Ludwig rolled his shoulders once and stepped into the kitchen.
The space greeted him in an instant. Prep tables cleared and wiped down. Knives hung where they should be, metal catching the morning light spilling in through the narrow window above the sink. Copper pans rested on their hooks, unmoving. The air still held the faint memory of last night that was already fading into something neutral.
Checkpoint hummed beneath his awareness, content to let the kitchen belong to him for now.
He washed his hands, fingers brushing over scars that no longer needed acknowledgement. When he reached into his Storage Dimension, what came out of it was the fish he had brought two days ago. Yet, its scale was still showing a sheen of rainbow, eyes still clear, and mana still trying to escape from it.
He took the first one and laid it flat, gripping the tail firmly. A knife appeared in his other hand, then it rasped softly as it moved from tail to head. Scales came loose in thin, shimmering sheets, tapping against the board before he swept them aside into a waiting bin.
He worked methodically, turning the body just enough to catch what the light revealed and what it didn't. Behind the gills. Along the belly seam. Near the fins where people always missed a spot.
Clean meant clean.
When he was satisfied, he rinsed the fish under cold water, thumbs pressing lightly along the skin to make sure nothing clung where it shouldn't. Clear eyes. Firm flesh. No smell beyond salt and sea. He patted it dry and set it on a tray lined with cloth.
Then the next.
And the next.
No shortcuts nor variation. Each fish got the same care and the same amount of care. By the third one, his movements had settled into that quiet rhythm he trusted, the kind that didn't require thought anymore.
He wiped down the board and switched tools, another knife flashing briefly as he trimmed fins and cleaned cavities, removing anything that didn't belong on a plate. Everything useful went one way. Everything not went another. Organization wasn't about neatness. It was about not having to think later when thinking would cost time.
Butter softened nearby, exactly where he left it. Vegetables waited, uncut, patient. The kitchen remained still, letting him take the lead.
Once the last fish was done, he washed his hands again and changed the water in the sink, scrubbing it clean of stray scales before drying the surface with a cloth. A habit ingrained in him.
He checked the fish one more time, rearranging them so air could move freely between each piece. Nothing stacked. Nothing crowded. He covered the tray and slid it into the Stasis Storage.
"Good." He muttered.
The rest could wait.
Ludwig turned back to the prep table, rolled his shoulders once more, and reached for the vegetables.
However, the restaurant hummed again just before he could start. At first, he thought Claire was coming back from her duty of dropping Cless at her new school. But the hum was different. It whispered the arrival of several people in front of the door. Not one was someone who had come to the restaurant before.
Ludwig hand stopped, his body turned toward where he normally stood and walked there. If it's before, he would be taken aback by the sudden appearance of a new customer. Like back when Claire suddenly walked into the restaurant at his very first day having this place.
But now… He was ready. Moreover, it'd also been quite a long time since he introduced the restaurant by himself. Well, Professor Oak from last night was the first from a long while, but he had his trusted employee by his side.
So he was quite looking forward to it.
When the bell chimed, another sound quickly filled the restaurant.
"Dad, this place didn't look abandone–"
A girl with soft brown hair falling down to her back walked in. Behind her, another girl with a bob cut and a dress walked in.
The two froze when he saw him. Why? Ludwig didn't know. Most of the time new customers froze only when they saw the demon employees of his, never him.
Before long, two more people crossed the boundary. It was a man with white shirt and a little girl dressed in a frilly dress. The man fixed his glass on his face, then once again looked at Ludwig.
Deciding enough was enough, Ludwig opened his mouth. "Welcome to Checkpoint. Can I help you with anything?"
The silence stretched even after Ludwig said the usual greeting of the restaurant. But then, it exploded.
"Holy! A human! We are not alone!"
"H-how?"
"Hahahahahaha."
The four walked closer and closer towards the bar as they converse. Since Ludwig could only glimpse a little bit of context from their conversation, he decided to look at their world through the wall.
What he saw was a city. Or what used to be one.
Concrete was choked by green. Roads split open by roots that had called the place home now. Subway entrances filled with clear water, algae clinging to tiled walls where advertisements already peeled. In the palace where buildings stood, no lights burned within them. There was also no noise from the hecticness of modern lifestyles. There's only the sound of wind, birds, the distant echo of animals reclaiming places humans used to live.
So, judging from their words and what he saw beyond the wall, they came from Modern Earth where the world had returned to its default settings.
He straightened as the group reached the bar. Four pairs of eyes locked onto him now like he was an anchor dropped into open water.
The brown-haired girl—the first one—was the quickest to recover. She swallowed and spoke first. "S-sorry. We didn't mean to yell. We just—" She cut herself off, then tried again. "I'm Tsumugi."
The girl with the bob cut gave a stiff nod. "Momo."
The smaller girl clutched the man's sleeve, peeking out with wide eyes. "…Rin."
The man exhaled slowly and bowed his head just a fraction. "I'm their father… You can call me Aoki."
"Nice to meet you," Ludwig replied evenly. His tone was gentle, practiced, the same one he used when people walked in with more fear than hunger. "First thing first, I'll tell you about this restaurant."
Ludwig looked at each of his new customers. When he saw no objection in their face, he continued.
Ludwig rested his hands on the counter, fingers relaxed, posture open.
"Alright." He said calmly. "Short version first."
He glanced at the door, then back at them. "This place is called Checkpoint. It's a restaurant. You can eat here, rest here, and—most importantly—you can leave."
Aoki frowned slightly. "Leave? How can that not be on the table when we enter a restaurant?"
Ludwig chuckled at his response. A valid one, a wrong choice of words from him. "I mean, to another world. A world that… Well… Different from yours."
That took their attention more than his previous information. Their eyes went wide, shock and surprise was on their eyes. However, one particular girl had another emotion in her eyes. It was a curiosity.
"S-so… Another world? Like a magical world? Like Isekai?" The girl who introduced herself as Tsumugi before asked.
"Yes, that kind of stuff you only read in fantasy worlds." Ludwig chuckled. "I would be as shocked as you right now if I didn't experience it first hand."
Tsumugi cocked her head to the side before asking again. "What do you mean?"
"Well," Ludwig started. "It's going to be a ride for people from Earth like you guys. So I suggest you order some drinks first before we start. I can't offer any food for now since it's not our time to open yet, I apologize for that."
"Drinks are fine," Aoki said. "What do you have?"
Ludwig looked at the only grown up in the family before answering. "Simple options this morning. Water. Lemonade, a leftover from yesterday but still good. And… dwarven ale."
Momo's face scrunched up at the mention. "Dwarven?"
Tsumugi's eyes lit up immediately. "Wait. Like fantasy dwarves?"
"Yes." Ludwig said easily.
"…They make alcohol?"
"They're very good at it."
Aoki pinched the bridge of his nose. "Of course they are."
Rin tugged on his sleeve. "Papa. Lemon one."
Aoki looked down at her, then sighed. "Lemonade for the kids. Water for me." He hesitated, then added, "Please."
"Good choices." Ludwig said, already moving.
He reached for clean glasses. Water first. Then the lemonade, pale yellow and still bright. One glass slightly less full than the others.
He set them down in front of them.
Rin took hers with both hands and drank immediately. Her eyes widened.
"…Sweet." She said.
Momo followed, nodding once after a sip. "This is normal."
"That's the idea." Ludwig replied.
Aoki drank his water more slowly. Not desperate. Not rushed. Just thoughtful. "Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Tsumugi took a sip last, then leaned back slightly, studying the room again. Her eyes were sharp, not frightened so much as overwhelmed by context.
Ludwig slipped into his thoughts when he saw their reaction. No overreacting about simple drinks, no sign of malnourishment. No shoulders relaxing like someone who finally found a shelter after a deadly storm.
So in other words, they were surviving just fine in the world that seemed abandoned.
It reminded him of Akane a little.
"So." Tsumugi said carefully, "Can you start?"
Momo shot her a look. "Tsumugi!"
"What? We have ordered our drinks. Now, we need an answer."
Ludwig met Tsumugi's gaze, then let his eyes pass over the rest of them. He then rested both of his palms on the counter again, grounding himself in the familiar texture of worn wood.
"My name is Ludwig. I run this place." He gestured lightly around them. "I cook. I listen. I decide who can leave, where they can go, and when."
Aoki stiffened at that, just a fraction.
"I'm not a god, mind you." Ludwig added calmly. "I'm not a king. I don't own worlds, and I don't take people without consent. Checkpoint exist because… let's just say the restaurant decides which world can connect to the door. I don't know the criteria, so don't ask."
Tsumugi leaned forward, elbows on the counter. "So you're… like a gatekeeper?"
"Closer to a host." Ludwig replied. "You come in as guests. You leave as yourselves. That part doesn't change."
Momo narrowed her eyes. "And before this? Before the restaurant?"
Ludwig didn't dodge that. "I came from Earth. Same as you."
That landed harder than anything magical could have.
Aoki looked up sharply. "You're saying you came from our world."
"Yes. But not entirely."
"Can you elaborate?"
Ludwig nodded. "So, do you know anything about Parallel World theory?"
At the mention, Aoki and Tsumugi nodded, probably already knowing about what he would explain next. But for Momo, she just looked confused.
"What is Parallel World theory?"
"Parallel World theory." Ludwig continued, "An idea about there isn't just one Earth but many. Same baseline reality, same physics, same history up to a point, but small differences stack up over time."
He raised one finger. "In one world, you turn left instead of right."
A second finger. "In another, a war doesn't happen. Or it lasts longer."
A third. "And in some, the divergence is so big you stop recognizing it as your Earth. But it's still Earth at the root."
Momo frowned. "Like… alternate timelines?"
"Close enough." Ludwig said. "Think of them as siblings. Similar faces. Different lives."
Aoki folded his arms, thinking. "And you're saying… you're not from our Earth, but an Earth regardless."
"Exactly." Ludwig replied. "However, rather than coming here straight from Earth like you guys, I died there and reincarnated in the world with magic. This place is a restaurant I owned after working for quite a long time."
A silence settled over the bar.
Not the explosive kind. The kind that made people breathe a little slower while their thoughts tried to catch up.
"…You died?" Momo asked quietly.
Ludwig nodded once. No drama. No weight added. "Yes."
Rin looked up from her lemonade. "…Like sleeping?"
"Not like sleeping." Ludwig replied gently. "More like… finishing one anime and being handed another you didn't know existed."
Tsumugi swallowed, eyes shining. "So reincarnation is real."
"In some worlds." Ludwig said. "In some ways."
Aoki exhaled and leaned back slightly on his stool, one hand rubbing at his temple. "And after that… you built this place."
"Not immediately." Ludwig corrected. "I worked. Fought. Cooked. Learned. Lost people. Met others. Eventually, the restaurant happened."
"And now," Tsumugi said slowly, "This place connects worlds. Including ours."
"Yes."
Another pause. But this time, it's longer.
Aoki looked at his daughters. Then he asked.
"Why tell us all this?"
"Because trust has to start somewhere." He said with a smile. "And because abandoned Earth like yours is a treasure trove for cooking ingredients."
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