello, might I have a word with Fumio Daimido-dono". The redhead stared at the stranger; there was something in his blue eyes that filled Sōma with dread. The young chef had been in enough threatening situations to know this man was a force to be reckoned with. It didn't help calm Sōma's nerves that his hair and beard looked like the mane of a lion.
"Um, might I have a word with Fumio Daimido-dono?" the redhead was at this point unsure how many times the Gaijin had asked, but he had to give an answer quickly. "Sorry 'bout that. I'll get her now… My name is Yukihira Sōma by the way"
The other inhabitants of the dorm had arrived in the hall wondering what was taking Yukihira Sōma this long. What they didn't expect was him taking to a stranger. Could the man be another person trying to destroy the dorm? The first seat thought as he fetched the dorm-mother. If that was the case he could be as terrifying as he liked, Sōma would stop him.
When he returned with the dorm-mother the hall was filled with an akward silence. Everyone were gauging the newcomer cautiously. The blonde man gave Fumio an envelope without any further explanation. Their following conversation reassured Sōma immensely, as far as he understood the stranger was a temporary tenant to be.
Nakiri on the other hand seemed to be completely opposed to the very notion of letting him stay "Absolutely not! I will not tolerate anyone associated with my father's way of cooking, on my school grounds. How did you even circumvent the security team?" The redhead realized how problematic this could turn out.
The man explained his connection was Nakiri Senzaemon and he already had clearance. Why Azami hadn't revoked it, Sōma couldn't guess.
In the kitchen the stranger, apparently named Benjamin, began cutting pancetta into uniform pieces for his dish. Soon the room filled with the savory smell of meat frying. Pasta was boiling on the stove, and he had readied a small mountain of parmesan for his dish. Though he lacked in the speed department, his methodical precession made Ben look like a robot.
After the verdict on his dish Nakiri scolded the stranger for not caring. It was clear, even to Sōma, that Benjamin's nonchalant reply made the headmistress furious. After she gave her lackluster analysis all of the dorm-members had to try the dish. As soon as the redhead chef tasted it he understood what they had meant: Sure it tasted like a carbonate, but there wasn't the clear vision after tasting a dish. Even so, Sōma picked up on something he didn't know if anyone else had, this Benjamin Williams was clearly more talented in the kitchen than he'd shown.
With Benjamin being a temporary Polar Star member they invited him to join the celebration. They decided to go with one of their favorite card-games 'old maid'. Though the newcomer had been reluctant to play, it soon became clear he was a very proficient player:
The first round he looked at each player, probably looking for tells Sōma thought, before smiling reassuringly. When they fell on the first-seat though, it terrified him. It felt nothing like how one normally looks for tells; instead it felt like a predatory animal looking for any sign of weakness in its prey. A smile began spreading across the strangers face, but it was in no way reassuring, it was an intrigued, crooked grin. Had it been the same smile when he looked at the other player and Sōma just didn't notice? It was an intense game with Benjamin finishing first and the redhead on a close 2nd place. The game ended with Takumi ironically admitting he had cried every time he lost a game as a child.
Something must at a point thrown Ben off balance because he was left as the only player beside Nakiri, him with two cards and her with one. If she could manage to win the last pair, Benjamin would finally have to tell the gang a secret. Sōma watched in anticipation as her pale hand reached toward one of the cards, but it was the old maid. Then he saw it; the newcomer went for the kill as soon as the blonde woman had shuffled her cards, and the redhead knew Ben had been playing her the whole time. He hadn't gotten worse; he intentionally put himself in the situation to make her lose. It was with reddened cheeks and tears in her eyes the headmistress started speaking. "As you all know, I've known Yukihira-kun's father since I was little… the truth is… I, I had a childhood crush on him!"
Sōma didn't know how to react. It was very surreal to hear someone, let alone someone his age, admit they'd had the hots for his dad. Then again the girls if the dorm had been star-struck the first time they met him.
Benjamin was trying one of the first-seats new creations, when the other Nakiri and Kurokiba arrived. He tried the dish in stride, with no emotion betraying him. He simply commented "It's certainly not good… to be polite, I'll call it avant-garde." The two of them were more or less interrupted by the white haired girl, whom at the sight of 'the test-subject' let out an excited screech "Ben? Hvordan har du det?" she then proceeded to hug him tightly. This baffled Sōma quite a bit; he had thought she was dating Kurokiba, yet she was getting intimate with Benjamin - It took them the better part of an hour to sort the misunderstanding out.
As the Danish man explained his reason for coming to Tōtsuki, he asked the Blonde Nakiri if they should find a vacant room. Luckily she flatly denied this idea. Sōma was certain them talking in private would be a bad idea. "Ok. I have a proposal to make…" Benjamin began, the redheads felt his heartbeat slow down to a hard rhythm, was he really proposing to her? As Ben continued his sentence, Sōma exhaled; he had unknowingly held his breath.
As the temporary tenant began his explanation the redheaded chef understood why Azami hadn't revoked the security clearance. The former headmaster had without a doubt wanted to get Benjamin on his side, Sōma didn't even dare to imagine what would had happened if he managed it. As Nakiri was uncertain if she needed his help, the Polar Star dorm-members asked him all sorts of dilemmas. In the case of a disagreement between Daigo and Shōji, he was fair in his reason and decision.
When Tadokoro asked if they should resume the game Ben politely refused, making Nakiri Alice quite mad. She said she wanted to play and hear the embarrassing stories, but the other Dane looked at her before asking teasingly "Are you sure? You could lose." Sōma was sure Benjamin would make her lose and unsurprisingly she didn't push it further. Instead she stuck her tongue out at him when he had his back turned, rummaging through his luggage. "Oh that's really mature, Alice." He didn't even look at her as he made his comment. The newcomer pulled out a keyboard from his possessions.
At some point they began singing the school song. Sōma had yet to learn the lyrics, but Benjamin quickly got the gist of the melody and accompanied the singers on his instrument.
The next day Sōma was experimenting in the kitchen. He had finished his chores quickly so he could try out new dishes. He had woken up missing his mother a lot, so he decided to make her famous congee as well. The first-seat was just done checking it, when he heard a shrill voice. "Sōma! Sōma, you need to help me! Ben just collapsed! I don't know if he's breathing."
He rushed out of the kitchen to the entrance hall, where he found Erina, pale in the face, trying to wake the unconscious Benjamin
This concludes the fifth chapter of a taste of Knowledge. Sorry for the late update it was a bit difficult writing about the same situations without repeating too much, but I think it turned out ok. If it was too much please let me know, and then I'll minimize it in the next chapter.
- One-of-Stone out
* 195 cm
* Polite/formal Japanese
