Universe Infinite Canteen

Angie finished distributing the tickets and hastily left the restaurant with her two companions.

Previously, she had posted about the Universe Infinite Canteen on social media, and it even trended for a while, making the place a likely stakeout spot for obsessive fans and paparazzi, even after so much time had passed. Stay tuned for updates on My Virtual Library Empire

It was really a case of lifting a rock only to drop it on her own foot—she had wanted someone to witness the power of a top idol, but it resulted in her unable to dine there normally anymore.

Once they were back in the car, the three of them took off their masks, and one with Slavic features said,

"Hmm... she looks okay, but just okay by ordinary standards, not nearly as handsome as that French model Muller who chased after you before."

"There's also Emperor Yang, who might be a bit older, but as a mature man, he possesses a charisma that those fresh-faced boys lack," another girl with a bit of baby fat, who looked naive, chimed in.

"Bai Shu is not too bad either; he can compose and write lyrics, a well-known talent in the music industry. If you were with him, we could also snag some new songs for free."

"Ha, you're blowing it out of proportion. If you think it's that great, go for it yourself. I'm not interested in anyone from the industry." Angie took out a fashion magazine and started flipping through it.

"True, relationships in the entertainment world are complicated, and with everyone constantly traveling for work, you hardly meet a few times a year, making breakups and affairs almost inevitable," the girl with baby fat agreed, nodding.

"Even so, if you're looking outside the industry, there surely must be better choices. Why go for a small restaurant's owner?

"Hmm, I'm not looking down on ordinary people, but are you sure he can handle the pressure? Whether it's from the media or the fans... they'll scrutinize him under a magnifying glass."

"It's highly likely he'll even receive death threats," the Slavic-mixed girl interjected.

"You're overthinking it, we're just friends at this stage," Angie paused briefly, then added, "And, he's not just any ordinary restaurant owner."

"Oh? What is he then, a hidden super-rich heir about to embark on real-world training? Heir to a super-family, or perhaps a young master of some mysterious hidden organization?" Eyes sparkling, the girl with baby fat inquired eagerly.

"Xiaoxia, you should really cut down on the Mary Sue literature," the Slavic-mixed girl said, covering her face, "There aren't so many fairy tales in the real world, right, Xiaoqiqi?"

Angie's gaze flickered for a moment, but then she agreed, "Exactly, I couldn't agree more."

...

After seeing off Angie and her party, Ma Lu casually tucked the four tickets into a drawer, then arranged for He Xiaoqian to help train a newcomer, giving her a thousand-yuan bonus as an incentive.

However, in reality, He Xiaoqian hardly taught anything, because Ma Youyou was quick on the uptake, whether it was taking orders, serving dishes, settling the bill, or cleaning up.

More importantly, she could replace Ma Lu in the kitchen fetching dishes, allowing him to further free his hands to focus on typical owner activities like fiddling with his phone and playing games.

Ma Lu even wondered if Ma Youyou had previously worked in the restaurant and gained experience, then used her abilities to travel back in time for this job application.

But then he thought, no one would want to work the same job twice just for the paycheck.

Regardless, Ma Youyou's arrival indeed helped Ma Lu a lot, alleviating the staff shortage in the restaurant.

After closing for the day, Ma Lu even drove Ma Youyou to a nearby shopping mall to buy some new clothes and daily necessities.

He also bought a pillow for himself, having switched his mattress to latex recently, which eased his back considerably but started giving him neck pains.

So, he planned to replace his old buckwheat pillow, which he had purchased for thirty yuan. Ma Lu tried pillows from several stores and finally decided on Yadao's.

Just as he was about to pay, Ma Youyou, who had finished picking out pajamas and socks, came over.

Glancing at the pillow in Ma Lu's hands, she said, "Temple's would suit you better."

"Really? How do you know that?"

"Uh... because Temple's pillows are more expensive and befit a boss like you if I'm not mistaken. There's a store just around the corner."

"You make sense...

Ma Lu thought about the savings in his bank account, decisively put down the Yadao pillow, and followed Ma Youyou around the corner to buy a Temple instead.

Indeed, these pillows were more expensive, costing eight hundred yuan each, twice the price of Yadao's. However, they didn't look much different.

Yet, Ma Lu ultimately decided to trust Ma Youyou, and while he was paying, another question came to mind.

"You mentioned before that your brother wants to meet Nenrei Rina, but you also said you're not from this world, which means your plane and my plane both have a Nenrei Rina?

"Also, you seemed very familiar with this mall just now. Have you been here before?"

"Well... this question might be a bit complex to explain," Ma Youyou said. "I have mentioned that my situation is somewhat similar to Wandering Sorceress Sister and Boss Yan, but it's not exactly the same.

"Unlike them, pure outsiders, I'm actually a local."

"Wow, could you say that again? I didn't quite get it." Ma Lu, holding the newly-purchased pillow, frowned.

"Okay, you know that beyond our plane, there are many other planes, which together form the Multiverse, where characters like Wandering Sorceress Sister and Boss Yan come from other planes.

"But the timing in these planes is the same. In the Grand Alliance, you can spend some time on a plane spaceship, travelling from one plane to another just as conveniently as taking a bus.

"When you spend three or four days taking care of business on another plane and return to your original plane, you'll find that the same amount of time has passed."

"Mmm." Ma Lu nodded. "I understand that. I use Bug Egg to travel to other planes to collect ingredients. However long I stay there, the same amount of time passes here."

"Bingo! But time travel is completely different. Do you remember the analogy I used before? Time isn't a straight line, but a tangled furball."

"Moreover, this furball actually has many ends that can extend infinitely. Every minute random event can sprout a new thread.

"That's also why travelling to the future is so difficult because it's hard to determine which thread you're looking for, while travelling to the past is relatively easier since you can trace your way back along the thread.

"Of course, this is only for time travelers. If you never engage in time travel, then time for you is a one-way straight line, plain and simple."