Who would dislike a sincere child?
The moment Loki had this question in her heart, the answer had actually already emerged—there was absolutely no god who would dislike it.
However, thinking of how she had used Zephyr's miraculous talent yesterday to fleece Hephaestus and exchange it for three bottles of red wine, she felt an inexplicable sense of guilt and wished she could slap herself.
Zephyr had just finished exploring and returned to the surface, not even bothering to rest. The first thing he thought of was to take out the ingredients to share.
And herself?
While Zephyr was adventuring in the Dungeon, she used the talent she saw in him as a bargaining chip and snuck off to a friend's place to trade for wine.
Although friendships between gods always had such fun, the more Loki thought about it, the more she felt she was quite excessive.
However, the feeling of guilt didn't last long. Her attention was soon recaptured by the Gourmet Creatures piled on the ground.
After gods had their Arcanums sealed and came to the Lower World, they were no different from ordinary people, and needed to eat and sleep. Most importantly, these were all never before seen ingredients.
If they were in Heaven, Loki wouldn't have any concerns. Anyway, a god's body would not have problems just from eating the wrong thing.
But in the Lower World, it was different. She could die.
For a god, it did not mean the end. Instead, they would be sent back to Heaven. To return to the Lower World again, it would take at least 10,000 years. Even if one managed to endure the time and return, by then, things would have drastically changed.
Therefore, when her curious gaze swept over those unprecedented ingredients, Loki's attitude was quite cautious.
Her gaze swept towards the meat cut from the meat tree, the mushrooms with chocolate sauce covering the surface of their caps, and the macaroni grass.
Every ingredient looked incredibly tempting. But the problem was—could these things actually be eaten?
Loki looked up at Zephyr. "Have you eaten all of these things?"
"Of course I have. I can confirm with certainty that they are not poisonous." Zephyr answered frankly.
To be precise, these items came from the Toriko world, and the system prompts had also explicitly provided specific explanations. He couldn't vouch for pure Dungeon monster meat, but he was confident about the Gourmet Creatures.
After saying this, he shifted his gaze to Lefiya. "Right?"
Lefiya nodded and chimed in, "The food was all gathered in the safe floor. We both ate it last night, and it tasted very good."
Seeming to feel that this wasn't convincing enough, she hesitated for a moment, then added. "It's the most delicious meal I've ever eaten in my life."
Would her own children harm her?
Certainly not!
Especially since they were Zephyr and Lefiya, who were so well-behaved that one couldn't find a single fault with them.
Loki narrowed her eyes, her cravings stirred up.
"But I don't know how to cook, what should I do?"
Zephyr said, "I'll do it. We returned to Orario from the Dungeon this morning and didn't have breakfast on the way."
He didn't think cooking was any trouble at all. As long as the ingredients were good enough, it would taste decent no matter how it was prepared. But the cook's skill could be the icing on the cake.
Besides, cooking allowed one to find some joy in high concentration. Most importantly, it allowed him to continue honing his culinary skills.
Thinking she had no other plans for the time being, Lefiya said, "Loki-sama, I will go help Zephyr."
Lili, who had a relatively quiet and reserved personality, put on her backpack and followed Zephyr toward the Familia kitchen. Only Loki was left standing there.
"Then what do I do?"
What to do when your Familia children are impeccably good?
Loki was in a very happy mood. However, as she watched the figures leaving, she realized something.
Lefiya and Lili seemed to have a closer relationship with Zephyr than she had imagined?
But this thought was quickly dismissed.
So, what kind of welcome gift should she prepare for Zephyr?
The surprise she had originally prepared for Zephyr was a bit embarrassing to present, she had only intended to prepare a second-class weapon for him.
And now?
Thinking of her treasury that she had saved up for a long time, there was a hint of helplessness in Loki's smile, but deep down, she made a decision.
If worse comes to worst, I'll just buy less alcohol later.
Maybe Zephyr can bring some back for me from the Dungeon?
—
Inside the kitchen, the atmosphere was actually a bit dull.
Lefiya mainly didn't want to see Zephyr busy with breakfast all by himself, which was why she chose to come over and help. She didn't want to just sit back and reap the benefits.
It was just that she was a person of few words. Especially with Lili on the scene, she didn't know what to say. She could only lower her head and silently process the Gourmet Creatures.
She adopted an attitude of absolute focus, a state she hadn't even had when fighting the Crab Pig in the Dungeon, and carefully processed these materials. She had to avoid being a hindrance to Zephyr.
As for Lili?
She simply didn't want any other female to be alone with Zephyr. Even if that person was Lefiya, it was not allowed.
She sorted the ingredients into meat, vegetables, and seasonings, arranging them on the kitchen counter.
Zephyr put all his attention into the cooking. This could also be considered a gesture of returning Loki's kindness.
Soon, he prepared to light the stove. In the Dungeon, due to the limitations of cooking conditions, high-end ingredients like Crab Pig chops could only be processed in a crude way like charcoal grilling.
But after returning to the surface, the situation was different. The kitchen facilities at the Loki Familia headquarters were complete. The magic stone stove had a very strong flame, all kinds of cookware were available, and there was an abundance of seasonings.
After thinking for a moment, he decided that for today's meal, he would follow his own tastes.
From the ingredients Lili had sorted, he took a piece of Crab Pig rib with firm texture and cut it. Soon, a mountain-like pile of rib segments was laid out in front of him.
He then put them in cold water and fished them out, before proceeding to rinse them clean with water, and drain them for later use.
Then, he heated the pot and added oil. He put in ginger slices and garlic cloves to sauté until fragrant.
When the oil temperature in the pot rose, he poured the blanched ribs into the pot and stir-fried them until the surface of the meat chunks turned slightly golden brown.
He added soy sauce, rock sugar, and cooking wine, using high heat to reduce the sauce and coat the meat.
Then, he added star anise, cinnamon, and bay leaves, bringing it to a boil with high heat before turning to low heat to simmer slowly.
Braised Crab Pig Ribs!
This was Zephyr's signature home-cooked dish. When he was helping in the kitchen during holidays at the orphanage, braised ribs were the dish he made most skillfully. He could get it just right even with his eyes closed.
When the special nature of the Crab Pig meat collided with the rich, savory sauce of the braised dish, what kind of flavor profile would it bloom into?
Zephyr was very much looking forward to it.
Steam hissed out from the gaps in the lid, and he turned to walk toward another stove.
The Crab Pig ribs were chopped into segments and placed in cold water with Cream Mushroom. After skimming the foam, he turned to low heat to simmer slowly.
Cream Mushroom Rib Soup!
Next was pasta.
The Macaroni Grass rolled in boiling water, then was fished out and drained, sprinkled with crushed Parmesansho Fruit, and garnished with thin slices of truffle.
Shredded almond cabbage and nappa cheese cabbage were drizzled with olive oil and salad dressing.
Finally, there was the meat of the meat tree. It was cut into evenly thick pieces and placed into a frying pan, seared on both sides until golden and crispy. Then he sprinkled them with salt and black pepper.