Hell's Kitchen

Yinsen watched Tony walk out with a frown. He didn't know exactly what the boss and Tony had discussed upstairs, but it was clearly something that left the latter unhappy. To be honest, he was quite satisfied with his current job. Though only Tony had come by in half a day, for someone on a fixed salary, that meant a nice bit of leisure.

Just as he was thinking this, he saw his boss walk in with a thick stack of documents.

"Hey, Yinsen."

Yuri said with a warm smile. "Your work's here."

Yinsen took the blueprints, flipped through a few pages, and frowned uncertainly. "Boss, this looks like...?"

Yuri was admiring the treasures his cheap father had snagged at an auction. Without turning his head, he replied, "Actually, if you read through everything in your hands, you won't have any more questions. What you're seeing is fundamentally different from that ugly monster Tony invented in the cave. What I need you to do is outfit it with a set of sharp fangs based on its performance."

A few minutes later, Yuri finished examining all the treasures and shook his head. He couldn't appreciate European and American art styles; he preferred the ukiyo-e from a land known for its sharpshooters.

"What do you think, Yinsen?"

He turned back to Yinsen, who was still studying the blueprints. "This shouldn't be a problem for you."

Yinsen looked up from the blueprints, his voice full of doubt. "So, magic really exists in this world?"

Yuri nodded. A ball of light, one Yinsen was all too familiar with, slowly appeared in his empty right hand. He patted it into Yinsen, who was in the midst of a worldview overhaul, and asked with a smile, "Otherwise, how do you think I saved you?"

The warm current surging through his body completely dispelled Yinsen's doubts. He organized all the blueprints on the table and handed them back to Yuri, adjusting his glasses. "I've memorized the general parameters. The plan will be done before dark, but the actual physical object is beyond my ability."

Yuri nodded and headed back to the second floor, preparing for his meeting with Tony that evening.

The second floor had been completely turned into his raw material warehouse, stacked with common metals like iron, copper, and nickel, along with a small box of precious metals like gold and silver.

Closing the stair door—the only way up besides the window—Yuri walked among the metals. With a thought, he singled out all the materials he needed. Hard metals and stones swirled around him like flowing water. This was a new trait he'd gained after his ability evolved, allowing him to process and control materials within a small range without physical contact.

How small a range?

Just about a meter or so.

Using copper and iron as the main materials, a metal giant—feet on the floor, head brushing the ceiling—was pieced together bit by bit from the bottom up. Under the influence of his superpower, the connections between metals had no gaps. Aside from the patchy colors due to different materials, the entire body looked as if it were naturally formed.

"Whew..."

Yuri checked the time. Unbeknownst to him, it was already two in the afternoon. He opened the door and went downstairs, finding Yinsen fully absorbed in his work. The streets were much emptier now. Yuri tapped Yinsen's desk. "It's two o'clock. Are you hungry?"

"Oh!"

Yinsen jumped, startled. He pushed up his glasses, which had slid down to his nose, and asked, "Boss, what did you say?"

Yuri pointed at the wall clock. "I asked if you're hungry!"

Yinsen touched his stomach and realized he hadn't eaten in nearly seven hours. He wrapped up his current work, locked all his notes in the cabinet, and stood up. "So, boss, are you treating?"

You've already said that, what else can I do?

Yuri rolled his eyes and pushed open the shop door first. "Got anything you want to eat? If not, let's find a buffet with big portions."

Yinsen locked the door. "No, boss. A buffet sounds good."

They walked along the street, only to find that every restaurant had a "Temporarily Closed" sign up at this hour. After wandering around, they finally found a Western restaurant open for business on the next street.

"This one, boss. I can't walk anymore."

Yinsen glanced at the junkies scattered everywhere on the street and belatedly realized they'd entered "Hell's Kitchen." He pushed open the glass door of the Western restaurant. A wave of blood hit his nose, making him frown: a trail of blood stretched across the floor to the kitchen, where waitstaff in uniforms were mopping it up...

"What can I get for you, gentlemen?"

Yinsen already regretted stepping into this Western restaurant. He wasn't stupid; he knew what that blood trail meant. But Yuri just felt a bit nauseated. He took the menu from the waiter, glanced over it, and ordered, "Thirty steaks and one standard set meal. Also, bring some wine and fruit."

He handed the menu back to the waiter but didn't let go immediately. His eyes flicked over the bloodstain on the floor, and he said calmly, "Make sure the utensils are clean, and don't pass off fake stuff as real."

The waiter smiled gently, holding the menu to his chest. "Don't worry, sir. These are different businesses."

Once the waiter was far enough away, Yinsen leaned in and complained, "I'm definitely eating on time next time. This feeling is terrible."

Yuri didn't comment. He was mulling over whether to set up a delivery agreement with the café next door. After all, if no one reminded them, he and Yinsen would never notice the time once they got to work.

"Sir, three steaks and one standard set meal. The rest are still being prepared. Please be patient."

Yuri sniffed, confirming that everything on the plates was legally permissible. He nodded to the hesitant Yinsen and cut off a large piece of steak, shoving it into his mouth. Surprisingly, the food at this dark restaurant, which dabbled in shady business, tasted pretty good. After polishing off a whole steak in a few bites, he grabbed his knife and attacked the second steak under Yinsen's watchful gaze, who had just finished his own cutting.

The waiter, who had been watching them from behind the bar, raised an eyebrow. He walked unhurriedly into the kitchen and said to the chef washing blood off his hands, "Hey, Tom, those two aren't here to cause trouble. Looks like we just ran into a big eater."

Tom dried his hands and immediately put on gloves to work in the real kitchen. "That's rare. How long has it been since we had a legitimate customer?"

The waiter chuckled. "Legitimate? Tom, for us, killing is the real business."

Yuri finished three steaks and downed a large bottle of beer. He nodded thanks to the waiter, who brought out another five steaks, and handed over the money for the thirty steaks and one set meal in advance. Amid the waiter's polite smile, he asked, "Sir, does your establishment consider delivery service? It's not far, just on the next street."

"Sir."

The waiter collected the empty plates and asked, "Do you really not know what we do here?"

Yuri cut all five steaks into bite-sized pieces, speared one, and held it up. "But your other job is pretty good too, isn't it?"