Chef in the Apocalypse

As the four made their way down the stairs towards the inner regions of the large tree, Jayce’s thoughts were preoccupied.

When he had first regressed back into the past, he thought that things would be a lot easier. Despite getting shafted with the Chef class, he was able to adapt smoothly, using his knowledge of the past to his advantage.

He thought that he knew the rules of the world and the steps to take in order to not only survive, but also flourish. Jayce had grand ambitions, not wanting the world to fall into the same situation that he had experienced in his past life.

Yet everything that had happened in this life had turned his knowledge of the world upside down. For starters, there was the appearance of Rubick and the supporters, along with the annual World Quest.

While it had been a surprise, he had been able to adjust easily enough. It was even a possibility that such a thing could have been present in his past life, just that he was too weak to become a supporter last time.

To this day he was still not aware of what the supporter rankings were based off. He had a few theories but as he began to meet the other high ranked supporters, they quickly proved him wrong.

His most recent theory was that the supporters were listed by how willing they were to save humanity and restore Earth to its previous state. However, meeting Agni and getting to know him over their week long trek to Delhi had thrown that theory out the window.

Not only was he a petty person, he also only cared for those who were close to him as well as possible benefits that he could receive. Deep down he hoped that Agni would change after meeting him, but Jayce knew that it was a long shot.

There was also the Beast Tide which had happened a couple of months earlier than usual, likely due to his early completion of the World Quest. While this sounded bad, it actually became a blessing in disguise, reducing the number of beasts by almost half.

It wasn’t until the appearance of the three beings that tore through the fabric of space that he finally felt out of his depths. The sheer power of these three was suffocating, giving him the impression that they could end his life at the snap of a finger.

Were it not due to some dumb luck, he and his party would have met their miserable end on that day.

This experience had truly subverted his understanding of the world. It also caused him to question things that he would have never before, like the existence and purpose of the system.

Perhaps it was because he had used the system for over 10 years, or perhaps he was just naive. Either way, he never questioned its origins before, merely using it to survive. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

Subconsciously this made him look for other ways to increase his strength, outside of the predestined set of rules that the system held. While the system gave one the possibility to grow stronger effectively, he was worried that it could be taken away one day.

If that were to happen, humanity would be nothing more than sitting ducks, easily conquered by anyone. Especially without access to the technology that they created over thousands of years.

All of these things led him to this point in time. Although he had been a little hasty, he was not too regretful at his current outcome. The fact that his theory about the Dryad’s possessing knowledge about Laws proved to be true, meant that he was on the right track.

Jayce could already tell the state of his body did not match up with the stats in his system window. Upon having his mana replaced with Inner Qi, his body had been transformed overnight, filling up with tremendous strength.

Yet when he checked his status window, his stats had remained the same despite his power up. Could the system not detect this kind of power? Or did it not include power that did not come directly from it?

He wasn’t too sure. But he was sure that even if he were to discard the system now, that majority of his strength would remain.

While Jayce was deep in thought, the others also seemed to have some things on their mind. Lianna held onto Leah’s hand who had a look of trepidation on her face. Although who could blame her? The last time she was here, her body was taken over by another being.

The flowers on some winding vines gave off a white luminescence which lit the path in front of them. As they continued on their ridiculously long descent down the stairs, they finally reached their destination.

As they stepped off the wooden staircase, a large field came into view with a shabby old cottage situated a few hundred meters in the distance. As soon as Leah laid her eyes on the cottage, she shivered subconsciously.

Meanwhile, Jayce looked around the place, looking for anywhere which could house a deposit of Mana stones. The field was lush and green with enchanting flowers that seemed to be dancing with the wind.

Wind? Jayce raised an eyebrow, how could their be wind this deep inside the large tree? Yet as he thought of this, another incomprehensible thing happened. Storm clouds suddenly appeared over the field, before it started raining heavily.

"What the hell is going on here?" he muttered.

The others were also perplexed, it did not make sense to see such a thing indoors. Yet there was a certain allure of what was transpiring in front of them.

Leah and Lianna both seemed to realize it at the same time, looking at each other first with shock but then followed by excitement.

Jayce also felt a hint of familiarity with this sensation, having an idea what could possibly be powering this ecosystem.

"The Law of Nature..."