Chapter 317: Relief Food, Gourmet Mage, The Calm Before the Storm

Chapter 317: Chapter 317: Relief Food, Gourmet Mage, The Calm Before the Storm

Seraphina Sullivan looked at the Skill Card.

She glanced at the onlookers around her. They were clearly relieved, yet their eyes shimmered with a mix of emotions—envy and jealousy. Without hesitation, she accepted the card decisively.

"Alright, I’ll accept it."

She knew that in a public setting like this, if she refused payment, countless people would soon flock to her with all sorts of "minor aches and pains"—or even feign illness—to have her "take a look."

Worse, they would feel entitled to her treatment.

The moment she refused, someone would inevitably jump out to guilt-trip or even curse at her.

She had experienced something similar before, after the campaign against the Splitting Demon Rabbits.

People in the safe zone knew she had a healing Ability and all wanted Seraphina to take a look at them.

But back then, she only knew how to suture, and some people tried to take advantage. Her response at the time was simple and blunt.

"How am I supposed to suture you if you don’t have a wound? How about I make a cut first, then stitch it up for you for free?"

Now she had more healing methods, but the principle was the same.

Accepting this Skill Card was both reasonable compensation and a way to draw a line in the sand, telling everyone that her help came at a price.

...

As another wave of Players returned from all sorts of bizarre dungeons, the Vorlag City safe zone once again buzzed with activity.

The air was thick with a mixture of emotions: the exhaustion of survival, the excitement of a good haul, and the sorrow of losing comrades.

Ever since she had publicly saved the critically injured, near-death River Sterling and clearly stated her "payment for services" principle, things had been much quieter for Seraphina.

She returned to her RV. Aside from the occasional chat with Sean Chandler or visits from the sisters Crystal and Freya Lynn, almost no one dared to disturb her.

Her "medical skills" were famous.

But so was the "expensive fees" label attached to them.

This, in turn, saved her from a lot of unnecessary trouble.

One day, a major event occurred in the safe zone, one that concerned the livelihood of every ordinary survivor.

An announcement was broadcast and spread by staff, quickly reaching every corner of the area.

[Notice! Effective immediately, the safe zone will distribute one free bowl of relief food to all survivors daily to ensure a basic supply of rations.]

Crystal Lynn excitedly pulled her younger sister, Freya, and ran to tell Seraphina the news, inviting her to go get some with them.

"I heard the safe zone’s agricultural experts teamed up with a Player who can grow food. They found and mass-cultivated a new type of crop with an extremely high yield that’s really filling!

From now on, at least we won’t have to worry about starving. Today’s the first distribution, and they’re calling it ’potato porridge.’ Let’s go try it!"

Hearing this, Seraphina’s heart skipped a beat.

A gentle smile appeared on her face. "Is that so? That’s wonderful. Solving the problem of basic sustenance is the first step to putting everyone at ease."

Seraphina had a hunch about this so-called "new crop."

It was very likely related to the batch of Growth Potatoes she had "contributed" earlier.

’Looks like those seeds have come to fruition under the safe zone’s careful cultivation and are now benefiting the masses,’ she thought.

This brought Seraphina a sense of relief.

Soon, the three of them joined a long line and each received a bowl of steaming, slightly thick potato porridge.

The porridge was a simple, pale yellow color and gave off the faint, natural aroma of potatoes.

Returning to the area near the RV, the group found a place to sit and began to eat.

Crystal took a bite and commented, "Hmm... the taste is pretty plain. It’s just boiled and mashed potatoes with almost no seasoning. But as soon as you eat it, your stomach feels full and warm. This porridge is definitely very filling!"

Freya took small sips, nodding obediently without any complaints.

Seraphina, however, picked up her spoon and stirred her bowl slowly, as if she were just trying to cool the porridge down faster.

However, with a seemingly casual turn of her wrist, a faint ripple of Energy seeped from the spoon into the porridge.

Under Crystal and Freya’s astonished gazes,

the once-ordinary bowl of potato porridge began to glow from within with soft, stardust-like flecks of light!

Although it vanished in a flash, the porridge’s color seemed to have become a little richer, and a more enticing aroma faintly drifted out.

"Seraphina, what... what was that?"

Crystal blinked, thinking her eyes were playing tricks on her.

Seraphina didn’t answer directly. Instead, she handed the stirred bowl of porridge to Freya with a smile. "Try it again. See how it tastes now."

Freya had complete and utter trust in Seraphina.

Though curious, she immediately took the bowl, carefully scooped up a spoonful, and put it in her mouth.

The next second, her wide eyes went completely round.

They filled with a look of disbelief. "Wow! It... it tastes better! It’s sweet and fragrant, and there’s a little bit of a... milky flavor! It’s so good!"

She eagerly took another big bite, her small face beaming with pure bliss.

Next, Seraphina used her Talent to change Crystal’s porridge as well.

Dubiously, Crystal tasted her own bowl of porridge, which had been "treated" by Seraphina.

The moment it entered her mouth, she froze too.

The originally bland, mash-like texture had become fine and smooth.

The simple starchy sweetness was amplified, now infused with a perfectly balanced, complex flavor reminiscent of natural vanilla and cream.

The depth of flavor was suddenly immense, transforming it from a food that merely filled the stomach into a truly delectable delicacy!

"Seraphina, you... how did you do that? Are you a Mage? How can you make food so delicious?"

Crystal exclaimed in amazement. Seraphina’s Ability was simply beyond her comprehension.

Seraphina smiled and spoke to Freya in a tone that was partly joking but also held a hint of seriousness.

"Freya was half-right. You could say I’m a ’Gourmet Mage.’ But my Magic doesn’t just make food taste good. When there’s danger, it can also turn enemies... into ’gourmet food,’ you know."

Freya immediately clapped her little hands and asked, full of wonder, "Ah! Then can you turn all the scary monsters into sweet candy? If I eat the candy, can I help you guys fight monsters too?"

Her innocent words made Seraphina smile.

Meanwhile, Crystal, who was standing by, just assumed Seraphina was using an exaggerated metaphor to amuse her little sister. Turning monsters into food?

’That sounds too much like a fairy tale. It’s unbelievable. How could that be possible in reality?’

Only Seraphina herself knew that what she had just said wasn’t entirely a joke.

The true potential and application of her [Cooking Magic] Talent went far beyond simply improving the taste of food.

In extreme situations, it might truly serve as an unconventional yet powerful "weapon" or "disposal" method.

It was just that this truth was not something she could easily explain to others at the moment.

And so, life in the safe zone continued—seemingly calm, yet with an undercurrent of turmoil, occasionally punctuated by small miracles and heartwarming moments.