The weather in the Great Forest was the same as always-torrential rain. It was the rainy season.
Last night, Kishirika Nucadia had wanted to thank Cui Ciyou for "rescuing" him.
He had also wanted to show everyone the cooking skills he took such pride in. Pulling out all the stops, he had prepared a lavish dinner.
Most of the ingredients were staples of the Beastfolk's daily diet:
Fresh mushrooms of all kinds gathered from the forest, sweet-and-tart wild fruit, tender vegetables carrying the scent of earth, and cleaned cuts of monster meat...
Under Keith's deft hands, those ingredients seemed to come alive.
After he marinated ordinary monster meat and roasted it with precise control of the heat, it became wonderfully fragrant, with a browned crust and abundant juices.
The fresh forest vegetables that the Beastfolk usually ate raw or simply boiled were cleverly paired with unusual spices he had brought from Zant Port, or drizzled with his homemade sweet-and-sour sauce. Their flavor instantly rose several notches.
He had even prepared an "otherworldly fruit salad" made from assorted chopped wild fruits mixed with the sweet, refreshing juice of some plant. Refreshing and perfect for cutting through the richness of the meal, it was a huge hit.
Even Cui Ciyou had to admit that Keith's cooking far surpassed that of most "chefs" he had encountered in this world!
He was even better than the cooks serving the nobles at the Boreas estate.
Alice and Sylphy ate until their little mouths shone with grease and their cheeks bulged with food. Their eyes curved into happy crescents as they showered him with praise.
"Mmm... delicious!"
"These grilled speckled mushrooms smell so much better than the ones at Grandpa Chief's house!"
"And this! These red berries with venison taste so different!"
Alice loudly praised the