Although the system's descriptive terms were terrible, Natsuyu's harvest was actually quite good: a passive skill called rapid recovery.
From now on, his physical endurance would be comparable to a... well, a beast-level protagonist from those specific types of special anime.
Natsuyu felt strength slowly filling his body. He could clearly feel the recovery of the stamina he had exhausted earlier while running around setting up traps.
This was terrifying.
If he had enough food and water, and excluding factors like sleep and wear-and-tear, Natsuyu felt he could become a perpetual motion machine that never stopped running.
In terms of recovery ability, he had completely broken the human limit and reached a non-human level.
'After the physique points exceed the human limit, supernatural elements start to manifest.'
'Looking at this trend, I'll probably gain a passive skill every few times I add points. Or perhaps the next few times will all be passive skills, and after reaching a certain limit, the attribute boost will turn into something else again.'
Natsuyu was very satisfied with obtaining the rapid recovery skill.
the only regret was that the improvement in his physical fitness wasn't as obvious as before.
However, this didn't mean the growth in his physical stats had decreased. Rather, it was due to attribute dilution.
When his physique was 0.9, adding 0.1 was a direct one-ninth increase. Now that his physique was 1.5, adding points wouldn't feel as obvious.
The solution was simple. If one point wasn't obvious, just add two.
Deep blue, let me see your limit!
Natsuyu reined in his thoughts and checked the information in his mind.
Gaining a passive skill after adding points was an unexpected boon, but the true harvest was the ability brought by the newly unlocked gourmet achievement tree.
—Cooking gourmet food:
Gourmet food made by one's own hands will receive a gastronomy level rating.
A gastronomy level of 1–9 is ordinary gourmet food, 10–19 is excellent gourmet food, 20–29 is top-tier gourmet food, and 30 and above is special gourmet food.
High-rated delicacies will possess corresponding special effects.
Every time ingredients are used to cook a delicacy, there is a chance to unlock a new gourmet recipe for that ingredient.
The probability will gradually stack until a new recipe is obtained, after which it resets to zero.
[You have opened the "Gourmet Achievement Tree".]
[Gourmet Achievement Tree:
Cooking Gourmet Food —— Tasty! (Craft Excellent Gourmet Food) —— ?]
[You can unlock hidden achievement trees through exploration and discovery.]
Is this a gourmet system?
Cooking gives a chance to unlock new recipes, and if a recipe isn't unlocked this time, the probability accumulates for the next... This is much more generous than some games where you can lose the 50/50 on a gacha pull.
Just as Natsuyu finished processing the cooking ability, information prompts continued to ring in his mind.
[You used juicy berries to craft the ordinary gourmet food "cooked juicy berry" 30 times. Current probability of unlocking a new recipe: 0.1%, 0.2%... 3%.]
[You have unlocked a new recipe: Excellent Gourmet Food "Berry Candy".]
Eh?
Natsuyu raised an eyebrow in surprise.
Accumulating 0.1% probability per try was very low. But to pull a recipe after only reaching 3%—was this a pity mechanism, or had his "European King" luck awakened?
[Berry Candy (Excellent Gourmet Food):
Requires 3 berry-type low-grade ingredients. Crush, mix, and bake for 30 seconds.
Consumption increases mood, provides satiety, and aids digestion.
Obtained Status: Mood Boost (Weak).
Duration: 3 minutes.
Shelf Life: 50 days.]
Natsuyu recalled the unlocked gourmet recipe in his mind with surprise.
Berry candy: three berries synthesized into one, capable of boosting mood. This was a delicacy with supernatural effects; if placed in a game, it would be "medicine"!
Natsuyu beamed, falling into a fantasy:
Since there was food to boost mood, there must be food to boost attack, defense, and recovery. In the future, before fighting monsters, they could eat some delicacies to increase combat power; after getting injured, they could use food for healing without worrying about medical issues.
Eat warming food when it's cold, cool food when it's hot...
Natsuyu let out a "ha" of laughter and clapped his hands hard. "I'm definitely going to be a special grade chef!"
Kiana licked her lips, reminiscing about the sweet and sour berries. She approached with a fawning smile:
"Dear special grade chef, I want to eat more of your cooking, hehe."
Natsuyu waved his hand grandly:
"Eat! You can all eat! Everyone is going to fill their bellies before going to sleep today."
"Hell yeah~"
Kiana cheered, opened the furnace, and reached out with her washed hands to grab the berries.
"Come, come, come, everyone gets a share."
"Chef Natsuyu, ah, open wide."
After handing out berries to everyone, Kiana giggled and held a cooked berry out to Natsuyu, wanting to feed him.
Behind her, the girls who had been handed a fistful of cooked berries reacted intensely:
"Hoo, hoo, so hot."
"Kiana, be careful!"
"Ah, so delicious, hoo, hoo~ hoo, hoo."
Kushida Kikyo kept juggling the berries between her hands. Yukinoshita Yukino glared at Kiana. Ema Sakuraba puffed out her cheeks, chewing while sticking out her tongue.
Seeing this, Natsuyu looked helplessly at Kiana, took the berry, and said:
"Are you trying to scald me to death?"
"Aba, I'll be careful next time."
Kiana touched her face and gave an "ehe" smile, attempting to play it off.
"Go eat your own."
Natsuyu pushed Kiana away and put another batch of berries into the furnace. Sitting in front of the warm orange firelight, he watched Kiana being scolded by Yukinoshita Yukino, the corners of his mouth curling up unconsciously.
Although Kiana had revealed a clumsy and reckless personality after they got close, the atmosphere never grew cold wherever she was. Kiana's cheerfulness wasn't annoying either. This was likely her role as the group's "mood maker."
[You crafted the ordinary gourmet food "cooked juicy berry" 27 times. Current probability of unlocking a new recipe: 0.1%, 0.2%... 2.7%.]
Natsuyu took out the new food and used the crafting table to make a brand-new wooden wall, placing it on the ground to serve as a camping mat, and led everyone to sit on it.
Gathered around the firelight of the furnace, Natsuyu and the girls formed a circle. The fading daylight didn't dampen their bright spirits; instead, because the environment had darkened, their vision ignored the redundant scenery and focused more on each other's presence. They immersed themselves in the relaxed atmosphere, ignoring the passage of time.
Natsuyu looked at their smiles and couldn't help but smile too.
He had spent the entire day running around with these girls—exploring the environment, gathering resources, hunting, fighting spider monsters, and digging traps. There hadn't been a moment's peace.
Now, with Tokisaki Kurumi intimidating the monsters around the Splendid Gate, Natsuyu no longer had to worry about safety. He relaxed, looking at the beautiful girls around him. The sense of happiness brought by satiety and sugar filled his heart as he enjoyed this precious, warm atmosphere.
It wasn't just Natsuyu who was working hard. Not a single one of the girls had slacked off; each had worked hard to do her share of the job to earn their current foothold in this unfamiliar wilderness.
Because they had helped each other and shared both joys and sorrows, Natsuyu's favorability toward them had surged. When they looked at him or joked with him, their soft gazes and close smiles constantly showed their trust in him.