Chapter 31: Collecting Ingredients

He did a few things while he waited. For example, the berries had been crushed into juice, and he had also gathered a number of leaves and herbs.

He got what he already knew could be consumed like sunberry leaves, which had slight peppery undertones (though not much, so he had to take handfuls to be satisfied), and the ivana vine which apparently had edible gel inside of it.

The area of his lot was, currently, only a thousand square meters with approximately 25 meters in depth and 40 meters in length, with the longer side facing the downward slope.

The inn itself did not take that much space for now, and he did build in a forest, so even if the structure itself was in a clearing, there was still a portion of the forest within the barrier.

Anyway, while waiting for the trap to work, he used his skills to study and memorize the remaining plants inside. For most areas, the selections were just duplicates of what he already knew… except for one.

And it was glorious.

[Thornroot: Resilient vine-like creeper with hooked, thorned runners and heart-shaped leaves with a hearty tuber attached. The vines are known to soothe burns, but shall not be consumed directly. The tuber is an acceptable source of starch, dense and waxy when boiled, fluffy when roasted.]

If he read this right, it was this world’s potatoes (or something)! Of course, as for the taste, it could be quite different, but he finally had starch!

He hurriedly dug it out without care, though after he did, he worried for the plant’s re-plantability. Then he was reminded that it was apparently a resilient plant, meaning it could probably grow pretty much anywhere with decent soil.

This made him think about other plants. He worried about how long it’d take for the other fruits to bloom. What if it were just once a year, like most Earth trees? Would more ripen in the future? Would he eventually have to go forage outside at the rate he ate?

That panda did not seem like a small eater, either.

He might have to do more jams, in case he ran out of fruit in the future.

Anyway, he pushed that aside and continued studying the plants. He found the poisonous plants from before: the Widow’s Crown and the Purplestep Plant. The Widow’s Crown, which was unfortunately relatively prevalent in his area, was a thorny shrub with black blue berries and silver-veined leaves.

He had to say that the berries looked scrumptious. Had he been a bit careless or if he got delirious from hunger, he had no doubt he’d have eaten this.

The Purplesteps, on the other hand, were shrubs with purple leaves. It could cause a lot of irritation if touched. This one was interesting because although it was tagged as poison, there were plenty of other uses for it.

[Purplesteps – A low-growing, tangled shrub with striking, deep-purple, glossy leaves shaped like serrated ovals. Each leaf is covered in fine fuzz that causes skin irritation, particularly to those of Awakened rank or below. The plant’s seed pods absorb high mineral content from the soil, crystallizing within the seeds. These crystalline seeds can be harvested and used as a natural preservative.]

The last part interested him the most, and he immediately went to check it. He used some safe leaves as gloves again to look for these ’seeds’. These things grew on the areas of the plants touching the ground, and they looked a lot like papaya seeds.

And guess what? When he tasted the seed (after confirming they were non-poisonous, of course), he realized it was salty. It was mild (like a pinch of salt diluted with a few milliliters of water), but the taste was there

and he almost wanted to cry.

One had to know that salt was the one most important spice (well, mineral) if nothing else was available! It could enhance any flavor because it made the taste buds fire more. Its existence alone made him feel better.

He also used his ability as he stood next to the barriers but far from his traps, so he could check out the plants outside. However, even when he used up all his mana, there were no new plants that were available to him.

He did, however, see a few fungi that seemed edible. Sadly, it was outside, and he wouldn’t risk his limbs for a few mushrooms.

Anyway, he took these samples back to the kitchen. He took a few sips of his juice before he started to prepare his items.

The kitchen really didn’t lack anything. He had complete pans, knife sets, utensils, plates, and so on. There was also a stove and an oven, though they were both made of rocks and needed a bit of a learning curve to operate, for now.

He focused on preparing the ingredients. He was experimenting with the ivana vine for the citrus and zest, the purplestep seeds for salt, and the sunberry leaves for the peppery taste.

He really wished he had water so he could wash these things, but alas. The only bright side was that there didn’t seem like there was pollution here, so even if there were dust and dirt, it probably wouldn’t give him a stomachache.

That said, he had always been proud of his strong stomach that could eat anything. Not to mention, he did not forget his [Strong Stomach] passive.

That said, the vine really did have a nice-smelling gel inside. It was like lemony-aloe vera, though when he tasted it, there were quite a few differences. Still, it was a citrus source, even if just the taste and acidity.

For the sunberry leaves and the purplestep seeds, he used a mortar and pestle (which was also available in the kitchen). It took him about half an hour to prepare everything. These would be his add-ons for the meat later.

He peeked at the traps, and there were still no animals there. He thought for a moment and added a dollop of the remaining sunberry jam he had made in each place (he hid a bit more in his space for his own use, because Pang was greedy for it).

Finally, he dragged out one of the lighter chairs by the door, kept the door open, and positioned it facing the traps so he’d hear if it had been activated.

He waited, and waited… though his eyelids felt heavy before he could hear anything.

And then he fell asleep.

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