In the Leaky Cauldron's kitchen, Cedric pulled on his Dragonhide Gloves—a pair that had never once done the job they were meant for and were fast becoming ornaments—and hauled a tray out of the oven.
He couldn't help it. The gloves were too useful. A thin layer of leather kept the scorching heat off his hands without getting in his fingers' way. Cedric loved them.
Truth be told, he liked this Kitchen too.
Everything looked like it belonged to the last century, but add magic and it was another story.
Even a top-of-the-line smart Kitchen from the twenty-first century couldn't measure up to this fully automated setup.
If he didn't feel like cooking himself, one flick of his wand could put a whole meal on the table.
An entirely British meal, though.
That was the one shortcoming. If Cedric ever put together a Kitchen of his own, he'd want it to make at least French cuisine, if not Chinese.
But he was getting ahead of himself.
With what little he had in his pockets and a debt of 16,200 Galleons—12,000 for his wand and 4,200 in student loans—there was no point thinking about that now.
Better to focus on the food.
A tempting roasted aroma spread through the Kitchen. Cedric and Xuanling, perched on his shoulder, stared eagerly at the leaves on the tray.
Cedric took off his gloves, picked up a leaf, and gently snapped it between his fingers.
It didn't make much of a crunch.
That was the nature of Venomous Fang Cabbage. No amount of roasting would make it crisp. Unless Cedric could somehow build a freeze-dryer himself, anyway. That might give it some crunch.
Still, it had turned out pretty well.
Roasting it slowly over low heat had drawn out most of the moisture. Combined with the way his passive Craftsman's Hand brought out the best in the ingredients, the heat and seasoning were spot-on, pushing the dried cabbage's flavor as far as it could go.
By looks and by touch, this tray was more than a little better than the Venomous Fang Cabbage he'd flash-fried over high heat.
The Eye of Insight delivered the verdict that mattered most.
[Fragrant Roasted Venomous Fang Cabbage] Effect: Eating it grants [Surging Magic E] for ten minutes and awards the host an additional 10 Enhancement Points.
Judging by its effects alone, the roasted version had beaten the flash-fried one.
Surging Magic had gone up a grade, its duration had doubled, and the Enhancement Points it awarded had reached 10.
At the sight of that line, an idea struck Cedric.
The right cooking method could increase the Enhancement Points he extracted from an ingredient.
That meant if he wanted the most points for the least money, his best bet was to work out the ideal way to cook every new ingredient he got and squeeze every last point out of it.
"So I'm developing recipes? That actually sounds pretty fun." Cedric looked at the dried leaf in his hand, then popped it into his mouth.
"Hmm. The seasoning's right, but the bitterness is still strong. Blanching it before roasting might take that out, but then I'd have to roast it longer... No, that won't work. Venomous Fang Cabbage leaves are so thin. Roast them too long and the texture will be ruined."
Cedric chewed the leaf, ate a few more, and pocketed his 10 Enhancement Points while he considered how to improve the recipe.
Xuanling was nearly frantic watching him.
If the raven hadn't still been wary of Cedric, Xuanling would have buried his entire beak in the tray and started pecking to his heart's content.
The roasted cabbage smelled even more irresistible than it had back in the room!
"Hmm? What smells so good?" Ron, the pub owner, had come to check that Cedric wasn't causing trouble in the Kitchen. But the moment he reached the doorway and caught a whiff, his eyes lit up.
It smelled far better than anything Ron could produce with Kitchen magic.
"You made this?" Ron hurried over to Cedric and eyed the fragrant cabbage on the tray, looking ravenous. "Can I try some?"
"Please, help yourself. I should be thanking you for lending me the Kitchen." Cedric gestured toward the tray.
"Then I won't pretend to refuse." Ron beckoned, and a clean fork floated into his hand. He speared a leaf and put it in his mouth.
The next second, his eyes bulged in disbelief.
"This... this is bloody delicious!" Ron sounded like a ham actor in a cheap commercial. His hand kept moving, forking leaf after leaf into his mouth.
Watching his feast disappear, Xuanling squawked in outrage. He looked ready to jump onto Ron's head and yank out the few hairs he had left.
Luckily, Cedric caught the ruffled raven before Ron lost what little he had up there.
To placate the black-feathered fellow, Cedric snatched a leaf off the tray and held it to Xuanling's beak.
Xuanling pecked it down in no time. A dreamy, drunken look came into his eyes, exactly like the one on Ron's face.
The two of them looked as if they'd been dosed with something potent.
Cedric wasn't surprised.
The first time he'd tasted food made with his Craftsman's Hand out in the wild, he'd gone just as crazy.
It was much like the "drugging" effect in Food Wars! Even Cedric had been dazed for a while afterward, let alone Xuanling and Ron, who had never experienced anything like it.
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