Grade D Cooking

After completing the transaction, the old man leaned on his cane and personally saw Tong Hua to the ranch gate.

Orthworm and Bounsweet were already at Tong Hua's side, ready to head back to Fairy Tale Ranch with him.

Tong Hua had spent a total of ten thousand League Coins on this trip! He really hadn't understood how expensive everyday necessities were until he had to run a household himself. His savings of 128,000 had looked like a lot, but now he felt that even buying food alone would eat through them in a month or two.

Tong Hua sat on Orthworm with the three little Pokémon and waved goodbye to the old man.

"Thank you for lending me Orthworm. I'll bring him back soon!"

Standing at the ranch gate with his cane, the old man smiled, then called Tong Hua back and handed him the whistle hanging around his neck.

"Orthworm sometimes gets lost underground. If you can't find him, blow this whistle. He'll come home on his own.

"Oh, and give your grandfather my regards."

After saying goodbye to the old man, Tong Hua headed west with the Pokémon.

Watching Orthworm's figure recede into the distance, the old man's eyes grew moist, and he sighed with feeling.

"Another new generation. The village really is getting better and better. Do your best, young man!"

After experiencing both rides firsthand, Tong Hua found that Orthworm was far steadier than a horse-drawn carriage.

How could he put it? Orthworm had plenty of body hairs along both sides that could serve as legs, allowing him to maintain a steady height as he moved.

He wasn't slow, either-roughly twice as fast as the carriage. From the sidelines, he probably looked like a bus.

When he returned to Fairy Tale Ranch, Tong Hua was surprised to find a Pelipper standing at his front door.

"What's going on?" Tong Hua quickly jumped off Orthworm. Turtwig and Minccino followed him, staring at Pelipper in equal confusion.

Pelipper watched Tong Hua approach with sharp, anxious eyes. Beside the Pokémon sat a bag of meat and assorted fruits and vegetables.

"Gwah!"

The huge beak suddenly opened, as though Pelipper was trying to intimidate him-or show him something.

Tong Hua leaned closer and saw a bag of rice, a container of oil, and several bottles of seasonings tucked inside the deep, pouchlike beak.

They were exactly the things he had bought at the market that morning.

"So that's what she meant by having someone deliver it..." The image of the plump woman making an OK sign surfaced in Tong Hua's mind.

"Actually, it makes sense. In plenty of works from my previous life, Pelipper was either the mainstay of a rain team or a mail carrier."

After taking everything out of Pelipper's beak, Tong Hua also found several complimentary bottles of purified water and a note inside.

To his surprise, he could actually read the writing. The gist was that Pelipper would stop by every few days from now on. If he wanted to buy anything else, he could hand over a shopping list along with the correct amount of money.

A price list had also been included with the note.

"Home delivery, huh? Not bad! Now that's thoughtful service!"

Tong Hua casually filled a cup with fresh Moomoo Milk from the metal can by the door and poured it into Pelipper's beak.

"Consider this your tip. Thanks for the hard work."

"Gwah!" After drinking the milk, Pelipper's sharp eyes curved into happy crescents. The Pokémon flapped a few times and flew away.

Tong Hua opened the door, and the little Pokémon helped carry the supplies into the kitchen. Hearing the commotion at the entrance, Miltank came rolling toward him from inside the house.

"Milu!" Miltank's voice trembled slightly, as though she had just been crying.

"All right, all right. Settle down." Tong Hua caught the rolling Miltank and gently stroked the spot between the two little horns on her head.

"I know, I know. You're hungry, right? Sorry for leaving you shut up at home alone for so long..."

Seeing Miltank's aggrieved expression, Tong Hua immediately felt a little guilty. Then he remembered the village chief saying that her mood affected the quality of her milk. Not daring to delay, he hurriedly took her out to the pasture.

"Milu!"

Eating sweet grass, breathing fresh air, and rolling freely around the pasture finally cheered Miltank up again!

"Milu, milu~"

"Be careful not to hit the fence when you're rolling around!"

Watching Miltank roll energetically all over the pasture, Tong Hua suddenly remembered Ash's thirty Tauros from the anime...

They had so much energy that Professor Oak and Tracey had to repair the fences every few days.

"Oh, right. I still need to visit the carpenter's shop tomorrow. I'd better patch up the fences and the Pokémon shelter soon."

Tong Hua silently went over the work ahead of him. First, he had to till the fields, then plant the spring crops, then repair the fences and shelter.

After that, there was still the fruit grove behind the cabin. It didn't need much tending, but he would still have to water and fertilize it every few days.

And according to the old man at Sunshine Ranch, he would have to rely on fishing as well as farming during the ranch's early days...

"When I put it that way, there's actually quite a lot to do. And I have to milk Miltank every morning, too..."

Tong Hua suddenly felt that running a ranch might not be as easy as he had imagined...

On his way back to the cabin, Tong Hua passed the abandoned field behind it and saw that Orthworm had already begun working the soil.

Orthworm's tilling method was simple and brutal: burrow into the ground, then charge straight ahead! Once he reached the end, he turned around and charged back!

His thick body raced underground! As he turned over the soil, his steel body smashed the larger rocks to pieces, gradually loosening the earth.

Rows of planting beds quickly took shape in the field. His efficiency was astonishing.

"He's amazing..." Watching the soil turn over at incredible speed, Tong Hua estimated how long the work would take if he did it himself.

"I probably wouldn't finish even by next month..."

Besides Orthworm, Turtwig and Bounsweet also headed into the field to work. They collected smaller stones and lined them along both sides of each planting bed.

Even Minccino, who usually hated getting dirty, helped in a different way, neatly arranging the little stones bordering the beds one by one.

Watching the Pokémon work together so harmoniously, Tong Hua once again felt the beauty of the Pokémon world. Warmth filled his heart, and he decided to prepare a proper meal for the little ones.

"It's almost lunchtime anyway. Let me think. Orthworm likes eating soil, Miltank likes grass, and Bounsweet...

"Is there a dish everyone could enjoy together...?"

Standing in the kitchen, Tong Hua looked at the basket of ingredients before him and found himself stumped.

"First, the staple has to be rice. That really narrows down the options."

As he thought, Tong Hua opened the bag of rice and poured some into a wooden basin.

[Ordinary Polished Rice: Quality D. Polished rice with the bran and germ removed. Soft and tender in texture, but with severe nutrient loss. Recommended processing methods (cooking/alchemy).]

After rinsing the rice once with the purified water he had bought, he collected the rice water and replaced it with fresh water. Then he could put it in the pot, cover it, and steam the rice.

One thing to keep in mind was that clean, purified water had to be used to rinse rice. The grains absorbed some water during washing, so using anything else could worsen the texture of the steamed rice.

Tong Hua vigorously rubbed the grains in the basin, making sure every last trace of surface dust was washed away.

Having been independent since childhood, he handled chores like these with ease.

He lit a fire in the stove, and wisps of cooking smoke began rising from the cabin's chimney again.

"Oh, right. Why not make Curry Rice from Pokémon Sword and Shield? I think any Pokémon can eat that."

As luck would have it, Tong Hua had bought Curry Roux Cubes among his seasonings. They were easy to cook with, much like instant noodles: boil the water, then add the cubes and prepared ingredients and let them simmer.

Tong Hua cut up some meat, carrots, and potatoes, then prepared some boiled eggs and onions.

First, he heated oil in a pot. Once it was hot, he stir-fried the onions until translucent, then added the chunks of meat and kept stirring.

Once the meat changed color, he could add the chopped tomatoes and potatoes. After another brief stir-fry, he poured in enough water to cover the ingredients and left everything to simmer.

The aromas of rice and curry filled the cabin. Tong Hua opened the window, letting the Pokémon outside catch the scent as well.

"Chi, chi!" "Turt!" "Milu!" "Ama!" "Worm!"

The Pokémon all raised their heads, followed the aroma, and called loudly to Tong Hua.

"Just a little longer! Lunch will be ready soon!" Tong Hua brought a table outside, deciding to enjoy the meal outdoors with the Pokémon.

"This almost feels like camping."

A little over ten minutes later, the steamed rice and cooked curry were ready!

The curry sauce, filled with chunks of meat and vegetables, was poured over the piping-hot rice! A halved soft-boiled egg completed the dish! It looked, smelled, and tasted wonderful-enough to make anyone's mouth water!

[Meat-Gravy Curry: Quality D. A rich, full-bodied Japanese-style curry made with a meat-broth base. Smooth in texture, with layered flavors.]

[Effects: Crafting power boost · minor, experience boost · minor. After consumption, slightly increases crafting power and experience gained during production tasks. Duration: 30 minutes.]

[Evaluation: A nutritionally balanced dish. Perhaps different ingredient combinations could also be tried.]

[Recommended processing method (alchemy).]