"W-W-Why is it depleting?"

Xenon stammered, pointing with a trembling finger at the two empty chairs, clearly alarmed.

"When someone eats, the food disappears!"

Anya replied, her sweet, delicate voice causing all the men around to light up with delight.

"Someone eating?"

Xenon, Phiros, and Feather echoed in unison. No matter how they looked at it, no one was sitting in those chairs. Meanwhile, Hulu was munching on colorful crystals without paying any attention to the food, and Kitsune was entirely focused on his steak.

"Owwww. It's hotttt!"

Before Chang Long could say anything further, Kimhant suddenly shouted and jumped up, dancing around as he threw his backpack far away, drawing everyone's attention.

The backpack began emitting a dark aura, and anyone who touched it felt a burning sensation, making them too afraid to get close. They stood around it, watching cautiously from a distance. This forced Chang Long to step in herself. Strangely, as she approached, the dark aura grew stronger but did not harm her at all.

"Open the bag, Kimhant,"

Chang Long ordered. In the game, only the bag's owner could open it, unless the person had a thief profession.

"But it's hot!"

Kimhant protested.

"If you keep dragging your feet, whatever's inside might get damaged,"

Chang Long scolded, causing Kimhant to panic. He quickly rushed over to open his backpack. To his surprise, the dark aura no longer felt hot, likely because Chang Long was holding the bag.

As Kimhant opened the backpack, he searched for the source of the black aura. Finally, he pulled out a completely black egg, about the size of a chicken egg, and placed it on the table. Everyone stared at the egg in bewilderment, wondering why it was emitting such a strong black glow.

"A weird egg!"

Feather, Phiros' friend, exclaimed. Everyone nodded in agreement, having never seen a monster egg with such intense light effects, except when it was about to hatch.

"It's definitely going to hatch!"

One of the Caesar Guild members blurted out, recalling his own experience with hatching monster eggs.

"Where did you get this egg, Kimhant?"

Chang Long asked, curious since she could not remember Kimhant ever mentioning the egg before.

"I found it in the maze cave in the Longshan Mountains. I thought it was just a stone because nothing ever happened when I took it out,"

Kimhant replied, a bit excited at the thought of finally having a monster of his own.

Crack!

The sound of the eggshell starting to break caught everyone's attention. They stopped eating and turned to watch the black egg on the table with curiosity. The first thing they saw was a pitch-black spike attached to the tip of tiny wings, resembling bat wings.

"What is that?"

Hulu asked, excited as well, though he had finished devouring his elemental gems before joining the others to watch.

*Crack! Crack!*

The eggshell slowly chipped away, bit by bit, as the little creature inside struggled to break free. Everyone speculated that it might be a bat, given the size of the egg and the wing structure. Kimhant felt a bit disappointed; he had hoped for a cooler, more reliable pet like Chang Long's.

Finally, the last stage of hatching arrived. Everyone turned away from the tiny creature to let it lock eyes with Kimhant alone, so the system could confirm ownership.

"Holy mother...!"

Kimhant gasped as he saw the newly hatched creature. It was a small, fluffy black ball with bat-like wings, a long tail ending in a spearhead shape, large round black eyes without whites, and a small mouth filled with sharp white fangs. The creature was just slightly larger than his fist.

"Does player Kimhant wish to name their pet 'Holy Mother...'?"

The system's voice asked for confirmation, prompting the young man to quickly decline. After all, he had just gotten a cool pet; it deserved a cool name too. Even though it was still small now, once it grew up, people would surely be envious of him for having such a creature.

"Felon!"

Kimhant declared, giving the tiny creature in his hand a new name he had just thought of. After he confirmed the name, everyone else turned back around, eager to get a good look at the little creature.

"What is it?"

The question escaped everyone's lips. Even Devi-chan and Hisa-chan seemed puzzled, though Devi-chan could at least identify its name and level.

"It's a Diabolos, level 1,"

Devi-chan, still invisible, informed Chang Long.

"Diabolos..."

Chang Long murmured, scrutinizing the tiny creature in Kimhant's hand and thinking to herself that it did not resemble a fly at all. The others, upon hearing the name, exclaimed so loudly that it almost shook the restaurant.

"Diabolos!"

"Wait, Diabolos? Isn't that supposed to be a fly according to legend? Why doesn't this one look anything like that?"

Phiros asked. He had studied demons from legends and remembered that the Diabolos had the form of a fly and represented the sin of gluttony, one of the seven deadly sins in Christian belief. It was associated with disease and filth.

"Well, this is a game, Mr. Phiros. I think it's way cooler like this, plus it's cute too, right! Felon."

Kimhant quickly defended his new pet. He much preferred this version of Felon over the legendary fly, which was not exactly cool or appealing, especially not to impress girls. He playfully poked the soft belly of the creature.

Chomp!

"Yow!"

Kimhant yelled as his beloved pet bit down on his finger with its sharp teeth and continued to gnaw on it enthusiastically. The young man had to quickly pry open its tiny mouth to free his now swollen, slightly bleeding finger.

"Hahaha. I told you it represents the sin of gluttony. Get ready to burn through your wallet, Mr. Kimhant,"

Phiros laughed, patting Kimhant on the shoulder in sympathy.

"Oh man! At this rate, I'll be broke before it even grows up!"

Kimhant groaned as he handed his plate of food to Felon, who was giving him pleading eyes. The little creature immediately began devouring the food quickly and ravenously, finishing off the once-full plate in no time. When the plate was empty, Felon looked back up at Kimhant with those big, innocent eyes, clearly signaling that it was still hungry and wanted more.

"Such a tiny thing…"

Xenon, standing next to Phiros, whispered in amazement.

"Wahh, master, what am I supposed to do?"

Kimhant turned to Chang Long, who had already gone back to eating with her companions.

"Huh? You're rich now. One pet shouldn't be that big of a deal,"

Chang Long replied casually.

"But it eats more than Devi-chan, Hisa-chan, and boss combined!"

Kimhant wailed, tears streaming down his face as he held Felon, who was happily gnawing on his hand, and returned to sit beside Chang Long.

"It's your pet. You need to study it and understand it yourself,"

Chang Long advised, handing Felon a roasted turkey leg. Felon devoured it completely, bones and all, in no time.

"Oh… Felon, the more you eat, the more work you'll have to do for me. Got it? Otherwise, we're both going to starve!"

Kimhant said to his beloved pet, which continued to give him those innocent eyes, begging for more food. Hulu, unable to tolerate the sight, snatched Felon away from Kimhant. Faced with the evolved form of a sacred beast, Felon trembled with fear, closed its wings, and curled up into a strange little ball, allowing Hulu to bat it around for fun.

"Wow, how did you do that?"

Feather exclaimed in excitement, impressed by how Hulu managed to calm Felon down and scare it so much that it retreated.

"I didn't do anything. It's just that our bloodlines are so different that we're natural enemies, I guess,"

Hulu's response left the Caesar Guild players puzzled, while Kimhant quickly snatched Felon back, afraid that Hulu might gobble it up.

"I'm full. I'm going to walk around the market to help digest my food,"

Chang Long said, standing up to leave the Prince Paris Restaurant.

"I'll come with you. I need to buy some pet sealing accessories!"

Kimhant quickly asked to tag along. Pet sealing accessories helped keep pets in a semi-hibernation state, reducing their need for food compared to when they were unsealed.

Chang Long and Kimhant bid farewell to the Caesar Guild players, Phiros, and his friends, who seemed eager to continue celebrating. The two of them then headed down from the restaurant's second floor and made their way to Troy's marketplace. Chang Long planned to buy clothes for Hulu, as the refined outfit he was currently wearing did not suit his energetic and hyperactive nature. She also thought about finding a more practical outfit for Kitsune since his current nobleman's autumn outfit was too cumbersome for someone who prioritized agility and mobility.

"By the way, can spirits only be offered food? What about clothes or other items? Can those be offered too?"

Chang Long asked curiously, suddenly realizing that if the food she offered became edible for the spirits, maybe other items like clothes could also be made usable for Devi-chan and Hisa-chan if offered.

With this in mind, Chang Long quickly walked toward a clothing store to buy new outfits for her two pets and test her theory by offering the clothes to Hisa-chan and Devi-chan.

.....

Duncan and Crown, the holders of the treasure map of Pirate King Azlam, stood before a massive cliff. It was not far from the spot where they had discovered the twin swords known as the Wolves of Azlam. Duncan looked at the map and nodded, as if confirming that he had led his best friend to the right place. However, both men were puzzled to find only sky before them, with the turquoise sea lying over five hundred meters below.

"There's nothing here, my friend!"

Said Crown, a young man dressed in a white shirt with a long, shiny black leather coat, sounding disheartened.

"But the mark is right here, exactly where we're standing!"

Duncan pointed to the red X on the map for his friend to see.

"Yeah, I see it, but why is it completely empty in front of us? Don't tell me we've come to the wrong place,"

Crown grumbled, frustrated after spending weeks pinpointing the location on the map before finally setting out on their quest.

"No, we're not wrong. Calm down a bit, will you? Here, eat this,"

Duncan chided, trying to think. He handed Crown some cold noodles he had prepared and stored in the storage box, which kept the food fresh along with fruits and vegetables.

"It's not that I don't trust you, Duncan, but I'm just really frustrated. Think about it—a god-tier weapon with just one attack power, and I've been running for my life ever since. If I'd known, I wouldn't have rushed into binding with it!"

Crown complained as he picked up the cold noodles with chopsticks and began eating.

"Crown, I think the entrance is down there…"

Duncan finally took his eyes off the map and peered over the edge of the cliff. The sea below was relatively calm, with small waves gently lapping against the sandstone cliffs where they stood.

"Are you sure about that, Duncan?"

Crown asked, finishing his soup with relish.

"Of course, but it's better if we go down and check it out first. That way, our friends coming to join us won't have made the trip for nothing,"

Duncan nodded in agreement.

"You say you're sure, but you're still worried about them coming here for nothing. Fine, I'll go down and take a look myself. You keep an eye out for any beasts!"

Crown replied, handing the empty noodle bowl back to Duncan.

"Alright, be careful,"

Duncan agreed and helped tie ropes together until they had a decent length. He secured one end to a large rock near the edge of the cliff, making sure it was tightly fastened so it would not slip while Crown was climbing down. Duncan then readied himself to deal with any stray monsters that might come their way.

Crown began his descent down the sandstone cliff cautiously. The cliff was quite slippery and mostly sheer, with few protruding rocks to step on. However, this allowed him to rappel down quickly. Unfortunately, the rope's length only got him about three hundred meters down, forcing Crown to use his own techniques to survey the area below, hoping to spot anything that looked like an entrance into the sandstone cliff.

"There's nothing here. It's just a smooth cliff all the way down to the water,"

Crown muttered to himself, hanging upside down as he tried to swing the rope to get a better view below. He did not realize that the rock to which the rope was tied was embedded in shallower sand than expected and was starting to loosen as he swung back and forth.

"Hey, why is the rope moving lower all of a sudden!"

Crown panicked and looked up, but saw nothing unusual. He assumed Duncan was letting the rope down a bit more, perhaps having noticed that Crown could not go any further. In reality, Duncan was preoccupied with fighting a double-tailed scorpion beast and could not checked on Crown at all.

"Heh heh, good job, Duncan. If there really is a cave down here belonging to Pirate King Azlam, I'll make sure to give you a bigger share of the treasure than anyone else!"

Crown laughed, pleased as he slowly descended further.

Whoosh…

"Huh? What was that... sound!"

Crown looked up to find the source of the noise, and his eyes widened in sheer terror. It was not just the rope falling; the large rock it had been tied to was also plummeting down toward him at high speed.

"Uaaaaah!"

Crown screamed, flailing wildly in the air, desperately trying to avoid the massive rock hurtling toward him.

Splashhhh!

The large rock crashed into the turquoise sea, sending waves and spray everywhere. Crown barely avoided being crushed, but his clothes were torn, and he was left with some scrapes and bruises. However, his ordeal was not over—he was being dragged down into the sea, following the rock that had fallen before him.

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