The first thing Lily noticed as they entered the cafeteria was how vacant it was. To make matters worse, the few students who were in the room did not have food in front of them and were either chatting softly with friends or studying.

Clearly, this must have been the sign Rebecca used to predict that Aura was on duty. Lily felt herself gulping, her imagination going wild about what sort of food crimes could be committed to have this visible effect.

"Well… might as well suck it up," Rebecca sighed.

"Um. Couldn't we go to the general one?" Lily suggested.

"I'll be packed, and we will be lucky to get a table. It's fine; the sooner you experience Aura's cooking, the better. Plus, this way, I'll get to see your live reaction."

Lily put on a brave face and nodded. She'd sworn to never be picky about food, and she hoped to live up to her previous declaration. She followed after Rebecca, who looked like she was progressively regretting her decision as they headed to the serving area.

The woman behind the counter was clearly of Aviania descent, as she had numerous black feathers protruding from her hair. The strange thing was that the upper half of her face was red, almost as if she were wearing a masquerade mask, which made her piercing gold eyes stand out.

The black feathers were also clustered around the back of her neck, continuing down until they met two large folded wings on her back—a real rarity and often an indication of a deep bloodline.

I wonder if she can fly?

Not all Aviania could fly, and even the ones who grew wings sometimes couldn't, depending on the luck of the draw with their inheritance. Lily couldn't help but momentarily wonder if Rose's wings had grown anymore since she last saw her.

When they got close enough, Lily noticed that the red portion of her face was, in fact, natural and not some burn or something else. That meant it was likely some indicator of her demi species, but Lily was drawing a blank. That was when Arakil suddenly spoke up.

[Oh. Is that a vulture?]

"Vulture?" Lily replied.

[They are a type of bird that feeds off of carrion. Quite a few people used to see them as an ill omen, but they rid the landscape of deteriorating carcasses.]

"Carrion and carcasses?" Lily gasped and paled.

Does that mean she's going to feed us rotten meat? Is that why Rebecca was worried!?

"Ahem," a woman's voice said, sounding quite peeved and breaking Lily out of her thoughts.

Lily looked up and saw the woman, presumably Aura, staring directly at her—she unconsciously swallowed.

"It's your first day here, and already vicious rumors have circulated about me," she said and turned to Rebecca. Was it you?"

"No!" Rebecca quickly denied it. "I just said that eating your food is a right of passage. I swear I never mentioned carrion or anything like that."

"Hmm…" the woman's gaze scrutinized Rebecca before turning back to Lily.

"M-my Familiar said your demi type reminded him of a vulture, I'm sorry," Lily admitted.

"Your Familiar?" the woman replied, looking curiously at the floating book. She pointed a finger directly at it. "This thing?"

Lily nodded.

"Well, he's half right," the woman replied, and her black feathers started to glow red, like embers being rapidly rekindled.

[Oh! She must have a phoenix bloodline.]

Lily turned to look at Arakil, "A phoenix bloodline, really?"

"Huh. Smart book," the woman replied. Her anger seemed to have been dampened, and now she had a smirk on her face.

[I wonder if that's where the school got that red feather from. It might have been personally donated by her.]

"Really, that was a phoenix feather?" Lily asked.

"Very smart book," the woman replied again, now grinning suspiciously.

"Um. Thank you, and sorry. I'm Lily, and this is Arakil; we're new here."

"Aura. Regarth graduate and now cafeteria chef," she responded in kind.

"You graduated and became a chef?" Lily blurted out in question. It was too absurd for her to hold back.

Aura, however, laughed, "Yes. I didn't want to leave the school and deal with my betrothed, so I stuck around. But I needed to earn some money, and teaching isn't for me, so now I'm here."

"You're engaged?" Lily asked excitedly.

"Not by choice," Aura grumbled, surprising Lily with her evident disdain.

"Pretty much a runaway bride situation," Rebecca commented.

"If that's what you call a forced marriage, sure," Aura replied dryly. "But enough of my personal life. Are you two going to eat or not?"

"It's not like we're holding up the line," Rebecca pointed out.

"What's on the menu?" Lily quickly asked, hoping to diffuse the situation.

"Salted pork with turnip mash, smoked fish and oatcakes, stewed apples with honey, a venison pottage, and a herb salad," Aura replied, although there was no enthusiasm behind her words.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

"Ugh… I'll have the salad," Rebecca said.

"The fish and oatcakes sound good," Lily commented. "But I had a rather big breakfast, so I'll go with the stewed apples."

"Got a bit of a sweet tooth?" Aura asked.

"Strawberries are my favorite!" Lily declared.

Aura nodded in agreement, "Okay. You two go find a seat, and I'll bring it to you as soon as it's done!"

"Thanks," Lily replied with a bright smile.

Rebecca muttered something and began walking to a nearby table. Lily quickly followed, and they sat down.

"She seems nice," Lily said.

"I'm anticipating a changed tone when you see the food. Hopefully, she'll truly forgive you for your little outburst, or you can expect an extra special dish."

Lily's ears twitched, "Would she really do that?"

"I wouldn't put it past her; she's only two years older than me, so don't think she's some mature woman," Rebecca explained. "She can get away with almost anything short of murder thanks to her feather donations. Must be nice to have a special bloodline to fall back on."

"Um…" Lily mumbled awkwardly.

Rebecca turned to look at Lily and then realized her gaffe.

"I'm sure you earned your way in," she quickly corrected.

Lily glanced away awkwardly; she wasn't sure how to respond.

"Ugh… sorry, it's just hard for those of us who don't have them. It feels like we have to put in extra effort to accomplish anything."

"I wouldn't even have magic," Lily finally responded.

"Crap, you're right," Rebecca said, looking genuinely distressed. "I really put my foot in my mouth. I'm sorry, Lily, I'm giving a terrible impression as a senior."

"It's not like I don't understand you," Lily admitted. "Rose was my big sister, and it felt like she could do anything and everything. Even when I arrived here, I found out she had set a record for summoning her Familiar. But I don't choose to live in her shadow; I want to have my own accomplishments."

"Huh… that's a pretty mature mindset."

"I had some good teachers to set me on the right path," Lily admitted.

Especially Arakil.

Rebecca nodded, "Okay. I guess I'll try to moan less and put that energy towards effort. I can't let a junior embarrass me now."

Lily gave a small smile and nodded.

"Foods up!" Aura suddenly let out, placing two sets of plates in front of them.

Lily looked down excitedly and saw what could only be described as charcoal on her plate. She was about to ask if it was a mistake when she noticed an extremely irate Rebecca.

"Damn it, Aura, how do you burn a salad!?"

"It just comes out that way," she replied.

Lily looked at the "salad" and frowned. All the plants were wilted and blackened, and once-crisp leaves were curled and brittle. She could smell the sharp scent of char.

"And since you're new and the first bunny student I've ever seen, this is for you," Aura declared proudly and placed another small plate before Lily.

On the plate was golden pastry folded and braided in itself, layered with a dusting of sugar and cinnamon; it looked spectacular.

"What the hell is that?" Rebecca asked, pointing at it.

"You've never seen a cinnamon twist?" Aura asked confusedly.

"Of course I have, but why is that perfect when my salad and even her stewed apples are charcoal."

"Oh. Well, there's a simple explanation for that."

"Yes?" Rebecca asked impatiently.

"Cooking is my job," Aura stated and then paused. "But baking… Baking is my passion!"

"Bullcrap," Rebecca replied. "I bet you bought that at a store or something and have been waiting for a new student to play this joke on."

Lily gently poked the pastry; it felt fresh from the oven hot.

"I think she did bake it."

Rebecca firmly shook her head, "I refuse to believe she can make anything that isn't charred to a crisp."

"Hey. I've cooked a few good things," Aura whined. "And besides, baking and cooking are two completely different things."

Rebecca raised a curious eye, "Aura. I heard you've burnt water before."

"Only a few times…" she admitted.

"How!?" Lily cried out.

"Phoenix fire is very different from normal fire," Aura explained, looking away in embarrassment.

[That is very true. Phoenix fire and dragon fire aren't even the most abnormal magical occurrences. Wait until you see frostfire.]

Lily stared at Arakil, dumbfounded. She wasn't sure if he was serious or making a joke. Rebecca and Aura continued their shouting match about food, and Lily opted to stay out of it.

She nervously poked one of the seared apples with her fork and brought it to her mouth. She didn't vomit, but it was a close call if not for the small bits of honey drizzled over it as she swallowed what felt like a mouthful of soot.

Lily turned her gaze to the pastry and picked it up. Sniffing it cautiously, she was surprised by how good it smelt. She threw caution to the wind and took a big bite, and she was met with delight! The outside was lightly crisp, the inside tender, and each bite sweet with melting cinnamon and a subtle buttery richness.

"It's so good!" Lily couldn't help but exclaim.

Aura grinned smugly, "See? I told you baking is my passion!"

Rebecca couldn't believe it and continued to shake her head in denial, but when she saw Lily happily eating away at it, she had to admit that she was wrong.

"I totally expected the outside to be a lie," she admitted. "But if you can bake, why aren't you serving that instead of this?" Rebecca asked and pointed at her torched salad.

"I have to follow the recipes for the day; it's not my decision," Aura answered. "I do offer my baked goods on the side, but since those have to be bought rather than provided for free, nobody asks for them."

"Nobody asks for them because everyone assumes you only know how to somehow turn anything and everything into scorched husks," Rebecca answered, pointing out the obvious. "No sane person would ever risk their money after seeing your track record time and time again."

"You should offer free samples," Lily suggested. "At least until your image is restored."

"Not a bad idea from the little bunny. Are you a merchant's daughter by any chance?" Aura asked.

Lily shook her head, "I grew up in an orphanage. My mother was an adventurer, apparently."

"She's Rose's little sister," Rebecca quickly added.

"So you're the little troublemaker that Rose kept mentioning!" Aura said with a beaming smile.

"I'm the troublemaker?" Lily huffed. "Rose even punched her magic teacher!"

"Hahaha! That certainly sounds like her," Aura agreed, still chuckling with laughter.

"I didn't know you two were so close," Rebecca admitted.

"Well, Rose is one of the few students who always eats all my meals," Aura explained. "She says it's a challenge and sometimes even asks me to cook it some more."

"Please tell me you're joking," Rebecca pleaded.

"Nope. One time, she even cooked the meal again right in front of me and then snorted out smoke from her nostrils. Looked like a real badass."

Lily groaned. It sounded like Rose had become potentially even worse than when she had left. Did Lady Desthu fail to reform her during their adventure?

"Where is Rose?" Lily finally asked.

"Oh, she's in the dungeon. She should come out in a week, but I wouldn't put it past her to stay there until she's forced to come home when classes officially start," Aura divulged.

"She's staying in the dungeon for over a week!?"

"I mean, she practically lives down there when she can," Aura revealed.

"A lot of students choose to; it can be better than the dorms if you're strong or smart enough," Rebecca concurred.

Lily stared at the two older girls as if they had said the most absurd thing imaginable. Everything she knew about dungeons noted that they were monster-infested hells where you have to fight constantly for glory and survival. And yet, apparently, Rose was living inside one?

[Very, very interesting… I think you certainly won the jackpot when you picked Regarth over the other schools.]