195: Kingdom of Gitar

Taking a light step, Lin Luo followed Ichiryu back to the waterfront balcony and sat down calmly.

A tablet was silently handed to him. Lin Luo was slightly startled, but seeing Ichiryu's expression remained as usual, he reached out and took it.

As his fingertips swiped across the screen, his movements came to a sudden halt, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes: "Chairman, this is...?"

"Within the IGO, helping one another is simply a matter of duty." Ichiryu's tone was calm, yet carried a profound meaning.

Several clear personal files were displayed on the screen, all of them students of Tōtsuki Culinary Academy.

The dossiers for Nakiri Erina and Akane Kubo Momo were the most detailed; as they were under the wings of the IGO, their movements were clear and their trajectories well-defined.

Only next to the name 'Kobayashi Rindō' were several lines of eye-catching annotations.

The place she was currently in was not among the member nations and was not bound by the eight gourmet laws; it was a place of Chaos and hidden undercurrents—a grey zone existing outside the bounds of common sense.

Lin Luo gently put down the tablet and stood up.

"Chairman, thank you. Don't you want to know..." Before he could finish, he was interrupted by Ichiryu raising a hand.

"As I just said, since you are a member of the IGO, helping one another is your duty." Ichiryu's voice was as steady as an ancient well, devoid of any ripples.

Lin Luo said no more, only nodding slightly: "Then I shall take my leave first."

By the time Toriko returned to the balcony, panting as he pulled his kayak, Lin Luo was already long gone. "Old man, where's Lin Luo?"

"He left." Ichiryu took a sip of tea and said leisurely, "If you had been any later, you might have caught dinner here with me."

Toriko flopped down and grumbled, "That guy, he didn't even wait for me..."

"Toriko," Ichiryu suddenly spoke, his gaze falling on him, "How about I give you a mission?"

"A mission?" Toriko's eyes lit up. "Do you need me to capture some rare ingredient?"

"Yes, it's a delicious ingredient." Ichiryu chuckled. "A grass that blooms in the sky—the ozone grass."

"ozone grass? Wait, that name..." Toriko paused. "Is it the one Lin Luo mentioned before?"

"Exactly. Because its taste is so wonderful that a single bite makes one feel as if they are soaring through the sky, it is also known as the 'Sky Grass'. How about using it as the salad for your Full Course Menu?"

"Sky Grass..." Toriko murmured, his Adam's apple bobbing involuntarily. Ever since he heard Lin Luo talk about his experiences in the Sky Vegetable Garden, he had been itching to try that legendary King of Vegetables. "That sounds... really good. I really want to try it."

Seeing the greed and anticipation flashing in his eyes, Ichiryu laughed heartily: "Toriko, it seems you've met a rather excellent chef. Don't think I can't tell just because you're playing dumb."

His laughter gradually subsided, and his tone became more solemn. "Listen well, Toriko. For a Gourmet Hunter whose profession is to capture ingredients, a chef who can prepare those dishes is of paramount importance. To find a chef whose skills match your ingredient Rank, to become partners and embark on a journey together—that is the Righteous Path."

Ichiryu's words left Toriko a bit dazed at first, but in his mind, a certain figure gradually became clear following those words.

The Kingdom of Jital.

An International Surveillance Target Nation!

This place was a breeding ground for gourmet crimes, a stubborn stain on the map of non-IGO member nations.

The light of the eight gourmet laws could not penetrate the gloom here; the constraints of the Law were pale and powerless, with only the Law of the jungle prevailing.

Contraband ingredients flowed like underground rivers, traded and circulated here with shocking scale and audacity.

Stepping into the kingdom's territory, extravagance and decay were brutally juxtaposed, creating a jarring sense of fragmentation.

As far as the eye could see, streets filled with ruins and trash were the main theme. Ragged ghosts drifted through the streets, and even more beggars huddled in the shadows of corners, their eyes hollow, the light of life long since worn away.

However, one only had to look toward the city center for the scene to suddenly tear apart.

There, towering neons pierced the filthy air, dyeing the night sky an unrealistic purple-red.

The Gourmet Casino, as grand as a palace, was brightly lit. Under the shimmering crystal chandeliers, elegantly dressed men and women toasted and drank, their plates filled with rare ingredients from all over the world. The air was thick with the decadent scent of expensive perfume, fine wine, and grilled meat.

Frenzied cheers and the crisp clinking of chips echoed through the hall, separated from the deathly silent slums outside by only a single street, yet it felt like an insurmountable abyss.

Extreme luxury and total ruin were brutally stitched together here, forming the city's most cruel and authentic calling card.

"Welcome to the Kingdom of Crime—Jital."

Such a "welcome" was like background noise, repeated daily.

"However, please leave everything behind except your underwear."

What followed was usually the cold glint of a blade or the threat of a gun muzzle.

There were only two outcomes: compliance, or being "persuaded" to shut up by a more violent force.

The strong devouring the weak was the most straightforward grammar here.

At this moment, in a narrow alleyway piled with clutter, the peace was suddenly shattered.

Clang! Crash!

The sounds of chasing and fighting exploded intensely.

Several stall owners who had been selling jerky of unknown origin or strange mushrooms in the alley quickly pulled back their goods, unfazed, to avoid being swept up in this sudden storm.

Their eyes were numb, as if this were just a street drama staged daily at a set time.

"Bastard! How dare you cheat in my Casino! You must be tired of living!" The roar was full of the fury of being fooled.

"Idiot! I just used a little 'technique'! If you want to talk about cheating, the traps in your shady Casino are the real masterpieces!" The responding female voice was clear, filled with disdain and provocation.

The owner of the voice was a young girl.

She had striking, flame-red hair. Her bangs defiantly covered her left eye, while her exposed right eye was a sharp gold. Her canine teeth flickered in and out of view as she ran, looking exceptionally sharp.

She moved as swiftly as a lynx. Even with a bulging, seemingly heavy sack slung over her shoulder, she could still weave through the narrow, cluttered alleyway. She occasionally kicked over roadside buckets or pulled down laundry poles, skillfully creating obstacles to interfere with the thugs hot on her heels.

However, she had clearly underestimated the opponents' familiarity with this territory and overestimated her own control over the complex web of alleys.

After a sharp turn, she didn't rush into the expected fork in the road, but into a dead end filled with abandoned building materials.

High brick walls blocked her path, and the sides were smooth concrete surfaces with nowhere to climb.

Scattered footsteps approached, completely blocking her only way out.

A dozen or so fierce-looking men holding machetes and iron bars closed in unhurriedly, like shadows merging to seal off the entrance to the dead end. Cruel smiles, like cats playing with a mouse, hung on their faces as their gazes swept back and forth between the girl's pretty face and the bulging sack.

The leader was a burly man with a hideous scar running diagonally across his cheek. He spat out the burnt cigarette butt from his mouth and used the tip of the glinting machete in his hand to point provocatively at the girl, who was backed into a corner with her back pressed against the cold brick wall.

"Keep running, you brat," he said, his voice raspy and mocking. "Weren't you scurrying pretty well just now? Why'd you stop?"

He looked her up and down, his gaze lingering for a moment on her chest, which rose and fell slightly from her rapid breathing, and her golden right eye, which shone startlingly bright even in the dim light. He grinned, revealing teeth yellowed by tobacco:

"Tsk, looking closely, you're not bad at all... How about it, girl?" His tone took on a nauseating stickiness. "Just put the stuff down and 'serve' us well. If you make us happy... maybe we'll forget about the Casino's debt. Otherwise..." He weighed the machete in his hand, the threat unmistakable.

"Pah! In your dreams!" The girl had a fierce personality, and her spit nearly hit the burly man's face.

Her eyes were as sharp as knives. Taking advantage of the moment he was slightly distracted by her reaction, she suddenly swung the heavy sack on her shoulder like a meteor hammer, using all her strength to swing it in a full circle in front of her!

"Ouch!"

"Argh!"

The sudden, heavy impact caused the two thugs blocking the way to cry out and stagger back, barely tearing open a gap.

The girl was like a slippery loach. Seizing this lightning-fast opportunity, she greased her feet and ducked low to slip out.

Rip—!

The crisp sound of tearing fabric was particularly jarring. A thug with faster reactions grabbed the corner of her clothes. The girl broke free with a burst of strength, and her thin garment tore, revealing a patch of skin on her shoulder and neck as white as cream, exceptionally eye-catching in the dim alley.

"Ooh! Quite slippery!" The thug licked his lips, the lewd light in his eyes growing even stronger.

"Sweet! I didn't expect such high-quality goods to be hidden in this dump!" Someone nearby joined in the jeering, their foul language never-ending.

"Sweet my ass!" The girl cursed back in shame and anger without looking back. Her feet didn't stop for a second as she desperately rushed toward the alley entrance.

Seeing the prey about to escape again, the scarred leader's grin vanished, replaced by a fierce look in his eyes.

He no longer hesitated and suddenly pulled a dark handgun from his waist, the muzzle steadily aimed at the girl's long, running legs.

"Tsk, a pity for these legs." His tone actually carried a hint of hypocritical regret. "But, losing your legs is for your own good. From now on, just stay peacefully in my Casino to 'receive guests'!"

The moment the words fell, he pulled the trigger.

Bang!

The ear-piercing gunshot tore through the noise of the alley!

The bullet whistled out with the breath of death, aiming straight for the back of the girl's knee!

The girl's Soul was Flying Away and Spirit Scattering as she instinctively twisted her body to change direction! The bullet grazed her pant leg and flew past, hitting the stone ground in front of her with a "thud," sending stone chips flying!

The massive shock of her narrow escape made her legs go weak, and she stumbled for several steps. Her heart pounded so hard it felt like it would jump out of her throat.

"I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die!" Fear gripped her. She didn't even dare to look back, desperately trying to move her feet, but her legs felt as heavy as lead.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Several more gunshots rang out in succession! The girl closed her eyes in despair.

However, the expected searing pain did not come.

"Hey, hey, hey! Who the hell are you? You dare stand in our way?!" The thugs' roars of shock and anger reached her ears.

The girl whipped her head around, her golden pupils shrinking to their limit as she looked behind her in disbelief—

She saw three yellow bullets eerily suspended in mid-air, barely half a foot from her back. It was as if they had hit an invisible, absolute wall; their kinetic energy was gone, and they spun futilely.

And between her and that group of ferocious thugs, at some point, the back of a man had appeared.

He stood there like a boundary stone that had appeared out of thin air, steadily cutting off the threat of death and the filthy pursuit on the other side.