Kill the Sun

Chapter 801: Gourmet City

"Identify yourself!" an Extractor shouted at a person who had appeared in front of the city gates.

"My name is Tarren Skylander, and I come from Sunken Ground City," Nick said, disguised as a smaller man with silver hair.

"What is your business with Gourmet City?" the guard asked.

"I am here to join the city and to found a Manufacturer," Nick answered.

The guard was taken aback when he heard that. "You want to make a new Manufacturer?"

"Yes, that is what I intend to do. I heard that the city's policy regarding new Manufacturers is very lenient. I always wanted to own a Manufacturer, but that is sadly not possible in Sunken Ground City," Nick answered.

The guards talked with each other.

"Wait here!" one of the guards shouted.@@@@

Nick did just that, and a couple of seconds later, a strong Extractor walked out of the city.

From what Nick could tell, this Extractor was a Mid Specialist.

"You want to create a Manufacturer?" the person asked.

"Correct," Nick answered with a smile. "I hope that's okay."

"We are always looking for new Manufacturers, and we could certainly use another Specialist in the city," the man said with a friendly smile. "My name is Jonathan Leery, and I'm a representative of Big Gourmand, the largest Manufacturer in Gourmet City."

Nick shook Jonathan's hand. "Nice to meet you."

"Why don't you come in? Oh, I almost forgot. You are fine with undergoing a series of tests to make sure that you are not a Specter, right?" the man asked.

"No problem," Nick answered.

Jonathan led Nick to the gate, and one of the guards took out a couple of devices.

First, the guard held some form of stick to Nick's body.

"Mid Specialist," he said. "No signs of Specter Zephyx."

Then, he activated another device, and Nick's Barrier activated. Naturally, Nick had changed his Barrier.

"Credentials check out," he said.

Finally, the man took out a small needle and pricked Nick's finger.

He put the needle into a tube and added some powder.

A moment later, the blood turned bright red.

"Human," he said before looking at Jonathan. "Everything checks out."

"You may enter. Welcome to Gourmet City!" the guard said, politely welcoming Nick.

Gourmet Spice was incredibly addictive since it made any kind of food unfathomably delicious.

Surprisingly, pure Gourmet Spice didn't taste like anything, but when coupled with food that had a lot of fat and carbs, it tasted amazing.

Half of the city's land was dedicated to growing crops, and there were plenty of underground caves that housed different kinds of edible animals.

The city had an absolute abundance of food, and food prices were ridiculously low.

Five credits was enough to buy food for three months.

However, everything else was quite expensive.

Especially the carts.

It was quite obvious how Gluttony's servant influenced the city.

Gluttony grew more powerful by causing people to consume way too much of something, and its servant grew more powerful by causing people to suffer due to high weight.

Heart issues. Lung issues. Clogged up arteries. Abused joints. Intestinal issues. Low testosterone. Diabetes. Lethargy.

Cleaning oneself was difficult when one's arms couldn't reach all parts of one's body, and just moving an arm turned into a workout.

Sweat in unreachable places gathered and fermented, creating a hive for diseases and fungi.

Because of that, diseases and maladies not directly related to obesity were also way more prevalent.

The people seemed relatively happy on the surface, but a majority of their movements were accompanied by pain and suffering.

But that was just their new normal.

"Here is a sack of Gourmet Spice," Jonathan said, pulling Nick out of his trance. "Treat it as a welcoming gift."

Nick took hold of the sack. "Thank you. I heard that Gourmet Spice is amazing, and judging by the people living in this city, it makes its reputation justice."

"It is amazing," Jonathan said with a forlorn expression. "Sometimes,I wish I wasn't working for Big Gourmand."

"How come?" Nick asked.

Jonathan sighed. "We are not allowed to consume Gourmet Spice. We have to be combat ready, and well... you know."

Nick nodded. "I get it."

This was another aspect of Gourmet Spice.

It also worked on Extractors.

Despite the fact that powerful Extractors all underwent Zephosis, Gourmet Spice still managed to fatten them up, weakening their battle-strength quite a bit.

The author's patreon. If he gets more than 1000€ per month, he will increase the number of words in the chapter.

/user?u=27791050