As he trudged up the stairs, a multitude of dings echoed in his ears. Monotonous alerts telling him that his Fullness bar was steadily decreasing. He tried to ignore them but couldn't help feeling annoyance wash over him.

'Why does the game need to keep reminding me every two minutes? It wasn't like I didn't know,' he thought.

But any irritation dissipated when he stepped into Peter's office and spotted the delectable spread on the desk. His nose twitched at the mouthwatering aroma of blueberry jam and buttery scones, resulting in a grumble from his stomach. It was a little odd to be hungry in a game but he had gotten used to how lifelike Watashinojinsei-dan Online was.

Lixin licked his lips as he walked closer to the desk and inspected the food. Besides the jam and scones, there were five small Radish and Herb Butter sandwiches neatly arranged on one side of a plate, and a cup of tea beside it that smelled divine.

Unwilling to wait any longer, he quickly sat down behind the desk and grabbed one of the sandwiches, taking an enormous bite. He barely had time to savor it before the flavors exploded in his mouth. It tasted far more delicious than anything he had eaten before.

It is possible, however, that could have been just his Fullness deletion talking. In the end, if a person is hungry enough, dirt could taste amazing to him or her.

Chuckling at the thought, Lixin resumed eating, slower this time, chewing carefully and analyzing the flavors. This continued until eventually the last crumb was finished.

He was about to pick up another sandwich when a soft ding sounded in his ear. This was followed by a notification screen.

[Cora:] [Your Fullness has increased by 5!]

Exiting the window with a roll of his eyes, Lixin began to eat his sandwich. Immediately after finishing it, however, he saw the same message pop up as before.

Pressing his lips together in a thin line, he decided enough was enough. These alerts took away his enjoyment while eating.

Although he said he would look into the notifications after logging out of the game, he decided now was the best time to do so, before he got even more exasperated. Opening up his Cora's settings, he started scanning the list.

Even though he had looked through the list previously, he was hoping that he had missed something. So this time he looked at every setting carefully.

Suddenly the words 'Alert Configuration' caught his eye. Keeping his fingers crossed, he hoped it was what he was looking for.

Lixin let out a sigh of relief after clicking on it, happy to see it was the setting that controlled system notifications. Without much hesitation, he changed all system notifications to voice mode - except quest notifications - before sitting back with a satisfied smile.

'Now I won't have to deal with notifications popping up randomly anymore,' Lixin smiled happily, going back to eating his sandwiches.

~

After finishing up the last of the herb radish sandwich, he paused for a moment to wipe his hands before turning his attention to the scone. Picking it up, he moaned in delight as he inhaled its aroma. It smelled like it was fresh out of the oven.

When he bit into it he heard the crackle of crispy dough and felt the flaky texture melt on his tongue. As the buttery taste spread across his tongue, it was laced with a hint of sugar. The flavor was amazing.

He picked up the small knife next to the jar, curious about how it would taste with the blueberry jam. He scooped some of it up and spread some of it on the part he had bitten.

He placed the scone in his mouth and bit down after being satisfied with the amount of jam he smeared on it. Lixin's eyes gleamed at the taste. The jam produced a completely new flavor profile. The sweetness had faded, and the tartness had become more prominent.

Before he knew it he had eaten the entire thing and most of the jam too. Lixin couldn't help but wish he had another one.

'If all the food in this game tastes as delicious as the ones I just ate, I might change my path and become a foodie,' Lixin thought jokingly.

Shaking the thought from his head, he checked his fullness and saw that it was at 80. He had to admit that he was feeling good. His body felt light and no longer haggard like it did previously.

Grabbing the teacup, he took a sip, and before he could enjoy the taste he heard a voice say:

[Cora:] [Quest completed!] 

[Cora:] [You have gained: 70 EXP]

[Cora:] [You have gained: 70 Bronze Coins]

Smiling at the lack of blue screens in his face, he leaned back in the chair and relaxed. 'I wish I had found that setting sooner.'

Continuing to drink his tea, he pondered the flavor. It was similar to black tea, but different. While he wondered what was the other flavor, he was caught off guard when Peter walked into the room.

Jumping slightly at the man's sudden appearance, he quickly composed himself and greeted him. Peter smiled and asked why he seemed so jumpy. He replied that he had been lost in thought, and Peter just laughed and sat down across from him.

Seeing how carefree the man was, Lixin knew his friend's wife must have been cured. However, there was a part of him that wondered what would have happened if he hadn't made it back on time. Would his storyline have changed?

Before he could muse further Peter said, "It seems you still have a healthy appetite even though your body has shrunk."

"What can I say? After the workout I went through gathering the leaves I was starving," Lixin laughed. "Plus with how delicious everything was I couldn't stop myself from eating it all. I really have to thank Chris for preparing it for me."

"No thanks are needed. He was happy to help. Francis is his friend as well."

"So I guess the woman is better now?" Lixin questioned.

With a smile, Peter nodded."Yes, Delia will recover quickly. All she needs to do is take it easy for a few days and she will be right as rain."

"That's wonderful."

"I have to admit I was a bit worried that you wouldn't be able to get them in time. Those creatures protecting the tree are tricky to deal with," the older man said. "But you did, and I'm so thankful."

"You didn't need to worry, they were a piece of cake to deal with using the Atropa tea style, the only problem I had was my lack of stamina," Lixin chuckled.

When he mentioned the Atropa, a look of interest appeared in Peter's eyes. After hearing so much about it through the years, the man must be dying to learn more about it.

"Is the tea style truly as powerful as the monk said it was?" Peter inquired with zeal. Lixin could tell this was probably something he had wanted to know since childhood.

"So far I have only used one of the recipes but it was really strong," Lixin said. When he noticed that Peter seemed to want more detail he started explaining what had happened when he used Atropa on the Meinless.

"That really happened?" Peter asked with a hint of surprise. "It's no wonder the monk locked that tea style... if it got into the wrong hands, who knows what could happen."

Lixin agreed. The skills of Atropa were shockingly powerful. If he could use them in the real world there is no telling what he would do. Actually, he knew what he would do. His revenge would be over in the blink of an eye.

"Yes, the monk had impeccable judgment."

"What about the Dexatrim tea style? Were you able to learn any of those recipes yet?" Peter thoughtfully questioned.

Shaking his head, Lixin said, "Not yet."

"What if I teach you two of the recipes I know to get you started?" the man asked.

"That would be great."

As soon as he said that he heard the familiar ding followed by a notification. However, this time he wasn't upset by it.

[Cora:]New Quest has been Created!]

Storyline Quest created: The Mystery of the Golden Scale: A Young Koi's Journey.

New Challenges Part 4

Upon hearing about the Atropa tea style, Peter is afraid you might lose yourself in the power it holds. To remedy that he wants you to learn some Dexatrim skills in hopes you won't forget that you can help as well as harm.

Objective: Let Peter teach you some new skills.

Reward: 80 EXP & 80 Bronze Coins

Skill: ?? & ??

Item: Reinteat & ?? & ??

Lixin furrowed his brows as he read the quest description. 'What the heck is a Reinteat?'

 

Author Says:

MomoCatt: Why didn’t you save any of the food for me?

Lixin: Payback for the pumpkin pie.

MomoCatt: … Fine. Next time I will share.