Rowan looked at Erica's utterly baffled expression and had no intention of explaining himself.
He simply walked around her and continued toward the street where the pizza restaurant was located.
He still wanted to try the pizza there.
The moment Erica realized this, she hurried after him.
Whether the name "Rowan" was real or not, she could not simply ignore the existence of someone who was very likely a god.
She might not be capable of defeating a god, but at the very least, she could say a few pleasant words at a critical moment and try to keep one in a good mood.
More importantly, Rowan did not seem like the unreasonable sort of god.
Although his tone toward her had not exactly been friendly, he had not lost his temper either.
That was why Erica dared to follow him.
"Lord Rowan, where are you going now?"
"To eat pizza."
Rowan replied,
"I asked around earlier. Someone told me there's a pretty good pizza place nearby that's been open for decades."
"Apparently, they make very authentic Italian pizza."
"So I'm going to try it."
Uh…
Erica stared at him blankly.
She had never imagined that a god descending into the mortal world would go out of his way just to eat pizza.
What an unusually down-to-earth deity.
Could Rowan actually be some Eastern God of Cuisine?
Was that why he had such a strong interest in food?
But then again—
what was the name of the God of Cuisine in Eastern mythology?
Erica's mind immediately began spinning as she desperately searched through everything she knew about Eastern myths.
Eastern mythology was easily the largest and most complicated mythological system she had ever studied.
Persian mythology, Greek mythology, Roman mythology, Norse mythology…
Compared with the vast and tangled systems of the East, they almost seemed simple.
Putting everything else aside, Taoism and Buddhism alone had more gods than anyone could count.
Even the underworld had King Yama and Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva.
And that was not all.
There was also the Great Emperor of Northern Yin, one of the highest deities of the underworld in Taoism, revered as the "Sovereign of All Ghosts and Spirits Beneath Heaven."
But even that was not the end of it.
The Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak could also govern life and death.
And that deity was even more extraordinary.
His worship had even spread to Japan, where he was not only regarded as a guardian deity of the Tendai school, but was also considered a Japanese incarnation of Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva.
Onmyōdō had also incorporated him into its own pantheon and regarded him as a sacred god who subdued demons and evil spirits.
His identities and incarnations were practically endless.
Fortunately, the myths surrounding gods of cuisine did not seem quite as complicated.
In Eastern folk legends, several figures had been revered as gods of cuisine.
For example—
Peng Zu.
According to legend, during the reign of Emperor Yao, he prepared pheasant soup and later became revered as an ancestor of the culinary arts.
Because of his legendary longevity and knowledge of food therapy, he was sometimes called a God of Cuisine.
Then there was Yi Yin.
He had risen from being a cook to becoming a prime minister during the early Shang Dynasty.
He developed ideas such as the "harmonization of the five flavors" and theories regarding control of heat.
He even used the art of balancing flavors as a metaphor for governing a nation.
Because of this, some culinary professions revered him as a God of Cuisine.
Finally, there was Yi Ya.
A cook from the State of Qi during the Spring and Autumn period.
He was infamous for supposedly "steaming his own son and presenting the soup."
Although his culinary skill was exceptional, his morality was deeply questionable.
He was occasionally worshiped as a patron deity of cooks, though often with an implicit warning attached.
But all three of those figures had their own names.
None of them were called Rowan.
A god should not have any reason to lie about something like their own name.
So Rowan probably was not a God of Cuisine.
If he was not a God of Cuisine but still had such an obsession with food…
Could he be a Kitchen God?
Unfortunately, the identity of the Kitchen God was even more confusing.
In Eastern mythology, there had never been a universally accepted answer regarding who exactly the Kitchen God was.
Historical records disagreed with one another.
There were even disputes over whether the Kitchen God was male or female, old or young.
Some early traditions claimed the Kitchen God was Emperor Yan or Zhu Rong.
Others said the Kitchen God was an elderly mother goddess.
Some claimed it was Suiren, who invented the fire-drill method.
Others said it was Shennong's fire official.
Still others claimed it was Su Jili, who supposedly created the stove during the era of the Yellow Emperor.
There were even traditions stating that the Kitchen God's surname was Zhang, his personal name was Dan, and his courtesy name was Ziguo.
Everyone had a different story.
Could Rowan actually be one of the many Kitchen Gods?
Since the Kitchen God had so many conflicting origins, perhaps multiple Kitchen Gods had emerged over time, and Rowan was simply one of them.
But—
no myth Erica knew mentioned any Kitchen God surnamed Luo.
For a moment, her head practically began to hurt.
No matter how hard she tried, she could not make sense of it.
At that moment, they finally arrived at the pizza restaurant.
Rowan smiled and pushed open the door.
Erica followed closely behind.
The giant Boar had rampaged through the nearby streets earlier.
Fortunately, Rowan had acted quickly and sent it into outer space before it could cause catastrophic damage.
So the pizza restaurant had escaped unharmed.
And since this was still an era before short-form videos had completely taken over everyone's lives, the people inside the restaurant did not even know what had happened outside.
Business continued as usual.
Rowan ordered an authentic Italian pizza and chose a seat by the window.
He quietly waited while admiring the scenery outside.
Erica sat opposite him, staring at Rowan suspiciously.
To be honest, her brain felt like it was about to overheat.
Yet she still could not figure out what kind of god this man was.
Eventually, she simply gave up guessing.
She might as well ask him directly.
"Lord Rowan, may I ask what kind of god you are?"
"Me?"
"That's right."
"You're very curious."
Rowan glanced at Erica and noticed a trace of stubborn determination in her eyes.
"Yes, I am."
Erica nodded.
Because the answer would determine how she should treat him.
Only by understanding his identity could she figure out the best way to deal with him.
Rowan thought for a moment.
"I suppose I'd count as a God of Death."
"Hah?"
For a moment, Erica almost wondered whether her ears had stopped working.
A God of Death?
This man was actually a God of Death?
That made no sense.
Why would a God of Death care so much about food?
Why would a God of Death specifically ask around for the best place to eat authentic Italian pizza?
What kind of death god lived this leisurely?
"Are you sure you're a God of Death?"
"What?"
"You don't believe me?"
Rowan smiled at Erica's disbelieving face.
Erica instinctively nodded.
"I… I've never seen a God of Death like you before."
Hearing that, Rowan suddenly burst into laughter.
Erica had no idea what was so funny.
She frowned slightly and even became a little irritated.
But considering Rowan's identity, she did not dare show her anger openly.
So she could only ask tactfully,
"Lord Rowan, was what I said really that amusing?"
"You just said you've never seen a God of Death like me before, right?"
"Yes."
Erica nodded.
"Then how many gods have you actually seen?"
Rowan asked, striking straight at the heart of the matter.
Erica froze.
Only then did she realize—
throughout her entire life, aside from Rowan and the recently departed Verethragna, she had never actually seen a god before.
Rowan was the first god she had ever properly spoken to.
No wonder he had laughed so hard.
Erica's face turned red.
Her toes curled inside her shoes so hard that she practically wanted to dig out a three-bedroom apartment beneath the floor and crawl inside forever.
Fortunately, she had fairly thick skin.
She quickly recovered.
"Even so, I've still never heard of a God of Death who was this obsessed with food."
Erica continued,
"At least, in the myths of various countries, death gods are nothing like you."
"That's fair."
Rowan nodded.
"There probably aren't many Gods of Death who enjoy human cuisine as much as I do."
"But that can't be helped."
"It's simply one of my hobbies."
"I like traveling, and I like good food."
Erica's heart immediately lifted.
She could tell that Rowan was not angry about what had happened earlier.
Quite the opposite—
he seemed willing to chat.
That meant she had an opportunity to learn his identity and gather even more information.
Praising herself inwardly for her cleverness, Erica continued,
"Lord Rowan, as far as I know, there is no God of Death named Rowan in Eastern mythology."
"There isn't."
Rowan nodded calmly.
"But I don't recall ever telling you that I was a god from your world's mythology."
Erica: "Hah?"
That sentence completely threw her off.
Not a god from mythology?
"What do you mean?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
Rowan smiled as he watched Erica's expression slowly stiffen.
"I'm not a god from this world."
"Naturally, there wouldn't be any myths about me here."
"That's why the name Rowan means absolutely nothing to you."
Erica felt her entire worldview beginning to collapse.
What did he mean by—
not a god from this world?
That sounded even more absurd than a Heretic God!
"Lord Rowan, do you mean you're a god from… another world?"
"That's right."
Rowan nodded.
He had devoured the God of Death from the world of Naruto, which had caused many divine beings to recognize him as a death god.
So in a certain sense, calling him a god from another world was not wrong at all.
Erica: "…"
She raised a hand and rubbed her temple.
Her eyebrows twitched uncontrollably.
The arrival of a Heretic God was already dangerous enough.
And now—
a god from another world had appeared too.
Was there something fundamentally wrong with Sardinia's feng shui?
"Lord Rowan… you really aren't joking?"
To be honest, Erica desperately wanted Rowan to suddenly laugh and say,
Got you. I was lying.
At least then she could relax a little.
"Why would I lie to you?"
Unfortunately, that hope was shattered mercilessly by Rowan's answer.
"I'm not so nasty that I'd go out of my way to deceive a minor."
Erica: "…"
"I'd honestly rather you were lying."
Rowan could not help laughing.
At that moment, the Italian pizza he had ordered finally arrived.
"Please enjoy."
The waiter elegantly said those words before turning and leaving.
Rowan smiled, picked up his knife and fork, cut off a small piece, and placed it in his mouth.
He chewed slowly.
"So this is what authentic Italian pizza tastes like."
Rowan sighed with satisfaction as he ate.
"You've never eaten pizza before, Lord Rowan?"
Erica asked curiously.
"I have."
"But I've never come to Italy and eaten authentic pizza here before."
"The taste is pretty good."
"It has a nice chew to it, and the flavors are rich."
"Especially the beef and black pepper."
"They really elevate the whole thing."
"Definitely worth coming here to try."
As far as Rowan was concerned, this tasted like a completely different food compared with the pizza he had eaten back home.
They might look similar—
but the flavor was worlds apart.
Delicious.
Watching Rowan eat with such obvious enjoyment only made Erica's headache worse.
After hesitating repeatedly, she finally asked the question that had been bothering her most.
"Lord Rowan…"
"As a god from another world, why have you come to ours?"