Chương 43: A Cook Is Born

Dale woke up before the sun rose and started to prep for morning breakfast. When breakfast was finished, he fed Mark and Ava. They were heading east this morning to collect from and improve the trap lines in the mid-tier areas north and east of camp. Mark said.

"Take care, Dale; Ava and I will be back in a few hours. Let Cora know if she stops by." As they left camp, Dale turned to his newest project of trying to preserve the meat they had. With the use of the salt they brought him, he could store the food for quite a while without it going bad. He adjusted the drying racks over the fire and made sure that they were doing their job. He then went over to the crafting table and pulled out the clay he had gathered yesterday.

His plan for today was to make a bigger pot out of clay so that he could start making soups and other things that would be easier in a pot. He had put his first pot near the fire to dry when he heard some noise from the west side. Knowing that Mark and Ava left going east, he knew that it was not them. Walking over to the gate, he saw that Tom and Lena were at the gate.

"Hello, you two. Are you here for some breakfast?" Lena answered, "No, not here for food, but I am sure Tom would not turn something down to eat. We wanted to talk to Mark."

"You just missed him; he went out to gather traps with Ava. He should be back in a few hours; you could stay and wait if you like."

"Yes, if that would be ok with you." Dale pulled out a couple chairs so they could sit while they waited.

"Hope you don't mind. I am going to go adjust my racks. I've been working on preserving food with some salt Mark found in the cave." He then walked over and started to adjust the racks. He saw that one side was not drying well and moved it a little closer. He turned the other rack to make sure it was drying evenly and added some salt. Tom watched Dale as he worked. Paying close attention to his drying of the meats, he was really interested in his process.

Just then Dale stopped and looked out like he was seeing something. [Task Completed] Food Preparation — Improved Quality +18 XP [Level Up!] Dale — Level 4 +5 Stat Points Available Skill Selection Available Dale said, "Oh, that's new." Tom walked over and asked.

"What's cool?"

"Oh, I just got a system message for a level up. I got some xp for food preparation."

"You got XP for cooking?"

"Yes, this is the third time I have gotten some xp for doing something craft-related. That one pushed me to level 4. Give me a moment; I want to assign my stats and choose my new skill." [Level Up Confirmed] Level: 4 XP: 0 / 260 Health: 75 / 75 Stamina: 60 / 60 Attributes: Strength: 5 Agility: 4 Vitality: 7 Intelligence: 10 Perception: 8 +5 Stat Points Available Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators! Skill Selection Available Dale opened the skill selection.

[Skill Selection] Choose One Field Cooking (Level 1) Allows: • Improve food quality and cooking consistency. • Slightly increase stamina and recovery from prepared meals. Food Preservation (Level 1) Allows: • Extend the usable life of stored food. • Reduce spoilage and waste. Efficient Preparation (Level 1) Allows: • Increase usable food from prepared ingredients. • Reduce preparation waste. Dale thought about the choices for a moment and picked Field Cooking, as that would most help him at this time.

[Skill Acquired] Field Cooking (Level 1) Allows: • Improve food quality and cooking consistency. • Slightly increase stamina and recovery from prepared meals. He then allocated his stats. [Attributes Updated] Strength: 5 Agility: 4 Vitality: 8 Intelligence: 12 Perception: 10 PASSIVE EFFECT [Passive Effect Applied] Food Quality Increased Dale was just about to close out the screens when another message arrived.

[Camp Function Recognized] Role Alignment Detected: Food Preparation Efficiency Below Potential By this point Tom could not wait any longer.

"So what did you get?"

"I picked a skill called Field Cooking. It should help me prepare better meals." Tom sat there looking at the drying rack Dale had just been adjusting when he got his xp reward and level up.

"Are you telling me that I could level up by crafting?"

"It seems like it." Tom then walked over to Lena and started whispering to her. Dale returned to his drying racks and pulled a few pieces that were done off and added them to a container he had on the cook table. As he examined the rack, he saw that his rack had some issues; he had placed it too near the fire and burnt it somewhat, including one piece of fish. He cut off the burnt piece and threw it in his trash pile to dispose of later and then rearranged the racks to make sure not to do that again.

He then noticed a new system message. [Optimization Opportunity Detected] Improve food preservation • Reduce waste • Increase output efficiency Dale just sat there and laughed.

"Yeah, I just wasted that." Dale spent the next while working at the camp and cleaning up and organizing things. He also turned his pot around that was drying by the fire. Dale then heard some sound from the forest and looked over to see Mark and Ava coming out of the trees with Bramble trailing behind them. They came over and opened the gate. That was when Mark noticed Lena and Tom talking across camp, sitting on a couple chairs. When Lena saw Mark walk in, she stood up and walked over to him.

"Hello, we wanted to talk to you." Mark replied, "Hey, glad you stopped by."

"Tom and I talked last night and had come to a decision. And came to camp to tell you about it. Well, while we waited for you to return, we saw Dale level up while working on his craft." Looking back at Tom and then back to Mark.

"Tom has not enjoyed his time fighting with me in the forest. He is nervous and afraid that he will get attacked in his sleep. He would like it if it's ok to stay here. He has found that he can craft leather items with the hides we have gathered. Well, anyway, he felt safe here yesterday and would like to stay if you have room." Lena took a long look around camp. And then at Tom, who had a smile on his face. Then continued.

"I too would stay if ok, but I am no crafter."

"We would love for you to stay. There are no requirements to stay other than to help where you can. I also am not a huge fan of fighting up close but willing to do it when needed." With that out of the way Tom walked over to Dale.

"Hey… do you think you could teach me a little about what you're doing? I have been working on some leather crafting and need some stuff to work the leather better but am not sure how to make it."

"I would love to talk to you about what I'm doing. If you know how to craft something, I am in serious need of some hot pads and other items for my cooking that you might be able to help with." Mark sat down in his chair and watched the two of them talk. They came back. Our little group just got bigger.