We took the stairs back down to the top level of the mall. As with many malls, this one had a dedicated food court on its top floor, boasting restaurants of all sorts of cuisines.

  Several were empty, as Aerion suspected, but more than a few seemed to still be active, thanks to their entirely mechanized nature.

  “I still fail to see how we’re to obtain any food here,” she said, peering curiously into the empty windows.

  I shrugged. “I can’t promise anything. Even if the robots work, there’s no guarantee they’ll have ingredients. But there’s a pretty easy way to check that.”

  This place seemed to replicate pretty much everything else perfectly, why not ingredients?

  After stepping into the kitchens of one of the empty establishments, I grew more optimistic. Fridges and freezers were stocked to the brim with supplies and ingredients of all sorts, which I, of course, nabbed without a second thought.

  My inventory couldn’t fit everything here, but it did preserve food perfectly, and while I still had plenty of supplies from the elves, I could hardly say no to the comfort food of my own world. Variety was the spice of life, after all, and nobody did junk food as well as modern Earth.

  That said, I wasn’t planning on cooking for Aerion myself. At best, I’d do a mediocre job, and I wanted her to get the real Earther experience.

  Which was why we soon found ourselves at a rather fancy ramen bar.

  “Okay, then!” I said, punching in the options on the machine out front, specifying the broth type, noodles, and all my favorite toppings. “I’ve always wanted to come to Tokyo and try authentic ramen. The stuff we get in the U.S. isn’t bad, but it’s never quite the same.”

  My mouth was already watering just thinking about the rich flavors about to flood my taste buds.

  Thankfully, this was one of those systems that required payment only after the fact, so the ‘chefs’ went straight to work.

  “I do not understand,” Aerion said, frowning. “How is food supposed to be crafted without labor? Without anyone to cook it?”

  “Just watch,” I said, nodding toward the kitchen as we took our seats at the bar counter.

  The machines came alive. Cranes manipulated ingredients, poured broth, and heated noodles. Once that was done, another arm scooped up a handful of the noodles and dropped them into a bubbling broth. Another, fitted with a knife attachment, chopped spring onions and veggies. Yet another added the rest of the toppings that made up a perfect bowl of ramen.

  I wasn’t looking at the machines so much as I was looking at Aerion, who sat gaping at the display with wide, open-mouthed awe.

  Eventually, two steaming bowls rolled out on a conveyor belt toward us. Aerion just stared, stock still, as hers passed by.

  “You gonna pick that up or what?” I said, grinning.

  She blinked, as if waking up from a trance, before carefully lifting the bowl, handling it like it was a divine artifact.

  Her reaction alone made this visit worth it, but the taste? Oh, the taste.

  Despite my best efforts, I moaned aloud at the first sip of the broth. “Gods, how I’ve missed this,” I muttered.

  It was without a doubt the best ramen I’d ever had, and that wasn’t just the appetite talking. The noodles were perfectly cooked and the umami of the broth was just unreal.

  I glanced at Aerion as she took a hesitant first sip. Somewhat predictably, her eyes shot wide open. “This… What magic is this?”

  I laughed. “Yeah, well, you’re paying a price for that magic. It’s probably some of the unhealthiest food you’ve ever eaten, but damn if it doesn’t taste good. That’s kinda the running theme for food in my world. Though, to be fair, Japanese food’s a lot healthier than what you’d find in America, for the most part. I take it the food is to your liking?” I asked, though I might as well have stayed silent.

  The way Aerion—nobleborn princess of Order—ditched any pretense of etiquette and started shoveling spoonfuls of broth into her mouth said it all.

  “Hey, hold up there,” I said, laughing. “If you drink all the broth first, you’ll be left with a bowl full of dry noodles. You gotta eat some noodles, then sip a bit of the broth. As good as they are individually, they’re even better together.”

  Aerion mumbled something through a mouthful of food and began slurping her noodles, mimicking me.

  The bowls were emptied in no time, and I ordered seconds for both of us. I didn’t know if it was our enhanced Vigor or what, but my appetite had definitely grown lately. The second bowl—a creamy broth this time—was every bit as divine as the first.

  By the end, we both just sat there in silence in a shared food coma, basking in the afterglow of the unbelievable flavors.

  “I’m sorry,” Aerion said quietly.

  “Sorry? What about?” I asked.

  “I fear I am unable to believe any of the bad things you say about your world. You claim it has so many problems, but how can a world that creates such wonders be anything but superior to Axius?”

  I laughed hard. “Well, in some ways, you might be right. People in any world will always find something to complain about.”

  “Your world is perfect,” she said. “It is made by geniuses, and your people might as well be gods.”

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  “Whoa there,” I said, smirking. “Don’t go stroking my ego too much. My head might explode.”

  Aerion narrowed her eyes. “A good point. We wouldn’t want that now. You are already difficult as it is.”

  I chuckled and leaned back, my mind wandering.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “Nothing, really,” I said, staring off. “Just, you know how Cosmo brought us to his bar? Well, he also took me to a few other places. A couple which were here in Tokyo. One of them was a bar in Shinjuku. Really amazing place.”

  “Perhaps we can go one day,” Aerion said softly.

  “Sure, assuming we can find it,” I said. “I’m no bartender, but I can mix up a few drinks if I have to,” I added with a grin. “But that’s not what’s bugging me.”

  Aerion tilted her head.

  “This one time, he took me to a place called Akiba. It’s kind of the Mecca for fans of Japanese culture. There was this figure store. They’re normally filled with little statues of characters from different shows and stories, but in this case, uh, it was all full of you. In different poses. He told me to pick one…”

  Aerion instantly soured. “Of course he would do something like this without my knowledge.”

  “Yeah, well,” I said awkwardly. “Point is… I ended up picking one. A really badass one with you in flaming red armor.”

  I didn’t dare admit several of them were more than a little lewd, or that I’d also picked out one of her in a nightgown.

  “Anyway, I thought nothing of it at the time, but now, I can’t help but wonder if there’s something there.”

  “As in Order wished for you to go there?” Aerion asked with a raised brow. “But then, would that not mean…”

  “That he knew this Cataclysm Dungeon would take place here.” I nodded slowly. “That’s the part that gets me. Impossible, right? But, the only other explanation was that this was a random coincidence. But that’s gotta be even less likely, right?”

  Aerion frowned. “I would put little past that duplicitous god.”

  “Well,” I said, rubbing my chin. “Something feels off, anyway. Worth checking out, at the very least.”

  “Another destination to add, then,” Aerion said, sounding way less annoyed about this than she ordinarily would have.

  “You’re just excited to explore more of Tokyo, aren’t you?” I asked with a grin.

  “Is it truly that obvious?” She asked, grinning back.

  I laughed. “You look like a kid in a candy store—or a villager seeing the big city for the first time.”

  “It’s not that bad,” Aerion pouted. “I’ve seen big cities before.”

  “Sure,” I said, smirking. “I don’t doubt it.”

  Aerion huffed and turned away. “Don’t act like you’re not excited, either! I can see it in your eyes, despite all your doom and gloom about your people.”

  “I, er, aw hell, you’re right. I’m more hyped than I’ve been in ages.”

  “So? What now? Where shall we explore next?”

  “Well,” I said, thinking it over, “we’ve got a ton of ground to cover. Our enemies haven’t been aggressive so far, but the streets are packed with them. If we’re constantly sneaking and avoiding monsters, it’ll take forever to cross the city.”

  “I suppose you have some ideas?”

  I nodded. “We had vehicles called cars, though strangely, I haven’t seen a single one yet. They’re like horsedrawn carriages without the horses. They use the roads we’ve been using.”

  Aerion frowned. “Are they especially durable?”

  “Not against the sorts of enemies we’d face. Not unless we got a tank or something. I see your point. Even with a car, we’d have to practically plow through those zombies.”

  “Is there not a better way?” she asked. “I’d expect such a miraculous city to be full of equally spectacular modes of transit. Not that your horseless carriages aren’t, of course…”

  “Tokyo’s transit system is world-class, even on Earth,” I said with a smirk. “I kinda doubt the trains are running, but even if not, we could use the tunnels to get around. Of course, they might be flooded with monsters. Worth investigating, at any rate. If they’re more or less empty, we might be able to sprint through and reach Tokyo Tower without too much trouble.”

  “Then it sounds like we have a plan,” Aerion said.

  “Sure does,” I replied, standing up.

  When she didn’t follow, I paused. “What’s the matter?”

  “Do you mind if we… browsed some of those stores first?” she asked, not meeting my eyes. “You said we could later on. And those designs are just so fascinating, I…”

  I laughed. “Absolutely.”

  Keeping an eye out for shambling zombies—because there were definitely a few hanging around—we headed down to the third floor, which was packed full of fashion boutiques and clothing stores.

  “And you mean to say that each of these businesses has a presence across your entire world?” Aerion asked, unable to comprehend the idea of a chain store.

  “Not all, but most are national. Some are international, with thousands of locations, yeah.”

  “How incredible!”

  “It’s funny you say that, because small-time stores are more sought after among my people. When a shop is everywhere, it loses its allure somewhat. What they gain in convenience, they lose in soul.”

  Aerion shook her head. “Sometimes, I fail to understand how you Earthers think. But are truly alright if I store some clothes in your inventory?”

  “No problem,” I said. “Not like I’m lacking for space, and I don’t think anyone’s gonna mind us swiping a few things. Take whatever you like.”

  Aerion’s eyes sparkled as she flitted from rack to rack, pulling down dresses and tops, holding them against herself, and asking my opinion before darting off to the fitting room to try them on, despite there being nobody around to watch.

  Some things never changed in any world, it seemed.

  “What’s the matter?” she asked after a while, catching me lost in thought.

  “Nothing,” I said, smiling faintly. “It’s just that this whole experience is a bit surreal for me. Y’know, I used to dream about stuff like this? Going on dates, checking out shops, watching movies… just normal couple things. I figured I’d never get to do any of that again. Sure, Axius has clothing shops, but most stuff there’s made to order, and the experience here is just on a whole other level. It’s not something you can really explain to someone.”

  I wondered what it was. Even showing Aerion this no-name mall brought me more joy than I ever thought possible.

  Aerion nodded vigorously. “It’s truly remarkable. In this one mall alone, I can barely even begin to fathom how many different styles there are! How did the people of your world come up with so many wonderful and varied designs?”

  I chuckled. “With a lot of free time and even more disposable income. They spend it on useless consumables, fashion, and sometimes consumerized experiences. It’s basically one big scheme to get you to part with your money.”

  “And what is the matter with that?” Aerion asked, holding up a frilly black dress that I had to admit was quite pretty. “You could search the ends of Axius and not find something as unique. And this material! For designs such as these, I would gladly go bankrupt!”

  I laughed. “Yeah, that’s kind of the point.”

  By the end, Aerion had picked out several outfits—from ornate dresses to sleek one-pieces, and even a few bikinis, which she found utterly scandalous, refusing to believe that anyone in their right mind would wear such a thing in public. She only agreed to wear them in private—just for me.

  I wasn’t about to complain about that.

  Of course, none of the clothes would last outside the dungeon unless I Initialized them, which I was more than happy to do. As I’d guessed, everything in the store registered as [Common] gear with useless stats, but that hardly mattered.

  What were a few Essence points if it put a smile on that beautiful face?

  Eventually, our shopping spree came to a close, and I had to admit… I’d never imagined spending relaxing hours in a mall during a Cataclysm of all things. Let alone enjoying it.

  I’d been prepared for constant life-and-death battles, and sure, we’d already had our fill of those, but moments like this made me wonder what these Cataclysms really were. Why they took the forms they did.

  When we finally left the mall, I was feeling strangely down. That was, until Aerion mentioned doing it again sometime.

  Somehow, that made me happier than I had any right to be.

  We weren’t clearing this dungeon anytime soon, after all. And the thought of showing her more of my world—mixing drinks on a rooftop bar, going shopping again, maybe even watching a movie together—made me feel something I hadn’t felt in a long, long time.