The Mech Touch novel Chapter 980

Estella and Antoine brought their children and Ves to a shuttle landing pad at the top of the headquarters where they traveled to an exclusive restaurant called the Lyrical Kitchen in the Entertainment District.

Unobtrusive security guards accompanied each member of the happy family, while another shuttle with heavier armed guards followed them from the rear.

Meanwhile, Ves made do with Jeff, who looked like he couldn’t even take a single punch.

The trip didn’t last that long as the Entertainment District was very close to Mech Designer Row. As the shuttle landed on a parking zone which hosted many expensive shuttles and aircars, the processing walked a short distance before arriving at the famed Bentheim restaurant.

"I hope you don’t mind inviting you to dine at the Lyrical Kitchen." Antoine said. "While there are many fine establishments in Dorum, the Lyrical Kitchen is a treat to our children."

"I understand." Ves nodded. "I admit this is my first time at the Lyrical Kitchen. I’ve heard they’re famed for their musicians."

"You are in for a treat, my dear!" Estella smiled brightly at him as she ushered her children through the door.

It turned out that the happy family were regular customers and had a standing invitation to dine at this establishment, so the attendants quickly ushered them to a semi-closed corner in the fancy, multi-level restaurant.

As a projection of a menu along with food items emerged in front of all of them, Ves became a bit lost at the various exotic food options.

He enjoyed a solidly middle-class upbringing at Cloudy Curtain, and even his extensive stays on Rittersberg were never marked with excessive luxury and spending. Therefore, he never truly got exposed to the greater luxuries in life. He hardly knew the difference between all of the expensive food options on offer.

To Ves, the only item he recognized was cloud rice grown from his very own home planet! As for the rest, he saw no difference between them and the contents of a nutrient pack!

In fact, Ves much preferred the simplicity of a nutrient pack over some of the weirder options on the menu!

Fortunately, Estella noticed his hesitation and tactfully helped him out of his fix. "Is this your first time here? Let me recommend you some dishes for a start. The Lyrical Kitchen is known for their excellent meat dishes prepared in the local style of Bentheim cuisine. Half of their meat is sourced from wild exobeasts imported from the frontier!"

"My dear, Ves here wears the Frontier Service Medal."

"Ah, I forgot! How exciting!" Estella exclaimed while she quickly selected some dishes for him. "Did you eat a lot of exobeast meat on your deployment to the frontier?"

Ves smiled as recalled the time he had a bite of god species meat. "The taste of some of the exobeasts that you can find in the frontier is indescribable. I will never forget the first time I tasted the cooked flesh of a very formidable exobeast."

"What exobeast did you taste? Is it possible for the local restaurants to import their meat someday?"

"Unlikely." Ves shook his head. "Some bounties of the frontier are destined to remain out of our reach. It’s too hard to bring back all of the treasures the Faris Star Region has to offer."

Right now, Aeon Corona VII must be in an extremely chaotic spot. He hadn’t heard any mention about the Aeon Corona System in the news, but he was sure that Sigrund already made himself scarce while the CFA sent a war fleet to figure out what happened there or something.

As the appetizers arrived on hovering plates, a band of musicians arrived at a stage in their corner. Leife and Aislin both cheered in their raised seats and requested them to play a tune.

"One of the specialties of the Lyrical Kitchen is that they employ talented musicians who can improve a song for every occasion." Antoine explained to Ves. "They boast that their musicians never play the same song twice."

Ves knew that it took a lot of practice and coordination between the musicians to accomplish something like that. He half-suspected them to be carrying a brain implant that connected their minds together.

Still, the musicians played well and they easily managed to impress the two young children.

Seeing Estella and Antoine looking at their each other and their children with loving eyes made Ves feel inadequate. Compared to his lonesome self, the two Journeymen already found each other and developed a wholesome relationship that looked too perfect to be true.

"What is on your mind, Ves?" Antoine asked as he spotted Ves’ melancholic eyes.

"I’m very impressed with your family. Your children are very lucky to have you as their parents."

"You are still young. You have lots of time to find the perfect girl." Estella smiled. "As a woman, I can state that a mech designer of your talents and accomplishments won’t have any trouble searching for a suitable partner. I can introduce you to the daughters of some of our friends if you’d like."

"No thanks, Estella. Right now, my duty to the Mech Corps comes before my private matters. As you said, I still have plenty of time yet to find a partner."