Chapter 50: Glowing Fish Soup

Chapter 50: Chapter 50: Glowing Fish Soup

Only then did she feel relieved enough to go wash her face in the bathroom. Seraphina was still uneasy about having had the black water on her face.

After cleaning up, she returned to the mobile cabin.

Practice makes perfect. Now she just needed to repeat the same trick!

Seraphina had her Silver Moon Earrings, which were like a small refrigerator, only much more powerful. Of course, she had to take this opportunity to stock up!

Until dusk, Seraphina repeated the cycle of luring, catching, and killing the Blackmist Silverfish, stuffing each one into her Silver Moon Earrings.

During this time, a few Black Mist Catfish with a death wish also leaped out of the water, tails flailing as they thrashed about, trying to slap Seraphina across the face. Seraphina dealt with them, too.

In the end, there were almost no visible fish left in the sky-lake. Or maybe the remaining ones had gotten smart and wouldn’t come near this area again.

Seraphina used the light from a glowing fish swim bladder to take a careful look. Only after confirming there were no more fish did she close the wooden door.

She sat on the floor to inspect her haul. A total of five Black Mist Catfish and thirteen Blackmist Silverfish! What a catch!

The catfish were best for roasting, while the silverfish were for stewing. You could even eat the silverfish bones. She could try some tonight!

Now...

Seraphina glanced at the time. It was already past eight, and the sky had grown dark.

’What a busy day.’

Seraphina started a fire and added some water to her pot.

’The Blackmist Silverfish...’

’How should I prepare it?’

Seraphina held the Blackmist Silverfish, turning it over and examining it.

In the firelight, the fish’s scales shimmered with a mother-of-pearl luster. With death, its gills had gradually turned a dark red.

After a moment’s hesitation, she decided to decompose one first to see what kind of processing options the system would offer.

[Decompose "Blackmist Silverfish (E+ Level)"?]

[Yes/No]

She chose "Yes."

The Blackmist Silverfish in her hand dissolved into a faint glimmer of light, and a system notification immediately popped up:

[Acquired: Black Fog Silverfish Meat ×2 (E+ Level)]

[Description: Pure fish meat! A top-tier ingredient for soups. Can also be eaten raw for a unique minty flavor!]

[Acquired: Complete Silverfish Bone ×1 (E-level)]

[Description: A precious material for crafting underwater equipment. As for its current use... oh, you haven’t earned the right to know yet.]

[Acquired: Silverfish Mucus ×5ml (E-level)]

[Description: A precious material! Specific use currently unknown!]

The uses for two of the items were unknown.

Only the meat was edible.

Seraphina raised an eyebrow and inspected the resulting items.

The two pieces of fish meat were as translucent as jelly, and the fish bone was as clear as a crystal artifact, refracting a rainbow of colors in the firelight. It was obviously no ordinary material.

The water in the pot was already boiling, bubbling noisily.

After a moment’s hesitation, Seraphina tossed one piece of the meat into the pot, keeping the other in her hand.

The Insight Skill mentioned a "cool, mint-like sensation" if eaten raw, which sparked her curiosity.

"I’ll try the raw one first..." She carefully took a small bite.

The instant the meat touched her tongue, a cooling sensation exploded from the tip, spreading rapidly throughout her entire mouth.

Seraphina froze...

’A familiar taste...’

’Familiar! So familiar!’

Seraphina quickly realized what it was. It tasted just like a Healing Potion!

’How strange.’

One was a solid and the other a liquid, yet they tasted exactly the same.

Unable to resist, Seraphina took another small bite. After confirming that the two things really did taste identical, she finally couldn’t help but wonder aloud, "Don’t tell me this is where the ingredients for Healing Potions come from?"

’Could it be the Silverfish Mucus?’

Based on what she knew so far, Seraphina deduced that there must be many other professions in this world; Talisman Maker was surely just one of them.

And she could guess that potion making was definitely another profession.

’If that’s the case... I probably won’t unlock the use for this Silverfish Mucus until I get a Potion recipe.’

’But can one person learn two professions?’

Seraphina stopped her baseless speculation.

She put the rest of the fish meat into the pot. She had already tasted it, so now it was better to prepare the rest using the method recommended by her Insight. ’Anyway, I’m just cooking for myself, so using an ingredient I’ve already taken a bite out of is fine. I don’t mind.’

Seraphina squatted by the pot, staring eagerly at the bubbling broth.

"How is this fish... Huh? How did it just dissolve?"

She watched, wide-eyed, as the Blackmist Silverfish slowly dissolved in the boiling water. She had thought it would cook bit by bit, but instead, the meat simply melted away, turning the entire pot of water a milky white, as thick as a bone broth that had been simmering for hours.

"Ridiculous..."

Seraphina muttered the complaint, but she was actually happy. After all, it looked pretty good.

But just as a smile appeared, the corners of her lips fell again.

Something even more ridiculous happened: the soup actually started to glow.

That’s right. It was literally glowing.

The surface of the milky broth shimmered with a pearlescent luster, making it stand out in the dim mobile cabin.

As the broth bubbled, a crisp, clean aroma wafted out. It didn’t smell like fish soup, but more like a delicacy from some high-end restaurant.

Looking at the glowing fish soup, Seraphina felt a mix of disbelief and temptation, the aroma making her unconsciously swallow.

After a moment of silence, she picked up the wooden spoon she had carved and gave the soup a stir.

"GROWL."

Her stomach rumbled in agreement.

"Oh, whatever. Who cares? I’ll just have a sip and see!"

She ladled out a spoonful, blew on it, and took a careful sip.

"...Huh?"

The moment the soup touched the tip of her tongue, a savory-sweet flavor exploded in her mouth. It was rich but not heavy, with a refreshingly sweet aftertaste.

The fish meat had completely dissolved into the soup, giving it a silky-smooth texture. It was like drinking a sip of concentrated umami essence.

What was even more amazing was that after she swallowed, her body began to warm up slightly, as if a warm current was spreading from her stomach to her entire body.

’This is incredible.’

Seraphina’s eyes widened. "This stuff... it doesn’t have a special effect, does it? Didn’t the description say it had none?"

She quickly opened the system to check. After a careful look, she confirmed that there really wasn’t one.

’Hmm... Was it just my imagination?’

Seraphina didn’t dwell on it. If the system said there was nothing, then there was nothing.

Seraphina picked up the small pot and downed the entire fish soup in one go.

The milky broth slid down her throat, and warmth spread from her stomach throughout her body, even making her fingertips tingle with heat.

She licked her lips, wanting more. It was, without a doubt, the most delicious thing she had eaten since arriving in this world.

’The effect is still pretty amazing,’ she thought. ’It probably just doesn’t meet the system’s threshold to be considered a "special effect."’

After eating her fill, she paced around the mobile cabin a few times to help with digestion.

With nothing else to do, she idly opened the regional chat channel to have a look.

The first message was from someone she knew.

[Pretty Guardian]: This is huge, everyone! I got some majorly, majorly, MAJORLY useful intel!