Arknightcraft Modpack
Chapter 598: A Little Magic Trick
"Sauin Pilgrimage, huh? Sounds like the kind of festival with a pretty deep meaning behind it. Is it meant to commemorate those who've already passed away?"
Steven paused slightly after hearing the festival's name, as though something had suddenly come to mind.
The playful grin he usually wore gradually softened into something calmer.
"You could say that." Lin Yuhsia nodded lightly.
"But compared to dwelling on the weight of the past, people in Lungmen seem to care more about the future. So the atmosphere during this festival actually isn't all that heavy."
She looked around at the bustling streets nearby.
"Most people prefer to celebrate properly on days like this. Maybe… that's what the departed would've wanted to see too."
Remembering the past was never a particularly joyful thing.
But after enough time passed, sorrow naturally faded, and what remained were simply the festivities people built around those memories.
Lin Yuhsia herself didn't have many feelings about it one way or another.
No matter how lively the city became, she still didn't get a holiday today.
"So basically," she concluded with a shrug, "the excitement has nothing to do with me."
"Mm, makes sense."
Steven nodded in agreement.
"If you finally get a holiday and spend the whole thing drowning in grief, that'd just be depressing. It's obviously better when everyone gets together laughing and having fun instead of walking around with gloomy faces."
Then, without warning, he suddenly extended a hand toward Lin Yuhsia in an exaggeratedly gentlemanly gesture.
"So then, esteemed Miss Mou— ah, no, Miss Lin Yuhsia."
A perfectly polite smile spread across his face.
"Would you grant me the honor of treating you to a lavish lunch? Consider it compensation for dragging you around Lungmen with me these past two days."
His unexpectedly refined manner only made Lin Yuhsia stare at him in even greater confusion.
For a brief moment, she genuinely wondered if she was hallucinating.
The Steven she knew was the type who looked like he'd happily drag her along to blow up half of Lungmen without blinking.
Since when had he ever spoken to her this politely?
Still, whether he was being sincere or simply finding a new way to mess with her, she didn't really seem to have any grounds to refuse.
"…Can you maybe go back to acting normal? I'm honestly not used to seeing you like this."
After glancing at the hand he was offering, Lin Yuhsia went through a fierce internal struggle before ultimately deciding not to place her own hand in his.
Who knew whether the moment she reached out, this lunatic would suddenly hit her with a shoulder throw?
Normal people wouldn't.
But Steven wasn't normal people.
"Relax."
Seeing her wary expression, Steven didn't insist and simply withdrew his hand with a helpless chuckle.
"This time I really just want to take it easy. Honestly, I haven't properly tried Lungmen's food yet. Since arriving here, the only local specialty I've eaten was that fish ball soup yesterday."
"If you're actually being sincere," Lin Yuhsia replied after studying him for a moment, "then I don't mind taking you to a few places I usually go to."
"Consider it me playing the role of a proper local host for once."
Only after confirming he genuinely wasn't teasing her did she finally walk ahead and begin leading him toward the slum district.
For Lin Yuhsia, the most authentic flavors of Lungmen weren't hidden inside luxurious restaurants.
They were buried deep within the back alleys of the slums.
Maybe not the absolute tastiest food in the city, but definitely the kind that represented Lungmen the best.
And before long, Steven finds himself in hidden streets filled to the brim with food stalls after food stalls, something that he is sure that lazy little pony would love.
For nearly an entire hour, the two wandered through the lively streets while Steven stuffed himself nonstop from stall after stall, barely giving his mouth a moment to rest.
Eventually, they finally settled down inside a modest little teahouse.
It wasn't particularly luxurious, but at least it was clean and peaceful.
Meanwhile, Lin Yuhsia, whose stomach already felt stuffed up to her throat, stared at the boy beside her with the expression of someone observing a monster.
Across from her, Steven lounged lazily in his seat, casually picking his teeth without the slightest hint of dignity—yet somehow still looking completely satisfied with life.
Lin Yuhsia genuinely could not comprehend what kind of monster Steven actually was.
Ever since she had brought him into this street, his mouth had not stopped moving for even a second.
He kept stuffing food into himself nonstop, yet somehow showed absolutely no signs of getting tired of eating—or even remotely full.
It was downright absurd.
After roughly estimating the amount he had consumed, Lin Yuhsia came to a horrifying conclusion:
Steven had already eaten at least an entire week's worth of snacks for her.
Thankfully, he had paid for everything himself, otherwise, even all the cash she happened to be carrying today probably wouldn't have covered half his appetite.
"Don't look at me like that."
After taking a slow sip of hot tea, Steven finally leaned back with a thoroughly satisfied smile.
"I just saw a bunch of good food and got a little carried away. It's been a long time since I've been able to enjoy this kind of feeling."
Inside Minecraft, everything was great—except for the food.
No matter how many mods existed, eventually you still got tired of eating the same things over and over again.
Every now and then, he inevitably missed these classic street snacks.
"Besides…"
A grin suddenly spread across Steven's face.
"How about I show you a magic trick?"
Seeing that Lin Yuhsia still looked at him like he was some kind of sentient garbage disposal, Steven—who apparently considered himself the "bucket" in question—didn't seem offended in the slightest.
If anything, he looked amused.
"What magic trick?"
Lin Yuhsia blinked curiously.
Truthfully, she had been enjoying this little outing herself, and at this point she genuinely wondered what other ridiculous nonsense Steven was capable of pulling off.
"Just watch carefully."
Steven casually pulled a carrot out of his inventory and held it up in front of her, making a point of demonstrating that it was an entirely ordinary carrot.
Then he shoved it straight into his mouth.
Crunch. Crunch.
Lin Yuhsia watched him chew noisily while crumbs scattered everywhere, utterly baffled as to what exactly he was trying to accomplish.
Then suddenly, Steven stopped chewing.
Slowly, he pulled the carrot back out of his mouth.
And right before Lin Yuhsia's eyes, something unbelievable happened.
The carrot—which she had personally watched him bite chunks out of moments ago—had somehow returned completely intact.
Perfectly whole.
Yet the carrot crumbs scattered all over the floor proved that what she had seen definitely wasn't a hallucination.
"See that?"
Steven raised the carrot proudly like some peerless treasure.
"This is the legendary technique: One Carrot, Eaten for an Entire Year. My ultimate secret art. Pretty amazing, huh?"
"…No, seriously, how old are you?"
Lin Yuhsia stared at him with an expression caught somewhere between laughter and utter disbelief.
"I… honestly…"
She pressed a hand against her forehead.
"Fine, yes, it's impressive. But don't you think that's kind of unhygienic?"
Steven's proud expression made it incredibly difficult for her to keep a straight face.
The main problem was that this guy usually acted all mysterious and ominous, like some hidden final boss lurking behind the scenes—and then out of nowhere, he would suddenly do something both miraculous and unbelievably childish at the same time.
The contrast was so absurd it gave her whiplash.
And just as Steven and Lin Yuhsia were about to continue debating whether his "magic trick" counted as childish or not—two figures suddenly shot past outside the teahouse at breakneck speed, instantly interrupting their completely meaningless argument.
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Note: Character Illustration is in this Google Drive:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1iuyfwNVFHzIi9H4rWNT_lAm7jTSiah_M
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Tn: I updated the story daily, but if you want to see more chapter of this story ahead of time, please go to my Patreon.
Latest Chapter: Chapter 689: Impossible to Refute[1]
Link: https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-169789182?collection=55713[2]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-169789182?collection=55713
[2] https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-169789182?collection=55713