The Gentleman at the End
Chapter 398 - Chapter 398 Chapter 397 The Inns Cuisine

Chapter 398: Chapter 397: The Inn’s Cuisine Chapter 398: Chapter 397: The Inn’s Cuisine Jin was never picky,

even though the bedding here had a strange odor, she still sat on the bunk as soon as she could, making the most of this free time.

“William, I’ve found that you don’t always practice what you preach~ Back in the corridor, you said we should avoid trouble, yet now you’ve chosen to stay in this strange inn. What exactly are you thinking?”

Yi Chen, pondering at the wooden table, answered:

“Because the scene at the exit of the passage was very different from what I anticipated, I want to understand the essence of this inn and the nature of these parasites, as well as what they really want to do.

The forms we took on just a moment ago were those of ‘the Dead’ and ‘the Cancer patients’,

logically speaking, we are entirely qualified to engage in related activities in the Old World, and our backing is very clear.

If these parasites still try some tricks during our stay or even attempt to kill us, we can infer two things:

1. These parasites are very special; they don’t care about the Source Epidemic Area’s perspective at all and aren’t worried about being hunted,

2. They view individuals from the outside world as enemies, regardless of whether we show signs of illness or not, and they will eliminate or parasitize us at all costs.

Once the above conclusions are proven,

such parasites pose a huge threat to our world, to the organization, and even to the whole of human civilization.

If we leave now, and the ‘Passage’ becomes completely corrupted by them, they’ll use a war of attrition to defeat Mr. Orman and parasitize him to steal memories, posing a significant threat to the organization.

Therefore, I’ve decided to stay a day to probe them,

and if necessary, kill them all.”

“Yay!”

Jin lifted her arms above her head and made a scissor gesture; she didn’t think as much as Yi Chen. The future of the organization had nothing to do with her as long as there was fun to be had.

This kind of killing of novel species was something Jin quite enjoyed.

Since the concept of time was erased in the Old World,

the ‘people’ residing in the inn did not have a regular pattern of sleeping and eating, and the dining area on the first floor was always crowded, with a never-ending supply of dishes from the kitchen.

Since they wanted to probe the depths of the inn, it was better to go to the lobby on the first floor and experience the dining process.

After waiting for half an hour, a table in the corner of the first floor was cleared,

Yi Chen seized the moment and quickly descended the stairs with Jin, only to find that a greasy hand had also landed on the table as they were about to sit down.

The greasy hand belonged to a burly man with sunken facial bones that resembled a human, but his belly had distinct ‘segmented patterns’, akin to Michelin tires, and somewhat reminiscent of a maggot’s body.

Moreover, there was a strangely shaped little girl sitting on his shoulder,

her eyes were about three times the size of a normal person’s, and occasionally, sharp teeth and a long, slender, curly tongue would peek out of her mouth, while her slim, hairy-wristed hands continuously fidgeted.

“This is our spot,”

declared the burly man with an extremely aggressive attitude, even shifting his tire-like belly onto the table.

Yi Chen didn’t react, not wanting to start a fight before understanding the situation in the inn, and he had also noticed this man with the girl earlier when observing the first floor; the man did indeed arrive at the inn earlier than they did.

Just as Yi Chen was about to give up the spot,

Whoosh!

A blade suffused with blood and covered in tumors was already at the man’s throat,

and Jin’s body was radiating waves of killing intent,

the tense atmosphere attracted the attention of many in the inn, with several even displaying a longing gaze, hoping to witness a beautiful scene of bodily fluids, limbs, and organs spewing forth.

In the end,

the girl seated on the man’s shoulder uttered a shrill and revolting language of the Old World:

“Baby, let’s go~

Since we’ve already established that we’re not qualified to go to the other side, there’s not much point in staying here to eat. If you get hungry on the way back, Mommy will lay more eggs for you to eat.”

“Mommy’s eggs! That’s great, that’s great!”

The burly man, like a simpleton, shook his maggot-like hefty body and quickly left the inn.

Yi Chen watched the odd mother and son, mulling over the words they had just uttered.

“Not qualified to go to the other side, does that refer to the trans-dimensional passage?

Could it be that the real way this inn makes a profit is by charging a ‘toll’ or something else to patients headed to the Old World on the other side?”

Just then, the clerk hurried over, “Are the two guests coming down for a meal? For our complimentary room guests, we only offer seasonal meals. If you would like to order a la carte, there will be an additional charge.”

“What’s included in the seasonal meal?”

“It is made with whatever ingredients we have on hand, prepared freshly in the kitchen.”

“Then let’s go with the seasonal food.”

“Right away!”

Yi Chen had an inkling that the circulating currency in the Old World was an ancient coin, and it stood to reason that such a unique inn located at the gateway would likely charge steep fees.

The speed at which the inn served meals was indeed fast, and within less than five minutes, dishes were brought to the table.

One dish was presented in a large iron pot, still bubbling as if it had been freshly stewed over intense heat, while the other was served on a small plate.

When the food arrived at the table, Yi Chen’s expression immediately twisted, and he felt a slight discomfort.

Brewing in the cauldron, beyond the thick bones with meat clinging to them, were chunks of white, gelatinous skin with obvious segmented marks, even sunken eyeballs and traces of hair floating on the surface.

As for what was on the plate, it was far more apparent,

A severed head lay there, seemingly just pickled raw.

The enormous eyeballs, dulled by death, revealed a densely packed compound eye structure.

Underneath the head was a skeleton, and the slices of meat that had been carved off, after being roasted, bore a resemblance to Beijing Roasted Duck, neatly arranged on either side of the plate,

accompanied by a pair of appropriately sized fly wings for ornamentation, along with a dish of white sauce mashed from the larvae within the body.

Yi Chen, who had experienced eating all kinds of strange dark cuisine in the orphanage, found this sight nauseating. He wouldn’t eat it if he wasn’t desperately hungry.

“Those mother and son from before? It hasn’t been much time since they left the table, less than ten minutes, and their remains have already been turned into this… This inn is no ordinary place.”

Seeing that Yi Chen still hadn’t eaten, the clerk came closer:

“If you’re not satisfied with the seasonal food, you can pay for something else.”

At this moment, Jin had already placed a piece of protein-rich, stewed white skin in his mouth, chewing and swallowing it, then giving a thumbs-up afterwards.

“Tastes good~ Yi Chen, you should try some too, just think of it like eating bugs! When I was locked in the basement with iron chains as a child, it was these little guys that kept me alive.”

“Jin, you go ahead~ I’m not very hungry. By the way, do you have any currency from the Old World?”

“Sure, I got a whole bag of it when I left the Cancer Palace,” Jin bragged.

“No need for a bag, just one will do.”

Jin immediately plunged his arm into his waist and fished out an ancient coin from between his abdominal organs,

The coin was made of a special kind of sedimentary rock, its hardness even greater than any metal seen in human society, and was white-grey in color.

On the face of the coin was a neuron-like interwoven structure, so vivid it seemed to pop in three dimensions,

While the back showed chain molecules similar to DNA or RNA, which even seemed to move within the coin from different angles.

To verify its authenticity, the coin’s edge would grow tentacle-like cilia after pathogens were injected into it, causing resonance.

The clerk, who hadn’t gone far, was called back by Yi Chen, who then slapped the coin into his hand.

As the clerk confirmed it was a real ancient coin, one of his eyeballs, overexcited, fell out.

Thud! It landed right into the steaming iron pot.

He promptly took out another spare eyeball from his body to replace it, while the one that fell into the pot was given to the customers to eat.

“Would you like to add more to your order?”

“No… I have some questions for you.”