Chapter 132: Water

Ethan polished off his piece in a few quick bites and smiled. "We can use this beeswax to make desserts."

"The beastmen have been doing that for ages, meow."

"Really?" Ethan cut a few more pieces and offered them around.

"Have some more."

Nobody could refuse the offer. Fire Bee honey and honeycomb were delicious even without any cooking, if the ingredient was this good raw, the best approach was to keep the preparation simple and let the original flavor shine.

’Honeycomb ice cream, maybe?’

"Putting honeycomb on ice cream, meow? Sounds good, meow~"

Because Fire Bee honeycomb contained fire-attribute energy, eating too much could cause internal heat, pairing it with cool, refreshing ice cream would balance that out perfectly.

"I also want to try something else..."

Eyeing the full bucket of honey and comb, Ethan decided to extract the honey first, he found a piece of cheesecloth, wrapped the honeycomb inside, and squeezed hard.

Just then, a booming voice rang out from the doorway. "Wow~! What a fragrant smell!"

Vargan strode in carrying a bundle of iron rods on one shoulder. The moment he spotted the honey extraction in progress, his eyes lit up. "So much honey!"

"I’ve started beekeeping. What brings you by today?"

"Oh, I came to deliver animal hides, went hunting a while back and harvested quite a few monster pelts."

"That’s great." Monster hides were tough and versatile, Ethan could also trade them with Elara for wool or yarn.

Vargan set the pelts aside and waved at Liora. "Who is this little girl?"

"I haven’t had the chance to introduce you yet, this is the newest member of our cabin — the World Tree, Liora."

Liora raised her small hand in polite greeting.

Vargan raised his own hand and shook hers, then asked, puzzled, "The World Tree?"

"Yeah."

"No matter how I look at her, she’s just a human little girl, right?"

"The World Tree is supposed to be like this, meow~"

"Is that so?" Vargan wagged his large, fluffy tail and shook his head, he didn’t seem interested in why the World Tree looked human, the Fire Bee honey, on the other hand, had his full attention.

"Can I have a taste?"

"Of course, if you want honeycomb, just grab a piece."

"Ah, I prefer drinking honey."

"Oh? Why is that?"

"Because honeycomb gets stuck in my teeth." Vargan opened his mouth, revealing rows of sharp canines.

Ethan ladled out a bowl of honey and handed it over.

Vargan took the bowl and drank while watching the scene around the cabin, Ethan extracting honey, Zharok chopping wood, Pearl and Liora bottling the harvest, a warm, busy tableau.

"What’s wrong?"

"Nothing, just thinking that your life here is truly something to envy."

"Want to help out? Then go give Zharok a hand."

"You got it." Vargan smiled and walked over to Zharok, who had just been muttering about needing more hands. Together they hauled timber.

Ethan stored the extracted honey in the cabinet, then took out flour and began kneading dough.

Seeing the dough, Pearl and Liora cheered instantly.

"We’re not making bread today."

"Meow... What is it then, meow?"

"You’ll know in a bit." Ethan smiled and patted their heads, he covered the kneaded dough with a damp cloth and set it near the stove to rise, the warmth from the fire would help the yeast do its work. First proofing — the most important step for a good crust.

Once the dough had risen, he took it out, kneaded it again, and set it aside for a second proofing, by the time he finished his other chores, the sky was growing dark, back in the cabin, everyone was already waiting for dinner.

"What are we eating today, meow?"

"Gorgonzola pizza and steak."

"What is Gorgonzola pizza?" Zharok, Vargan, and Pearl all wore blank expressions.

Ethan started to explain, then decided it would be faster to just show them. "You guys rest for a bit."

Once everyone was seated, he took out the proofed dough and rolled it into a flat circle with a rolling pin, he brushed a sauce of honey, minced garlic, and butter across the base, then sprinkled a generous layer of cheese over the top.

"Looks delicious."

"Just wait, almost there." He slid the pizza into the oven.

A few minutes later, the fragrant pizza was done.

[Delicious Gorgonzola Pizza]

[A delicious pizza baked with a thin crust, paired with a sweet and savory honey-garlic sauce and rich cheese. Crispy and flavorful.]

[Delicious Effect: Grants Cold Resistance upon consumption.]

[Delicious Effect: Increases all attributes by +2 upon first consumption.]

[Delicious Effect: Increases all attributes by +2 for 48 hours upon consumption.]

[Crafting Difficulty: ★★★★]

Ethan brought the golden-brown pizza to the table.

Everyone reached for it at once, but Ethan stopped them. "Wait a moment."

The cheese needed to cool and set slightly so it could stretch properly, they had no choice but to stare at the pizza, swallowing hard.

After a short while, Ethan picked up a slice and lifted it gently, the cooled cheese pulled into a long, gooey string.

"Here, try it." He distributed the slices, then brought out the honey he had prepared earlier and poured it into small saucers.

Everyone looked at the pizza in front of them, unsure how to start.

"It tastes even better dipped in honey," Ethan said.

"Ohhh! I’m digging in!!" Vargan was first. He bit into the stretchy cheese, then crunched through the crisp crust. The sweet honey spread in his mouth, mixing with the rich cheese and the savory, spicy sauce, finally, the satisfying crunch of the crust. Every flavor hit at once, his tail wagged so hard it slapped against the chair.

"Delicious, meow~!" Pearl couldn’t help but praise, the others nodded in agreement.

Zharok and Liora dug in as well. Liora ate with both hands, small bites, her cheeks flushing from the garlic and spice, she reached for a second slice before finishing her first.

Watching them eat with such relish, Ethan turned back to the oven. "There’s still plenty of dough, so eat to your heart’s content."

Plenty of cheese and other ingredients, too, he noted with a smile that the Elven Kingdom spices he had brought back blended perfectly with the honey-garlic sauce.

’Would pizza alone be too monotonous?’ To round things out, he also cooked a few thick steaks, seared until the outside was dark and caramelized, and prepared refreshing juice to cut through the richness.

Everyone sat with a slice of pizza in each hand, faces bright with satisfaction, Ethan smiled. "Seems my cooking has improved again."

After the hearty dinner, Vargan rubbed his round belly, took a sip of juice, and sighed. "Every time I come here, I get to eat like a king."

"I’m glad you like it."

"Right, didn’t you mention before that you were looking for carbonated drinks?"

Ethan remembered — he had brought this up with Vargan some time ago. "You remembered? Yes, I’ve been looking."

"I don’t know what a carbonated drink is, but I found a type of water that makes your throat tingle when you drink it."

"Water that bubbles?"

"Yeah."

"That should be carbonated water, where did you find it?"