Due to the injury on Kaelen's leg, Nyx requested that he stay at Nyx's place to recover and to assist in observing the research on large animals. However, Kaelen refused.
Many people had been injured during this hunt and required the Priest's healing. If Kaelen stayed here, those people would certainly not come. Nyx sighed in frustration, growing more disgusted with the ignorant tribesmen outside by the day.
Kaelen used his ability to heal himself, then used herbs and animal skins to bandage the area, pretending the wound was still there. The task of caring for the injured was assigned to Elian and Cael.
Although Sane felt very guilty because he was the cause of Kaelen's injury, Sane could not openly take care of Kaelen. Earlier, many people had seen Sane carry Kaelen here; while people would not think much of it given the emergency, if Sane continued to associate closely with Kaelen, the reputations of both would be affected. In the future, finding a mate would become harder than climbing to the heavens.
Assisting Kaelen back to his home, Sane placed the food rations and the items he had brought for Kaelen on a low table and said:
"The portions allocated to you are all here. Additionally, there are some things I found in the Magic Beast Forest. However, they do not look exactly like the drawings you gave me; I only found a few similar spots. There are also things that animals were eating, which I brought for you as well, though I don't know if they are useful."
Sane also left two-thirds of his own prey and poured out half of the salt reserves from his animal-skin bag.
"It is my fault that you were injured, so consider this my compensation to you." After saying that, Sane did not stay, but picked up his remaining things and headed home.
Cael and Elian could only watch the entire process with wide eyes. Once Sane was far away, the two began to chatter excitedly:
"Wow, Kaelen, Sane shared so much prey with you. Could it be that he has taken an interest in you?"
"You didn't see how terrible his expression was earlier when he carried you to the Priest's place. He definitely likes you!"
"Is there even a need to ask? Oh, and he even helped you find things? Oh Kaelen, your spring has arrived! Hehe~"
The two friends sat on either side of Kaelen, swaying back and forth with excitement, while Kaelen inwardly rolled his eyes.
Like hell he does!
He was the one who injured me; it's only right that he compensates me with prey!
Furthermore, the reason he left so much was that he included the portions from their secret trade, alright?
However, since this could not be said aloud, Kaelen waved his hands: [Don't talk nonsense. He hates me, which is why he left that pile; he wants me to stop pestering him!]
Cael and Elian looked at each other and, upon reflection, felt that sounded correct. Sane's style had always been like that.
Sighing, the two made a few more jokes before running off to help Kaelen process the prey. Kaelen was anxious to know what Sane had brought back, so he quickly pulled them back and signaled:
[You two help me sit outside.]
It was still quite bright outside, but the stone room used as a bedroom was parallel to the cave entrance and lacked enough light for observation. Although they didn't quite agree, knowing Kaelen's stubborn nature, the two friends helped him sit down at the low table.
Kaelen carefully opened the animal-skin bundle to examine the unfamiliar plants inside. None of them looked like anything in his memory.
"Achoo! Achoo! Oh, Elian, help me, I can't open my eyes!"
Cael had leaned in curiously to look at the items in the bundle. While holding a cluster of small fruits with yellow skins, Cael accidentally crushed one, causing the juice to spray onto his face. A pungent scent immediately hit his nose, followed by a searing sting in his bridge and eye sockets, making it impossible to open them.
Elian rushed over, but he didn't know what to do either. Kaelen quickly grabbed the item Cael had crushed and sniffed it; he too was moved to tears by the pungent smell.
Dammit, it's Shallot!
[Quick, wet an animal-skin cloth and bring it here!]
Elian hurriedly ran to soak two animal-skin cloths and gave one to Kaelen. Kaelen immediately pressed the soaking wet cloth onto his face, and Elian quickly followed suit, placing the other on Cael's face.
After a while, the stinging in their eyes subsided. When they removed the cloths, both pairs of eyes were red. Cael said fearfully:
"Oh Beast God, that scared me to death. Isn't this a poisonous fruit?!"
Kaelen shook his head: [No, it's a seasoning plant! With this, the food will be even more delicious!]
Elian was skeptical: "A seasoning plant? Can this thing be eaten? Won't we cry all day if we eat it?"
Kaelen didn't say anything, only carefully moved the cluster of yellow fruits to one side before saying to Cael:
[Go wash your hands. Otherwise, if you wipe your face later, you'll start crying again.]
Terrified, Cael rushed to use bubble grass to wash his hands thoroughly. Only after smelling that there was no scent left did Cael run back in.
In the meantime, Kaelen recognized several usable items in the pile. There was a plant with heart-shaped leaves and a vine-like stem. Although there was only a short segment attached to a tuber as thick as a thigh, Kaelen vaguely recognized its species. Using his claws to split the tuber, he immediately saw the reddish-pink flesh inside; the surface felt slimy to the touch. Though the color was different, the texture of the flesh looked very much like a purple yam.
Secretly using his ability to check, he found the tuber was not toxic, so Kaelen set it aside. Some other items were either toxic or useless, so Kaelen discarded them.
What made Kaelen nearly stop breathing was the final item in the bag, which far exceeded his expectations.
It was a cluster of large, gnarled tubers, with a crooked shape divided into many small branches somewhat resembling ginger, but much larger and rougher. Its thin outer skin was a deep purplish-red, dotted with layers of dry, light-brown scales clinging to the body. A piece of a broken stem was still attached to the top of the tuber, indicating that the roots of this plant grew very shallowly in the ground.
Kaelen's hands trembled slightly. He hurriedly used his fingernail to scrape a hard scratch on the surface of the tuber cluster. The thin purple skin immediately peeled away, revealing ivory-white flesh that was dense and incredibly succulent.
He brought it close to his nose and took a deep breath. Mingled with the characteristic earthy scent of damp mud was a gentle, refreshing fragrance. Without hesitation, Kaelen broke off a small piece and put it in his mouth to taste.
A crisp, crunchy sound echoed between his teeth. The initial taste on his tongue was slightly bland, but after a few chews, he felt a bit of sticky, tacky resin coating his mouth. But immediately following that, a nutty, sweet flavor spread out.
It was starch!
An extremely, extremely abundant amount of natural starch!
Kaelen's eyes lit up as if they contained a thousand stars.
This was Canna edulis!
Canna edulis, also known as Queensland arrowroot, has a sweet taste and cooling properties, containing high amounts of starch (85-90%), fiber, and vitamin B9. In his previous life, commoners used this tuber to make vermicelli. The noodles made from the starch of this tuber had a characteristic chewy-crisp texture and a natural translucent white color; they didn't turn to mush when cooked and were very popular in both the mortal and superhuman worlds.
This item was even exported to major powers, with quantities sometimes reaching 20 tons in a single shipment!
When the stomach was growling with hunger, a bowl of canna vermicelli with young chicken eggs or gizzards would make even a high-level Mage shed tears of joy!
Kaelen's saliva began to flow uncontrollably, spilling from his mouth and dripping onto the table surface.