Meat. Meat. Meat.
A mountain of thick steaks sat piled high on the table before us.
"Whoa, seeing this in VR is quite a sight... gulp."
"Man, the aggressive smell of that grease and sauce... I’m actually drooling. I wonder what’s happening to me in the real world? I might be a total mess right now."
"Who cares! Let’s dig in!!"
I knew cutting it was the proper way to eat, but I didn't even bother with the knife. I just stabbed a whole steak with my fork and took a massive bite.
Squish!
Beyond the tenderness, the juices mingled with the sauce and exploded in my mouth. A rich, savory onion aroma followed, and the flavor of the meat completely coated my palate. Salty. A hint of sweetness. A tiny kick of spice. Then came the slippery texture of the fat and that deep, lingering richness. My taste buds were in shock from a flavor profile far more complex than any synthetic meat.
"...So good... munch, gnash..."
"Chomp... gulp..."
To be honest, even just chewing the damn thing because I couldn't bite through it was pure bliss.
Wait, it was soft, yet I couldn't tear it? Gristle? Right, this must be gristle! They never bother adding that to formed meat. This was the real deal—high-end natural meat!
"Phew, no good! I can’t bite through it! Hey, we definitely should have cut this into smaller pieces first. It’s too tough to just eat like this!"
"Guh! Guh! ...Snap!! Munch, munch! Gulp! I’m not wasting a single bit! I’m eating this whole thing!"
"Whoa, she actually bit through. How’d you do that?"
"You have to grind your teeth side-to-side while you pull. You can do it too, Tria!"
Alto was eating like a wild animal, using her neck and fork to violently tear the meat away.
I looked back down at the piece I'd let go. It was definitely scarred with bite marks—tiny holes. If I could just connect enough of those holes, theoretically, it would tear.
...Can I do it? No, I’m going to do it!!
"Chomp!! ...Nnngh, ngg, nng!"
Snap, snap. My teeth slowly worked their way through the gristle. I gnawed at it several times, gave it a hard yank, and once I hit the breaking point—rip! The meat tore free and I finally managed to get it down.
"...!!! Munch, chew! Gulp! ...Whoaaa, my throat... I just swallowed meat! That slight catch in the back of my throat... man, this is incredible. It’s real meat! I just ate real meat! The sense of victory is insane!!"
I’d never eaten anything like this in my entire life. I could feel dopamine flooding my brain.
"Heh, your eyes are sparkling, Tria-chan. That’s right—that’s meat! This is what it’s all about!"
"Don’t go acting like my senior just because you finished yours a second faster!"
"Too bad for you! I’ve actually eaten natural meat before! Granted, it was about a quarter of the size of this, and barely thicker than a piece of cardboard, but still!"
"Seriously? You really were my senior... Meat Senpai!"
Apparently, it had been a slice of chashu pork in her ramen. To have used natural meat for something like that... what a luxury.
"Man, my jaw is getting tired. By the way, what kind of meat even is this?"
"Who knows? I just told them to bring us a mountain of whatever meat they had."
"Faster to just ask. Excuse me! What kind of meat is this?"
I flagged down an NPC waitress. Apparently, it was Lizardman meat. They’d just received a massive shipment of it earlier.
"...Those guys were this delicious? I’m definitely hunting them again."
"Agreed. Let’s hunt a ton of 'em. Oh, by the way—did you know Penpen can cook?"
"For real? I’m totally making her whip something up for us."
"...Hey, if Lizardmen are this good, there’s a chance other monsters are too, right? In stories like this, Orcs are usually the go-to delicacy. And since we hunted some the other day, they definitely exist!"
"Oh! Good point!! Then Orcs are next on the menu!!"
I reached for my second steak. I felt like I could eat forever.
"Hey there! Your gear is ready! ...Oh, are you two in the middle of a meal?"
"O-Oh... Penpen. Yeah, about that... my stomach is... kind of full, actually."
"Me too... but I can... I can still do this... I’m gonna eat..."
Or so I’d thought.
My stomach was so bloated it felt like I’d downed a Fullness Supplement; my body was actively rejecting the meat, screaming that nothing else could fit. Even though it was delicious, my mouth and throat were in full revolt. The meat’s gone cold, peko...
I’d polished off three slices easily, savored the fourth, cut the fifth into tiny pieces before eating, and by the sixth, I’d just been poking at it. That brought us to the current situation.
...I felt like the meat was about to stage a reverse-exodus from my throat.
Let’s see, how many are left? Nine? Are you kidding me? Alto still had seven to go.
"Wait, are you guys frozen? Your hands aren't moving."
"Guh! Don’t taunt me! Uooooh—!! I can still do this! Compared to a swarm of monster parents, this is a walk in the park! Guts!!"
"Hey, Penpen, you want my share?"
"Is that okay? Then don’t mind if I do!"
Penpen took a seat. She elegantly tucked a white napkin into her collar, readied her knife and fork, and licked her lips.
Stab, chomp! Stab, chomp! Stab, chomp!!
She skewered a steak with her knife and another with her fork, stuffing them into her mouth in massive bites and swallowing them whole. Whoa, she was a machine. The pile was vanishing before our eyes.
"Phew, thanks for the food! ...I’m definitely stuffed now!"
"Man, thanks, Penpen. You’re a lifesaver. Mentally, I really wanted to finish it, but my body just wasn’t having it..."
!? I am so sorry, Spirit-sama! It is only because Tria is so pathetic!
"Ah, I didn't mean it was Tria-chan's fault. It’s my own fault for ordering way too much without thinking..."
Man, having a voice pop up directly in my head is something else. So this is how it works.
"...Uuugh."
"Shouldn’t you just give up, Alto?"
"Sniffle... I wanted to eat it all..."
She was crying. Face-down on the table, sobbing. Proper manly tears.
"I get the sentiment, but don't cry over it. It’s just leftover steak..."
"But... but...!!"
"Oh, if you can’t finish, you can just put it in your Storage."
"...!!"
Why didn't we think of that?!
Alto immediately shoved her half-eaten steak into Storage. Hey, wait—give the plate back to the restaurant. And wipe your face; it’s covered in grease. Oh wait, mine too. Wipe, wipe.
...
Seriously though, how does this even work? I’m actually, physically full... This goes way beyond just a simple taste simulation.