They walked into the Adventurer Training complex through another entrance, the first one they came across. Directions to the mess hall were clearly marked – presumably a popular destination among players for dining. Sean hadn't looked for it before. The dinner seemed fairly cheap: five coppers for a single course, ten for a full meal, and a whole silver for an open buffet – with payment collected at the exit. Sean chose the last option and Emma took just one plate. They found an empty table in a quiet part of the hall, and he removed the top section of his armor. The simple cloth shirt underneath was sufficient to keep him warm.
He scouted the buffet tables, which all had an ample selection of foods: meats, sides, breads, various soups and stews, and all kinds of other dishes. He stopped by some smoked brisket and limited himself to inhaling the aroma for a few seconds, but then focused on actually taking something to eat. The meals were all labeled – medieval European-style, but the names seemed fancy. Bear loin in black sauce, topped with dark breadcrumbs – it had a strong smell of vinegar and wine. Chopped boar stew with pickles… he was salivating at the sight of it. Venison steaklets grilled in cinnamon and ginger – they were small enough, so Sean took three. A grilled abomination of a roast called 'The Cockentrice' made him feel queasy, so he only grabbed a small slice from the front. The texture was sticky and greasy, but the meat smelled delicious.
Then he added some spit-roast beef with arugula-seed sauce – whatever the latter was! A small serving of 'Hunter's stew' that looked like it had all kinds of chopped and sliced meats in it. Roasted swan in apple sauce and peppers. His wooden tray was getting full, so he took a small bowl of seasoned grilled potatoes and a bit of salad – but more out of habit than any specific craving.
He was starving, but not as much as in the morning. As he sat down across the table from Emma and looked at his selection of food, it was the weird cravings that confused him the most. For instance, anything sweet felt strangely off-putting. He started tasting pieces of meat with potatoes and realized that he wasn't particularly interested in any sides. So he began gobbling all kinds of grilled and roasted meat. The thick stew had an odd smell – it enticed him, but his mouth didn't want it. He finally noticed that Emma was staring and compared his selection with her plate.
They could not have been further apart. She took some salads and various fresh vegetables, along with beans and bread. He had only tried meat so far – the sides on his tray were completely untouched!
Sean asked, "Are you a vegan or something?" She squinted at him angrily but did not comment, so he resumed eating his food. It was all delicious. All the steaks and roasts… the bird leg felt great, but pork and beef were even better! He wanted a richer taste, so he brought a few sauces from the buffet to spice things up. It seemed like he could not get enough of salty and greasy flavors… he started dipping the chunks of meat in the sauces, then even slurping the latter by the spoonful. It was weird but still so tasty!
Emma mostly just stared, taking a small bite from her own plate once in a while.
He continued to completely ignore the potatoes and salads on his tray – the meats were so much better. He tried the stew again and it was passable this time, a bit better once he added a thick, fatty sauce – but the bear-stuff was much better. He went to get more and also grabbed something to drink: a small bottle of wine from one of the tables. And a few strange-looking boiled eggs in an odd dressing. It was the smell that caught his attention – at first because it was repulsive, but he quickly salivated and decided to give it a try. He suspected that they were fermented – or maybe dipped in some kind of kitchen solution. He knew next to nothing about cooking, other than what he had seen on restaurant menus, maybe, so it was only a guess.
Sean tried one back at the table, and it was delicious… but he added a spicy mustard sauce to improve it further! He offered one to Emma, but she just shook her head – clearly a vegan. He shrugged and continued eating… more for himself! Only now did it cross his mind that he might have to pay more if he 'shared' his meal with her, but he ignored it. The meats were far more important! Then another refill. This time he just took whatever had a nice aroma with little care for names or how it looked. He started tasting them by the buffet tables: grabbing a forkful and gobbling it on the spot. Various meats wobbled in an almost disgusting way, but they smelled and tasted great – so he brought some too. Then a viscous not-soup called Mortrews, a large spoonful of 'Black Pudding' that wasn't sweet at all, some strange gelatin – it all seemed wrong for food, but none of it mattered to him!
Sean was surprised that he experienced an almost visceral disgust at the thought of any sweets – but the pudding-thing wasn't like that, and it was delicious. He tried some cake for dessert, but he had a hard time swallowing even a single bite – he almost gagged on it… in fact, the cake simply felt wrong on his palate. He forced it down to avoid making a mess, but moved back to the meats. He grabbed a bunch of garlic mushrooms on the way there. And a spoonful of a nut selection. And a chunk of some really stinky cheese – for whatever reason, he couldn't stop himself from hovering over it.
By the time he returned to the table with his tray full, he was completely stuffed. But he kept eating anyway – now chewing and tasting, like really tasting the food. It felt almost surreal: the crunchy textures, the rich flavors, all the strange sensations. He had never been one for fancy dining, but this was so great. For a moment he wanted to find the chefs who prepared all this – but eating was far more important!