Dimwit || Shinomiya Kojiro

neuf

(Ishikawa Juno POV)

[A few years later]

I continued being a lecturer at Totsuki and a pretty well liked one if I may add. Some people referred to me as a genius in French cooking, to which I considered it an overstatement. I still had a lot to learn.

To my surprise I even have a first-year student that I am currently mentoring named Tsukasa Eishi. Originally, I had refused due to my inability to hold a knife, but something within him reminded me of myself when I was younger. Maybe it was the fact that he freaked out and worried about everything, but was blatantly confident of his cooking or maybe it was his determination to become the First Seat.

I also got closer with the students staying at the Polar Star Dormitory. They were all an interesting bunch with different specialties. One in particular stood out to me: Tadokoro Megumi. She was just like me, a bit clumsy and a bit of a dimwit, but deep down, I could see her love and passion for cooking.

I even had time to frequently hang out with Mizuhara, Hinako, and Donato. All of them are super successful with their own restaurants and I like to drop by whenever I'm free.

Most of all, I haven't been in contact with Shinomiya at all. He's probably extremely busy given the success of SHINO's. He even managed to win the Pluspol Award and was the first Japanese chef to do it. Every time I think of him, a mix of sadness, regret, and guilt overflow in my heart.

[Test kitchen]

Before me was my old kitchen knife. Usually, I have it sharpened by Hinako or Mizuhara so it's still in good shape. I wanted to see if my condition was any better, so I planned to test cutting some tofu.

I picked up my knife without a problem and began cutting the tofu. No problems so far...Then I felt the pressuring chill down my spine and heard Suzuki's voice.

'You die if you make a mistake.'

'You're just disposable trash.'

'My empress, we'll rule the world together.'

I put the knife down and supported my body by putting my hands on the table. My hands couldn't stop shaking. 'Ah, what do I do?'

Then the kitchen door opened. "Ah! Sensei, can you teach me how to make a savory souffl- Sensei? T-that is if you're free" Eishi stopped and approached me. "Are you ok?"

I was sweating profusely. "Y-yea. Just give me a minute."

After calming down and cleaning up, I sat down across Eishi. "I guess I should explain huh."

"Sensei, if you're not comfortable with it then you don't have to."

"As my student, I think you have the right to know. It's strange right? How can a former First Seat and genius cooking professor be unable to hold a knife?" I eventually told him the whole story about the Ishikawa family and Noir.

"Uwa Sensei. They sound kinda scary," Eishi remarked worriedly.

"Don't worry, they're gone now." I reassured him. "Now, let's get back to cooking shall we? What did you want to learn?"

"A-a savory souffle." Eishi answered. "I can do a normal souffle, but when I add in savory elements like brocoli and herbs, the souffle sinks."

'Savory souffle...Just like the one Shinomiya taught me all those years ago.' I couldn't help but smile. "Ah, I struggled with that too. I'll teach you."

After a few hours and a whole lot of struggling, Eishi finally succeeded. "Good job." I ruffled his hair playfully. "You're getting better and better."