POV Cali
(Little mora than 1 hour earlier)
After we all walked around the "cabin" a few times and confirmed that none of the creatures would come near the building, we went in and started exploring the place. I'm not from any very rich family like Anna, but we're not poor either, being considerably above the middle class where Mav and Max would be and much better than villagers like Connor, we have a connection with the Aeter greater than the most having several relatives placed in orders of wizards and cavalry.
But I'm the only one who didn't join one or the other but rather one of the fist orders. The reason is quite simple, the orders of chivalry are focused much more on physical development, leaving little time for research (unless they are about combat technique, the art of war or how to improve the flow of Aeter), while those of wizards are very restrictive in how research is done, and there is also the fact that I don't like some things they do.
The fist orders are much more balanced, after all they were initially founded by "dissidents" from the first orders of chivalry and wizards, and even some excommunicated from the church, which is why they are also not very well regarded by them. Going to the point of being considered a set of thieves by the main orders and an annoying group by the church since they have their own religious philosophy. They are not considered heretics and are openly persecuted because they are useful, mainly because they share information openly. I've always found this to be an interesting contradiction between the group's name and its main goal, this being contrary to the rules of most mage orders (another reason why mages detest fist orders).
Of course, wizards also share a lot of information from research and experiments, but they either charge a lot for it or don't reveal everything. Which is considerably different from fist orders, but that's a conversation for another time.
Soon after we entered and were amazed (again), with the interior we explored a little the "hut" we were going to stay in for a while, Mav and Max went to the rooms on the second floor, Connor went to show the first floor with Anna and I stayed in the living room to light the fireplace. I'm just doing this, even if it's a sunny day, because according to Connor the fireplace doesn't warn the cabin, especially because it doesn't need it, it's already been confirmed that within the Ordeal there is only one climate, warm and sunny, but it helps people recover from fatigue faster, without increasing the temperature in the cabin.
That done, I decided to see what the cabin's kitchen was like. I may be part of an order that mixes combat with research, but I've always had a certain interest in cooking, even though I admit that I'm not a good cook. For some reason I always thought that the concentration needed to prepare a dish and the concentration to execute a good strike were similar, and every now and then I tried to combine these two things to see if I could get something out of it.
The result didn't end up being very successful, but my dishes were better than normal in this state of "flow", and no matter how much the old man of my order say that it is impossible, I could still swear that my control over the Aeter improved almost like after a session of meditation.
Well, that doesn't matter now, in the kitchen I found a large stove with 5 burners, next to it there was an oven underneath, which according to Connor and the reports was not for putting wood, instead this stove and oven worked by voluntarily transferring Aeter through the round levers at the front, the more the levers were turned to the right clockwise, the less Aeter was needed, the further to the left the more was needed.
And as if an oven that made fire on its own wasn't enough, there was also a metal cabinet that kept things cold, it also worked for Aeter, the more things inside, the greater the Aeter needed, the most they ever put in was 20 items, the interesting thing was that it was due to the type of item, if there were say 5 pieces of cheese coming from the same wheel, they would be counted as 1 item, but if it was 1 bottle of milk but from the same cow that the cheese came from, they would be considered different items. There are some theories about chicken eggs and bread but no one has tried that. This cupboard is mostly used to store the meat obtained from animals, fish from the river and some herbs collected in the forest.
And finally there was a sink, but this one was much prettier with polished metal instead of the cold iron that most houses in the city have (according to Connor, the houses of the villagers in his village only have one tub, and that is necessary replenishing water from one of the village's wells or the nearby lake), and more practical, where you only had to turn one of the wheels on the side for water to come out, the left one made cold water flow and the right one made hot water.
I then took the rabbit meat we got on the way and some aromatic herbs that Max said his parents use to prepare food in their family's restaurant. I removed the rest of the blood that was still in the sink and prepared the frying pans on the fire to fry the meat, I decided that I would just make a simple dish for all of us with the rabbit meat, a sauce with the fruits from the bushes, the bread and the cheese we brought. Before I knew it I entered the flow state and cut, seasoned and had already placed the meat in the 4 frying pans with much more ease and practice than expected, especially since it was the first time I had used these utensils.
With the meat being prepared on the fire, I quickly crushed the berries and added them to the sugar that was already in the "hut" (some villages tried to take the sugar from the hut to the market and resell it but as soon as it left the Ordeal it always disappeared) , I added it with water and placed it on the fifth burner of the oven. Unbelievably, this entire process only took just over 10 minutes, so I decided to prepare the bread and cheese a little more. Before, I intended to put the bread and cheese separately as side dishes, but with the time I still have, I decided to put them together.
To do this, first I cut 2 loaves of bread into slices and using the jelly made with one of the Ordeal fruits, a red fruit, full of small yellow seeds, fleshy and juicy, this is one of my favorite fruits here, I spread it on the loaves and I put relatively thick slices of cheese and added another seasoning from the cabin on top, it had a smell that could only be described as being made to whet people's hunger. With the preparations made, I placed the slices on a metal platter and placed them on the stove below, regulating the temperature, I left the slices of bread there for 10 minutes, the exact time when the meat and sauce were ready.
I found this strange because of my experience, I was supposed to take care of the meat so that it didn't burn and stick to the pans, but while I was in the flow I just did things following instinct and it told me that everything would be fine and ready in time, and unexpectedly (or exactly as expected), everything was ready at the same time perfectly.
The most unbelievable thing was that all 4 dishes were ready in just 25 minutes, which should have taken at least 1 hour outside of Ordeal, I honestly can't say if this is due to the cabin being in Ordeal or if it's thanks to the equipment here. Whatever it is, it's amazing and useful, I honestly wish I had made more meat for myself, but I still have to fast for 2 more days so I can pass the endurance test and become a 2nd degree acolyte in my order ( By the way, thanks to this test, I haven't eaten solid food except for some bush berries and milk for 1 month).
Smelling the meat, sauce and bread covered in cheese, Connor and Anna were the first to appear at the kitchen counter, both of them with their eyes glued to the dishes on the table but not picking them up. Another curious and very useful thing that only exists here, unless the person in the kitchen declares that the food is ready or authorizes someone to enter, no one can touch the food. Thanks to that, Anna had a face that was oscillating between drooling looking at the food and crying because she couldn't take it, Connor is now more controlled but his eyes are more fixed on the dishes than on the enemies we encountered until we reached the cabin.
And to complete the picture, the twins appeared at the door at the same time and almost broke it open. They were as glassy-eyed as a cornered animal and didn't even listen when Connor tried to warn them that they wouldn't be able to get the food, before literally running into an invisible wall.
—HEY WHAT IS THIS, CALI WHATEVER WITCHCRAFT YOU DID, UNDO IT AND LET US GET THE FOOD!!!!! — Max shouted with such force, that I'm sure that if it weren't for the fact that it was protected here, they would already be surrounded by green demons and hairy beasts.
—Uhhhggghhhumm, I agree with my impatient brother this time, Cali, could you please take off that shield you put on so we can eat? — Mav asked, trying to hide the quick and intense looks he was casting at the food.
—Yes, yes, Cali, please the smell is killing me, it's better than Simon's at home, please let me eat, you know I'm still growing right? — He shamelessly begged Anna, using the fact that he was still a "child" only in these cases.
—Ok ok, but you better calm down, the food won't get away, so take control. — I said rolling my eyes. — And you two, at least go wash up, we're still just guests in this cabin, don't get it or the cutlery dirty.
Before he could even finish, the twins disappeared from the kitchen entrance. Just imagine if they also moved like that in fights... I honestly don't know if that would help or hinder.