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After spending a few days exploring the former Biotope 1, Yuuki stumbled upon something incredible—a secret cave hidden deep beneath the earth.
It was a strange discovery. The cave was incredibly well hidden, so much so that he had missed it entirely on his initial sweep of the area. The only reason he found it was an inexplicable pull, a gut feeling that he needed to be there.
Yuuki knew exactly what that feeling was: his Food Luck kicking in.
Those with powerful Food Luck are often guided by it, an intuition that leads them to exactly what they need to find.
It was just like when Komatsu was searching for the Wulstar Sauce Fruit—his Food Luck subconsciously guided his path, even causing a fruit to ripen at the perfect moment after he found his prize.
Yuuki was experiencing the same thing. Without a specific target in mind, his Food Luck would randomly guide him toward anything of value in the vicinity.
But now, he had a clear goal—to see if there were any hidden secrets left in this place. And so, his Food Luck had led him here.
The entrance to the secret cave was located inside a mountain, but there was no visible passage. It had clearly been sealed off on purpose.
Smashing his way directly through the mountain, Yuuki found the entrance leading down. He then descended for nearly twenty kilometers before finally reaching the bottom of the cavern.
"This must be some kind of shelter. And the materials... they're designed to block any kind of detection."
Yuuki looked at the layers of shielding and the materials used with a sense of weary admiration. The defenses here were ridiculously thorough. He recognized the materials from the knowledge he had gained from Yosaku.
They were designed to block various types of scans and surveillance. Combined with its location twenty kilometers underground, it was no wonder he had missed it at first.
It was only thanks to the guidance of his Food Luck that he had found it at all.
After making his way to the very bottom, Yuuki finally understood what this place was.
....
"So many hibernating Red Nitro... there have to be more here than in the Gourmet Pyramid."
Yuuki stared at the countless Red Nitro in their state of suspended animation. Unlike the ones in the Gourmet Pyramid, these weren't placed in coffins.
They were simply lying all over the floor, a vast, silent crowd.
He also spotted inscriptions on the walls. After deciphering the text, he finally pieced together their story.
Back when the Red Nitro race was at its peak, their population was considerable, and they had settlements scattered across the globe, much like humans.
They had outposts not only in the Human World but across the Gourmet World as well, even forming different kingdoms.
The Red Nitro here were from a different tribe than the ones in the Gourmet Pyramid, but they were connected.
When the Gourmet Pyramid Nitro were attacked by the Blue Nitro, they sent a message here. The Red Nitro of the former Biotope 1 received the news and immediately reacted.
The Gourmet Pyramid Nitro were undoubtedly the most developed and powerful of all the Red Nitro tribes in the Human World.
So, when they sent out the warning—and admitted that they were completely powerless against the Blue Nitro—the other tribes abandoned any thought of direct confrontation.
They knew their own strength. Even if they were from different regions, they knew how powerful the Gourmet Pyramid tribe was. If even they were defeated so easily, then the others stood no chance.
So, to preserve a part of their race, the Red Nitro of the former Biotope 1 devised a desperate plan.
They split their people into three groups: One to remain behind in the biotope, another to hide in the shelter Yuuki had just found—and a final group to act as a decoy, pretending to flee the area.
Their strategy worked. When the Blue Nitro arrived, they found the small contingent left to resist and the group feigning flight.
The Blue Nitro were arrogant—they never believed the Red Nitro could pose any real threat.
So, those two groups successfully diverted the Blue Nitro's attention. Combined with how well-hidden this shelter was, the Red Nitro here escaped the purge.
After reaching the shelter, they recorded the events and immediately entered a state of suspended animation. By doing so, they completely masked their presence.
For all intents and purposes—a hibernating Red Nitro was no different from a dead one. While there was a risk of never waking up, it was still better than being captured by the Blue Nitro.
The Red Nitro here didn't know what the Blue Nitro wanted with them, but they knew one thing for certain: it wouldn't be anything good.
Given the choice, it was better to enter hibernation. At least there was a sliver of hope.
However, their comrades never came for them. Once in suspended animation, they couldn't wake up without contact with liquid.
Now, Yuuki had found them. He felt a pang of disappointment. He wasn't particularly interested in the Nitro race—he'd been hoping for a rare ingredient.
Instead, he'd found a bunker full of sleeping aliens...
After checking the surroundings and confirming there was nothing else of value, Yuuki left and told Setsuno and the others what he had found.
....
Hearing his story, they were incredibly curious and immediately followed him back to the site.
"I can't believe so many Red Nitro were hidden here."
Setsuno looked at the sea of hibernating figures on the floor with a sense of wonder.
She decided she would inform Ichiryu about this when she returned. While these Red Nitro might not be of much use to them personally, they could be valuable to the IGO.
After exploring the shelter, Yuuki no longer felt the pull of his Food Luck, which meant there was nothing else of value in the old Biotope 1.
....
"Ayame, don't you think you should come with us? You're getting older. I know you want to wait for Girim here, but that man... he isn't worth waiting for anymore."
Before they left, Setsuno finally spoke her mind to her old friend. She knew her words might hurt, but sometimes, the truth was the swiftest blade, and a clean break was better than a prolonged ache.
Setsuno didn't believe for a second that Girim, after being gone for decades, would suddenly have a change of heart and come back for Granny Ayame.
That man was a lost cause.
"I..."
Granny Ayame hesitated. She didn't know if she should keep waiting. After a long moment of thought, her expression hardened with resolve.
"I think I'll wait a little longer. Besides, I've been away from the outside world for so long, I'm used to life here. If I suddenly left, I wouldn't be able to adjust."
In the end, Granny Ayame chose to stay.
Setsuno could only sigh. It seemed her friend truly loved Girim too much, but unfortunately, that scumbag had no idea how to cherish her.
"If that's your decision, then I won't press you. But if you ever change your mind, use this to contact me."
"The communication tools you have here are useless in a place like this. This is the latest model from the IGO. Since we're still in the Human World, it should be able to reach me."
Setsuno handed a communicator to Granny Ayame. It wasn't that Ayame hadn't wanted to contact the outside world all these years—she simply couldn't.
She had come here decades ago, and the technology back then wasn't as advanced as it was now.
The old communication devices couldn't reach the outside world.
But now, as long as you were in the Human World—even in a place like the Hungry Triangle—you could easily contact the outside.
After a final farewell to Granny Ayame, the group left. Yuuki carried the corpse of the Wolf Fire Dragon out through the sea.
The other ingredients were left to Setsuno.
In the water, Yuuki could clearly sense numerous powerful beasts eyeing the Wolf Fire Dragon's flesh. But with a single release of his aura, they scattered like frightened birds.
Yuuki's power was something they couldn't possibly contend with. Faced with a choice between food and their lives, these intelligent creatures naturally chose life.
There was no need to die for a meal they couldn't get.
....
After leaving the former Biotope 1—Yuuki placed the Wolf Fire Dragon on the nearest island and had the IGO come to transport it.
Aside from the portion given to the IGO, the rest would be sent to Setsuno's kitchen.
As for Yuuki, he took Nono and headed for a different destination.
Yuuki had accepted Nono as his partner. He had to admit, having a devoted fan by his side provided a pretty good morale boost—and he and Nono got along very well.
Of course, if he were heading to the Gourmet World, he wouldn't take her with him unless he was absolutely confident in his ability to protect them both.
But in the Human World, it was fine. He could roam freely.
....
Their next destination was the Food Honor Temple.
There was still an ingredient there called the Bubble Fruit.
It would be useful for both his and Nono's Gourmet Cells. As for how to get into the Food Honor Temple, for Yuuki, it was quite easy.
Although his path of Food Honor wasn't the gratitude-based one, his mastery was so high that he could easily simulate that emotion for the temple to detect.
Of course, he could also just suppress his aura. If he did that, the Food Honor Temple wouldn't even sense his presence, and he could just stroll right in.
"I remember the Disappearing Cuisine Restaurant is near the Food Honor Temple. But its original head chef, Granny Chiyo, has disappeared. Now the head chef is her apprentice, Chef Chiru."
After arriving in the sea of trees, Nono spoke up. Both the Disappearing Cuisine Restaurant and the Food Honor Temple were places she had been to before.
So, she was quite familiar with the area.
"Then let's go to the Disappearing Cuisine Restaurant first. A ten-star restaurant isn't easy to get into."
Yuuki said.
Any restaurant that could achieve a Ten-star rating had chefs who were a cut above the rest. But conversely, getting a meal there was extremely difficult.
....
Under Nono's guidance, Yuuki and Nono quickly arrived at the Disappearing Cuisine Restaurant. Since both of them were proficient in Food Honor—the restaurant didn't disappear before their eyes.
"Is someone there?"
Just as the two knocked, a voice came from inside.
The door then opened, and a person dressed like a ninja appeared. Yuuki recognized her immediately—it was Chiru.
"Nono? What are you doing here?"
However, upon seeing Nono, Chiru exclaimed in surprise. It was clear she knew Nono, and their relationship seemed to be quite good.
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