**Totsuki – Moonlight Dormitory**
Two figures were quietly sneaking toward a certain room.
"Rindō… are you sure about this?" Momo asked, her cheeks slightly flushed.
"Momo, we've already cleaned the entire dorm… the only place we've never explored is Damian's room."
"What kind of stuff does he keep? Maybe he has some magazines under the bed? Aren't you curious too?"
"But… but Damian isn't that kind of person! He would never have weird magazines! He's pure!"
Rindō gave a mischievous smile.
"Pure? Silly girl, there's no such thing as a guy his age being *pure*."
"And why are you trembling? Huh, Momo?"
"I-I just… want to get to know him better… but we can't touch anything in his room or he'll get mad at us..."
"Heh. Get ready, then. The most mysterious part of this dorm… lies behind that door!"
Together, they stepped forward and opened the gates to the promised land.
Immediately, Rindō and Momo were stunned.
They hadn't expected Damian's room to be so absurdly clean. It wasn't just the kind of clean where someone hides messes under the bed—it was *meticulously* organized. Every surface looked freshly polished, every item had its precise place. Even the air felt filtered.
"Damian's room is… very tidy," Momo whispered, almost feeling guilty for invading the sanctuary.
Rindō looked at the soles of her slippers and whispered, impressed:
"A boy's room this clean and organized… that's suspicious," she muttered.
Suddenly, something caught her attention.
"What?! What is THIS?!"
Rindō rushed to a corner near the desk and crouched down like she'd just uncovered a national secret. Momo followed and widened her eyes.
"A keyboard?! Damian knows how to play?!"
"Damn, Damian!" Rindō crossed her arms, feigning indignation.
"He knows how to play and never performed for us?! Was he saving it for a dramatic moment?!"
"Maybe he's just avoiding being found out by… Becky..." Momo suggested.
"Makes sense. She's in full-on pursuit mode. Did you see what she sent today?"
"No… what was it?"
Rindō took a deep breath and mimicked Becky's dramatic voice:
"'Ah! My dear future husband is on a mission far from me! How will I survive SIX days without seeing my beloved Damian-kun?!'"
"Uh… Becky's not hiding anything."
"Her intentions are clearer than lemon gelatin."
While chatting, Rindō stopped in front of the bookshelf and blinked.
"He's got books in Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese, French, English, and Italian… Does he *know* that many languages?"
Momo pulled a mysterious notebook from the shelf.
"This one doesn't have a title… is it a diary?"
Rindō's eyes widened. She gently took the notebook from Momo's hands and placed it back on the desk.
"Hey, hey, let's not mess with that. Diaries are off-limits. That's where the curiosity code ends!"
But Momo was still intrigued.
"Wait… is this a training plan?"
They scanned the desk calendar, and next to it was a notebook filled with firm, structured handwriting, listing tasks in sequence.
---
**Weekly Training Schedule**
**Monday – Smell & Sensory Memory**
* Blind test: identify 20 aromas from herbs, spices, and broths as fast as possible.
* Scent memory game (match pairs of similar aromas).
* Blind tasting of dishes with hidden ingredients.
* Practice creating dishes where aroma is the star.
**Tuesday – Knife Precision**
* Timed technical cuts: julienne, brunoise, chiffonade, etc.
* Chicken deboning under a time limit.
* Practice with tricky vegetables (onion, pumpkin, radish).
* Artistic cutting challenge (vegetable decorations).
**Wednesday – Hand Flexibility & Endurance**
* Knead dough by hand for 1 hour (noodles, bread, mochi).
* Fold 100 units of gyoza or tortellini.
* Precision and repetitive plating practice.
* Delicate handling (poached egg, chocolate tempering).
**Thursday – Technique & Creativity**
* Recreate a classic dish without a recipe, based only on description.
* "Creative restriction" session: cook without salt, or without direct heat.
**Friday – Speed & Efficiency**
* "Speed Cooking": make 3 full dishes in 1 hour.
* Set up a workstation in under 5 minutes.
* Mise en place race (prepare ingredients quickly and perfectly).
**Saturday – Palate & Flavor Balance**
* Analyze flavor profiles (acidic, umami, sweet, bitter, salty).
* Fix poorly balanced dishes.
**Sunday – Creative Relaxation**
* Cook intuitively, without a timer, to renew love for the craft.
* Review the week's performance and adjust future training.
---
Rindō read aloud, growing more amazed. "He does this every single day?!"
"This is another level..." she added, genuinely impressed.
"With a training routine like this, no wonder he's so good at cooking..."
Momo went quiet for a moment.
"Damian once said… 'If you don't achieve it with your own hands, you'll either never move forward… or if you do, you won't be able to keep it.' I didn't understand it back then, but… now it makes more sense."
The two fell silent.
Without realizing it, their eyes drifted to the top of the bedside table, where three simple picture frames stood.
Rindō walked over and called softly:
"Momo… come look at this..."
The girl approached, and when she saw the photo, her body froze.
"That's… Damian?"
The photo showed a little boy in worn-out clothes, with a bruised face yet a warm, vibrant smile. Beside him, a well-dressed, elegant middle-aged man wore a serene expression. They stood in front of a humble, nearly crumbling house.
Bucchi slipped from Momo's hands.
"He… looks so small… maybe four or five years old… and even injured, he's smiling..."
Rindō picked up the second photo. A stark contrast.
A refined-looking teenager, black hair slicked back, dressed in sophisticated clothes, stood behind a luxurious couch. The same man from the other photo was seated, reading a book, his expression calm. It resembled a typical grandfather-and-grandson photo… but something felt off.
"What… is going on here?" Momo whispered.
"He looks like Damian… but at the same time, not."
"Maybe it *is* him. Maybe that man was… his mentor? Grandfather? A tutor?" Rindō frowned.
"Hard to tell… but the difference between the photos is like night and day."
Momo turned the frame over and noticed a small inscription in Italian.
"It says… "Il sorriso è la prima vittoria."
She translated, hesitantly: *'The smile is the first victory'*... "I've heard that in a series before… It's like someone's motto."
"Maybe that's the origin of everything for Damian…" Rindō whispered.
"No wonder he kept it so carefully."
"But why isn't there anything else? No names, no dates… just a smiling face doodled in pen on the back..."
They exchanged looks. As curious as they were, something held them back from digging deeper.
Then, they looked at the final photo.
In the center stood Damian, wearing a crisp white dress shirt and a fitted black vest, matching his equally dark trousers. He had a bright smile as he looked at the camera.
Next to him, in almost chaotic alignment, were five men.
"They must be Damian's friends, right?" Rindō murmured.
"Yeah, but what kind of clothes are those?" Momo asked, confused.
"Don't ask me, maybe it's some Napoli's fashion trend..." Rindō replied.
"Rindō… do you think we should ask him about his past?"
Rindō shook her head.
"I don't think he'd tell us. At least not yet. This room already spoke volumes. Our expedition was a complete success… but let's stop here."
"Yeah..."
Before leaving, Momo picked Bucchi off the floor but glanced once more at Damian's childhood photo.
She hugged the plush toy a little tighter.
"Damian… was cute even as a kid..."
"Momo! Let's go! We still have documents to handle today!" Rindō suddenly shouted.
"I'M COMING!" Momo replied, trembling slightly as she remembered what awaited them.
---
(End of Chapter)
Give me some power stones there you go~😉