This is Food

"We'll take the order!" Alice eagerly agreed to the white hair's suggestion. The shy girl, Xue'er nodded her head vigorously as Akari remained silent. But a certain someone sat there unresponsive. Eleanor, the rich girl, looked at her companions, mouth agape. She couldn't believe it.

Ye Han dutifully wrote the order. "Would you like to add another order? Any side dishes? Dessert perhaps?"

"We'll also take an order of cheesecake, tart and crème brûlée. One for each of us." Akari said. Although she appeared calm, the sparkles dancing in her eyes made it obvious that she craved the desserts.

"I want fries! And some fried dumplings!"

"How about you, ma'am?" Ye Han turned his attention to Eleanor, the uncovered eye staring directly at her.

Eleanor was taken from her dazed expression. "What?" She asked, clearly unresponsive of the surroundings.

"What would you like to order?"

"Oh." She uttered silently. "Just give me an order of milk tea."

"Very well." Ye Han went back to the kitchen to prepare the dishes.

As soon as Ye Han was out of view, Eleanor screamed like a rattled cat, "Are you out of your minds?"

"Huh?" Replied the confused Alice.

"Are you planning to wait here for days? Do you know how time-consuming it is to make a decent Peking Duck?" Eleanor complained.

"Don't worry." She assured. "Look at that sign. It says that 10 minutes or less. And if the food doesn't get served in 10 minutes, we'll have it for free."

"What the…" Eleanor broke out in cold sweat. Is this the Alice she knew? Did she deliberately order that certain dish so that she could have it for free or is it a coincidence?

"No need to worry Eleanor. A lot of people have already posted reviews about the restaurant. And so far, all of them gave positive comments."

"That's right Eleanor. This restaurant has been the topic months ago, although most of those were girls and nobody spoke a word about the food." Alice added but the last part was in mumbles.

"I… was actually… yesterday… And… umm, the food is… delicious."

"But it would still take long!"

"I ordered desserts. So if the dish is not served on time we could still have something to eat. Think of it as a visit to a café."

Only a minute has passed when the soft sounds of footsteps echoed not far away from them. The waiter is walking towards them and with him is a tray of freshly cooked fries and dumplings. And from a distance, they could already smell the aroma. 'It smells delicious. And it's just an appetizer!'

It's not just the tantalizing aroma that surprised them. The speed that which he came back is even more terrifying in a sense. Not 2 minutes have passed and here he is, with food in hand. "How did you do that?"

Ye Han smiled, "the kitchen is equipped with magic items and it makes cooking easier and faster."

"No wonder." They all thought out loud.

The use of magic items is a fairly common occurrence in the present times. The earliest records of its use dated back to the Age of Gods, where those blessed people were bestowed divine objects by their respective gods. And throughout history, numerous magic items emerged into existence, some as useless as powdered water but some powerful enough to change the world.

Magic items can do a lot of things but using it to accomplish menial tasks is not very popular. Experts suggest that a magic item can only show its full capabilities when used to conduct complicated work. As such, seeing a restaurant equipped with magic items for cooking is a novelty for the four them. Most restaurants would not even have a single magic item let alone those fancy restaurants where the only magic items they have are used for decorations.

"Isn't that a bit too… overkill?"

"I don't think so." He shrugged. "A lion will use its full strength to hunt a rabbit. So, using those items is fine for me." Ye Han then left them to their own devices so that he could attend to the other dishes. The duck is almost done.

Alice was the first to take a piece and her eyes instantly closed in bliss. One by one, they took a piece and was not disappointed.

"Delicious. This is delicious." The absent-minded Eleanor took more of it. The taste cannot be described by words as they sat there relishing. A perfect blend of potatoes and spices. Even though fried, but no hint of greasiness is tasted. The crisp texture felt completely comfy in her mouth. As for the dumplings, they are heavenly. A literal word stopper.

It did not take them long to finish everything. Alice looked disappointed as she licked her fingers clean but Eleanor had a look of approval. The rumors were indeed true, this restaurant serves delicious food.

"Here is the duck. Enjoy."

"Yes!" All of them exclaimed.

'Hehe. Mission accomplished.'

***

At the convention center.

The event proceeded smoothly. Under the careful watch of their fans, the very first event of the Entente finished without a hitch. It was then that the quartet discovered that they are just sacrificial lambs for the manager.

After the event, all of them looked like refugees. A bedraggled appearance, with now unkempt hair, lipstick stains all over the face from the almost attempted rape and a mostly banged-up body. One could even notice the missing parts on their clothing and uneven hair which were all taken by their fans as souvenirs.

And it gets even worse.

Right across them is the manager. But her face is twisted into a perverted grin. It's not the perverted grin that scares them but rather, what she is doing while having that grin. She' currently counting stacks of bills while cackling madly like an actual witch. All that is missing is a cloak, a hat and a bubbling cauldron of death. But for this event, money is a much appropriate prop.

She then turned her attention on the 4 poor humans. Her gaze made them felt like they were just prey waiting to be consumed by a vicious predator.