Chapter 27 - 027: Food problem
The bear beastman led Anaria toward the village’s food storage, followed by several beastmen who had been present during their earlier discussion.
When the wooden door opened, a strong smell hit Anaria’s nose. She wrinkled it immediately.
"Do you people store cheese in here?"
The bear stared at her. "No."
"Then what the hell is that smell?"
"The meat we distribute to the village."
Anaria slowly looked toward the storage room. "Are you sure that’s meat?"
The bear nodded.
She looked at him and sighed, she now understood why Ravenfall had a food problem and the beastmen around her didn’t seem bothered by the smell at all. To them, this was apparently normal.
Anaria muttered, "I’ve somehow ended up in a village where people think spoiled food is normal."
The familiar fox-like figure appeared in her mind.
[Assessment: Food preservation methods are extremely inefficient.]
Anaria mentally sighed "I noticed."
She stepped inside and began inspecting the food. Sacks of grains, vegetables, roots, dried fruits, and large amounts of meat filled the room. Some were still usable, while others were already beginning to spoil.
Anaria crouched beside a sack and examined the grains before checking the vegetables. "How do you normally preserve all this?"
One of the beastmen shrugged. "We store it the way we always have."
Anaria gave him a flat look. "Yeah. I can see that."
She began sorting the food into different groups.
A beastman frowned. "What are you doing?"
"Sorting."
"Why?"
"Because I’m not throwing away everything just because some of it has gone bad." Turning to the servants, she added, "Bring me clean containers, woven baskets, cloth, and anything you use to keep food off the ground."
The servants hesitated until the bear spoke. "You heard her. Bring what she asked for."
They quickly left.
Anaria returned to the grains, removing the damaged portions before spreading the rest out.
"What are you doing?" one beastman asked.
"Drying them."
"You’re leaving food outside?"
"That’s the point."
His expression changed. "But the Beast God gave us that food!"
Anaria stared at him. "So?"
"You’re going to ruin it!"
"I’m trying to stop it from becoming rotten."
"We’ve always stored it this way."
"And you’ve been losing it this way."
The beastman fell silent.
Anaria moved on to the vegetables, separating them according to how they needed to be preserved. The servants soon returned with the materials she had requested and followed her instructions while the beastmen continued watching.
One finally asked, "Why are you doing all this?"
Anaria didn’t look up. "Because you’re wasting food."
"We’ve survived like this for years."
"And now you’re running out."
The room fell quiet. Anaria continued until she reached the meat. She stared at the piles before turning to the bear. "How long do you normally keep this?"
"Until it is eaten."
Anaria blinked. "That’s not really an answer."
A servant quickly explained, "We keep it here until the village needs it."
Anaria rubbed her forehead. "Exactly."
She calls out the System. "Give me the best preservation methods they can actually use."
[Guidance available.]
Anaria listened carefully before nodding. "Fine."
She turned to the servants. "We’re going to divide the meat into different batches."
One beastman frowned. "Why?"
"Because I’m going to test different ways of preserving it."
"Why not use the method we’ve always used?"
Anaria looked at him. "Because your method smells like death."
Everyone was stunned but she ignored them, she began preparing the meat. One batch was arranged for drying, another for smoking, while the rest was handled according to another method the System had recommended.
The beastmen watched closely.
"Why are you cutting it like that?"
"Because it needs to dry properly."
"Then why are you putting it there?"
"So it doesn’t rot."
"And why are you putting that one near the smoke?"
"So it lasts longer."
The beastman opened his mouth again, but Anaria turned toward him "Do you want me to preserve the food or explain every movement of my hands?"
He immediately shut his mouth, Anaria nodded and returned to her work.
By the time Anaria finished preparing the different batches of meat, the storage room looked completely different. The grains had been sorted and stored properly, the vegetables had been separated according to how they needed to be preserved, and the meat had been arranged carefully.
Anaria stepped back, satisfied with the preserved food. "See? That wasn’t so difficult."
One beastman looked around. "It actually looks better."
Anaria raised an eyebrow. "Was that supposed to be a compliment?"
He quickly looked away.
The bear remained quiet as he inspected the food, while Anaria secretly hoped this would prove she wasn’t a dangerous outsider. Maybe then she could leave and finally find Rylan and Kai.
Then her stomach suddenly growled.
Everyone looked at her.
Anaria placed a hand over it. "...I’m hungry." Her gaze fell on the preserved meat. "I think we should cook some"
Several beastmen looked alarmed when she pointed at it.
"I’m cooking."
"What are you doing with that meat?"
"Cooking it."
"But that meat is being preserved!"
"I know."
"Then why are you wasting it?"
Anaria put her hands on her hips. "I’m hungry!"
When the protests continued, she raised her voice. "Calm down! Have none of you ever eaten meat soup before?"
Noone talked
Anaria stared at them in disbelief. "You’re telling me you’ve never had meat soup?"
The bear glanced at the others before answering, "No."
Anaria sighed. "This place really needs me."
She gathered the ingredients and began preparing the soup, only to realize that remembering how Rylan cooked was very different from actually knowing how to cook.
Anaria reached for an ingredient when the System appeared.
[Host is advised not to add that ingredient.]
Her hand stopped. "Why?"
[It will ruin the soup.]
Anaria narrowed her eyes. "Then why didn’t you say something earlier?"
[Host did not ask.]
She gritted her teeth. "Fine. Help me."
The System began giving her simple instructions on how much water to use, when to add the meat and vegetables, and when to lower the fire. Anaria followed each one while pretending she knew exactly what she was doing.
The beastmen watched from a distance as the soup cooked, its warm aroma slowly filling the room. One sniffed the air, then another quietly moved closer.
Anaria noticed them. "Don’t tell me you people are suddenly interested." Neither answered.... When the soup was ready, Anaria tasted it first. Her eyes widened slightly. "It actually worked."
The System remained silent.
Anaria smiled and looked toward the others. "Well? What are you waiting for?"
The first beastman who had accused her of ruining the food reluctantly tasted it, only for his expression to change. Another quickly asked for some, followed by another.
Soon, the same beastmen who had argued with her were asking for more.
Anaria stared at them"So now it’s good?"
One of them nodded enthusiastically.
Anaria laughed. "You people are unbelievable."
Even the bear tasted the soup. After a moment, he gave a small nod. "It is good."
Anaria smiled proudly. "Of course it is."
The fox like system appeared again
[Objective progress: 2/3]