"Totsuki, huh? What a coincidence," Kael said with a faint smile. "I'm Kael, a transfer student at Totsuki. If everything goes as planned, we'll probably be classmates once the new term starts."
The moment he said that, the three of them froze for a second.
"A transfer student? No wonder you cleared the Three-Star assessment so easily!" Daigo Aoki exclaimed in admiration.
Getting into Totsuki as a transfer student carried way more weight than simply advancing from the middle division. The pre–high school programs at Totsuki weren't particularly strict, so around a thousand students made it into the high division each year. But transfer students were a whole different story.
Even though Erina Nakiri didn't oversee every transfer exam, the standards were always brutal. Since transfer students were joining midstream, the academy made sure to weed out anyone who couldn't keep up.
Everyone at Totsuki knew how insane their assessments could get. If the bar for transfers was any lower, half of them would be expelled within weeks, making the whole process pointless.
So, passing as a transfer student was no small feat. Anyone who managed it might not be guaranteed to graduate, but lasting a year? That was practically assured.
Now that they knew Kael's status, his Three-Star certification didn't seem surprising anymore.
"In that case," Megumi Tadokoro said suddenly, "Kael, you probably don't have a dorm yet, right?"
Aoki and Shoji Sato both perked up at once, realizing what she meant.
If Kael hadn't officially registered yet, that meant he didn't have housing. Which meant... they could invite him to the Polar Star Dormitory.
In their year, anyone already at Three-Star level was considered elite. Having someone like Kael join the dorm would make Fumio Daimido—their dorm mother—overjoyed. Plus, adding a talented chef to their little circle would be a huge boost.
"I haven't registered yet, so yeah, I don't have a place lined up," Kael replied, raising an eyebrow. "Why? You've got a suggestion?"
"Exactly!" Aoki said enthusiastically. "We're recommending our dorm—the Polar Star Dormitory. It's a bit out of the way, but the dorm manager, Fumio-san, is amazing!"
"Yeah!" Shoji jumped in. "She's super kind. Even when we make noise late at night, she never gets mad. Half the time she even cooks snacks for us!"
"And our dormmates are great people too—"
Before Megumi could even add her thoughts, the two boys had launched into a full-blown sales pitch, listing every good thing about Polar Star as if they were trying to close a deal.
Kael already knew plenty about the dorm. Their descriptions were exaggerated, sure, but not wrong. Compared to the other student housing options, Polar Star was extremely relaxed.
Even when Yuki Yoshino's pets ran wild through the halls, sending the dorm into chaos, Fumio only scolded her lightly.
And when Shun Ibusaki converted an unused room into his personal smokehouse, she'd only given him a brief lecture before letting him be.
The dorm's independence came from an old victory—Joichiro Saiba, Gin Dojima, and their generation had literally won that freedom through a Shokugeki. Ever since then, Polar Star had operated under its own system, free from the academy's micromanagement.
"Sounds like a great place," Kael said with a small grin. "Alright, I'll apply for Polar Star when I enroll."
He'd already planned to do so anyway, so accepting their invitation came naturally.
"That's awesome! Everyone at the dorm will be thrilled to have you!" Megumi said, clearly delighted.
To her, Kael wasn't just skilled—he'd helped her when he didn't have to, with no expectation of repayment. Someone like that couldn't possibly have a bad character.
After all, if he'd wanted something in return, he would've stuck around after the exam instead of preparing to leave immediately. She'd practically caught him on his way out.
Now, all three of them viewed him in a new light. A good-natured, talented chef like Kael joining Polar Star? That was nothing but a win. And as for the dorm's infamous entrance exam? With Three-Star level cooking, he'd breeze through it.
In Megumi's mind, the moment he said yes, Kael was already a future dormmate.
With that decided, the four of them grew more relaxed as they chatted. Their conversation flowed easily, the awkwardness gone now that they saw each other as peers.
About half an hour later, led by Aoki and Sato, they stopped in front of a small restaurant tucked away on a quiet side street.
"Here we are," Aoki said proudly. "It's not fancy, but don't underestimate it—the food here's great!"
He pointed out the specialties as they walked in, waving to the owner with the ease of a regular.
Kael glanced around and nodded appreciatively. "Interesting place. Judging by the smell, I'd say their secret sauce is the reason they've got steady customers."
"Huh? You can tell that just by smelling it? Have you been here before?" Aoki blinked, caught off guard.
He was right—the shop was famous among locals for its house-made sauce. People had even tried to buy it outright, but the owner always refused.
"I haven't," Kael replied calmly. "But I can smell it. The chef's probably around Two-Star level. In a neighborhood like this, lasting that long means they're relying on that secret sauce. My guess is it's a family recipe."
He hadn't even stepped through the door yet, but his Divine Smell had already painted the entire picture for him.
"Wait—you smelled all that?" Shoji's eyes widened.
"That's impossible!" Aoki said.
Kael chuckled. "No need to look so shocked. My sense of smell isn't exactly normal. I can pick up scents most people miss—and break them down pretty clearly."
Then, without missing a beat, he added, "For example—Aoki, you had an egg sandwich for breakfast. Shoji, you had ramen—seafood ramen, to be exact. And Megumi, you only had a boiled egg and a glass of milk."
All three of them froze.
Megumi blinked in disbelief. "That's… exactly right. I did have a boiled egg and milk this morning."
Aoki and Shoji looked at each other, equally stunned, then turned back to Kael, completely speechless.
Because as far as breakfast predictions went, he hadn't missed a single detail.