“So this adorable cat is going to become part of our family?” Tsurara asked with great interest.
“Yes.
His name is Tom, and he’s a rather extraordinary cat.” Saku Hayashi nodded.
Under normal circumstances—excluding the Gourmet Universe—Appetite Demons with hosts on Earth would never leave those hosts.
Ichiryū’s Appetite Demon, Don Slime, had not remained inside Ichiryū’s body.
Instead, he resided in Blue Grill, located within the Black Triangle region of the Gourmet World.
Tom was even more unusual.
He could enter the real world without possessing anyone.
Considering that Tom was a gag character, however, applying conventional logic to him was pointless.
Returning to Saku Hayashi’s internal space was equally easy for him.
The normal restrictions placed upon Appetite Demons could not bind Tom.
Since there was no real difference between Tom remaining inside or outside, Saku Hayashi’s home certainly had enough room for one more resident.
Now that Tom had appeared, perhaps Jerry would arrive someday as well.
However, that was a matter for the future.
Tsurara was slightly surprised when Tom politely bowed to her.
He truly was an intelligent cat.
Her red lips curved into a smile.
Having a cat in the house would make things livelier.
“Welcome, Tom.” Tom nodded.
He calmly pulled a cigarette from behind his back, lit it, and smoked the entire thing in one drag.
The smoke he exhaled gathered in the air and formed a sentence: [Hello.
Please take good care of me.] Tom had once used this exact trick to attract the admiration of countless female cats.
“Hehehe…” Tsurara covered her mouth and laughed, thoroughly amused by his suave performance.
This was the first time in her life that she had witnessed something so extraordinary.
Saku Hayashi shook his head.
Although he did not smoke, he had to admit that Tom’s trick looked incredibly cool.
“Saku, let’s use the Rainbow Fruit you brought back from the IGO to welcome Tom today,” Tsurara suggested.
By now, Saku Hayashi could be considered firmly affiliated with the IGO.
He did not particularly care about that label.
Ichiryū and the others never forced him to do anything, and his association with the organization provided numerous conveniences.
Occasionally bringing back a rare Gourmet Creature was more than enough.
Delicious ingredients such as the Rainbow Fruit were rarely available on the market, but Saku Hayashi could obtain them directly from the IGO.
Many Gourmet Hunters worked under the organization.
A powerhouse of Saku Hayashi’s level did not need to handle minor assignments and was fully qualified to enter the Gourmet World.
“Miss Tsurara, is the Rainbow Fruit wine ready?” Saku Hayashi asked.
Aside from wanting to taste it himself, Master Jiro also enjoyed alcohol.
Saku Hayashi planned to send some to Setsuno’s restaurant later.
Tsurara counted briefly on her fingers before nodding.
“It should be almost ready.” …
At dinnertime, Tom stared at the lavish feast spread across the table.
Slurp…
He licked his lips as drool poured shamelessly from the corners of his mouth.
Everything smelled absolutely meow-nificent!
There was tail meat from a Mountainback Dragon, claws from a Five-Colored Crab, wings from a Steller’s Sea Eagle…
Boing~ Boing~ An enormous piece of Rainbow Fruit sat at the center of the table.
Even the slightest movement made it wobble like pudding.
Juice evaporated above it and formed a magnificent rainbow in the air.
Tom compared his favorite roasted chicken with the dishes before him.
There was simply no comparison.
Despite having lived for so many years, he had never encountered food with such an irresistible aroma.
“Tom, don’t be shy.
Eat as much as you want.
You’ll never go hungry in this house,” Saku Hayashi said with a smile.
He cut off a massive piece of Rainbow Fruit and placed it in front of Tom.
The piece was larger than Tom’s head.
Although Rainbow Fruit resembled pudding or jelly, its density was exceptionally high.
Tom nodded repeatedly like a chicken pecking at grain.
He stared at the pudding-like fruit but did not take small bites.
Instead, he swallowed the entire piece at once.
Gulp!
Saku Hayashi and Tsurara could clearly see the enormous piece of fruit traveling down Tom’s throat before entering his stomach.
It even produced the sound of something splashing into water.
Tsurara stared at him in confusion.
“?” It was not as though no one in this world could accomplish such a feat.
However, when Tom did it, the entire scene possessed a strange and nonsensical quality.
“Haaah…” Tom released a long, satisfied breath.
A humanlike expression of bliss appeared on his face as he rubbed his stomach.
Although he had swallowed the fruit without chewing it, he had still tasted its complete flavor.
“Tom is certainly unusual.
I’ve never seen a cat like him before.” Tsurara examined him curiously.
“Does he possess Gourmet Cells?” An ordinary cat could never digest such an enormous amount of energy at once.
“Yes and no.
Does that count?” Saku Hayashi gave an ambiguous answer.
Although Tom was technically his Appetite Demon, he could just as easily be considered something entirely different.
Calling him a gag character was far more accurate.
Saku Hayashi could already use several of Tom’s abilities.
For example, any lasso he threw would have a one-hundred-percent chance of catching its target.
The rope could extend infinitely and even possessed an automatic tracking function.
If he used a wooden club or any similar object, he could knock his opponent unconscious with absolute certainty, regardless of how much force he applied.
However, the ability that satisfied Saku Hayashi the most was Tom’s indestructibility.
Even if Saku Hayashi were reduced to ashes, he could instantly recover.
“Tom, we don’t have a bed prepared for you.
Would you rather sleep on the sofa or the recliner?” Saku Hayashi asked.
There was no need to worry about Tom’s hygiene.
He was superior to professionally trained house cats by an unknown number of dimensions.
One could say that Tom frequently suffered defeats while chasing Jerry, but no one could claim that he was incompetent.
After all, Tom was a champion mouse-catcher.
He and Jerry were merely playing with each other.
Besides catching mice, Tom possessed countless other skills.
Even professional housekeepers could not compare with him.
After hearing Saku Hayashi’s question, Tom immediately lay down on the soft carpet.
It felt no less comfortable than the sofa.
Tom could sleep even on hard floors, so this soft and warm carpet already felt incredibly luxurious.
“Whatever you prefer.” Saku Hayashi smiled.
The carpet was made from the pelt of an Ice Jaguar that inhabited Ice Hell.
Ice Jaguars had a Capture Level of 17.
Since they lived in an extremely cold environment, their pelts provided exceptional insulation.
Lying on the carpet completely blocked the damp chill rising from the floor.
When Saku Hayashi had passed through Ice Hell, he had casually captured an Ice Jaguar.
He gave its flesh and other biological tissue to the IGO for research, then commissioned the organization to turn its pelt into a carpet.
Ding!
Saku Hayashi’s phone vibrated.
After glancing at the caller’s name, he answered.
“Hello, Toriko.
What do you need?” “Hahaha!
Saku Hayashi, it’s been several years since we last hunted something together.
Want to meet up and take a trip to the Baron Archipelago?” Toriko’s carefree and boisterous voice came through the phone.
Saku Hayashi had received some training from Ichiryū, so he had naturally interacted with Toriko over the years.
Two Gourmet Hunters rarely formed long-term teams.
A Gourmet Hunter partnering with a chef was widely regarded as the ideal combination.
Although Saku Hayashi and Toriko had not worked together in several years, they still encountered each other frequently.
“Sure.
Name a meeting place, or I can head directly to the Baron Archipelago,” Saku Hayashi replied without hesitation.
He had passed through that region not long ago.
If Toriko planned to visit the Baron Archipelago now, he had probably met Komatsu.
Saku Hayashi naturally wanted to meet Big-Nose Komatsu for himself.