As we are walking towards the city centre where the old man's stand is, I can see that Draelgium has changed a bit since the last time I was here.
"I feel as if the city has changed since the last time I was here. It reminds me of Lausiel, like that factory wasn't here the last time we were here and I'm pretty sure we passed by a power plant just now," I say.
"Those definitely weren't here the last time we were here. The layout of the city hasn't really changed, but from the looks of it, there are plenty of new buildings," Lia says.
"That's because I've been doing some trade with the Alliance, or rather, my doppelganger has. As a result of our technological exchange, you could say the Alliance has been modernising. I believe you of all people should be familiar with this term, Cordelia," Aurelia says.
While Aurelia, Lia and I are discussing the changes that have happened while we were gone, the four from Shengdi have been making quite the scene and attracting a bit of attention as the follow behind us while also checking out everything they can. Although from the whispers I'm hearing from the people walking along the streets, most of the attention is on their language, as they're a bit loud and the people here haven't heard their language before.
But what piques the curiosity of them the most, especially, Gyosu, are the new streetlights. Different from the ones in Shenzhou's Capital, which just light up as needed, the new streetlights here are powered by electricity, likely coming from that power plant we just recently passed.
It's not just new technology that's coming here from Lausiel, but clothing as well. a few of the stores we passed so far have displayed various articles of clothing that bear a resemblance to modern clothing from Earth as well as clothing from Lausiel's upper and middle class, which more closely resembles clothing from the industrial era.
"A shame our little walk through the city can't remain without any schemes in the background," Aurelia says, with her gaze directed towards a fleeing figure in a nearby alley.
"Let's try to avoid any isolated areas and back-alley shortcuts, I'd rather not have to deal with those long-eared tree huggers right now," Lia says
"I remember the last time I was here I fought a few Elves when I was on my way back from a bar after drinking with the Dwarven representatives," I say.
"Of course you were drinking with the Dwarves," Aurelia says as she rolls her eyes, "so where exactly is this food stand that you never shut up about?"
"Uhh, somewhere in the city's centre... I think?"
"I should have known better than to count on you for directions, Lia, you know where it is right?"
"Yes, I can guide us. But the old man's food really is good, Cory even says it's better than my cooking," Lia says.
Hearing this, both Aurelia and Wanjing have a wry smile on their face as Aurelia says, "let's be real here, literal poison is better than your cooking."
"Yeah, I've seen you cook before. Until then, I didn't know a pot could explode while cooking ordinary ingredients," Wanjing says.
"As much as I like you Lia and want to say something nice, you need to face reality. Everyone's got their strengths and weaknesses, just give up on cooking," I say, patting her on the shoulder.
"If the woman who literally eats rocks and metals is saying that, then it's got to be bad," Boshi says.
With everyone ganging up on her, Lia beings pouting as she turns away and just keeps moving forward, ignoring us. Despite this though, she still leads us to where the old man's stand is, claiming I would just get everyone lost... and she isn't wrong.
After around half an hour, we arrive at the old man's meat skewer stand and unsurprisingly there's a bit of a line. As we line up, the fragrance of the various spices the old man uses fills the air, causing me to salivate a bit as I recall the delicious memory of eating the skewers.
With the short wait over, the old man just gives us a professional nod after taking our order as he prepares the meat skewers for the seven of us, one for everyone else and four for me, bring the total to ten. We watch the old Dragonoid, spew out a breath of flames, lighting his grill as he places ten skewers on it. He then sprinkles a bit of seasoning onto them before coating them with a dark sauce. Soon the cooking comes to an end and he finishes the skewers by sprinkling one last bit of seasoning before handing each of us our skewers.
I take a moment to let the freshly made skewers fill my nostrils as their delicious scent causes me to salivate even more. Slowly I begin to eat, closing my mouth on the skewers as the taste of the juicy meat fills my mouth.
"Truly delectable," I say as a single tear of joy falls from my eye.
"Indeed, this is even better than some of the dishes prepared at the Interdimensional Restaurant, and that is no easy feat to accomplished. A true hidden gem of the culinary world," Aurelia says, having understood the joys of the meat skewer.
"Amazing, these are even better than I imagined, even after everything Teacher told me about them," Wanjing says.
"I've never eaten something as good as this before. The meat is cooked to absolute perfection, and the spices perfectly arranged with a sauce that has been designed to be a perfect fit. This is food truly worth of its praise," Gyosu says.
As everyone else is praising the skewers, only Lia remains silent. I can tell through our Soul Connection that she wants to say she can cook just as well, but she knows that the topic won't end well for her so she's holding back.
"Sir, have you ever thought about opening your own restaurant? I'm sure it would be successful with your cooking talent," Aurelia says.
As there wasn't anyone behind us in line, the old man looks over towards us as he says, "I make skewers, that's it. I've dedicated my life to skewers, travelling the land far and wide, high and low, all in the name of perfecting the art of skewers. From the most dangerous of lands to the most tranquil of lands, from the depth of the underground cities of the southern continent to the high mountains of Shengdi. I have reached the pinnacle in the art of skewers and have obtained enlightenment. The land can break and the sky can tear and the world can end, but here I'll be manning my stand. There will be no restaurant, for I am the God of Skewers."