"I'm here for some plain white rice."
"Granny Setsuno, Master Jirou, good evening."
Just before the shop closed, Kei walked in with Melk and directly stated his purpose—to once again attempt cooking the Bubble Grapes.
"Little Kei, you really are persistent. The ingredients are in the cupboard—help yourself," Setsuno said with a smile.
She exchanged a glance with Jirou and then beamed at Melk. "This must be little Melk, huh?"
"It's been a few years since I last saw you. Or... has it been more than ten?"
"It's been eleven years," Melk replied.
She had met Granny Setsuno and Jirou as a child when she was with Melk the First. That was well over a decade ago.
While Setsuno chatted with Melk, Kei headed to the kitchen, took out the Bubble Grapes, and began preparing them.
He placed them on the cutting board and focused intensely. The Bubble Grapes began to expand—larger, and larger!
"So that's it! No wonder they have such unique properties and texture!"
Kei sharpened his perception to the limit and finally saw the true form of the Bubble Grapes.
Each grape was made up of countless smaller grapes, which in turn were composed of even smaller ones, continuing infinitely down in scale.
Because of how tiny the innermost bubbles were, even the faintest touch could destroy them—and if one popped, the entire grape collapsed.
Kei's heart became perfectly still. In his perception, the entire world disappeared—leaving only himself and the Bubble Grapes.
In that instant, the grapes appeared as vast as the stars.
He entered the gaps between bubbles, moved through, found the next layer, and entered again—zooming in endlessly.
Eventually, he reached the deepest and tiniest layer of bubbles.
"Hoo..."
With precise control, he separated the Bubble Grapes into tiny segments and placed them on a plate, setting it on the cooking station.
"This time I did it completely by myself. Try it and let me know how I did."
Kei felt an immense sense of satisfaction—he had comprehended something new during this training.
His sword had become sharper, and his control more refined. Frankly, there was now nothing in this world he couldn't cut through!
Everything in the world had micro-gaps—zoom in far enough, and he could always find them.
No matter how hard or impenetrable something seemed, he could find its weakest point... and cut it with one blow.
This was now his strongest form of attack!
Granny Setsuno stopped chatting with Melk, examined the Bubble Grapes Kei handed her, and smiled.
"Incredible! You actually did it in three days! Just like little Jirou said—you're a little monster!"
She took a bite of the Bubble Grapes, and an explosion of flavor burst in her mouth—every tiny bubble had its own unique taste.
"This calls for celebration! I'll bring out my treasured wine!"
"Wait—wasn't that only supposed to be for two people?!"
Ignoring Jirou's protests, Setsuno poured drinks for everyone. Jirou only got half a cup, Melk a full glass, herself just a sip... and Kei received an entire bottle.
"Cheers!"
"Cheers!"
"Y-Yeah! Cheers!"
Melk, a bit shy, joined the others in raising her glass and took a small sip.
The moment the wine hit her tongue, a rich fruity fragrance exploded in her mouth, followed by a sweet and refreshing taste.
Without realizing, she took a few more sips—and by the time she emptied her glass, she was already a bit tipsy, slumped over the table.
"This might be fruit wine, but it sure packs a punch. That one's out already."
Setsuno chuckled, then turned to look at Kei.
He chugged the entire bottle in one go. In that instant, a massive burst of energy spread from his stomach throughout his body.
[Consumed a beverage containing massive energy—Gourmet Cells have absorbed large quantities of energy. Physical attributes slightly improved.]
[Consumed energy-rich wine—body's energy reserves enhanced.]
[Nutrient-packed drink consumed—Gourmet Network fully restored!]
[Gourmet Cells have tasted the flavor of hard-earned food—cell limit slightly increased.]
The energy from the wine exploded within Kei. It was almost too much to handle, but using his Ripple Stand and the essence of Food Honor,
he just barely managed to absorb it all.
Once done, a flood of system notifications appeared—his strength had risen once again!
"Didn't even pass out? And he got stronger again in such a short time... this kid really is a monster."
"You're just like little Jirou, huh?" Setsuno commented with some surprise.
She had measured the exact amount of alcohol each person could handle. The goal was to help them rest—both Kei and Melk looked exhausted, clearly from intense training over the last three days and nights.
She wanted them to have a good night's sleep—but hadn't expected Kei to hold his liquor like this.
"Hehehe... Told you he's a monster. I know that scent too well."
Drunk and chuckling, Jirou gave a sloppy laugh.
"Thanks for the hospitality, Granny Setsuno. If you have time, visit my shop and try some of my amateur dishes sometime."
With wine in his belly and a massive breakthrough under his belt, Kei picked up the passed-out Melk and prepared to leave.
"Not staying the night?"
"No, Binchotan is still waiting for me at the shop. I'll head back now."
Kei waved goodbye and carried Melk back to his shop in the Gourmet Market.
"Ah, youth is such a wonderful thing..."
Setsuno watched as Melk instinctively curled her arms around Kei's neck, a kind smile spreading across her face as she returned inside.
"Wait—I was going to let him try my Century Soup! Agh, forgot again!"
"It's fine. He already ate plenty tonight. Any more and he'd get indigestion. We'll bring some next time we go for white rice."
"Yeah, I guess that works."
Meanwhile, Kei returned to his shop by nightfall. Upon opening the door, he saw Binchotan asleep in the hallway, clearly having waited up for him.
Cradling Melk in one arm and Binchotan in the other, he gently placed them both in the back room and covered them with blankets.
No silly drunken shenanigans—maybe Melk just had good self-control, or maybe Setsuno gave her too much. Either way, she passed out cold.
...
The Next Morning
"Ah!"
Melk woke up in an unfamiliar room, wrapped in unfamiliar blankets, her body soaked in sweat.
Panic rose in her chest. She vaguely remembered drinking at Setsuno's place, Kei carrying her... and then—nothing.
"D-Don't tell me—!"
She quickly pulled off the covers. Still dressed. Phew.
Just then, the door opened.
"Onee-chan, you're awake!"
"I'm really sorry, I was going to bring you a glass of water, but I accidentally spilled it. So sorry!"
Binchotan entered with a towel, smiling sweetly and apologizing.
"Oh... it wasn't sweat—it was water."
Melk looked at the adorable girl and finally relaxed. "Um... where am I?"
"This is the Gourmet Shop. The manager brought you back."
"The manager… you mean Kei?"
"Yup!"
Binchotan nodded.
"Sorry about last night. I must've caused so much trouble."
Melk got out of bed, but to her surprise, her body felt incredibly light. The exhaustion from days of tension had vanished!
"It's alright. Since you're up, let's go have breakfast!"
Binchotan pulled her toward the dining room.
Kei was already setting the table, filled with various dishes—meat, meat, meat, meat... some veggies... and rice. The full spread.
"Good morning, Melk. Join us for breakfast."
As he set the final dish, Binchotan brought over the chopsticks. The three sat around the table to eat.
"Thanks again for carrying me back, Kei."
"No big deal. You're as light as a feather."
"Um... last night, there wasn't... anything, right?"
"You were out cold, snoring away. Oh, and don't call me 'Kei-san'—just Kei is fine."
"...Alright then, Kei."
"This is Binchotan. Binchotan, this is Melk."
"Nice to meet you, Binchotan."
"Nice to meet you, Melk-onee-chan!"
As the three got more comfortable, Melk began to relax and enjoy breakfast.
Once they finished eating, Melk prepared to return to her workshop.
"No need to walk me back—I can go alone."
"Come again whenever you want!"
"Bye-bye, Melk-onee-chan!"
Melk left to handle some business and continue her path toward mastering blade sharpening.
Kei and Binchotan returned to the shop. After handling a few calls and orders, Kei heard the familiar sound of a chat group notification.
[Activity level has reached the required threshold. Total messages: 100,000/100,000]
[Chat group members: 10]
[A member has continuously posted without interruption—awarding the title "Water Dragon King"!]
[Chat group upgraded! Version 1.0 → 2.0. New features added. Tap for details.]
[Princess of Ao-Lai Kingdom: "Huh? That nonstop spammer... is me?"]
[Water Dragon King] - Purple Title
[Princess of Ao-Lai Kingdom: "It really is me? But I didn't say that much... I'm usually super quiet..."]
[Diligent Salted Fish: "As expected of Water Dragon King, even the ocean is your tears!"]
[Little Devil Mirajane: "As expected of Water Dragon King, even the ocean is your tears!"]+1
[Elf Enthusiast: "As expected of Water Dragon King, even the ocean is your tears!"]+2
[True Lord Moxuan: "What's this +1 thing about?"]
[True Lord Moxuan: "Wait, it stopped?"]
[Diligent Salted Fish: "If you post something repeatedly, it gets stacked and others can just tap to repeat it."]
[Little Devil Mirajane: "Exactly, tapping repeats the previous post."]+1
[Hungry Wolf Legend: "Breaking the flow! Hahahaha!"]
[Silver-Haired Swordsman: "You're so bad, lol."]
[Hungry Wolf Legend: "I am a bad guy! Hahaha!"]
[Elf Enthusiast: "So childish..."]
Kei chatted with the group for a bit, then turned his attention to the newly added features.
[New Feature 1: Image & video uploads. Feel free to share media.]
[New Feature 2: Red Packet system—send non-living items through the chat. You can also store items in your personal Red Packet storage.]
[New Feature 3: File sharing—upload and share data.]
[Princess of Ao-Lai Kingdom: "Whoa, I can upload pictures now!"]Six-Eared Selfie.JPG
[Princess of Ao-Lai Kingdom: "Damn, I look amazing in this pic!"]
[Hungry Wolf Legend: "Selfie.JPG! Selfie.JPG! Selfie.JPG!"]
He spammed so many selfies that everyone muted him.
[Elf Enthusiast: "I can even take pics of others—Freyren Sleeping.JPG"]
[Elf Enthusiast: "Lady Freyren is napping again. I'll make salad for breakfast today."]
[Diligent Salted Fish: "Speaking of breakfast, I've got some fried meatballs. Want some?"]
['Diligent Salted Fish' sent Fried Meatballs to 'Elf Enthusiast'.]
[Princess of Ao-Lai Kingdom: "I've got peaches!"]
['Princess of Ao-Lai Kingdom' sent Red Packet—Peaches.]
[Little Devil Mirajane: "Here's a drink for little Freyren!"]
['Little Devil Mirajane' sent Red Packet—Drink.]
[Silver-Haired Swordsman: "I'm eating parfaits, but I'm not sharing. It's all mine!"]
[Elf Enthusiast: "You're so childish."]
[Silver-Haired Swordsman: "You don't understand, kid. Chilling in the shop, eating parfaits, reading manga—it's the dream!"]
[Little Devil Mirajane: "That's not 'cool,' that's just being a bum!"]
[Blue-Haired Wisdom Goddess: "No, that's a NEET, shut-in, virgin, lazy uncle bum!"]
[Silver-Haired Swordsman: "Hey hey hey! I may be a bum uncle, but I'm not a shut-in NEET virgin!"]
The chat group was filled with laughter and banter.
Kei tested out the image and video functions, then tried sending a Red Packet.
It worked like a standard system—only with cross-time-and-space capabilities.
Finally, his eyes fell on the personal Red Packet storage feature. A sudden idea struck him.
He sent out a Red Packet and told the others not to claim it. Then, he reclaimed it himself and stored it.
"This... this is basically an infinite personal storage space!"
Kei immediately shared his discovery, and soon everyone started trying it out.
[Princess of Ao-Lai Kingdom: "Wait... are you a genius?"]
[Blue-Haired Wisdom Goddess: "Wait... are you a genius?"]+1
"I think so too."
With a smile, Kei turned back to the simulator—it was time to begin the fifth simulation.
"Start simulation. Let's see what I gain this time..."
(End of Chapter)
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