Boarding the bus back to school, the students returned to Totsuki Academy after a several-hour journey.
The moment Soma Yukihira and the others pushed open the doors to the Polar Star Dormitory, a tall man with long, messy red hair stood before them.
Joichiro Yukihira.
Lexon recognized him immediately the moment he saw him.
He was Soma's father.
The man known as 'Shura.'
"Who is this?..." Yuki Yoshino and the others looked at the unknown guest who had suddenly appeared in the dormitory with confusion.
"Yo... Soma," Joichiro Yukihira greeted his son first.
"What are you doing here?" Soma Yukihira was also bewildered by his father's sudden arrival.
"Do you know him, Soma?" Megumi Tadokoro whispered her inquiry.
"Yeah... that's my old man," Soma replied.
"Soma's dad?" Most of the Polar Star residents were shocked.
"Hello. Thank you all for taking care of Soma," Joichiro said politely. His gaze then shifted toward Lexon. "And you must be Lexon, Soma's friend... My apologies for not following through on our previous agreement."
Perhaps because Soma had described him before, Joichiro recognized Lexon among the crowd at a glance.
"It's quite alright, Mr. Joichiro," Lexon smiled and extended his hand.
He had specifically saved today's sign-in attempt for this, choosing not to use it on Gin Dojima because he knew Joichiro was supposed to appear according to the original plot.
Though there was a chance the butterfly effect might have prevented his arrival.
But it was a gamble worth taking.
Looking at it now, the gamble had paid off.
"Sorry, sorry," Joichiro said heartily as he grasped Lexon's hand with a grin.
[SYSTEM: CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE OBTAINED 'SHURA'S ABSOLUTE GRASP': ALLOWS YOU TO MOLD ALL ELEMENTS OF A DISH INTO ANY FORM YOU DESIRE, CREATING A SUBLIME FLAVOR THAT ERODES THE SENSES.]
Not bad. He'd hit the jackpot.
It seemed saving the sign-in for Joichiro Yukihira was the right move.
'With this skill... I wonder if I can bypass the flaw Gin Dojima pointed out...'
'I'll have Joichiro try it and see...'
Lexon thought to himself.
He smiled, withdrew his hand, and said to Joichiro, "Could we follow through on that request now?"
"Taste my cooking? Of course, no problem," Joichiro nodded readily.
"I'd also like you to taste a dish of mine and give me some feedback," Lexon stated his true goal. "During the camp, I was personally evaluated by Mr. Gin Dojima. He pointed out a certain flaw in my cooking... I want to know if I've improved."
He even made sure to mention his connection with Gin Dojima.
"Gin, huh?" Joichiro murmured.
Generally speaking, it wasn't easy to get a top-tier chef to taste your food and find flaws. Such guidance usually came with strings attached, especially for someone of his caliber.
However, since this was his son's good friend... and since Gin had personally evaluated him... he decided to agree.
"Alright," Joichiro nodded.
Subsequently, the two of them—along with Soma, who wanted his long-awaited rematch with his father—headed into the kitchen.
"Is Soma's dad really that amazing? Even Lexon is actively seeking his guidance..." Ryoko Sakaki looked at the three entering the kitchen, her voice filled with doubt.
"Soma's father, Joichiro Yukihira, was once the Second Seat of Totsuki Academy... and he reached that position while still a second-year student," Satoshi Isshiki explained, appearing out of nowhere as usual.
"That impressive?" Yuki Yoshino gasped.
'To think... Senior Isshiki is only the Seventh Seat right now...'
"Should we go watch?" Zenji Marui suggested.
He was curious about what would happen in the kitchen.
After all, Lexon had beaten Senior Isshiki in a Shokugeki... and he'd even heard from Soma that Lexon had defeated the former First Seat, Kojiro Shinomiya, during the training camp.
...
"That's strange. Why does your cooking show traces of Gin's style?" Joichiro asked with confusion after finishing the dish Lexon served.
'Did he see through it already?'
'Is it still not enough?'
'It seems I can't achieve full integration by relying on a single skill alone.'
"It's because I learned a bit from Mr. Gin Dojima."
"I see..." Joichiro murmured before smiling. "The flaw Gin mentioned must have been that 'your cooking is just other people's things; it lacks your own heart,' right?"
I should expect nothing less from a world-class chef.
He saw it so easily.
"Yes." Lexon nodded and asked, "Has the flaw remained unchanged?"
"How should I put this..." Joichiro thought for a moment before responding. "Every chef has their own unique traits... I can see from your dish that you are very skilled at mimicking the traits of others... 100% imitation, or even surpassing them with supplementary methods."
"The lack of heart is a fact, and it's to be expected. I heard from Soma that you haven't been studying cooking for very long. Naturally, you can't be like other chefs who have devoted years to the culinary field... loving the food... pouring in your feelings... forming a trait."
"However, my view is a bit different from Gin's. I don't believe this is a flaw."
"On the contrary, I believe this is your own unique kind of 'heart.'"
"Oh?" Lexon let out a sound of slight confusion.
"Try to integrate your own thoughts into it... if you don't love it, then pour that very lack of passion into the dish... if you do that, you will become exceptionally powerful," Joichiro gave his final advice.
"That is a wonderful suggestion, Mr. Joichiro," Lexon accepted the idea with a smile.
"Of course, even if you continue as you are, there won't be a problem. You are destined to reach the pinnacle of this field and stand above others... it's only a matter of time."
"Furthermore, you don't really care about the culinary field, do you? If that's the case, I still recommend you follow the first method. You might find other rewards that way."
Joichiro continued in a serious tone.
'Interesting.'
Hearing Joichiro's words, those two syllables echoed in Lexon's mind.
This was one of the few times he felt something was genuinely interesting since arriving in this world.
He would try doing as Joichiro suggested.
At the very least, it sounded quite fun.
Two days passed.
Joichiro Yukihira left the Polar Star Dormitory.
On that same day, Satoshi Isshiki came to Lexon's door. He knocked, met with Lexon, and delivered a single message.
"I've arranged a match for you with one of the Elite Ten... it's the Sixth Seat, Nene Kinokuni."
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]