Chương 130: I've Got the Money

Before they entered the restaurant alley, Kichan stopped Argaon.

"You can't go in as a cat." The yellow cat looked up.

"Why?"

"Walk into a restaurant as a cat and they'll throw you out." Gold wrapped around the little body once. Argaon stood in the alley as a person dressed in black. Black hair reached the back of his neck. His face was human, but his red eyes moved too slowly over the signs and windows. Riphiel's long ears were tucked inside her hood. Kichan looked between them.

"Don't talk too much inside."

"What need is there to talk while eating?" Riphiel opened the door first. The bell above it rang. The restaurant was older than Kichan expected. Dark wood paneling lined the lower walls, and brass-colored exhaust ducts hung low above round metal tables. The smell of charcoal and meat fat reached all the way to the entrance. A refrigerated case along one wall displayed red meat by cut. Argaon stopped there. Riphiel's nose twitched once beneath her hood too. A server led them to a table toward the back.

Kichan sat with his back to the wall and put Riphiel and Argaon opposite him. The menu displayed the price of fresh Hanwoo ribeye in large print. Kichan saw the price and closed the menu anyway.

"Two portions of the fresh ribeye, please." Riphiel looked between two fingers and the three of them.

"There are three of us. Why two?"

"We can try it and order more." Kichan poured water without concern. Soon, a cold white plate was placed in the middle of the table. The fresh ribeye came in thick cuts about two finger joints wide. Fine white fat ran through the red meat, with a little firm fat along the outside. Salt, dressed scallions, garlic, and a small dish of pickled onions surrounded it. Riphiel took up her fork and inspected the meat.

"It is not cooked."

"We're about to cook it." This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Charcoal was placed in the center of the table. When the black grate heated, Kichan laid on the first two pieces. Sss. The edges turned brown at once. Brief flames rose whenever fat dripped onto the coals, and the smell of grilling meat spread beneath the exhaust duct. Riphiel's fork approached the grill. Kichan blocked it with the tongs.

"Not yet." Argaon did not reach. Instead, he narrowed his eyes at the two pieces in turn.

"The fat is embedded in the flesh."

"That's a good thing." Kichan turned the meat. Dark grill marks crossed the browned surface. While the other side cooked, he cut one piece into three with scissors. A little red remained at the cut center. He set the first piece before Riphiel. She speared it and sniffed. When hot steam rose near her face, she blew once, dipped it in a little salt, and put it in her mouth. Her chewing stopped. Her eyes went straight to the meat remaining on the grill.

"What was this cow fed?"

"I don't know either."

"It does not taste as though it ate only grass." Even as she spoke, her fork waited for the second piece. Argaon did not immediately eat his. He lifted it by the cut edge with his fingers and examined the fat between the red flesh. Then he put it in his mouth without salt or sauce. He chewed slowly twice. His red eyes narrowed.

"Put this on my side." He pulled the meat plate toward him. Riphiel's fork pressed its rim.

"Three people are eating."

"I reduced my size. Not my appetite."

"That is not my problem." Kichan returned the plate to the center.

"Neither of you gets any if I don't cook it." Both hands withdrew. He added the meat one piece at a time. Riphiel did not leave hers sitting long. At first she had checked the smell and doneness. From the third piece onward, her fork found the landing spot before the meat did. She chewed hot pieces without even a flinch. Argaon counted his share. Each time someone else received a piece, he looked between the plate and the grill, eating his own slowly.

Yet as soon as he swallowed, his hand went straight toward the next one. Kichan watched them with the tongs in his hand. For himself, he took only the smallest piece. The plate emptied. The last slice of ribeye cooked on the grill. Riphiel's fork moved. So did Argaon's hand. Kichan caught it first with the tongs. He cut it in half and divided it between them. They ate without a word. Only brown grease marks remained on the grate. There was no red meat on the white plate either.

Riphiel turned her head as though looking for the server.

"Order more."

"No." Argaon's gaze fixed on Kichan.

"Why?"

"That's it for today." Riphiel slid the menu toward him.

"Are you short of money?"

"No. I've got the money."

"Then why are we not eating more?" Kichan put down the tongs.

"I've got a job to do." Argaon tilted the empty meat plate toward himself. Only grease remained.

"What job?"

"There's a troublemaker in Sector 13. Dealing with him." Their gazes still wandered between the empty plate and the grill. Kichan said,"Finish this job, and I'll feed you this until you're ready to burst." Riphiel lowered her fork to the plate.

"I am coming." Argaon spoke immediately too.

"When do we leave?" Kichan took a sip of water.

"Shouldn't you ask what the job is first?" Riphiel answered.

"We can hear it when we get there." Argaon pressed a finger on the ribeye photo in the menu.

"When it's done, not this much. Until I'm full."

"Yes."

"You promised."

"I know." Riphiel's fork lay on her empty plate. Argaon's finger did not leave the photo of the fresh ribeye.