Elf-like Life

Chapter 32, The Cafeteria and the Wind Chimes

The footprint guessing task is over, and there are no other tasks today.

Apart from being interrupted by Gengar, everything went smoothly, and I received all the rewards I was supposed to get.

It was nearing noon.

Humans would have been hungry long ago, and the elves were no exception; all the elves in the hall had rumbling stomachs.

Pikachu looked at its gradually shrinking belly and scratched its little head sheepishly.

"Hey, little Charmander, I'm suddenly hungry too~"

Apart from Charmander, who was still fuming and preoccupied with the legend of the Nine-Tailed Fox, and not feeling hungry, all the other Pokémon were restless, waiting for something.

Suddenly, a clear, crisp sound of wind chimes rang out!

"Ring ring ring ring ring ring ring—"

The pleasant and clear ringing of the bell signaled the start of lunchtime in the cafeteria.

As soon as the meal bell rang, the little elves on site erupted in chaos:

"Oh, oh, oh, it's the lunch bell ringing! Dinner's ready!"

"What kind of food is in the cafeteria today? I can't wait, I'm so hungry!!"

"Time to eat! Come on, let's eat!!!"

The little elves in the hall all scurried towards the cafeteria, as did the Diglett and Bombardier from the guard post. While they were eating, Daddy Three Diglett temporarily took over the guard duty.

All the little elves gathered in the underground canteen, and the aroma of food wafted from the direction of the canteen.

Now only Charmander is left standing there, lost in thought.

"Hey, little dragon, aren't you going to eat it?"

"Your stomach has shrunk too. Let's hurry up and go to the cafeteria to grab something to eat."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

Charmander was still distracted, after all, he was in a very bad mood after hearing the legend of the Nine-Tailed Fox.

But in the end, he nodded: "That's true, after all, food is essential for life. Let's go eat, Pikachu."

Pikachu and Charmander walked towards the cafeteria, one after the other.

————Guild Divider————

Lunchtime

The cafeteria was bustling with activity, filled with the enticing aroma of food, and almost every seat was occupied. There were far more diners than I had imagined.

Last time we missed the mealtime, but this time the two little ones knew the true scale of the cafeteria as soon as they entered.

The large square table was filled with little elves, including not only the guild's veterans but also expeditions from all over the world, all happily munching away.

Smack smack, smack smack...

Smack smack, smack smack...

Most of the little elves had the same guild meal on their plates, with good color, taste and texture. The meal consisted of three dishes and a soup.

The meals were similar to the diet meals served in the school cafeteria.

However, while most Pokémon eat the same food, the remaining few do not.

The food they ate was not the cafeteria set meal, but a stir-fry specially made by the cafeteria.

The stir-fries and the large pot set meals are obviously different; each plate is clearly the kind of exquisite stir-fries that you paid to have the chef cook on the spot.

Pikachu immediately went over.

The dishes on the table included homemade braised pork ribs, imperial roast duck, Tianfuhao braised pork knuckle, and cold pickled mustard greens, among others...

In short, all the exquisite stir-fries were laid out there, but the three little food elves weren't in a hurry to eat. Instead, they started a live-streaming food show to attract the attention of the other little elves.

These three little elves are veteran mukbang streamers, and they've even formed a recently famous mukbang adventure team.

Expedition Team Name: Old BJ Food Broadcasting Expedition Team

Size: 3

Team members: Fragrant monkey, Flowery coconut monkey, Cold water monkey.

Guild Contribution: Leader

Recent task log: I haven't done many tasks lately. My main task is to come to the guild cafeteria every day to do mukbang activities and build up popularity through mukbang.

The first to speak was Dongcheng Lengshuihou; you could tell he was a veteran Beijing radio host the moment he opened his mouth.

"Hey, guess what?"

"When Old BJ comes out, he has to eat something special. What's this called? Pickled mustard greens, paired with some Liu Bi Ju pickled vegetables, that's the real deal!"

Next up was Xicheng's "Exploding Scent Monkey," who raised his thumb and drew a circle in the air:

"Guess what? Old Beijingers always pull this trick: Tianfuhao's braised pork knuckle, it's just so authentic!"

The last one is a bit different in style from the first two. It doesn't have the old Beijing accent, and it needs to eat a small plate of skewers before its meal. It's a Shengjing-style coconut monkey.

"We old Beijingers can't live without pickled vegetables at every meal."

"Hey, this is delicious! It's amazing, my dear baby, she looks so happy!"

Pikachu: "Are we really going to finish all this food? It looks like there will be a lot left over."

Seeing that the two little ones hadn't lined up for food yet, the wind chimes from the meal ticket counter tinkled softly and sweetly.

"You two are the new members of the Starry Night Expedition Team, right? You can eat for free in this cafeteria during this period."

"Go get your plates first, then go to that window over there to get your food."

"Thank you!" (The two children said politely.)

Since it was their first time eating at the cafeteria according to the procedure, the two little ones were still a bit unfamiliar with it. Feng Lingling told them that usually, once she rang the bell, it meant that the cafeteria was open.

Pick up your small plate and then queue up to get your food at the designated window.

The canteen offers daily set meals, consisting of three dishes and a soup, which are quite substantial. These set meals are free for guild members but charge external expedition teams.

A meal costs 75 gold coins, and you can also get on-site discounts based on your contribution.

Pikachu said he wanted to try the stir-fry from Old BJ's food vlogger expedition team, but immediately hesitated when he saw the price.

All stir-fries, regardless of whether they are for locals or non-locals, are charged the same price.

Moreover, the cheapest dish costs 100 gold coins, while stir-fries cost 500, 1000, and 10000 gold coins. In short, if you can afford it, you can enjoy different dishes!

The two kids finally decided to eat the standard cafeteria meal today.

So Pikachu took the lead in carrying the food, and Charmander followed closely behind.

However, the perceptive Wind Chime immediately noticed that Charmander seemed preoccupied, and there was no joy on his face at all in enjoying his food.

Generally speaking, the sound of wind chimes is itself an appetite stimulant, in addition to their natural appeal to foodies.

Unexpectedly, today was an exception; this little fire dragon didn't seem to want to eat.

One spoonful of special fruit and vegetable salad

Two spoonfuls, dry-fried meatballs

Three spoonfuls, mixed vegetables

Finally, there was a delicious seaweed and egg drop soup.

Pikachu's eyes lit up with excitement. This guild meal was so well-balanced, not only in terms of color but also in terms of nutrition.

Moreover, I am quite confident in my cooking skills, and this dish is clearly made by a top-notch chef from a prestigious canteen; it's incredibly delicious.

Charmander: ...

…………

………………

"Hey, you don't seem very interested in today's food."

Wind Chime Ling circled around the little dragon, then looked at his conflicted expression and asked in confusion:

"That's rare. Could it be that the food wasn't good today?"

The little dragon finally came to its senses:

"Ah, no, no..."

Before he finished speaking, the small plate that had been reached into the window contained no large spoonful of food.

A spoonful of spilled salad dressing

Two spoonfuls, one fried meatball rolled out

The third spoonful—no, it was a kitchen knife!

【!!!!!】Charmander + Pikachu: !!!!!

At the last moment, a huge Pokémon-like shadowy figure, clearly visible inside the window, was angrily pointing a cleaver at the window, wearing a tall chef's hat, and coldly said:

"Feed!"

"I heard anyone thinks today's food was bad?!"

Who exactly is the cafeteria chef fairy? She's enormous!

(End of this chapter)