Read Novel Full Chapter 565: Escape, Feast
Chapter 565: Escape, Feast
"Wait, so in that split moment when everyone was about to die, their souls getting sucked by the Grimworld Tree, you made a decision to kill them yourself and then revive them as a new race? Damn."
Almond chuckled. "It was good that I accidentally went to a higher layer, which made me stronger and gave me information about genelines and stuff, so it was like I got an epiphany in that moment, allowing me to save everyone."
The ship had already started moving as Almond and Lily continued telling Ainen their story.
...
After four hours, the ship finally stopped moving. After Almond and Lily finished their story, they meditated and managed to trigger inspirations in their decks, giving them a second card each.
"It looks like we’ve arrived," Ainen said. "So what plan do you have to escape?"
Lily and Almond exchanged glances before smiling.
"Well, we haven’t made any plan yet. We’ll see where they take us, and if it’s good to go, we’ll escape on the way before they take us to the slave market or whatever it’s called here," Lily answered.
"Since we manifested a second card in our decks, it will be easier. What about you?" Almond asked.
"We gotta have a feast together, so I have a suggestion," Ainen smiled. "You enter my Interdimensional Restaurant, and I’ll get us out of here. I already have a live map of the surroundings due to one of my cards."
As he spoke, Ainen showed a hologram to Almond and Lily.
"The moving red dots are living beings. The three green ones at the shore are us three."
Almond and Lily were surprised.
"That’s so handy," Almond blinked.
Ainen grinned. "I told you I was bugged. Although something happened to it when I arrived here and it vanished, I got three neutral cards in exchange."
"Neutral cards... as in, they are not part of your deck?" Lily asked.
"Yep."
Clank!
The door opened, and a dwarf walked in.
"Alright, kids. It’s time to send you off. Work hard, and you’ll be able to remove slave status pretty soon."
Ainen ignored him and looked at Almond and Lily. "What do you say? Just say yes, and I can send you inside, and then I can teleport away since I need consent."
The dwarf frowned. "Teleport?"
Almond and Lily exchanged glances before nodding.
"Yes."
Ainen snapped his fingers, his eyes reflecting a card with the image of a fancy restaurant.
Almond and Lily vanished.
"Fuck!" the dwarf shouted.
"Bye," Ainen chuckled.
A card flickered into existence again, this time with a design of wormhole eyes, and Ainen vanished.
Roughly five kilometers away from the port, in the hill range, Ainen appeared at the top, overlooking the port town.
A second later, Almond and Lily appeared next to him, alongside four more beings.
Three beautiful white-blue-haired girls with wolf-like ears and nine fox tails.
And one tiny, chubby black dragon with lapis blue eyes.
"Meet my wives," Ainen gestured at the girls. "Saffa, Clovelle, and Fraisea."
"You got triplets as your wives?" Lily chuckled. "That’s amazing."
"Hi there," Almond smiled.
"You both feel strong," Fraisea blinked. "I am curious about your decks."
"She is a bit blunt," Saffa smiled.
"Hi," Clovelle waved her hand and smiled wryly. "It still feels a bit strange to lose all our powers."
"Owuwouwouwou~" the little dragon began rolling around on the ground.
"That’s his cue," Ainen laughed.
"For what?" Almond blinked.
The girls and Ainen smiled before answering at the same time.
"Feast!"
"Rawrr!!"
...
The group went into the forest, where Ainen manifested a card that transformed into an open barbecue restaurant with tools, tables, and large grills.
"Barbecue grills?" Lily raised her eyebrows. "So you specifically only make barbecues?"
"Nope. I make everything. And my restaurant can change into anything I desire," Ainen laughed. "Take a look at the card and you’ll know."
Ainen shared his card’s details with them.
[ Interdimensional Restaurant ]
Quality: 0-star
Cost: 0
Effect:
—> Using this card allows you to summon a restaurant of your imagined design. When it is not summoned, the latest designed restaurant enters a spatial pocket connected to your existential code. You can let others enter while it is in the spatial pocket, but you cannot enter yourself.
"Alright, I’ve set up the perimeter. Now let’s get hunting," Ainen looked at the duo. "You two should hunt monsters with Gopu and bring their meat here. My wives and I will hunt for herbs."
"Sounds good," Almond nodded.
"But before we leave, eat this," Ainen said as he took out a sweet-fruit baked bread and tore it into three pieces while walking toward them.
Gopu the dragon jumped, but Ainen smoothly dodged the bite and did not let it eat.
"I’ve set up a buff in this called Mind Bind," Ainen said as he ate one piece and gave the other two to Almond and Lily.
"The Mind Bind buff is simple. Everyone with the buff can be telepathically connected to each other. The distance limit is ten kilometers, so keep that in mind."
Almond and Lily were surprised.
"You set up this buff... means?" Almond asked.
Lily blinked, also curious.
"Limitless Matrix Chef. That’s my deck," Ainen grinned. "I can cook food with buffs that I design myself, alongside other effects."
"That’s awesome."
Almond and Lily ate the bread.
[ You have been buffed with Mind Bind for 3 hours. ]
[ Your action and movement speed have increased by 20%. ]
"Great."
"Yep. Now let’s start hunting."
...
By the time the twin moons climbed halfway up the sky, the camp was alive with warmth and smoke.
The forest clearing glowed orange from the grills, flames dancing beneath thick slabs of sizzling meat. The scent was overwhelming. Charred fat, sweet herbs, and something spicy and sharp made the air feel heavier with every breath.
Ainen stood at the center like a conductor, sleeves rolled up, eyes sharp, movements precise. Plates hovered around him, guided by invisible force, while spices ground themselves midair and sprinkled down in perfect measure.
The grills were full.
Massive cuts of monster meat had caramelized, crackling edges, with juices dripping and hissing as they hit the fire. Skewers of smaller pieces rotated on their own, glowing faintly with buff runes burned into the metal.
He was cooking exotic kinds of taste on those grills, and Almond and Lily could feel it piercingly just from the smell.
"What the hell... I just know this is going to be crazy good," Lily muttered.
"It reminds me of that feast island."
Saffa chuckled. "I can tell you with one hundred percent certainty that you haven’t tasted anything more delicious than what Ainen cooks."
"Yep. Darling’s food is the best," Fraisea giggled.
"Rawr! Rawr!"
"You’ll know once you taste it," Clovelle grinned.
Grrr....
Almond and Lily smiled wryly as their stomachs growled.
"Yeah, the physical reaction says it all."
"The smell alone is so compelling that it arouses appetite."
Almond and Lily could not wait to eat.
Soon, the first batch flew toward their table.
"Enjoy!"
Almond and Lily each grabbed a skewer. After the first bite, it was as if they were briefly possessed and finished the entire skewer.
Their expressions went blank.
Both of them stared at the table and grabbed another skewer.
This time, no rush.
Almond took another bite, slower, chewing properly. The meat was tender without falling apart, smoky on the outside, rich and deep inside. Every chew released layers of flavor, savory first, then faint sweetness, followed by lingering warmth that spread through his chest and settled into his Pulse.
"...This is ridiculous..." Almond muttered as he kept eating.
Lily closed her eyes as she ate, savoring each bite. The herbs were crisp, fresh, and strangely calming, while the sauce carried a sharp brightness that made her senses feel clearer.
"My mind feels lighter," she said. "Focused. Calm. At peace. And this taste..."
She gulped, choosing not to speak further as she continued eating.
The girls smiled as they ate as well.
"Yummy!" Clovelle shouted.
Suddenly, bottles and a barrel arrived.
"Drinks are ready!"
"Rawr!"
The tiny dragon opened the lid and began gulping for a couple seconds before grabbing barbacue again.