Ch.384[Episode 384] Rest

After Sir Dominic decided to take a break, the first thing he did was determine what he would do during his rest.

“This is quite difficult…”

Sir Dominic sat on a nearby bench and began to deeply consider what he wanted to do.

Long-term goals, short-term goals…

Sir Dominic decided not to worry about long-term goals.

Though it had become somewhat blurry, Sir Dominic still had the objective of reaching the highest position in Gachaland.

Therefore, what Sir Dominic needed to focus on was the immediate, close-enough-to-touch-with-his-nose-if-he-fell-forward kind of goal.

“Close enough to touch with my nose if I fall…”

Sir Dominic murmured the phrase that suddenly came to mind as he raised his head.

And there, he noticed a restaurant.

A very modest restaurant, quite different from the splendor of Gachaland.

Sir Dominic lifted his head a bit more to look at the establishment’s sign.

[Knight’s Diner]

Four very simple characters.

The moment Sir Dominic saw those words, he realized that delicious aromas were wafting from the establishment across from him.

Through the lit windows, he could see the shadows of people, and occasionally heard laughter and boisterous shouts.

Growl.

Sir Dominic unconsciously grabbed his hungry stomach.

He hadn’t eaten much all day as he’d been frantically searching for Lady Alice.

I’m hungry.

Sir Dominic thought as his stomach growled once more.

But Sir Dominic hesitated a bit here.

Normally, Sir Dominic wouldn’t eat anything at this hour for the sake of maintaining his regimen.

However, Sir Dominic soon collected himself, got up from the bench, and headed toward the Knight’s Diner.

Since he had decided to take a break anyway, he figured a little deviation wouldn’t make much difference.

Ding.

“Welcome.”

When Sir Dominic opened the door, a small bell attached to it rang.

Noticing a customer had arrived by the sound of the bell, a middle-aged woman warmly greeted Sir Dominic.

“Please sit over there.”

Sir Dominic sat in the empty seat the woman had indicated.

It was quite a corner spot, but by turning his head slightly, he could see the entire interior of the restaurant.

Sir Dominic slowly surveyed the restaurant’s interior.

“So, did you pass the official knight exam this time?”

“No. I failed. Sigh. Looks like I’ll be an apprentice for another year.”

“I mean, Senior Knight Angela ordered me to work overtime and then just went home herself!”

“Oh, this person is drunk. Hey! Someone call him a ride!”

Knights of all varieties were eating spicy stir-fried pork and mac and cheese while wearing surcoats emblazoned with their own insignias.

“Haven’t decided on your order yet?”

“Ah.”

Sir Dominic was contentedly observing the scene when the woman’s words made him realize he hadn’t ordered food yet.

“Um, I’d like one stew and one steak, please.”

“The steak will take some time. Is that alright?”

“Yes, that’s fine.”

Sir Dominic glanced at the menu briefly before ordering what he most wanted to eat.

Being Gachaland, the menu was as diverse as the cuisines from various dimensions, but familiar tastes are always the best, aren’t they?

After ordering, Sir Dominic looked around the restaurant again.

If he had been observing the people just moments ago, now he was examining the walls.

The walls were somewhat old with wallpaper peeling in places, but they were generally kept clean.

The menu board hanging on the wall displayed the menu items and prices in large letters, and a peculiar phrase below the menu caught his eye.

[1000 Credit discount for apprentices and students.]

Sir Dominic briefly wondered why these two groups of people received discounts, but soon abandoned the thought.

Because he heard a familiar voice from somewhere.

“Hehehe. I like that I don’t gain weight no matter how much I eat here.”

Sir Dominic turned his head toward the somewhat silly but familiar voice.

“My, you’re eating so well. Would you like more kimchi?”

“Hehehe. Could I also have more rice and apple salad, please?”

And there was Captain Elang, eating with an extremely happy expression.

…

“I never expected to see Sir Dominic here.”

Captain Elang smiled brightly and sniffled.

The kimchi stew that had just arrived was apparently a bit too hot.

“Indeed.”

Sir Dominic joined Captain Elang at her table.

Captain Elang had noticed Sir Dominic looking at her and invited him to sit together, hoping to work on their relationship.

Of course, there wasn’t really such a thing as “relationship building” in Gachaland, but fostering friendships like this couldn’t hurt.

“Here’s your stew first. The steak will come out later, so please start with this.”

“Thank you.”

Sir Dominic picked up a spoon, scooped up some stew, and took a bite.

Under the rich and slightly oily broth, he could taste the bitterness of carrots, the sweetness of roasted green onions, and the savory flavor of meat.

It seemed this restaurant used roasted green onions as their secret weapon.

Sir Dominic stirred the stew with his spoon and fished out another piece of roasted green onion.

Taking another bite, Sir Dominic was certain.

This is delicious.

Sir Dominic grinned in simple, clear pleasure.

“It’s good, right? I’m telling you, this place is a hidden gem.”

Captain Elang smiled along with Sir Dominic and said.

When Sir Dominic nodded, Captain Elang continued speaking, excited about something.

“Actually, I found this place after spending all my money trying to draw your employment card. The prices are reasonable, so I come here whenever I’m broke.”

“…In other words, you’re saying you have no money?”

“Ah.”

Captain Elang, who had been enthusiastically talking to Sir Dominic, became dejected in the face of his sharp insight.

As Sir Dominic said, Captain Elang was currently broke.

“I have something else I do outside of Gachaland. They had a limited pickup event, so…”

Sir Dominic thought of Tycoon City or Retro Grad at Captain Elang’s words.

It seemed Captain Elang had spent her capital elsewhere.

“B-but I still have enough money for food. Did you know? If you chew your rice thoroughly for a long time, you feel fuller and the sweetness means you don’t need side dishes!”

Captain Elang acted as if she was saying something impressive, but her words were utterly pitiful.

“…I’ll pay for this meal.”

“Thank you. I was planning to spend some money on raising our Suzuki.”

“I can save some resources,” Captain Elang said with relief.

It seemed that if Sir Dominic hadn’t offered to pay for the meal, she would have definitely borrowed money from somewhere and exchanged it for Gachaland currency.

Sir Dominic looked sympathetically at this undisciplined and unplanned captain.

“If you need resources, just tell me. I have quite a bit of money.”

“Thanks for saying that, at least.”

Captain Elang thought Sir Dominic’s words were just empty talk.

The concept of Sir Dominic that Captain Elang knew was that of a knight from serf origins.

She thought such a knight couldn’t possibly have much money.

She believed that the reason Sir Dominic always bought things for her whenever they met was because, coming from a serf background, he was so accustomed to saving that he had no other use for his money.

Therefore, Captain Elang couldn’t even imagine that Sir Dominic was one of the wealthiest people in Gachaland.

If Captain Elang were to learn about Sir Dominic’s wealth, she might cause a dissonance from the shock.

“Here’s your steak. Please enjoy.”

Sir Dominic was about to open his mouth to clear up Captain Elang’s misunderstanding, but just then, the food he had ordered arrived with perfect timing.

Sir Dominic had wanted to say something to Captain Elang, but thinking the food might get cold, he closed his mouth and began cutting the steak instead.

For some reason, the steak came well-done, but it was still delicious.

…

“So, you want to take a break?”

“That’s right.”

After finishing their meal, Sir Dominic and Captain Elang each got a cup of vending machine coffee and went outside.

“I thought it was strange to see Sir Dominic at a place like this at this hour, but that was the reason…”

Captain Elang said to Sir Dominic as she looked at her wrist watch.

Of course, there was no watch on her wrist.

She had pawned it to get resources.

For Captain Elang who had no way of knowing the current time, Sir Dominic took out his watch instead.

It was currently 2 AM.

“It’s 2 o’clock.”

Captain Elang said, stealing a glance at Sir Dominic’s watch.

“Haven’t you ever taken a break like this before?”

Sir Dominic looked at Captain Elang in response to her question.

Captain Elang was looking at Sir Dominic as if she were observing a natural monument.

“When I didn’t have a home, I used to wander around at this hour quite often…”

“So you partied a bit back then?”

“I used to jog until the morning sun rose.”

“Good heavens.”

Captain Elang looked at Sir Dominic in disbelief.

Her eyes were filled with shock and fear.

Jogging, which is hard to do for even 10 minutes, all night long! Without sleeping!

“But doing something rebellious like this does make me feel like I’m taking a break.”

“Rebellious?”

After committing the great rebellion of eating a meal at 2 AM, Sir Dominic felt a slight thrill.

This thrilling feeling must be why people commit rebellious acts.

As a knight, Sir Dominic should have been wary of this thrilling feeling, but hadn’t he decided to take a break!

Sir Dominic was a bit excited at the thought of doing such thrilling things during his break.

However, Captain Elang didn’t seem to view Sir Dominic’s actions as rebellious.

“That’s not what we call rebellion. It’s called having a late-night snack.”

Captain Elang sighed deeply at Sir Dominic’s words and looked at him.

“Sir Dominic, have you ever properly rested before?”

Sir Dominic had no answer.