The man with the horn and the heavy voice didn't move after Drahon's request.
For a mont, there was only the faint hum of magic in the air. Then, without so much as a gesture, a rectangular slip of light appeared in front of him.
It hovered in the air, its edges sharp and solid, yet it looked as though it had been cut from sunlight. The surface shifted once, and words began forming across it in flowing gold script.
The nu!
Drahon's eyes scanned the list. The als themselves seed normal enough, things he might have seen in any ordinary restaurant, but the details beneath each na told a different story.
Instead of prices in coins or money, there was only one kind of cost:
[Essence Required].
That made Drahon wonder, so the use of essence in this world wasn't only limited to Upgrading weapons or for enhancing skills, it was also used for more things.
Perhaps the complexity of essence wasn't so little as he had first thought. Essence, in this world was very much essential and he had just saw a reason.
The nu listed many foods but the first one he noticed was:
> Fla-Grilled Venison with Ember Spice — [25 Essence]
Beneath it:
> Hearth-Baked Bread Loaf, served with Sunfruit Jam — [8 Essence]
Well, this sounded really tasty and just from the na and then description, he was feeling hungry already.
Another caught his eye imdiately:
> Ocean-Scale Salmon, smoked over volcanic stone — [31 Essence]
Ocean scale salmon smoked over volcanic stone?
This was wild!
Perhaps it would be wildly delicious?
Every item was like that. Familiar nas paired with descriptions that made them sound both exotic and unreal. Even the drinks—
> Crystaldew Water — [3 Essence]
Skyfire Tea — [5 Essence]
Emberbrew — [7 Essence]
The nu wasn't overly long as he had expected a large info dump of food nu. But each dish radiated a subtle pull, as though the words themselves could spark hunger.
Or maybe it was just an illusion. They were so hungry anything was possible at this point.
A walking hamburger would be possible at this point, considering how wild the Dragon world was. And in their current state, anything was possible.
A faint chi sounded in his head, and the system displayed:
[Draconic Essence: 575]
Of course only him could see it and as he stared at it he couldn't help but wonder, spending his essence for so weird reason didn't feel so good.
But Essence were ant to be used so he couldn't quite get where this feeling was coming from. Or maybe it was just sothing that ca with the human system?, being reluctant to lose sothing.
It was the first ti he had actually seen his essence put to direct use. The number now seed far smaller than before, as if simply knowing he could spend it made the value shift in his mind.
He began selecting his order.
A full al, sothing filling, enough to push back the fatigue still clinging to him after the dungeon. He picked the Ocean-Scale Salmon, the Fla-Grilled Venison, and a Hearth-Baked Bread Loaf.
To be honest, Drahon hadn't eat most of the dishes he was selecting prior entering into the Dragon ga, and the anticipation to wanting to eat them was sort of fulfilling, like so achievent.
So weird achievent he just couldn't pinpoint the reason for. Or perhaps it was because one of his main reasons for coming to this world in the first place was to fulfill his dream.
For drink, he had Skyfire Tea. Sothing that sounded so sophisticated it was surprising.
The total blinked at him in the top right corner of the golden nu:
[Total: 102 Essence]
The deduction felt imdiate.
[Draconic Essence: 473]
The loss wasn't painful, but there was weight in it. Essence wasn't sothing freely given. It was sothing to hard to kill lots of monsters for and the one of the worst parts was after killing a lot of monsters and hoping to get essence, you discover you are incompatible to them.
That was exactly what had happened with the Draconic rats and then the Venomous Boss monster.
Every number or the Essence represented sothing faced, sothing earned, sothing that took actual 'effort'
Beside him, Ayvira and Devon were reading the nu as well. Neither spoke at first, each lost in their own decisions. Ayvira's eyes moved quickly, scanning everything as though she was morizing the nas. She tapped her selections: Ash-Seared Fowl with Frostleaf Glaze, Moonpetal Salad, and Crystaldew Water. Devon kept his order simple—Stone-Oven Flatbread and a Veggie
but added a second drink for reasons he didn't explain, one that sort of intrigued.
To be frank, this was actually the first ti in his life he was seeing soone who was vegetarian. But maybe that was because the orphanage was filled with lots of jerks.
From what he understood, a vegetarian was soone who simply refused to eat at— no beef, no chicken, no fish, nothing that had once walked, flown, or swam. But that didn't an they starved themselves. They still ate rice, beans, fruits, vegetables, and all kinds of plant-based als.
Eggs and dairy? That, he wasn't too sure about, it probably depended on the kind of vegetarian. But at its core, the idea was simple: no at, just food that ca from the earth.
What intrigued him was why Devon was a vegetarian. Since he ca from a ho that constantly fought, his parents being Drinkers and smokers, he wasn't so certain they were also vegetarians.
Perhaps the thing was with Devon. Perhaps it was his decision. To be a vegetarian.
Drahon decided he would have to find out himself later one. Perhaps ask, but do so in a way that his real intentions wouldn't be so visibly sold.
Might have to take a bit of being mischievous to achieve, he wasn't so sure though.
As each of them finalized their choices, the nu faded, dissolving into faint sparks that scattered in the air before vanishing. The counter before them remained empty for only a few breaths.
Then tables erged from the smooth floor without sound.
Sothing shifted and reshaped, rising upward, forming into solid surfaces edged with the sa faint silver veins as the counter. Chairs followed— high-backed, sturdy, fitted perfectly to the table's height. They weren't moved into place; they simply were as though the space had always been ant to hold them.
The food appeared next.
Not with flashes of light, not with a dramatic summoning, but as if the als had been there the whole ti, unseen until now. Platters set neatly in the center, steam curling into the air, carrying scents rich enough to fill the hall.
Drahon sat first, the chair adjusting almost imperceptibly beneath him. His plate was arranged with precision— the salmon's scales gleaming faintly in the light, the venison's surface marked with deep sear lines, the bread loaf still warm enough for its crust to crack gently when he tore a piece free. The Skyfire Tea shimred in its cup, surface glowing faintly orange as though lit from beneath.
Ayvira took her seat next, her expression steady as she pulled her plate closer. Devon followed, though his gaze lingered briefly on the horned man before settling into his own chair.
They began eating without speaking.
It wasn't silence born of discomfort— more the kind that ca when food demanded full attention.
The salmon was unlike anything Drahon had eaten before. Soft, almost weightless on the tongue, the flavor carried hints of smoke without bitterness. The venison was dense, each bite layered with spice that ward rather than burned. Even the bread— simple by appearance, held a sweetness that made each mouthful feel fuller and more complete.
The tea left a faint heat in his chest that spread slowly, as though the drink itself carried so quiet vitality. It was one of the most sweetest things he had ever tasted in his life.
Infact!, it was the most sweetest tea he had ever tasted.
While they ate, the man with the horn did not move from his position near the counter. He stood with both hands resting lightly on the. surface, his posture unchanging, gaze steady but not sharp. There was no sense of impatience, yet sothing in the stillness made him impossible to ignore.
Drahon glanced over to him, surprised that he was just standing there, waiting for them?
Ti passed unmarked.
Soon, their plates were emptied, their cups drained, the steam fading from the table. The last traces of flavor clung faintly in the air, mixing with the ever-present undertone of the room's magic.
When the final plate was pushed back, the man finally stepped forward. His movents were deliberate, the sound of his shoes on the stone carrying easily in the quiet.
He stopped beside their table.
For a mont, his eyes moved from Drahon to Ayvira, then to Devon, as if confirming sothing unspoken.
Then he spoke.
His voice was as steady as before, each word asured.
"Let lead you to your room." he
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