Banquet Begins, Self-Introductions

The fall continues!

Lin Yu opened his eyes and looked around.

The biting wind was several times stronger than before, and below lay a vast, black, churning ocean.

Along with him, six other figures also fell—presumably the other Player.

"What's going on with this Instance?"

Lin Yu was thinking urgently.

And just as he was thinking...

"Bang!"

The downward trend suddenly stopped!

He fell onto a chair—or more accurately, a chair caught Lin Yu!

The soft leather-cushioned wooden chair miraculously absorbed almost all the impact of the fall, and Lin Yu didn't even feel the slightest pain!

Then, he looked around at the scenery again.

At this moment, they were still hundreds of meters in the air—except for him, the other six figures were also sitting in different chairs.

These chairs swayed and floated in mid-air, each chair with four ropes attached to its four corners that stretched upwards, seemingly reaching the ceiling.

Then...

A white round table, secured by seven ropes, fell from the sky and came to a steady stop in front of everyone.

On the table were porcelain bone dishes, and...

In the center of the table, a giant red Octopus stands out of the water in the pool.

This red Octopus is wearing Chef's hat, and its eight tentacles are outstretched.

"Welcome! Welcome, esteemed Distinguished Guest! Welcome, visitors and Player from this other world!"

"Welcome to this banquet hosted by my Supreme Lord, the God of Feasts, Wine, and Revelry!"

The red Octopus emitted a cheerful yet solemn sound, its deep voice like that of a resonant baritone, as if it were a radio announcer delivering holiday greetings.

"I am the host, Head Chef, Lobby Manager, and security captain for this banquet—Ka!"

"Distinguished guests, I hope you all enjoy this banquet, and..."

One of the Octopus's tentacles wrapped up its tall white Chef's hat, while the remaining seven tentacles grabbed the Chef beneath the hat and flung it at the seven people!

"Rub!"

The sharp knives and forks struck the table in front of everyone with pinpoint accuracy, just centimeters away from each person.

Lin Yu glanced at the knife and fork in front of him, which were still wobbling slightly, and realized something.

"This octopus, which looks cooked, is actually quite strong..."

Then, the red Octopus "Ka" put on its Chef's hat.

"... and I also hope that you will all live to see the end of the banquet."

After it finished speaking, its tentacles reached under the pool and pulled out a piece of cardboard.

"In short, in order for everyone to better survive this Revelry feast, I have a few small Banquet Rules that I hope you will follow!"

At this point in the Octopus's story, Lin Yu sat up straight.

Now for the main event.

This is the Rule section of the Game.

The Octopus then began to recite the Rule.

"First of all, everyone who is here is a distinguished guest valued by my Lord. Unless permitted by my Lord, no one is allowed to Mutual Attack."

Lin Yu nodded slightly upon hearing this Rule.

If Mutual Attack is not allowed, then it's highly likely this isn't a "vs-player" Instance.

Even in "competitive" games, it's unlikely that Player will directly fight each other.

After the Octopus finished reading the Rule, Lin Yu heard a soft "tsk" from beside him.

Lin Yu glanced sideways and saw a man in Tang Suit with Tortoiseshell-Frame Glasses and a face as thin as a knife showing an unhappy expression.

Not only the man in the Tang Suit, but also a girl with light yellow hair, dressed in brightly colored accessories and extremely flamboyant clothes, directly opposite Lin Yu, showed a disappointed expression and muttered something.

Judging from his lip movements, he probably meant "What a pity."

After saying "Card," the Octopus paused for a moment before continuing.

"Secondly... since this is a banquet, although some of the food may not suit everyone's taste, I hope everyone will not waste food and will eat every dish properly, otherwise -- there might be some punishment."

Upon hearing this, Lin Yu narrowed his eyes.

"Looks like it'll be a 'survival' game. I guess the dishes might be a bit difficult to eat or something."

"Finally, and most importantly—please follow the Table Manners I've reminded you of while enjoying the food and the banquet, and do your part at every stage... Otherwise, I'll have to do something that will make everyone unhappy."

"Of course, as the host of the banquet, besides punishing impolite diners, I will also provide timely assistance and rewards to those who perform well."

After the Octopus "Ka" finished speaking, Lin Yu had basically outlined the content of this Instance.

It basically involves being forced to eat various foods that are somewhat difficult to consume, under all sorts of strange demands.

As for whether the food was particularly hard, particularly hot, or particularly unpalatable...

Lin Yu is currently unknown.

The Octopus "Ka" has not yet revealed any meaning behind this.

It tossed the cardboard back into the pool, then turned its head 360 degrees to get a clear look at each Player's face.

"Alright everyone... I need to go prepare the ingredients now—next is your self-introduction and getting to know each other."

I hope we all get along well!

After saying that...

The Octopus "Ka" brought its eight tentacles together, and like a spring, it flew out of the pool in the center of the table and flew towards the high school.

And after he left.

The lean, thirty-year-old man in a tortoiseshell-rimmed Tang Suit sitting to Lin Yu's left spoke up.

"Alright, everyone... Although I know some of you, since this Octopus said we shouldn't Mutual Attack and should introduce ourselves... let's try to stay peaceful for now."

"How about we start with me and proceed to the right to introduce ourselves?"

The man spoke, and the light blonde-haired girl sitting directly opposite Lin Yu immediately put her feet on the table. "Suit yourself."

The man in the Tang Suit ignored the other person's obviously barbed words, pushed up his glasses with his middle finger, and said, "Let me introduce myself. I'm Li Hua, a member of 'Order' from Sea City, and also the Administrator of Sea City —codename 'Gambler.' My Profession is also 'Gambler.'"

Upon hearing this name, Lin Yu was surprised.

Normally, people don't introduce their city or True Name when introducing themselves.

But this person is qualified to do so!

Sea City Administrator, "Gambler" Li Hua...

Even within the realm of "Order," this would place them among the top tier of experts!

"Gambler" is not the Unique Profession, but they are relatively rare.

To use Unique Profession as a pseudonym, and to dare to openly show one's True Name...

Li Hua's abilities are evident!

After Li Hua finished speaking, she gestured "please" to the man on her left.

The man sitting next to Li Hua was a very honest and simple farmer, with dark skin and some wrinkles on his face.

He calmly began, "My Profession is 'farmer,' from the 'Player Mutual Aid Society,' you can call me 'Carrot.'"

Lin Yu was quite surprised again.

This "Carrot" grandpa claimed to be "from" the "Player Mutual Aid Society," but in reality—he was one of the Founder of the "Player Mutual Aid Society."

Then, a man with fair skin, captivating eyes, and a appearance resembling a Peking Opera female role, dressed in Tailcoat, smiled.

"Excuse me for bothering you all..."

He snapped his fingers lightly, and a top hat appeared out of thin air in his hand, which he gently placed on his head.

"My Profession is 'Magician,' and my codename is also 'Magician,' but you can also call me 'Qianhuan'..."

"From the 'Freedom Alliance'."