Chapter 108
The moment Haruto saw the familiar room around him, all the tension drained from his body, leaving him pleasantly lazy and relaxed.
He spent the next two days resting at home and organizing everything he had collected from the Delicious in Dungeon world.
Once he returned to Totsuki Academy, his life settled into a peaceful rhythm again.
Attending classes, experimenting with dishes that caught his interest, and gathering in Marui Zenji’s room with the rest of Polar Star—it was a simple, comfortable routine.
Of course, Haruto did not neglect his magical studies, especially teleportation.
He worked his way through the fundamentals of spatial perception, coordinate positioning, constructing magic circles, and everything else required to cast it safely.
Time passed quietly, and before he knew it, more than half a month had gone by.
Early one morning, everyone at Polar Star Dormitory woke before sunrise and headed together toward the central announcement plaza.
Today was the day Totsuki would reveal the competitors selected for one of the academy’s most important events: the Autumn Elections.
The morning breeze carried the fresh scent of flowers and grass from the surrounding gardens.
Groups of students chatted excitedly along the road, filling the air with anticipation and nervous energy.
By the time the Polar Star residents reached the plaza, a large crowd had already gathered.
Every pair of eyes was fixed on the covered notice board in the center, waiting for the roster to be unveiled.
They did not have to wait long.
The moment the staff pulled away the cloth, the entire plaza erupted into excited chatter.
Everyone from Polar Star quickly scanned the list.
Among the dormitory’s first-year students, everyone except Aoki Daigo and Sato Shoji had been selected.
"So they picked me too?"
Haruto found his name on the roster and gave a mildly helpless sigh.
Exploring other worlds, studying magic, and developing new dishes all interested him far more than the Autumn Elections.
Still, now that he had been chosen, he intended to take the competition seriously.
He turned toward the others.
Yoshino Yuki had both fists clenched, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
Sakaki Ryoko wore her usual gentle smile, but the delight in her expression was unmistakable.
Tadokoro Megumi gripped the edge of her clothes, her face slightly flushed as nervousness and happiness mingled together.
"Looks like all of you made it too."
Haruto smiled.
"We did," Ryoko replied with a soft nod. "Fumio-san will be thrilled when she hears how many Polar Star students were selected. She might even prepare a huge dinner to celebrate."
"That’s right! We need to tell Fumio-san immediately!"
Yuki smacked her forehead, pulled out her phone, and began tapping rapidly at the screen.
While they were talking, Takumi spotted the Polar Star group from across the plaza and hurried over.
"Suzuki! Yukihira! We’ll finally settle things in the Autumn Elections!"
Haruto raised an eyebrow in resignation, though he had long since grown used to Takumi’s challenges.
Soma turned at the sound of his voice and greeted him with his usual bright smile.
"Oh, Takumi! You were selected too? Great. Let’s have a proper match when the time comes!"
Before Takumi could answer, a sweet voice suddenly rang across the plaza.
"Good morning, everyone!"
Haruto instinctively looked up.
A large crane towered over the crowd, its arm raised high above the plaza.
Suspended from the hook was an elegant white basket, with clouds of white mist constantly spilling over its sides.
Kawashima Urara stood dramatically in the center of it.
She struck a cute pose for the students below, instantly drawing excited cheers from many of the boys.
Several girls, meanwhile, frowned in obvious annoyance.
Urara paid them no attention and raised her microphone.
"First of all, congratulations to all the outstanding students selected for the Autumn Elections!"
"As the notice board clearly shows, sixty competitors have been chosen. You’ll be divided evenly between Blocks A and B."
"Once the Elections officially begin, each block will hold its own preliminary round."
"The highest-ranking students from both blocks will advance to the main tournament!"
Haruto found the explanation painfully dull.
Before long, he was yawning, his eyes beginning to glaze over.
He told the others he was heading ahead and started toward the classroom.
After walking only a few steps, however, Haruto glanced toward a large tree beside the plaza.
Hidden among its dense branches, Sadatsuka Nao was crouched with a pair of high-powered binoculars pressed to her eyes.
She stared obsessively toward one of the academy buildings, her expression filled with unsettling devotion.
There was no need to guess what she was doing.
Nao was secretly spying on Erina again.
Haruto gave a helpless shrug and decided it was none of his business before continuing toward the classroom.
...
After the roster was announced, life at Totsuki returned to normal once more.
Although the competitors had already been chosen, the Autumn Elections themselves would not begin until the following term.
They still had the entire summer vacation ahead of them.
The days passed quickly, and summer break soon arrived.
On the first morning of the holiday, before the sky had fully brightened, Isshiki woke Haruto and the others and brought everyone out to the fields beside Polar Star.
Together, they tended to the various vegetables growing there.
Morning sunlight spilled across the lush green rows, while the fresh scent of earth filled the air.
Just as they were finishing their work, Yuki came racing along the ridge with a white envelope bearing the Totsuki crest held high above her head.
"Hey, everyone! Come look at this! Something important just arrived!"
The others put down their tools and gathered around her, staring curiously at the envelope.
"It came directly from the Autumn Elections Committee!"
Yuki waved it excitedly, her eyes curving into crescents.
"The preliminary-round theme has to be inside!"
There was little doubt about that.
Under everyone’s watchful gaze, Yuki tore open the envelope and pulled out a sheet of white paper.
Only two words were written on it.
Curry dishes.
Haruto was not surprised in the slightest.
Since the work in the fields was mostly finished, everyone packed away their tools and returned to Polar Star’s common room to discuss the theme properly.
They sat together in a circle while Soma scratched the back of his head.
"So basically, we just need to make curry rice, right?"
Curry rice was the most familiar and classic form of curry that came to mind.
"The theme says curry dishes, not curry rice," Ryoko corrected him. "Curry rice is only one type of curry dish. We can’t interpret the theme that narrowly."
"So the important part is creating a dish built around curry flavors. The actual form is up to us," Ibusaki Shun murmured thoughtfully from where he leaned back in his chair.
"Curry can cover an enormous range of food—soups, main courses, snacks, even desserts," Haruto added. "As long as curry spices form the heart of the flavor, it should qualify. That gives us plenty of freedom, but it also tests how well we understand spices and how creatively we can use them."
He had recently come across a book about curry and spent some time studying it.
From Haruto’s perspective, curry cuisine was essentially the art of cooking with a large and carefully balanced combination of spices.
"Exactly!" Yuki agreed eagerly.
Then her eyes lit up, and she turned expectantly toward Isshiki.
"That’s right, isn’t it, Isshiki-senpai?"
Under her hopeful gaze, Isshiki answered with a cheerful smile.
"Who knows?"
"Ah! Isshiki-senpai dodged the question again!"
Yuki’s face immediately fell, and she puffed out her cheeks in frustration.
She did not press him any further.
The Polar Star residents continued discussing possible approaches to the curry theme for quite some time, and each of them gradually formed the beginnings of an idea.
Once the conversation ended, Soma dragged Megumi along to visit one of his father’s former juniors, hoping to learn more about curry.
Haruto briefly said goodbye to everyone, left Totsuki Academy, and returned home.
He intended to spend the summer traveling to the Toriko world.
Now that he had learned teleportation magic, he could finally escape from inside the Regal Mammoth and begin exploring the world beyond it.