Chapter 39 – Lake It Easy

🙞❤︎🙜

I put a jaunty sailor's hat on Mr. Bear then walked along the shoreline until I came across a likely fishing spot, then waded a little way into the water before casting my line. It would’ve been nicer if there was a dock that I could put a chair on and relax while I fished. After a few minutes, I got a bite and reeled in a Steelhead.

[Steelhead:

A freshwater fish with a distinctive band of color along its sides.

The Steelhead, a type of rainbow trout, is a popular fish for cooking because of its delicate flavor and flaky texture. When cooked, the flesh of the rainbow trout is pinkish-white with a slightly oily consistency and a delicate, yet distinct flavor.]

I normally preferred red meat over every other form of protein, but the Demon Chef was sure to make something extraordinary from our freshly caught fish. He had prepared an array of specialty knives, dozens of different ingredients, three folding tables, an open fire, charcoal grill, and who knew what else prepared for today’s lunch. He was really going all out and I was already salivating at the thought of all the tasty dishes I would be eating today.

I cast the line again and caught another Steelhead, a bigger one this time. The next one was a Ripple Lake Trout.

[Ripple Lake Trout:

A freshwater fish that can only be found in the Lake of Clear Ripples. It can grow to over four feet and over forty pounds in weight. The fish is dark green, with a white belly and dark spots on its body. It is a predator that feeds on smaller fish, crustaceans, and insects.]

Oh! This must be one of those special fish that could only be caught in certain locations. There didn’t seem to be any particular benefit to this Ripple Lake Trout, however. There were a lot of such items that were ordinary, yet prized by completionists purely because they wanted to tick a checkbox on their list.

After catching a few more Steelheads and Ripple Lake Trouts, I moved on to a different spot where I was able to get a few Salmon and Bass. I kept moving around, looking for a comfortable spot that had good fishing and a bit of shade.

I was so caught up in fishing that I didn’t even realize that it was almost noon until Fengying called me over. I put the fish into two buckets of water and walked over to where Deming was hard at work.

“Here, I got some big ones!” I said as I placed the buckets at the Demon Chef’s feet.

Deming just grunted at me and examined my offering. His pupils were dilated and his expression was so fierce that I backed away quickly and fled.

“Excuse me, I’ll just freshen up a little,” I said.

I moved far enough that I wouldn’t be able to smell the smoke from the cooking fires and set up a tent from my inventory, rolling up the sides so I would have a good view of the lake and forest. Then I realized I needed privacy to change my clothes, so I had to roll the sides back down.

Five minutes later, I was in comfortable cotton clothes and lounging on a beach chair under the tent while munching on some snacks that Fengying had packed for us. The dried fruit and nuts had been bought from the nearest town market since we hadn’t been able to forage enough to make snacks. They weren’t as good as the Demon Chef’s cooking, but they weren’t bad.

Moments later, my apprentices, seeing that I had quit fishing, handed their catch to Deming and joined me in my tent. I obligingly took out three more chairs for them and an extra one for Fengying if she wanted to join us. I told them to change into their spare clothes, and I rolled down the sides of the tent once again while they took turns tidying themselves up and putting on their new summer robes.

The day was starting to get really hot, and I decided to amaze my companions by producing an electric fan from thin air. No one was impressed though because they already knew I could produce a lot of interesting things using my bloodline inheritance.

“I wish we had one of these at home,” said Lari as he poked a finger at the electric fan.

“Don’t touch the blades,” I said.

“This has blades?!” Lari tried to put his finger nearer the spinning fan blades.

I sighed and turned it off so they could see how it worked.

“These things that spin are called blades? They aren’t sharp,” said Mo.

“Of course. It would be too dangerous if they were sharp,” I said. “I’m not going to put one inside the house if you guys are going to be playing with it. You might hurt yourselves.”

“Maybe don’t put one in Lari’s room,” said Kharli.

“What? That’s unfair!” said Lari.

I let the kids bicker. Judging from the activity at the Demon Chef’s work area, lunch should be ready soon.

Sure enough, after a few minutes, Fengying called us over. There were no chairs, so we ate standing up or sitting down on the grass. Deming had prepared a feast for us that was spread over two large folding tables. There was a variety of fish that he had grilled, pan fried, and stewed, all of it over an open fire in the wilderness. He had also brought plenty of fresh vegetables that we had foraged yesterday, so we even had a lot of side dishes.

“Impressive work,” I said to Fengying and Deming.

Fengying beamed while Deming just nodded.

Afterward, I was stuffed full and felt like resting a bit.

“When did Shuye say he’s coming back?” I asked the others.

“Two hours after lunch,” said Fengying.

Shuye had spent the entire morning exploring the lake, but he had disappeared right around noon because it was kind of an unspoken expectation or courtesy that he wouldn’t be around when we were eating since it was rather awkward when he had to refuse all our offers of food.

“I’m going to rest for a bit, then I’m going to forage around here. You guys can either go back fishing or go foraging with me,” I said.

“I’m going fishing! Teacher, did you see that I caught a lot of fish?” asked Lari.

“I didn’t get a lot…” Mo looked downcast.

“It’s fine. Some people are just better at some skills and worse than others,” I said. “Watch this.”

Taking out a loaf of bread, a stick of butter, and a table knife from my inventory, I cut a slice of bread and tried to spread the butter on it. The result…

“How could that even happen?!”

“Teacher, are you cursed?”

“There was no fire! How did it burn?”

“May I?” Without waiting for my answer, Fengying took the piece of burnt bread and examined it closely. The others crowded around her except for Deming, who showed no interest in my disastrous cooking attempt.

“Amazing.” Mo stared at the piece of coal-like bread.

“I think this is actually a rare talent.” Lari was openly laughing.

“Maybe teacher’s hands were too hot?” said Mo.

Kharli burst out laughing. “Hot enough to burn?”

“Too hot with the ‘energy’ that we use,” said Mo.

“Ahem.” I coughed to get their attention and said, “The point is, you don’t have to be good at every single skill. Okay? So relax. I’m going back to the tent to rest for a bit.”

“May I keep this piece?” asked Lari.

“What for?” I asked.

“I can keep it as an heirloom to show to my future children and grandchildren. They can pass it down to their own children,” said Lari.

“Haha.” I took it from him and placed it in my inventory with the other “burnt food.” I had 308 of them by now.

Mo and I went to the tent to rest while Lari and Kharli went fishing.

When Shuye returned, he offered to accompany us while we went foraging.

“Did you find anything interesting?” I asked Shuye as we circled the lake’s shoreline looking for anything medicinal or edible.

“The lake itself is the most interesting thing,” he said.

“There!” Mo pointed at some plants, then scampered off to pick some watercress. She really had a good eye for foraging.

The lake was so large that we couldn’t walk around it, though we spent the entire afternoon exploring its banks.

“We should leave soon,” said Shuye after a few hours. “I can fly at night, but I don’t know if you would be comfortable with that.”

“Yes, I’ll tell everyone to pack up,” I said.

I guess my mini vacation was over now.