The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era

Chapter 728: VIRTUALNET DATE (II)

ASTRID entered the restaurant where they’d agreed to meet. He didn’t know many places in VirtualNet, so he’d told Wulfric to choose their meeting spot. This was the location Wulfric had sent him.

A staff member greeted him and asked for his username. When he gave it, the staff led him to the veranda seats. He spotted a figure sitting there with his back to him. Since the restaurant was completely empty aside from the staff, that person could only be Wulfric.

The other must have heard him approach, because he turned around just as Astrid got close.

He nearly stumbled when he saw the avatar. It looked exactly like the real Wulfric! But really, what else did he expect? This was Wulfric. The thought of changing his appearance probably never even occurred to him.

That was the confidence of someone who didn’t care about being recognized. Most people of his status would create a different-looking avatar for privacy, but not Wulfric. Since VirtualNet’s rules prohibited creating avatars using another person’s real-life appearance, anyone seeing this avatar would immediately know it was the prince. And Wulfric clearly didn’t mind. Why would he? Nobody would dare bother him, even if they knew it was him. If anything, recognizing him would make people keep their distance even more.

Astrid walked closer and sat down across from Wulfric. "Hey." Instead of greeting him back, Wulfric just stared at him. "What’s wrong? Do I look weird?"

"No, no," Wulfric said quickly. "Your real appearance is a hundred times more beautiful. No, a thousand times. Wait, no—that still doesn’t feel like enough. Maybe a million..."

"Wulf," Astrid said, stopping Wulfric before he could finish showering him with compliments. He raised a brow, his expression clearly asking why Wulfric had been staring.

Wulfric’s expression turned awkward. "I was just thinking, did you pick your hair and eye color because of me?"

Astrid blinked. He remembered that the color he picked for his avatar was white hair and golden eyes. He hadn’t really thought about it when choosing his avatar’s appearance. But now that Wulfric mentioned it, he realized he had used Wulfric’s hair and eye color. The fact that he did it without realizing it meant Wulfric had been in his thoughts more deeply than he’d realized.

"Yes," Astrid admitted without hesitation. Then he smiled, a playful glint in his eyes as he tilted his head slightly. "I just think white hair and golden eyes make a beautiful combination." He held Wulfric’s gaze a heartbeat too long before adding lightly, "Just like you."

This time, Wulfric was the one who paused. Did Aster just call him beautiful? If anyone else had said that, they’d have found themselves thrown against a wall by now. Not that it would ever happen. Who would dare call the ’crazy’ prince something like that? Maybe Hildred, if he was drunk and looking for a beating. But because it was Aster saying it, Wulfric felt strangely shy and thrilled instead. His face grew warm, his heart swelling with happiness and excitement.

Aster was flirting with him, right?

From all the romance novels he’d read, Wulfric knew he shouldn’t let this moment go to waste. If Aster was flirting with him, then he should flirt back.

Wulfric’s lips curved into a slow smile, his golden eyes locking onto Astrid’s. "If you think I’m beautiful," he said, his voice dropping low, "then what does that say about you? The one who makes me forget how to breathe every time you smile?"

Astrid huffed out a breath, the corner of his mouth twitching despite himself. That absurd, over-the-top compliment should have been ridiculous. So why did it send a traitorous flutter through his chest?

There was really only one explanation. It had this effect because it was Wulfric saying it.

Though Astrid had to admit, the prince’s flirting worked better when he wasn’t even trying.

"Should we eat?" he asked, steering the conversation away. If he didn’t stop this now, they’d just keep trading compliments all day. "You said this place had the best seafood, right?"

"Oh yes. I’ll have the staff bring us everything on the menu. Since we’re in VirtualNet, we can taste it all without getting full," Wulfric said. Then he added with a small smile, "Though I still think nothing will ever beat your cooking."

The staff began arriving with platter after platter, covering the table with glistening seafood dishes. Butter-poached lobsters with their shells cracked open to reveal tender meat, perfect pink shrimp arranged in spirals around dipping sauces, whole steamed fish with skin so crisp it shimmered under the light.

Plates of oysters on ice followed, their briny scent cutting through the richer aromas, alongside towers of crab legs with the claws already split for easy picking. The vibrant orange salmon roe glistened as it burst over sushi, while the squid ink pasta trailed dark ribbons across the pristine plates. Every inch of the table became a mosaic of the ocean’s bounty.

Astrid’s eyes widened a fraction. He knew they couldn’t possibly get full even if they finished every dish on the table, but the sheer amount of food spread before them was still overwhelming. Yet he couldn’t deny how delicious everything looked. The rich colors, the glistening textures, all of it made his mouth water despite himself.

He reached for one of the butter-poached lobster tails, the shell already cracked to reveal the tender meat inside. As he took the first bite, the rich, creamy flavor melted across his tongue. Sweet and briny with just the right hint of herbs. His eyes fluttered shut for half a second, an involuntary reaction to how perfectly cooked it was, the texture so soft it nearly dissolved without needing to chew.

He couldn’t stop the low moan that escaped him as the flavors burst across his tongue.

"God, this is incredible," he said, already pulling the plate closer without thinking.

When he raised his head, he found Wulfric staring at him with glazed eyes, lips slightly parted as if frozen.

"What’s wrong?" Astrid asked.

"I’m just grateful we’re in VirtualNet right now," Wulfric said, his voice dropping lower. "If this were reality, I’d be having... considerable difficulty sitting properly after that sound you made."