6 The Sixth Time I Might Be In Trouble

Ah...I am going to have to go out back as there isn't a lot of room here in this packed kitchen. I will also have trouble controlling the fire and making sure the chicken is evenly roasted.

Why is this so hard!?

You know, now that I think about it, delis in grocery stores would use the spit roast technique, but they also were in large ovens that could heat them from all directions.

The fire is only from the bottom! How am I going to evenly cook...ah...can I use Fry at the same time? If so...this means my moves can bring a lot of options to the table.

I can use Fry on the top while the fire cooks from the bottom, too. But now my control matters even more. Won't it burn even faster? I will need to practice on a chicken first...

And so, I take some of the Sturdy Sticks and stick them through the already plucked chicken. Like some sort of corn on the cob with something to the sides, this chicken kabob looks rather uneven. However, it is staying in place really well. I used more Sturdy Sticks to prop up the 'sticky' chicken and then use Solid Stones to hold them in place.

[You have created a Makeshift Campfire]

[Recipe added to Firestarter Skill]

Ah...okay. Cool? Now then, I need to actually start the fire. For now, a small fire means a longer cooking time, but it is easier to work with and control. If I rush too much, there will be more chances for mistakes.

After adding some rope and another stick, not only did I add a lever to turn the roast, I also got an alert that I had made a [Makeshift Spitroast] as well. Not bad.

For now, I am just roasting the chicken, to get a feel for the timing and turning needed. I didn't want to waste too many ingredients. But...

I feel bad for this chicken for not adding anything to it. Actually...I haven't seen any chickens around here. Where did Beth and Jim get them? I ask the nearby innkeepers this and they just shrug.

"We get our ingredients shipped to us by the Traveling Merchant. He says he gets everything from the Plains Dungeon and Forest Dungeon."

Right, other Dungeons...wait, what? Bear Man said that, too. If there are other Dungeons, can't I find other ingredients from them, too? Perhaps I can find other materials as well!

Crap, my chicken! I need to focus. It is cooking nicely, but it is hard to control Fry. I can think about that stuff later. For now, I need to think about the application of this fire.

For some reason, I can control the output's direction, funneling the fire or spreading it outwards in a fan shape. Focusing the spread makes it hotter, spreading it out cools it down. Like a blowtorch, I guess.

But the strain on my brain is annoying. Whatever, it doesn't hurt as bad as the migraines I used to have. Wait...actually, I didn't hurt myself with all the activity I did today. Huh. Has my body been altered somehow? Or does my body now heal to perfect health, since this is a game-like world?

Chicken! Think of the chicken, you idiot! Don't get distracted!

Okay, so spreading the flame covers a wider area and cooks slower. I can also move my hand and adjust the angle of the flame. There are a lot of things to keep in mind when using Fry, but it is kind of like playing one of those simulation games for flying a plane using the handles and joysticks.

I have to say, while it is difficult, it is simple to understand. I can determine how long I use the move, though it saps my strength over time. Even now, I feel really exhausted. However, the golden color of the chicken is making me excited.

Ah, my arm is hurting from turning this so much. I kind of want to make an automated spitroast that turns on its own. Saves me the trouble and reduces my burden.

However, by giving me more control, I find myself slowly turning the chicken in some places, while rushing through others. I can accurately see which sides need to cook more and focus on them instead of just letting it turn and being satisfied with the bare minimum.

And to reward my efforts, I got an alert once I removed the chicken from the flame.

[You have made a Golden Roasted Chicken]

[Faster Energy Recovery for 30 minutes after consuming a portion]

I have to say, this is pretty good. But it didn't say anything about it being delicious... perhaps...no...

Hmm...it is...okay? Yeah. Not burnt, but cooked all the way. I did a good job cooking it. But...there is no taste. Ah, I see. With the breakfast today, we had fried ham and eggs. There was definitely some flavor there. But chicken is rather bland. I will definitely need to salt this one. Maybe some crushed garlic, too.

But I already cooked it. Maybe just salting it is fine.

Yeah. It'll have to do. For now, I can set this out for the others to eat while I cook the rest of the chicken. But before that, I need to rub the chicken down!

I take a white wine from the cabinet near the counter and pour some liberally into the pan. I am frying some onions and peppers in it before rubbing the chicken through it like some sort of egg wash. Hmmm...fried chicken...no, I can make that later.

I will have to be careful with the peppers by making sure I don't touch my face before washing my hands, but I know better by now. Yeah...those were bad times...

After the wine, I chop some onions into little pieces and drop them in the pan. As for the peppers, I cut them in half and scoop out the seeds. The seeds are the hotter part, so I should probably not leave those in for these people on their first try.

So all I have left of the peppers is the outside shell. Then I cut it up like the onions. Add some crushed garlic as a seasoning and lightly salt it as well. Eventually, most of my food has salt, garlic, and onions. They are common seasonings, and often the kind that goes with almost anything.

Frying it like the ham eggs this morning, I am using the light wine instead of the grease. Once I feel like the glaze is complete, I unceremoniously dunk one of the chickens in and rub it around. It looks rather messy, but I don't have a brush or something like that to apply it to the skin.

Oh well. Something to ask Bear Man to make, I guess.

The salad is rather easy to make, as all I need to do with that is toss it all together. So back outside I go with the chicken. It took a bit of effort to stick all three chickens, but I did it. Now to cook them.

Hoh, instead of the golden color, it seems to be more yellow than before. Am I not cooking it all the way? Or is it because of the glaze? Probably the glaze. I should have cooked one at a time to get the feeling right, dang.

Hmm, it seems to be crispy and cooked on the outside now. I feel like I cooked it right, but...

[You have made a Peppered Roasted Chicken]

[Attack Damage increased by 5 for the next 15 minutes after consuming a portion.]

Why do I feel like I made it too hot? Crap, did I add too much peppers? Dang it...I...

Maybe...Mm!

Yep. It is a little hot. Mm...But not bad. It definitely has flavor now. And I didn't burn it. It just has this 'heat' to it. Heh...

Now for the salad...it is really easy. Leaves of lettuce, some of these small tomatoes, maybe some slices of onion, and some cut up hard bread that can substitute for croutons. Again, if I had dressing, it wouldn't feel so boring.

But I guess it would be similar to the golden chicken. Hmmm...if I want to make an easy meal, that seems doable. Roast the chicken and mix the vegetables. Once I get dressing and other condiments, the customers can customize it themselves if they want to.

Whatever. A story for another time. For now, why don't I get these people fed. Ah, right. Gary is here.

"Hey, Chef! That was a good chicken, earlier. I liked it. What else you got?"

"More chicken. Salad."

"Ah...alright, then. I'm not...well, but I guess..."

He doesn't seem to be looking forward to the salad perhaps? Yeah, I know how he feels. I'm not a big salad person either. Or maybe it is because he knows the salad won't have an effect?

Yeah, I didn't get an alert for making bowls of salad, but if I did something like adding it to a slice of ham, add some cheese, and two slices of bread, I could make a sandwich. Or...I know some people don't actually like cheese. Maybe I don't need to add the cheese?

Ugh. I wouldn't be able to eat it without cheese, though. But that doesn't mean others are the same.

I place a chicken leg and a bowl of salad next to each of the five or so people that are down here and they look at the yellow chicken with surprise. I guess because the food is named and has an effect?

Oh well.

"Hohoho, a Chef is certainly a wonderful occupation! You and Bear Man might be very useful, even if you can't climb the dungeon by yourself."

He hasn't actually eaten it yet. Neither have the others. I should...probably go draw some water and bring it back.

Yeah...it was good that I did...

"Hah! Hah! Whoo! I was not prepared for that! But it was delicious!"

Everyone is giving me thumbs up while their eyes are watering, but...is it really that delicious? I guess since they have been eating junk, this kind of seasoned food is a God-send...which is unfortunate.

But hooray? I did good? Whew. Time to clean up my mess and eat my own food.

Hoh! Hah! Gary wasn't kidding! This kind of heat makes me want to eat more! At least the salad has a sort of cooling effect!

Wait...chicken in salad? This is a pretty good combo, but I need to work on the portions of peppers, maybe use actual ground black pepper and not jalapenos. Heh.

And ranch. Ranch would be great.

But I did better than I thought. Hehehe, not bad, me. Not bad.

"Aww, you are eating without me? Shucks. And it smells so good, too."

Ah...oops. Sorry, Drew. At least we still have some chicken left. It is just a little cold. Perhaps a light Fry should be good to reheat it and we should be good to go.

"Ah, thanks, Ardin. Mmm...ooh, it is a little spicy. I like it."

Eh? That's it? She doesn't seem to be sweating either. Even Gary is surprised. And she eats the salad like a champ. I guess she is used to eating healthy food. She does look like she is athletic. I wonder what she did before coming here.

Ah, no. Stop. That doesn't matter so don't worry about useless stuff! If she wants to say, then she will say so. Until then, I should just stay level headed and not dwell on stupid stuff. Yeah.

"Drew, sometimes I forget you are a girl. I mean, shouldn't girls be neater? Eh?"

"Shuh uh, Gary."

"Sorry about my friend, Ardin. She is not a feminine one, huh?"

I...I didn't even realize. Now that it was brought to my attention...yeah. She eats like someone without manners, but...I mean, she hasn't eaten good food in a while, you know?

"Burp. Ah. Delicious."

...Is it wrong that I still think she looks cute? I'm not weird, right?