No, to be precise, he had an electric oven until two weeks ago, before he sold it.
How could he forget that?
One of his elbows was propped on the table. Baffled, he ran a hand over his face, then gently touched his forehead.
How could he possibly cook a baked dish without an oven?
To go out and buy an oven right now was impossible, and he was sure the money he had left wouldn't be enough anyway.
Ah… Could he get a loan from his system?
"Rubby… are you there?" he tried to call his guide, even though Rubby had already said it wouldn't be back until his co-worker arrived.
Then he quickly blinked three times to summon the translucent blue screen.
He swiped left to see what the system had, it stopped at the shop section.
The blurred word "shop" was covered by a lock icon and the words "You don't have access yet."
Then the screen automatically returned to the home status.
His gaze fell on his list of skills.
He frowned, trying to understand what a 100% Cooking skill meant—the maximum ability. The explanation said he could cook any recipe without fail.
Without fail?
Dravin's fingers frantically tapped the table as his mind raced. Then his eyes scanned the entire kitchen and landed on a tall soup pot on a shelf. He took a breath and shook his head.
No, that soup pot is just impossible.
His pupils darted between his system and the pot eagerly. Fuck! What other choice did he have left?
Then his index finger clicked the Cooking Skill button.
Dravin chuckled; he should have known there was nothing free, even in a fantasy world.
His finger clicked 'Yes.'
Ding!
Then the screen displayed a loading bar, which made Dravin raise an eyebrow. Another notification popped up.
The screen then returned to the home menu, and Dravin tilted his head in doubt.
If the soup pot were a Dutch oven or thick stainless steel, it might do the trick. But this is a ceramic pot. Is it really okay to heat it directly on the stove?
The vivid memory of his death by an exploding stove still sent shivers of trauma down his spine.
What if this ceramic pot cracked and the stove blew up?
Dravin took a deep breath to suppress his trust issues. Him being here didn't make sense anyway. He needed to stop trying to make sense of anything.
He immediately set up his phone and tripod again at a different angle on the counter next to the stove, so he could shoot the counter and the pot on the stove.
Then, hesitantly, he grabbed the ceramic pot from the shelf; time was running out.
He placed the pot on the stove, put a strainer inside, and closed the lid. As he lit the stove, he made sure to use the smallest flame.
While he waited for the pot to heat up, Dravin shifted his focus to the puff pastry.
He would make this beef Wellington one-third the size of a normal one, so he cut it accordingly, into pieces about six inches long.
His hand deftly unrolled parchment paper and placed three sheets of puff pastry on top.
He then placed the ground beef cylinders, which had been wrapped around the tenderloin, on top of the pastry.
He didn't forget to layer the cheese and mushroom mustard mixture on top of the meat.
A burning smell from the pot started to creep in, and Dravin turned, seeing the blue screen appear over the pot with an indicator that read, "Processing Cooking Skill."
He then continued to fold each pastry sheet into a cylinder.
After it formed, with a small razor, his fingers deftly scored the top of the pastry to make it look like scales.
He then coated the scored surface with an egg wash.
The next minute, he opened the lid of the pot, letting out a puff of trapped smoke, and put the parchment paper with the three pastries inside. D
Dravin closed the pot with cold sweat on his palms, filled with anxious anticipation.
He had tried this method before with a Dutch oven or a stainless steel pot, and even then, the results were imperfect and the doneness uneven.
In other words, even when he used the proper tools, this technique was not something he should ever do for a customer.
The translucent blue screen that floated above the pot suddenly emitted a blue light that enveloped the pot itself.
The rattling sound of the shaking lid made Dravin flinch and take a few steps back. Then the situation went quiet again.
Time Remaining: 25 minutes 54 seconds
Dravin's eyes widened slightly when the screen showed the remaining time, counting down by the second.
The remaining time was the standard oven time for this dish.
Well, maybe the blue light enveloping the pot was elevating the core function of the cooking technique. Dravin held back his grin, eager to see the results.
While he waited, Dravin checked the video he had recorded and began to edit it to perfect his show and impress his co-worker.
Good food would bring a good mood.
But, to get a perfect rating at his old restaurant, the key was to make the customer feel special with the dishes.
And good food always came with a good story. This was his key to being a successful content creator.
Ding!
Time Remaining: 0 minutes 0 seconds
The notification made Dravin, who was engrossed in editing the video and adding voice-overs, turn his head.
He put his phone on the dining table and stood up. He pressed his lips into a thin line, anxiously approaching the stove.
The blue light surrounding the pot had already disappeared, along with the screen. With a pounding heart and slightly trembling fingers, he gripped the lid and opened it.
A puff of white smoke billowed out from inside the pot, and he waved it away.
A savory, slightly smoked, and spicy aroma wafted to his nose. His hand waved away the smoke to get a clear look inside the pot.
He froze.
His jaw fell open, and he let out a satisfied chuckle.
A perfect, shiny, golden-brown crisp was visible on the surface.
The scores he had carved formed a firm, sharp-cornered pattern like dragon scales.
And most importantly, all three pastries had puffed up perfectly, as if they had just come out of a professional oven.
Dravin blinked, still not believing it.
After waiting a few minutes in awe, he took out the beef Wellington with tongs.
He placed it on the plate he had already garnished. He didn't forget to film the plating from the pot to the plate.
Dravin then arranged the food on the dining table.
He also pulled out a bottle of energy drink and placed it on the table. He had purposely bought it because energy drinks were popular among adult men.
A smirk formed at the thought of his co-worker being impressed by such a small detail.
A hunter would often be tired, and this drink was known to boost a man's vitality.
Ten minutes before their scheduled meeting time, Dravin's apartment doorbell rang.
He was right on time.
He took a deep breath as his hand opened the door, and he held his breath because of the sight before him.
A woman.