Chapter 67: Roast Chicken

Chapter 67: Chapter 67: Roast Chicken

[Serious Kitten]: When I opened the door, it hadn’t pulled its hand back yet. It seemed startled too and disappeared in the blink of an eye. Then I saw a toolbox left in front of my door—a D-level one.

Seraphina Sinclair grew more and more confused as she read, but she latched onto a key point.

[Blacktiger Ford]: Did you use Insight on it?

[Serious Kitten]: I was in total shock at the time. My mind went blank, and I forgot I could use Insight.

’The specific details are unclear, but it’s definitely a non-hostile monster. And it gives things to survivors?’

’Is it really giving gifts?’

The more Seraphina Sinclair thought about it, the more puzzled she became. She even started to wonder if the monster had broken something belonging to these survivors and was leaving the toolboxes as compensation.

’But that doesn’t add up either. Who has D-level items in their mobile cabin right now?’

Seraphina Sinclair shook her head and decided not to overthink it. It was enough just to know that such things were happening.

’Come to think of it, after this trade is done, I’ll have enough Expansion Crystals to upgrade the mobile cabin.’

Seraphina Sinclair rubbed her face to perk herself up, then opened the panel and navigated to the mobile cabin upgrade page.

[Current Mobile Cabin Level: Level 1 (Max Level for current tier is Level 3!)]

[Current Mobile Cabin Quality: Bronze]

[Black Mist Incursions per 100 sunshine of travel (Current): Three! (Next Level): Three!]

[Current Cabin Configuration: 10 square meters! Small Wooden Bed x1! Glass Window x1! Wooden Door x1! (Next Level Cabin Configuration: 15 square meters! Two-meter Wooden Bed x1! Table and Chair Set x1! Sturdy Wooden Door x1! Reinforced Window x1!)]

[Mobile Cabin Upgrade Conditions Met!]

[Upgrade?]

Upgrading was the whole reason Seraphina Sinclair had opened this page, so she unhesitatingly pressed "Yes"!

The panel closed automatically, and a new notification popped up.

[Upgrade estimated to be complete by 8:00 AM tomorrow. Please wait patiently!]

’8:00 AM tomorrow?’

Seraphina Sinclair remembered when this page had first appeared: it was the morning of the day after she had finished upgrading the Sunflower.

’It seems to be a fixed time.’

That matter was settled. Now...

Seraphina Sinclair rubbed her rumbling stomach and sighed. It was finally time for lunch.

It was already almost two o’clock. The water filter had been dripping away for nearly an hour.

’If I cook now... it’ll be a long time before I can eat.’

Just thinking about it made Seraphina Sinclair feel drained of all energy.

She frowned and pulled a meal ticket from her Silver Moon Earrings.

’I have thirty of them. I might as well use one.’

She held the ticket by its sides with both hands and gave it a gentle tear.

The moment the paper split, a brilliant golden light shot out from the tear.

Seraphina Sinclair instinctively closed her eyes. When she opened them again, an exquisite, black-lacquered food box sat on the floor before her.

The food box was only the size of her palm. Seraphina Sinclair frowned. ’How can anything delicious fit in something this small?’

As she thought this, she tentatively lifted the lid. The motion seemed to trigger some mechanism; the box began to unfold, layer by layer, transforming into a sumptuous meal set, complete with a set of dining instructions.

Seraphina Sinclair’s eyes scanned over the various dishes, finally locking onto the main course in the center, completely unable to look away.

It was a whole roasted chicken, golden-brown all over, its skin glistening and crisp, exuding a tempting aroma.

The side dishes were quite exquisite as well.

There was a plate of bright green stir-fried lettuce and a bowl of steaming-hot mushroom soup.

The soup’s broth was crystal clear yet intensely fragrant, with that authentic aroma of mushrooms that made one’s mouth water just from the smell.

There was also a small dish of perfectly pickled vegetables, their red and white colors making them particularly inviting.

Normally, Seraphina Sinclair wouldn’t have given such a thing a second glance, but where was she now?

’This stuff would cause an uproar if I took it out, wouldn’t it?’

At the very edge sat a bowl of translucent white rice, each grain plump and full.

’Perfect.’

’This is truly perfect.’

Afraid there might be a hidden catch, Seraphina Sinclair made a point to read the instructions first.

The instructions emphasized one key point: the food box and utensils would be collected, but the food belonged to the survivor.

Additionally, the dining time was two hours. Rice was available in unlimited refills, but you had to finish your current bowl to get the next one.

If the food wasn’t finished, it had to be dealt with within the specified time, or it would be collected along with everything else.

This meant... after Seraphina Sinclair finished her current bowl of rice, she could ask for another one and save it for dinner.

’This is rice we’re talking about!’

In her past life, she would have been too embarrassed to do something like this at a restaurant, but... now, she really had no choice!

Seraphina Sinclair took a deep breath before finally picking up the matching ebony chopsticks.

The instant the tips of the chopsticks touched the chicken’s crispy skin, a faint CRACK sounded. A fine fissure split the golden skin, and scalding juices immediately gushed out.

She hurriedly caught the drippings with her bowl. The amber-colored juices pooled at the bottom, glistening with an inviting sheen.

"This is just too over-the-top..."

Seraphina Sinclair muttered under her breath, taking a bite without worrying about the heat.

The moment her teeth pierced the crispy skin, a rich flavor, a mixture of honey and spices, exploded in her mouth.

In that instant, her entire body froze.

’Over-the-top?’

’Not over-the-top at all!’

Right now, Seraphina Sinclair wished she could swallow the chopsticks along with the food!

Normally, Seraphina Sinclair’s appetite would have her maxed out at one bowl of rice. But this meal was so delicious that she polished off two full bowls with the side dishes and devoured the entire roasted chicken down to the bone before stopping.

When a system notification reminded her that only half an hour of dining time remained, Seraphina Sinclair stared blankly at her empty rice bowl.

She suddenly realized it was the first time since she’d transmigrated that the heavy, satisfying feeling in her stomach had outweighed her ever-present anxiety.

Seraphina Sinclair shook her head, requested another bowl of rice, brought over her small iron pot, and scraped the remaining dishes and the new rice into it.

’And just like that, dinner is taken care of, isn’t it?’

A genuine smile spread across Seraphina Sinclair’s face, but as she went to put the chopsticks back, she felt a pang of reluctance...

After using real chopsticks, she was even more aware of how difficult her own handmade ones were to use.

’It’d be great if they didn’t collect these chopsticks and this bowl.’

’But then again, if a Complete Tool Box exists, couldn’t a complete kitchenware set exist too?’

’Aren’t there complete sets of other things?’

Frowning, Seraphina Sinclair opened the trade channel and did a search.

Such items were also extremely rare; none had appeared yet.

She sighed, put away the food for her dinner, and glanced at the time. It was past three.

’Hmm... It’s getting late.’

’But today is the first day after the end of the novice protection period. I definitely need to be fully prepared before moving.’

’I’ve sold almost all of the Fire Drawing Runes. I should at least make another twenty or so before I move, right?’

...

Seraphina Sinclair placed the last completed Fire Drawing Rune into her Silver Moon Earrings. The smell of gasoline still lingered on her fingertips.

She counted them. In just over an hour, she had only made thirteen runes. It was still short of her goal, but time waits for no one.