Chapter 5: Real Freaking Foooood!

So dawns the third in game day, thanks to the status screen I was able to see that thanks to my first bout of combat, and continued efforts in crafting that I had managed somehow to get to level 3, though my stats themselves were still all really low, but I mean I am just a crafter in the end.

The morning was spent rather uneventfully with me eating what little raw ingredients i could find, followed up by a visit to the merchant whom I traded with before, I sold all my knives and spare baskets, in exchange I managed to get an assortment of raw materials, since even being given tools would just have them revert anyway.

Next up I had shown the monster core I'd picked up the other day, and got a full explanation about it.

Seems the stone/gem had a bunch of different names and uses.

One would charge them with magic to create magic items or weapons, or grind them down and use it as an ingredient in potions, magicians meanwhile would use them like batteries by charging them with mana, to be used to recover their own mana if it ever got low in place of a mana recovery potion.

But first things first, even though this is just a game.

I want to eat food... Real Food, enough is enough of just eating raw fruits and vegetables!!

And so after my morning chores were completed i once again set out from the city gate, headed straight for the forest but rather than collecting materials like usual, i instead filled my baskets with larger stones.

Once a collection was assembled I made my way to the small river dumping down the rocks i had stored into a simple pile.

First off was the arranging of the bottom layer which i made into the shape just a bit larger than the largest flatter stone i had managed to find.

Then i dug into the soil at the rivers edge for a bit, pulling up handfuls of mud.

Sure it's not a perfect mortar, but given this diy solution it'll do for now.

Using the mud i sealed up the gaps in the stones, and slathered the tops of them with more of it, before stacking a second, and then a third layer until the structure had become the height of my childlike waist, lastly i applied a final layer of mud before placing the flat stone atop as a lid.

And so!

Ta-Da

A makeshift stone oven, complete with a stone cooktop.

Next up i pulled out branches and started setting up for a fire in my brand new stove.

Now yes yes i should wait for the mortar to dry on it's own, but i mean come-on I'm starving for real food here.

once the kindling was set with some dried grass as my starting base in place of paper, i next pulled out some of the materials I'd traded for in the city.

A simple bar of flint, and steel.

Took quite a few attempt but finally i managed a spark and gently nursed the simple embers that formed.

Within moments a decent fire was raging piling on more wood as needed, the air around the oven quickly heated up.

Next i once again piled rocks but this time my creation was a table, the work was finished in almost no time.

Continuing to tend to the fire, given the cooktop a couple of simple taps with a finger, the heat being transmitted through it perfectly.

Next i pulled items from my storage, mainly a collection of fruits, vegs, meat, and lastly my cooking utensils.

Using a stone knife, and a deft hand i chopped up my ingredients atop my new table, using simple tools mashed up some berries and mixed then with some river water to make a sort of sauce.

Lastly taking some more branches out and using another knife to carve utensils.

A simple spatula, some chopsticks, and a couple of flat bladed sticks.

Now for the grand finale.

Scooping up the meat i placed it atop the cook top, upon contact the meat began to sizzle, releasing the oh so good meaty smell, watching as the color slowly changed from red to brown, the juices cascading down the meats exterior until it reached the stone top where it began to dance around.

When the color had risen halfway i used my tools to flip the simple cubes of meat, then placed the veggies onto the cook top, gave them a quick splash of water, before covering them up with a wooden bowl I'd carved the other day.

As the food atop the cooktop continued to sizzle away, the growing hunger in me deepened.

It wasn't grand or anything just simple unseasoned grilled meat with steamed veggies, and a emulsified fruit compote but compared to raw carrots, and berries this was going to be epic.

Once it was all cooked thoroughly, i merged the two cooking masses atop my stovetop, making sure to get the veggies nice and coated in the meat's dripped juices, lastly i poured my simple fruit sauce and continued to work them together to get everything nice and coated.

When it was wall said an done, i moved the completed meal onto a wooden plate, let the fire burn out, and performed a simple clean up scrubbing off the residue from the stove top.

Now sitting down on the ground, the steaming plate of food on my plate sitting atop the rustic stone table, chopsticks in hand as it trembled with glee.

Reaching out i grabbed up what would become my first bite of real food since coming to this game, sure it's not like i could literally starve to death but, going an entire week without getting to eat when everything feels like it's real sound like bloody torture to one whose countries culture is all about good food.

As that first bite of food reached my mouth, the contrast to what i had eaten up till now couldn't even be compared as having been food at all.

The meaty goodness spread through my mouth as the fatty oils seeped out with each bite, meanwhile the bitterness of the veggies helped to enhance the meats own flavor, and lastly the simple sweetness of the fruit sauce.

Each bite was a trip into heaven, it could barely even pass off as being a homemade meal in the real world but after no flavor for the last 48 hours in game this was heaven.

As i continued to eat my meal in peace, my mind raced about what i would do next in the game, as well as what i would do first when the mandatory sign out occurred.

In game was simple i would continue to struggle acquiring more and more items, craft all that i could manage.

But in the real world... What would come next there, well short of fulfilling a few of life's necessities it would be right back in the pod, not to the game since i wouldn't be able to enter it until the required rest period had been reached, but instead i would use the full functions of this unit.

I would dream dive.

This VR unit was unique in that you could set it to run a program that would allow you to interact with it whilst sleeping almost like you were running a lucid dream.

I would download and load up tons of books, and training lessons into my unit, then dream dive and spend a full 8 hours of accelerated time training myself to gain as much of an advantage in the game.

Since everything must be created or done by my own hands, I'll need to take a serious crash course in survival, cooking, and crafting methods or techniques from ancient times all the way up till now.

If i can space it out well enough, for each week of playing in the game, i would manage to study up in the real world using a dream dive for 5days.

This feature was a groundbreaking achievement especially for the academic circle since, you could sleep all night long, and have actually studied for the equivalent of five-to-six days.

Since testing this game is my job, i don't need to leave home to go to work, and with there being a 12 hour break between gaming sessions even if i study for 8 of those hours while sleeping that leaves me with four hours to do whatever i need to do outside.