Ah'Ming stared.
"I'm sorry, what?"
The robot's screen displayed a video thumbnail: Ah'Ming mid-fight with the statue, covered in black ichor, claws extended, looking absolutely feral.
[NEWBIE GETS S-RANK ON FIRST MAIN STORY CLEAR][YOU WON'T BELIEVE #4][Views: 3,847,392]
"Oh no."
"Many viewers have expressed interest in your future broadcasts! You've also gained quite a following on social media platforms---though you haven't created an account yet. Might I suggest registering? It can be quite profitable for popular broadcasters!"
"I need to leave."
"The Golden Pavilion's address is being sent to your access credential now! Have a wonderful day!"
Another card ejected from the slot.
Ah'Ming grabbed it and fled before the robot could tell him any more horrifying information.
Behind him, the line erupted with whispers:
"That was him?"
"He doesn't look that impressive—"
"Dude cleared an S-rank main story solo and you're saying he's not impressive?"
"I'm gonna ask for his autograph—"
Ah'Ming ran faster.
The Golden Pavilion was absurdly fancy.
Not only did it have crystal chandeliers, it also had marble everythings. Waiters in actual suits. A fountain in the entrance hall with water that flowed upward.
This was definitely out of his price range.
But the robot had recommended it, and Ah'Ming was hungry, and he had fifty thousand dollars burning a hole in his virtual pocket.
"Table for one?" The hostess asked. She looked almost human except her eyes were a bit too large and reflected light like a cat's.
"Yes?"
"Right this way, sir!"
She led him to a private booth with a view of the city, handed him a menu the size of a small novel, and vanished with a smile that showed slightly too many teeth.
Ah'Ming opened the menu.
No prices.
Never a good sign.
But, everything looked incredible.
"Fuck it, we ball" he muttered. "I got paid. I'm eating."
When the waitress returned, he ordered.
And ordered.
And kept ordering.
Her eyebrows climbed higher with each dish until they were practically in her hairline.
"And to drink?" she asked faintly.
"Six pitchers of ice lemon tea."
"...Of course, sir."
The food started arriving fifteen minutes later.
And it kept coming.
Dumplings—six varieties. Noodles—hand-pulled, knife-cut, and rice. Three types of hotpot with more ingredients than he could count. Grilled meats on sizzling platters. Whole steamed fish with ginger and scallions. Fried rice that smelled like heaven. Roasted duck with crispy skin. Soup dumplings that exploded with broth.
Ah'Ming ate.
And ate.
And ate.
His table became a graveyard of empty plates.
Other diners were starting to stare.
The waitress kept bringing more food, eyes getting wider with each trip.
"Sir," she finally ventured, "are you... expecting company?"
"Nope!" Ah'Ming said cheerfully around a mouthful of duck. "Just me!"
She looked at his completely flat stomach.
Looked at the forty-three empty plates.
Looked back at him.
"How."
"Magic!"
Which wasn't entirely inaccurate.
By the time he finished, there were sixty-eight empty plates (Sharing ones--- Sharignes ---- sharingans), seven empty pitchers, three dessert platters scraped clean, and a waitress who looked like she'd witnessed a miracle and wasn't sure if she should be terrified or amazed.
The bill arrived.
Ah'Ming looked at it.
$5,247.
He winced but paid.
Absolutely worth it.
As he left, he noticed several diners filming him on their phones.
One woman was whispering urgently into hers: "—no, I'm serious, he ate the entire premium menu—"
Oh.
Right.
The internet.
By the time Ah'Ming found his penthouse (which required three elevator transfers and getting lost twice), his new gauntlet-phone was buzzing non-stop.
He had messages from Huipao:
[Huipao]: BRO
[Huipao]: BRO
[Huipao]: BRO YOU'RE FAMOUS
[Huipao]: CHECK BROADCASTWATCH
Notifications from something called "BroadcastWatch":
[You've been mentioned in 1,847 posts][Trending Topic #3: "S-Rank Newbie"][Trending Topic #7: "Golden Pavilion Mukbang"]
Even a message from Aliya:
[Aliya]: SAW YOUR EATING VIDEO!!!]
[Aliya]: Do you need a custom storage dimension for food??? :D]
[Aliya]: I can make it temperature controlled!!]
"What eating video—"
He pulled up BroadcastWatch.
Someone had filmed his entire meal and posted it:
[S-RANK BROADCASTER DESTROYS GOLDEN PAVILION MENU][ALL 68 DISHES. SOLO. WATCH TIL THE END][Views: 1,247,392]
The comments were enthusiastic:
"WHERE DOES IT ALL GO"
"I've never seen someone eat three whole ducks like that"
"NEW FAVORITE BROADCASTER JUST DROPPED"
"The way he just KEEPS EATING"
"Someone check if he's actually human"
"This is what peak performance looks like"
Ah'Ming put his head in his hands.
Then, because he was apparently incapable of learning from his mistakes, he created a BroadcastWatch account. (Technically, BroadcastWatch was for the audience to edit clips. Technically, broadcasters weren't able to make BroadcastWatch accounts. Because it was for the watchers. But, his Gauntlets were built and made and registered with NPC systems, so it was an easy bypass.)
[@Ah'Ming_Official]
He posted a picture of his empty dessert plate:
[good meal. golden pavilion lives up to the hype. 9/10 would recommend. -1 point bc they looked scared of me.]
Posted.
Within three minutes: 500 followers.
Within ten minutes: 2,000 followers.
Within an hour: 25,000 followers and climbing.
His comment section exploded:
"HE'S HERE"
"KING OF MUKBANG"
"Post more food content PLEASE"
"What instance are you doing next???"
"Marry me"
Ah'Ming stared at his phone.
Looked around his absurdly fancy penthouse—floor-to-ceiling windows showing the glittering city, a kitchen he'd probably never use, a bathroom with a tub that could fit eight people, a bed that looked like it cost more than his entire reward payout.
Looked back at his phone.
"What is my life," he said to the empty room.
|System suggests broadcaster accept this as the new normal
"I've been here for six hours."
|Yes
|And broadcaster has already achieved minor celebrity status
|System is impressed
|And also concerned
"Concerned?"
|Broadcaster attracts attention like a magnet attracts metal
|This will either end very well or very badly
|System is betting on badly
|If it does go badly, system will earn a lot of money.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Ah'Ming paused. Wait. "You're betting on my failure?! What happened to our beautiful friendship?"
|System calls them as system sees them
Ah'Ming flopped onto his bed—which was indeed as comfortable as it looked—and stared at the ceiling.
His phone kept buzzing.
His follower count kept climbing.
Somewhere in the city, people were watching videos of him eating.
Somewhere in that terrifying viewer plaza, eldritch beings were probably trying to pull him as a gacha character.
"This is fine," he told the ceiling. "This is totally fine."
|Broadcaster is in denial
"Shut up, Steve."
Despite everything, he felt himself relaxing.
The bed was comfortable.
The city lights were pretty.
He was full, warm, and safe.
For the first time in... a while, actually... he felt okay.
His eyes drifted closed.