The stew was incredibly delicious, with the refreshing taste of the sea and a slightly spicy broth. Having been in this game for a few weeks without experiencing much spice, I felt an unusually strong longing. While my previous self wasn’t a picky eater, relying mostly on convenience stores and food delivery apps, I could still recognize that this stew was really well-made.
However, Cain played around with his spoon, poking the surface of the stew and tapping the mussel shells like a five-year-old who wanted to escape from the dinner table.
“It’s delicious. Try some.”
“Eating and digesting food is so troublesome. Everyone’s so foolish.”
Cain grumbled. In his appearance as a skinny man, he looked like someone who had adopted a concept of persistent dissatisfaction. With a slightly anxious feeling that the owner might overhear him, I asked Cain.
“Do you only eat to get full?”
“What?”
“Enjoying the aroma and taste of food. Sitting together like this, sharing conversations, creating memories.”
“We can solve all that in one second with magic. Why waste time on such things?”
“I’m enjoying it now. After eating something spicy after a long time, memories of home come back, makes me want to drink a bit, and makes my body warmer. Plus, by eating this, I came out to the village with you. It doesn’t feel like a waste of time at all.”
I said that and scooped a spoonful into my mouth. Yeah, it’s delicious. Satisfied with the taste, I looked at Cain, who tilted his head slightly. His expression was hard to read, but the tips of his ears were red. Surely, he also found satisfaction in the warmth rising from the food.
After hearing my words, Cain diligently played with his spoon. He didn’t express admiration or eat with joy like me, but steadily finished his plate. Putting down his spoon on the table, he said, “I haven’t eaten food in almost three years.”
“Huh? Three years?”
“Its a nuisance after all.”
Seeing that both our plates were empty, he stood up. After taking out a few coins from his pants pocket and placing them on the table, Cain went out of the restaurant first. I tried to stand up to follow him, but I felt fullness and warmth in my stomach. I let out a long breath while gently massaging my slightly tightened belly.
“Did you enjoy the meal?”
The owner asked loudly from behind. I nodded and smiled at him.
“I really enjoyed the meal. I’ll come again!”
“How can the guy’s face be so pretty? Sure, come again!”
I exchanged greetings with the owner and left the shop. Cain, who had been waiting for me in front, raised an eyebrow.
“Why do you say you were coming again? Are you going to the village every mealtime?”
“Well, that might be difficult, but it would be nice to come again. I’m curious about other restaurants besides this one.”
Until now, I had stayed in specific places like Narcissus, Ice Prison, the temple, and the royal palace. I hadn’t thought about exploring the village or observing the daily lives of the people in this world.
Honestly, I was curious about the aspects of the game that I didn’t know. I thought that being an adult game, it would focus only on the bed scene, but there were stories about mana deficiency that the people of the empire often suffered from or magicians who secretly visited their favorite restaurants while cursing their boss, the Lord of the Magic Tower. Encountering these pieces of evidence that this place operated as an independent world with its own stories made me feel amazed and fascinated.
So, impulsively, I grabbed Cain.
“How about touring the village a bit?”
“Are you here to play?”
“Yes.”
“Ha, I’m annoyed.”
Cain carelessly scrunched up the man’s neat face and messed up his hair. The calm, auburn-hair that had been neatly arranged now stood up messily. Seeing his annoyed expression, I thought I might as well head back to the Magic Tower. But Cain snorted and continued walking towards the entrance of the market.
“What are you doing? Aren’t you saying let’s take a look?”
“Uh… yes!”
In the game, Cain was a very independent and aggressive character, but now he seemed quite the opposite. Despite his verbal protests and his expressions, he secretly listened to my requests.
A few turns down the alley where the restaurant was, there was a broad street leading to the entrance of the market. The market looked familiar, similar to what I was used to. Stalls were lined up with various items – food, clothes, books, and crafts. Being the closest village to the Magic Tower, there were quite a few magical items.
There were places with crowds of people and places with only a few flies buzzing around. What caught my interest was a stall selling glasses. These weren’t just ordinary glasses, they were magic glasses that revealed the wicked thoughts hidden in a person’s heart.
People of all ages were trying on the glasses and making intriguing exclamations like, “Wow!” “Amazing!” “What are you thinking right now?” and more.
Curious, I stared for a while, and the stall owner handed me a pair of glasses. When I put them on and looked at the stall owner, I could indeed see an obscure oval shape in his chest.
“Wow!”
I couldn’t help but exclaim. It was indeed glasses that could reveal one’s dark thoughts. How is this possible? Does Cain, as the Lord of the Magic Tower, know about this? Excitedly turning to look at Cain, I caught his gaze. He was staring down at me with an expression that seemed to say, ‘Pathetic.’ Quickly averting my eyes, I checked his chest, but there was no black circle there.
Deep down, I felt that choosing Cain again as the male protagonist was a wise decision.
“Cain seems clean.”
“What nonsense is this?”
“Try this on. It really shows a person’s dark side. The shopkeeper wanted to sell these glasses to me because he thought I had a dark side.”
I handed the glasses to Cain. Without removing his pitiful expression, he placed the glasses on the bridge of his nose. Then, with a twisted smile, he said, “Geez, you’re so innocent. This is just a simple heat-detection glasses. When the heart beats above a certain rate, it displays the surrounding heat to black. It’s like a basic magic-made lie detector. Well, it could be used as a toy for kids.”
As he explained, the shopkeeper’s face turned earthy. Some interested customers put down the glasses quietly, and those who were in line to try them on awkwardly left. I stepped back from Cain. With magic glasses, or rather, toy glasses on, he looked at me as if puzzled.
“Why are you standing far away like that?”
“Well, isn’t the shopkeeper glaring at you like he wants to kill you? Can’t you see that for real…?”
As I rambled on, Cain threw the glasses back onto the counter and said, “Why would you want such a trivial thing? I made a mind-reading device when I was fifteen. If you go back, I’ll let you play with that.”
“What? A Mind-reading device?”
“When you put the receiver on your ear, you can hear the thoughts of the person using the transmitter.”
“Crazy.”
“What?”
Cain opened his eyes like an old man, but I couldn’t resist my curiosity about the machine he mentioned.
“How did you make something like that? Seriously, that’s amazing. I want to try it.”
At my enthusiastic response, Cain’s lips twitched. It seemed like he was holding back laughter.
“Well, there are much more interesting things in my room than these kinds of toys. I’m not making up stories about being a genius.”
He shrugged his shoulders.
On the other hand, To use the transmitter was surprising, to think such a thing existed. I wondered what Cain’s inner thoughts were. I wanted to know if he didn’t care about me listening to his inner thoughts, or if he simply had no thoughts at all. He boasted about similar high-quality inventions he had created.
There were inventions that were practically useless but fully embodied the imagination, such as a fish that could fly in the sky, to practical inventions like a broom that could sweep 99 floors of the tower alone or a doll equipped with guard functions. Most of them were things he made in his teens.
As Cain excitedly talked about his inventions, his face lit up. Even though the outer shell borrowed someone else’s genes, the blush on his cheeks made me think that this was Cain’s own color, and I couldn’t help but chuckle. After bragging a bit, Cain bought skewers of freshly grilled bird meat from a street vendor and handed them to me.
“You like eating. Eat this.”
“What about you, Cain?”
“I’m done.”
I wasn’t sure what kind of bird meat it was, but the seasoning was so strong I could think I was eating chicken skewers.The seasoning was sweet and savory, making it delicious. Cain looked at me and sighed deeply, then continued to buy more snacks for me, such as candies, peaches, candy bars, and sandwiches. After I said I was done, he glared at me nervously and screamed, “Just eat them when you go back!”
This was more of a snack than dinner, but Cain seemed to have no such concept for meals. He said that for three years he only drank potions for mealtime, but I suspected he had not been eating properly before that.
This time, he bought snacks that could be considered dinner, and by the time we returned to the Magic Tower, my arms were full of food.
The stew was incredibly delicious, with the refreshing taste of the sea and a slightly spicy broth. Having been in this game for a few weeks without experiencing much spice, I felt an unusually strong longing. While my previous self wasn’t a picky eater, relying mostly on convenience stores and food delivery apps, I could still recognize that this stew was really well-made.
However, Cain played around with his spoon, poking the surface of the stew and tapping the mussel shells like a five-year-old who wanted to escape from the dinner table.
“It’s delicious. Try some.”
“Eating and digesting food is so troublesome. Everyone’s so foolish.”
Cain grumbled. In his appearance as a skinny man, he looked like someone who had adopted a concept of persistent dissatisfaction. With a slightly anxious feeling that the owner might overhear him, I asked Cain.
“Do you only eat to get full?”
“What?”
“Enjoying the aroma and taste of food. Sitting together like this, sharing conversations, creating memories.”
“We can solve all that in one second with magic. Why waste time on such things?”
“I’m enjoying it now. After eating something spicy after a long time, memories of home come back, makes me want to drink a bit, and makes my body warmer. Plus, by eating this, I came out to the village with you. It doesn’t feel like a waste of time at all.”
I said that and scooped a spoonful into my mouth. Yeah, it’s delicious. Satisfied with the taste, I looked at Cain, who tilted his head slightly. His expression was hard to read, but the tips of his ears were red. Surely, he also found satisfaction in the warmth rising from the food.
After hearing my words, Cain diligently played with his spoon. He didn’t express admiration or eat with joy like me, but steadily finished his plate. Putting down his spoon on the table, he said, “I haven’t eaten food in almost three years.”
“Huh? Three years?”
“Its a nuisance after all.”
Seeing that both our plates were empty, he stood up. After taking out a few coins from his pants pocket and placing them on the table, Cain went out of the restaurant first. I tried to stand up to follow him, but I felt fullness and warmth in my stomach. I let out a long breath while gently massaging my slightly tightened belly.
“Did you enjoy the meal?”
The owner asked loudly from behind. I nodded and smiled at him.
“I really enjoyed the meal. I’ll come again!”
“How can the guy’s face be so pretty? Sure, come again!”
I exchanged greetings with the owner and left the shop. Cain, who had been waiting for me in front, raised an eyebrow.
“Why do you say you were coming again? Are you going to the village every mealtime?”
“Well, that might be difficult, but it would be nice to come again. I’m curious about other restaurants besides this one.”
Until now, I had stayed in specific places like Narcissus, Ice Prison, the temple, and the royal palace. I hadn’t thought about exploring the village or observing the daily lives of the people in this world.
Honestly, I was curious about the aspects of the game that I didn’t know. I thought that being an adult game, it would focus only on the bed scene, but there were stories about mana deficiency that the people of the empire often suffered from or magicians who secretly visited their favorite restaurants while cursing their boss, the Lord of the Magic Tower. Encountering these pieces of evidence that this place operated as an independent world with its own stories made me feel amazed and fascinated.
So, impulsively, I grabbed Cain.
“How about touring the village a bit?”
“Are you here to play?”
“Yes.”
“Ha, I’m annoyed.”
Cain carelessly scrunched up the man’s neat face and messed up his hair. The calm, auburn-hair that had been neatly arranged now stood up messily. Seeing his annoyed expression, I thought I might as well head back to the Magic Tower. But Cain snorted and continued walking towards the entrance of the market.
“What are you doing? Aren’t you saying let’s take a look?”
“Uh… yes!”
In the game, Cain was a very independent and aggressive character, but now he seemed quite the opposite. Despite his verbal protests and his expressions, he secretly listened to my requests.
A few turns down the alley where the restaurant was, there was a broad street leading to the entrance of the market. The market looked familiar, similar to what I was used to. Stalls were lined up with various items – food, clothes, books, and crafts. Being the closest village to the Magic Tower, there were quite a few magical items.
There were places with crowds of people and places with only a few flies buzzing around. What caught my interest was a stall selling glasses. These weren’t just ordinary glasses, they were magic glasses that revealed the wicked thoughts hidden in a person’s heart.
People of all ages were trying on the glasses and making intriguing exclamations like, “Wow!” “Amazing!” “What are you thinking right now?” and more.
Curious, I stared for a while, and the stall owner handed me a pair of glasses. When I put them on and looked at the stall owner, I could indeed see an obscure oval shape in his chest.
“Wow!”
I couldn’t help but exclaim. It was indeed glasses that could reveal one’s dark thoughts. How is this possible? Does Cain, as the Lord of the Magic Tower, know about this? Excitedly turning to look at Cain, I caught his gaze. He was staring down at me with an expression that seemed to say, ‘Pathetic.’ Quickly averting my eyes, I checked his chest, but there was no black circle there.
Deep down, I felt that choosing Cain again as the male protagonist was a wise decision.
“Cain seems clean.”
“What nonsense is this?”
“Try this on. It really shows a person’s dark side. The shopkeeper wanted to sell these glasses to me because he thought I had a dark side.”
I handed the glasses to Cain. Without removing his pitiful expression, he placed the glasses on the bridge of his nose. Then, with a twisted smile, he said, “Geez, you’re so innocent. This is just a simple heat-detection glasses. When the heart beats above a certain rate, it displays the surrounding heat to black. It’s like a basic magic-made lie detector. Well, it could be used as a toy for kids.”
As he explained, the shopkeeper’s face turned earthy. Some interested customers put down the glasses quietly, and those who were in line to try them on awkwardly left. I stepped back from Cain. With magic glasses, or rather, toy glasses on, he looked at me as if puzzled.
“Why are you standing far away like that?”
“Well, isn’t the shopkeeper glaring at you like he wants to kill you? Can’t you see that for real…?”
As I rambled on, Cain threw the glasses back onto the counter and said, “Why would you want such a trivial thing? I made a mind-reading device when I was fifteen. If you go back, I’ll let you play with that.”
“What? A Mind-reading device?”
“When you put the receiver on your ear, you can hear the thoughts of the person using the transmitter.”
“Crazy.”
“What?”
Cain opened his eyes like an old man, but I couldn’t resist my curiosity about the machine he mentioned.
“How did you make something like that? Seriously, that’s amazing. I want to try it.”
At my enthusiastic response, Cain’s lips twitched. It seemed like he was holding back laughter.
“Well, there are much more interesting things in my room than these kinds of toys. I’m not making up stories about being a genius.”
He shrugged his shoulders.
On the other hand, To use the transmitter was surprising, to think such a thing existed. I wondered what Cain’s inner thoughts were. I wanted to know if he didn’t care about me listening to his inner thoughts, or if he simply had no thoughts at all. He boasted about similar high-quality inventions he had created.
There were inventions that were practically useless but fully embodied the imagination, such as a fish that could fly in the sky, to practical inventions like a broom that could sweep 99 floors of the tower alone or a doll equipped with guard functions. Most of them were things he made in his teens.
As Cain excitedly talked about his inventions, his face lit up. Even though the outer shell borrowed someone else’s genes, the blush on his cheeks made me think that this was Cain’s own color, and I couldn’t help but chuckle. After bragging a bit, Cain bought skewers of freshly grilled bird meat from a street vendor and handed them to me.
“You like eating. Eat this.”
“What about you, Cain?”
“I’m done.”
I wasn’t sure what kind of bird meat it was, but the seasoning was so strong I could think I was eating chicken skewers.The seasoning was sweet and savory, making it delicious. Cain looked at me and sighed deeply, then continued to buy more snacks for me, such as candies, peaches, candy bars, and sandwiches. After I said I was done, he glared at me nervously and screamed, “Just eat them when you go back!”
This was more of a snack than dinner, but Cain seemed to have no such concept for meals. He said that for three years he only drank potions for mealtime, but I suspected he had not been eating properly before that.
This time, he bought snacks that could be considered dinner, and by the time we returned to the Magic Tower, my arms were full of food.
