Cooking in the Monster Sanctuary - Chapter 1 - Part 1

When Lin Yu arrived at the shelter for the first time, she didn’t cause any commotion. Like a raindrop falling into a pond, before a few ripples could spread, it silently dissolved into the water.

The elevator stopped on the second basement floor, and in front of her were three prominent bold characters: “???” (Living Area).

As the name implied, it was a place for the daily activities of supernatural beings with lower danger levels.

According to the map on her phone, this area surrounded various places like a mini-city circle, including a cinema, library, and gym, all centered around the central plaza.

Unexpectedly, this national institution was quite humane. She had initially thought that the shelter would be as dull as a prison.

The incandescent lights illuminated the snow-white walls, casting a cold light. There was little sign of activity in this building, and Lin Yu looked around until she finally spotted a figure in the corner.

It was a little boy with his back turned to her, hunched over and seemingly searching for something on the ground.

“Young boy, hello. May I ask…” She curiously approached, but her words were cut off.

—As she got closer, she could see the boy’s full appearance. He wasn’t tall, had a slender build, and wore a simple white shirt. Everything seemed normal except for the emptiness where his neck should have been.

The child had no head; instead, his neck was covered by seamlessly fitting skin. Though not bloody, it still had an eerie and unsettling level of creepiness.

This… headless knight? Zoro idol? Magical girl Baimi?

Her brain raced with overflowing information, but at the same time, a young, childish voice came from not far away: “Hey, newcomer, look here!”

She turned her gaze to where the voice came from and found a round object resembling a ball in the corner.

Upon closer inspection, it wasn’t a ball, but the boy’s head.

“It’s you! Help me put my head back on my neck!”

The head started talking again, its voice soft and mellow, but the tone was rather assertive.

After a brief moment of surprise, Lin Yu picked up the head as instructed.

His skin was delicate and soft, with a hint of baby fat. Pressing her fingertips against it felt like sinking into a fluffy cotton ball. However, it was quite chilly, reminiscent of cold jade in the midst of a sweltering summer day.

Inappropriately, Lin Yu thought that not only did a person’s head resemble the shape and size of a watermelon, but it also felt heavy when held, as if it were ripe.

If it were to break, the spilled blood should be similar to the mess of a broken watermelon, right?

Guess she’d have some watermelon juice when she got home from work today.

Unaware of the strange associations this unfamiliar woman was making, the boy furrowed his brows and asked, “Are you a new staff member here?”

Lin Yu placed the head back onto his neck, a smile tugging at her lips. “Yes, I am. My name is Lin Yu. What’s your name?”

As the head made contact with the severed part, they instantly fused together seamlessly. The boy lifted his hands, adjusting his head back into place.

It was only then that Lin Yu had a chance to observe his appearance more closely.

His skin was devoid of color, almost like white porcelain, nearly translucent under the incandescent light. The blue-grey veins resembled vines, visible throughout his arms. His lean facial features were clean and smooth, with slightly upturned phoenix eyes that had a captivating curvature. A delicate mole adorned the corner of his right eye.

This was a face of perfect flawlessness, so beautiful it almost seemed unreal.

His voice was also lifeless, carrying a hint of pride that kept people at a distance: “Ling Xi.”

“Ling Xi?”

She repeated the name, her tongue touching her lower teeth as she pronounced the syllables, her voice clear and crisp.

Finishing, she suddenly lowered her head as if remembering something, taking out a fist-sized paper bag from the canvas bag slung over her shoulder: 

“This is a gift for you as a token of our first meeting.”

The boy called “Ling Xi” gave her a cold glance, hesitated for a moment, and then reached out to accept it, slowly unwrapping the package.

“Puff pastry cream puffs, made by me.” Lin Yu blinked at him with anticipation. “The filling is black sugar pearls.”

Ling Xi didn’t say anything, lowered his long and dark eyelashes like raven feathers. He looked at the unfamiliar food in the paper bag.

Deep brown in color, round and chubby, with a fine layer of powder on the surface that reminded him of dirty clumps of soil.

The food at the shelter was always the same, three nutritious meals a day, and the ingredients and flavors had remained unchanged for years. As a result, most members were indifferent to food; as long as it filled their stomachs, everything was fine.

He wasn’t very interested, but for the first time, he acted out of kindness. He didn’t want to disappoint the eager newcomer in front of him, so he reluctantly brought the cream puff to his mouth.

The first thing to touch his tongue was the mild sweetness and creamy milk aroma of the original-flavored puff pastry, combined with the rich taste of cocoa powder and a faint bitterness that ignited his appetite in an instant.

As he chewed, the crispy and fragrant outer layer of the cookie broke between his teeth, and at the same time, the ice cream cream and black sugar pearls inside burst open.

The pearls were round and plump, bursting with elasticity and emitting a faint black sugar aroma, accompanied by a refreshing coolness as he bit into them.

The cream exuded a rich sweetness, with a smooth texture that melted in his mouth, and the cooling sensation of the ice cream dispelled the heat of the summer day.

Ling Xi paused for a moment and then began to chew faster.

The cocoa powder balanced the dominating aroma, making it sweet but not overwhelming. The crispy puff pastry particles were delightful to bite into, combining with the flavors of black sugar syrup and cream, as well as the subtle bitterness of cocoa, creating an explosion of flavor in his mouth.

He had never eaten anything with this kind of texture before. The creamy filling was soft and fluffy, like a light cloud, so delicious that he hesitated to swallow.

After a while, Lin Yu bent down and asked, “How is it?”

Ling Xi’s eyes flickered with surprise, his tongue still carrying the lingering taste. Without directly answering, he finally softened his tone: “Are you a chef?”

“You could say that…” Lin Yu smiled casually. “Other than cooking, I don’t think I have any other talents.”

Her words were quite in line with her demeanor. 

Lin Yu had a slender and tall figure, appearing to be less than twenty years old. Her amber eyes curved

slightly when she smiled, and a gentle and amiable temperament radiated from her.

However…