Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: How to Eat Sweet Potatoes Deliciously
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'Must be because it's a deserted island. There are quite a few edible things around.'
I used my Appraisal skill to hunt down various ingredients.
The Appraisal skill tells me about targets even without prior knowledge.
I couldn't keep using it on the island, but thanks to the item Hilde pulled, it was back in action.
'So that's why abilities are blocked on deserted islands. Who knew we'd need an item like this.'
With my skills revived, I spammed Appraisal like crazy as I wandered around.
What I realized was that there were surprisingly many ingredients.
Thanks to that, I could put out the urgent fire of our food shortage.
"Wow, Master, you have such vast knowledge of plants too."
Hilde marveled at the mushrooms I'd gathered.
"For now, I brought back whatever's edible nearby. It won't be enough for staples, but it should cover our meals."
"Even this is wonderful."
Our stockpile was sweet potatoes, greens, and mushrooms.
Plus some pepper to bring out flavors and those buttery branches.
'Not bad. But aside from the sweet potatoes, it's tough to make any of this a staple.'
It'd be hard to get enough calories like this.
I definitely needed meat.
'Maybe I'll go hunting tomorrow.'
The more food, the better.
And with the inventory, storage was a breeze.
"Ah, I made good use of the sword you lent me."
"Did you do it just like I said?"
"Yes! I dug really hard!"
When I checked the spot, there was a big pit under the thick tree cover.
The bottom was nicely padded with soft leaves.
"......You made all this in the meantime?"
"It's our first home together, Master."
There weren't any decent caves around here.
I'd told her to dig a hole to use as a temporary shelter.
But I hadn't expected her to finish it alone.
"You did all this without a shovel?"
"Hehe. I wanted to surprise you, Master."
"I was planning to come back and make it together. Good work."
I patted her head in praise.
"Mmm, the reward feels too big for the job."
"If you want this, I'll do it anytime."
"......No good. It feels too nice."
Even as she said that, Hilde beamed with honest joy.
It was a pure smile that reminded me of an angel.
"We have some time left anyway. Let's eat first."
"Ah, I'll prepare it."
"......No, it's fine. I'll do it."
"?"
I planned to handle the cooking myself.
Because I'd spotted something unsettling in the status window.
Hilde's Cooking skill was F-grade.
I didn't know the exact standards, but it probably wasn't great.
'If we had wiggle room, maybe. But I can't risk experimenting with scarce ingredients.'
It wasn't about blaming Hilde—better safe than sorry.
Plus, I wanted to test something out.
"Hilde, could you gather some firewood from around here?"
"Right away!"
While she was gone, I got serious about cooking prep.
First, I piled up twigs and dry leaves.
Then stacked logs with cuts in them.
Finally, I ringed it with clean stones from the stream.
'Next up, this.'
I'd found the flint while foraging for food.
It looked like just an ordinary rock at a glance.
'Without the Appraisal skill, I'd never have spotted it.'
Clack!
I rubbed the flint against a hard stone.
It didn't go as easily as I'd hoped.
After dozens of tries, I was about to give up and use the wood instead when...
Whoosh!
"Whoa! Finally!"
At last, bright flames rose up.
"Hoo! Hoo!"
I blew on it gently and added dry grass to build it up.
The fire spread to the wood and soon roared steadily.
"Haa! This was the hardest thing I've done on this island."
In a world where even kitchens rarely have open flames anymore...
I never thought I'd struggle just to make a simple fire.
It was a moment that made me newly grateful for modern civilization.
"Whoa, you already got the fire going! Should I put the firewood here?"
"Thanks. Just drop it nearby."
I felt a sense of accomplishment, but there was no time to rest.
Keeping the fire going was as important as starting it.
"Let's roast the sweet potatoes first. Hilde, can you skewer the mushrooms?"
"Hehe. It's fun doing things together with someone you like!"
Hearing that straight from her felt oddly thrilling.
It was a different kind of embarrassment from regular sex.
'Because I know it's sincere.'
Suppressing the urge to hug her, I focused on the sweet potatoes.
Soon, the delicious aroma of roasting sweet potatoes filled the air.
After such a hectic day, my mouth watered on its own.
Before long, Hilde was sitting beside me, eyes sparkling in anticipation.
'She looks like a puppy.'
Even as royalty, she couldn't resist the smell, huh?
I pulled out a fully cooked sweet potato and handed her one.
"Here, give it a try."
"Thank you! Eek, hot hot! It's hot!"
She panicked from the heat but didn't drop it.
I quickly peeled it, revealing golden flesh inside.
"Wow."
Hilde's face lit up in awe as she cautiously took a bite.
The crisply roasted sweet potato gave off an enticing smell.
"Ow, mmm, hot... so hot..."
"It's fire-roasted. Of course it's hot."
Her face flushed as she rolled the potato around in her mouth.
Was this universal for all women?
Even that looked cute on Hilde—kind of amazing.
"Hoo! Hoo!"
The first burn must've been bad; this time she blew on it first.
She took another bite, and her face lit up with delight.
"Mmm! Master! This is amazing! So delicious!"
"This is called a roasted sweet potato."
"Roasted sweet potato... The world is full of things this tasty."
Hilde savored it with a blissful expression.
Since it was her first time, I could see why.
"Mmm, it's definitely well done."
My Golden Finger skill has a broad effect range.
Not just caressing—it influences crafting, swordsmanship, even cooking.
This sweet potato's flavor probably benefited too.
"Try it with this."
"Isn't this just a grilled tree branch? It's edible too?"
What I handed her was powdered Young Branch of the Armakus Tree.
It looked just like powdered milk.
The description said it tasted like butter.
"Bet it'll make the sweet potato way tastier."
"Even better than this?!"
Hilde sprinkled the powder on her sweet potato with eager eyes.
Her expression soon sparkled like a kid on Christmas.
Nom nom nom!
She devoured it frantically.
She even chugged some water toughly, looking like she'd conquered the world.
"Master... I'm the happiest I've ever been right now..."
"Just from this?"
'I figured royalty would have refined tastes.'
Seeing her enjoy it so much made the cook happy too.
We polished off the sweet potatoes in no time.
Adding the greens and mushrooms filled us up nicely.
'Oh, points like this too.'
Back-to-back quest completion messages.
Just from eating, I'd racked up 200 points.
'So the cycle is: use points on gacha for items, then use items to earn more points.'
Did that mean spamming gacha was the way?
Well, time to sleep on it for today.
'Hmm, wait. What if this gives points too?'
I gathered some decently long branches nearby.
I layered them into a ladder-like frame.
Then topped it with broad leaves and dry twigs.
"Oh? You made a roof?"
"It's just a rough temporary one, but it should keep out the rain."
I hadn't fully grasped the island's climate yet.
There were goblins, of course, and plenty of unfamiliar plants.
'It's hot around here, so sudden downpours aren't impossible. Better safe.'
After a few tweaks, it was a pretty decent roof.
It covered the pit Hilde had dug.
"Yes!"
Making stuff triggered survival quests too.
That made 300P just from evening activities.
Best of all, I'd gotten a handle on quest conditions.
'Gotta make survival essentials more often.'
There were plenty of things to craft.
And Golden Finger helped with crafting too.
"Hehe, that excited look means you got more points, right?"
"Yeah, about the same as before."
"Gonna pull right away?"
I shook my head at Hilde's question.
"Nah, gacha tomorrow. Let's sleep for now."
Gacha gave more the more you did, but you couldn't just spin mindlessly.
Had to choose the type and how many—points were a limited resource.
"Tomorrow we'll scout the terrain. It'll be tougher than today, so rest up."
"Got it."
We crawled into our makeshift hut shelter.
With the roof on, it felt surprisingly cozy inside.
'Thanks to the leaves Hilde laid down, the floor's all soft too.'
To think we'd built this house ourselves.
It felt strangely good.
"Hehe, lying here feels kinda weird."
"Tell me about it."
"This is actually my first time sleeping next to a guy."
"......"
Silence fell for a moment.
Crackle, crackle.
The dying campfire sounds echoed between us.
"Um, Master...?"
"Yeah?"
"To move easily tomorrow, wouldn't it be good to do a little post-meal exercise?"
"......"