Looking at the rabbit meat that Elent had cleaned so thoroughly, and the huge Carrot lying beside it, images from gourmet videos automatically surfaced in Celia’s mind.
Braised, stir-fried, stewed in soup—there were all sorts of ways to cook it, each looking incredibly appetizing.
In her previous life, she’d lived twenty-four years sustained almost entirely on takeout and convenience store meals.
She could count on one hand the number of times she’d stepped into a Kitchen.
Still, that hadn’t stopped Celia from absorbing the essence of the eight great cuisines through her screen.
Her theoretical knowledge was solid; all that was left was practice.
It’s just cooking, right? Prep the ingredients, add the seasonings, heat it up, and you’re done. It looked easy enough.
Celia strode confidently into the Kitchen.
“Today, I’ll show you what true skill is!”
Then, she fell silent as she looked at the stove built out of stone and bricks.
Damn!
She’d forgotten this was another world. No natural gas, no induction cooktop, not even a lighter.
How was she supposed to light a fire? Rubbing sticks together? That was for cavemen. Flint and steel? She didn’t even know what that looked like.
She couldn’t just recite a spell at the firewood, could she?
Wait, a spell?
Celia’s mind shifted gears.
Sanctuary of Light probably wouldn’t work—that was for healing and purification. But then again, Magic System wasn’t limited to Sanctuary of Light.
The Doctrine mentioned that of all the Worldly Elements that made up the world, the Fire Element was the most unstable.
A bold idea popped into her head.
Celia grabbed a dry stick from the corner and stuffed it into the stove.
Imitating the gesture of a mage from her memories, she pointed her hand at the pile of wood and focused.
“Let’s have a Fireball.”
As soon as she finished speaking, a small cluster of orange-red flames burst from her fingertips and leapt into the stove.
Boom.
The dry wood ignited instantly, blazing flames licking the inner walls of the stove. The whole Kitchen’s temperature went up a bit.
It worked.
Was it really that simple? Celia even wondered if she’d chosen the wrong talent. Why be a Priestess—wouldn’t being a mage be more promising?
With the hardest technical problem out of the way, the next steps followed naturally.
Celia recalled the steps from those videos: first, chop up the massive Carrot and the rabbit meat into chunks and toss them into a big pot, filling it with water.
The first step was blanching—to remove any gamey taste and impurities.
She put the lid on and left them to simmer, then started preparing the seasonings.
On the shelf in the Kitchen sat over a dozen clay jars, each filled with different colored and shaped ingredients.
What’s this? It had a pungent smell, a bit like some kind of herb. She didn’t know what it was, but figured it would add flavor. In it went.
And this? Dark brown grains, with a strange aroma. Maybe a spice? She didn’t know it either, but tossed it in.
The food bloggers always said to add “just enough sugar to enhance the flavor.”
But how much was that? Celia hefted the sugar jar and, trusting her gut, dumped in a big spoonful.
A little salt. How much is a little? She grabbed a pinch, felt it might not be enough, and added another.
After a round of chaotic flailing, by the time the water was boiling, Celia had mixed together every edible-looking thing she could find on the stove.
Who knew cooking was this simple? Celia looked at the pot full of ingredients and seasonings, feeling a surge of accomplishment.
She scooped out the blanched Carrot and rabbit meat, and together with the colorful “secret sauce,” dumped it all into another stew pot.
“Heh heh.” Celia wiped her hands and strode out of the Kitchen to announce to the two waiting outside, “Dinner’s ready! Just let it stew a bit more and we can eat!”
……
Night fell, and candles were lit in the Church’s Restaurant.
When Celia confidently brought the stew pot to the table, the anticipation on Elent and Lynn’s faces froze.
Inside the pot, a viscous, indescribably colored liquid bubbled like swamp sludge, emitting strange purple bubbles.
A few ghastly white chunks of rabbit meat and half-melted Carrot floated within, exuding a magical aroma that mingled herbs, spices, sweetness, and saltiness.
Was this really edible?
Rather than a dish, it looked more like a witch’s poison brew.
“Eh?”
Celia was stunned, too. This didn’t look at all like she’d imagined. The braised rabbit in those videos never looked like this!
“No problem, appearance isn’t important—the taste will be fine.” Celia stubbornly defended herself, ladling out a spoonful and passing it to Lynn.
“Lynn, you try it first.”
“Why me?”
“Just try it when I tell you!” Celia forced the spoon to her lips.
Lynn looked like she was about to cry, but trusting Celia, she took a tiny sip.
Then…
Lynn’s body went rigid and she collapsed.
“Lynn?!”
Celia panicked and immediately cast a healing spell on Lynn.
As the light faded, Lynn slowly regained consciousness.
“Lady Celia,” Lynn asked weakly, “do you really know how to cook?”
“O-of course I do…” Celia avoided her eyes, her voice getting smaller and smaller, her confidence vanishing completely.
Elent stepped forward, dipped his finger into the “poison” and touched it to his tongue. His brows furrowed at first, then relaxed. He said,
“The idea was bold, but this herb’s taste is way too strong. Still, it’s not beyond saving. Leave it to me—wasting food isn’t the way of a Hero.”
With that, he picked up the pot and headed into the Kitchen.
The Kitchen door closed, leaving the two girls staring at each other.
“I’m sorry,” Celia apologized to Lynn, “I actually can’t cook at all.”
“It’s all right, Lady Celia.” Lynn shook her head, not a trace of blame on her face.
Clanging and banging echoed from the Kitchen, mingled with the sounds of chopping and stir-frying.
Before long, a delicious aroma wafted out through the crack in the door, making both girls’ stomachs growl in unison.
Celia couldn’t contain her curiosity and tiptoed to the door, peeking in through the gap.
Inside, Elent moved smoothly as he handled the ingredients.
The body that seemed clumsy when wielding a greatsword now looked perfectly at ease before the stove.
He sprinkled some crushed spices into the pot, stirred with a ladle, each movement calm and assured.
This Hero, who’d looked so dumb when a rabbit trampled his face, actually seemed quite competent now.
After a while, the Kitchen door opened. Elent emerged carrying a large bowl containing the rescued stew.
“Priestess, Miss Lynn, time to eat.”
……
On the table were freshly baked dark bread and the now much more appetizing stew.
The Carrot had regained its orange-red hue, the rabbit meat glistened an inviting brown, and a few sprigs of green herbs floated atop the rich broth.
A classic otherworldly-style meal.
“Time was short, so this is all I could do.” Elent scratched his head a bit sheepishly.
Celia picked up her spoon and took a sip of the soup.
The flavor was unexpectedly good. The harsh herbal smell was gone, replaced by a gentle, rich aroma.
She forked up a piece of Carrot. Having been catalyzed by Sanctuary of Light, the Carrot was unusually sweet and, after soaking in the broth, was now soft, fragrant, and full of flavor.
Next, Celia tasted a piece of melt-in-your-mouth rabbit meat.
The meat dissolved on her tongue, tasting wonderful. But what truly mattered was that, as the unique broth mingled with special spices spread over her palate, she froze.
This taste…
It was so nostalgic.
In her previous life, there had been a fast-food place downstairs from her office that tasted exactly like this.
Because she loved it so much, she’d eaten there every day as a reward for working hard.
She’d thought that after coming to this world, she’d never taste it again.
But now, here it was.
Celia looked up at Elent, who was dividing bread among them.
Noticing her gaze, Elent returned it with a puzzled but sunny smile.
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