HoloPirates: A Tale of Adventure

Goulash Eating Contest

Noel raced ahead of us, pushing past everyone as her armor clanked, the noise reverberating off of the walls of the tavern. She ran up to the head of the event, which was this gigantic, barrel-shaped guy with bulging muscles and an impressive build, and he turned as Noel ran up to him, talking her head off about joining the event. We couldn't hear most of what they were saying, but the guy listened to what Noel was saying, then nodded and gestured to the only empty seat, which was at the end of the table, each seat filled with muscular men and women, ready to compete. Noel pranced over to the seat, with a huge smile on her face, then took the empty seat and waited for the event to start.
"Alrighty lads and lasses!" The head of the tavern yelled. "We got a Goulash Contest today. The one who eats the most will get drinks and food on the house, along with either the installation of a Diving Bell, or a large sum of riches."
The crowd made a bunch of ooos and ahhhs, and I turned to Marine.
"What's a Diving Bell?"
"Its a contraption that allows for deep sea diving, particularly for wrecks or treasure." She answered. "I've used them before. They're actually really useful."
I turned to Noel, then mouthed the words "You got this!" To her. She smiled, then looked back at the head of the tavern, who raised his hands and clapped.
"Let the contest begin!"
Everyone, including us, roared in the tavern, and seven guys came over with huge bowls of Goulash, probably having close to a gallon of Goulash each, and they set them down in front of the contestants.
"YOU GOT THIS NOEL!!!!!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.
She pounded the table with her fists in excitement as the stewards brought in glasses of rum and beer, along with freshly baked bread to go with the Goulash.
"Alright! Ready, set, EAT!!!"
All of them dug in, with the crowd screaming to get the reward that everyone wanted, and that sent the contestants into an absolute frenzy, stuffing their faces with Goulash, bread and beer. Noel was just scooping the goulash with the spoon, scarfing the bread right after the bite and washing the remainder of it down with the beer, likely getting thoroughly wasted while she was drinking. We all screamed and cheered, trying to push Noel to win, but it was starting to get close. Two of the contestants were out at this point, and three more of them were slowing down, rapidly approaching the capacity that their stomachs could hold. But, Noel and one of the contestants, a man that was almost twice the size of her, were neck and neck, trying to finish the goulash and bread before the other one could get the leg up.
"COME ON NOEL!!!!" Marine yelled from my left. "KICK HIS ASS!!!!"
She looked extra determined as she shoveled more and more of the Goulash into her mouth, followed by more bread and more beer, all of it somehow disappearing into the seemingly bottomless pit that was her stomach.
"YOU GOT THIS!!!!" I hollered, trying to push my voice above the others in the tavern that were screaming for their own crew to win.
Finally, after a long while of eating, Noel's final rival tapped out, still having quite a bit left to eat in the bowl. But, the contest wasn't finished. She had to eat the last of the goulash and bread, and drink the last of the beer that was still in front of her. Thankfully, she just was not stopping, refusing to give up or give in. She kept going, shoveling the goulash and bread into her mouth, and finally, as she finished the last of the goulash and bread, she grabbed the beer and began to chug, letting the drink wash all of the food down her throat and into her gut.
"COME ON!!!! COME ON!!!!" All of us yelled.
It wasn't just me, Marine and Amelia yelling anymore, it was everyone else in the tavern, having lost the competitive edge and just wanting to see some fun. As I was watching, Noel kept lifting the mug higher and higher, spilling more and more beer into her mouth, some of it leaking around the rim of the glass and trailing down her face and neck. Finally, she slammed the beer mug down on the table, and she looked down at the table, not saying a single word, which caused the screaming of the crowd to die down.
"Noel?" I said, breaking the silence of the tavern.
No answer. She kept her eyes on the table, and the other contestants looked at her, with the woman closest to her trying to get her attention. Finally, Noel lifted her head slowly, and she locked eyes with me, before letting out the biggest, nastiest, and wettest belch that I had ever heard.
"BLEEEAUUUUUGGGHHHH!!!" She burped, sounding like the burp was tearing her throat open.
The moment it was over, she coughed, then stood up from the table and pumped both fists in the air, earning a roar from the crowd.
"WE HAVE A WINNER!!!!!" The head of the tavern yelled. "Drinks and food for your party on the house!"
Noel ran back over to us, and all three of us caught her in a hug, proud of the moment, and she pulled back, a huge goofy grin on her face.
"Alright, lets get a seat." She said. "Y'all must be starving."