The team leader guided Lucas to the ominous pipeline chamber. The room seemed to hum with quiet menace, the black cylinder standing like a pillar of judgment at its center.
"Victor, you'll be responsible for supervising him," the leader said, his tone clipped with authority.
> [Generating risk assessment based on the host's strength…]
[Villager Victor: Estimated to exceed intermediate danger level soon.]
Victor gave a brisk nod. "Understood, team leader."
Satisfied, the leader departed, leaving the two men in the sealed chamber.
Beep!
The heavy doors clanged shut behind him, locking with a finality that made Lucas tense. This was the only exit.
Victor quickly turned to him, speaking with practiced efficiency. "Before work hours are over, we cannot leave or rest. Our job is to inspect the quality of the food sent up the pipe. Every dish must satisfy the… guests."
His voice faltered slightly on the last word.
Before he could elaborate further, the ominous little black box attached to the pipe let out a sharp ding-dong!
A small square flyer slid out of the opening with a hiss.
Victor snatched it up immediately and shouted with ritualistic precision:
> "Special portion—human liver sashimi!"
At his command, the room exploded into motion.
"Two-sixty!" barked a worker at the far wall. The villager by the window carefully extracted a fresh liver from a chilled crisper box and passed it along. Another worker began the cleaning process while others prepared the garnish.
Even as the team scrambled, Victor resumed his explanation, his words tumbling quickly.
"So our work is the most important of all. If we fail to meet the customer's appetite too many times, the entire food factory—and even the whole town of Verne—will pay the price!"
His voice hardened, carrying the weight of indoctrination.
> "You must always remember—this job is the greatest honor any of us could have!"
Beep!
Another flyer slid out.
> "First-grade black pepper tenderloin!" Victor read aloud.
Lucas observed silently. The liver had already been cleaned and lightly processed to preserve its natural taste. Dishes were plated carefully, almost reverently, before being handed to Victor.
He sniffed one plate, scrutinizing the sashimi with clinical seriousness. Then he slid it across to Lucas.
"Words won't teach you. Experience will. Smell it. Observe it. This sashimi just barely meets special-grade standards. Learn its qualities. You'll need this skill."
Lucas studied the dish, noting every detail—the color, the texture, the faint metallic tang beneath the garnish. Victor's face tightened.
"It's strange," Victor muttered. "The quality of today's livers is clearly inferior to yesterday's."
Still, he placed the sashimi onto the rising tray at the base of the pipe. In seconds, the dark walls swallowed it whole.
Lucas stared at the pipe's gaping mouth. "Guests who can decide the fate of the entire town…" The thought made his chest tighten uneasily.
Moments later, the savory aroma of black pepper wafted through the room as the tenderloin dish was prepared and sent up.
Ding!
A green prompt blinked on the black box:
> "Satisfied."
A collective sigh of relief swept through the workers. Shoulders relaxed. Eyes softened.
Victor smiled faintly. "One more dish approved means more rest for all of us. The guests' satisfaction keeps Verne safe."
But their relief was short-lived.
Beep! Beep! Beep!!!
The black box screeched, lights flashing violently. Lucas turned sharply to see a red message appear:
> "Not satisfied!"
Victor's face drained of color. "What?!"
He grabbed the feedback slip, his hands trembling. Reading aloud, his voice cracked:
> "Special-grade human liver sashimi… not fresh enough."
The room fell into stunned silence.
Victor slammed the table with a trembling hand. "Quick! Make it again! Faster!"
Workers sprang into frantic action. Fresh livers were hauled, knives flashed, and plates were prepared at breakneck speed.
Victor inspected the second sashimi with hawk-like eyes. "Perfect," he whispered. He placed it onto the tray and watched it vanish into the pipe.
Seconds later, the box chimed again.
> "Not satisfied."
The reason: "Still not fresh enough."
Victor's composure snapped. He pounded the table, face red with rage and fear.
"This can't be! That liver was flawless! It wasn't stale! It met every standard!"
Around them, despair settled like a suffocating fog. Workers exchanged fearful glances. Some whispered prayers. Others gritted their teeth, resigned to their fate.
"If it still doesn't pass…" one muttered, "…then we make another one."
The third sashimi went up.
The reply came swiftly.
> "Not satisfied."
Again—the same reason.
The room darkened as though the heavens themselves had withdrawn their light. Anxiety poisoned the air. Everyone felt it: the crushing sense of doom.
Victor's shoulders slumped. His voice was a whisper now. "If the guests remain displeased… Verne itself could be destroyed."
Lucas' eyes hardened. He could feel the hopelessness weighing on the workers. Their faces twisted in dread, waiting for a disaster they all knew was inevitable.
> "Are the guests truly dissatisfied… or are they toying with us?" he wondered aloud.
Suddenly, the system's cold tone rang in his mind:
> [System prompt: Player Lucas has triggered a hidden mission.]
[Hidden Mission: Create human liver sashimi that satisfies the guest.]
[Reward: Unknown.]
Lucas' grip tightened on his knife.
Victor noticed the movement. "What are you—?" He froze. "A… a kitchen knife? How did you smuggle that in? And what do you intend to do with it?!"
Lucas' gaze swept the room.
> [Generating risk assessment based on host's own strength…]
[Villagers: Low to Intermediate Danger.]
[Factory Staff: Advanced Danger.]
His voice cut through the fear like steel.
> "I've thought of a way to satisfy the guests."
Victor's eyes widened. His panic gave way to desperate hope. "Really? You've found a solution? Tell me—what is it?!"
The other workers leaned closer, desperate for salvation.
Lucas' answer was calm, almost gentle:
> "The livers of prison guards and villagers are different. Only the villagers' livers can truly satisfy the guests."
Victor blinked in confusion. "Different? What are you talking about?"
The next moment, Lucas' knife flashed.
The blade plunged into Victor's abdomen.
Blood sprayed, hot and metallic, as Victor gasped in shock. He looked down, staring blankly at the steel protruding from his stomach.
Lucas' hand clamped around his throat, slamming him onto the table. With ruthless precision, he dragged the blade downward, tearing flesh and bone.
Victor's scream tore through the chamber, raw and animal.
Workers recoiled, some too stunned to move, others too broken to protest.
Lucas didn't stop. He twisted the knife, breaking ribs as though opening a locked chest. The cavity split wide, exposing the quivering, fresh liver within.
Victor convulsed, blood foaming at his lips. His eyes rolled back as strength drained from his body.
Lucas' expression softened—not with pity, but with satisfaction.
> "This… is special grade."
He carefully lifted the organ, its slick surface glistening under the lights. Around him, silence reigned. No one dared breathe.
Lucas plated the liver with chilling artistry—nestling it atop crushed ice, garnished with carved carrot spirals. For the final touch, he embedded his own kitchen knife between Victor's teeth, silencing him forever.
> "A dish that cannot speak—so it won't disturb the guest's taste."
The room was deathly quiet as the tray rose into the pipe, bearing its horrific cargo upward.
Every worker's gaze followed it, fear and awe mingling in their wide eyes.
The fate of Verne Town now hung on whether Lucas' brutal creation would finally earn the guests' approval.
-------------------
Visit our Patreon for more:
Get membership in patreon to read more chapters
Extra chapters available in patreon
patreon.com/Dragonscribe31
----------------------------------------------------- .