"Are you flirting with my mother?" Lancelot asked.
"No, Mr. Lancelot, I am not flirting with your mother," the principal answered.
"Sorry, it's just that every school we visit, they try to flirt with her," Lancelot said.
"Don't worry, Mr. Lancelot; we don't do that here. Now, I've checked your son's files; he has excellent grades and behavior. He will be studying six subjects: physics, chemistry, math, cookery, science, and physical education. Do you have any questions, Ms. Audria?"
"No, not anymore; thank you for your help," Audria said, shaking hands with the principal.
"You're welcome. A scout can guide your son to the classroom to save you the climb to the fourth floor."
"Let's go, New Student!" the Scout Guide cheered.
They reached the fourth floor and the very last room—the one where Merlin, Cedric, and Ben were staying.
"Stand up, class. We have a new transfer. Please be welcoming," the Professor said, gesturing outside. "Go in now."
Lancelot walked slowly to the center of the room. "Hi, my name is Lancelot Nocturne. Nice to meet you all."
How many transfer students does this school need? Merlin thought to himself.
"Ok, Lancelot, sit next to..." The Professor scanned the room for a vacant seat. "Sit next to Merlin."
Lancelot headed for the window seat in the first row.
"Today, we are cooking," the Professor announced. "Follow me to the kitchen."
We followed him to the first floor. As we entered, I saw kitchen tools hanging along the walls. Below them were the ingredients for fried rice and eggs, laid out at separate cooking stations.
"Today we're cooking fried rice and eggs," the Professor said. "I'm splitting you into groups of three."
"Lancelot, group up with Merlin and Cedric," Professor barked. "Lastly Ben team with Fortu and Sikka."
"Grab the ingredients." Merlin said to Cedric.
Cedric marched towards the supply table, he scanned the ingredients and grabbed a random pile. He returned and dumped his haul onto the station.
"Cedric, do you know what these are?" Merlin said, hands rested on his hips.
"Yeah," Cedric paused for a second. "I think."
"Lancelot, do you know the list?" Merlin asked.
"Of course." Lancelot said confidently. "We need eggs, we need hotdogs, soy sauce, rice and most importantly—food sweetener." Lancelot answered.
"Ok let's start, also bring back the ingredients we don't need." Merlin commanded.
"Don't worry about that, I'll do it." Cedric suggested.
Cedric grabbed the ingredients, and brought them back.
"The pan is already in heat, we can finally add butter," Merlin muttered. "Can you move the butter till it melts? I'll be back, I'm taking a bathroom break." Merlin asked.
"I think we need oil." Cedric said.
"Do you think? Sure add oil." Lancelot agreed.
Cedric grabbed oil from the supply table, and he swamped the pan with it.
Both of them smiled, feeling proud they did something great.
Merlin came back, smiling from far away.
"So did the butter melt?" Merlin looks at Lancelot.
Before even Lancelot answered, Merlin saw the pan, drowning in oil, the butter was not even noticeable at this point.
"What did you do?" Merlin asked.
"It's foundation." Cedric said.
"We don't need oil." Merlin replied.
""Dry pans lead to dry lives, Merlin. It's physics.." Cedric said.
"I kinda agree." Lancelot said, with his thumbs up.
Merlin snatched a spoon to fish out the drowning butter.
"I'll stabilize the pH," Lancelot announced. He dumped a fistful of sweetener into the oil.
Fzzzt. The grease turned black.
"It smells like a burning candy factory," Cedric noted, leaning in.
"That's the caramelization of the soul," Lancelot explained. "It seals the aura."
"It's a grain, Lancelot! It doesn't have an aura!" Merlin hissed. He grabbed the rice bag.
Cedric blocked him. "Don't jump it. We have to introduce them slowly."
"Introduce who?"
"The rice to the oil," Cedric whispered. "They need to build trust."
Cedric dropped a single grain into the black sludge. It sank without a sound.
"The trust is built," Lancelot cheered. He cracked an egg directly onto the stove's handle.
Merlin stared at the yellow yolk sliding toward the floor. "That's not even the pan."
"Friction-less cooking, Merlin," Lancelot said, giving another thumbs up. "Physics."
Ten minutes later, the station looked like a chemical spill.
The "fried rice" was a shimmering, violet mound that smelled faintly of toasted marshmallows and ozone. The eggs had somehow become a single, rubbery sheet draped over the top like a tarp.
The Professor marched over, his clipboard held like a shield. He poked the mound with a fork. It wobbled.
"What," the Professor whispered, "is this?"
"It's a textured landscape," Cedric explained.
"We filtered the rice through the sweetener," Lancelot added. "For the aura."
The Professor took a tiny, brave bite. His eyes widened. He took another. Then he shoveled a whole spoonful into his mouth.
"It's... incredible," the Professor muttered, chewing rapidly. "It tastes like a five-star sunrise."
He swallowed and his face immediately turned to stone. He scribbled a giant red F on his clipboard.
"You fail," the Professor barked.
"But you're eating it!" Merlin cried.
"It's delicious," the Professor agreed, taking another bite. "But you didn't follow the instructions. This isn't fried rice. This is a culinary accident."
"It's a miracle," Lancelot corrected, giving a thumbs-up.
"It's a detention," the Professor countered. "Clean this lab."
"Am I involved?" Merlin groaned.
"Yes, unfortunately." the Professor snapped.
Three of them go out and follow the Professor, while they're walking, Lancelot expression changes.
"This is just an act of mine."Lancelot muttered. "I don't hang out with failures, I needed to look like a failure or else I can't move with peoples eyes if I was an excellent person. Remember this."
"You aren't friendly?" Merlin asked, blinking in surprise.
"No, I never was." Lancelot countered. "both of you were just part of my plan as well." Lancelot answered.
The Professor opens the door for principal office and let them in.
Inside the principal office, the principal delivered a non-stop scolding.
After that they finally goes out.
Merlin and Cedric heads to the library, while Lancelot goes to the classroom.
"Let's start." Cedric urged.
"The first book I found was about wishes, in novels or any form of media, we call that power system. We found a power system. The problem we have right now is that, we don't know how to execute it." Merlin murmured.
"You're forgetting something, wishes is the main reason how we're gonna get our abilities, if we manage to remember our wishes, maybe we can acquire it." Cedric explained.
Suddenly the door open.
"I remember my wish." Lancelot said.