On the Gourmet Train
The train howled forward, carrying a car full of cravings and ambition toward the Cave Beach where harvest and hazard coexist.
As Shun watched the scenery blur past outside the window and let his thoughts drift toward the challenge up ahead, a figure wobbled through the crowded aisle and staggered over to their seats.
It was an old man with a pompadour, stubbled cheeks, and a flush spread across his face.
He wore clothes that had clearly seen years of use and a few oil stains, clutched a battered bottle of liquor, and walked with unsteady, wandering steps, his eyes hazy—the very picture of a hopeless drunk.
"Hic—good stuff, this is some good stuff." he burped, mumbling through the fumes as he swayed, bumping passengers on either side and drawing muffled complaints and a chorus of disdainful side-eye.
"Hey, old man, watch it!"
"Where'd this drunk come from? What a buzzkill."
"Where are the conductors? Do your jobs!"
The gourmets and hunters around them shrank back with looks of disgust, clearly writing the ragged drunk off as some nobody who'd snuck aboard, with no one linking him to the words "Gourmet Hunter."
This swaying, pompadoured drunk was exactly the fathomless presence Shun had sensed earlier—Jiro.
When Hojo Miyoko saw the drunk totter their way, her brows knit and her body tightened on instinct, slipping into a guarded stance.
Her senses were not as keen as Shun's, but she could feel something was off about the old man—even if that boozy act was exceedingly deceptive—or rather, she knew the geezer might have some skill, but never imagined he was a top-tier master.
Shun knew the story and knew exactly who Jiro was.
Even so, he didn't step forward or greet him, treating him like any ordinary young passenger would.
Shun had his reasons.
First, Jiro had clearly chosen to appear "hidden among the crowd," and barging up to expose him might kill the mood and draw needless attention, bringing trouble to a man intent on keeping a low profile.
Second, they were headed to the same place for the same Puffer Whale, so crossing paths inside the Cave Beach was all but inevitable; meeting "by chance" there would be far more natural than forcing an acquaintance on a noisy train.
So Shun simply sat and watched with the corner of his eye.
Jiro drifted closer, peered blearily at the crate of bottles by Shun's feet, licked his lips, and said, "Kid, this booze… mind letting an old man wet his throat a little?"
Shun had bought that crate after boarding.
Before his Gourmet Cells awakened he hadn't been much of a drinker; after awakening and growing stronger he no longer avoided alcohol, though he wasn't anything like the liquor-loving Jiro before him.
Shun looked up at Jiro without much comment and gently slid half the crate his way.
"Oh?"
Jiro's eyes brightened for a heartbeat, surprised by Shun's easygoing nature, and he grinned, showing teeth stained by countless sips. "Heh, a gift of drink—this old man will remember. Someday… mm… I'll pay you back."
He scooped up several bottles as if they were rare treasures, then shouldered through the crowd again and vanished into the gangway.
Shun watched Jiro's retreating back in brief silence, knowing that their real meeting wouldn't be here and now.
Once Jiro left, a pocket of quiet returned to the car, but it didn't last.
"Hey! No wonder I can't find any tequila anywhere—it was you two who bought it all!"
Tequila was exactly what Shun was drinking.
A "Gourmet Hunter" with a body that wasn't burly so much as plump swaggered in with two flunkies, then marched up on Shun and Miyoko.
He was the self-proclaimed gourmet hunter Zongeh.
Pointing at Shun, Zongeh barked with a grating arrogance, "I thought the vendors were under-stocked—turns out you two beat me to it! What a pair of buzzkillers, huh!"
Miyoko shot him a doubtful glance and didn't bother replying.
Shun didn't even turn his head, still gazing out the window as he murmured as if to himself, "Mm, the scenery along the way is not bad at all."
Being thoroughly ignored made Zongeh's temper spike. "Waaah! What kind of attitude is that! Do you know who I am? I'm the famous gourmet Zongeh-sama! I'll broaden your horizons—feast your eyes on my deluxe menu!"
He rattled off a string of dish names with chest-puffed pride.
From golden roe to striped salmon, and for the finale he stressed, "Main course—Galala Crocodile! Bagged it with my own two hands just the other day! Ha! Scared yet? Pretty tough, right? Wahahaha!"
Counting that so-called "personally butchered" Galala Crocodile, his Life Menu still didn't break Capture Level 5.
In truth, the croc had just been a juvenile—Zongeh had lucked into the kill.
His lackeys chimed in on cue, "Zongeh-sama, don't scare them, you can see they're petrified!"
Buoyed, Zongeh laughed even louder. "Wahahaha! True enough. Alright then—hand over the booze!"
He was sure those menu items would cow the opposition, especially the Galala Crocodile—enough to spook a common hunter.
Miyoko wasn't frightened—in fact, she couldn't help a little snort of laughter. "Pfft! Do I look scared to you?"
"Huh? Weird, this one didn't scare easy." Zongeh blinked in confusion.
Miyoko let the smile fade and stood.
A sharp yet steady pressure rolled off her—the refinement of months of training at Shokurin Temple. It was nowhere near Shun's level, but against the likes of Zongeh it landed like a boulder from the sky.
She set a light hand on Zongeh's shoulder—casual in appearance, but Zongeh felt like a beast's paw had pinned him, an unseen weight freezing his joints as cold sweat burst from his pores.
"Zo~mbie~kun~."
Miyoko dragged out the syllables with playful malice. "That menu of yours… not bad~. As for the drinks—take a couple of bottles if you want. Sorry, though, everything else was bought up by us already, Zo~mbie~kun~."
After months at Shokurin Temple, Miyoko was no longer who she had been, and a Life Menu of that tier didn't even register to her eyes.
Zongeh's face had gone pale, sweat beading as he stammered his correction, "I-I'm Zongeh! Not some 'Zombie-kun!' Get that straight!"
Shun's lips curved into the faintest smile.
Zongeh had no way to stand up to Miyoko; a mere flicker of her aura was more than enough to cow him.
…
(End of Chapter)
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