It was a sudden announcent. But Xakor did not know how else he could break the news. He had been wanting to tell Alia about it for a while now, and the right mont never arose. If he kept delaying it, he was never going to be able to tell her about it until it was too late.
So now, he lowered his head and spoke apologetically.
“Xrr, I know this is short notice, but I have places to be. I have aided you the best I can, and I cannot stay here forever.”
Alia pursed her lips, before glancing back towards the rest of the restaurant. A few heads were facing the kitchen. They weren’t eavesdropping, but they were curious to see why the only two chefs were standing by the bar and talking instead of cooking.
“Can we, uh, take this sowhere private?” she said as she gestured towards the onlookers. “I don’t want to make this… public.”
“Of course.” Xakor nodded. “Let us talk more as we cook.”
Cooking was an art— or at least, that was what many often said. But Xakor treated it like a science. He made hypotheses, before taking thodical steps to reach a well-researched conclusion. That was why the food he created had such a wide range of appeal.
The process was scientific. His food could be recreated, even by an amateur. The only difficulty ca in following the instructions with the ti-constraints given. And because of that, many [Chefs] around Vacuos followed his recipes with pinpoint accuracy, using their Skills to copy his creations.
Very rarely did any of them ever break away from his mold. And while Xakor truly believed in the ingenuity of his creations— when it was the machines he invented back in Krakos, or the food he introduced to Vacuos— he did not believe that they were perfect.
Science was the pursuit of perfection. If the world was not imperfect, there would be no need for innovation. The sa applied to cooking: there would be no new recipes being invented if the current ones were perfect.
Xakor swept through the kitchen like a whirlwind of food. He was dicing onions, tenderizing the at, and working the stove all at the sa ti. Alia was right behind him, but she was far less impressive, even if she could keep up with his speed.
“When I sought you out, I believed we were going to have a brief conversation,” the Patron of the Culinary Sciences said as he prepared a bowl of pilaf. “I had spoken to two other otherworlders before you, and our etings were short. We exchanged what we knew about how we arrived here, offered aid where we could, before parting ways.”
“But you didn’t leave,” Alia stated simply. “You’ve stayed around for two months.”
Xakor nodded, striding up to the kitchen exit and handing the bowl of pilaf to Harlan. “Xrr… give or take, yes.”
“And why didn’t you just leave?” she asked as she chopped up so vegetables. “You could’ve left in a week if you wanted, but you stayed.”
“Because it looked like you needed my help,” Xakor said with a shrug. He placed two of his hands on his hips, shaking his head as he continued cooking away. “And because I was curious to learn more about you too.”
“Curious? Why?”
Xakor raised his head “Xrr… I have to admit, it is partially because Evan told you were a fascinating individual.”
“Right, he sent you my way. I forgot about that.” Alia pressed her lips into a thin line.
“However, that was not why I decided to stay. Your imnse strength— while it is peculiar, it is not what drew my attention to you.” The [Chef] smiled as he craned his neck to face her. “It was your passion for cooking.”
And she blinked a few tis. “Uh, what? I wouldn’t really say I’m passionate about cooking. I an, I like cooking, but—”
“But you could be doing anything else in the world,” Xakor said, interrupting her. “Yet you have chosen to beco a chef. Even though your culinary skills were rather subpar when I first t you, you’ve worked hard to improve as best you could.”
She stared at him flatly, lowering a skewer of kebab. “Rude.”
“It is not ant to be an insult, Alia.” He chuckled as he walked up to the sink and washed his hands. “In fact, it is a complint because of how much your cooking has improved in these past two months.”
He wiped his wet hands on a towel, before turning to face the brown-haired woman. He reached into the pocket on his apron.
“I have had many students before— [Chefs] who have apprenticed themselves to . Those who were amateurs, and those who had been honing their Skills for decades. But I never once taught soone like you.”
“And what does that an?” Alia raised a brow suspiciously.
Xakor smiled. “Xrr, what I an is that I am proud to see how far you’ve co, Alia. And I feel fully confident in leaving this restaurant behind in your hands.”
“That’s—” She opened her mouth. But she didn’t have a response.
He took a step back, producing a folded sheet from his apron. He nodded approvingly at her as he continued.
“Unlike the other [Chefs] I have t throughout my ti here in Vacuos, you do not simply listen to my teachings. Certainly— you listen to , but what I an is that is not all you do. You take what I have taught you, and you try to build upon it. You try to improve in any way you can. You try to make what your cooking… xrr, your own.”
Alia just stared at him for a mont. Xakor unfolded the garnt he produced— it was a chef’s hat. White and puffy, apart from a sigil that was sewn into the center. That of a knife crossed with a spatula. He handed it to her as she looked at it.
“You have officially beco a Patron of the Culinary Sciences too, Alia. Congratulations.”
She accepted the chef’s hat, round-eyed. Slowly, she looked back up towards Xakor as she worked her jaw.
“You’re being serious, aren’t you? I thought that was a Title for you alone…”
“It is my Title, but it is not a unique Title,” Xakor laughed as he crossed his arms. “Nor is it one that requires the World System to bestow upon you. So take it, and wear it with pride, Alia.”
Alia bit her lower lip, before taking in a deep breath. And she smiled as she wore the chef’s hat.
“Thank you, Xakor. For everything. I really couldn’t have started this restaurant without your help.”
“Xrr, of course.” He returned the smile, looking back down at her. “But let us not say our farewells now, for we still have a week to go before I depart.”
“Right,” Alia said as she shook her head. “We still have work to do until then.”
—--
But a week ca and went in a flash. I tried to convince Xakor not to leave just yet— to give it another month. Unfortunately, he had obligations he needed to attend to across the world. One of said obligations was serving as the [Chef] for a grand banquet in Alius.
Apparently, there was going to be a eting between the Fairy Queen herself and the heads of multiple dwarven nations. It was supposed to be a monuntal occasion. I didn’t really understand the significance behind it as a relatively new otherworlder, but I knew it was a big deal.
Still, I would have preferred to keep Xakor around for a while— especially since Guardian Angel Z357 had just left too. A lot of custors ca to Bucky’s Out of this World Restaurant for the Patron of the Culinary Sciences himself.
But… it wasn’t just that. I quite liked Xakor. He helped when he had no reason to help . He was like Nolan and Nicole. Even though they all knew that I was imnsely powerful— stronger than they could even comprehend— they didn’t care about that.
Xakor treated like an ordinary person. He gave my life a sense of normalcy. And while I liked Noele, Garron, and the other adventurers I knew— except for Jax— they usually treated with… reverence? I wasn’t really sure how to put it.
There was a steep incline between us in their eyes. So they couldn’t ever treat like they would treat an ordinary person. And while it wasn’t a big deal, it was still nice to have a break from that dynamic once in a while.
Unfortunately, Xakor couldn’t stay any longer, even though I tried to bribe him to stay. And as the week ca to a close, the otherworlder— the Patron of the Culinary Sciences— took his leave. He packed his things, said his goodbyes, and he left.
I watched him go as the sun rose over the horizon. Bucky wanted to follow him, but I caught her. I carried her under my arms as I shook my head.
“You’re not leaving. You’re my mascot. I’m keeping you with until the day I die.”
“Bawk bawk bawk!” she protested.
Noele, Nolan, Nicole, Garron, Harlan, Arthur, Dorien, and plenty of others gathered around the restaurant to bid farewell to Xakor. Word had gotten around about his departure, so they all wanted to say goodbye.
I adjusted the chef’s hat he had given , watching him go. He was no longer wearing a disguise. He waved back at us with two of his four arms as I lowered my head.
Noele glanced towards from the side.
“Is that a chef’s hat?” she asked with a frown.
“Yeah, Xakor gave it to ,” I said simply. I smiled, placing a hand on it. “It ans I’m a Patron of the Culinary Sciences too.”
“That’s nice and all, but…” Noele chewed her lips. “It looks terrible on you, Alia.”
And I sighed. “I know…”
With that, Xakor was gone. And Bucky's Out of this World Restaurant continue operations without its head chef from now on.
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