Shu didn't say anything more. He grilled meat for Kiana, letting her focus on demolishing the four massive plates of carb bombs and sugar assassins she had brought back for herself.
However, even if Shu didn't initiate conversation, Kiana would strike up topics on her own.
Just as Kiana was starting to demolish the third plate, complete with the meat Shu had grilled for her, she suddenly thought of a very serious question.
"If everyone eats enough to make their money's worth," Kiana adopted the expression of a philosopher, "wouldn't the boss suffer a huge loss?"
Shu was momentarily stunned by this shocking statement, and then the corners of his mouth curled up.
"That probably wouldn't happen, since most people can't eat enough to make their money's worth." Shu shook his head. "Not everyone can eat four massive plates of food in one breath."
Kiana nodded thoughtfully.
"But..." Shu suddenly changed direction, hooking Kiana's curiosity.
She ate silently, staring intently at Shu as he prepared to speak.
"If I go take a bite out of the boss's genuine leather sofa right now, he'll definitely suffer a huge loss!"
"Pfft—cough, cough—" Kiana nearly sprayed a mouthful of food. After coughing a couple of times, she hurriedly grabbed the juice Shu had conveniently brought over, downed it in one gulp with her head tilted back, and only then erupted into delayed laughter.
"Hahahahaha... Shu, are you serious? Taking a bite out of the boss's leather sofa... hahahaha..." She laughed much more wildly than Shu had just now. Caught up in her amusement, the corners of Shu's mouth tugged upward, and his body began to tremble slightly again.
"I'm serious!" It was the first time Shu had spoken to Kiana in such a righteous and confident tone. "It's a buffet. If he dares to put it out, I dare to eat it. Worst case scenario, we trend on social media tomorrow."
Kiana laughed even harder, almost breaking down. She patted the table lightly and waved a hand at Shu.
"Oh please, you definitely wouldn't dare! If you dare, I'll eat the sofa with you!"
With a loud "Eh," Shu stood straight up, turning his head as if about to perform a "three bites, one leather sofa" show for the boss.
With a swish, Kiana violently lunged forward, grabbing the aggressively posturing Shu with a look of pure terror on her face. "Wait, wait, wait, wait—I was joking!"
"No, my mind is made up!" Shu felt like it was going to his head a bit, whatever words came to mind just blurting out.
But this feeling...
It felt really good.
"No, no! Actually, I think... people don't necessarily need to be that free!" Kiana tried earnestly to persuade Shu to come back.
After deep consideration and repeated inner struggle, Shu finally sat back down slowly, covered in disappointment, under Kiana's expectant gaze.
"Alright..." He let out a long sigh, then exchanged a glance with Kiana.
The next moment, the two highly cooperative individuals couldn't hold it in anymore and burst out laughing together.
You see.
This feeling...
Really is good.
When they walked out of the buffet restaurant, Shu's pace was at least three times slower than when they went in.
It really wasn't that he couldn't bear to leave, but rather...
He had been fed entirely too full by Kiana.
For the first half, it was just Kiana eating, eating, eating, while he was responsible for grilling meat and boiling seafood for her.
The two of them—one producer, one consumer... one decomposer—cooperated with great synergy.
But later on, right around the time Kiana had demolished the four plates of food she brought, she suddenly "discovered her conscience."
She felt that her "enslavement" of Shu was simply going too far. It was obviously a buffet, so why was Shu grilling meat for her the whole time?
This won't do!
Shu: Do I have to eat too?
Yes!
And so, Shu was counter-fed by Kiana.
Then Shu ate two bowls—two very solid bowls—which was considered fulfilling Kiana's requirement.
Walking beside Shu, Kiana supported his arm with one hand and clutched her own stomach with the other, practically leaning her entire body weight against him.
The two supported each other in a strange posture, moving slowly through the mall corridor.
"Shu..." Kiana's voice was weak and feeble.
"Mhm..." Shu couldn't help but glance at Kiana, only to realize with shock that Kiana could actually get this stuffed too.
She's really just a slightly exaggerated normal person, after all...
"Can you still walk?" Kiana asked despondently.
Shu was silent for a second.
"I can walk, but I might throw up halfway there."
Kiana wanted to grin, but halfway through she covered her mouth, because the food in her stomach was protesting the lack of floor space.
"Don't laugh," Shu looked blankly at Kiana's distended stomach and said helplessly. "You'll spray it on me."
"Don't say it so disgustingly!" Kiana's complexion worsened a bit.
"I'm just stating a fact." Shu shrugged, then supported Kiana to stand a little straighter.
"Shu..." Supported by Shu to stand up straight, Kiana tried hard to smooth out her breathing.
"Yeah?"
"I think... I've eaten up to my throat." She raised a hand and touched her neck, waiting for that feeling of fullness to slowly slide from her chest cavity down to her stomach, and then let out a long sigh of relief. "Phew... that's much better..."
Shu was silent for two seconds.
"Exactly how many plates did you eat..."
Shu sighed. He truly felt like he had exhausted all his tricks today.
Against this beautiful girl who had fallen from the sky, he really had no countermeasures.
"Lost count." Kiana was a bit spacey and silly after eating her fill; Shu suspected she was probably having a carb crash.
"Roughly?"
"Roughly..." Kiana thought for a moment. "I only remember the waiter coming to clear away empty plates eight or nine times..."
"Are you an idiot? If you can't eat anymore, don't eat..."
"But it's so rare for me to... wait, this sounds so familiar..."
Shu smiled without saying a word.
"Ah! Shu, you're actually using my own words to bully me!"
Shu let out a soft chuckle, but then his own body began to protest, forcing him to rein in his smile.
"You said you wanted to experience the feeling of being a king."
"Yeah."
"And now?"
Kiana thought about it.
"The king is stuffed, hurry and help me back."
The aura around her abruptly changed, and with quite elegant movements, she rested her hand in the crook of Shu's arm.
She really did look like a noble young lady.
The corner of Shu's mouth curled up slightly.
"Can you really walk back normally?" He expressed his doubts.
Kiana remained silent; she also doubted this.
The two exchanged a glance, then simultaneously raised their heads and looked at the signboards on the upper floors of the mall.
Kiana's eyes lit up.
"Shu! A movie theater!"
Shu also looked at that signboard.
"Want to go?" he asked.
Kiana nodded vigorously.
"Yes!"
"Shu."
"Yeah?"
"Do you think it's normal for us to be like this?"
"Like what?"
"Like..." Kiana thought about it. "Stuffing ourselves to the brim, and then going to watch a movie."
Shu was silent for a second.
"I think it's actually very abnormal."
After all, who actually stuffs themselves to this point?
"Then why are we still going?" Kiana asked Shu with a smile, knowingly asking the question.
She was anticipating Shu giving the answer she was hoping for.
Shu chuckled lightly.
"Because the buffet isn't over yet..."
He turned his head and looked at Kiana, gazing steadily at his "King."
"We can still be 'unbridled,' right?"