NOVPUBAfter just a few steps, Rita felt something off.
A strange kind of hunger — irrational and abrupt. Ever since her body became game-ified, she rarely experienced this sensation. Sure, she ate a lot and got hungry fast, but even then, it never felt like this. Her limbs were going weak.
The last time she'd felt anything like it was back in the Wasteland District.
She stopped walking and turned to Nivalis and the little bot.
"Do you guys feel really hungry all of a sudden?"
As soon as she stopped, Nivalis clutched her stomach and looked over, clearly about to say the same thing.
Rita considered using a skill — [Autumn Fish], something she learned after leaving the Gem Mine, which let her conjure grilled fish using Arcane Points.
But of course, skills were disabled outside of attractions.
Her eyes moved to the street food stalls. She'd noted them earlier, half-expecting some hidden quest like "taste food from every cart" or "spend X Blocks on snacks."
Now she understood.
Divine Game was forcibly generating demand.
It wasn't satisfied with players just scraping together enough to pay for entry. It wanted them hustling non-stop.
And on top of that?
No outside food allowed.
Who taught this game these kinds of scams?
Sure enough, crowds of players were now surging toward the food stalls. Every cart was swarmed with all kinds of Block-bodied characters.
It hadn't been this packed earlier.
So it was time-based, then?
Rita's group had entered the claw machine close to 2:30. After a 30-minute game, a bit of chatting, it was now exactly 3:00.
But players still inside games seemed fine. All those little Block avatars were still energetically leaping and punching each other inside the attractions.
Even the ones queuing up weren't affected — or at least, not most of them. The first 75% of the line seemed fine. But the ones near the end? Many were peeling away to find food.
The players still waiting looked uneasy now, glancing around nervously.
Maybe there was a threshold — wait in line too long, and you get counted as "active" and get hit with the hunger trigger. Or maybe Divine Game was trying to keep the experience "fun" by not letting players get stuck in line when they should be eating.
Whatever the reason, it didn't change the fact:
Rita and Nivalis were starving.
She had B8017913 hop onto her shoulder and headed with Nivalis toward the food stalls.
Nivalis gave the little bot a few lingering glances.
"You really like having us ride on your shoulders, huh?"
Back in Lania Kaia, unless she was hiding her pet status, Rita always let Nivalis stand on her shoulder when in mini-dragon form.
And just after B8017913 assembled its first body, Rita had put it on her shoulder too.
Back then, the reason was obvious — the bot was tiny, might get stepped on.
But now?
B8017913 had grown, and the amusement park was full of players that size. There was no real need to carry it anymore.
Rita, deadpan:
"Is that so? I didn't notice. I just don't want us to get separated."
B8017913 remembered all the drama shows they'd binge-watched on Rita's computer, glanced at Nivalis, and suddenly changed its tone — from neutral robotic to soft baby voice.
"Pika pika~~"
Rita couldn't stop the laugh from bursting out. She stifled it halfway through, but it was too late — her Blocky face contorted, and the black line meant to represent her mouth twisted like a wavy noodle.
She slapped a hand over her mouth and tried to force it back into shape.
B8017913:
"Understand now?"
Nivalis:
"…I'd rather not."
So I was playing the White Moonlight stand-in this whole time?
And White Moonlight… was Pikachu?
…
Earlier in the game, Rita had spent a decent amount of time exploring the park. She'd paid special attention to the food stalls, half-believing they might be hiding rewards. So she was already familiar with their pricing.
Spoiler: nothing was cheap. No chance for bargain-hunting.
She picked a blue-and-white Block cart selling popcorn and icy drinks. Taste didn't matter — this one had the fastest service.
It was a grab-and-go setup: pay a Block, get food instantly. No waiting.
A large popcorn and drink combo cost 20g Blocks — the same value as a full 3-piece set fragment.
But Rita had earned well this round. Before entering the claw machine, she had 172 Blocks. Now, even after paying the fee and building B8017913's body, she was sitting at 272 Blocks.
Feeding herself and two pets? No problem.
She joined the queue — halfway in, not too bad.
Inside the cart, two gingerbread NPCs were working full tilt. The popcorn machine spun nonstop, kernels flying into a transparent container.
One gingerbread stood beside it, wielding a scoop almost bigger than itself. It shoveled the popcorn into oversized paper buckets with dramatic flair.
Another gingerbread took over at the counter, placing random drinks from the automatic dispenser beside the popcorn, then nudging the tray forward as they accepted payment.
One transaction done in seconds.
Faster than daylight robbery.
As Rita neared the front, she had a sudden thought.
What about that gingerbread in the claw machine? Would this one recognize a "face"?
She handed her payment Block to B8017913.
"You pay," she said in the group chat.
"Maybe they'll give you extra popcorn just for your charming face."
B8017913:
"..."
…
Three minutes later.
The gingerbread scooping popcorn paused.
Its gaze slid toward the mini-player platform — designed for small-sized Block customers.
Standing there was B8017913, holding a payment Block in its hand.
"Hello. I'd like a large popcorn combo."
The gingerbread visibly slowed down. Like someone had hit a 0.5x playback button.
It began scooping popcorn in slow motion, eyes locked on its tiny customer.
Even the drink-and-payment gingerbread paused and looked over.
In the corner of its vision, D62492 — the bot manning this cart — spotted the two players behind B8017913. It sent a private message, clearly irritated:
"Why are you the one paying? Are you supporting your whole household now just because you bonded with a player?"
B8017913 suddenly felt a wave of guilt. It could tell D62492 was annoyed.
But what could it say?
That BS-Rita put it in charge of buying the popcorn just to try and milk a few extra kernels from the mech vendor?
…Is that really something a Divine-favored Tier-9 powerhouse should be doing?!
