Gem Meat

"But... doesn't it require a strong physique as a foundation?"

"That's true, but it produces immediate results in improving combat power. Interested in learning it?"

"I am!"

Thor nodded solemnly. Since he had lost his divine power and been reduced to a mortal body, he had to do everything he could to grow stronger if he wanted to protect his beloved.

"No problem. Grandis!"

"Yo, boss."

"Thor?" Grandis looked him up and down, her eyes full of doubt. "You're not even as good as Mumen Rider. Pathetic."

"My divine power is sealed right now. I'm just an ordinary person."

"Fine, but you, whatever-your-name-is, had better think this through. I won't go easy on you."

"That's exactly what I want."

"We were just about to begin combat training. Come on."

"Combat training?! I haven't even learned the basics!"

"Feel Godhead Fist with your body. That's the fastest way to get started."

Grandis casually tossed her wine flask onto the grass, wiped her mouth, and instantly sobered up.

A foreboding feeling suddenly rose in Thor's heart. Something felt very wrong.

Second Pillar and Mumen Rider, who had just finished training, stood to the side and gave him sympathetic looks.

It sounded like guiding a newcomer, but in reality, they had simply found a living punching bag to practice on.

The two ** took their stances.

"I won't go easy on you just because you're a woman."

"Show me what you've got, little rookie."

"Ha!"

Thor roared and charged forward with a punch.

The result was full of openings. Grandis easily saw through him with strength no greater than an ordinary human's, then landed a heavy uppercut on his jaw, sending him flying before he crashed hard onto the ground.

"You're way too weak. You're full of openings from head to toe. Don't tell me you used to just flail around with Thor's power?"

"None of your business! Again!"

Thor wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and climbed back up.

He had to admit that he had never encountered an evenly matched opponent before. Either someone like Odin utterly crushed him, or they were mere cannon fodder that he could deal with by swinging Mjolnir.

"Your fighting technique is awful, and your physical ability is only thirty percent of Mumen Rider's. Other than being relatively durable, you're useless."

"..."

Mumen Rider, who had been used as a unit of measurement for combat strength, secretly felt relieved. At least he was no longer at the bottom.

"He's yours."

"Don't worry. I'll beat him until he's half-dead, then heal him with divine arts."

"What the hell?!" Thor's eyes widened. "Can I call a stop now?"

"What do you think? Honestly, it's my first time beating up a god. This is exciting."

"..."

"!"

"Stop! My waist!"

"I surrender! I give up!"

"..."

Thor's heart-wrenching wails echoed through the training room.

His fighting skills were abysmal, and now even his physical functions had been limited to mortal levels. Even an opponent like Mumen Rider could easily crush him. Yet Thunder God Power capable of tearing apart the heavens lay dormant within him, and Mjolnir was merely a medium for guiding that power.

Sadly, he had long become a slave to his hammer. Without his weapon, he was helpless, much less now that even his divine power had been stripped away.

"Stop! This is outright **!" Jane, who had been watching, rushed into the fighting area and forcibly interrupted Grandis's special training.

Thor lay sprawled on the floor, his face swollen like fermented dough. His broken ribs stabbed painfully into his lungs. The slightest movement of his fingers sent a tidal wave of agony through his body—this prince of Asgard had never experienced such humiliation.

"Don't be nervous. They're all superficial injuries." Grandis rolled her joints as though she had merely finished warming up. "He needs to undergo this kind of training every day. He has to get used to it early."

"Every day?!" Jane's voice suddenly rose. Injuries like these would be enough to keep an ordinary person in intensive care for more than half a year. She could not let Thor stay in this devilish training ground.

"Calm down, **." A milky white glow spread across Grandis's palm. "Slow Healing."

Starlight-like holy light seeped into Thor's shattered body. The bruising swiftly faded, and his bones made faint sounds as they rejoined.

"We're leaving! She'll ** you alive!"

"No, I want to master Godhead Fist." Thor braced himself against the floor and rose with difficulty, determination blazing in his eyes. How could this god of war, who had once conquered the Nine Realms, be defeated by pain? Besides, he had indeed glimpsed the possibility of killing gods within those fist techniques. If he reached the pinnacle, even Odin's Golden Palace would crumble beneath his fists.

"You're simply—"

"Miss, when a man has made his choice, questioning him is the greatest insult."

"But her teaching method is outright violence!"

"Pain is the most effective way to remember." Grandis shrugged indifferently. "I suggest you avoid watching, or you'll affect the training that follows."

"I..."

"Jane, wait outside for me." Thor wiped the blood from his mouth. "I'll come find you when it's over."

The female scientist's clenched fists finally loosened helplessly. When she turned around, she slammed the metal door so hard it shook the room.

She had only been worried about him, yet he had openly gone against her.

The more she thought about it, the angrier Jane became.

No one could underestimate what kind of power a furious woman could unleash.

In a huff, Jane turned and stormed out of the training room without looking back.

"Yo, your little girlfriend's gone feral."

"I'll comfort her after training."

"All right, basic training first—horse stance for an hour." Grandis gave the order casually, mischief flashing in her eyes. "And one more condition: master the basics of Godhead Fist within three days. If you fail..." She waved a pair of scissors that had appeared at some point. "You can forget about keeping that long hair of yours."

"Don't even think about it! Who dares touch my hair?!"

Thor's instantly explosive reaction was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

Heaven knew how deeply obsessed he was with that golden hair.

"That's not up to you."

Grandis cracked her knuckles and revealed a devilish smile. With the vast difference in their strength, if they truly fought, Thor's thousand-year-long hair would probably hit the floor on the spot.

"Have a 'pleasant' training session." Li Chen took the slender hand of the purple-haired girl. "We'll leave this place to them. Let's go out."

"Mm... okay..."

The girl who had looked so valiant moments earlier was now as obedient as a housecat. The unfamiliar warmth from his heated palm was completely different from the cold, hard grip of a sword...

In the most luxurious Hero Restaurant at [League of Heroes] headquarters, rare ingredients from across the multiverse were gathered. It contained not only the finest delicacies of the modern world—Almas Caviar, 5** wagyu, bluefin tuna, Bresse chicken—but also fantastical ingredients beyond common sense: magical beasts marbled like frosted wagyu, strange trees laden with ** crab meat, and wine springs that gushed amber-colored brandy.

Rainbow Fruit gleamed with rainbow radiance, Gem Meat sparkled on the plate, Century Soup gave off golden steam, sweet cola crackled in cups, and slices of Wine God Dragon meat carried an intoxicating aroma...

The only thing missing here was a master chef capable of turning these God-Level ingredients into culinary miracles. If they could recruit Little Master, the Yukihira father and son, or the God Tongue, these rare delicacies would surely reveal even more exquisite flavors.

Of course, ordinary ingredients could be taken freely, while legendary ingredients required energy points to exchange for them.

"Mmm! This is amazing!"

The purple-haired girl praised the glowing Gem Meat on her plate, completely oblivious to the grease smeared across her cheek.

Like a jewel polished over and over by an artisan, its marbling was perfectly distributed. Its crystal-clear juices glittered like crushed gold, and the rich fragrance drifting through the air put even the finest perfumes to shame.

Its rich, primal meat fragrance was enough to make one's mouth water even without a master's cooking.

"..."

Glancing at the stack of plates beside him that stood as high as a person, Li Chen finally understood how terrifying a big eater could be.

Without a gold mine at home, how could anyone afford to raise this wild spirit?!

—And that was only because the energy contained in "Gem Meat" was equivalent to a hundred times that of ordinary meat.

If Hero Restaurant had not been there to support him, then if he truly drew Artoria, Yuyuko Saigyouji, Kanna, or Allen Walker—big eaters like them—in the future, he would probably wake up every day worrying about food expenses.

"Mmm."

After swallowing the final piece of Gem Meat, the purple-haired girl finally put down her knife and fork.

She was about eighty percent full. It was the first time since her birth that she had experienced the feeling of fullness.

Although it was incredibly delicious, she still felt that something was missing, leaving her faintly regretful.

"Not to your taste?"

"The meat is good... but I miss Kinako Bread more..."

After pondering for a moment, she spoke softly.

In terms of rarity, Gem Meat far surpassed Kinako Bread.

Yet the girl favored the latter alone, as though the taste from her first bite had been carved into her soul.

"If you want some, order it. I'm paying today."

"Really?!"

"Mm."

"Please bring one hundred servings of Kinako Bread!"

"..."

The sight of the girl happily chewing the bread in her hands was like watching someone embrace the finest taste in the world.

Such blank-paper purity naturally drew the attention of those around her.

"Here, have some."

Halfway through eating, she suddenly looked toward Li Chen, who was resting his chin in his hand and watching her.

Her gaze lingered on the bread for several seconds. Then, as though she had made an enormous decision, she broke off more than half and handed it to him.

"Thanks."

Unable to refuse such sincerity, Li Chen accepted the bread bearing her bite marks and could not help but laugh.

In a sense, this counted as an indirect kiss—although the girl probably had never considered such things. She merely clumsily wanted to share her favorite food with someone important to her.

"By the way, do you have a name?"

"A name..."

The girl's eyes suddenly dimmed, and a heavy sorrow weighed down her voice.

She looked especially dejected. Anyone who encountered her would launch fierce attacks, so having been isolated from the world for so long, she naturally had no such thing as a name.

"I... have no name."

"Then let me give you one, all right?"

Li Chen suggested with a smile.

The purple-haired girl did not answer immediately. Instead, she looked at Li Chen with puzzled eyes.

"Why?"

"Hm?"

"Why are you so kind to me?"

"That's the privilege of a pretty girl."

Li Chen gently pinched the girl's soft cheek, his crimson eyes curving slightly.

Faced with this innocent spirit girl, Li Chen had felt fond of her from the moment they met, so naturally he was willing to take better care of her.

"I see..."

"Of course."

"But every human who met me in the past said I had to be destroyed."

"They're nothing but ants." Li Chen waved his hand casually. "Why care about their nonsense? If they're truly too noisy, just cut them down."

In his eyes, the purple-haired girl was far too kind. She held back every time she fought. With her strength, she could easily wipe out an army of a million. If she displayed such power even once, he wanted to see which country would still dare provoke her.

"Mm... that does make sense." The purple-haired girl nodded thoughtfully. "By the way, about my name, what do you intend to call me?"

"Yatogami Tohka. Do you like it?"

"It's not bad. Then from today onward, I am Yatogami Tohka."

"..."

"Ding—C-rank third-place Iron Man Tony requests a call."

Just as Li Chen was feeding Yatogami Tohka, the Chairman's Ring on his finger suddenly sounded an alert.

Every member's wristband could enable communication across vast distances. On Earth, it might not be as convenient as a phone, but once one crossed dimensions or traveled far from Earth, phones would cease to work. At such times, the wristband's communication function became especially important.

After silently choosing "Accept," Tony's image, clad in Iron Man armor, immediately appeared on the light screen.

"You're already back?"

"That's right. It took longer, but it's still better than the side effects of spatial jumping."

"You need something?"

"** sent a congressional representative to talk to you."

"That doesn't sound like your style. Tell me, what did they offer you?"

"My father's relic."