Chapter 564 - 560 – THE ROASTED MEAT TAVERN AND A QUIET NIGHT

The night grew later in Black Lotus City. The magic lamps hanging along the main district streets began to dim, replaced by the glow of moonlight and the cold breeze blowing from the direction of the outer walls.

After spending time shopping for various antiques and unique materials, Sylvia’s stomach began to voice a light sense of hunger. Although physically an entity on the level of the Queen of Death no longer required mortal food intake to survive, Sylvia still enjoyed the sensation of tasting local cuisine as part of her lifestyle.

"Let us find a good restaurant for dinner," Sylvia murmured softly while stroking Sol’s soft fur on her shoulder.

She walked toward the most luxurious culinary area in the upper district. There, restaurant buildings stood magnificently with marble decorations and silk curtains. However, the experience at several high-class restaurants actually worsened Sylvia’s mood.

At the first restaurant she visited, a rigidly uniformed male waiter looked at Sylvia’s clothing with an assessing gaze from top to bottom. Although Sylvia’s evening gown looked extremely elegant, to the arrogant waiters accustomed to serving local-clan-badge-wearing nobles, Sylvia who brought no escorts and wore no prominent family badge was regarded merely as a girl from outside the city trying to act rich.

"I am sorry, Miss," the waiter said in a deliberately cold tone, blocking Sylvia’s body at the entrance. "Our restaurant is exclusive to guests with noble-clan reservations or Association officials. If you do not possess a recommendation card, please seek a place to eat in the lower district."

A similar thing occurred at the second restaurant. The waiter there even openly forbade Sol and Noir from entering, stating that "unauthorized pets" were prohibited from dirtying their luxurious dining area.

Sylvia merely regarded those waiters with a thin, cold smile. She deliberately had not yet taken out her black-gold VIP Access Card from the spatial dimension. To Sylvia, seeing how shallow and arrogant mortal humans were based on external appearance was an amusing, yet somewhat irritating, entertainment.

If only these foolish humans knew whom they had just driven away, Sylvia thought casually. A Rank 7 Mage as well as a Grand Tamer. With a single sentence from me, the City Lord or the Association would level this restaurant to the ground within hours.

Yet Sylvia had no intention of wasting her energy demolishing a restaurant over such a trivial matter. "Places with rigid waiters like that usually only sell prestige, not the true taste of the food," Sylvia sighed, turning around and leaving the luxurious restaurant area.

She decided to search for a more commoner’s place to eat. While walking along the streets that were beginning to quiet, Sylvia communicated through the soul link with her two companions.

’Sol, Noir, what do you want to eat tonight?’ Sylvia asked via telepathy.

The answers that entered her mind came almost simultaneously and were extremely short.

’Meat!’ Sol exclaimed with the enthusiastic voice of a child inside Sylvia’s mind.

’Fresh meat roasted over hot fire, Your Majesty,’ Noir replied with a heavy and calm voice.

Sylvia laughed softly upon hearing it. Of course. No matter what form their current disguises took as a golden cat and a black cat their true nature was that of a primordial dragon and a shadow dragon. Desserts such as sweet cakes or magic fruits would never satisfy the appetites of natural predators like them. Meat was the only absolute answer.

"Very well, we will look for a roasted-meat tavern," Sylvia decided.

She stepped out of the main district, following secondary streets that connected the upper and middle districts. At a stone-road intersection, the savory aroma of meat fat burning over charcoal drifted closer, stimulating the appetite.

Sylvia followed that aroma and found a medium-sized roasted-meat tavern. The tavern had a somewhat worn wooden signboard with the writing ’Black Wood Roasted Meat Tavern’. Thick wooden tables were arranged neatly in the front courtyard, yet strangely the entire place was completely empty. Not a single customer sat there, in stark contrast to the other taverns around it that were still filled with several visitors.

A middle-aged man passing along the street appeared to notice Sylvia standing and staring at the empty tavern. The man stopped his steps and whispered softly with a worried expression.

"Young Miss... if you are looking for dinner, it is better not to eat at that tavern," he cautioned gently.

Sylvia turned, regarding the man with raised eyebrows. "Why? The aroma smells extremely delicious, and the place is clean."

The man sighed, glancing fearfully toward the inside of the tavern before whispering more softly, "The meat preparations of the old grandfather who owns that tavern are indeed the most delicious in this area, but he has a big problem with the City Lord’s side. His son, who is a hunter, was accused of hiding rare hunting results from the mayor’s taxes. Now the City Lord’s subordinates often monitor this place. Anyone who dares eat there will be targeted and have their faults searched for by the city guards."

"Oh? Is that so," Sylvia responded briefly, nodding slowly.

"So it is better for Miss to look for another tavern rather than get dragged into trouble," the man advised before hurriedly leaving the area.

Sylvia stared at the empty tavern once more. The local political conflict between the owner of a small tavern and the mayor of this city held absolutely no meaning to her. Targeting her? If the City Lord’s troops were foolish enough to seek trouble with her merely because she ate roasted meat at this place, that would only become a good reason for Sylvia to replace the mayor of this city the next day.

Without the slightest hesitation, Sylvia stepped into the tavern’s courtyard and sat at one of the largest wooden tables in a comfortable corner.

From the kitchen area, an elderly white-haired grandfather wearing a leather apron stained with soot came out while carrying a cleaning cloth. The old man’s face looked weary and burdened. Yet when he saw an elegant evening-gowned girl sitting at his table, the old man’s eyes widened in confusion.

"Y-Young Miss?" the old man asked hesitantly, stepping closer. "Are you not in the wrong place? This place... my tavern is currently not in a good condition. I fear your presence here will bring trouble for yourself."

Sylvia smiled kindly, waving her hand lightly. "I came here to eat roasted meat, Grandfather, not to deal with other people’s problems. Is your tavern still open?"

The tavern-owning grandfather was momentarily stunned while gazing at the calm in Sylvia’s eyes. Finally, a touched smile appeared on his wrinkled face. "It is still open, Miss! This tavern is always open as long as I still have charcoal fire and meat. What would you like to order?"

"Bring the largest portion of the best roasted meat you have," Sylvia said. "Use your best seasoning, and prepare three large plates."

"Very well, Miss! Please wait a moment!" the old man exclaimed with a spirit that had reignited. He immediately returned to the back kitchen.

It did not take long for an extremely dense savory aroma to surge from the kitchen direction. The sound of fat sizzling as it dripped onto the charcoal fire sounded refreshing.

A short while later, the tavern-owning grandfather came out carrying a large iron tray. Upon it was served a pile of thick roasted-meat cuts from the thigh of a Mutated Armored Boar roasted until golden brown, coated with a bubbling hot red spice sauce.

"Here is the dish, Miss! Black-wood-spice roasted mutant thigh meat!" the old man said while placing three gigantic wooden plates on the table.

"Thank you, Grandfather," Sylvia said.

Once the old man returned inside to prepare drinks, Sylvia divided the portions of the dish. She slid one plate full of piled meat in front of Sol, who leapt down onto the table, and placed another plate on the floor for Noir, who emerged from the shadows.

Once they received permission from Sylvia, the two primordial dragons in disguise immediately devoured their meals.

Sol used its small claws to hold the gigantic meat cuts before tearing them with its sharp teeth, eating the meat extremely voraciously until the spice sauce stuck around its golden whiskers. Meanwhile Noir beneath the table chewed the thick pile of roasted meat in several large bites, radiating a low sound of satisfaction.

In stark contrast to the savage and ferocious eating style of her two companions, Sylvia enjoyed her portion with full elegance. She used the small silver knife and fork she had brought herself from the spatial dimension, cutting the thick roasted meat into precise small pieces before placing them into her mouth with extremely delicate movements.

The taste of the meat was extraordinary. The texture of the mutant meat crispy on the outside yet extremely tender and juicy on the inside perfectly absorbed the savory spicy seasoning made by the old grandfather.

"Extremely delicious," Sylvia praised softly.

In less than fifteen minutes, the three large plates of piled roasted meat had been cleaned without a single leftover. Sol burped softly while licking the sauce around its mouth with satisfaction, then leapt back onto Sylvia’s shoulder and curled up comfortably. Noir merged once more with the shadow of Sylvia’s evening gown, full and calm.

The tavern-owning grandfather who came out carrying warm drinks was astonished upon seeing how quickly those gigantic plates had become empty, especially when glancing at the small golden cat on Sylvia’s shoulder that had just finished a meat portion equivalent to ten times its own body weight.

Sylvia stood from her seat. She took out her black-gold VIP Access Card and swiped it on the tavern’s portable payment plate, paying the meal cost while giving an abundant tip to the old grandfather.

"Your cooking is truly extraordinary, Grandfather," Sylvia said while smiling. "Please keep this tavern open."

The tavern-owning grandfather bowed repeatedly with teary eyes upon seeing the amount of payment he received. "Thank you very much, Miss! Thank you for your kindness!"

Sylvia stepped out of the tavern into the fresh night air. While observing the surrounding streets, Sylvia only then realized the layout of this area. This roasted-meat tavern was apparently only a few blocks away from the Silver Tower Apartment Building where she lived. It only required a leisurely five-minute walk through the shopping alleys.

"An extremely close distance," Sylvia murmured with a satisfied smile. "It seems I have already found the perfect regular place for dinner for the next few days."

Sylvia walked leisurely along the quiet stone street, entered the lobby of the Silver Tower, and ascended using the magical elevator toward the penthouse unit on the fiftieth floor.

Once inside her warm apartment, Sylvia walked toward the main bedroom. She removed her evening gown, changed into soft silk sleepwear, then reclined her body upon the extremely soft fur-blanketed bed.

Sol curled up at the side of her pillow, radiating a warm soft purring, while Noir kept watch in the corner of the room within the calm darkness.

The first night in Black Lotus City closed with perfect silence. Sylvia closed her pair of heterochromatic eyes, allowing her consciousness to sink into a deep, peaceful sleep high upon the fiftieth floor of this new city.