As soon as I finished cooking lasagne after, using all the ingredients, I took the dish to the storage room in the kitchen. Everything inside the storage room is stored below -25°C, to make sure nothing goes off. I sighed looking at the ever-decreasing ingredients, I expect more people to start using the membership benefit to bring in ingredients soon, as they just witnessed what happened with the prince and Tom.
I sat down on the floor as I started eating amidst the freezing tundra. As soon as I took the first bite I could feel the disappearance of cold hitting me. My skin started to glow in such intensity that it was almost like the same intensity after Tom and crown prince ate their meal. I carried on eating, while I still couldn't appreciate the taste of anything.
As I finished eating I noticed one thing, the light was so bright that it caused the temperature of the room the rise to almost 5°C. The frozen ingredients all seemed to thaw, however this amount of light from my skin seemed to cause no damage or repulsion to my eyes, along with the high temperature caused by my body.
It is a common understanding in physics where there is light there is a presence of heat. So, as luminosity increases so does the temperature, due to photons (light particles) carrying energy. So, more photons means more energy, thus higher temperature. Along with that the human body temperature is usually in the range of 36°C to 37°C. If the temperature goes 3°C up or down it can be fatal. Yet my body which is emitting the amount of light, and temperature seemed not to be affected by anything.
I could only find one reason for this. All my cells in my body is probably evolving to take in higher amount of energy, thus causing the quality of each of my organ, muscles, tissues, nerves, cells etc, to improve drastically. So, most likely now my body might be able to keep up homeostasis without much problem in temperatures of -30°C or 50°C, as long as I have enough energy to maintain.
Soon I started noticing another problem. I usually use my soul to think and calculate, leaving my body to perceive the world and work on my body, I have even moved majority of the memory in the conscious part of my brain to the unconscious part, meaning no one could access them now except me, and no one will be able to find where it is located even if they search my mind, unless I want to. This is so that anyone with the ability to read minds or thought would find it impossible to read anything from me, along with the fact that, if anyone tried to wipe out my memories, it wouldn't really work, as my soul is what I use instead of my brain.
But the problem now is that I can see that the fog around me, caused by the drastic change in temperature, is moving slowly when I start thinking with my soul, and as soon as I stop thinking the fog starts moving around at normal speed. The only explanation to this would be, that my perception of time increased, this would mean what people would experience as 1 second is like 2 seconds to me right now. This could be most likely because my brain cells to have evolved.
This could be problematic. Most people would find situation like this happy, as they are able to enhance their power in other ways. But not me. The problem with this power up most likely is that what would happen once my energy run out? Would my cells revert back to normal, or would I start going hungry for more food? Along with that I have to have a higher intake of energy than other people, this means if I don't get my hands on a level 3 beast ingredient when I am hungry then I would have to consume even larger portion of lower level ingredients, which is not ideal right now, as I could go bankrupt do to that.
If I try to hunt for those creatures myself, not only would I have to watch out for the assassin send after me, but also I have to find a way to harm those creatures, without using an award or magi, as I have neither. All ingredients are awarded a level according to the difficulty in capturing them. The higher levelled ingredients means, high difficulty in capturing/killing them, or those ingredients that are located in dangerous areas.
Usually most level 10 and above beast ingredients could easily be captured by anyone with a rank 1 combat award or magi. But due to no one being able to cook them properly no one bothers to hunt for them, unless they possess a danger to them. This caused no one to pay the exuberant price the hunter that brings them in ask for, thus increasing the scarcity of higher-level ingredients.
But it all changes now, due to me being able to cook for them. But I would have to wait a while before nobles, start sending in teams to hunt for those ingredients, before that I can't take any risks, without letting the nobles bring in stable ingredients.
For now, my priority is to experiment with my body, to see what effect happens when energy deprivation happen. I will have to wait and see what will happen once by body is denied energy, during lunch today.
I went back into the kitchen and saw there was still no one in. Most likely everyone, went back to report to their superiors or are awaiting orders from their masters.
I went to sleep and was soon awoke by Albert at noon "Wake up kid, don't die before you make me my food." He kept on shaking me, with teary and emotional eyes, even when I opened my eyes.
I sat up, as he kept on shaking me. "Where is your ingredient?" I asked him.
"It is in the kitchen, I moved it there as you were sleeping." I nodded as I got up and walked towards the kitchen. The old man followed me into the kitchen.
"Don't touch anything here, as you will contaminate everything here." I said as I started preparing the ingredients. I soon started chopping up the ingredients to make some golden lobster broth. I could hear the old man talking about some thing in the background, I soon started to zone him out as usual and concentrated on the food.
After preparing the broth I turned towards the old man who seems to be using air magi to shield from the smell, but that couldn't stop the drool from his mouth. 'Interesting! A commandment using magi!' All commandment had access to awakening their awards, and most of them did. But this man seemed not to have awakened his award. I thought the shenanigans he did with the floating gold notes and tray was with his award. But it seems that I was wrong.
I took the broth in a tray to outside and placed it on the desk. The old man jumped over my desk and before he could take the tray I stopped him. "Kid what is it? Let me eat. I am hungry. I will die if I won't eat soon. Will you take care of my family if I die?"
The old man blabbered some annoying reasons, before I told him "50 plats old man. Pay first." The old mans eyebrows twitched as he was stopped for a silly reason. He placed 50 plat chip on my desk before he was about to take the tray.
I stopped him again "What now kid? Do kids these days not know what patience is? Were you not taught how to respect dying peoples last request?" He shouted
"Eat outside in the garden. I don't want my restaurant burned to the ashes." The old man finally realised something, as he remembered the news he received early morning. He nodded as he quickly ran off in the direction of the garden, before I could stop him again for whatever reasons, with his tray.
I observed as he ate the broth with unreal expressions going through his face. He to started to glow, but instead of the brightness increasing, it stayed the same as what I did for James and Tom. This time I could see through the intense light and see that his bald head started replacing the white hair, with red hair, and soon replaced his bold head was conquered by red long hair. His eyebrows to started changing colour to red. I guess that is how he was when he was younger. His wrinkles and saggy skin started slowly changing to replace smooth skin.
He came in as an old eccentric man in his 90's, but left as an eccentric man in his 60's.
Before he left he asked me seriously without any childishness "Kid are you able to cook higher level ingredients if I bring them in?"
"Depends on the level, if a normal person is able to cut through those ingredients then I will be able to as well. If not I will require, tools made out of higher-level ingredients to cut and cook those ingredients." There are some ingredients that is too tough to cut with normal tools, that only those strong enough or with strong tools are able to cut through them.
He nodded at my answer, before saying "I can provide you with the materials for the tools."
"Then I can pay for the tools or deduct the cost from your future meals." I said
"What do you need then?"
"Knife, chopping board..." I listed them items I would need to be made from high level ingredients, while he paid attention to what he need to buy. He left after I finished listing.
I didn't put my hope up as to get tools made out of material with high level, as finding a person who can make tools out of high-level materials will be hard.
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While Albert was eating in and shining the various agents around the restaurant started using their communication crystal to contact their master. "My Lord you have got to see this."
They all said as they showed the projection of Albert eating, and glowing.
"What is so special about that shiny person, we already received your report in the morning about the crown prince and Tom?" The masters in the other side asked, not knowing what their agents was trying to convey.
"It is Albert my lord." Many of them were curious, at what was happening to Albert. After the light intensity reduced, many of them were shocked.
"Are you sure it is Albert agent?" They confirmed their masters question.
"Yes."
"What ingredient did he bring in?" They asked
"We assume it is level 5 ingredient, due to his sons being in prison for attempting to steal level 5 ingredients from the palace."
After that all connections were cut down. Soon there was a massive order for high level ingredients through out the empire. But alas for them, as they wanted to increase the safety of the empire, their ancestors drove out all high-level beasts ingredient-both plant and animals- out of the empire. After that the remaining ingredients left in the empire are low level beast ingredient.
Now if they wanted to find high level beast, the would have to journey though the Unseen wilderness, Blood forest, Melting desert and many more treacherous and high death toll areas to find a high level beast ingredient. Even if they found one and managed to kill and get out of the treacherous area alive with it, by the time they reached back to the empire, the ingredient would have rotted.
There was no ingredients higher than level 20 within the empire, and for those ingredients a massive competition was about to start, and the reason for this is one single restaurant.
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"How many days of accumulation is it?" The Emperor's voice sounded through the communication crystal.
"3 months of low talent accumulation was added. Although that wasn't much, you are able to clearly see why I gave it such importance you majesty?"
"How many years younger did you get?"
"It is not really me getting younger you majesty, but rather I feel that my body is filled with so much energy, that I am revitalised. I feel that as soon as I lose these energy I would, go back to being how I was before. Our hands are really tied now your majesty. He will now be treated as national treasure from now and be protected especially from us." The emperor's frustration grew.
The emperor threw a nearby jug of water on the floor as his face was flushed in red, with anger.
"Damn him."
"Your majesty all is not lost. There is a reason why I went in there with level 5 ingredient, without stopping all those idiots from watching me. In fact, we have reaped more benefit from this than we can imagine." Hearing what Albert said the emperor suddenly calmed down and sat down.
"How?"
"Now all nobles and high-level magi will make sure to stop him from attempting to even enter the competition. The reason being ..."
"If he were to enter the competition they all know that he will have to eventually stop his restaurant, due to the responsibilities of the competition participant." The emperor finished of Alberts' sentence
Albert smiled as he said "Correct, thus stopping them from eating the food of eternal youth. Who would want to stay being old and weak? But there is only one problem now." Albert's face frowned as he thought of the problem
"They would make sure he lives as long as possible. After all, the goose that laid the golden egg is more important than the golden egg. That is fine Albert, we have solved a major thorn in our side for now, as long as we don't step on the thorn it won't do us any harm. Now the only problem we have to worry about is Jack. As far as I am concerned John, is a closed case."
Albert shook his head "I don't think so your majesty, would you think his supporter will allow for something like this to happen? When I asked him if he was able to make high-level ingredients, he didn't even try to hide the fact that he was able to. That means everything so far is within their expectations."
"But the question remains, what are they planning if they are not attempting for the competition?" The emperor asked back with concern.
"I don't know. We have to be on our guard from now on, I have a feeling they are planning something big."