"Hey, what is up with that guy? I have been watching him for half an hour, and he has not stopped even once."
"Forget that, I have been watching for a whole hour, and I still have not seen him pause to rest."
"Seriously, how come I have never heard of someone in town who can eat this much? He is not some outsider, is he?"
"He definitely is. Otherwise the whole town would have known about him already."
"Enough. We ordinary people should just watch from here. Do not get too involved with outsiders."
Inside a restaurant in a small town somewhere in the interior of Alvarez, Kabe was stuffing himself ravenously, replenishing the energy he had burned through.
At the same time, he kept his ears open, listening carefully to the discussions around him and sorting through them for anything useful.
Unfortunately, after listening for quite a while, he still had not managed to gather any valuable information.
The people of Alvarez were even more cautious than he had expected.
It was as if a pair of unseen eyes was constantly watching them from the shadows, forcing them to maintain absolute vigilance toward outsiders at all times.
'No wonder the Magic Council has made almost no progress after all these years.
The rules in Alvarez are even stricter than I imagined.'
Mechanically stuffing a piece of shredded-meat, cheese, and bacon bread into his mouth, Kabe's thoughts gradually drifted further away.
'Looks like I really will have to personally take a trip to the center of power in this country.
The only question is whether Zeref is currently in Alvarez at this point in time.
That immortal body of his is still pretty troublesome. I do not know whether my methods can actually erase him.'
Just as Kabe was considering his next move, a burst of orderly marching footsteps suddenly came from outside the restaurant.
In the next moment, a figure abruptly strode into the restaurant. After sweeping his gaze across the room, he shouted in a cold voice,
"We received a report that an unidentified outsider is here.
In accordance with imperial law, the city guard is now placing this restaurant under lockdown until the outsider's identity has been confirmed."
Kabe raised his eyes and looked over. The one speaking was a man wrapped from head to toe in armor, his face completely hidden from view.
As soon as the armored man finished speaking, the restaurant owner, who had been warmly serving Kabe just moments ago, immediately hurried over.
After whispering a few words to the other party, he turned and pointed directly at Kabe.
The moment he saw that, Kabe understood everything.
'That bastard. No wonder he insisted on taking my money in advance. He had been planning this from the start.'
Kabe cursed the fat owner inwardly. And during that short span of time, all the ordinary customers in the restaurant had already been completely cleared out.
The owner then calmly handed the restaurant over to the city guard.
Even if they ended up smashing the place apart afterward, he did not look the slightest bit worried.
As long as they confirmed that the outsider's identity was suspicious, the Empire would not only grant him a generous reward, but would also compensate him for every bit of damage done to the restaurant.
'Come on, outsider. Smash my restaurant to pieces if you can. The place is old anyway. Perfect excuse to get a brand-new one.'
Thinking that, the owner happily joined the former diners outside the blockade and stood there watching the show with great satisfaction.
Meanwhile, inside the restaurant, over a dozen city guard soldiers had already taken complete control of every exit.
Seeing the officer who appeared to be the squad leader walking toward him, Kabe held onto the idea that he had already paid for the meal, so he hurriedly swept the last of the food off the table and into his stomach.
The officer paused for a moment. Looking at the man who seemed like a starving ghost reborn, still eating even now, he could not help muttering inwardly.
'How long has this guy gone without food, to eat like this?
Could it be that I am overthinking things? Maybe he is just a traveler with a bigger appetite who got lost.
After all, no normal spy would make such a huge scene so openly, would they?'
With that thought in mind, the officer stepped forward until he was standing beside Kabe, then bent slightly and tapped the table.
Knock. Knock.
"Hello. I am Genos, captain of the Third Unit of the First Battalion of the City Guard in Dodom City.
We received a report, so please show me your identification papers and tell me your place of origin, your residence, and whether you have any connection to the Imperial Army's kitchen staff."
By the time Genos finished speaking, Kabe had already swallowed down the last serving of pudding.
Unhurried, he wiped his mouth with a napkin, then gestured toward the officer and said,
"Officer Genos, have a seat first. Let me explain slowly."
Now that the restaurant had been completely sealed off by his own men, Genos was not worried that the other party might try anything.
So he casually pulled over a chair from the side and sat down, wanting to hear what this big eater had to say for himself.
At the same time, Kabe's brain was working at high speed.
Honestly, even he had not expected that the very first meal he had after coming ashore would end with him getting caught by the Empire.
But with Alvarez enforcing inspections this harshly, it was only a matter of time before someone became suspicious of him anyway.
Since that was the case, he might as well play along and turn the situation to his advantage.
With that thought, he directly raised both hands and smiled at Genos.
"Officer, your eyes are truly sharp. That is right, I am indeed not a local. In fact, I am not even from Alvarez."