The First Legendary Beast Master

"Now that you are back out of the dungeon, why don't we head to the Darklight Lounge at the arena for dinner? My treat." Karl offered Deve with a congratulatory pat on the back.

"Is that a fancy new place?" One of the Myths who had been waiting for them at the dungeon asked.

"Indeed it is. You should come along and check it out. We've got cooks on staff with Mystic Cooking as a trade skill, and the food is supposed to be excellent. I haven't had a chance to sample tonight's special, but there is no way it will be bad." Karl agreed.

Fortunately for Karl, the staff at the Arena were all linked to him by the artifact, and knew the moment that he invited a whole group to the restaurant.

The place was packed, but there was the option for a private room to be opened at the side for VIP guests.

Karl might have only recently met most of these people, but it was the only spot that they were going to get without waiting, so the Priestesses prepared the private room for them.

Hawk transformed when they walked through the portal, and took a perch on Karl's shoulder. That was much better than Dana's, as he actually fit.

"If you wanted food, you just had to ask, you didn't have to come out to beg." Karl reminded him.

{I need snacks} Hawk insisted, and Karl realized that he could understand the Demon Crow's speech.

As could everyone else.

"Did the crow just speak?" One of the Mythic Warriors asked, following behind Karl as they approached the arena.

"Indeed. That's a new one for him, but the crow form is a transformation spell. That's actually a Dark Flame Phoenix." Karl corrected him.

"Ah, that explains it. Phoenixes are smart, and Demon Crows can all speak, at least a little bit. Somewhat like Parrots, they can express dozens of words, all in Demon tongues. But if he's actually a Phoenix, his intelligence shouldn't be lacking." The warrior realized.

"It didn't cure his shamelessness, though. He's still out here on my shoulder to beg for food, when I could have just ordered for him." Karl joked.

Karl led the way in the door, while Dana stayed back a few steps so that she could get a better view of everyone's reaction.

"This is... impossible. Wow, the decor, how did anyone manage to build this?" One of the guests asked.

Deve smirked at Dana. "Just wait until they realize that the restaurant is nearly as large as the actual main floor, but there were other shops and an arena entrance on this side."

From the outside, the arena was impressive, but for people who were used to the best of the best, that wasn't enough to truly impress them.

However, this restaurant that was decorated with what looked like a lifetime worth of wealth, was an instant mind breaker.

Out of respect for the other diners, most of whom looked just as shocked and enthralled by their surroundings, the Myths remained quiet until they were in the private room and seated.

Then the questions began.

"Is there some major powerhouse backing this restaurant? I swear those were Mythic Rank Holy Stones used as lights in the chandelier." One of the men asked.

"They are. But they're not real. The decor is done with an illusion. So, even if the Guild runs into the strongest of enemies, we don't have to worry about vandalism and theft costing us a fortune. We can just repair and replace the damaged interior items with a spell." Karl explained.

"Then the hostess, is that an illusion as well?"

Karl chuckled. "Unfortunately, no. That is a very real High Priestess of the Spider Goddess. There are a number of them working here. They like the ambiance."

That left the Myths completely baffled.

There wasn't anything that you could offer a Spider Priestess that would make them willingly serve others, but there was more than one in this restaurant. Could it be that they were the ones who bankrolled it?

If this were their place, it would make sense that they were here to supervise.

"Is this an Elven restaurant, then?" One of the others asked.

Karl chuckled. "Not at all. Though the Dark Elves do eat meat. The chef is not an Elf at all, and the specials of the day might surprise you. I asked them to bring us a bit of everything, served family style."

The food was out only moments later, and the guests stared at it in awe.

"Now, this is business advertising. I haven't even seen the arena floor yet, and I'm excited about it." One of the women joked.

Dana chuckled. "Well, the Arena isn't for us. It's a Mythic-Ranked artifact, but that means it's meant for Totem Ranked and lower fighters. It can make Mythic opponents and barriers, but someone will have to reinforce them during the fight so that they aren't damaged by the backlash."

The woman just shrugged. "Some of us prefer to watch the fights, and not start them. Totem Ranked arenas are quite the spectacle. Tell me, does your alliance form the majority of the performers?"

Dana shook her head. "You misunderstand. The arena is designed so that you can pick from a variety of monsters, golems and even dungeon bosses. It's not a staged show, it's an open combat and training arena."

That was almost enough to make them stop eating.

Almost.

But not everyone was so eager to leave. Hawk had found himself a perch on the back of a chair, and the staff had brought him a plate, with everything portioned to be bite sized for his Demon Crow transformation.

It was like being back in his Awakened Rank glory days, where he could just show up in the cafeteria and people would feed him.

Being small was definitely better at meal time.

"What is this skill called? Is it something that can be learned?" One of the warriors asked.

"It is Mystic Cooking, and it can definitely be learned. But we don't have a school to teach it, so finding a mentor will not be easy. Nearly everyone with the skill is already employed by the Nara Group Alliance as a chef." Karl explained.

That raised more questions than it answered. Like how did they find out about it, how did they find the people who had it, and most importantly, how could they poach one of the chefs?