Chapter 120 - 118: Freeloaders?

Sev Steele made a massive pot of her first stir-fry dish, using the new steamer she had just bought. Although she didn’t have a proper wok, the steamer was made of a special, high-quality alloy that could double as both a griddle and a frying pan.

Once the cooking was done, she scooped out a large plateful and dispatched the Zephyr to deliver it to Hayden Hanson. Then, she plated another generous portion, covered it with a bowl, packed it into her backpack, and headed over to Mr. Fuller’s place.

Her son had gone to work at his house yesterday and ended up staying the night. Mr. Fuller was considerate enough to have Shannon Fuller send her a message letting her know. Even though they had agreed on a half-day off every ten days for the boy to visit home, Sev couldn’t possibly leave such a young child completely unattended.

By bringing over food today, she wanted to thank Mr. Fuller for taking her son in, while also showing him how much she cared for the child. If a parent showed they valued their child, even if Mr. Fuller wanted to test and temper the boy, he wouldn’t push things too far.

Sev rang the doorbell. When Shannon saw who it was, her brows furrowed. Although clearly reluctant, she still let her inside.

Yesterday, her grandfather had explained the reality of adopting orphans in the wasteland. She learned that most families who adopted did so simply to hoard the official subsidies. Only a tiny minority of parents adopted because they genuinely wanted children but couldn’t conceive. Firestone’s adoptive mother had taken in four orphans all by herself, meaning she was obviously after the subsidies.

Mr. Fuller had asked someone to look into these records. Upon discovering this information, his attitude toward Sev had shifted from initial appreciation to deep disgust. He even suspected that she had dressed Firestone in new clothes and brought him along to pick up the dagger just to leave a good impression. When the boy came to work the next day bringing a delicious shredded potato pancake, that was also a deliberate move by the woman to curry favor with him. Her ultimate goal was to make him accept Firestone as an apprentice.

For an ordinary Scavenger adoptive mother, having her son latch onto an Artifact Refiner like him would undoubtedly bring a wealth of benefits in the future.

After hearing all this from her grandfather, Shannon only felt pity for Firestone. Otherwise, how could he have developed such good cooking skills at such a young age? His adoptive mother had probably been exploiting him since he was very little.

As soon as Sev entered the courtyard, she sensed something was off. The young girl who had been so pleasant to her just the day before yesterday had suddenly grown much colder. However, knowing that children were naturally moody, she didn’t pay it too much mind and headed straight for the shed where Firestone was working.

Firestone was currently holding a small hammer, striking a pile of crushed rocks over and over. Mr. Fuller had ordered him to smash the ore into fine powder. He had been hammering away for over two hours. Even though he felt the pieces were already incredibly small, every time Mr. Fuller came over to check, he would shake his head in dissatisfaction. Knowing the man was his employer and would provide him with meals, Firestone suppressed his frustration and obediently kept at it.

"Firestone!" Sev called out the moment she saw him. They had only been apart for a day, yet she found herself genuinely missing him.

It had only been half a month since she transmigrated here, yet the bond she shared with these four children had far exceeded her expectations. It seemed that emotional connections between people were forged through time spent together. She had gone from merely wanting to lessen their hostility to genuinely viewing them as her children, her family.

Hearing the familiar voice, the boy’s head snapped up. His eyes filled with pleasant surprise as he blurted out, "Mom, how do you have time to come see me?"

"I happened to not go out into the wilderness today. I made some food and brought a bit over so you can share it with Master Fuller and Miss Shannon," Sev said with a smile, casually wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead.

Her heart ached for him. On Azure, a child his age would have just graduated from kindergarten, but here, he was already forced to fight for survival.

When Firestone heard she had brought food, his first reaction was to feel touched, followed quickly by a pang of distress. He had already been hired by Master Fuller to do odd jobs, and his agreed-upon compensation was meals—all-you-can-eat, at that. Yet, on his very first day of work, his mom had sent him off with a shredded potato pancake. And now, on his second day, she had brought even more food over. Wouldn’t their family be losing out at this rate?

He wanted to remind his mother not to bring food anymore, but seeing Shannon standing not far away, he quickly shut his mouth. The employer’s granddaughter would definitely be upset if she heard him say that.

Seeing Sev arrive, Mr. Fuller assumed she was using her son’s odd job here as an excuse to mooch off them. He walked over with a dark expression and scolded the excited Firestone, "Boy, no slacking off!"

Firestone immediately resumed swinging his hammer, smashing the rocks without daring to utter another word.

Sev noticed that Mr. Fuller had a rock crusher right there, yet he was forcing Firestone to break the ore with a hammer. She could roughly guess that it was to build up the boy’s arm strength. After all, Artifact Refining demanded a great deal of endurance and precision in one’s arms, so she didn’t voice any objections.

Instead, she simply opened her backpack, took out the steaming hot dish, and smiled at Mr. Fuller. "Master Fuller, this is a freshly cooked braised diced meat with carrots. Would you mind giving it a taste and letting me know what you think?"

Mr. Fuller was about to decline when an incredibly savory aroma of meat filled his nose, mingled with the sweet scent of carrots. It had been a long time since he last smelled the fragrance of a stir-fried dish. In his memory, this kind of aroma only existed before the Great War.

Overcome with emotion, old tears welled up in his eyes as memories of his past family and friends flooded his mind. The vast majority of them had perished in that catastrophe, while he had luckily awakened an Ability, allowing him to protect his only son and survive.

"Let’s go to the kitchen. Firestone, Shannon, come over here. Let’s try it while it’s hot," he said, his expression softening slightly as he called the two children over.

The old man and the two youngsters gathered around the dining table. Shannon, already captivated by the mouthwatering smell, was itching to use her chopsticks. However, she restrained herself from taking the first bite, showing that she had a very good upbringing. Firestone kept his head down, discreetly licking his lips and swallowing hard.

Sev actually wanted to swallow her own saliva. She had been so worried the dish would get cold and the grease would solidify that she hadn’t even taken a bite herself before bringing it over.

Mr. Fuller finally made his move, picking up a chunk of roll-cut carrot. Shannon followed immediately, swiftly grabbing an orange-red cube of meat glazed in carrot juices. Not daring to overstep, Firestone only picked up a pinch of the vibrant green carrot tops, which he assumed were some sort of wild vegetable.

For a moment, no one spoke another word. The only sound in the room was of chewing.

Watching the three of them unable to stop eating, Sev regretted her decision immensely. She really should have eaten some before coming over. But now, it would be too embarrassing to pick up chopsticks and fight them for food, so she could only stand there and watch.

After eating his first piece of meat, Mr. Fuller immediately sensed the abundant yet gentle Energy contained within. He looked at his granddaughter and cautioned, "You can’t eat too much of this."

Shannon clearly understood the implications. Although reluctant, she nodded and aimed her chopsticks at the roll-cut carrots instead. Upon tasting it, she discovered that the carrot chunks, having soaked up plenty of rich fats, were equally delicious. Soft, sweet, and savory, it left her craving more.

After eating three pieces of carrot in a row, she tentatively picked up some of the green carrot tops. To her surprise, these leaves—which looked like ordinary wild greens—were incredibly tasty as well. In short, all three ingredients had their own unique charms. She couldn’t even distinguish which one was the most delicious.

Mr. Fuller couldn’t help but sigh, "This is truly the taste of a stir-fry from before the Great War. It’s been so long since I’ve tasted something like this."

Firestone, of course, had never had a stir-fry before either. He had originally thought the egg custard, mashed potatoes, and shredded potato pancakes his adoptive mother made were the pinnacle of culinary perfection. But now, after tasting this plate of braised carrots, he realized that there was no such thing as the most delicious food in this world—only something even better!

Soon, the plate was completely empty. Mr. Fuller had even crumbled up a Nutrition Block to soak up the remaining sauce, and the three of them eagerly finished off every last drop.

"That hits the spot!" Mr. Fuller said with a satisfied burp.

"Mmm! That was so good! What kind of Mutant Beast did that tender diced meat come from? If only there were more!" Shannon said, an intoxicated expression on her face.

Mr. Fuller noticed that his granddaughter’s eyes were slightly glazed and a flush had crept across her cheeks—obvious signs of excessive Energy intake. But when he looked over at Firestone, the boy’s face was only mildly flushed, showing no other abnormal reactions.

This reaffirmed his prediction about the boy’s aptitude. The child’s potential was indeed incredibly strong, something his own granddaughter couldn’t compare to at all.

Considering that Sev was willing to part with such high-quality ingredients and had cooked such a delicious meal to bring over, he decided he would tolerate her mooching off them a little.