With everyone quickly settling into their roles, Rita felt a deep sense of relief.
Not only was she spared the workplace bullying she had anticipated, but her three teammates were behaving almost too normally—which was nothing short of a miracle.
It wasn’t just their team.
Rita glanced at the neighboring restaurants and noticed the sa thing: despite being Stage 14 powerhouses, the players were actively discussing strategies and working together.
When cooperation was necessary, even players who normally fought to the death on the battlefield knew when to set aside their grudges.
Then again, that was the logical outco.
These high-ranking players had survived the World Battlefield for so long, they were essentially rulers of their own races.
Their personalities and temperants might vary, but one thing was certain: they all had an innate drive for success.
There was no way they’d half-ass a task the ga assigned them—their obsession with control and responsibility wouldn’t allow them to dump all the work on the weakest player here, BS Rita.
If any of them knew how to cook, they wouldn’t have trusted her with the role at all.
That was why Pine Bloom was the first to give an order:
"Make a few dishes for us to try first."
Marmang-Crab and Black SpringMud Bears said nothing, but their silence was agreent.
Rita didn’t mind the test—even if they hadn’t asked, she had already planned to experint with the ingredients first.
Because when she inspected the kitchen earlier, she noticed that she didn’t recognize 70% of the available ingredients.
Still, she was confident.
In High Tower, she had spent half her ti practicing cooking, accumulating thousands of recipes in her mory.
Even if she didn’t recognize the ingredients, as long as she could identify their flavors, whether they were soft or chewy, and their cooking tis, she could quickly match them with the most suitable preparation thod.
Besides, she had a rarely used skill that was perfect for this ga:
[This Life is Unbearable] (B-Rank)
When used on any dish, the food will start talking and complain about the mistakes the cook made during its preparation.
Without hesitation, Rita walked toward the fridge and began picking ingredients.
At the sa ti, she rembered she still had a skill that allowed her to randomly remove one unreadable ga rule.
So, as she waited for Marmang-Crab and the others to respond, she activated the skill.
Now, she only had eleven unknown ga rules left.
The ga had already been running for five minutes, and one of her existing rules was:
"Mischief Score cannot stay below 10 for more than 10 minutes."
As she opened the fridge, she asked her teammates, "What’s the deal with this Mischief Score?"
She had to repeat the question in three different languages.
The three players were already discussing the issue, so Rita had to multitask—preparing ingredients while also translating in real-ti.
She examined the bizarrely shaped but clearly labeled fridge and began selecting ingredients.
Seeing the dozens of different types of at, she sighed.
She couldn’t just cook vegetarian dishes, but she also knew these alien ats were unlikely to co out right on the first try.
She was going to break a lot of rules today.
Just then, a voice echoed in her mind.
B80234615: "Why don’t you just ask ?"
Rita: "Ah…"
B80234615: "You forgot about ."
Rita stayed silent. She really had forgotten…
B80234615: "Just as Nivalis said."
Rita: "Hm? What did she say?"
B80234615: "When you first made a contract with her, you never saw her as part of your power. You always tried to handle things on your own. You only trust yourself."
B80234615: "She told to be prepared—if I really wanted to help you, I’d have to get used to being ignored and keep trying anyway."
Rita: "She’s so crude!"
B80234615: "But you really did forget ."
Rita, in an extrely good mood, gathered her selected ingredients and walked back.
Rita: "I just didn’t want to overwork you. I want you to learn how to enjoy life after leaving the chanical race—not just switch from one job to another."
B80234615: "Oh? And do you still need my help now?"
Rita: "Of course!!"
B80234615: "Isn’t this just more work?"
Rita: "No way! This is our pet-and-owner bonding ti! We’re creating emotional value for each other! It’s a precious interaction, like gold!"
B80234615: "…Nivalis was right."
Rita: "...I don’t want to hear it."
B80234615: "A wise decision."
Rita: "…"
—
For rapidly changing ga chanics, B80234615 wasn’t much help.
But when it ca to ingredients from the World Battlefield, it had a full database.
Just by laying out the ingredients, B80234615 could tell her everything about them:
Which ones were best eaten raw. Which required long cooking tis. Which lted in water. Which were toxic unless paired with specific vegetables. Which parts of fruits and vegetables were inedible. How unfamiliar ats tasted.
Rita saw no reason to fake failures.
She had taken the "pro chef" role, so why pretend?
With so many bizarre skills in the ga, having a food-identification ability was perfectly reasonable.
But soon, the downsides of contracting B80234615 appeared.
—CLANG!
Rita stared blankly at the third spoon she had broken.
Another rule violation.
And sohow, she even wrecked a pot—which Marmang-Crab had to fix using his skills.
She subtly observed Pine Bloom throughout.
Nothing happened to her.
Rita fud: "Why is she completely fine?!"
B80234615: "…She’s literally just sitting at the table doing nothing. What could possibly happen to her? Just wait."
Rita: "Fine, I’ll wait. But why are you shouting?"
Since this was a food street, Rita chose quick-serve dishes that could be eaten on the go.
She finished preparing five different snacks in under twenty minutes—most of which were spent on prep work.
Each dish displayed a flavor rating above it.
Since she knew the ingredient properties, her cooking skills ensured every dish scored over 70% in taste.
Her three teammates gathered around and started tasting.
Rita tried a few bites herself—she was satisfied.
Given it was her first ti handling these ingredients, this was a solid result.
Marmang-Crab, who was more expressive, took one bite and imdiately said: "Alright, we’ve got this ga in the bag."
Black SpringMud Bears, though less talkative, nodded approvingly before digging in.
Then there was Pine Bloom.
The noblewoman daintily picked up a small piece of at, placed it in her mouth—
And in the next second, her exquisitely beautiful face twisted in absolute horror as she let out a thunderous coughing fit.
B80234615: "SEE?! IT HAPPENED! I KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN! IT’S NOT JUST —EVERYONE AROUND HER IS DOOD!"
Rita: "???"
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