Ryusei took the key to room 111 from Fumio Daimido. He then began unpacking the room with his belongings. Just as he finished, the Polar Star Dormitory became lively. At that moment, Soma Yukihira, who had finally arrived at the Polar Star Dormitory after a long journey, pushed open the door and walked in.
Then, Soma Yukihira saw a large amount of black smoke pouring down from the second floor. Followed by a tremor. Then, a flock of chickens, ducks, rabbits, and deer came running, followed by a disheveled girl.
"Rabbit, Kamo-suke, Shikano-shin! Everyone, don't run away!" Yoshino Yuuki chased after her livestock, running past Soma Yukihira. Soma Yukihira was completely dumbfounded.
"What are you doing in room 116?! Don't bring livestock into the room! If you do this again, I'll skin you alive! And room 208! Why have you turned an empty room into a smoke room again? Do you want me to fumigate you?! Next is room 205. If the floor breaks, I'll make a hole in your stomach!"
Listening to the various noises coming from inside, Soma Yukihira began to doubt if he had come to the wrong place. Before Soma could go out to check again, Fumio Daimido had already come out of the manager's room. She looked at Soma calmly and said, "You're Soma Yukihira, who wants to stay here, right? I'm the manager here, Fumio Daimido. Maria of the Polar Star, Aunt Fumio! Just call me that!"
Soma Yukihira's expression wasn't very good. He was certain he had come to a strange place. Before he could say anything, Fumio Daimido asked, "So, what ingredients did you prepare?"
She had been quite satisfied with Ryusei's barbecue earlier. Now, Fumio Daimido was looking forward to seeing what kind of dish her fellow transfer student, Soma Yukihira, would bring.
"Huh? What do you mean by ingredients?" Soma Yukihira looked at Fumio Daimido blankly. Do you need to bring ingredients to the Totsuki Academy dormitory? Clearly, Soma Yukihira hadn't carefully checked the Polar Star Dormitory's requirements.
"Does that even need to be said!" Fumio Daimido's eyes widened. She was quite surprised that Soma Yukihira didn't know. So she had no choice but to explain. "Polar Star Dormitory rules: a skills test for admission. First, prospective residents must prepare a dish. Only those whose dishes are approved will be allowed admission. Second, the review will be conducted by the administrator. Third, ingredients can be brought in freely."
Upon hearing this rule, Soma Yukihira looked helpless. "I've never heard of this! Besides, I haven't prepared any ingredients!" He had no idea, let alone prepared any.
"Then you've already lost without a fight. Without showing off your skills, you can't stay at the Polar Star Dormitory." Fumio Daimido shrugged. She had been somewhat looking forward to it. Looks like she'll have to wait until tomorrow.
"Ha! So you mean tonight I'll..." Soma Yukihira had a bad feeling.
"Of course, you'll be camping out!" Fumio Daimido calmly uttered words that chilled Soma Yukihira to the bone.
"Don't joke around. Don't underestimate the chill of an April night! Putting all that aside, I'm exhausted and starving!" Soma Yukihira looked at Fumio Daimido with a hint of frustration. He had walked for over an hour to get to the Polar Star Dormitory. He hadn't eaten dinner at all. Sleeping outside would be fatal.
"The test is mandatory. Just give up!" Fumio Daimido said bluntly. Although Soma Yukihira sounded pitiful, she wouldn't change the rules of the Polar Star Dormitory because of that. Of course, it wasn't that you could only use your own ingredients. Unfortunately… "The kitchen only has some scraps and semi-finished ingredients left. Today is an unlucky day for you…"
Fumio Daimido said helplessly. If Soma Yukihira had arrived a little earlier, it wouldn't have been impossible to save some ingredients for him. Unfortunately, there were no ingredients left in the kitchen.
"So you mean we can use the leftover ingredients?" Soma Yukihira suddenly perked up. Some scraps and leftovers could still make a delicious meal.
"What?" Fumio Daimido looked at Soma Yukihira in surprise.
"I accepted the test. Where's the kitchen?" Soma Yukihira asked Fumio Daimido earnestly. He didn't want to sleep outdoors. Seeing Soma Yukihira's serious expression, Fumio Daimido became somewhat interested in him. So she led Soma Yukihira to the kitchen.
Ryusei also ran to the kitchen door at this moment. In fact, he had been listening nearby while Fumio Daimido and Soma Yukihira were talking. To avoid disturbing what was about to happen, Ryusei didn't choose to come out. And he didn't intend to go in and disturb them this time either.
After observing the remaining ingredients in the kitchen, Soma Yukihira had an idea. He then busied himself with preparations. Soma Yukihira quickly prepared a dinner consisting of mackerel burger patties, egg drop soup, and rice.
The soft yet substantial texture satisfied Fumio Daimido. The egg drop soup, made with squid broth, was also incredibly delicious. It brought Fumio Daimido back to a summer evening, to the feeling of kissing her first love on the beach.
Seeing Fumio Daimido, who had been 'drugged,' reach out to kiss Soma Yukihira, Ryusei promptly captured this moment with his camera. After all, such photos are extremely rare. In the kitchen, Fumio Daimido, regaining her senses, also acknowledged Soma Yukihira's culinary skills.
"Alright, you're allowed to stay. I apologize for the poor hospitality!" Soma Yukihira removed his headscarf. He then took the key from Fumio Daimido and excitedly ran out. He needed to quickly deliver his things to his room. Then he'd take a shower and get some rest.
However, as soon as Soma Yukihira stepped outside, he saw Ryusei. "Hey, Ryusei, what are you doing here?" Soma Yukihira looked at him with some surprise.
"Of course I'm staying at the Polar Star Dormitory too!" Hearing this, Ryusei looked somewhat helpless. Isn't that obvious?
"Oh, I see!" Soma Yukihira scratched his head. Right, he was assigned to the Polar Star Dormitory. Ryusei must have felt the same way. He just hadn't expected Ryusei to arrive even earlier. "I'll take my leave now. I need to shower quickly and get some rest."
"Oh, right, Soma. The Polar Star Dormitory only has one bathroom. This is the girls' shower time. So if you want to shower, you'll have to wait a while." Ryusei reminded him earnestly. A girl's body shouldn't be shown to just anyone. Soma Yukihira wanting to feast his eyes was absolutely out of the question.
"Girls' shower time?!" Soma Yukihira scratched his head. He decided to shower later.