When Ina returned to the Dragon Flame Restaurant, Dusì, and Lusen were staring at the pile of prey that had suddenly appeared in the kitchen.
"Miss Ina, did you go hunting just now?" Lusen recognized some of the animals among the prey, "Snow rabbits seem to be a specialty of the northern snowfields... they don't live in the Mist Swamp, do they?"
"I'll explain everything to you later," Ina quickly glanced at the ingredients in the kitchen and headed out. She turned back halfway, "Take these prey to Keira's butcher shop first for processing, and make sure both the meat and the fur are taken care of. Lusen, I remember you have a spatial ring, so I'll leave this to you. Dusì, you stay in the restaurant and plant some sweet potatoes and strawberries in the bathtub farm."
Having given these instructions, Ina plunged into the Mist Swamp. With nearly 300 people to feed for lunch and time running short, she caught dozens of Cold Thorn Fish from her pond. She has no time to bring them back for Lusen to process, so she started cleaning the fish right by the pond. Lizard helped scrape the scales off the fish with its claws, doing it quickly and efficiently but somewhat noisily.
After Ina left with the processed fish, Lizard sighed as it looked at the almost half-empty pond. Although Cold Thorn Fish grew rapidly as long as there was enough food, they couldn't withstand such heavy consumption. There were no small fish left, and even the big fish had been caught.
It flicked its tail and said sorrowfully to The Goldfinch beside it, "Do you think the White Feather Pelican you know is available? We'll need to catch more fish this afternoon."
Cold Thorn Fish had stopped swimming near the pond, so Lizard had to go further away to catch them. Catching fish was easy, but ensuring they were still alive when brought back was difficult. That's why it thought of the pelican, which could transport both fish and water safety.
"The White Feather Pelican said its beak hurts from being bitten by the Cold Thorn Fish and it'll need two extra fish if we ask for its help again," The Goldfinch, whose neck had recently started growing short and messy down, looked even uglier.
"No problem," Lizard agreed without hesitation.
While processing the Cold Thorn Fish, Ina also completed a side quest.
[Congratulations on completing the side quest 2-1: Harvest 10 fish from the pond affiliated with your restaurant. Reward: 500 achievement points.]
Previously, there were similar side quests numbered 1-1 and 1-2, with the task of harvesting 10 and 100 times from the affiliated farm. Ina had identified some patterns: for agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery categories, there should be achievement point rewards every 10, 100, and 1000 harvests. But why wasn't there a reward when she went to catch chickens in the chicken coop last time? Oh, she remembered, she had caught exactly nine chickens then.
Ina thought for a moment about whether she should catch another chicken while she was at it but eventually decided against it. The task reward wouldn't run away; there was no need to rush.
To return to the restaurant faster, Ina transformed into her dragon form and flew back. Although there had been more visitors to the Mist Swamp recently, as long as Ina flew through the mist in the sky, she wouldn't frighten them or create any rumors of a dragon reappearing on the continent.
Although there was a small incident during the return journey, it was relatively uneventful overall. Ina arrived back at the restaurant, retrieved the retired little blackboard, and hung it at the entrance.
[Dragon Flame Restaurant closed today]
When the Rize tribespeople returned to their wooden houses with apprehensive expressions and bowls in their hands, they saw a man and a woman in black robes following the Saintess.
The Saintess instructed, "Form two lines, one on each side, and once you've been served, move to the other side."
Although the Rize tribespeople didn't know what was going on, they obediently formed two lines with their bowls.
Little Anty stood in the line facing the black-robed boy. Her father peeked over the heads of the people in front of him and told Little Anty, "It's the sugar candy the Saintess gave you."
An old hunter with a stooped posture stood in front of Lusen and shakily accepted the cotton candy, "Is this the Saintess's blessing?" As soon as he heard the Saintess had appeared, he immediately found the beast tooth necklace he had locked in a box for many years, put it on, and rushed to the wooden house.
The Rize tribe was once much larger and more prosperous than it is now. There were many members, and every hunt brought back abundant rewards. They ate the meat of their prey and wore their skins, and neither children nor the elderly ever went hungry. This beast tooth necklace was proof of the tribe's former glory. During a hunt, old Qunte killed eleven wolves by himself and made this necklace from their canine teeth.
Unfortunately, the tribe never returned to its former glory. The weather grew worse; winter sometimes came too early or too late, even the most experienced hunters couldn't predict it, and some people got trapped in the wild by sudden blizzards. More and more children fell ill and died prematurely; hungry beasts grew more ferocious, and the Rize tribe's population gradually dwindled.
But now the Saintess had appeared. Could it mean that the Rize tribe would once again receive the Goddess's blessings and let the people live a life with enough food and warm clothing?
Faced with Old Qunte's question, Lusen hesitated for a moment before smiling and saying, "Yes, eating it will make you happy."
Seeing the Saintess distributing sugar candies to everyone, Little Anty became more uneasy. She gently tugged on her mother's sleeve and whispered, "I have already received Saintess's sugar candy. I shouldn't be in line here, or I will be disliked by the Saintess because of my greed."
Little Anty's mother also felt this was true. She pointed to the end of the other line and said, "Then go over there and see, it seems like the two sides have different things."
Little Anty nodded and quietly stood in the line led by Dusì. When it was her turn, Dusì took a disposable paper cup, scooped a spoonful of dark brown liquid from the silver barrel, and handed it to Little Anty.
"After you finish drinking, throw the cup into this barrel," Dusì instructed before motioning for the next person to step forward.
Little Anty held the paper cup in a daze and walked to the side, looking at the steaming dark liquid in her hand. This must be the holy water the Saintess had given to everyone! Although it wasn't the color she imagined, the effect must be the same! Drinking it would make her healthy, no longer sick, and it would be excellent overall! Her grandmother's health had improved a lot, and she had come today as well. The Saintess and the Goddess would surely bless her grandmother with a long life.
She brought the paper cup to her lips, blew gently on the liquid, and smelled a rich sweetness. It was sweet again! There was also a strange fragrance that Little Anty had never smelled before, mixed with the rich taste of milk, which warmed Little Anty's shivering body from waiting in the snow.
She sipped the liquid in her cup, savoring the precious sweetness on her tongue. Before the Saintess and her cabin appeared, she hadn't tasted anything sweet for a very long time. But she was still fortunate, Little Anty thought, at least she and her grandmother had potatoes to eat, which had a bit of sweetness when tasted careful!
After distributing cotton candy and chocolate milk, the two employees in black robes gathered in front of Ina. It was too cold, and Ina didn't have suitable cotton-padded clothes for Lusen and Dusì. She could only find two warm black cloaks for them, making them look more like detestable cult members rather than the Saintess's trusted assistants.
The Rize tribespeople gathered in small groups. The Saintess hadn't let them leave, so they didn't dare move around freely. Then they saw the Saintess bring out two large pots, her attendants fetched racks and charcoal fires, and the Saintess lifted the pot lids.
Wow! A strong aroma of meat filled the air. The fragrance swirled around in the cold air of the icy tundra and reached the noses of everyone nearby.
The beef soup was bubbling in the pot, with the slightly transparent vermicelli made from potato starch that Ina had made a few days ago and thinly sliced beef all praying for boiling together. The new dish hadn't had a chance to debut at the Restaurant yet but was brought here for emergency use. There were still too many people in the Rize tribe, and Ina couldn't care less about whether the food combination was perfect. She picked potatoes and radishes, cut them into chunks, and put them into the soup. These two ingredients absorbed the beef soup's broth, making the taste even better.
The process was the same as before; everyone lined up with a bowl to get the beef soup. Lusen waved a spoon as big as his face, stirred the bottom of the pot a couple of times, and scooped out a full serving of beef soup with added ingredients. The beef slices trembled and piled up on top of the bowl, Dusì immediately sprinkled a handful of green chopped scallions on top and waved for the next person.
The Rize tribespeople squatted around the two charcoal fires, holding their bowls and drinking the soup heartily.
Ina invited Chief Mori and the priest to eat in the cabin, but they firmly declined, finally squatting down with everyone else.
The people here were physically strong from years of labor, and although the beef soup was genuine and piled up in the bowl, many people only could eat half a bowl. At this moment, Ina's second pot made its shiny entrance.
Another more domineering, rich aroma appeared. To cater to everyone's tastes, Ina made the spicy fish soup slightly spicy this time. Nevertheless, there was still a layer of bright red chili floating on the top of the pot. After pushing aside the chilies, the snow-white fish slices underneath were revealed.
Little Anty was already full, so she only took two fish slices from her father's bowl to taste. Her father teased her, "After eating this, your tongue will be both painful and numb."
The things given by the Saintess must be the best! Little Anty didn't believe him at all and immediately stuffed the fish slice into her mouth.
Hiss. It seemed a bit numb and a bit painful, but it was this slight numbness and pain that made the delicate fish slices even richer in layers. This highly aggressive taste instantly drove away other sensations, giving her an incredibly clear desire to eat more.
"Dad, give me a little more." Little Anty held out her bowl.
"This dish is called spicy boiled fish. Eating it can effectively resist the cold. I think there's no dish more suitable for the Tolia Plain than this one." Ina also held a cup of hot chocolate milk and told the chief and the priest.
The two were about to kneel immediately. "Thank you for the blessings of the Saintess."
Without seeing Ina make any moves, the two found themselves unable to kneel, as if they were being held up by something. Ina spoke at this moment, "I don't like being worshiped, so you don't have to do it in the future."
Watching the chief and the priest forcefully suppress their excitement, Ina felt that everyone needed to calm down. She also wanted to think carefully about the future of the branch and the Rize tribe.
"Let's meet here at noon three days later. At that time, I want to hear what your tribespeople think of me and what I will bring to you." Ina left this mysterious message and invited the chief and the priest out of the wooden cabin.
She looked at the vending machine placed in the center of the room and gently kicked it. "It's all your fault!"
It wasn't the vending machine that caused the trouble, but the system. Ina had realized long ago that the so-called simple and luxurious versions of the branch's decoration were just the system trying to deceive her. No matter which one she chose, she would end up with this set of Tolia Goddess-related scam packages, aiming to push her to the position of the Rize tribe's Saintess.
The system remained silent.
Ina spoke again, "Clear the points they just exchanged."
The system finally appeared:
[You have completed the initial exploration of the Extreme Cold Ice Field, unlocking the small map - the Forsaken Land of the Lost Tribe]
[The people of the Rize tribe regard you as the embodiment of their faith, the newborn sun. Regional reputation - Extreme Cold Ice Field - Rize Tribe +500]
[You have chosen food items: Beef Soup 247, Spicy Boiled Fish 131, Marshmallow 246, Hot Chocolate Milk 247, Baked Sweet Potato 278, Strawberry 63, cost: 196 points]
Today's meal was indeed a huge expense. Ina shook her head. This reputation seemed astonishing, but she didn't know what use it had.