The dungeon has been parasitized

Chapter 130 Delicious

"Then, Hyacinth, why don't you cut off one of its legs? My knife is too short; your sword will be more convenient."

"But...aren't its bodily fluids corrosive? What about my sword?"

Hyacinth looked at the sword in her hand with a hint of reluctance, seemingly unwilling to part with it.

"Actually, the corrosive properties of the centipede come from its stomach acid and saliva, not its flesh."

"Huh? If that's the case, then I'm relieved..."

Yanami grabbed a hooked foot as thick as her own arm and pressed it down, revealing the gap where it connected to her body, where only a soft white membrane was visible.

"Insert it here, then follow the gap and go around it once."

Following Yanami's instructions, Hyacinth inserted the sword, then turned the centipede's leg in the opposite direction from Yanami, circling along the exposed gap, and detached the entire centipede leg along with a large piece of flesh.

"Oh, don't touch the meat directly with your hands, it's poisonous."

"It's...poisonous? How can we eat it?"

"Just stir-fry it with boiling water."

"Ah~ no wonder I had to boil two pots of water."

Following the same procedure, they untied another leg and returned to the open space. Daisy's eyes widened when she saw the two people holding the two centipede legs.

"W-Would you like to eat this?!"

"Yes, it's delicious."

"Is that so...?"

"We were supposed to use regular meat, but we didn't have any other meat. That's when I saw the method for processing centipede meat."

"Don't we have worms?"

"Ah~ Worms are not suitable for boiling, they will make the meat taste bad."

"Oh, I see..."

Continuing the process, Yanami had Hyacinth use her sword to circle inside the centipede's leg armor, tearing the entire piece of flesh out of the leg.

It was a lump of translucent, white, tender flesh, but the blood inside had a hint of green, making it look somewhat eerie...

Yanami cut the meat into small pieces and then placed them on another empty cutting board.

"Okay, now put it in the pan for thirty seconds."

Holding the centipede meat, Yanami poured it all into the boiling water. After counting to thirty, she took it out. A layer of yellowish-green foam had appeared on the surface of the boiling water, but the centipede meat had become much firmer, and the green blood had disappeared.

"It looks like crab meat."

"It's no longer poisonous. Cut it into this size, and cook it for more than 20 seconds to remove the toxins from the meat. However, the scum on the surface doesn't taste good, so you need to prepare an extra pot of water."

"Wow, that's amazing."

Yanami put the fished-out meat into the pot of water that hadn't boiled yet and simmered it slowly. Then Yanami took out the salt she bought from the rat tribe's stronghold and added a spoonful.

After that, Yanami came to the edge of the pool, where some wild vegetables grew. She had planted them there in her spare time. She picked some, washed them clean, and took them to the pot where the centipede meat was cooking.

"It smells so good."

It had a unique, delicate aroma unlike any other meat.

After simmering for a while, the centipede meat turned a snow-white color, resembling garlic cloves, with specks of oil floating on the bottom of the broth.

Once the water in the pot started to boil, Yanami put the wild vegetables in, then slid the thick slices of walking mushrooms into the pot one by one, and finally solemnly added the mushroom stems.

"It needs to cook for a while to bring out its flavor."

Yanami picked up the pot lid and firmly placed it on the pot.

The wait wasn't long, but for the three of them, every wisp of steam rising from under the pot lid was torture. The steam carried the aroma of the meat from before, as well as the fragrance of the walking mushrooms that had been fully released, tempting everyone's taste buds.

Rumble... Daisy's stomach was pounding; she had given in to the fragrance.

I'm sorry.

"It's okay, we understand your stomach."

Glug glug... Next up is the hyacinth. She blushed a little and lowered her head.

"I... I didn't expect it to smell so good. I was already hungry, and this smell made my stomach rumble... Is it ready yet?"

"Not yet, wait a little longer."

On the contrary, Yanami, who is the gluttonousest, is now waiting earnestly and attentively, without wavering in the slightest.

Five minutes later, Yanami lifted the lid of the pot.

A cloud of humid white steam, carrying an indescribable aroma, wafted over, forcing the three people to open their mouths, and saliva involuntarily began to flow down their faces.

"It smells so good!!!"

Seemingly having been holding back, Yanami let out her loudest exclamation.

The water in the pot was still boiling. The snow-white centipede meat sank to the bottom, appearing and disappearing in the pale golden broth. The thick slices of walking mushrooms, soaked with broth, had slightly translucent edges, while the center remained a warm ivory color, trembling gently in the boiling soup.

"Let's...start eating."

"I can't wait."

"I'm so hungry!"

Hyacinth, with a serious expression, brought over three bowls and handed them to Yanami. Yanami used a spoon to scoop the golden soup into the bowls, then ladled centipede meat and walking mushrooms, along with wild vegetables as garnish, for everyone.

The three of them placed the bowls on the table, and the white steam rose in front of them, tantalizing everyone's taste buds. No one spoke, but Hyacinth and Daisy both looked at Yanami, who was the chef.

Yanami looked serious, picked up the bowl, took a sip of soup, then looked up at the two of them and nodded solemnly.

Upon seeing this, Hyacinth and Daisy also picked up their bowls with serious expressions, took a sip of soup, and Yanami also lowered her head and took another sip.

"Haa..."

The three of them exhaled a breath of hot air at the same time. Without saying a word, that breath contained a great deal of enjoyment.

Yanami scooped up a piece of walking mushroom with a spoon and put it in her mouth.

The mushroom meat is smooth at first bite, but its true character is revealed when you bite into it – it's not the mushy kind that's overcooked, but rather has a slightly elastic, full-bodied chewiness, like chicken or tender abalone.

With each bite, a little bit of the broth hidden in the mushroom's flesh fibers oozes out, so delicious it makes your scalp tingle.

After the mushroom meat comes the centipede meat.

Place the snow-white centipede meat between your teeth and bite down gently. The delicate meat fibers bounce between your teeth, and the juices melt in your mouth, carrying a fresh aroma similar to crab, but the meat is firmer than crab.

The unique flavor of the walking mushrooms did not mask the aroma of the meat; instead, it complemented it, making the flavor more colorful and less monotonous.

After finishing that bite, Yanami took another sip of soup, swallowing the taste in her mouth, because what she was about to eat was the most essential part.

Finally, there are the fewest mushroom stems.

Yanami cut the mushroom stem into long strips so that she could suck it into her mouth like noodles. Yanami rolled the strip into a ball in her mouth and paused for a moment when she bit down.

The texture of the mushroom stem is completely different from the main body; it is firmer, more chewy, and even has a slight crunch in the middle.

The most crucial element is the flavor—if the main mushroom aroma is a gentle base note, then the mushroom stem is the essence concentrated tenfold.

The aroma was so strong it was almost domineering, rampaging through the mouth and making you instinctively want to grab another piece.

Mushroom dishes are all about the flavor of the mushrooms. Centipede meat looks a lot like crab meat, and crab is delicious even when it's just boiled.

Yanami only added salt for seasoning, precisely to prevent the aroma of spices from masking the original flavor of the ingredients.

Hyacinth also took a bite of the mushroom stem, then froze on the spot, her chewing motion pausing for a full three seconds.

"...like a forest growing out of my mouth."

She murmured to herself, and no one argued with her.

The soup in the pot was still bubbling away, and steam rose around the small open space.

In the distance, the wet stone walls of the plantation reflected the light, but in this small space, there were only the sounds of bowls and chopsticks clattering and the irresistible smacking of lips as people drank soup.

A mushroom that had been running amok in the tunnel melted into the warm soup.