Polar Star Crew

Chapter 297: Polar Star Crew

The moment he stepped into the Polar Star Dormitory hall, he was met with thick smoke and the aroma of smoked meat.

"Room 208! How many times have I told you not to smoke meat in your room?!"

An old-fashioned loudspeaker system that relied entirely on pipes crackled with the shrill, cutting voice of an old woman.

Her scolding had only just stopped.

Then a flock of chickens and ducks, a fat pig, and a little deer ran through the hall, chased by a small, adorable girl.

The broadcast had no choice but to issue another warning.

"Room 116! No keeping animals in your room!"

Yet these habitual troublemakers clearly only agreed on the surface.

Xu Yue casually scooped up the little girl chasing after the animals and lifted her by the back of her collar.

"Excuse me, is this the Polar Star Dormitory?"

Yoshino Yuki, who had been lifted into the air, stared blankly at Xu Yue, seemingly unable to process what was happening.

Yoshino Yuki was a member of the Polar Star Dormitory, a first-year student at Totsuki Academy, and specialized in poultry dishes.

She looked petite and adorable, brimming with energy. She was also rather carefree and cheerful, making her one of the girls in the dorm who got along particularly well with Yukihira Soma.

And although she looked somewhat young for her age, she was unquestionably of legal age for a high school student.

If there were some achievement mission for becoming a gourmet harem king, someone with such a straightforward personality would definitely be an easier target.

Unfortunately, even if the space really issued such a mission, given its nature, he would have to think twice. There would probably be some yandere scenario later, and if they resisted and attacked, points would be deducted or something.

Beware of water, theft, and the space. His behavior toward those two unfortunate people earlier had been far too ugly. That was a warning bell…

All things considered, it was more worthwhile to peacefully learn her poultry cooking techniques.

After calculating all sorts of value she possessed, Xu Yue put her back down.

"A new student? A transfer student? Impressive. If you want to stay here, you’ll have to pass Grandma Bunyo’s assessment. Otherwise, you can only live off-campus."

Yoshino Yuki tilted her head and stuck out her tongue, looking playfully adorable.

Then Grandma Bunyo, the dorm manager, appeared at the stairway and looked down at Xu Yue.

"You want to move in? The rule here is that you must make a dish that satisfies me before you can stay. You came at a bad time today. There are no ingredients left for you to use."

"That’s fine. I brought my own."

Xu Yue smiled and showed her the ingredients in his backpack. Then, under Grandma Bunyo’s somewhat surprised gaze, they entered the kitchen together.

Grandma Bunyo’s requirements were not particularly demanding, at least not as high as those from the previous class.

Naturally, the well-prepared Xu Yue satisfied her completely…

As for Yukihira Soma, who arrived a step later than Xu Yue, he stood there with a bewildered, blank expression as he stared at the spotless kitchen, as clean as if a dog had licked it clean.

There had not been much useful scrap left to begin with, but that black-hearted real estate developer had not merely brought his own ingredients.

He had used up every last scrap that could still be used! He had not even left behind a single vegetable leaf.

Now, all Soma had was the tiny bit of food he had brought himself: honey-marinated peanut butter squid tentacles.

No matter how capable Soma was at improvisation, even the cleverest housewife could not cook without rice. He could only try serving up his dark cuisine now. Maybe she happened to like that flavor?

Having passed the assessment, Xu Yue walked past Yukihira Soma. Seeing that he had already taken out those dark squid tentacles, Xu Yue patted his shoulder, his smile unchanged.

"Good luck, Yukihira…"

It was not bad to occasionally do what a villain ought to do. Consider it repayment for the trick he had pulled during the entrance exam.

It was both a small punishment and a minor change to the plot, yet it did not affect the main storyline or touch the space’s red line.

This was simply an easy opportunity to earn points with almost no risk.

Besides, leaving him out in the cold for one night would make it easier for Xu Yue to establish the first layer of relationships with the Polar Star residents ahead of him…

"Are you trying to murder me? Get out!"

Xu Yue had only just left the kitchen when he heard Grandma Bunyo’s shrill roar from behind him.

Yukihira Soma’s dark cuisine had clearly left a deep impression on her…

Because Yukihira Soma had practically poisoned her with dark cuisine, he would obviously have to sleep outside on his first night.

Meanwhile, after returning to his room, Xu Yue received a welcome party from the other Polar Star residents…

As he lay on the bed and watched, the ceiling above him loosened. Then a handsome head poked through.

Even though he had known this sort of thing was coming, Xu Yue was still somewhat speechless when he actually faced such an "invitation."

Satoshi Isshiki, the current seventh seat of the Elite Ten Council! His ranking was even higher than the God Tongue’s.

He was currently a second-year student at the academy.

Aside from being somewhat of an exhibitionist and a pervert, he was practically a perfect model in every other respect.

"Hi, newcomer. I’m your senior, Satoshi Isshiki. Everyone’s waiting to welcome you, so hurry up and come over."

As Isshiki lifted the ceiling panel and stuck his head down through it, he extended a hand toward Xu Yue.

Xu Yue had deliberately driven Yukihira Soma away for a day precisely to seize this chance to establish relationships with these people first, making it easier to squeeze them dry later. Naturally, he did not hesitate in the slightest.

"It would be my honor."

Wearing his trademark brilliant smile, Xu Yue reached out and clasped Isshiki’s hand, allowing himself to be pulled up through the ceiling.

Isshiki greatly appreciated how straightforward Xu Yue was.

But…

When he grasped Xu Yue’s hand and pulled him up, the smile on his face stiffened involuntarily for a moment…

This newcomer was interesting…

The gathering was held in Room 205 of the Polar Star Dormitory. Its owner was Marui Zenji, the only one who cleaned his room, wore glasses, and possessed extensive culinary knowledge.

Beside him was Ibusaki Shun from Room 208, who had been devoted to smoked dishes for a hundred years.

Then there was the duo of Aoki Daigo and Sato Shoji, who looked like delinquents, loved meaningless squabbles, and whose greatest role in the plot was being cheerleaders.

There was Tadokoro Megumi, whom he had seen in class before, Yoshino Yuki, whom he had met at the entrance, and Sakaki Ryoko, who loved fermented dishes and had the hottest figure.

And Satoshi Isshiki, the current seventh seat of the Elite Ten Council.

These were all the residents of the Polar Star Dormitory.

Other than the cheerleader duo being somewhat lacking in distinctive traits, everyone else had very obvious specialties.

They had all scored more than eighty points in the Autumn Election.

Their potential was quite good.

Their knowledge in their respective fields had provided Yukihira Soma, the protagonist, with plenty of inspiration and help all along. They might each have various shortcomings in terms of versatility, but in terms of specialization, they were precisely the experts Xu Yue currently needed.

Squeezing every last bit out of them was Xu Yue’s tentative first-phase goal!

Other than Satoshi Isshiki, who fell within the Elite Ten boss category, the rest should not be too difficult to squeeze dry…

"Then, let the celebration begin!"

After the mature-looking Sakaki Ryoko took out her treasured fruit wine, insisted it was a beverage, and poured it for everyone, that night’s revelry became Xu Yue’s first step toward integrating into Polar Star.

When Satoshi Isshiki took off his outer clothes and revealed a male version of the naked apron beneath, the welcome banquet reached its climax.

Completely replacing Yukihira Soma in this event should at least increase my evaluation a little…

"Huh? We’re out of food. Bring out more dishes!"

After they had happily eaten and drunk their way through the evening, the carefully prepared food had all run out under the onslaught of a group of culinary experts and foodies.

At that moment, everyone naturally turned their eyes toward Xu Yue.

"Lord Yue, I heard that in Roland Shaper’s class today, you received an unprecedented evaluation. How about showing us what you can do?"

Sakaki Ryoko, slightly tipsy, hooked an arm around Xu Yue’s neck like an elder sister. Completely unconcerned that her hot body was pressed far too closely against his, she spoke with a fragrant trace of alcohol on her breath.

"Haha, yeah, yeah! We want to see the dish that received recognition from that rigid teacher too!"

Yoshino Yuki, who feared the world was not chaotic enough, quickly chimed in.

In the later stages, when the Polar Star Dormitory residents were ruled by the villainous final boss, they all remained firm in their beliefs. Their environment was harmonious, but they also maintained healthy competition among themselves.

They did not yet know Yukihira Soma. They only knew that another transfer student had made an outrageous sweeping declaration at the opening ceremony.

As a result, they did not have a particularly good impression of Xu Yue and the other transfer students.

Though they had now fully accepted Xu Yue’s arrival, they also felt it was necessary to understand the cooking ability of this transfer student!

Competing with one another and improving together was the general atmosphere of the Polar Star Dormitory and the entire Totsuki Academy at present.

There was no malice in it.

"Huh? Me? No, no, I only know how to cook a few specific dishes. There aren’t even any suitable ingredients."

Xu Yue also exhaled an alcoholic breath as he shook his head, his face carrying a slightly drunken expression.

"How could a chef capable of making dishes at that level only know a few dishes? Don’t be so modest."

Yoshino Yuki let out a drunken hiccup and repeatedly patted Xu Yue’s shoulder with her small pink hand, looking completely carefree.

Anyone who entered Totsuki Academy could not possibly know how to make only a few dishes!

At most, they simply had things they specialized in and dishes they excelled at.

Even in their weakest fields, they could casually produce a dish superior to that of an ordinary chef.

"Perhaps Lord Yue is telling the truth. Maybe he has not actually been studying cooking for very long…"

However, at that moment, Satoshi Isshiki, wearing only a naked apron and looking like a handsome pervert, lowered his head and spoke in a faintly inscrutable tone.

"Even Erina Nakiri, because she handles knives all year round, has skin and muscles on her palms that are smooth yet resilient, no matter how well she cares for them."

"However…"

"Lord Yue’s hands are far too smooth and soft. He probably has not even been involved with cooking for a year…"

Satoshi Isshiki, the seventh seat of the Elite Ten Council!

He had already noticed this when he went to invite Xu Yue and pulled him up through the ceiling by the hand. After arriving here, he had continued observing him.

Only now, combined with what Xu Yue had said earlier, did he reach this conclusion, one that even he found difficult to believe!

He actually wanted to say that Xu Yue might never have even touched a kitchen knife, but that was clearly impossible. Xu Yue had already begun cooking dishes, so he could only conservatively estimate that it had been less than a year!

After Isshiki stated his conclusion, the previously lively room fell silent…

Xu Yue continued to wear that mildly drunken expression as he took a sip of fruit wine. If he wanted to achieve his goals as quickly as possible, he first had to let them know that he wanted to learn from them.

This was the most natural and appropriate opening…

—

Two updates complete!

It was the first day of the new year, so let’s start with a standard opening.

Wishing everyone health and peace in the new year~