1 Lettuce Salad
Ina unblinkingly gazed upon the translucent, luminous veil before her, her eyes sweeping past familiar character attributes to descend upon the bottommost area, where a button ought to reside—[Exit Game], yet now only a void prevailed.
An hour prior, Ina had just landed the final blow in the siege against the world boss, the Black Dragon Nidhogg, and obtained the legendary artifact[Dragonblood Legacy]. She promptly transformed her race from human to black dragon, then received a game update notification.
[The Black Dragon that sought to devour the World Tree had been defeated; after a fleeting respite, undercurrents of various forces surged, and the next phase of the Moro Continent awaited your exploration~ A new management system would soon be implemented, providing adventurers opportunities for free trade across the Moro Continent.]
Grateful for this management system, Ina found solace in the game world. She exhaled softly, following the newcomer's guide within the management system, and opened her backpack.[Please open this glowing scroll!]Upon opening her backpack, Ina's movements halted as she gazed at her coin count become zero, and somberly inquired, "Where is my gold?" What happened to her extensive gold, which reached a nine-digit sum?!
[Please open this glowing scroll!]The system cheerfully repeated. "Where is my gold?" Ina echoed softly as well.
A silence enveloped the conversation. The scroll in her backpack lit its radiance, attempting to attract Ina's attention, yet she merely stood there like a dormant volcano on the verge of awakening.
The system's tone conveyed embarrassment:[Due to a data parsing error, the gold in your account is temporarily inaccessible. As compensation for your loss, all taxes and rent for your properties will be waived~ We apologize for the inconvenience~]
Only then did Ina lift her hand, unfurling the parchment scroll. A sudden surge of rage had previously swept over her emotions, and it took her considerable time to regain her composure. This fury felt as if it originated from her very bloodline – wait, her bloodline?
Upon the parchment scroll was inscribed:[As the friend of your cousin's uncle's maternal grandfather's aunt, Mr. Richard bequeaths to you the Dragonflame restaurant.]The system promptly displayed a task window, as though breathing a sigh of relief:[Novice Task 1: Explore your newly inherited restaurant.]
Only then did Ina survey her surroundings. She found herself on the fog-shrouded streets of a small town, standing before an establishment adorned with a [Dragonflame Restaurant]sign. The sign was moldy and askew, appearing long abandoned. She reached for the shabby wooden door before her, which creaked as if under duress; the hinges seemed rusted. Ina exerted some force to open it.
"I hope my starting has nothing to do with you," Ina said, single-handedly holding the wooden door that had fallen off and propping it against a nearby wall.
[It's random! Absolutely fair randomization!]the system argued.
To her surprise, the restaurant was not overly dusty, but mold grew in the corners, suggesting a humid climate. Ina approached a window and pulled back the heavy curtains, hoping to bring some light into the dim restaurant. However, it had little effect; the glass was so blurry it resembled frosted glass, and the gloomy weather outside offered no sunlight capable of penetrating it.
A soft white light emanated from Ina's hand; the game copies were diverse, with many featuring dim or pitch-black environments. Carrying illumination items in one's backpack was a common practice among players.
Luminescent Stone:[A legendary pearl said to be embedded in the crown of the Light Pope, rivaling the true sunlight in brilliance.]
Fortunately, the items in her backpack remained intact. One should never underestimate the contents of a wealthy player's backpack – the treasures within could be awe-inspiring. Ina casually pressed the Luminescent Stone into the wall, instantly illuminating the entire tavern.
The Task was to explore the tavern, which seemed simple enough. Ina used a cleaning spell to remove dust and mold, tapped her fingers on wooden tables and chairs, caressed the gilt frames, and finally opened an empty cabinet.
[Congratulations on discovering the[Cabinet Refrigerator]! This cabinet, engraved with eternal inscriptions, may be used to preserve the freshness of ingredients.]Ina curiously extended her hand into the cabinet, devoid of any coolness. An amber glow flickered across the wood, lighting the intricate patterns engraved alongside it.
After carefully reading the Cabinet Refrigerator's description, Ina realized this was not an ordinary refrigerator. The eternal inscriptions belonged to a branch of time-related magic with very strict drawing conditions. However, they were being used here to preserve food.
Ina: Brilliant! Why didn't I think of that?
It seemed there was nothing else to explore here, so Ina headed to the kitchen. As she stepped inside, she tripped over something—a huge white bathtub appeared. The bottom of the bathtub was filled with dried soil, and the edges were marked with sharp lines. There was a box next to the bathtub, and it contained dried water stains.
[Congratulations on discovering the[Bathtub Farm]! This bathtub, engraved with fleeting magic circles, is your only field for now.]
Ina appreciated the system's explanation; otherwise, she would have thought the previous restaurant owner was an ogre who enjoyed eating human or bathtub stew.
Following the novice guide, Ina quickly understood the workings of the Bathtub Farm. The secret to quickly harvesting crops was a combination of soil, time-acceleration magic circles, and plant nutrient solutions.
[You have discovered all the magical items in the restaurant, completing the task of exploring the restaurant. Reward: 50 lettuce seeds (You have obtained lettuce seeds, unlocked the corresponding seed image, and can now purchase them in the seed shop.)]
[Novice Task 2: Plant your first crop to bring fresh ingredients to your restaurant!]There was only a thin layer of soil left in the bathtub, which was insufficient for planting crops. Ina carried the bathtub out of the kitchen and searched the room for suitable digging tools but found none. Eventually, she used the broken wooden door as a makeshift shovel to collect soil.
She hoped she wouldn't scare the neighbors. Ina had observed that her restaurant was located at an intersection. There was a dense, foggy jungle on one side, while the other required walking several dozen meters before seeing the next town building. It was a genuinely dismal location.
Upon seeing[Ordinary Soil x10]in her backpack, Ina returned to the tavern and enthusiastically poured the soil into the bathtub. She threw in a lettuce seed, and a tender sprout emerged from the soil, visibly stretching and turning into a wilted, yellow head of lettuce.
Ina picked the mature lettuce:[Due to lack water and nutrients, the quality of your crops is poor.]It must be because she didn't have plant nutrient solution.
Even so, it didn't affect the completion of the Task.[ Task completed! Reward: 10 seasoning options]
[Novice Task 3: Prepare the first meal for your restaurant!]Ina awkwardly looked at the lettuce in her hand; cooking was doable as long as Novice Task wasn't about to let her eat lettuce.
Although the ingredients were subpar, it didn't stop her from knowing that there was a dish called lettuce salad. With a confident smile, Ina haphazardly cut the lettuce into uneven pieces, skillfully exchanged salad dressing from the previous Task's reward, and mixed them.
[Your malnourished ingredients and terrible culinary skills complement each other perfectly. Congratulations on successfully making[Lettuce Salad☆]1!][Peculiar Tasting Lettuce Salad☆]: Rating collapsed; please check with caution.
Ina raised her eyebrows, thinking that the system's words made sense. Just as she was about to throw away the lettuce salad, she saw a series of notifications.
[Successfully prepared a dish, unlocking the Chef profession!]
[Novice Task completed! Reward: 100 Plant Nutrient Solution!]
[Congratulations on triggering a hidden task: Create a difficult-to-swallow dish. Tip: Slime Recycling House]
[Slime Recycling House: Recycle kitchen waste, and produce plant nutrient solution. Please choose a location for your Slime Recycling House!]
Ina ignored the rewards and focused on selecting a site. The restaurant had several empty rooms besides the main bedroom, including four guest rooms. She casually chose an empty room and transformed it into a Slime Recycling House.
A vast, transparent glass tank occupied more than half of the space, and the light green slime looked like apple-flavored jelly. Ina poured the lettuce salad in, and the slime immediately wrapped around the lettuce leaves, producing a faint rustling sound. In no time, a thin layer of liquid appeared in the nutrient solution tank on the side. It was shallow, and Ina could guarantee it with her current vision, allowing her to see a fly fifty meters away.
