As I flipped through the pages of the 'Book Of Culinary Kills,' something caught my eye – 'Danger Dumplings.' Dumplings, huh? They are small and can be eaten in a single bite. Maybe I should start with this dish. But before that, I need to figure out where I can cook it.
I pondered for a moment. The adventurer guild has a bar attached to it, and they even provide a few varieties of food to the adventurers. Perhaps they will let me use their kitchen. With that in mind, I decided to go and ask about it.
I made my way downstairs, reached the reception desk, and asked the receptionist, "Hello, is there some kind of kitchen or something where I can cook?"
She gave me a weird look, a mixture of shock and curiosity, and replied, "Sir, you want to cook? Most adventurers are only good at fighting, so this is the first time someone has asked me something like this. Well, we do have a kitchen, but I don't know whether you can use it or not. You should speak with our head chef regarding this."
Before I could ask where I could find the head chef, she continued speaking.
"The head will most likely be in the kitchen now. Please follow me; I will introduce you to the head chef," the receptionist said and began walking, with me trailing behind.
After a few minutes, we reached the kitchen. Several people were busy with various cooking tasks you'd typically find in a restaurant – one was peeling potatoes, another was cutting vegetables, and so on. The guild attendant brought me to a middle-aged woman and said, "Head chef, this adventurer wants to have a word with you."
The woman had shoulder-length brown hair, with a few white hairs here and there showing her age. She had some wrinkles on her face, though they weren't too noticeable, and her eyes were black.
She gave me a quick once-over, scanning me, and then asked, "An adventurer wants to have a word with me? What do you want, kid? Are you here to complain about the food? If that's the case, get lost. This is all you get here. If you want to eat something delicious, go somewhere else." She spoke with an irritated look on her face.
"No, ma'am, I'm not here to complain," I clarified. "I was actually wondering if I could use the kitchen for a while. I promise not to disturb your work, and I can even pay for the ingredients." I maintained a polite tone throughout the conversation.
In response, she burst into laughter. "Ha ha ha ha ha, an adventurer wanting to cook? This is the first time I've heard of something like this. Tell me, kid, do you like to cook?" she asked, her curiosity piqued.
"Well, I guess I like to eat, so I thought I could also give cooking a try," I admitted, revealing my modest culinary interest. I could manage a few basic dishes, but that was the extent of my skills.
She considered my response and said, "Hmm... Is that so? Well, anyway, you don't have to pay for the ingredients or anything. But in return, you have to help us during the dinner rush. It's just an afternoon now, so there aren't many people, but once it gets dark, we'll get a lot busier, and we can use as many hands as we can get." She laid out her conditions for allowing me to use the kitchen.
"That's fine, I can at least do that much," I reassured her with a smile.
She chuckled and commented, "Huh, what a weird kid. Most adventurers would throw a temper tantrum if things didn't go their way. Anyway, what do you need?" She inquired about the ingredients necessary for my cooking.
I listed all the ingredients required to make 'Danger Dumplings,' and she provided them to me. She asked curiously, "What are you making?"
"Well, I'm making Dumplings," I replied, sharing my cooking plans.
"Dumplings? What are those?" she asked with a puzzled expression.
"What? You don't know what Dumplings are?" I couldn't hide my surprise, my eyes wide with shock. In an attempt to clarify, I pulled out the book 'Book Of Culinary Kills' and showed her the page about 'Danger Dumplings.'
She examined the page and replied, "What's with these weird words?" Her confusion was evident.
I couldn't comprehend her lack of understanding. Everything in the book seemed clear to me. What was going on?
Feeling the need to explain, I quickly fabricated a story. "Sorry about that. This is from my hometown. It's a very remote place with its own unique language. I completely forgot about that," I offered as an explanation. I knew I'd have to delve into this mystery later.
"Is that so?" she asked me with a suspicious look. "Well, whatever. I will help you. Let's try this dish I've never heard about." She offered her assistance.
"Mam, you've already done more than enough for me. I can't ask this from you," I politely tried to decline her help. What I was about to create was not just food; it was essentially a bio-weapon disguised as a meal.
"Just call me Lara, and the reason I'm helping you is because I'm curious about this new dish," she insisted, showing no signs of backing down.
*Sigh*
I let out a weary sigh and said, "Fine, you can help me, but please don't expect too much."
"That's fine; I just want to see what you're going to do," she replied with a casual shrug.
I then approached one of the empty stoves and attempted to start a fire. However, I couldn't find anything to ignite it with.
"Miss Lara, don't you have a lighter or something to light this stove?" I asked her with a puzzled expression.
"What's a lighter? Just use your fireball to light it," she responded with a tired tone.
"Fireball? What's that?" I inquired once again, my confusion growing.
"What? You don't know what a fireball is? That's one of the basic red magic skills. Aren't you an adventurer? What's your magic affinity?" she bombarded me with questions, her expression becoming increasingly suspicious.
"Um, my magic affinity is Grey Magic," I confessed in a low voice.
"What? Grey Magic?" she exclaimed, her eyes widening in surprise. Her loud exclamation drew the attention of everyone in the kitchen, and hushed whispers and murmurs filled the air.
"Hey, did you hear that? That adventurer claims to have Grey Magic as his affinity. Isn't that an extremely rare form of magic? I heard that only four or five people in our kingdom possess an affinity for Grey Magic. If he had such an affinity then what's he doing in the kitchen? He's probably lying about it, right?" These were some of the discussions happening among the kitchen staff.
"Kid, tell me the truth. Who are you, and where are you from?" she demanded with a threatening tone.
I found myself in a dilemma. Should I reveal the truth? But even if I did, there was no guarantee she would believe me. The incident with the guards had already made me cautious about disclosing my true nature.
Perhaps I should demonstrate one of my Grey Magic skills? The problem was that my Grey Magic skills, like Overdrive and HolyShit, were incredibly powerful, and using them in the kitchen could cause unintended damage. Maybe I should opt for one of Truck-Kun's skills instead.
"Mam, I will prove it to you. If it's alright with you, I'd like to demonstrate one of my Grey Magic skills," I replied politely, trying not to alarm her.
"Is that so? Well, if you try anything suspicious, you know what will happen, right?" she retorted with a threatening undertone.
I nodded in approval and activated my skill.
"Skill Share - Telepathy."
"Miss Lara, can you hear me?" I asked her using the power of my mind.
Upon hearing my voice in her head, Lara's expression shifted from suspicion to complete shock, and she stammered, "Is...isn't this Telepathy?"
"Yes, Miss Lara," I confirmed with a reassuring smile.
"To think you're the real deal, sorry about that kid. You mentioned you're from a remote area, and that explains your lack of common knowledge," she said apologetically. Then she continued, "Just wait a moment."
Lara disappeared for a while and returned with a red book in her hand. "Here, take this skill book. It will allow you to learn the skill Fireball, one of the basic skills from Red Magic. Don't worry, even if you don't have an affinity, you can still learn the basic skills from any magic tree," she explained as she handed me the book.
I thanked her and opened the book, which triggered the familiar appearance of the blue screen once again.
Do you want to learn these skills?
Y/N
I selected 'Yes,' and the book vanished, and the screen appeared once again.
Congratulations on learning the following skill
Fire Ball (C) (Active)
NOTE: As a hero bonus all the Skills have ranked up from E to C
"Alright, now that you've learned the Fireball skill, light up the stove. Just put your hand in front of the stove and say 'Fireball'," she explained how to use the skill.
I followed her instructions, placing my hand in front of the stove and saying, "Fireball." A small fireball formed and shot out from my hand, igniting the stove.
"Alright, now that's done, let's start cooking," she said with a cheerful voice.
After a few minutes, we successfully made around eleven 'Danger Dumplings.'
"Oh, these look good. Let me try one of these," Lara said and picked up one of the dumplings.
"Miss. Lara, I wouldn't suggest th—" Before I could finish my sentence, she ate the dumpling.