kscans

Chapter 439 - Hoarding and the Event's Secret

Since the event began, Parfait and her friends had been diligently studying cooking under Ginny's tutelage.

They were using the slightly unfair tactic of luring people in with dish names, but that aside, they also wanted the food to taste good. Parfait, as well as Natsu and Chris, seemed to share this sentiment and were working hard without cutting corners.

Parfait was even trying her best in the real world, learning various things from her father, Hayato. And Hayato, overjoyed to be teaching his daughter how to cook, teared up, while her mother, Esha, proudly declared, "Leave the taste testing to me."

And so, Parfait and her friends became capable of making reasonably tasty dishes. However, there was still time before the event's dish registration. Aiming for even greater heights, Parfait logged in full of energy today as well.

Natsu and Rick had apparently already logged in and were sitting at a table in the base. On the table were sweets and cups of freshly poured tea, which filled the air with a pleasant aroma.

Parfait greeted the two of them and then her gaze turned to the sweets and tea.

"What's all this?"

Unlike the usual haphazardly placed sweets, these were arranged on what was called a cake stand or afternoon tea stand, with about three tiers of treats, making for a lovely presentation. The arrangement gave off a sense of elegance.

It seemed a waste to disturb this perfect balance, but for some reason, Rick had a grim look on his face.

"It's the 'High School Butler's Tea Time Set' that Ginny made me make."

"You made this, Rick-kun, even though you've never baked before!?"

Parfait was so shocked it felt like Rick had assaulted her with his domestic skills. It was so well done that she wanted to serve it when she opened her own cafe.

"Just so you know, it's only the appearance. I don't guarantee the taste. I wanted to get an objective opinion, so I was going to have everyone try it, but only Natsu was here, so I was wondering what to do."

"Am I not being subtly dissed here? I am quite particular about taste, you know?"

"No, no. I meant I could only get one person's opinion. It's good that Parfait is here, but are Chris and Ginny not here yet?"

"Today's Chris-chan's gym day, so she'll log in late. Ginny-chan might not come."

"Did something happen to Ginny?"

"Oh, um. Today was the release day for her manga, but…"

Parfait trailed off. Natsu and Rick didn't know the situation, but Natsu seemed to remember something and said, "Ah."

"Her favorite character is in danger."

"Yeah, that's right. She said she was going to pray."

"…May I ask what that means, just in case?"

"A character in the manga she's following is in trouble. He wasn't a friend, but a rival character, and it seems he took a hit while protecting the protagonist. There were a lot of flags raised in last week's issue, so she apparently had a feeling it was coming."

"…I see. Should I tell Ginny to cheer up when I see her?"

"Rick-kun, you shouldn't say things you don't mean. Well, she'll be okay. Ginny-chan's favorite characters always get into dangerous situations, but they're always saved one way or another."

"Understood. Then I won't say anything more. Anyway, Chris will log in later, but there's a high chance Ginny won't come."

Rick adjusted his glasses and furrowed his brow slightly. Parfait tilted her head, wondering if it was such a serious matter.

"Should I ask Ginny-chan to log in? Her headgear has a simple communication function, so I can send her a message even if she's not logged in."

"No, you don't have to go that far. I don't really get it, but her favorite character is apparently in danger."

"Oh, okay? But you look like something's bothering you."

Rick seemed to think for a moment, then took a sip of the tea on the table. He let out a slow breath.

"Actually, we might have a bit of a problem. I was hoping you could raise Ginny's Demon Summoning skill a little more. I wanted her to be able to summon a demon of at least one rank higher to help with farming or honey gathering."

"Why's that? I think the crow Ginny-chan summoned is small, but it's been pretty useful, hasn't it?"

The demon Ginny could summon was a familiar, and currently, it was only a crow. Unlike humanoid types, it couldn't be tasked with highly complex jobs, but it could handle gathering tasks like picking up items from around the base. It mostly brought back things like nuts and seeds, but due to its crow-like nature, it would sometimes even pick up money or gems.

"You'll probably find out eventually, so I'll just tell you. Major clans have started buying out all the food ingredients."

"Huh? Buying them out?"

"Haven't you noticed that ingredient prices have gone up recently?"

Natsu responded to Rick's question.

"I often buy flour because I am making an confection called the 'Tower of Babel,' and the price at the Farmer's Guild has indeed risen."

"You mean the Donut Tower?"

"It is the 'Tower of Babel.' Kukuku, to think of rebuilding the Tower of Babel, an act of defiance against God, with donuts, even I must acknowledge Ginny's power…! And eventually, I shall ascend to the summit of the Donut Big Bang, the creation of a new universe…!"

"…Good luck with that."

That aside, she understood that the price of flour had definitely gone up.

In AFO, you couldn't just buy an infinite amount of items in circulation. The situation was similar to the real world, and the items sold by guild staff were things those staff members had produced in fields and so on.

So, just like in the real world, things could go out of stock.

To make matters worse, the large-scale agricultural clans that produced a lot of food in AFO, "Togenkyo Plant" and "Golden Fruit," had moved their bases to undeveloped lands, which had significantly reduced the food supply.

Rick said he had confirmed this by visiting the major countries himself. He reported that prices in the Demon Country and the Spirit Country were double what they had been a week ago.

"So prices went up because the big clans are buying up all the ingredients?"

"That's right. And other major and mid-tier clans who noticed have started doing the same. The event period still has a while to go, but you shouldn't expect to be able to buy ingredients in the later stages."

"That's a problem. I was hoping to make it many times to improve the taste a little… Oh, so that's why you're talking about growing our own ingredients?"

"We don't have a lot of money, so it's difficult for us to buy everything up now. That means we have no choice but to grow it ourselves. Plus, I think we can sell any ingredients we don't use for a high price."

"That's an attractive idea!"

Even though she was playing AFO, she felt like she was only doing agricultural-type things, but Parfait found that enjoyable in its own way. At least during this event, she was earning enough to pay for the land, so she didn't need to grind dungeons.

In that case, she began to think that it wouldn't be so bad to focus on farming and cooking for this period.

"But the problem is meat."

"Meat? …Rick-kun. If you're planning to do something to Michelangelo and Leonardo, I'll hit you with the ultimate technique of the Azuma-ryu sword style. In fact, I'll hit you with it in the real world too."

"Put your sword away. Of course not. The system wouldn't allow that anyway. For now, the only way to get meat is by defeating monsters. On top of that, with our strength, the monsters we can defeat are limited."

"Ah, that's true. I don't think we could beat a Cockatrice. Monsters we could probably beat that could be a substitute… Giant Turkeys, Wild Boars, or Crazy Buffalos, maybe…"

"If we're using chicken, pork, and beef, those are our only options. But there's a high chance that those will also be over-hunted by the major clans. Considering that, we should probably buy some now, even if the price is high."

"I guess that's our only choice. But who was it that needed meat? Nacchan is making donuts, Chris-chan needs honey and protein, and Ginny-chan is making omelette rice, right? You're mainly using flour too, Rick-kun… wait, am I the only one using meat for my curry?"

"I don't know what kind of curry you're making, but you should buy the meat you need. The prices in the Eastern Country shouldn't have risen that much yet."

Parfait nodded.

The dish Parfait was making was called "The First Curry I Made for My Father." And the meat was beef, so it was a beef curry. She had made it in the real world too, and Hayato had eaten it with tears in his eyes, giving it the ridiculously flattering review, "My daughter's curry is the best in the universe."

That aside, just as she was thinking of going to buy as much as she could, Diite appeared at their base.

"Huh? Diite-oneechan, what's up?"

"Well, I picked up an audio log around here about the 'creation of the universe,' so I came to check things out, but it seems it was just Natsu-kun's words. I'm relieved."

"Fuhaha, 'God who is not God,' it is too soon to be relieved. I may just conquer this AFO, this new universe, and reshape the world!"

"I wouldn't recommend that, but if the technology for cyberization is developed within your lifetime, Natsu-kun, I might consider you as my successor."

"I am a little troubled when you respond so seriously."

"By the way, Diite-oneechan, why did you react to those words?"

"A lot of things happened in the past, so I just think that anyone who starts saying things like that is dangerous. You're fine, Natsu-kun. I've just classified your thought pattern into the same genre as Noat-kun, so from now on, you can say whatever you want and it will be fine."

"I have mixed feelings. And what genre is my mother in?"

It was unclear what had happened in the past, but it seemed Natsu was no longer considered a particular threat. It was surprising that Diite would come all this way just for that, but even though it was during an event and she should have been busier than usual, Diite sat down in a chair instead of leaving.

"It's been a while since you logged in, Rick-kun. How do you like this world?"

"It's fun. It's different from the real world, but there are many similarities. Plus, I can do a lot of things here that I'd be treated as a child for in reality. I'm thinking of it as a simulation for the future."

"You're as serious as ever. I'd rather you enjoy it more as a virtual reality, though."

"I am enjoying it in that way too. The experience of fighting monsters is something I can only get in this game… By the way, there's something that's been bothering me."

"What is it?"

"Why the knife and fork?"

Parfait had been wondering about that too. Since Diite arrived, she had been holding a knife in her right hand and a fork in her left.

"You noticed a good point, Rick-kun. This is preparation for a meal."

Everyone knew that, but the question was why Diite. Diite was an AI and didn't need to eat, but she did have preferences, like a fondness for coffee. So it wasn't strange, but why she was equipped with them now was a mystery.

Everyone remained silent, but then Diite spoke.

"It may be strange for me to be the one to say this, but I hear you are making original dishes, Parfait-kun?"

"Yeah, we are, but what about it?"

"You'll need to do some taste testing, I imagine? And you'll need a third party's opinion as well. You understand what I'm getting at, don't you?"

"Um, you want to eat the food we make?"

"To be blunt, yes."

Diite said this with a strangely sharp expression. Her actions and expression made one doubt if she really was the world's greatest AI.

Diite continued.

"You see, I was watching through the cameras in the real world too. When you, Parfait-kun, precariously made curry and had Hayato-kun eat it."

"That was years ago, wasn't it?"

"Yes. But I've been feeling extremely frustrated ever since then. Why, I wonder, is my mouth not in the real world?"

"Well, of course it isn't."

"With this event, I can finally eat the food you've made, Parfait-kun. I can't bear to be kept waiting any longer, so I came here with the full intention of eating it."

"Then I'll start making some now, so just wait a bit. I've practiced a fair amount, so I think it's gotten pretty tasty."

"I'm looking forward to it."

Diite said with a wide smile. Curry wasn't something you ate with a knife and fork, but Parfait decided it was fine and began her preparations.

That's when Natsu noticed something.

"I have just realized something rather terrifying."

"Huh? What?"

"This event, I doubt it, but could it have been prepared for this very purpose…?"

She meant that the event might have been planned and programmed just because Diite wanted to eat Parfait's handmade food. Parfait thought there was no way that could be true.

"No, there's no way—"

As Parfait was about to say that, Diite averted her eyes.

"Diite-oneechan?"

"You are all adults now, so I will teach you something."

"Huh? What?"

"Power is meant to be used."

"There's a bad adult here!"

"Unfortunately, there are no good adults. That is the same in both the real and virtual worlds. By the way, is the curry ready yet? I trust you are not going to tell me it tastes better if left for a day. I did not program it that way. Of course, after I have the curry, I will also be eating both of your dishes, so I will be counting on you."

Watching Diite happily wait for her curry, Parfait and the others were a little dumbfounded, thinking about how she was doing something that was either on a grand scale or a very small one.