Originally, Stelle wasn't sure if she could eat five crabs in twenty seconds, but if Pei Guang could do it, then why couldn't she?
Seeing their unwavering confidence, Turner was moved. To him, these two were real heroes. They could have easily used their titles and fame to get free food, but instead, they chose to join his contest and help boost his business.
This kind of grace and behavior—what else could you call it but heroic? But how could he possibly take advantage of these heroes?
After thinking for a moment, Turner shouted, "I want to thank our heroes from the Underworld for everything they've done for us! I, Turner, promise that no matter how the contest turns out, both of you can eat for free at my stall anytime! This is just a small token of my gratitude! Please, don't refuse!"
Pei Guang: "Free food or not, that's not the point. Can we start this challenge already? I'm eager to get my achievement."
Stelle: "Exactly! Let's get that title!"
At that moment, Turner felt the intense resolve emanating from Pei Guang and Stelle. Ah, what a brilliant spirit they both had.
Turner: "Looks like our heroes are ready! I'll count down from three, and then we'll start! Remember, you need to finish five plates of deep fried rock crabs in twenty seconds to win."
"Three... two... one! Go!"
As soon as Turner said "go," both Pei Guang and Stelle started at the same time. They each grabbed a crab and took their first bite.
The rich, savory flavor exploded in Stelle's mouth, surprising her. She never thought she'd taste something so delicious in the Underworld.
But after the second bite, that deliciousness was overshadowed by an overwhelming feeling of fullness. Her stomach started to churn with nausea—not because the food was bad, but because the greasy preparation made it hard to eat multiple crabs in a row. One was fine, but eating several back-to-back was pushing her limits.
Instinctively, Stelle glanced at Pei Guang. To her surprise, Pei Guang was calmly taking bite after bite, finishing a crab every second or two, without any sign of discomfort.
Fueled by a sudden surge of determination, Stelle shouted internally, "I can't lose! I won't lose! Burn, my life force! I will become the Galaxy's Big Eater!"
In that moment, she felt as though the Stellaron inside her responded to her will, frantically burning the excess energy she was consuming. However, by the time she reached her fourth crab, Stelle's vision was starting to blur.
She glanced over at Pei Guang again, only to see him casually finishing his last crab and calmly sipping water.
Oh no!
In that instant, Stelle truly understood what it meant to feel outclassed. It was one thing to fall short in other areas, but to lose in an eating contest? She was Stelle! She had the power of the Stellaron within her, and she was meant to save the world!
With five seconds left, despite being completely full and feeling nauseous, Stelle refused to give up. Determined, she pushed herself even harder.
At that moment, Stelle felt like the stars themselves were cheering her on.
From the start of the contest until now, a total of 301 words had passed. For Stelle, this felt like the longest period of her life. But she wasn't going to quit. Unfortunately, her Stellaron couldn't keep burning the energy fast enough to allow her to continue eating.
After all, the Stellaron only improved her digestion speed—it couldn't make what she ate disappear instantly. But would Stelle give up? Not a chance. Eyeing the last half of her crab, she felt a sudden surge of clarity. It was as though her body unlocked its seventh sense, triggering hidden reserves of energy. She felt her body fully liberated.
"I will become... the Big Eater! I will win!"
With a final push, she shoved the last half of the crab into her mouth just as time ran out.
The contest was over. Stelle had successfully claimed the title of Big Eater. But at what cost? She collapsed immediately.
As she lay on the ground, Stelle glanced at Pei Guang with a look of pride and triumph. She had completed the challenge. She had done it.
But when she saw the confused look on Pei Guang's face, a sudden realization hit her.
"Wait, I have an inventory space... Why did I actually eat everything?"
In that moment, Stelle felt a wave of nausea unlike anything she'd ever experienced. She had eaten too much, and her body couldn't handle it anymore. She passed out, and as her body involuntarily started to vomit, Pei Guang quickly caught it in a trash bag.
Pei Guang whispered, "Seriously? You actually ate all of it?"
Only Stelle could hear him, and through her tears of pain, she sobbed, "I forgot!!!"
Yes, Stelle had completely forgotten that she could've used her inventory space to stash the crabs instead of eating them.
Cheating? Who said anything about cheating? If no one noticed, it wasn't cheating. Besides, wasn't the goal to win?
Pei Guang: "..."
Pei Guang didn't even know what to say at this point. Should he call her too honest? She had tackled the challenge head-on without taking any shortcuts. Clearly, her mindset hadn't fully adapted to more... efficient methods. Once she woke up, Pei Guang decided he'd have to teach Stelle how to make better use of her abilities and items to complete tasks and challenges more effectively.
Nearby, March 7th, Seele, and Bronya, who had been watching the whole thing, rushed over when they saw Stelle vomit. "Did she really eat too much? Why would she push herself so hard...?"
Pei Guang replied, "You probably won't believe me, but she's just too honest."
March 7th fell silent. Too honest? Stelle, the most mischievous member of the group—well, second only to Pei Guang—too honest? Wait, from Pei Guang's perspective, maybe that actually made sense.
Suddenly, March 7th realized something wasn't adding up. The crabs were huge, and even Pei Guang shouldn't have been able to finish them all in one go. So why was he totally fine?
Wait a minute... Could it be...?
March 7th figured it out. Pei Guang hadn't actually eaten them all, had he? At that moment, she confirmed Pei Guang's judgment: Stelle was, indeed, too honest. She had literally eaten her way to victory in the contest.
And as for Pei Guang? He had won in his own, rather... underhanded way.
Stelle: "Ugh!"
To be fair, the portion sizes at this stand were enormous. The crab meat Pei Guang had stored away in his spatial inventory, combined with what Stelle had vomited up, filled an entire trash bag. Pei Guang carefully packed the bag away, deciding to keep it for later use.
As a biochemical weapon, this might be even more potent than a regular garbage bag. Of course, he'd have to be careful when using it to avoid causing psychic damage to allies.
But no worries! Someday, they might encounter an enemy so massive that even if they tossed everything, it wouldn't splash on their teammates. Even if they couldn't win, they could at least disgust the enemy a little, right?
Turner, the contest organizer, was visibly concerned as he asked, "Is she okay?"
Stelle looked up at Turner and forced a smile. "I'm fine. Your crabs were delicious. It's just that I—Ugh!"
At that moment, Stelle's consciousness faded completely. She swore to herself that the next time she participated in an eating contest, she wouldn't make the same mistake of actually eating all the food. Not cheating and genuinely eating everything — wasn't that just plain foolish?