That Time I Got Sent to Another World Where All of the Girls Are Super Hot and Super Into Me Because I Am Super Strong and Have Very Powerful Abilities that God Gave to Me Because Me and Them Were Friends When I Was in Grade School and God Is Actually A Loli Who is Also in Love with Me Because I Am A Super Epic Person Who Will Defeat The Demon Lord Who Threatens The Entire World but the Demon Lord Actually is in Love With Me and the Demon Lord is a Super Hot Busty Babe Who is Actually Just Trying to Get My Attention Because I Have a Cellphone That Can Contact the Internet and Can Get Anything Shipped To Me Within 2 Days But I Barely Need It Because I Am Actually the Most Strongest Guy Alive Because I Have Super Strong Powers Like Being Able to Lift Your Mom Really Easily Which is Nearly Impossible Because Your Mom is So Fat But is Actually A Secret Anime Busty Babe Who is Really into Me Because I Am Super Cool and Better Than Your Dad Because He is Super Lame Which I Am Not

World 2.29 - That time I was reincarnated into another world and gave Bonbon a hand

The [Panini] chamber had a certain quiet dignity and grace, like a church, or that part of the library where they keep all the really big books. This air of solemnity was disrupted only slightly by the fact that we'd crammed five people into a space that looked like it could really only comfortably hold one or two. I was honestly a little disappointed. It was a domed room, like the inside of an igloo, about five feet across. For a 'chamber', it was pretty unimpressive, but then again, it was a [Panini] chamber, so I'm sure it was massive in Sandwich-feet. (TL Note: 1 Sandwich-foot is about 11 inches)

"Uh..." Skeletony said, clearing his throat and doing his best to try to save the gravitas of the situation. "Seems a bit, uh... crowded."

Wanda perked up at that. She was dangerously close to me, enough that her tail had raised my [Fluff Resistance] skill two levels in the past two minutes alone. She smiled at Skeletony and wiggled, brushing against me and short-circuiting my brain momentarily.

"Wan!" she exclaimed. "Wanda wants sweets! Dessert is free too, right?"

Skeletony chuckled, sentencing his budget to death with a wave of his hand. "Yeah, sure. Go order whatever you want."

"Hooray!" Wanda shouted, cutely shoulder-checking me. I let myself be pushed, instinctively shying away from intimate-adjacent contact with a cute girl. Wanda bounded down the hall and into the dining room, grabbing one of the comically-large spoons the chef statues were holding before exiting into the restaurant at large. That cleared up a bit of room for the rest of us, but it was still pretty crowded.

"Hey, Hiro-kun," Ciel asked, shifting into some of the space Wanda had vacated. "If you got a minute, might be a good time for that... y'know, talk I wanted to have."

She gestured with a tilt of her head towards the dining room. I instantly turned bright red. H-her confession! But... I glanced over at Skeletony and Bonbon. I kind of really wanted to see this recipe, plus I felt pangs of jealousy seeing one of my harem members within a few feet of another guy. Ciel wanted to confess her love to me, but it's not like she was going to love me any less if I put it off for a bit. Could we really trust Bonbon alone with this guy?

"Can we really trust Bonbon alone with you?" I asked openly. "You were one of the [Elite Fours], and Bonbon is the weakest member of my harem. You can say you've reformed and give us free food and stuff, but that could all be trick, couldn't it? How do we know we can really trust you?"

Skeletony puffed up his chest and thumped it once with his hand. "I ain't about to pretend I'm suddenly a saint or nothin', but I'm not aboutta hurt Bonbon."

I nodded slowly. "Okay. That's good enough for me."

"It is?" Bonbon asked, suddenly worried for some reason.

"Pareiso-san," I said. "We can talk if you wanted to."

I walked back towards the dining room, with Ciel stepping close behind. My heart was thumping in my chest. I... I was really about to be confessed to! What would my friends back in Neo-Shinjuku think if they could see me now?!

The Neo-Shinjuku Hyperrail was abuzz with activity, the platforms full of people returning home from work, doing their best to cram onto the tram before their Travel Permit expired and they had to purchase a late pass. Two high-school seniors sat on the guard-rail. They didn't actually need to take the trams, since they were local, but they liked to sit and people-watch. Plus, hanging around meant that if Civil Protection took down a criminal, you could pick through the remains to score a free wallet, or sometimes some jewelry.

The first of the teens, who I'll call Friend A, because even doing a callback, I refuse to give them real names, sighed.

"I know it's been a week already, but I still can't believe that Hiro is fucking dead."

The second teen, Friend B, nodded vaguely, focusing instead on his holographic Vidcon console that was flickering in his HUD.

"Hang on a sec..." He veered to the side, carefully demolishing the King Turtle and rescuing the Archduchess. "Sorry, who?"

"Hiro," Friend A insisted. "You know, Hiro ♥ Protagonist? The guy with the skateboard?"

"Skateboard..." Friend B mused, thinking about it as he started up the New Game+, paying the 'Restart Game' micro-transaction with his mom's Credit Card. "Oh, that guy? I thought his name was Shinji.

"No, man. It was Hiro."

"Huh. Yeah, that sucks though. RIP in pepperoni."

"Yeah."

Bonbon watched Hiro and Ciel leave, suddenly becoming acutely aware of the fact that he'd left her alone with a man who used to be one of the Demon Lord's generals. According to Hiro, he'd turned over a new leaf, but Bonbon didn't have the most confidence in the judgement of the guy who once proclaimed that a statue was 'giving him bedroom eyes'.

She was wary, but hopeful. He seemed to be implying that he had a [Recipe] that could fix her arm? That was tantalizing to her for a number of reasons. She'd come to terms with her injury, at least a bit. Hiro seemed to have little interest in helping her restore it, for some reason, but if she never regained the use of her limb... well. She'd survive, at least. She'd had a kind of... touching moment, really. Teaching some of the young acolytes of the Paladin order how to cook while Hiro was asleep, in a comfy and heartwarming interlude that probably won't appear until I put it in the Light Novel version or something.

Bonbon was willing to accept her fate, but if there was something that would fix her, you can bet your ass she'd jump at it. Even if she weren't wounded, a [Recipe] that could regenerate limbs? Now THAT was something worthy of a Divine Quest! Bonbon's ears were twitching just thinking about it.

This room had the right look to it, at least. It was a domed, brick-lined chamber, with a ring of glowing runes lining the border where the walls changed from vertical to sloped. Small cubbies set into the wall each entombed a single loaf of bread, of various types and styles. Each had a bronze placard below that listed the year they had been baked, and the name of the baker.

Despite the fact that some of these loaves had been here for what looked to be decades, they all looked as fresh as if they'd just been baked. No doubt, this was due to the runes above, which Bonbon could recognize a few of: Preservation(food), Temperature Control(room), Mood Lighting(Dignified), Pest Control(Rat), and Pest Control(Tax Collector). There were a few others she didn't recognize as well. All in all, it reminded Bonbon a bit of a mausoleum, and made her a bit irrationally worried that one of the loaves might suddenly start moving. She had enough things to worry about besides dealing with the Unbread.

Skeletony was busy throwing some magical crystals into the side of what looked like a cross between a furnace and a massive anvil, in the center of the room. He closed the hatch, and it ignited with a WHUMPH, flames licking briefly out of the iron grates of the door. Skeletony made the sign of Flavos, and pulled his stick of Consecrated Butter out of his shirt pocket, liberally oiling the top of the anvil.

"This recipe's been handed down through the generations. Flavos himself wrote it, before he Ascended."

Bonbon did a hyper-realistic closeup of her face as the realization dawned on her. "W-wait... this recipe is pre-Ascension?!" Her mind reeled. This recipe was beyond just fine dining. This was essentially a holy relic! The sort of thing where you would build a church if you had one, for the tourist money if nothing else.

Skeletony nodded. "It was handed down to his confidante, Pai Sano."

Bonbon looked on in quiet reverence as Skeletony began mise-ing his en place.

"Pai Sano?" she asked, her voice a hush. "T-The First [Italian]?!"

Skeletony nodded, and selected one of the loaves of bread, a 15 year old [Ciabatta], perfectly aged and with exquisite marbling. He careful moved it to a prep counter. He set a cutting board, a wickedly-sharp bread knife, and a steel hammer, which he set on top of the anvil to heat.

"This is pretty serious, isn't it?" Bonbon asked. She felt nervous suddenly, for reasons unrelated to the potentially evil, extremely powerful man in the room with her. "Should I be here for this? Will your order be fine with spreading this recipe?"

Skeletony chuckled, as a skeleton walked into the room carrying a gilded chest. "Not a problem. You're the [Chosen of Flavos], yeah?"

He opened the chest, and pulled out a smaller gold chest. It was roughly the size of a shoe, consecrated with holy olive oil, and sealed with an enchanted padlock. "Besides," he continued, keeping his voice low as if he was worried the contents of the chest might explode. "Even if you know the recipe, it's the ingredients that're the real trick."

He produced a small gold key from around his neck, and opened the chest, to reveal several rose blossoms. Bonbon leaned in to peer at it, and realized that the flowers were actually made of lunchmeat, rolled delicately into the shape of roses. That coloration... the texture... Bonbon had seen it once, but only in ancient scrolls.

"I...Is that?"

"[Prosciutto Di Pharma]," Skeletony confirmed. Bonbon felt her throat tighten. There were several [Legendary] tier foods, but [Prosciutto Di Pharma] was one of the rarest. It took 100 years to properly cure. It was seasoned with a blend of exotic spices, some of which had been extinct for centuries, with only a dwindling supply hoarded by collectors and [Master Chefs]. Most foods had an [Effect] that would trigger on consumption, like healing HP, or boosting an [Attribute] temporarily. Prosciutto Di Pharma... had the effect of [Panacea].

There were no shortage of foods with a lesser effect, [Status Cure], but those only removed [Status Conditions], and even then, not all of them. [Panacea], on the other hand, cured all [Status Conditions], while also healing any diseases, any sickness, and nullifying any [Curse] or [Poison] or [Cringe]. It was coveted beyond all measure.

"That's..." She hesitated. She wanted to object to something so expensive and rare being used for her sake, when she was pretty sure Hiro could quite literally wave his hands and fully heal her. But... to witness a [Legendary] food being made in front of her? She held her tongue.

"[Life Fig] Jam..." Skeletony continued, taking out a glass jar of a thick, deep-purple paste and setting it on the counter. Another rare ingredient, though the sort of thing an ordinary chef could buy with just a month's worth of pay. It had the effect of [Accelerated Healing], which doubled all natural and magical healing. Life Figs were powerful in that their effect lasted a full week.

"[Aetheric Arugula], " Skeletony mused, pulling out a bunch of green, leafy vegetables. Bonbon nodded. This one wasn't as rare. It was still relatively potent though, with the effect of [Attribute Boost: Physical].

Skeletony pulled out a round lump of soft cheese, wrapped in butcher's paper. Bonbon watched with bated breath as he set it on the counter.

"This one's just regular mozzarella."

The ingredients assembled, Skeletony stood in front of the counter, taking a deep breath. He made the sign of Flavos again, and kissed his [Italian] Emblem.

"Let's get to it."