"So… what do you mean you remember it clearly?!"
"I remember the weather that day, the shower of cherry blossoms in the wind, and the beret drifting through the air…"
"But… I just can't remember what she looked like!!"
Aki Tomoya's face was filled with panic and disbelief.
No way—there's no way my memory has gotten that bad, right?!
"It really sounds like a campus legend," Lin Zhi said with a chuckle.
"Campus legend?" Tomoya blinked in confusion, clearly not understanding what Lin Zhi meant.
"You've never heard of it?"
"Heard of what?"
"The legend from our private high school. They say there's a ghost girl—someone with such a faint presence that everyone unconsciously forgets she exists."
"She's clearly there, but people just… overlook her. Teachers, classmates, even her friends forget about her all the time."
"Nani?!" Tomoya's eyes widened in shock. Then, realizing something, he gave Lin Zhi a suspicious look. "Hold on—why do you know so much about this?!"
Even though he was already a second-year student, this was the first time he'd heard of such a rumor.
Lin Zhi rolled his eyes. "Because I actually pay attention to real life, unlike you. You don't care about the three-dimensional world at all."
"But you're an otaku too!"
"Stop right there. Sure, I love anime as much as you do, but I can still tell the difference between reality and fiction."
"So, Tomoya, maybe it's time for you to grow out of that chuunibyou phase."
"Huh? Oh…" Tomoya glanced at Lin Zhi and nodded absentmindedly, his expression distant.
sigh… this guy.
Yukihira Diner
"Yo, kid! You're here again, huh?" The cheerful owner called out when he saw Lin Zhi walk in, waving a greasy spatula like a greeting hand.
"Of course. With food this good, I've got to enjoy it while I can," Lin Zhi replied with a grin as he sat down at a familiar seat.
"Haha! Then enjoy it while it lasts—maybe not for much longer."
"Hm? What do you mean?"
"Well… I'm heading out for some training around the world soon. Planning to leave the shop to that brat, Sōma."
"Wait, what?!"
Yukihira Sōma poked his head out from the kitchen, eyes wide in disbelief. "Dad, since when?!"
I'm… going to school?
You've got to be kidding me! I haven't set foot in a classroom for ages—now you want me to go back just to get scolded every day?!
"Dad, you're not serious, right?!" Sōma's voice cracked with disbelief.
"Of course I'm serious," Jōichirō Yukihira said calmly.
"I'm not going! Even if you're off gallivanting around the world, I can handle the diner myself!"
"Handle the diner?" Jōichirō let out a low chuckle, giving his son a sidelong glance. "You've got a long way to go before you can shoulder a restaurant, kid. There are more talented chefs out there than you can imagine."
"Besides," he continued, crossing his arms, "the school I'm sending you to isn't some ordinary place. It's where the best chefs are trained. I graduated from there myself."
"Huh?!" Sōma was taken aback. He'd never heard that part of his father's past before.
Jōichirō leaned back in his chair with a nostalgic smile. "Your cooking's decent for your age, but that place is full of monsters. Back then, I was only the second seat."
"Second seat? Monsters?"
Sōma frowned. "Why does that sound like you're sending me straight into a lion's den? What kind of school is this?"
"You'll understand once you get there—it's called Tōtsuki Academy."
"Tōtsuki?" Lin Zhi froze for a moment before blurting out, "Wait, I've heard of that place."
"Oh? You have?" Jōichirō looked at him curiously, a spark of interest in his eyes.
Even Sōma leaned forward, eager to hear more about this mysterious academy.
"Well, I'm not sure if it's the same one," Lin Zhi said thoughtfully, "but I think it is."
"Go on," Jōichirō encouraged, settling down beside him. Despite the casual atmosphere, his posture radiated an effortless, confident charisma—the kind only a truly skilled man could carry.
Taking a moment to recall, Lin Zhi began, "When I was living in the countryside, one early spring, I went into the mountains with some friends to gather mushrooms."
"We ran into a lost little girl. She looked a bit disheveled, and when we asked what happened, she said she'd gotten lost."
"Looking back, it was kind of strange. She said it was a test from her family—that she had to find truffles in the forest on her own. Even though it sounded odd, we helped her out."
"She didn't know the trails, but she was incredibly knowledgeable about where fungi grow. Thanks to her, we found tons of mushrooms, and she even managed to dig up a small patch of truffles."
"To thank us, she grilled the mushrooms right there using just a few simple ingredients. I still remember that taste—it was so simple, yet so unbelievably delicious."
"Sometimes I think that might have been the purest form of cooking I've ever experienced."
He sighed, lost in the memory. After they escorted the girl out of the mountains, a group of adults quickly arrived to take her away. Thinking back, the way they treated her—it was clear she wasn't just any ordinary kid.
Jōichirō's eyes narrowed with interest. "Do you remember the girl's name?"
"Her name?" Lin Zhi paused, trying to recall. "I think it was Nakiri… Nakiri…"
"Nakiri Erina."
"That's it! Wait—boss, you know her?"
Jōichirō's eyes softened with nostalgia, and then he laughed heartily. "Of course I do. She's going to be one extraordinary chef."
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T/N:
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