28 - #44 End of Preliminaries

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[3rd Person's Point of view]

"We'll now have round two of the semi-finals! The theme is the same as in round one: A Western-style main dish." Gin said.

Kurokiba and Hayama smirked at each other. "Very well. Let the cooking commence!" Gin yelled.

"Look look it's Yamaguchi-sama! / Who is she rooting for? / Wah he sure is lucky having Yamaguchi-sama give effort!" the students murmured which caught everyone's attention.

"GO AKI! GO KURO!" you yelled which made everyone sweat drop.

"WHY ARE YOU CHEERING FOR HIM?!" both Hayama and Kurokiba yelled in unison.

"DON'T COPY ME!" they yelled again.

"You don't appreciate it?" you asked.

"Tch... / Thanks." Kurokiba and Hayama said so, you smiled at them.

Alice then pulled you with her along with Soma. "The view from up there is very good." she said so, you followed her.

~ ( 🍽 ) ~

"Oh, that's why you're hopeless, Erina!" Alice said which made Erina surprised. Alice then sat beside Soma pushing him towards Erina. "Excuse me!"

You laughed and leaned on the wall while watching Hayama who was now slicing the duck meat, while Kurokiba sliced the eel in half.

"Ryo-kun's true talent cannot be measure by logic alone!" Alice said.

"Seriously? I heard seafood was his specialty, but this is unexpected." Soma commented. "Will he broil it Japanese-style?"

"French and other foreign cuisines have dishes using eel. It's not an ingredient limited to Japanese cuisine." Erina said while Alice and Soma looked at her.

"Hey, about what you said earlier, what did you mean?" Soma asked Alice which made Erina look at her too. "About logic not being enough to understand his abilities?"

"I didn't peg you to be the type to talk about mind-over-matter, Alice." Erina said while her hand touched her chin. "You're all about creating dishes using science and logic, aren't you?" she added.

"This has nothing to do with 'mind-over-matter'. It's just a fact that Ryo-kun's dishes are infused with something that goes beyond the expectations of logic." Alice replied.

"(Reader)-chan if you may." Alice said smiling at you. You looked at her before looking at Kurokiba through the glass.

"Kuro survived in a kitchen straight out of hell. He only had his skills to rely on in that horrible environment." you stated then Alice nodded.

"Oh, Ryo-kun said he'll win this for you!" Alice teased you then poked your sides.

'Does Kurokiba likes (Reader)-chan? Or is it the other way around?' Soma thought while staring at you.

"Heh... I appreciate that but his skills right now are on par with Hayama." you replied while looking intently at Hayama.

"You know so much about them, don't you (Reader)?" Erina asked.

"Of course, It's like what Mimasaka-kun said." you said and tilted your head to look at them seriously. "If you compare me to Mimasaka, I'm the worst one." you grinned.

Erina and Soma looked at you shocked while Alice smiled. "Well, that's if you caught (Reader)-chan's interest." Alice said raising an index finger.

You looked at Kurokiba who was now intently looking at the pan in front of him. "He doesn't even hear the audience." You mumbled so Alice grinned.

"Right now, He's only focusing on what's happening in the pan." Alice said.

"Like I thought, he's going for matelote." Erina said. "It's a cooking method where fish is braised with wine."

"Excuse us for a second, (Reader)-chan has some kids to cheer." Alice said as she pushed you outside. "Bye bye~" she said waving at you before closing the door.

'Oh-' you thought as you went back to the stands.

"Candidate Hayama is first to serve his dish!" the emcee announced. "Its rich aroma has already enveloped the arena!"

"Here is my dish, Canard Apicius." Hayama said as he presented his dish.

"Let's have a taste." Gin said as they took a bite of it in unison.

"The challenger is Candidate Kurokiba! What ace does he have up his sleeve as a specialist in seafood cuisine?" the emcee announced.

"Have a taste!" Kurokiba said. "My dish is Eel Matelote!" he yelled as he presented his dish.

"Now, let's have a taste." Gin said.

~ ( 🍽 ) ~ ( 🍽 ) ~

"This concludes the evaluation! We'll now enter the final assessment. Judges, please cast your vote for the candidate who served the better dish!" the emcee said.

"My vote is for Hayama-kun!" Inui said.

"I vote for Hayama Akira, as well." Mizuhara said.

"My vote is for Kurokiba Ryo." Gin said.

"I also vote for Kurokiba Ryo!" Tsunozaki said.

"I can't decide." Kikuchi said. "Each dish was superb. I can't rank one over the other."

"Cut the bullshit! This is a match! It's not over until one of --"

"Kuro!" you yelled so Kurokiba looked at you before sighing. You smiled.

"What? / She shut Kurokiba just by saying his name? / What can you expect? / It's Yamaguchi-sama for sure."

"Organizers, a word." Gin said.

"What is it, Chef Dojima?" Isshiki asked.

"If this were a Shokugeki, in the event that a final decision couldn't be reached, there would be a rematch at a later date to determine the final outcome, am I right?" Gin asked.

"That's correct. But this is the Autumn Elections. Our honored guests and the judges all have very busy schedules." Isshiki replied shaking his head. "It would be impossible to schedule a rematch."

"Given that, I have a suggestion. There is one way to resolve this dilemma. Let both of them proceed. I propose that there be a three-way final round for the very first time in the Autumn Elections!"

"But there is zero precedent! The judges cannot simply decide to-" Erina complained.

"That's an interesting proposal!" Senzaemon-dono said which made everyone turn their heads to look at him. "I'll approve it with my authority as the director of this academy!"

"Kurokiba Ryo and Hayama Akira's match is determined to be a draw! Both shall proceed to the final round!"

"Yukihira Soma will join the two of them in the final match!"

"Candidate Kurokiba, congratulations for proceeding to the final round. Um, any thoughts on moving forward?" A girl said so you quickly ran to them.

"Congratulations, my ass! I haven't accepted this-" you cut him off by removing his bandana and pulling his ear. The girl then ran away; obviously scared.

"Gee Kurokiba, don't go yelling at girls." you said.

Alice then blew a whistle, "Ryo-kun! Heel!"

"We now conclude the semi-finals! Next, the organizers will announce the theme for the final!" the emcee said as the lights went off.

Isshiki entered pushing a cart with a huge block of ice. He then took a hammer and broke the ice. "The topic is pacific saury. The finals will be held in 10 days." Isshiki said.

"You should stop trying to put up a calm front, and let yourself be frustrated." Soma told Hayama so you laughed.

"Ohmygod! And that's coming from you?" you asked said laughing at Soma as he flinched and smiled smugly at you.

"There's nothing to be frustrated about! My plans to advance to the finals and then win the Autumn Elections are still on schedule." Hayama said then Soma finally let go of your cheeks.

"Hah! Even though our match was a draw, you're still putting on airs, spice bastard?" Kurokiba said.

"Ey you Kuro stop that!" you said pointing at him.

"What are doing? Let's go home!" Alice said removing his bandana.

"Excuse us." Alice said then Kurokiba pulled your hand.

"Later, good work." Kurokiba said.

"Let go of meee!" then finally your prayer has been answered. Hayama and Soma pulled you from Kurokiba. "Arigatou!"

"Enjoy grinning while you can, Yukihira." Hayama said before patting your head and walking away.

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