"Are you sure you want to leave?" asked Boran.
"Yes, don't you see it's evening in Wyvern Valley? It gets more dangerous at night, we'll come back in the morning."
When they pressed the "Emergency Exit" button, the world around them blurred for a moment before they found themselves in the familiar plaza of the Hub. No matter the time, the crowd here never diminished.
"We'll go again tomorrow," said Noemi. "Besides, we can do our quest easily now."
"True. Did you level up, by the way?"
"I became level 20, so I gained 4 levels. Apparently, you can get really good XP from killing more than 100 of the same creature."
"I was level 10 when I entered, now I'm 17. Looks like I'll always be trailing behind you," said Boran and chuckled softly.
"If you want to be the same level, you'll need to grind in a dungeon you can handle solo."
"I'll do that in my spare time, I'm pretty tired today. Would you like to get something to eat?"
"I was wondering when you'd ask. I'm hungry too."
When Boran and Noemi entered, they were greeted by the characteristic mixture of sounds and smells — roasting meat, baking bread, simmering soups, and the aroma of various foods from hundreds of different portals. The tavern was crowded as usual. Customers sitting at long tables chatted, laughed, and shared their adventures while eating.
Boran and Noemi headed toward the counter. As they approached, a screen appeared before them.
"What would you like to eat?"
"I'm trying to lose some weight. I should eat something low-calorie."
"But you haven't eaten anything today. Aren't you hungry? Right now, I could eat a whole lamb if you put it in front of me."
"I could have a salad. They must have nice salads here."
"You find a seat, I'll bring it over. What would you like to drink?"
"You did an amazing job today. Should we celebrate with some of that Dragon's Breath Wine?"
Boran smiled slightly. "Of course. But I'm going to eat a lot of food - won't you feel uncomfortable just having a salad?"
"Enjoy yourself!" said Noemi as she walked away.
Boran returned to the menu. He hadn't eaten anything today and wanted something quite filling.
[Griffin Skewer - 15 Gold] Fresh griffin meat, marinated in special spices and grilled on a sword-spit. Served with mountain potatoes and crystal apple sauce.
[Gargoyle's Stone Soup - 12 Gold] Traditional gargoyle recipe, prepared with underground mushrooms and crystal salt. Served with rock bread.
[Basilisk Stew - 25 Gold] Specially hunted basilisk meat, cooked with underground vegetables and dragon herbs. Served with mystical rice pilaf.
[Storm Bird Grill - 18 Gold] Storm Bird breast, marinated with lightning herbs and sky spices, grilled to perfection. Served with rainbow salad.
[Kraken Tentacle - 30 Gold] Deep-sea harvested kraken tentacle, seasoned with ocean salt and cooked in special sauce. Served with seaweed garnish.
Boran squinted at the Kraken Tentacle dish on the menu. "Come on... A Kraken? A real Kraken?" he muttered to himself. A skeptical smile appeared on his face.
"Well, since they put something this ambitious on the menu, we should try it," he said and added the Kraken Tentacle to his order list. Then he selected the Dragon's Breath Wine. "Need to be generous tonight, we're celebrating after all," he thought to himself.
When he clicked on the salad option for Noemi, the menu automatically filtered and displayed a new list of options:
[Moonlight Salad - 8 Gold] Night-harvested moon dew lettuce, silver sprouts, crystal tomatoes, and specially prepared moonlight dressing.
[Four Seasons Fairy Salad - 10 Gold] Carefully selected ingredients from each season: Spring flowers, summer fruits, autumn leaves, and winter crystals.
[Elements Salad - 12 Gold] Fire pepper, water seaweed, earth mushroom, and air flower leaves in a special harmony.
[Mystic Forest Salad - 9 Gold] Greens gathered from elven gardens, seeds lightly dusted with fairy powder, and secret forest dressing.
[Dragon Garden Salad - 15 Gold] Rare herbs growing on the slopes where dragons nest, dragon fruit pieces, and special spices.
Boran carefully examined the options. He knew Noemi was mindful of healthy eating, but he also thought she wouldn't want to compromise on taste. His eye caught the Four Seasons Fairy Salad. "This looks interesting," he thought. "Both nutritious and she can experience different flavors."
When he completed his order, the system showed the total amount: 55 Gold. Boran hesitated for a moment — this was really a significant sum. But thinking about their achievements today, he felt they deserved this special celebration. He pressed the confirm button and completed the payment.
When the order screen closed, the system's polite voice was heard: "Your order is being prepared. Please proceed to your table, your meals will be served shortly."
"So when you order a lot, you don't have to carry it yourself. Makes sense."
As Boran walked toward the table where Noemi was sitting, he wondered what the Kraken Tentacle would be like. Was it really from a kraken, or was it just a marketing tactic?
Boran approached the table where Noemi was sitting. The wooden table had a warm appearance in the tavern's dim light. When Boran sat down in the chair across from her, a soft light glowed on the table and their orders appeared.
The Kraken Tentacle was served spectacularly on the table. The purple-blue tentacle pieces were arranged in a spiral pattern on a specially prepared mother-of-pearl plate. Seaweed and colorful sea flower garnish gave the dish a fairy-tale appearance. The special sauce beside it contained micro-algae that sparkled like pearls.
Noemi's Four Seasons Fairy Salad was like a living garden in a crystal bowl. The spring section had pink and purple flower petals, the summer portion golden fruits, the autumn section crimson leaves, and the winter area seeds that sparkled like ice crystals. A light fairy dust shimmer danced over it.
The Dragon's Breath Wine sparkled ruby red in tall crystal glasses. A light smoke rose from the glasses, and the liquid within rippled as if it were alive.
Noemi took her fork and tasted a few bites of the colorful salad. "Wow," she said, her eyes sparkling. "Now this is what I call a salad! Look, when I put the leaves in my mouth, it's like a festival happening. I don't feel like I'm just eating greens."
Boran nodded while chewing his bite. "Mmmm... Look at this! I thought they were fooling us with the Kraken thing, but this is really something else. Like it just came from the bottom of the sea... Got to try these sauces too, each one's a whole different world."
They both took sips of their wine and coughed. "Whew!" Noemi laughed. "It literally burned my throat!"
"They didn't call it Dragon's Breath for nothing," Boran grinned. "But look how nice it gets now... A different taste with every sip. The last one was spicy, now it's like blackberry..."
Noemi sighed contentedly while eating her salad. "The seasons are really changing... When I tasted those summer fruits, it warmed me up inside. Oh, try these leaves, they're like autumn..."
"Hey, try some of my sauce," said Boran. "You've never eaten anything like this."
"Okay," said Noemi and took a piece. Her eyes widened. "Wow! What is this? I thought it was fish but... this is something else entirely!"
The wine was slowly taking effect. They had both relaxed, their spirits lifted.
"I'm glad we came here," said Noemi, finishing the last leaves on her plate. "This was the perfect meal to celebrate today."
"Exactly," said Boran, finishing his last bite. "It seemed expensive at first but it was worth it, really. Especially that Kraken... Worth every gold."
Only their half-empty wine glasses remained in front of them. Smoke was still rising from them, the liquid dancing in the light.
Under the influence of the wine, they both started talking more freely. Noemi leaned across the table toward Boran and studied him carefully.
"What?" said Boran, leaning back slightly. "Is there something on my face?"
Noemi smiled. "No, just... I'm wondering what you look like under that beard. You definitely have a baby face, don't you?"
Boran's cheeks reddened slightly. His hand reflexively went to his beard. "What... what does that have to do with anything?"
"That's why you grow a beard," said Noemi, taking a sip of her wine. "Because you look younger without it. Actually, I think you'd look better without a beard."
Boran cleared his throat. "I... well... I feel comfortable like this." He started rotating his glass, eyes fixed on the red liquid inside, avoiding Noemi's gaze.
"Hmm," said Noemi thoughtfully. "Maybe we'll see one day." There was a mischievous sparkle in her eyes.
Boran tried to change the subject. "Do you... do you always eat salads like this?"
"Your attempt to change the subject is so obvious," Noemi laughed. "But I'll answer. Yes, I generally try to eat healthy. But tonight's salad was something else entirely."
As they shared the last sips of wine, the tavern's lights seemed to have dimmed even more. Or maybe that's just how they perceived it. The atmosphere between them had changed — becoming more intense, more electric.