"Food will be with us shortly. Eh, what happened?" Haemish walked back into the room to the calculating stares of Aarav and Marasa.
She seemed to be weighing Haemish in a new light. Aarav was drooling and staring when Haemish walked in because he carried a croissant slathered in honey in one hand with steam rising from it.
"Care to share that delicious treat?" Aarav pointedly looked at the baked item in his hand, and Haemish took a bite just to tease the Slime.
"More coming in a minute." The man said around a mouthful of bread flakes. The smell was divine, and he couldn't get enough of it. "Just be patient."
"Oh, you mean like how you're being patient? I couldn't wait a minute for the baked goods to come, but now you're asking me to wait." Aarav was a little disappointed in the man. He now understood why everyone else he had seen was slim and lithe and generally in excellent shape while this man was as round as they come.
Aarav could only chuckle because, true to his word, no more than two minutes passed before a sizeable burly kitchen attendant wheeled a tray into the room. The man would have been more at home in a wrestling ring than in the kitchen. But Aarav couldn't give that man much attention when the smell from Haemish's croissant multiplied a hundredfold.
Aarav was drooling, really drooling. It was food fit for a king, and he was about to go to town on it. He lurched for the table, almost falling over, and the kitchen attendant that was trained not to react to anything screamed in the highest pitched voice Aarav had heard. Then the wrestler flushed with embarrassment and overcompensated with a stoic face while glancing at Haemish and Marasa from the corners of his eyes.
Aarav couldn't help it, and he started laughing. That set Haemish and Marasa off, who were both looking at the exchange between Slime and man. Then, finally, the bulky man joined in with a forced low pitched rumble. He quickly made his exit before he did anything else to embarrass himself.
"Hmm, that was an interesting reaction. Hands down the best one so far." Aarav said as he reached for a honey-covered croissant as well, Haemish's looked so good.
Then without waiting for anyone else to eat anything, he stuffed it straight into his mouth. Almost biting down on his bone hand in his eagerness to chew something tasty. "Mmm! Delicious!" He said around a mouthful of crispy, buttery, flaky bread. Aarav couldn't get enough of it.
Eating like this was the first time Aarav noticed that eating and Consuming were not the same, so if he overate at once, he would have to wait for Consume to catch up. But right now, it was working faster than ever before. Even without Consuming Blorenar, he could process four or five of those croissants each hour. With Consuming Blorenar, and after the 100-minute build to maximum capacity, he could put away double that. Of course, the real bonus was how much the experience obtained increased, and he would not lose that, even if it were just a few minutes of eating.
The Mana drain began as the Talent activated, and Aarav didn't slow his pace. Another four croissants quickly made it down his gullet and then sat in his slime, chewed up and ready for Consume to finish it off. Aarav wondered what would happen if he ate more than Consume could handle. Would he do as Haemish suspected and make waste? Hmm, maybe I am not entirely waste-free. It hardly matters at the pace I can Consume now, though.
Maybe he should stock up. After all, camels did it. If he could too, why not? The best part was that he could move around while Consume worked, so he didn't have to stay in one place like the bones. It was pure sustenance, no single session restrictions, and no losing weight if and when Assimilate was successful. It was the way to get things done!
He could tow those croissants around until they digested. And there seemed to be no upper limit to his bone legs as long as he could balance on them. So the next step while he Consumed the croissants was to practice balancing on these new legs of his. He would need the skill until he could acquire some human muscle. Or could any muscles work? Questions for another time. Right now, pastries are waiting to be eaten.
While Aarav gorged himself, Haemish and Marasa had taken a step back and allowed the Slime first pick. After a couple of minutes and Aarav showing no sign of slowing, they decided they better get in on the treats; otherwise, there would be nothing left. Aarav, by this point, had already consumed five croissants with another one in each hand. If he could have used his feet, he would have. Hygiene was not on the top of the Slime's mind, and neither did it matter. He would Consume the dirt along with the breaded treats.
No, the reason he couldn't use his legs was that he needed them to keep him at table height. He was balancing precariously on the two legs like they were stilts.
Nothing was going to keep this beast from his sustenance.
Aarav shoved another croissant into his mouth and chewed before finally calming down. What frenzied desire had taken him over? It was like as soon as the food came, he had to have all of it. "Hmm, sorry about that." Aarav said as his mind cleared a little from the hunger fog that had taken it captive. "Not sure what happened to me just now."
"Ho, you are apologising now? After you little short of attacking the food cart? I half expect that the server thought you would have eaten him if he had not retreated in time!" Haemish chuckled heartily. "I have been a bad host, not getting you enough to eat! I shall keep that in mind for the future!"
"I don't think even I realised how hungry I was. I have never lost control that way." The way he had attacked the food was reminiscent of a shark with blood in the water, and the behaviour terrified him. The others seemed to take it in stride, but Aarav had never felt that type of surge before. He would have eaten a baby if that was what someone he placed before him. "I would appreciate that! That felt a little insane. It must have been the smell of the food. You know what that can do to a man!"
"Oh, absolutely, I completely agree!" the round man rubbed his belly a little before turning to Marasa for confirmation. The woman burst out laughing at the man and Slime's antics and just picked up another muffin with a berry filling. It looked delicious, and as she bit into it, the berries inside seemed to ooze out in a delightful cascade of syrup.
"I guess I know what I am going for next!" At a much more measured pace than the last time, Aarav ate the last croissant in his other hand and then stepped over to the table to pick up one of the berry muffins. Was it a muffin if it was a cake cup with a berry heart? Aarav was no expert; he would call it a muffin berry cup. Whatever it was, it was even more delicious than it looked. If Aarav's endurance had not improved significantly, he might have got a sugar high on the first bite. Woah! I thought the croissants were good, but this! There were no words. Comparing this fare with the old world was like a takeout menu to the Mona Lisa. He was exaggerating to a ridiculous degree, but he couldn't help it; his mind was reeling.
Is this heaven? He took another slow bite, savouring each morsel in his mouth for a good minute before taking the next. Aarav would have said this was a quality over quantity situation if not for the veritable mountain of pastries that came heaped on the cart.
Quality and quantity! My favourite! Aarav would eat all the five kilos of food he needed from this one cart, and nothing would stop him! And if he needed more space, he just needed to make it by expanding a little, ah the joys of a Slime body.
"So are you still letting me you have no waste at all? Where are you planning to keep all of this?" Haemish gestured to the loaded cart. Aarav simply smiled at the man. Watch me!
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