"Is it a rat?"
He frowned.
"No, the sound was too loud, and it was too rhythmic; it didn't sound like a rodent."
"Could it be... a thief?"
This thought made him sit up immediately.
Although there wasn't much cash in the shop, those expensive ingredients and the knives left behind by Uncle Guangu's father were all Uncle Guangu's lifeblood.
He rolled out of bed silently, didn't turn on the lights, and walked barefoot, step by step, down the creaking stairs.
The closer he got to the kitchen, the clearer the sound became.
It was the sound of the refrigerator door being opened and then closed, accompanied by a... ravenous chewing sound.
Shirou's heart sank.
He quieted his breathing, pressed his entire body against the wall by the kitchen door, and then suddenly reached out and flipped the switch on the wall.
"Click!"
The kitchen lights instantly turned on, illuminating the room as if it were daytime.
Then, time seemed to stand still.
Shirou Emiya froze in place; the scene before him exceeded everything he had known in his twenty years of life.
A... a huge, round, black-and-white fat panda was standing upright on its two legs, with half its body stuffed into the open commercial refrigerator.
It was crazily stealing and eating the ingredients in the kitchen.
The entire kitchen fell into an eerie, deathly silence.
Time froze for three seconds.
Hearing the noise of the light turning on, the panda's movements stiffened.
It seemed to have finally realized it had been discovered.
But it didn't turn around immediately; instead, with lightning speed, it stuffed the entire half-salmon in its paw into its mouth.
Then it quickly grabbed the box of rice balls, tore off the plastic wrap, and dumped all five or six rice balls into its mouth like pouring beans.
Its cheeks were stuffed full, looking like it had two softballs tucked inside.
After finishing all this, it slowly and contentedly turned around.
When it saw Shirou Emiya standing at the doorway with a look of astonishment, the small eyes under its dark circles blinked.
It chewed hard, its throat rolling as it struggled to swallow the mouthful of food, and it even let out a burp that carried the fishy, sweet scent of raw fish.
( ￣ ～ ￣ ) Chew!
Then, it gave Shirou an extremely awkward and slightly ingratiating smile.
"Uh... hi?"
The panda spoke, its voice honest and clear.
"Um... I'm really sorry, I was just so hungry."
"But don't worry, the Dragon Warrior—no, that's not right, the soon-to-be-retired Dragon Warrior will compensate you for your losses!"
A talking panda?
Shirou's brain short-circuited for a moment.
When did the Chinese pandas in this World evolve to such an advanced state?
He even suspected for a second that he was dreaming.
However, the next second, his pupils suddenly constricted.
Above the fat panda's head, a familiar mark was floating quietly, emitting a soft and firm green light.
It was a shield-shaped emblem.
[Guardian Faction Player: Po]
The raging waves in Shirou's heart instantly subsided, replaced by a complex and indescribable realization.
So... it was another one.
Another person who, like him and the girl named Uta, had been dragged into this strange World and couldn't go back.
Po also saw Shirou's mark; although they weren't in the same faction, Po could still sense that the red-haired boy before him wasn't a bad person.
As for why Po had come here to steal food, everything started an hour ago—
The afternoon in the Valley of Peace, the sunlight was always just right.
On the training grounds of the Jade Palace, Xiao Zhen's agile figure darted between the wooden dummies, movements swift as the wind.
Po stood to the side with his arms crossed, his round face full of gratification.
This little fox, whom he had pulled out of a criminal den, now had some of the bearing of a future Dragon Warrior.
Worthy of being the disciple he had chosen! Just like Master Oogway had chosen him back then.
He and the Furious Five had already taught Xiao Zhen everything they could; the rest depended on her own realization and practice.
"Very good, Xiao Zhen! Keep your core stable and punch decisively!"
Po shouted with a full, resonant voice, feeling that he had quite a bit of Master Oogway's demeanor back in the day.
The Furious Five were sparring on the side, occasionally giving pointers.
Everything was so harmonious and perfect.
Rumble—
An inharmonious sound broke this perfection.
The source of the sound was Po's own stomach. It growled righteously, resounding through the sky.
Everyone on the training ground stopped what they were doing and looked at him in unison.
Po's cheeks warmed slightly; he patted his protesting belly, gave a dry cough, and put on the airs of a senior:
"Um... you guys continue practicing, keep up the momentum! I'll go check the kitchen... um, check the food stock, to ensure everyone's nutrition!"
After speaking, he turned and left, his stride so brisk that he didn't look at all like someone going to "inspect" things.
Passing through the long corridor, the familiar scent of the kitchen, mixed with the smell of noodles and hot oil, rushed towards him.
He could almost see the mountains of steamed buns, and the secret-sauce noodles his father had made by hand, rich with broth.
"Fantastic!"
He quickened his pace, almost sprinting toward the kitchen door.
Just as his paw was about to touch the doorframe, the scene before him distorted without warning.
The vermilion pillars and carved windows of the Jade Palace shook violently like a reflection in water, and then were replaced by a pure, all-consuming darkness.
He didn't even have time to let out a cry of surprise.
...
It was unknown how much time had passed.
Po was woken up by hunger.
A sharp hunger, almost enough to make his internal organs knot up, dragged his consciousness out of the chaos.
He opened his eyes; everything around him was pitch black.
There was no familiar scent of bamboo in the air, nor the smoky atmosphere of his father's noodle shop; instead, there was a strange, cold air mixed with a fishy smell and some kind of sour odor.
The floor beneath him was hard and cold, completely different from the polished, smooth wooden floor of the Jade Palace.
"Where is this?"
He shook his big, furry head, trying to sit up.
His paw pressed against the ground, touching a piece of cold metal.
"A premeditated kidnapping? No, who could kidnap the Dragon Warrior from the Jade Palace? I've already beaten everyone under the heavens, alright!"
"Even Kai would have to think twice if he came."
"Hallucination? Doesn't seem like it, the hunger in his stomach was so real it made him want to cry."
Rumble—
His stomach growled again, louder than it had on the training ground, carrying a hint of grievance.
"Forget it."
Po shook his head, temporarily casting those unanswerable questions to the back of his mind.
"No matter how big the problem, I have to fill my stomach first."
"This is the first truth I summarized after years of walking the World."
He stood up, twitching his nose like the most professional hound, carefully discerning the source of the scent in the darkness.
"That fresh scent of raw fish, and... the sweetness of rice!"
"That's the direction!"
He lightened his footsteps—for a panda of his size, this was definitely a divine skill.
He silently moved through the darkness, following the scent, and quickly found his way to a huge, square metal cabinet.
He tentatively pulled on the cabinet door.
With a soft "click," a gentle white light shone through the crack in the door, accompanied by a richer, cold air mixed with the smell of various ingredients.
"What is this? It feels a bit icy, oh~ I get it, it's a refrigerator!"
"Although it wasn't quite like the ones I remember, its function is definitely correct!"
Po's eyes lit up instantly. He pulled open the refrigerator door, and the sight inside made him gasp.
A whole piece of pink fish meat with snowy white fat marbling, rows of neatly arranged, oval-shaped rice balls, and boxes of golden-yellow things that looked like desserts...
He didn't know what these were, but that didn't stop him from judging that—these were definitely top-tier delicacies!
"Gulp."
He swallowed his saliva, and the Angel and devil inside him began to fight fiercely.
"Taking without asking is stealing." A voice said in his mind. This reminded him of his master's past teachings.
"But you're about to starve to death! The Dragon Warrior starving to death in a strange place, does that sound right?" Another voice retorted.
"But this belongs to someone else!"
"Eat it and pay them back! If nothing else, just teach him a set of kung fu!"
The second voice won with an overwhelming advantage.
So Po didn't hesitate any longer. He reached out his paw, first carefully picking up the largest piece of salmon, and took a taste.