The Judges

Albert Lanang came on his day off.

That alone put me off.

A day off was meant for resting.

Of course, I had no right to say that.

I came down to the kitchen to practice even on my days off, after all.

But ruining my own day off and having someone else ruin it were two different things.

Uncle Bernard opened the door and stepped inside very carefully.

“Kyle, we have a guest.”

“A guest from the restaurant? It's our day off.”

“No. He's Albert Lanang, the former imperial head chef.”...