I'm back... Have 3 gigs in 3 different cities in a span of 5 days... Have to keep moving after one gig, but now I'm back.
Ludwig twisted the handle as soon as he arrived in front of the restaurant's door. When he finally pushed it and entered, the first thing he saw was the customers around the dining hall. Several tables near the front were already occupied even though the day had barely moved past noon. A pair of Shadow Hand sat near the window while quietly finishing their meals, their conversation low enough that it blended into the background sounds of the room. Somewhere behind the counter, a ladle struck the rim of a pot as someone, probably Bilo.
Ludwig took a step forward and closed the door behind him. Instantly, Vilera noticed him.
"You're back early, Boss."
Ludwig smiled at her question. "Not for long. I'm just here to order some food."
"Is that so?" Valerie asked. "What do you want, Boss?"
Ludwig didn't answer the question instantly. This kind of treatment in his own restaurant was new. So, he decided to savour the sensation longer. Only after he chuckled by how dumb he might sound did his mind drifted into the menu he and his staff had decided for today service.
Chicken curry over rice made with curry block of Tempest creation and rice from Elos.
Tonkatsu with pork from Elos, not any specialty, just any pork.
Stir-fried seafood with Elos seafood which was rich in the summer.
And Tempura assortment.
They were menus that should be easy enough for anyone in the kitchen to handle even without him. Well, except maybe for the chicken curry since only Ludwig could cook that for now. The other, not too flashy, but it should kept the patron fed.
"Give me five servings of the Chicken Curry over rice, 2 serving of tonkatsu, and one serving of stir-fried seafood. Don't forget about the lemonades."
"Sure, Boss. Please wait for a few minutes." Vilera nodded before running into the kitchen.
Ludwig settled on one of the chairs. First, he watched how Bilo and Finka reacted on his order. They whispered to each other for a few seconds before moving, probably already decide who should be in charge of which order.
Satisfied, Ludwig shifted his posture towards the dining area.
Aside from a pair from Elos' strongest organization earlier, there were also few orcs, goblins, and dragonewt inside the restaurant. Well, the current restaurant was filled with them.
The other regulars of the restaurant were nowhere to be seen. A not so surprising sight since Ludwig had come to know that a few of his regualrs were quite an important figures in their world.
Before long, Ludwig heard a thud behind him. When he checked, he saw his orders already spread out around the separator.
"Since it's you boss, we don't have to pack it nicely, correct?" Vilera asked.
"Nice insight." Ludwig chuckled before stuffing all of his orders into his Storage Dimension with a wave of his hand.
Once he's done, he bid his farewell to his staff before leaving the restaurant and teleport again, back to the Safari Zone now.
The moment Ludwig stepped out of the void again, the quiet air of the Safari Zone greeted him. The purple distortion closed behind him as the world settled back into place. The river flowed nearby just as calmly as before, its surface reflecting the early afternoon sun while the reeds along the bank swayed gently in the wind.
The others were still where he had left them.
Rimuru sat on the grass with his back leaning against a tree trunk while staring at the river as if it had personally offended him. Claire sat a short distance away with Abra beside her, the small psychic Pokemon once again sitting cross-legged with its eyes closed as if meditating. Professor Oak stood closer to the bank while observing the water quietly, while Looker remained near the shade of another tree.
Rimuru noticed Ludwig first.
"You took your time."
"Did I?" Ludwig replied while stepping closer. He then waved his hand in the air again, but this time, it was to place the food he had order to the ground rather than storing anything.
The smell spread instantly, and Ludwig could see that the smell alone had pulled the attention of everyone present.
"Chicken Curry over Rice, Tonkatsu, stir-fried seafood, and lemonades. Enjoy."
The 4 humans, 1 slime, and 1 Pokemon gathered quickly around the food Ludwig brought.
"Woah." Rimuru said as he leaned into the food, his displeasure had gone without trace now.
As the other still looking at the food, Rimuru wasted no time. He raised a spoon and scooped a generous amount of the chicken, the curry, and the rice before plunging it into his mouth.
After chewing it for a few second, he finally gulped it down. "Woah, that's so good."
Claire, who was looking at Rimuru, quietly tasted hers a moment later. Her reaction was far more restrained than Rimuru's, but the slight pause after her first bite made it clear she also appreciated the food.
They ate in relative silence after that.
The wind continued to move across the river while the scent of the food drifted slowly through the air. A few distant cries of bird Pokemon echoed somewhere deeper in the preserve while the water beside them flowed calmly along its course.
For several minutes, everyone seemed to forget why they were here. Even Ludwig didn't even think about it.
But suddenly,
Something moved in the river. At first it was nothing more than a small ripple. The surface of the water just shifted near the reeds on the opposite bank before returning to its slow, steady flow. No one reacted to that. Even Ludwig just brushed it off as a natural occurrence rather than an anomalous thing after sensing it. Then the ripple came again. But this time the movement lingered. The water bent around something moving just beneath the surface before settling once more.
Claire was the first one who paid closer looks into it. She moved her head towards the water and whispered. "Something is moving in the river."
Rimuru paused with his spoon halfway to his mouth before moving his gaze to where Claire was looking. "Hm?"
For a moment, nothing happened. But then the reeds shifted again. Not only that, something slender also moved just beneath the surface of the river before rising slowly. As its arrow head broke through the waterline, pink scales caught the sunlight.
It was a Dratini.
The small dragon did not fully emerge. Most of its body remained beneath the water while it studied the group sitting along the bank.
Well, more specifically,
The food.
The wind carried the scent of curry across the river. The smell drifted over the surface of the water before reaching the small Pokemon watching from the reeds.
Rimuru slowly lowered his spoon.
"…No way."
The Dratini tilted its head slightly. Its body moved closer, gliding through the water with slow, careful movements.
Professor Oak stepped forward a little before letting out a comment "Interesting."
Now, the Pokemon surfaced a bit more. Sunlight struck its scales again as it moved toward the bank.
However…
The colour was wrong. It was not the colour of other Dratinis they had saw before.
Ludwig narrowed his eyes, trying to get a good look at the pink luster its scale had. But before he was able to do that,
"…Remarkable." Professor Oak murmured. But his excitement could still be heard from that.
Rimuru, who had been looking at the Dratini, wiped his head towards the professor. "W-what's wrong Professor?"
Oak adjusted his glasses as he studied the Pokémon carefully. "That coloration is extremely rare."
The Dratini lingered just beneath the surface while watching the group. Its eyes shifted briefly toward the containers of food resting on the grass. Then it moved closer.
After hearing Oak's answer, Rimuru quickly set his container down.
"…Don't scare it." He said.
Even without his instruction, everyone already knew. No one moved. They even went to great lengths of breathing quietly. Even Abra remained perfectly still beside Claire, its eyes still closed as if meditating.
In the meantime, the river moved gently around the small dragon as it approached the bank. By now it was only a few meters away. Though, Its gaze remained fixed on the food.
Looking at it, Ludwig opened his mouth. "Think carefully about what you are going to do."
Rimuru looked at Ludwig for a brief second before nodding. Then, as if he had long thought about what to do, his hand slowly reached toward the pouch at his side and took out a Safari Ball.
The Dratini remained where it was as the wind shifted again, carrying another wave of curry scent across the water.
Then, Rimuru stood. The Safari Ball now rested lightly in his hand.
For a moment the two simply watched each other. Then, Rimuru made his move.
The Safari Ball left his hand in a smooth arc. It struck the Dratini gently before opening in a flash of light. The small dragon vanished into the beam as the ball dropped onto the grass near the riverbank.
The ball shook once.
Then again.
The third shake lasted longer than the others.
For a brief moment it looked like the ball might open again.
But then,
Click-!!
The sound echoed softly through the quiet riverside.
Rimuru stared at the ball for several seconds.
"…Did that actually work?"
Ludwig chuckled quietly at his question.
It seemed Rimuru had finally caught his dragon.
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