"Student Bachel, or you could simply take us to the corridor where the Demon King's Bestowed Restaurant is located. After that, you can go attend a class as normal. Once the second class is over, come find us and continue guiding us. Whether it's a Difficulty 2 or Difficulty 3 classroom, I will make sure you pass."
Lanqi looked at Bachel, his tone calm, though it could not conceal the spirited, confident gleam in his eyes.
Bachel was clearly reluctant to spend his precious credit coins. After all, for a student constantly hovering on the brink of expulsion, every surplus credit coin was extraordinarily valuable.
"O-Okay."
Bachel hurried to bow in fearful gratitude.
Even during the time he had been knocked out in the music classroom, this Glow Demon hadn't coveted his two credit coins.
What Bachel feared most was being targeted or enslaved by a powerful high-ranking demon.
In this world, the weak were almost always prey.
Yet his interactions with Lanqi, an undeniably strong entity, astonished Bachel. Terrifying though this Glow Demon was, his profound rationality betrayed a level of reasonability thoroughly uncharacteristic of a demon.
Demons possessing such qualities were usually the highest-ranking and most dreadful of all.
Correspondingly, as long as one did not actively provoke them, they would not deign to trouble a weakling.
With that settled, Bachel fully shifted back into guide mode. With a respectful voice carrying newfound certainty, he began leading Lanqi and Hyperion toward their next destination.
About ten minutes passed as the scenery before them gradually changed, shifting from the purgatorial teaching corridors into an elegant, tranquil interior architectural setting.
Upon entering the functional area, the air in the hallways grew fresh—an entirely different world compared to the deep darkness of the classroom corridors just moments ago.
Here, the oppressive aura of the pitch-black abyss was far less intense, replaced instead by a purer sense of serenity.
"This is where you wished to go. I will come find you during the break after the next class."
Standing at the entrance of a brightly lit corridor, Bachel bowed in farewell to Lanqi. His voice carried a faint sigh of relief, as if he had just completed a monumental task.
"All right. Stay safe,"
Lanqi replied with a wave, watching Bachel's retreating figure disappear around the corner of the corridor.
Then, he and Hyperion walked together down this hallway bathed in a soft, dusky crimson glow, quickly catching sight of the floor-to-ceiling glass walls of the Demon King's Bestowed Restaurant.
The name felt like a promise of aristocratic indulgence.
[Time Remaining: 9 hours, 36 minutes]
[...]
[Challengers Lanqi & Hyperion are in Corridor S02, Demon King's Bestowed Restaurant]
Stepping through the revolving glass doors, they saw that the restaurant's interior decor adopted a high-grade, solid black aesthetic, with subtle details brimming with unconventional, inventive touches of rebellion—for instance, upon closer inspection, the branches and stones on the tables turned out to be part of the cutlery.
Expansive floor-to-ceiling windows framed the suspended scenery outside Purgatory Corridor Academy as the restaurant's backdrop. Only from here could one truly appreciate that the school was a castle of corridors built above purgatory itself.
As night fell, flecks of starlight seemed to reflect across the dining tables, lending the atmosphere an absurd yet dreamlike beauty.
"Guests, please review this first."
As a demon server escorted them to their seats, she handed over a meticulously crafted black leather guidebook.
The cover featured a distinct diamond-textured pattern and carried a faint scent of hide, evoking a touch of old-world charm.
Lanqi turned his gaze to the text on the cover.
Several lines of refined script were neatly arranged there, laying out the guidelines for the Demon King's Bestowed Restaurant:
[Guests must be properly dressed within the restaurant.]
[No brawling, fighting, or picking quarrels.]
[No pets, summoned beasts, or familiars permitted.]
[Dine-and-dash is strictly forbidden.]
[No insulting other patrons.]
[Violators will be executed by the restaurant manager.]
[If your dining experience is disrupted due to another patron's violation, the restaurant will provide compensation.]
The gilded lettering was neatly embossed across the leather.
"Very Demon Realm in style, as expected," Lanqi couldn't help remarking to Hyperion beside him.
He had to admit, having direct execution as the penalty for infractions genuinely resulted in rather exemplary etiquette and decorum throughout the Demon Realm.
"Indeed," Hyperion agreed with a nod.
She felt that her growing ability to adjust to the pace of the Demon Realm wasn't because of her half-demon heritage, but rather because Lanqi—who acted more native than the actual native demons—was rubbing off on her, accelerating her adaptation.
Soft lighting filled the dining room, and a rich, savory aroma drifted through the air.
At this hour, only a handful of students were scattered across various corners of the restaurant, either perusing menus with heads bowed or quietly waiting for their dishes to arrive.
Each solitary figure added to the restaurant's distinct atmosphere.
After Lanqi and Hyperion had spent some time looking over the menu, the demon server who had greeted them returned with an apologetic smile.
"My apologies. We've been rather overwhelmed, causing a bit of a delay. Please forgive us."
The server offered a sincere apology. Her demeanor toward Lanqi, who wore a faculty badge, was noticeably respectful.
"It's fine."
Lanqi held the exquisite menu in his hands, his fingers lightly brushing across the paper as his eyes swept over the text and illustrations on each page, trying his best to discern the characteristics and flavor profiles of every dish.
Finally, his gaze settled on one particular page.
The Demon King's Bestowed Restaurant blended Demon Realm flair with the flavors of local purgatorial ingredients, creating a unique, modern Demon Realm cuisine.
Though he couldn't quite identify the exact names of the Demon Realm ingredients, one stat-boosting dish appeared to consist of charcoal-roasted potato balls and smoked eel, paired with what seemed like a smoked onion sauce and clear eel broth, finished with a garnish of dill oil for a touch of freshness.
There was also a dark chocolate custard soufflé, presumably the signature dessert: a warm, fluffy dark chocolate soufflé topped with crystalline custard cream, promising a delightful interplay of hot and cold, rich yet light.
Both limited-edition items were must-orders, priced at 5 credit coins each. They could specifically enhance Hyperion's offensive attributes, allowing her to reach Tier 4 combat strength for the night.
With a top-tier enforcer capable of matching the Shadow World's tier, they would have far more room to maneuver.
The other dishes—merely delicious without any added effects—were far less expensive; they could simply order a few as needed.
However...
Noticing Lanqi's intention, the demon server showed a hint of distress, her melodious voice tinged with undisguised regret:
"Sir, those two dishes have already been sold out for today."
"None of the limited dishes are left?"
Lanqi frowned slightly, confusion written across his face.
The first class break had only just begun. How could all the limited items have sold out so quickly?
What puzzled him even more was that in such an expansive, luxurious restaurant, there were only a few patrons, yet the staff seemed utterly swamped.
The demon server nodded helplessly and explained to Lanqi:
"They're gone. Furthermore, we don't have many ingredients left to prepare our regular menu items either. At the moment, we only have..."
As she spoke, she carefully pointed out the remaining options available on the menu for Lanqi.
Puzzled, Lanqi cast a glance around the dining room.
Very quickly, he identified the source of the problem—
At a lavish banquet table sat a strikingly conspicuous demon.
His silver-white hair seemed speckled with starlight, exuding an aura of aristocratic elegance and aloofness.
Yet even from that fleeting, almost negligible glance, one could sense the undisguised pickiness and discontent in his eyes.
The restaurant's servers scurried around him like encumbered ants, continuously presenting one exquisite dish after another before him.
Yet the silver-haired demon merely lowered his head slightly, casually picked up a fork or spoon, took one or two dainty bites, and then furrowed his brows in deep disgust, shoving the plate aside.
The servers would then immediately take the food away and dump it straight into the garbage bin.
Virtually none of the discarded dishes had been properly eaten. The servers' frantic toil stood in stark contrast to his fastidious disdain.
Every demon watched the silver-haired demon's eyes and gestures for their next directive, scrambling frantically like mice on a spinning wheel.
Even the restaurant manager had no choice but to stand beside his table, enduring his sharp critiques and reprimands.
Lanqi silently watched his dining habits, looking somewhat displeased.
Such an unblinking gaze was quickly noticed by the silver-haired demon.
The silver-haired demon turned his head, his gaze meeting Lanqi's for a moment—as piercing as glacial ice.
Immediately, an irritated look surfaced in the silver-haired demon's eyes, clearly displeased by Lanqi's staring.
The corners of his mouth curved downward into a cold arc, and he let out a contemptuous snort.
The silver-haired demon's gaze swept over Lanqi and Hyperion as if appraising two cheap commodities, his expression brimming with disdain.
Then, he gestured to the restaurant manager beside him, beckoning him over.
Immediately after, he spoke with flat indifference:
"However many premium ingredients you have left today, I'm ordering them all."
The overbearing arrogance in his tone was impossible to ignore, perfectly matching his aristocratic bearing.
Clearly, he wanted to flaunt the insurmountable gap between them and Lanqi and Hyperion, stripping them of any chance to enjoy fine dining.
It seemed Lanqi's solitary look had driven him to ensure that these two insolent demons would not taste food of the same caliber as his today.
Yet Lanqi merely kept his brow slightly furrowed, staring at the silver-haired demon's long table without a word.
"Lanqi, let it go,"
Hyperion said softly, hoping to diffuse Lanqi's annoyance.
She was certain that a silver-haired student with such an absurdly vast fortune of credit coins was definitely not someone to provoke lightly.
In a functional area like this, there was virtually no room to resort to force.
Neither Lanqi's signature tactic of taunting combined with the Poet of Great Love nor his combination of Mute and speech manipulation would work in this restaurant, where summons were forbidden.
Silence hung between the two distant tables. As if hearing Hyperion's counsel, Lanqi withdrew his gaze from the silver-haired demon's table and turned to look at Hyperion's face.
"Conserving food and eradicating waste requires everyone's concerted effort,"
Lanqi finally spoke up.
"We ought to consciously carry forward the fine virtue of diligence and thrift, foster the mindset that frugality is glorious while waste is shameful, amplify our promotion of strict economy against waste, and strive to build a civilized dining culture and rational consumption habits for a wholesome society."
Lanqi explained these values to Hyperion with utmost earnestness.
Hyperion: "..."
She couldn't shake the feeling that while there was technically nothing wrong with Lanqi's principles, coming out of his mouth, they carried an inexplicable undertone of sinister intent.
After all, this man's understanding of virtues had always been somewhat... unique!
Chapter 62