Chapter 58: The School Festival Begins (Patreon)

"Leonora!"

"You're saying you got a spot in THE BLUE tournament?" Ramsay snapped back to himself and asked.

"Mm-hm!"

"A WGO executive officer gave me the slot."

"But my main goal in entering this world-class competition isn't to fight for the championship!"

Leonora's soft voice rang out from the other end of the line as she told Ramsay the whole story of how she had won her place in THE BLUE International Culinary Competition.

Ramsay listened quietly, and at last everything clicked into place.

*

Across the entire European culinary world, molecular gastronomy had long since shed its label as a niche, obscure field and was gradually sweeping into the mainstream.

And among the new generation of young researchers, Leonora was without question one of the foremost leaders, her skill and talent recognized by all.

The WGO, the World Gourmet Organization, was very optimistic about the potential of this emerging discipline. Convinced it had a vast future, it planned to open a dedicated molecular gastronomy column in its authoritative, regularly published gourmet magazine.

Within the WGO itself, however, most members had only a shallow, half-formed understanding of this novel culinary science, and they struggled to judge how deep the column's content should go or which direction it should take.

After several rounds of meetings, they settled on a plan: invite a number of top professional chefs who had devoted themselves to molecular gastronomy to compete in this year's THE BLUE.

Yes! Let them take a top-tier competition as their stage and show off the discipline's charm from every angle.

Leonora was one of the contestants the WGO had personally invited!

Now that she had laid out every reason, Leonora grew more serious and went on softly. "THE BLUE is the greatest culinary gathering in the world, and it's always watched closely by industry giants and top investors!"

"My family hopes I'll stand on that stage and show everyone what molecular gastronomy is really made of."

If the industry and the outside world could see the discipline's limitless potential, it would draw in more fresh blood, speeding up its development and carrying it to the general public.

*

Then her tone shifted slightly, softened by a touch of reluctant tenderness.

"I'm calling to say goodbye to you, Ramsay."

"I need to leave Totsuki Academy for a little while to focus on preparing for the competition. As soon as it's over, I'll come right back to school. So you... please don't worry about me."

But instead of the comfort she had expected, what came from the other end was Ramsay's clear, easy laughter.

"Leonora, do you believe in fate?"

"Hm?"

"Fate?"

"Why would you suddenly say that?"

Leonora froze for a moment, her mind full of questions.

"Because I think you and I are bound by a deep fate." His smile carried through the receiver, gentle and certain.

At that moment Leonora, in a pure white nightgown, was lounging against the side of her bed with the phone to her ear. At those unexpected words her slender body gave a start, a flustered flutter rose from somewhere deep inside her, and a faint blush crept across her cheeks.

She fought to press down the strange feelings churning in her chest, but her voice came out a little tense and soft all the same. "R-Ramsay, why would you say that?"

His smile didn't fade as he explained. "You don't actually need to say goodbye, because I'll most likely get a spot in this year's THE BLUE too."

"You should know that Mana is a WGO First-Class Executive Officer."

"She holds a special invitation slot that goes straight into THE BLUE, and she's already given that precious invitation to Totsuki Academy."

"Three days from now, the Academy Festival begins, and that's the day the fight for the slot kicks off."

"If I can take first place in individual sales across the whole school, I get the slot, and then I can stand in the THE BLUE arena with you."

*

Those few short sentences were like a warm sun bursting through the clouds, instantly lighting up Leonora's gloomy, reluctant heart.

Radiant joy bloomed across her fair face. "Really? Ramsay, you're going to enter THE BLUE with me?"

After the burst of joy, a flicker of doubt crept in, and she asked softly, "But... what's the Academy Festival? Is it a culinary competition held at Totsuki?"

Seeing that she didn't know much about Totsuki's affairs, Ramsay patiently explained the rules of the Academy Festival and how the THE BLUE slot would be decided.

Leonora listened closely, and before long she had the whole picture straight.

When she learned that Kazuko Minami had already agreed to help him set up his stall, Leonora didn't hesitate for a second and volunteered on the spot. "Ramsay, I'll help you at the Academy Festival too!"

"I don't know the details of the preparations or how to run a stall, but I'll do everything I can to help. I definitely, definitely won't hold you back."

Her attitude was sincere. Just like Kazuko and Mana, she truly wanted to do something for Ramsay.

Ramsay was a little surprised. "Don't you have to keep up with the institute these days? Won't this take up too much of your time?"

"No!"

"It's fine."

Leonora shook her head gently, her voice bright.

"I'm the only one on duty at the institute most days, so closing for a few days won't matter much."

"And after this I'll be throwing myself into preparing for THE BLUE, so this is the perfect gap to enjoy the lively atmosphere of the Academy Festival."

Then, as if afraid her eagerness might trouble him, her voice turned careful and a little anxious. "Ramsay... you wouldn't mind if I came to help, would you?"

"Ha!"

"How could I?"

Ramsay answered at once. "I'd be thrilled to have you. I just didn't want to get in the way of your work."

Hearing a clear yes, Leonora grew even happier, and a sweet smile rippled through her soft voice. "Then it's settled!"

"I'll definitely come help you at the Academy Festival."

"Whether it's odd jobs or cooking, I'll give it everything I've got!"

*

Time slipped by.

Three days passed in a blink, and the Totsuki Academy Festival that everyone had been waiting for finally arrived.

When the news spread across Totsuki that first place in individual festival sales would earn a direct ticket to THE BLUE, it set off a tidal wave of excitement, and the whole academy came to a full boil.

According to the official count, more than three hundred students had applied to run a stall under their own names alone.

The high school second- and third-years in particular had signed up almost to a man. Not one of them sat it out, and every one of them was determined to fight for this supreme honor.

*

On the grand academy plaza, crowds of Totsuki students had gathered, the air buzzing with voices and heat.

Under the gaze of the entire assembly, Director Senzaemon, dressed in an elegant, understated Japanese kimono, slowly climbed the ceremony platform, his bearing steady and solemn.

His eyes swept over the crowd. His voice was calm and resounding, carried by the loudspeakers to every corner of the plaza. "Fellow students, how fortunate I am to join you in Totsuki's grand annual celebration, the Academy Festival—"

"Every year, the Academy Festival has been the stage where a new generation of chefs shows its edge."

"Countless young talents have blossomed here, winning the praise of guests with their refined skill and carving out a place of their own."

"This year, who will conquer the arena and take first place?"

"In seven days, we will have our answer."

"Unlike previous years, this Academy Festival carries a major prize added by the Academy: one precious direct invitation to THE BLUE International Culinary Competition."

"Every student who has entered under their own name has the chance to compete for this honor."

"Of course."

"Those of you competing as teams need not be discouraged. The Academy has prepared generous rewards for you as well, awaiting your achievements."

"Guests have already gathered outside the gates, waiting for the festival to begin. I hope you will all hold fast to your original aspirations, taking the kitchen as your blade and flavor as your gift, and earn recognition through the utmost refinement of your craft and praise through sincere cooking!"

Finally he raised a hand and bowed, offering his most heartfelt wishes, his voice ringing out. "May your culinary fortunes flourish!"

"I hereby declare the sixty-ninth Totsuki Academy Festival officially open!"

*

Hard on the heels of Senzaemon Nakiri's words, which echoed across the entire campus, the ceremonial cannons lined up along both sides of the academy's main avenue boomed in unison. Dazzling fireworks tore into the sky and burst across the clear, sunny air, scattering brilliant light and color.

The spectacle was grand, and every eye was on it.

And so the sixty-ninth Totsuki Academy Festival officially raised its magnificent curtain!

Outside the school gates, the guests, diners and visitors who had been waiting for so long could no longer hold back their anticipation. They streamed through the open gates in an endless procession, and in an instant the sprawling campus shed its usual strict solemnity and filled with the lively, bustling warmth of festival fires.

Right then, Ramsay arrived at the stall he had secured in advance and calmly began his pre-opening preparations.

*

A word about the layout is in order.

The Totsuki Academy Festival grounds are divided with great precision.

The whole site is split into three business zones, each with a very different rank and purpose.

Entering through the school gates, the areas on both sides of the wide main road make up the "Corridor Zone."

This zone has no water or electrical hookups. Its facilities are limited, so it can't support full meals with complicated steps and elaborate ingredients.

As a result, stalls in the Corridor Zone mostly sell items that are simple to make and quick to serve, such as ice cream, milk tea and light snacks!

It is also the zone with the biggest crowds and the liveliest atmosphere in the whole festival.

Follow the Corridor Zone straight to its end and you reach the "Central Zone," where the classroom buildings and professional cooking classrooms cluster.

This zone is equipped with a full set of top-grade cooking facilities, and its grounds are spacious and orderly. It is home to the vast majority of proper food stalls, which mainly serve complete, authentically flavored meals!

Naturally, the overall standard of cooking here is far above the Corridor Zone's.

Deeper inside the Central Zone, a gentle mountain path winds upward. At its summit lies a broad stretch of flat land nestled between mountain and water, and this is the Academy Festival's finest area, the "High Zone."

*

The High Zone boasts superb scenery and surroundings.

The view is so open that you can look down over all of Totsuki Academy.

Several exquisite, luxurious buildings stand within the zone, and together with its natural advantages and top-tier equipment, this has made it the stall site of choice for Totsuki's Elite Ten year after year.

For a long time, the standard of cooking in the High Zone has stayed a cut above the Central and Corridor Zones, and it has been the acknowledged top food battleground of the festival.

Accordingly, the three zones also draw very different tiers of students.

Middle school students mostly crowd into the Corridor Zone, which has the lowest barrier to entry. High school students form the core of the well-equipped Central Zone. And the High Zone, which stands for the highest level of skill, is a place almost nobody but the members of the Elite Ten dares to step into!

The three zones rise step by step, quietly marking out the gaps in skill and standing among Totsuki's students.

*

But every rule has its exceptions.

This year's Academy Festival saw something that overturned the usual custom and baffled everyone.

The High Zone, normally fought over by crowds of students, was completely empty today.

Not a single person had set up a stall or opened shop there.

Even the Elite Ten members who usually held court in the High Zone had all swallowed their pride this year and moved their stalls down to the Central Zone, or even to the Corridor Zone with its enormous foot traffic.

The reason was blunt and practical. It was all for the sake of...

First place in sales!

*

In previous years, the High Zone mostly received high-society figures and upscale diners.

Although the spend per customer was extremely high, the customers were few and the foot traffic thin, and the overall total revenue fell far short of the Central and Corridor Zones, with their dense crowds and constant flow of people!

And under the Academy Festival rule that decides the winner by total sales, clinging to the High Zone was no different from voluntarily giving up any chance at the championship.

The spot Ramsay had chosen this time was in the Central Zone, where competition was fiercest and foot traffic most considerable.

Looking up, he saw rows of stalls packed tightly all around him, nearly all run by high school second- and third-years. The place was full of strong cooks who had honed their craft for years, and the pressure of the competition was plain.

Ramsay was bent over, calmly and methodically arranging his cookware and testing his equipment, when light footsteps and a clear, cheerful voice came closer from the distance.

*

"Hehehe!"

"Ramsay, I'm here to work for you!"

Kazuko Minami ran up in a clean, cute school uniform.

Her cheeks were lightly flushed and she was panting a little, her eyes curved in a smile, brimming with the vitality of a young girl.

Right behind her, two petite, pretty middle school girls followed quietly along.

Once she had steadied her breathing, Kazuko turned to Ramsay with a smile and asked gently, "I'm not late, am I?"

Before Ramsay could answer, she stepped aside to introduce the two behind her. "These two are members of our Hometown Cuisine Research Association, third-years from the middle school."

"I brought them along specially today."

"They're here to lend a hand and help you run the stall."

She pointed to them one by one. "This is Reiko, and this is Hanako."

"Whatever work the stall needs done..."

"Just give it to them. Don't be shy about it!"

Ramsay looked up at the three girls in front of him, quite touched. "Thank you for your hard work, Kazuko, and Reiko and Hanako too. Thank you all for making time to help."

"When the Academy Festival is over, I'll make it up to each of you properly."

*

Kazuko waved a hand at once, her tone friendly and breezy.

"Oh, honestly, you don't have to keep saying these polite thank-yous. You don't need to be so formal with me... Oh, right! I see you've got so many soup pots set up. Are you making oden?"

Then her gaze fell on the several large soup pots at the front of the stall.

Inside, broths had long been simmering, rich in color and thick with fragrance, steam curling upward and stirring up anticipation.

Looking more carefully, she noticed a wide work counter at the back of the stall, with chopping boards and cookware laid out in neat rows. A freezer stood quietly to one side, and everything was ready.

Hearing this, Ramsay opened the freezer.

He took out a piece of fresh beef with a fine grain and set it on the chopping board.

"It's not oden."

"Over these seven days of the Academy Festival, I plan to put out a brand-new specialty dish every day."

"Today's headliner is a classic dish from our China..."

"Poached Beef Balls!"

*

"Huh?"

"Poached Beef Balls?"

Kazuko was taken aback. She had honestly never even heard the name of this dish.

But in a flash she put on a sweet smile, bright and unbothered. "It's okay, it doesn't matter... Whatever dish it is, I'll work hard for you!"

With that, she began handing out jobs with practiced ease. "Reiko, Hanako!"

"You two stay inside the stall. Take care of clearing the tables, cleaning up and sorting the supplies."

"Ramsay."

"I'll be at the front of the stall."

"I'll work hard to bring in customers for you!"

Hearing that, Ramsay was honestly a little surprised. He really hadn't expected that Kazuko, who was somewhat shy by nature, would take the initiative to drum up customers for him.