"Monsters like this every day-how do you kill them, and how do you drag them here? I can hardly believe it..."
"Don't worry about it. I guess I was just born a little stronger."
Running his hand over the springy fibers of the meat, the worker could not suppress his admiration for Lin Feng.
"Hurry inside and eat! Sheele's already eaten. We're just waiting for you!"
"Yeah, okay!"
Circling around to the front entrance, Lin Feng looked inside.
Sure enough, a beautifully plated curry omelet rice sat on a table inside, giving off clouds of hot white steam.
A girl with long purple hair, wearing rubber gloves, was about to slowly turn off the faucet and stack the last plate on top of the pile.
The glasses she usually wore had been set beside the sink, where a few splashes of water had landed on them.
But her hands kept shaking, and she accidentally bumped into the middle of the tall stack of plates-
Clack-crash... smash!
More than a dozen brand-new plates toppled over at her touch and shattered all over the floor.
"Sheele! Did you break the plates again?! This time, I'm definitely taking it out of your pay!"
The manager's voice came from the front counter.
"S-s-s-sorry!!"
Just as she was about to find a broom to sweep up the fragments on the floor, the girl turned around and saw Lin Feng's face, unable to hide her delight.
"Lin Feng... how did you get back so soon!"
Lin Feng smiled back, sat down, and took a bite of curry, offering his praise without reservation.
"It's so rich... Sheele, did you make this?"
"How could I make curry this delicious? The manager made it for you..."
"I knew you couldn't possibly make curry this good. Hahaha..."
"That's so mean... I work really hard every day, too. Next time, I definitely won't burn it black again!"
At Lin Feng's teasing, Sheele blushed all the way down to the base of her neck.
Her cheeks quickly grew hot, and a deep flush spread across her fair face.
In the end, she could only gaze helplessly at Lin Feng as he teased her, something unreadable stirring in her violet eyes.
Seeing Sheele like this, Lin Feng felt a trace of warmth in his heart.
Almost at the same time that he had transmigrated into this world, Sheele had moved into the small apartment beside the restaurant where he worked.
The two had been close childhood friends since they were eight, and after they grew into teenagers of fourteen or fifteen,
Sheele had also become an employee at the restaurant, adding another layer to their relationship as coworkers.
Sheele had a girl's gentleness and kindness, but she was terribly clumsy at everything she did. Fortunately, the restaurant manager never held it against her.
Lin Feng's exceptional competence at work and the way he handled every aspect of his dealings with others also drew Sheele's admiration.
Yet Lin Feng was not the sort of boy who would settle for spending his whole life in a little restaurant.
Perhaps, to an ordinary person, such a life full of everyday comforts would be quite nice.
But since Lin Feng was a man who possessed the power of the Template System, of course he could bring something more to this world!
On the day he noticed that his Template System could increase its stats through combat, Lin Feng had secretly sworn
that he would keep working hard to escape poverty and secure a better life for everyone!
"Well, well, well! I've caught a little couple flirting!"
The full-bearded manager walked over from the kitchen, grinning mischievously at Lin Feng and Sheele.
"C-c-c-couple..."
At the manager's joke, Sheele nearly fainted. The embarrassment and nervousness had already become more than she could bear.
"Stop teasing us, boss."
Lin Feng answered with a wry smile, and only then did the manager's expression turn serious.
"Lin Feng, I just saw the meat you brought back today. There's even more than last time..."
"With abilities like yours, working in this little shop of mine is really a waste of your talents..."
"Don't say that, boss. This place means something to me."
"Even so..."
The manager pondered for a while before finally speaking again, slowly.
"If a better place ever tries to poach you, don't worry about us. Follow your heart and take the job. That's a promise between men!"
The manager suddenly spoke with such firmness. It seemed he was so pleased with Lin Feng's competence that he even felt a little guilty.
Lin Feng hesitated for a moment, then answered with a smile.
"All right, it's a promise!"
Hearing the conversation between Lin Feng and the manager, the workers in the kitchen all smiled with relief.
Sheele, who had been so embarrassed just moments earlier, was swept up in the atmosphere too, her smile blooming like a flower rising from the water.
After talking and laughing, they each returned to their stations and worked for a while longer. It was almost evening.
Next came the dinner rush, when everyone would be busy for a long time.
Lin Feng went into the kitchen as well, helping the head chef deal with Danger Beast parts that were difficult to cut apart.
What should have been a routine scene of work was suddenly pierced by a horrifying scream.
"Ah!!!!!!!!"
It was immediately followed by the shrill crash of bowls and plates being smashed.
That one scream alone gave Lin Feng a sense of what was happening.
It was a woman's voice he had never heard before, and Sheele was the only female employee in the restaurant. He knew her voice all too well.
Most likely, someone was causing trouble.
Without hesitation, Lin Feng was the first to put down the meat in his hands and rush into the dining room to see what was happening.
The workers in the kitchen were stunned by the noise as well and rushed out after him.
When he reached the dining room, he saw a complete mess, with porcelain fragments of every size scattered across the floor.
The customers had all fled, leaving only four or five drunken men wildly smashing the remaining plates, dishes, bowls, and chopsticks in the restaurant.
The clamor was relentless.
Right in the middle of the men stood a man with prayer beads hanging from his arm and rolls of fat across the back of his neck, clutching a woman's hair.
"Help!! Let go of me!!"
"You won't play with me? This is what happens when you won't play with me! Do you understand now?"
From the woman's distinctive curls, Lin Feng recognized her at once as one of the restaurant's regulars.
Sheele stood a short distance from the men. She had been about to serve them tea when this happened.
But faced with the violent thugs, Sheele showed no intention of backing down. She simply stepped forward and said,
"Please let this lady go, or I'll notify the Imperial Guard..."
"Report us?! You're killing me! What good would calling the Imperial Guard do? Don't you know this whole area is our Gathered Heroes Group's turf?"
Lin Feng had not expected the normally timid, bashful Sheele to summon the courage to confront them at such a dangerous moment.
"What Gathered Heroes Group? We've never heard of you before..."
"You hadn't heard of us before, but now you have, haven't you?"