"What… what did you say?!"
Nakiri Erina couldn't accept it at all. She raised her hand and pointed straight at Hikigaya, though her fingers were trembling without her realizing it.
Her expression was priceless—the smug look from before was completely gone, replaced by a visible blush spreading across her cheeks. After all, she had just spoken so confidently a moment ago. There was no way this wasn't embarrassing.
Of course, for Erina right now, the most unbelievable thing was what Hikigaya said. She was the one who tested him before. With that turtle-like speed, how could he possibly finish this kind of task...
She just couldn't accept it, and kept denying out loud:
"Hahaha, I get it, you're lying, right? That must be it!"
"You made it up so I wouldn't laugh at you! Don't worry, why would I laugh at you..."
Hachiman's expression didn't change at all. Compared to Erina's panic, he looked completely unaffected as he calmly said:
"No, I don't lie. If I passed, then I passed. If I didn't, then I didn't. There's no reason for me to make up something like that."
"You..."
"Oh right, but what does any of this have to do with you, Miss Nakiri? I don't think I have anything special worth your attention. I just want to quietly spend these three years here. At this speed, even my little sister is faster than me."
Listening to Hikigaya's words, Nakiri was completely stunned.
From the day she was born until now, no one had ever dared talk to Nakiri Erina like this. After all, the one with the 'God Tongue' was supposed to be above everyone else. And now? She was being brushed off like her attention didn't matter—and he even said his little sister was faster than her.
Do you know who she is? Nakiri Erina—the girl who was called the future pillar of the cooking world since birth. And now he was saying some random little sister could compare to her.
But Hachiman wasn't making things up. Komachi really was fast—he had seen it himself. And Nakiri? She was just another student who started at the same time as him. If Komachi were here at this academy, she might be called a true genius. Of course...
If Nakiri Erina knew what Hachiman was thinking right now, she'd probably go completely insane. Because he knew very well: neither he nor Komachi could ever compare to his dad, Joichiro.
Erina: "You… you! Don't think that just because you got faster, you're so amazing! Don't look down on people... Even if you finish at the same speed as me, when it comes to taste, I'm still ahead of you!"
She clenched her fists tight. Compared to her easygoing mood earlier, now she was full of anger.
Hachiman had no idea why this girl got mad so easily—it was like that time of the month or something. But somehow, he kept running into her. In a way, that was some real bad luck.
Hachiman: "Miss Nakiri, you don't need to see me as a rival... My cooking could never taste as good as yours."
He didn't want to make more enemies. The Polar Star Dorm was safe from unfair treatment now, and once this school trip was over, he could spend three quiet years here.
But Erina seemed to completely misunderstand Hachiman's words again. She thought he was mocking her. Her eyes were already filled with tears she couldn't hold back. Then, without thinking, she ran up and punched Hachiman.
Because he wasn't on guard—and never thought this unreasonable girl would hit him in the stomach—he only felt the pain after it landed.
'Wow… she didn't hold back at all…'
"Idiot!" she shouted angrily, then ran off like she was escaping.
"Seriously… so unreasonable. Why do I keep running into girls like this lately?"
Hachiman held his stomach as he slowly stood up.
Luckily, he could take a hit. Otherwise, with a punch that strong, he'd probably be stuck in bed at the hotel for days.
Sure enough, from a distance, someone else had joined halfway through. Hisako had just seen Hikigaya get punched. Holding a deck of cards in her hand, she slowly walked toward him.
"You okay?"
"Maybe I look fine, but seriously—does your Nakiri-sama have some violent tendencies...?"
"Uh, well... actually, Lady Erina isn't like that..."
Wanting to defend Erina's reputation, Hisako hesitated. But since she had only seen part of what happened, she really didn't know where to start.
"It's just that... every time she sees you, she loses control. As for why... I don't know either."
"So, in other words, it's my problem? Guess I'd better avoid her from now on."
Hisako only smiled faintly and helped the half-squatting Hikigaya stand up.
"I'll apologize to you on Lady Erina's behalf... no matter what, hitting someone really isn't right. By the way, what did you say that upset her so much?"
"I just said my cooking isn't as good as hers..."
"Huh? That's it?"
"That's it."
It felt like both of them were caught in a mental fog, unable to make sense of it. On Hisako's face, visible awkwardness appeared.
"Hikigaya, maybe you should go rest for a while. Oh, there's a hot spring here—you could relax there."
"Okay, thanks..."
After a simple goodbye to the girl in front of him, Hachiman noticed the cards in her hand. No doubt they were Erina's instructions. What surprised him, though, was how this brutal training camp that had already expelled so many students was, in Nakiri Erina's eyes, nothing more than a casual trip. With her skill, it was natural for her to be so relaxed.
Of course, Hachiman still had some free time. Even though he had just run into the unreasonable Nakiri Erina, most people were still busy with the assignment of fifty servings. That meant the hot spring was probably empty. If it was crowded, he wouldn't want to go, but the thought of a huge hot spring with no one inside stirred up an excitement in him he hadn't felt in a long time.
It looked like there was no way he was skipping the hot spring today.
...
When he stepped into the changing room, it really was empty. Without hesitation, Hachiman took off his clothes, grabbed a towel that was ready at hand, and casually opened the door.
"First dip in the bath is mine!"
Bang!
As the door swung open, the scene wasn't what he expected. Instead of an empty bath, a heavily muscled man was inside, letting out a terrifying roar.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..."
Hachiman's excitement instantly sank. He even suspected someone had skipped the cooking challenge just to ruin his dream.
He thought about leaving right away, but the man stopped him.
"Hm? So the first person is here already? Sorry, but doing body care in the bath is part of my daily routine."
As the man slowly turned his head, Hachiman finally saw his face clearly. But then...
'Crap, it's Dojima Gin! Is it too late to run?!'
But since Dojima Gin had already noticed him, he only looked a little surprised before speaking softly: "So it's you, Hayama Hayato."
"Uh... yeah..."
Realizing there was no way out, Hachiman could only plunge into the bath with a splash.
Dojima Gin: "Unbelievable. The first one to finish the challenge is actually you."
Hachiman: "I didn't expect it either. That seafood vendor from earlier turned out to be the head of the Totsuki Resort."
Dojima Gin laughed heartily and, without hiding anything, said:
"Actually, being the director of Totsuki Resort is a lot easier than you'd think. That way, I have time to travel around. But that one time I went to Chiba, it was simply because I wanted to find someone."
"Find someone?"
"Yeah, an old friend. But when I went looking for him, he just happened to not be there. After that, we didn't get a chance to meet again."
"That really is a shame."
Some people, once separated, never meet again for the rest of their lives. For someone like Dojima Gin, that was even more likely.
But Dojima Gin was optimistic. After all, there was no sign of regret on his face as he said:
"I believe I'll meet him again someday. And didn't I also meet you that day, only to run into you once more later for all kinds of reasons?"
"Maybe..."
"Totsuki Academy really brings back memories. Whether last year or this year, it's raised some truly amazing students."
"Last year?"
"The test of making 50 dinners was held in a big hall. Whoever finished first was obvious at a glance. Normally, I would have finished cleaning up before the students arrived, but last year, there was one student who came before I was done. That student is now Totsuki's Seventh Seat."
Listening to Dojima Gin, Hachiman realized he was talking about his senior, Isshiki Satoshi.
'He really is incredible. Compared to my little tricks, Isshiki and Erina must both be the real deal.'
'But cooking isn't something speed alone can decide. After all, even though Yukinoshita is slower, the dishes she makes are definitely on par with theirs.'
It seemed Totsuki Academy truly was full of talent...
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