"Let's just forget about him and continue our tour," Kingsley spoke from the side with a light shake of his head. His mind briefly drifted to the last spar he had shared with Anthony. The memory surfaced unbidden, sharp, vivid, and humbling, and a small laugh escaped his lips before he consciously pushed it away and let the thought fade.

"Yeah, let's do that. Broth-ben, where to next?" Veronica added immediately, smoothly drawing the Brothkin's attention back to the tour.

Hearing one of the tourists speak, Broth-ben fell into thought for a brief moment, his eyes narrowing slightly as he considered their next destination. Then he replied, "How about we visit a Simmerium?"

At his suggestion, several brows arched in confusion, silently urging him to elaborate. With a snap of Broth-ben's fingers, the same open vessel crafted from his Savor energy materialized beside them, its surface shimmering faintly. As the ground beneath their feet shifted and stabilized, Broth-ben began to explain.

"In the simplest of terms, a Simmerium is a kitchen," he intoned calmly. "But that definition only applies to you foreigners. To us natives of the Ramen Singularity Timeline and the Nodara Planet, a Simmerium is far more than a place to cook. It is a place where people are judged."

Everyone fell silent, allowing the Brothkin to continue uninterrupted.

"Across the Nodara Planet," Broth-ben said, "there exist four types of Simmerium. The first is the Public Simmerium. This is the one most open to travelers and foreigners like yourselves. It is commonly used for trade cooking, demonstrations, and street mastery. It is loud, aromatic, chaotic at times, but alive." He paused briefly, letting the image settle before continuing.

"The second is the Lineage Simmerium. As the name implies, it is bound to chef bloodlines and possesses extremely restricted access. Foreigners are not permitted inside under any circumstance. The third is the Duel Simmerium, which I trust requires no further explanation." A faint smile touched his lips. "And the last is the Silent Simmerium. This one allows no spectators of any kind, for any reason. It is reserved for experimental or forbidden techniques. One must formally apply to use it. Trespassing is considered a serious crime."

He paused again, giving the group time to process his words.

"These four Simmeriums are also referred to as The Pot, The Bowl, The Heat Circle, and The Listening Floor, respectively," he concluded. "Though, in practice, we rarely use those names."

Everyone nodded in understanding.

"So we're heading to the Pot, then," Lucian joked lightly, earning a small round of chuckles from the group.

Broth-ben laughed as well. "Yes," he replied, "we're heading to a Public Simmerium."

There were countless Public Simmeriums scattered across the Nodara Planet. To Broth-ben, they were largely the same, packed, loud, aromatic, yet undeniably alive. He chose one at random and guided the group toward it.

The moment they stepped inside, their eyes opened to an entirely different world.

Thick, fragrant steam rolled through the Public Simmerium, clinging to towering stone pillars etched with ancient flavor seals. It drifted above long, circular cooking stations arranged like rings within a colossal bowl. Brothkin chefs moved with quiet focus, ladles rising and falling in measured, almost ceremonial rhythms. Their simmer robes shifted subtly in hue, flowing between umbral browns and muted golds as Savor energy passed through them.

Nearby, Spice-Touched cooks exhaled visible heat, their cracked garments glowing faintly as volatile aromas bled into the air. Oil Ascendants hovered in smooth, reflective silence, observing without words, their mirrored forms capturing distorted reflections of the chaos below.

Foreigners threaded through the space in loose clusters, some cautious, others utterly enthralled. They bartered unfamiliar spices, studied techniques they barely understood, and flinched whenever the floor pulsed beneath their feet, as though the Simmerium itself were listening to every breath, every decision, made within its vast, bowl shaped heart.

For a moment, the group simply stood there in silence, absorbing the scenery, taking it all in.

"Wow…!!!" Aura Nova murmured. Within this place, countless colors, scents, and layered aromas filled the air, so overwhelming that anyone without a good control over their senses would have surely suffer from sensory overload.

Broth-ben smirked slightly, clearly expecting such a reaction. Without missing a beat, he began to explain further as he moved at an unhurried pace, as though rushing would offend the Simmerium itself. He gestured broadly while Anthony and the others followed close behind.

First, he indicated the stone beneath their feet. "This is the Listening Floor," he explained. "It is grown from condensed Broth Memory. If you stand still long enough, it will tell you whether a dish is nearing completion, or already beyond saving."

Anthony noticed the faint hum in the ground sharpen whenever a nearby chef made even a minor mistake.

Next, Broth-ben pointed toward a cluster of shallow basins connected by thin channels of gently flowing liquid. "These are Minor Broth Springs," he said. "Diluted offshoots of the Endless Seas, safe for public use. Full springs would overwhelm a place like this."

He then gestured upward, toward the air itself, where pale lines drifted like invisible threads. "Those are Aroma Currents. Natural pathways that carry scent and Savor, ensuring flavors do not clash. Skilled chefs cook with the flow, never against it."

Finally, Broth-ben lowered his voice and pointed toward a sealed, steamless platform at the edge of the Simmerium. "That," he said quietly, "is a Dormant Station. When it awakens, a duel is imminent." The ground beneath them seemed to listen to every syllable without interruption.

"Question," Aura Nova spoke up. "Why doesn't the Public Simmerium have a Dormant Station specifically for duels? Isn't there already a Duel Simmerium?"

Broth-ben answered without hesitation. "Although Duel Simmeriums exist, Public Simmeriums can temporarily host duels, though only small scale ones, and only between chefs already cooking within the Simmerium at that time."

"And what about the Listening Floor?" she continued. "You have it here, but you also call the Silent Simmerium the Listening Floor."

Broth-ben nodded, as though he had anticipated the question. "The Listening Floor is a feature, not a location. It exists in all Simmeriums, public, lineage, and duel alike. It is made from Broth Memory–infused stone and reacts to timing, excess, and near completion. It listens to intent, not sound. That hum Anthony felt earlier? That's standard."

He paused briefly before adding, "The Silent Simmerium is named so because silence is required to properly listen during experiments and the use of forbidden techniques. Hence, they share the name."

He finished with the casual ease of someone who had walked through every Simmerium the Nodara Planet had to offer.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: It's a new month, need those golden tickets... Let's go, people... Thanks for reading.

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