You are Summoned

Chapter 291. Taste the Difference.

I tried to remember what other summoning links I had out there. There was the one with Fitzfazzle, which this was obviously not part of. I also had one with Sharnlynn, but that ended when she passed away. The system prompt detailing the summoning session triggered a memory of where I was going.

Your summoning parameters are as follows:

You are being summoned by the mage Abbasa.

Summoning tier, 2.

Summoning rank, 4.

Rewards level, moderate.

This summons is for the purpose of non-combat related support. Prepare accordingly.

Forced compliance is active.

Your armory loadout has been equipped.

I stepped through the portal and into a large, and very busy, kitchen. The summoner link led to a man dressed as a butler. It was the mage Abbasa who I’d worked with before as a taste tester. Another summoning spent eating amazing dishes was just what the doctor ordered.

“Welcome back summoned being. I take it you remember the procedures from you prior summoning?” Abbasa asked.

“Yes, do you need minions to assist with the tasting again?” I asked, remembering that adding my minions had helped to bump my rating up at the end.

“Absolutely, everyone is needed tonight. You’ll be tasting back here in the kitchens this evening, as this event is one where only the best of the best servants should be visible to our guests. Please summon your minions and we’ll see what we’re working with tonight,” Abbasa said.

I summoned my team but held off on the drone. It couldn’t exactly taste anything, and toxins would have no effect on it. With the trio of goblins, Elida, Khurr, and Blieek, we had plenty of tasters to work with. Abbasa looked over everyone, stopping by Khurr for a moment longer than the others.

“A suitable group, all have similar dietary requirements to our guests, save for the gnoll. You may dismiss him or keep him here, as you please. Just make sure he’s not in the way of the staff. Please join me over here, we’ll be serving the first courses shortly,” Abbasa explained.

I kept Khurr with us. This wasn’t the most dangerous summoning, but having someone watch our backs while we focused on tasting wasn’t a bad idea. If the kitchen wasn’t so busy and chaotic, I’d have summoned the drone as well, but he would have definitely been in the way. I did wonder what it was about the gnoll that made him unsuitable for tasting. Maybe they had a higher natural tolerance for tainted food or something.

Abbasa led us to a long side table near the entrance to the dining hall. He explained that the servers would bring each dish by for one of us to taste. A pile of spoons, forks, and napkins were already arranged there for us. We would take a tiny taste of each dish, and the dining staff would hide our efforts as they finished plating the dish.

“As I did before, I need to enhance your vulnerability to toxins and diseases. Should there be a danger in the food, we need to know immediately. Please do not resist the next two spells that are cast on you and your minions,” Abbasa explained. This was the same as before, though it was always a bit unsettling to have myself willingly accept a vulnerability.

A spell, Amplify Toxin, has been cast upon you. All toxins introduced into your body for the next hour will have their effects accelerated and amplified by 1000%.

A spell, Amplify Disease, has been cast upon you. All diseases introduced into your body for the next hour will have their effects accelerated and amplified by 1000%.

I ordered my minions not to resist as Abbasa started with me and worked his way down the line of minions, casting the same two spells. Over the course of my adventures, I’d developed a resistance to toxins, but bumping the power of them by 1000% was sure to overcome my minor resistance.

The idea was, we would keel over almost immediately if someone poisoned the food. Using summoned beings for this kind of thing seemed a bit more humane than having living servants do it, so I had to applaud the king, Abbasa, or whoever came up with this plan for looking out for their people.

A pair of servants, one on each end of the table, were there if we had any questions, or needed a resupply on utensils, napkins, or whatever. It didn’t take long before the first few dishes arrived. The first one was a consume that tasted a bit like miso to me. It was a simple way to start the long line of dishes that I could see starting to come out of the kitchen.

While we worked, Abbasa kept an eye on us, leaving occasionally to check in on the main dining hall. We were the riffraff kept away from the guests, but Abbasa must have been a trusted servant at this point. Every few minutes, another dish arrived. Each taste was only a small one, but I was enjoying the experience.

Occasionally, Abbasa would enter and taste a few dishes, not for concern over poisoning, but to make sure that what the kitchen was producing was up to standard. More than once, he sent a dish back, along with an admonishment for the chef that produced it. For the most part, the feast passed muster with Abbasa, and even the things he sent back seemed fine to my unrefined palate.

Most of the ingredients looked similar but didn’t taste quite the same as what I’d eaten on Earth. Some of the flavors were completely new, and I wondered if it was due to some spice they had in this world, or if there was magic in the chef’s preparation of the dish. A few dishes were various seafood items, which was not my favorite. It didn’t matter what my preferences were, we just had to take a small taste.

About an hour passed, and Abbasa renewed the spells on my group. I wondered how much the guests inside the dining hall were going to eat. Desserts were just starting to arrive, and despite only taking a small bite of each thing, my stomach was starting to rumble, and I was concerned that I was at my limit. Looking down the line of minions, everyone seemed to be feeling the same way, save for Khurr, who whined a bit like a dog as the dishes passed him by.

One of the servants, feeling sorry for Khurr, brought him a bowl of a stew that had been served earlier. It was a hearty affair, with chunks of pork and potato in a thick gravy. Khurr seemed to enjoy it, scarfing down the entire bowl and licking his chops afterward. It was odd, my minions didn’t need to eat, but for some reason, Khurr had developed an appetite tonight.

Maybe the smell of the food was enchanted to stimulate hunger. If that were possible, chef-mages were going to be in high demand after the integration. With a shudder, I feared what the fast-food restaurants would do with this kind of magic. The last thing my world needed was a horde of people that couldn’t stop eating Taco Bell for hours on end.

“We are nearing the final courses, and I wanted to thank you in advance. You’ve performed your task expeditiously and without any trouble, despite the rather eclectic nature of your group,” Abbasa said.

After the third desert, a pudding with berries mixed in that reminded me of cheesecake, I hit the wall. My stomach was growling as pain began to build inside of it, becoming too much for me to ignore. Elida and the goblins also seemed to be feeling it, and Abbasa looked at us with concern.

“What seems to be the problem?” Abbasa asked, casting a spell on us.

The mage Abbasa has cast Identify Ailment.

“My stomach is hurting, I don’t know if it was anything in the food, or just because of how much I’d eaten,” I explained.

Abbasa motioned for the servants that had been assisting us to bring chairs over for me and the others to sit on. Sitting was easier than standing, but it didn’t stop the pain roiling in my gut. Out in the dining hall, a commotion was heard and cries for help were shouted out.

“It seems to be working. You have my apologies, summoned being, for the pain you’ll soon experience. We are in the midst of a regime change tonight, and the oppressors needed to be eliminated. Unfortunately, I am bound by a geas to protect my king from any toxins and disease that might be introduced to his food and drink. The geas was very specific, and his majesty felt very secure that it held me in check,” Abbasa said. He stopped suddenly and muttered a spell casing a flaming spear that impaled poor Khurr, turning him into mana vapor.

“What did you do?” I asked, curious despite the growing pain.

“Why, exactly what my geas required. I summoned you and others to taste each dish and make sure there were not poisons, toxins, or diseases. What the fool of king didn’t realize was that his geas had nothing to prevent me from incorporating a parasite into the meal tonight. It had taken me years to arrange to have all the powers of the land in one place, for one meal together.

“Now, I shall ascend to the throne and rule this land as it was meant to be ruled!” Abbasa shouted, which caused the kitchen staff to cheer.

“I don’t suppose you can stop whatever is happening to me,” I said. It felt like something was tearing its way through my digestive system.

“There is no cure, but I can ease your passing if you wish,” Abbasa said, pointing toward where Khurr had been standing.

“Yeah, I’d rather not stay here until the summoning ends, or the parasites do me in,” I replied. Getting impaled by a flaming spear was preferable to having my guts eaten away by worms or whatever was inside me now.

“As you wish, and again, thank you for your service this evening,” Abbasa said, conjuring another spear that he threw straight at my face.

You have killed by the Flaming Spear spell.

Your performance rating is calculated as Excellent.

Your rewards will reflect the summoning tier of 2, rank 4, and your performance rating of Excellent.

You have earned 29 experience points.

You have earned 47 summoning points.

Congratulations! You have reached Tier 2, Rank 5.

You have gained 1 point in Mind.

You have gained 1 point in Constitution.

You have gained 1 point in Presence.

You will now be returned to your personal space.