As we step out of Narkul’s office, the air is thick with everything we’ve just learned. There’s a lot to unpack, and none of us can stay silent for long.

"So, we’re in a world where vampires, elves, and dwarves are all part of the same... mankind?" Jiho starts, his voice laced with disbelief. "And somehow, we ended up with enough treasure to bankrupt the wealthiest guy in this city?"

Isak laughs nervously. "Not to mention that whole thing about aliens showing up in the ’80s. I thought vampires were enough to deal with, but now we have to worry about extraterrestrials too?"

"At least they’re not around anymore," I mutter, trying to process everything myself. "Narkul made that pretty clear, but still... globalism, unified world currency—this place is like some kind of weird utopia. And somehow, we’re supposed to fit in."

Abel, walking with his hands in his pockets, adds, "The craziest part is, we’re not even from this world, and yet, we just signed up to live here, manage some ridiculous fortune, and help keep a city afloat. That’s a lot to take in."

I nod, feeling the weight of that responsibility settle on me. "Yeah, and don’t forget—we have to study here too. Narkul wants us learning the ins and outs of this place like we’re prepping for exams."

Jiho looks up, a frown creasing his face. "Do you think he suspects something? I mean, we’re from another world, and we just dropped that on him. What if he’s using us?"

"He might," I say carefully, "but he’s also invested in us now. He needs us to keep his fortune going. I don’t think he’d risk losing that. Plus, he seems straightforward—more interested in making sure we don’t embarrass him in front of the city."

Isak shakes his head, sighing. "And I thought dealing with college admissions was tough. Now we’ve got mana-powered regions, unified languages, and contracts with some of the wealthiest people in the world."

Abel, ever the level-headed one, glances at me. "Haru, what do you think about all this? You’re the one holding the card. You’re in charge of all this wealth now. How do we even handle that?"

I feel the card in my pocket, the weight of it heavy, not just physically but mentally. "Honestly? I don’t know. I’ll have to figure it out as we go. First things first, we need to get the basics sorted. Phones, food, and a better understanding of how this city operates. We can’t afford to screw this up."

Jiho rubs the back of his neck, still deep in thought. "And what about the whole ‘studying’ part? Narkul’s going to be teaching us himself, but it sounds like we’ll have to spend our lives here, learning to run this city."

Isak chuckles dryly. "It’s not like we had anything better going on back home. But still, it’s wild. One minute, we’re broke and jobless, and now we’re part of some elite circle."

We keep walking through the bustling streets, the energy of the city swirling around us, but our conversation remains focused. The young worker from earlier crosses our path, offering us a polite nod. “Everything went well, I hope?” she asks kindly.

I nod back. “Yeah, it did. Thanks.”

She smiles before heading off, and as we continue down the street, Jiho breaks the silence again. “Do you think Narkul was serious about us having to manage the city’s finances, like for real? That’s... intense.”

Abel shrugs, his expression unreadable. “If we’re going to stay here long-term, it’s not just about surviving. We’re going to have to thrive, play the game, and make sure we don’t screw things up. We’re in the big leagues now.”

I can feel the weight of their words pressing down on me. "Yeah, and the first step to not screwing up is figuring out how this place works. So, let’s start with food and those phones. We’ve got to blend in, at least until we understand more about what we’ve signed up for."

The mall looms ahead, and we walk toward it, still piecing together everything from the meeting, knowing we’ve only scratched the surface of what’s to come.

As we walk into the mall, the blast of cool air hits me, and my stomach growls loud enough for the others to hear. We’re all starving, and that hunger is making everything feel even more surreal. Isak, unsurprisingly, is the first to start talking.

“Man, with all these different types of people here, harem building might be off the table now,” he says with a grin, clearly joking but with that hopeful glint in his eye.

Abel, always quick to bring him back down to earth, doesn’t miss a beat. “It was never on the table to begin with, Isak. Let’s be real, you weren’t exactly on your way to building one before we got here.”

I can’t help but let out a small sigh. Not that I was banking on it either, but the idea of being surrounded by beautiful women in a world of adventure had sounded more exciting before we got hit with all the reality. Now, it just feels like another thing that’s out of reach.

As we make our way through the food court, I’m surprised to see how similar everything looks to what we had back on Earth. There’s pizza, sushi, burgers, ice cream—stuff that feels familiar in a world that’s been anything but. I catch myself staring at a pizza place for a second too long, but before I can say anything, Jiho cuts in.

“Nah, I don’t want anything we could get back home,” he says, eyes scanning the options. “I want something different. Let’s go for something foreign.”

Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

I raise an eyebrow at him. “You do realize ‘foreign’ has a whole different meaning here, right?”

He grins, not phased in the slightest. “Exactly. That’s why we should try the elven food.”

We all follow Jiho’s gaze to a restaurant further down the court. It’s got this ethereal look to it—sleek wooden decor, vines creeping up the walls, and soft, glowing lights that feel like they belong in some magical forest. The sign above it reads, in elegant script, Elven Cuisine. I have no idea what to expect from elven food, but at this point, I’m hungry enough to try just about anything.

“Alright, let’s do it,” I say, shrugging as we make our way toward the restaurant.

As we walk inside, the atmosphere changes immediately. The lighting is softer, the music is gentle, and the scent in the air is... different. It’s hard to describe—earthy, sweet, and something else I can’t quite place. We find a table, and as we sit down, I realise this is probably the most relaxed I’ve felt since we got here.

We all lean back, trying to relax after the whirlwind of information Narkul threw at us. It feels good to just sit down and take a breath. The soft glow of the lights in the elven restaurant gives the place a calming vibe, almost like we’ve stepped into another world—well, even more so than we already have.

Isak, ever curious, grabs the menu first. He flips it open, and almost immediately, his face twists into a mix of horror and disbelief.

“What’s wrong?” Jiho asks, raising an eyebrow.

Isak sputters, holding the menu out like it’s cursed. “What’s wrong? Dude, the food here is literally vegetables, grains, and... bugs!”

I blink, processing that for a second before letting out a groan. “Seriously, Jiho? You just had to go foreign, didn’t you?”

Jiho laughs awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. “How was I supposed to know elves eat bugs? I thought it would be, like, magical fruits or something.”

Abel, always the voice of calm reasoning, sighs deeply but gives Jiho a look that says, You’re definitely to blame for this one.

Just as we’re all about to seriously consider bailing on this place and finding something a bit more human-friendly, one of the waitstaff comes over—a tall, graceful elf with bright green eyes and a smile that’s way too genuine for the situation.

“Good evening, friends,” she says in a soft, musical voice. “Have you had a chance to decide on your order?”

I can feel all our eyes dart around the table, and for a split second, I think one of us might actually say, No, we’ll be leaving now. But none of us want to be rude.

“Well, uh...” I start, glancing at the menu again, “I guess we’ll have the... roasted grain platter? And, um... the vegetable medley.”

Jiho quickly points out a soup option, his voice uncertain. “And maybe the forest root stew?”

Abel, resigned to our fate, simply nods. “We’ll take whatever’s ready the fastest.”

The waiter beams, clearly pleased. “Excellent choices! Your food won’t take long.” With that, she turns and glides back toward the kitchen.

We all let out a collective groan. “We’re about to eat bugs and roots,” Isak mutters, slumping back in his chair.

Jiho gives an apologetic smile. “Well, look at it this way—at least it’s a new experience?”

I just shake my head, trying to mentally prepare for whatever’s about to come out of that kitchen.

The food doesn't take long as it's brought before us and served with a smile…

We all sit there, staring at the plates in front of us like we’ve just been served an alien’s last meal. The food... well, it’s not what any of us expected. The biggest plate holds a roasted bug, shiny and enormous, next to it, three more smaller roasted bugs. And then there’s the main attraction—a caterpillar the size of a chicken, roasted to perfection. Off to the side, there’s a stew of flies, and the pièce de résistance: large spider legs mixed in with vegetables, roots, and grains.

But then, the smell hits us.

It’s... good. Way better than any of us expected.

"Alright, Jiho," I say, crossing my arms. "You brought us here, you’re going first."

Jiho’s eyes widen in panic. "Wait, I didn’t mean for this to happen—"

"Doesn’t matter," Abel cuts in, leaning back and smirking. "You wanted something foreign. Now you get to try it."

Isak, always the one to pile on, nudges Jiho. "Come on, man. One bite."

With a resigned sigh, Jiho picks up a fork and slowly cuts into the caterpillar. The sound of its crunch echoes around the table, making all of us wince. He hesitates, giving us one last, pitiful look before putting the bite in his mouth.

We all watch in silence as he chews, the sound of crunching filling the air. Jiho’s face is hard to read at first—somewhere between horrified and surprised. He swallows, clears his throat, and then... smiles.

“You guys… it’s actually really good.”

There’s a collective pause as we all exchange looks of disbelief.

“No way,” Isak mutters, eyeing the food suspiciously.

“I swear,” Jiho says, taking another bite, this time trying a bit of the stew. “I’m not kidding. It’s delicious.”

I can’t believe it. None of us can. But curiosity—and hunger—get the better of us. I pick up a fork and cautiously stab at the caterpillar, taking a bite. The moment the flavors hit my tongue, I’m floored.

“It’s... amazing,” I admit, still in shock. The taste is rich, savory, and unexpectedly good. The texture, while crunchy, has a satisfying tenderness underneath. The stew, despite being made of flies, has a deep, earthy flavor that feels almost comforting.

Before I know it, the others are diving in too. We’re like rabid wolves at this point, tearing through the food as if we haven’t eaten in days. Each bite is better than the last, and soon, the weirdness of the meal fades into the background.

We eat until we can’t anymore, and eventually, we all lean back in our chairs, completely stuffed.

“I can’t believe we just devoured... bugs,” Isak mutters, rubbing his stomach.

“I know,” I say, still in awe. “But that was incredible.”

Jiho smirks, leaning back with his hands behind his head. “See? Sometimes it’s worth trying something new.”

Abel chuckles softly. “Yeah, but next time, you’re still picking something that doesn’t look like it’s about to crawl off the plate.”

We all laugh, too full to care. For now, we’re content, and that’s more than enough.