"All field cooks and guild members are permitted to leave when all wounded have been fully healed."
That was the directive, but even the chefs had their limits.
Ingredients still ran out and soup stocks had to simmer.
And so night settled uneasily over Frostfall.
Smoke from the battlefield still clung to the air, but the worst of the chaos had passed. The wind carried hints of wood ash, spent mana, and soup that someone had reheated without much hope.
Marron sat near the smoldering hearth, Lucy curled against her side like a lavender pillow, Mokko a quiet sentinel beside her. For once, no one spoke. Even Mielle had slipped off to rest, her basket of bear-shaped pastries empty but for crumbs.
The fire crackled.
A log split in the embers, sending sparks spinning into the sky.
Should be safe enough...
Marron reached for her system menu.
She hadn't touched it since the fight. Too much had happened. Her hands still trembled when she remembered the venom flooding that mage's veins, the yellow-eyed monster bearing down on her ruined station, the hooded figure watching from the trees.
But now, glowing faintly at the bottom of her screen, was something new.
[Level 20 Reached – Advancement Unlocked]
[Reward Granted: 3 Upgrade Tokens]
Her thumb hovered over the message.
"Tokens?" she murmured. "I didn't craft anything new…"
[Clarification: Upgrade Tokens are granted upon milestone levels (10/20/30). Can be applied to companion units or core skills.]
Her eyes narrowed. She hadn't felt like she'd leveled. She'd felt like she'd survived. Barely.
"So I get stronger… for caring?" she whispered.
[Note: XP calculations include emotional resonance, support actions, group synergy, and crisis leadership under combat conditions.]
She scoffed quietly. "That's not comforting."
Lucy stirred slightly, her surface pulsing like a heartbeat.
Marron reached over and brushed her fingers across the slime's crown. "I didn't ask for a promotion. I just wanted everyone to make it out alive."
Still, she opened the token interface.
Lucy's profile appeared.
Companion Type: Slime
[Eligible for Evolution: Guardian or Empath?]
After some hesitation, she selected the Empath Variant.
It felt right.
Lucy's tendrils had always sought her out during the worst moments. Her surface had pulsed with concern when Marron cried into her apron, and she had risked herself to cleanse poison from a stranger.
Her actions had kept Marron grounded—especially when Mokko wasn't there.
She mentally swiped right, and Mokko's profile appeared.
Companion Type: Culinary Guardian
Affiliation: Independent
"That's a new designation," she murmured. The system recognized him now. Not as hers, but as someone who stood between her and everything else.
She gave him a token. His data erased and rewrote itself, then locked into place.
[Skill Acquired: Intercept Protocol]
Threat awareness increased. Stamina regen improved while guarding.
From the way he grunted and kept telling her he was fine, Marron guessed he'd never asked for it.
Even if he deserved it.
The third token… that one, she used on herself.
Deep in her cooking tree was a node she hadn't dared touch until now:
[Emotion Channeling Tier II – Culinary Echo]
Infuse dishes with residual emotional memory. Effects echo within allies over time.
She tapped the upgrade.
The screen flashed.
[Emotional Memory Threshold Unlocked]
Warning: Echoes may persist beyond intended duration.
Observed side effects: nightmares, craving loops, emotional imprinting.
Example: Comfort soup that makes allies hear their grandmother's voice hours later. Proceed with care, Generalist.
Marron's stomach twisted.
"What does that even mean?" she whispered. "Nightmares… cravings… emotional imprints… Why does it feel like such a debuff?"
She muttered, "Reverse growth?" even though she wasn't sure she was using the term right. A friend had said it once while rage-quitting a dungeon crawler. It felt accurate.
Lucy stirred again, sensing the shift. A small tendril reached out, tapping her wrist gently.
"I'm okay," Marron murmured. "It's just... I didn't think helping people would mean this. Suffering for them."
She glanced at Mokko.
He was sharpening one of his smaller knives now, the motion slow and precise. He hadn't looked at her once during the upgrades, but something in his posture told her he was listening.
"System's giving me tools I don't understand."
Mokko didn't stop sharpening, but he answered. "Then you learn. Like any blade."
+
That night, she dreamed of duskbeast eyes glowing like coin-flames.
The battlefield was her cart, and the cart was on fire. She stood in front of the hooded figure again, but this time, no customers surrounded them. Just bones arranged like tableware.
The figure tilted their head.
"If your food is good," they said, "we'll leave peacefully."
But this time, the threat was obvious. Their voice wasn't calm. It was hungry.
The ground beneath her cracked. She tried to reach for Mokko's hand—but it slipped away. Her fingers grasped nothing but smoke.
Cold air hit her face like a slap.
Marron's eyes snapped open, her heart hammering against her ribs. The nightmare clung to her like grease, that hungry voice still echoing in her ears. Her skin felt clammy, and she could taste ash on her tongue even though the fire had died to embers.
Lucy had curled tightly around her torso, tendrils wrapped in a protective spiral. She pulsed with heat and lavender light, her version of a desperate hug.
Mokko crouched near the fire, a tin cup in his hands. His shoulders were tense, ears pricked toward the treeline.
"You were crying in your sleep," he said quietly, but his attention wasn't entirely on her.
Marron wiped her eyes. "It was just—" She stopped. It hadn't been just a dream.
Without a word, Mokko handed her the cup, though his gaze flickered to the darkness beyond their camp.
Spiced chocolate. Thick, fragrant. A hint of orange peel and cinnamon, with a swirl of melted nut cream at the bottom. Steam rose in curling trails, tinged with glitter.
Marron blinked. "You… what's in it?"
He pulled out a tiny pouch, barely larger than his palm. Inside: rainbow-colored sugar shards. They caught the firelight like gemstones.
"Chef who made these disappeared," Mokko said. "Before she challenged the Gourmet King. Said she wanted to make food that fought for you."
He didn't look at her when he added, "You reminded me of her. When you looked like you were losing."
Marron clutched the cup in both hands.
The chocolate was hot, sweet, and oddly protective.
Like something in it saw the darkness and decided not to back down.
She sniffed once and smiled faintly. "You're gonna make me cry again."
Mokko grunted. "Don't waste it."
Lucy wriggled closer, as if satisfied the danger had passed.
For a moment, it was quiet.
Then Mokko's ears twitched. His hand moved subtly toward his knife.
A heartbeat later, the system chimed.
[Observer Proximity Alert]
Signature consistent with previous encounter. Range: 200m.
Recommended Action: Do Not Cook Alone.
Marron's grip on the cup tightened.
The fire crackled.
In the distance, something in the woods moved—but didn't break a single branch.