The second basement floor of the West Tokyo Fourth Beginner Dungeon.
Hmm? No, wait. Is it the Second Layer of the Selection Zone?
Eh, whatever. Either one works.
The moment our group stepped inside, we were utterly stunned by the unbelievable paradise spread out before our eyes.
“Satsuki-chan, this place is…”
“I think… it’s the Gourmet House.”
I figured Satsuki-chan and I were probably thinking along the same lines.
The size of the room and the sheer number of dishes prepared here were on an entirely different level, but the atmosphere was unmistakably similar to that of the room we had visited before.
Just like Satsuki-chan had murmured, this really was the Gourmet House…
Right?
| > What an incredibly vast and lavish room. > Mountains of food as far as the eye can see. > It looks like a “Gourmet House,” but… > It’s more of a palace than a house. > Everything looks delicious! > Is it an all-you-can-eat buffet? > They’ve even thoughtfully set out placards with the names of the dishes. > Oh! There’s Fire Dragon steak—an ultra-rare ingredient! > Whoa! And over there, “Magic Salad” made with enhanced vegetables! > “Lucky Rabbit Hot Pie”? For REAAL? > This is paradise. > Nah, this is a Selection Zone. There’s no way they’d just be able to eat a normal meal here. > Exactly. > Is the owner of this place that “Gourmet House” lady? > Who was that again? > I think… |
“I’ve been waiting for you, Satsuki. And you too, Ajiri Daishi.”
“Raika-san!”
As I alternated between staring at the lavish spread of food and the envious comments flooding the chat, a woman appeared from the back of the room.
Satsuki-chan called out her name.
Naturally, I remembered her too. Raika-san, the mistress of the Gourmet House whom Satsuki-chan and I had met the last time we visited this dungeon.
“It’s been a while, Mina and Shion.”
“Yes, been a while, Raika-san. Are you having some sort of banquet today? There’s an absurdly larger amount of food compared to the last time we were here.”
“Obviously, you’re not going to feed us all for free. If my guess is correct, you’re here under orders from the Dungeon Master as well.”
“Grrrrr… (Stomach rumbling)…”
Apparently, Mina-chan and Shion-san had met Raika-san before as well.
Still, considering they hadn’t seen each other in quite some time, their exchange was surprisingly laced with both suspicion and sarcasm.
“Of course I am.”
Raika-san didn’t seem particularly flustered or disturbed. Instead, she simply admitted the truth without hesitation.
Well, given everything that had happened so far, it was pretty much the only answer that made sense.
“This is Raika’s personal domain, the ‘Garden of Gastronomic Delight.’”
The Time-Space Rabbit, which had slowly approached us from behind, gave us a brief explanation of the space we were in.
Come to think of it, although it had served as the boss of the First Layer of the Selection Zone earlier, the rabbit had originally been our guide.
“Thanks for the introduction, you nasty little rabbit. Yes, this is my personal domain, the ‘Garden of Gastronomic Delight,’ where I can make the fullest use of my abilities.”
Apparently, Raika-san knew the Time-Space Rabbit as well. Though judging by the way they spoke to each other, I wouldn’t exactly call them friends.
A personal domain—the ‘Garden of Gastronomic Delight.’
So this was basically the same sort of special space as the ones belonging to the Nether Dragon King Ades and Rakshasa, or the domain the Time-Space Rabbit had used earlier—places where their abilities could be brought out to their absolute limit.
At least, that was how I understood it.
Although, judging purely by the sight before me, this place looked less like some deadly trial and more like an endless luxury all-you-can-eat buffet.
What kind of trial could possibly be waiting for us in a domain like this?
“Raika-san. Is it the same as last time? If we eat our fill of the food here, does that mean we clear the trial?”
Satsuki-chan’s question brought back my memories of what had happened the last time we came here.
If I remembered correctly, the condition for clearing Raika-san’s Gourmet House had simply been to eat the food she served until we were completely full.
It was a strange little room where eating certain dishes could raise or lower your abilities, but since all we really had to do was eat, I didn’t remember having much trouble clearing it.
Well… my memories of the place were also mixed together with the part where I was forced to shove some old geezer’s rectum into my own mouth, so I wouldn’t exactly call all of them pleasant.
“Surely you don’t think I’d go to the trouble of receiving power from the Goddess and preparing this entire domain, only to let you proceed to the next stage under such an easy condition.”
Fair enough.
“Why bother with conditions at all? If we defeat you, doesn’t that end the trial?”
“Indeed. There’s no reason to play along with this farce.”
“(Stomach rumbling) Grrrrrr…”
Mina-chan and Shion-san were already in battle mode.
They didn’t even spare a glance at the magnificent spread of food, instead directing all of their hostility toward Raika-san.
“Hehehe. I had a feeling the two of you would say that. It’s true that I’m quite skilled when it comes to cooking, but when it comes to fighting, I’m completely hopeless. If we fought, I’d lose for sure.”
“You seem awfully relaxed for someone who claims she’d lose in a fight.”
“You must have something prepared.”
“Grrrr… (Stomach rumbling) Grrr…”
Mina-chan and Shion-san, who had looked ready to pounce on Raika-san at any moment, hesitated.
Raika-san had openly admitted that she would lose if things came down to a fight. Naturally, it was only reasonable to assume that she had already made preparations either to deal with a battle or, better yet, prevent one from happening in the first place.
“Hehehe. Hey, Satsuki. You can use an Appraisal skill, right? Why don’t you use it to check someone’s status? Anyone will do. I think you’ll understand what makes this room so special—and why I can remain so calm—once you see the results.”
“Y-Yes. In that case, I’ll check Daishi-san’s.”
Of course it’s me.
“T-This is…?!”
“Exactly. Now you understand.”
“Grrrr… (Stomach rumbling)… Hun-gry…”
Huh?
Satsuki-chan, what exactly did you see?
What happened to my status?
And more importantly… Ryunosuke. Your stomach has been making way too much noise.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeneijiworks.com
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