When Gustave and the others returned to Shin-chan's house, evening had already arrived, and Misae had returned from grocery shopping and was now busy preparing dinner.
Misae had used some of the premium prawns that Gustave's group had brought to create elegant sashimi, steamed the crabs to perfection, and combined the remaining shrimp with her purchased vegetables to make a delicious hot pot—naturally, her signature tomato-based version.
In addition to these seafood preparations, Misae had also visited what she considered the most authentic Chinese restaurant in the area and purchased a portion of Beijing roast duck.
Misae had truly put tremendous thought and effort into today's meal.
"You're all back! Just wait a moment—dinner will be ready very soon!" Misae called out cheerfully when she saw Gustave's group returning, poking her head out of the kitchen.
"It smells absolutely wonderful! What did you make, Mom?" Shin-chan immediately detected the delicious aromas upon entering and rushed toward the kitchen.
Following the enticing scent, Shin-chan spotted something bubbling energetically in the pot on the stove. He lifted the lid and discovered the tomato hot pot base that Misae had prepared.
Seeing Shin-chan's disappointed expression, Misae smiled secretly to herself. Fortunately, she'd chosen to make hot pot today. If she'd prepared other dishes, Shin-chan might have devoured them before anyone else arrived.
Not long afterward, the front door opened and Hiroshi returned home.
"Dad! Dad! Why did you come back so early today?" Shin-chan asked with confusion upon seeing his father.
"Haha, Gustave and the others are visiting today, so naturally I had to return early," Hiroshi explained. Knowing that Gustave's group was coming for dinner, he'd spoken with his boss and requested to leave work early—otherwise, he wouldn't have made it home in time for the meal.
"Hey, didn't Mr. Laozi come with you?" Hiroshi inquired after entering the house, noticing the absence of the Moral Lord's statue form.
"Oh, Master said he was going for a walk and would return in time for dinner," Gustave replied with an amused smile.
"But now it's almost dinner time—I hope Mr. Laozi didn't get lost," Hiroshi worried about the Moral Lord. In his opinion, it would be easy for an elderly man to become disoriented while walking alone in an unfamiliar city.
"Haha, no need for concern—I'm already back!" the Moral Lord's voice suddenly sounded from behind Hiroshi.
"When I went out today, I discovered a game in this world that was genuinely entertaining, so I played with a young man for quite some time. I didn't pay attention to the time, which is why I returned late," the Moral Lord explained.
"It's perfectly fine. Dinner isn't ready yet anyway," Hiroshi assured him that the meal hadn't officially begun, so the Moral Lord's return wasn't actually late.
"Master, what game were you playing?" Gustave asked. He hadn't been worried about the Moral Lord being late—with his abilities, no matter how far he traveled, it would only take a single step to return.
"I heard from that young man that the game's name was something like 'God of War 4,'" the Moral Lord recalled thoughtfully.
It turned out that when he'd departed that morning, the Moral Lord had quickly determined why time in this world revolved around Shin-chan as its central axis.
However, since the sun was still high in the sky and the Moral Lord realized he had abundant time available, he decided to explore this world further. While wandering, he encountered a young man playing games and shouting enthusiastically, "Behold! I, Kratos, shall destroy you!"
The Moral Lord observed for a while and found the game the boy was playing quite fascinating, so he asked if he could participate.
The young man looked at the Moral Lord with curiosity, thinking this person appeared like an immortal sage, yet unexpectedly showed interest in such entertainment. He simply decided to teach the Moral Lord how to play.
Surprisingly, the Moral Lord grasped the game mechanics faster than the boy had imagined, and his skills proved remarkably proficient. The boy invited the Moral Lord to continue gaming with him until the boy's mother arrived, grabbed his ear, and dragged him away.
"Master, I'd like to ask you for a favor," Gustave said with a knowing smile after hearing the Moral Lord's description.
"My disciple, I told you before that I won't assist you when you get into trouble," the Moral Lord replied. Having disabled his mind-reading abilities due to Gustave's protests, he now interpreted Gustave's expression as indicating some sort of predicament.
"Master, it's not trouble—it's actually something beneficial," Gustave said with a mischievous grin.
"What sort of beneficial thing?" the Moral Lord questioned, not believing anything particularly advantageous would come from his disciple.
"Master, when I went out today, I purchased a gaming console called PS5. I can play games without internet connection, but to access more content, I need the internet. So I was wondering if you could help Bamboo Staff Restaurant connect to the internet across dimensional boundaries?" Gustave explained.
The moment Gustave heard the Moral Lord mention playing "God of War 4," he recognized this as a perfect opportunity. He'd been struggling to find a reason to ask the Moral Lord for internet assistance, but unexpectedly, someone had delivered exactly what he needed. Who would have thought that the legendary Lord of Morality was an elderly internet gaming addict?
"That could be considered," the Moral Lord nodded thoughtfully.
"Master, in addition to this PS5, I'm also planning to purchase top-level racing simulators. Those are even more entertaining!" Gustave seized the opportunity to deploy his next persuasive weapon.
"Very well, I'll establish network connectivity for Bamboo Staff tonight when we return home," the Moral Lord agreed immediately upon hearing about even more interesting entertainment options.
Hiroshi stood to the side, completely stunned by the master-disciple conversation. Was this still the Taoist saint he remembered?
"Gustave, um, could I possibly visit and play when I have free time?" Hiroshi approached Gustave cautiously and asked quietly after recovering from his shock. Although he was already the father of two children, Hiroshi's interest in PS5 was no less than any young person's.
"Haha, absolutely!" Gustave smiled warmly while patting Hiroshi's shoulder. He understood perfectly the helplessness experienced by middle-aged men like Hiroshi.
However, since Hiroshi would be visiting, one PS5 would definitely prove insufficient. Gustave retrieved the phone number the Sony clerk had provided during the day and ordered two additional complete equipment sets.
After hanging up, the Sony clerk shouted with excitement. He'd known there would definitely be benefits to pleasing Gustave during their daytime interaction!
After returning from dinner at Shin-chan's house, Gustave cleared out five rooms—two on the fourth floor and three on the third floor. He designated the fourth floor for his personal use, while the third floor would naturally accommodate guests.
Gustave decided to purchase two racing simulators in addition to the three PS5 systems and establish a proper gaming center. If future guests showed interest in these gaming facilities, it could potentially generate additional income!
At Gustave's request, the Moral Lord constructed a network transfer center within Bamboo Staff's hull, from which network cables could be extended, officially bringing Bamboo Staff into the internet age.
The next day, Gustave couldn't wait to return to Shin-chan's world—first to receive the three PS5 systems, and second to purchase racing simulators.
According to the information on the business card, Gustave contacted the racing simulator vendor. After confirming the address, Gustave set out to examine the merchandise.
The Sony clerk hadn't misled Gustave at all. The racing simulators available here were truly top-tier equipment, featuring six-axis hydraulic lifting reaching heights of one meter and maximum acceleration simulation of one G-force. The racing simulation bucket seats and 4K curved screens provided a 270-degree field of view. Sitting in them felt identical to sitting in an actual racing car.
Beyond racing games, the simulators also supported flight games and much more.
Gustave immediately placed orders for two complete sets, spending a total of 28 million yen (approximately $189,000). With that price, he could have purchased a nice sports car.
However, sports cars couldn't be driven aboard Bamboo Staff, so Gustave chose the simulators instead.
As soon as the PS5 systems and simulators were installed, Gustave selected a racing simulator while the Moral Lord chose a PS5, and the two immediately occupied both gaming rooms on the fourth floor.
Luffy also wanted to play, but the third-floor gaming room only allocated him one and a half hours daily. Everything depended on how well Luffy performed each day—otherwise, he wouldn't receive even that modest time allowance.