Being able to breathe freely is already an unparalleled blessing, and being able to open your mouth to eat is something that can truly bring tears to your eyes. As for whether the food is delicious or not, that really isn’t very important anymore.

However, William Carter also admits that eating this kind of thing for a long time greatly improves one’s willpower.

“Tastes pretty good. This is my first proper meal since coming back to life after dying. Thank you, Uncle Owen Smith, thank you, everyone.” William Carter stood up and, following the etiquette of this world, bowed deeply and solemnly.

“But…”

“In addition to studying magic in the past, I was actually a cook as well. So, for the next meal, I hope I can be the one to cook, to repay the leader and everyone for taking me in.”

As for saving his life—well, that’s not something that can be repaid with just one meal.

Chapter 3: Steamed Pork with Rice Flour

The original owner of this body was a complete homebody. In his mind, there was nothing but magic—just magic. He had pitifully little knowledge of anything else, and as for what he ate every day, he had absolutely no recollection.

The first person William Carter saw upon waking up was a little loli named Ivy White, the daughter of the leader Owen Smith.

William Carter learned from little Ivy White that there are two meals a day here: breakfast is around nine or ten in the morning, and dinner is around six in the evening. As for lunch…

Sorry, there’s no such thing as lunch here.

So by three or four in the afternoon, William Carter’s stomach was already empty. “Little loli—oh no, little Ivy White, what do you usually eat for dinner?” In the side yard of the mercenary group’s compound, a group of children ranging from five or six to fourteen or fifteen years old gathered around William Carter.

To these kids, a magic apprentice was a truly magical being. Without saying a word, William Carter had already established himself as their leader. (laughs)

“Bread, and meat soup,” little Ivy White said.

A few of the kids had already started drooling, and a little girl about five or six years old standing next to Ivy White began sucking her fingers.

“The same stuff as in the morning?”

“Yeah.” This time, it wasn’t little Ivy White who answered.

William Carter sighed. Actually, black bread and meat soup are nutritionally adequate. But the taste of that meat soup, and the texture of that black bread, really leave much to be desired.

“Big brother William Carter, you can cook?” asked a chubby boy named Dick White.

“Of course! My cooking skills are way better than my magic skills,” William Carter said with a smile. “How about this: let’s start cooking now. Who wants to take me to the kitchen?”

The cooking area was outdoors—a makeshift stove built from a few stones, with a big pot set on top… That was the kitchen here.

Once again, William Carter was moved to tears.

A few women were chatting under the shade of a tree in the distance. When they saw the group, they walked over.

After a brief negotiation, William Carter obtained the right to cook dinner.

The available ingredients were shockingly simple. First of all, there were absolutely no spices or seasonings—salt was the only condiment. And not iodized or refined salt, but coarse, unrefined salt blocks full of visible impurities.

According to legend, this kind of salt can taste bitter, and might even contain trace amounts of toxins.

As for grains, there was only wheat, corn, and potatoes.

The wheat flour was black—yes, the so-called whole wheat flour, meaning the bran hadn’t been removed during milling. Besides that, the flour was very coarse; some of it was basically just whole wheat kernels, barely ground at all.

William Carter looked around and spotted a stone mill at the side of the yard.

There weren’t many grains, but there was plenty of meat. Besides pork, there were several kinds of wild animals—wild chickens, ducks, rabbits, and some others William Carter couldn’t even name.

After checking the salt, the grains, and the meat, William Carter was shocked to discover that there were no vegetables at all! No cabbage, bok choy, lettuce, celery, tomatoes, carrots—none whatsoever!

William Carter asked one of the women, Auntie Lillian White, and the answer was: vegetables don’t fill you up and don’t taste good, so nobody eats them!

William Carter was on the verge of collapse.

“You guys just eat bread and meat soup every day?” William Carter asked little Ivy White.

The kids all nodded vigorously, and one of them added, “And roasted meat!”

William Carter was completely speechless.

“Brother William Carter, what are you going to make?” Little Ivy White asked excitedly.

What could he make? William Carter finally understood the saying, “Even the cleverest housewife can’t cook without rice.” Still, even with just these ingredients, there was something he could do. For example, steamed pork with rice flour.

Steamed pork with rice flour is a traditional Chinese dish. When done well, it’s fatty but not greasy, lean but not dry, tender but not tough, and soft but not mushy. Of course, achieving that requires careful selection of ingredients and precise control of the heat.

At this moment, under these conditions, William Carter had no such ambitions. He just wanted to use the basic idea of steamed pork with rice flour.

The meat soup in the morning was so gamey that no one had any appetite, so the first step William Carter needed to take was to get rid of the unpleasant smell in the meat.

“Auntie Lillian White, do you have any alcohol?” William Carter asked.

He received an affirmative answer.