As a gourmet, one does not become disheartened by minor setbacks on the path to culinary excellence, nor does one get angry when sharing food with others—provided, of course, that they don't devour everything without leaving a single bite. So, after a brief moment of disappointment, the young dragon resumed its previous tasks: hunting, cutting the meat, and then roasting it. By the time the sun was setting, it had prepared another serving of "Charcoal-Grilled Dragon Meat with Shellfish Juice."
A semi-solid, milky-white chilled foie gras sauce was spread over the roasted meat, followed by a sprinkling of powdered elf deer antlers, much like chocolate shavings on ice cream. The combination of the fiery dragon meat, infused with the essence of shellfish and seafood, and the cold, tender foie gras was simply divine. The alternating extremes of hot and cold flavors wreaked havoc in the mouth, eventually blending into a rich, savory broth that rolled down the throat. This was the ultimate reward for all its hard work—the only issue being that the previous portion had been stolen by a thief!
The young dragon began to contemplate moving. Having a food thief around was simply terrifying. Fortunately, it discovered an island at a distance from the shore that could serve as a new home (note). There were creatures with spongy flesh there, though it had yet to figure out how to prepare them or which parts to eat. The island also had elf deer and herbivorous dragons, so sourcing ingredients for "Charcoal-Grilled Dragon Meat with Shellfish Juice and Chilled Foie Gras" wouldn't be difficult. The only downside was that it was farther from the hunters, making it a bit harder to obtain dairy products.
"Charcoal-grilled dragon meat, seasoned with shellfish juice, without salt, using the unique flavors of seafood to enhance the complexity of the meat?" The head chef crossed his arms as he listened to the report from the one-handed hunter. "Quite an imaginative cook," he remarked. As a veteran of the first fleet, he had opened the Weapons and Lynx Pavilion after retiring. "But wouldn't that leave the dish with a strong fishy taste?" "Yes, that's true. At the time, I was so hungry I didn't notice, but afterward, I did feel the flavors were quite muddled."
"Hmm, in that case, the cook likely has other seasoning methods. What you ate wasn't the final product. From your description, it seems they also prepared fruits and refreshing chunks of cactus as backups. There must be further steps in the process. What you had was a work in progress." The chef's analysis was close to the young dragon's final dish, which indeed included cactus chunks and a chilled foie gras sauce with fruit juice to balance the richness. "I'm really curious how they'll handle the final seasoning. Could you help me gather some herbivorous dragon meat and other ingredients? I'd like to experiment with new recipes and ingredients."
Meanwhile, Aibo quickly compiled the information at hand and handed a Mysterious Cuisine task list to White Wind. The task list, curated by the Hunter's Guild, included monster targets, gathering locations, terrain maps, and a wealth of other details. Behind every hunter's expedition was the hard work of countless guild support staff—scouting prey locations, mapping dens, setting traps, and using scent bombs to control the movement of the creatures.
After completing a hunt, there are still numerous tasks to handle, such as transporting the prey, retrieving arrows and discarded traps, and restocking the camp supply boxes. Therefore, if a hunt fails, relocating the target and replenishing supplies naturally require additional payment. This is why hunters lose so much money when they "get carted." In fact, even if they don't fail, they've already had necessary logistical costs deducted from their rewards beforehand—otherwise, do you really think a 20-meter-long Paolumu would yield fewer than 20 materials?
"Also, if possible, please deliver this dish to them. I'd really like to exchange some culinary insights with this chef." On this land, most hunters are only good at eating, so encountering someone with such creativity and talent in cooking has truly brought the head chef a sense of joy. He's eager to see the skills of this fellow cook. For gourmets and chefs, exchanging dishes doesn't require many words—just bring along one's masterpiece.
While the hunters continue to gather supplies and information for the Elder Dragon Crossing investigation, and while the White Wind trio is busy scouring the wasteland for the ingredients the head chef requested, the young dragon has already packed up and is preparing to move. Unlike other flying wyverns, it has specific needs for fire usage, smoke ventilation, drying, and smoking, making it difficult to find a suitable new lair. In the end, it had to fight a group of black cats and successfully claimed their home—a stone cave shaped like a seated cat, complete with cat ears and a built-in oven. Learning from the previous incident of having its food stolen, the young dragon has now set up numerous traps around the area.
The traps set by the young dragon were entirely different from those used by hunters—they were purely lethal. Since it didn't need to traverse the ground itself, it surrounded its lair with various deadly traps. Explosive mushrooms, demonic explosive mushrooms, and gunpowder herbs were mixed into explosive traps that thwarted the black cats' repeated attempts at ambushes. In the end, the cats had no choice but to accept that their home had been seized by a wyvern. Even their signature burrowing tactic met with rare failure. To prevent its ingredients from absorbing moisture, the young dragon not only laid flooring but also installed a door and wall hangings.
The flooring was made of mined ore and crystalline rock, laid thickly to provide a comfortable surface for rolling and scratching while effectively preventing moisture from the soil from spoiling its perishable ingredients. Over the next few days, it gradually moved its collected "treasures" into the new lair—items like ship planks, anchors, stolen hunter weapons, seasonings, smoked meats, and preserved plants.
By the time White Wind and his group arrived at the seaside, there was nothing left. The area was so clean it was as if their previous encounter had been nothing but an illusion. "Looks like they're really angry—they've even moved," Aibo remarked, hitting a sore spot. "It's all because of that gluttonous Sword and Shield leader!" White Wind was nearly at his wit's end with his two companions. One was like a ravenous Deviljho, constantly eating or on the way to eat, even while working. The other seemed reliable most of the time, with excellent hunting skills, experience, and teamwork, but almost always faltered at critical moments.
"Hmm, so they've moved? What a shame." The head chef wasn't surprised by this outcome, as any hunter who dared to do such a thing would've been chased down with a greatsword, stripped bare, and hung from a mast for an entire day. The mysterious chef likely felt similarly. If they had stolen and eaten a finished dish, it would've been a different story. As a chef, having diners and food enthusiasts appreciate your work is a joyous thing. But the problem arises when you've poured your heart and soul into crafting an incredibly complex dish, only to have someone devour the key ingredients before it's even complete... "Given what you did, this reaction is only natural. Hmm, it really is a pity. I would've loved to see what the finished dish would've tasted like."
The difference between that act and a finished dish is akin to spending immense effort building a house of cards. If, after completing it, someone admires it with you, you wouldn't regret it even if the tower eventually collapses. But there's another distinction: a house of cards is meant to be seen, while a dish is meant to be eaten. No matter how exquisite a dish is, it's meaningless if no one eats it. Therefore, the other party wouldn't be angry for that reason.
However, if it's a half-finished product, it's like your work being knocked down halfway through. All your effort is wasted without seeing the final result. It's akin to a farmer seeing their seedlings trampled, a shepherd witnessing their lambs killed, or an artist watching their unfinished painting torn apart. If these two hadn't run fast enough to avoid a confrontation, the head chef had every reason to believe that the mysterious chef, who could hunt so many ingredients and live alone in the wild, was no weakling—these two getting beaten up would've been entirely normal.
"Although I couldn't see the final product, I did improve upon this half-finished dish. Here, give it a try," the head chef said, presenting a plate of charcoal-grilled dragon meat seasoned with shellfish broth. "If grilled directly, the shellfish broth would evaporate and leave behind impurities, which didn't feel right. So, I marinated the meat with a bit of honey to soften it, then scored it and poured a clarified shellfish and shrimp broth mixed with starch over it. After a series of secret preparations, I feel there might still be some flaws. I'm really curious about what method was used for the final seasoning."
"I think it should be quite delicious now." "Hmm, this is something I can't discuss with you," the head chef said coolly, crossing his arms, indicating that he couldn't communicate with you gluttons who only know how to eat. "However, I do welcome any suggestions you might have." After all, hunters sometimes come up with quite constructive ideas, like a certain Aibo and a hunter from the Fourth Fleet who often propose some rather whimsical thoughts.
For example, using bizarre ingredients like meat marinated in the saliva of certain predatory wyverns—though using it directly is quite... questionable—the head chef felt it might be worth experimenting with, perhaps as a reference for aging other types of meat. There are many similar suggestions. Hunters sometimes bring back various meats and materials to see if they're edible and how they might be prepared. Some hunters even bring a bunch of random items and request "pot-cooking" to turn them into portable rations.
"Based on your description, the other party used giant pearl clams, which I don't have here. However, using local shellfish should be fine. The issue is that they need to be transported from the Old World, though they might also be found here. Keep an eye out during your field investigations," the head chef issued a new request. Hunters are generally eager to complete his tasks, as delicious cat food not only fills their stomachs but also effectively boosts their spirits and enhances their stamina—this is truly a world of gourmet cuisine, where eating can instantly improve one's abilities!
On the island, the settled young dragon embarked once more on a journey to find new delicacies and ingredients. Following the coastline, it flew towards the green fields to the west. Having eaten too many wild species, it might as well try some new ingredients. Especially with the recent drink experiments requiring a large quantity of wild fruits and plants, which were clearly insufficient in the wasteland. Moreover, the animals in the wasteland... to be honest, they were nearly all consumed by it and the fire dragon couple. Due to the lack of a fixed hunting ground, it had even encountered a few minor conflicts with the fire dragon couple—well, they couldn't catch up with it, so it easily shook them off. A new world police force was brewing...
"Whoosh!" The young dragon skimmed swiftly over the surface of the sea, its wake kicking up a long white spray behind it. It then pulled up sharply, the blue-green flames of its tail spreading out like six ribbons. Ahead, there seemed to be some sort of man-made vessel, with humans pointing at it and running quickly on the deck. However, this was of little concern to it. Unlike other dragons, it was not unfamiliar with humans; it knew them and understood them. Therefore, it was not frightened by the nervous and fearful attacks from humans, nor would it actively assault human outposts or nests—after all, in its understanding, humans possessed many weapons capable of bringing down even those "teachers" that could fly faster than itself.
Tian Hui increased its altitude, avoiding the ship and arcing in a semi-circle towards the giant tree. Clearly, its intrusion had provoked a strong reaction from the local "lord." Being not yet fully grown, its smaller body lacked the intimidation factor of a true Tian Hui dragon. As a result, a Yian Garuga took to the air, spewing highly toxic corrosive liquid and letting out a series of roars.
The first encounter left the young dragon somewhat flustered. It hastily climbed higher, circling above the Yian Garuga. Only after calming down a bit did it start to ponder why it was being attacked and how to respond. Its intelligence granted it ample capacity for thought and strategy, but it also meant it wasn't driven purely by instinct like most beasts, making its reactions slower. However, once Tian Hui realized that it couldn't safely enter the forest terrain—which was quite disadvantageous for it—to gather ingredients without dealing with this creature, it decided to attack the Yian Garuga.
Six wing flaps ejected flat, blue-green flames, resembling six slender swords. The flat tails of flame adjusted subtly under the feather-like wings, allowing it to firmly lock onto the increasingly panicked Yian Garuga, which couldn't keep up with its ascent speed. Dragging its long tail of flames, Tian Hui descended like a comet. Accelerated by gravity and with its wings fully retracted for maximum speed, the barrier of air resistance was on the verge of collapse—Boom! A thunderous roar echoed across the sky...