"Zero, what's wrong?"
Sedna panicked. Freya ordered Jeremy to arrange for a doctor while Gaia poured healing magic into Zero, trying to identify the problem. Isis kept calm and observed the situation. Zero looked pale and weak. Also, there was a strange noise that occurred occasionally. Could it be?
"Jeremy! Forget the doctor. Get some food that's easy to swallow. Hurry up."
The butler looked confused but obeyed anyway. Freya looked at Isis as if she'd gone off her rockers. Gaia and Sedna didn't know what to think but helped Zero sit up to drink a glass of water.
After taking a sip, Zero took another and another until the glass was empty. He looked better but still felt weak.
"Zero, answer me honestly. Did you eat or absorb the food this afternoon and at the Mega Gourmet competition?"
The boy looked at Isis guiltily. The goddesses pursed their lips in silence.
"Why didn't you eat? Was the food not to your liking?"
Sedna was puzzled and concerned at the same time. Eating was something natural that even gods do it. Why did Zero refuse to eat to such an extent? Anything that has a physical body required sustenance. Although they came in different forms, they still consumed food to replenish their energy, plants included.
Reluctantly, Zero shared with them about his journey before he met Sedna. He'd seen the shellfish get dissolved in the bird's stomach and how Namekuji's secret move killed the bird. He'd seen so many things getting eaten and dying that Zero felt ill. He didn't want anything to end up in his stomach like how he'd ended up in the bird's stomach. It was horrible!
Listening to Zero's explanation, the goddesses understood. Then again, they had a question. Zero absorbed food that gave him energy points. Why wasn't that helping him?
Mii was unable to offer an explanation either. Isis had two theories and only En can help to confirm her hypothesis. One, the physical things Zero absorbed were converted into energy points and stored in the void so it wasn't used for Zero. Two, Zero's physical body is not linked to his absorption powers so it cannot be used. After all, the physical body was something created by Gaia and shaped by Buddha. Zero's soul resided in this physical container but it wasn't tied to it.
Jeremy and Jen came with food. This time, they brought cockatrice soup. It was nutritious and easy to swallow. Even old Grem Lee had come up, worried when he heard something had happened to Zero.
After much coaxing and proving that the cockatrice was really not going to eat his stomach from the inside, Zero took a sip of the soup. The warm liquid spread quickly from his throat to his stomach. The discomfort quickly eased with that single mouthful of soup. Unable to restrain any longer, Zero ate quickly, spilling soup all over but nobody mentioned anything.
All the time while he ate, he cried. Nobody said anything, only helping to pat Zero's back occasionally when he choked on something or passed him water when he needed it.
When Zero felt the discomfort disappear to be replaced by a sloshy feeling in his stomach, he stopped eating. Many thoughts and feeling passed through his mind. He finally understood what was hunger and fear. He also recognised that Sedna and the rest cared and concern about him although they had various reactions. For the first time, Zero felt loved and safe. When he ate, he forgot all about his worries and was grateful.
"Is this what being human is like? It's a wonderful thing to be cared for, loved and wanted," Zero thought. At that very moment, he made his decision. He didn't want anyone to suffer because suffering was an unpleasant experience. When he visited the humans, he wouldn't simply adventure. He would help any human who was suffering just like how the goddesses had helped him.