As ingredients swirled in the pot, Aaron saw the light. The spark he had been looking for. This was different… a far cry from the devious ogre food he had been brewing up until now.

  He threw peppers, seasoning, and untold amounts of fragrant garlic into the bubbling cauldron and stirred.

  This was beyond what he had created before. This was art, and his eyes glowed with revelry as he glared upon it.

  Elegant Umami Sriracha [ Elite — E-grade ]

  This tasty yet spicy sauce can be used to add a kick to just about any savory dish. Warning: this is a particularly hot variant of sriracha, and requires decent willpower to consume.

  Provides: +50 Willpower

  Conditional: Maintain composure while consuming

  But it wasn’t the sriracha itself that had him excited, nor the boons it provided. It was the lack of serious side effects. This was something others could eat, assuming they could handle the heat.

  He was on the right track and just needed to tie up the loose ends and finish the dish. To bring it all together into something he could present at a feast.

  He sliced deliciously marbled meat delicately thin and marinated it gently into velvety slivers of meat. Then he returned his mind to baking, compelling his abilities to lead the way as he mixed the dough.

  Calling for his Profession to lead his hand, he expertly measured ingredients and kneaded them together until the dough was slightly spongy and no longer sticky.

  He smiled down upon it for a moment, admiring his work, and then in the oven it went, puffing up into crispy, golden bread.

  His own paté was made and spread across the bread once it was baked, then the meat was gently caramelized, leaving but a touch of red remaining.

  With the hands of an artist, he placed the ingredients into their new home and layered a light cheese atop, which he blowtorched.

  No shortcuts were taken, and when it came to picking vegetables, he made sure to add the best ingredients he had available.

  The radish was sliced and pickled, then added to the sandwich.

  He took herbs, smelling them and trying to gauge their flavor. For he couldn’t rely on his ogre-tainted taste buds, and so he had to rely on other senses. Smell, Perception, and even mana and aether were utilized to decipher the herbs.

  Eventually, he found a selection that suited his needs perfectly and diced them into the masterpiece of a roll he was creating.

  He gently poured sriracha over and marveled at his creation. Many things had gone into this, but for the first time, he was confident that it could be stomached by most… maybe even enjoyed.

  This was a true fusion of techniques. Bringing together the best of both worlds to create something else entirely. Something greater than the sum of its parts.

  But there was something else. He had gotten so caught up in what he was doing that he hadn’t even realized he had managed to weave in the very thing he had been aiming to since learning of it.

  He had willed it, of course, but the act hadn’t been entirely conscious. Somehow, his Profession had brought something deep within him out, bringing it to the surface and assisting when he imbued the dish with this power.

  Experience rewarded for discovering a recipe!

  Ding!

  [ Ogre Gastronomist ] has LEVELED UP!

  26 → 27

  Heavenly Bog Infused Bánh mì [ Epic — E-grade ]

  As the name suggests, this heavenly dish was served to emperors of the Gonkem Dynasty within the distant and ancient Hundred Swords universe, hidden away in a forgotten sector.

  A radiant dish that lightens and invigorates, those who consume it swear by its affects, claiming that they can pursue their ambitions with greater ease

  Provides: Heightened Energy Efficiency, Clear Mind (Weakens Mental attacks), +100 Vitality, +50 Willpower.

  Aftereffects: Mild.

  Conditional: High Morale. If morale drops too low, the boons of this dish will cease.

  The condition was… not what he expected. It required good morale to work? Not that it worried him, Aaron always had high morale. But he supposed it would affect how useful it was for potential allies. Although it still sounded like a decent conditional, considering the bonuses provided. After all, surely anyone strong enough to survive the multiverse would have good morale? Then again, maybe others had Skills that could damage morale?

  It was a question for another day, but interesting nonetheless.

  However, Aaron’s thoughts moved on quickly. Nothing about this dish sounded like it was made for ogres, nor swamp-dwelling people, and that was a massive plus.

  Yeah, I’m pretty sure I can feed this to people.

  A wide smile crept across his face. He wouldn’t wait to serve this to Talia and Mo’han and see their reactions. He had spent so much time cooking now, and finally, he could share the fruits of his labor with other people. After all, that was the real joy of cooking, wasn’t it?

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  He put the sandwich into his storage bag and looked around the kitchen with a satisfied smile. The first part of his plan was a success. With this, he could work towards his diplomatic goals… well, maybe calling them diplomatic was a bit of a stretch. Making friends with normal humans from Earth was probably more accurate.

  That said, what were his diplomatic goals anyway? Aaron wondered. He had a vague idea of setting up some kind of alliance between similarly minded individuals, but what exactly did that entail?

  What if it was just him and Talia? Well, that wouldn’t be so bad if they were the only humans to reach the trials besides Darius, at least it would be proof of their ability and power.

  But that seemed unlikely. So, what was his goal then? What would he tell people? Or ask? Should he have a script, or would that come off as fake? Did he want actual allies? People that were expected to come to the aid of one another? Or simply some rules of cooperation?

  Aaron groaned. The more he thought about it, the more problematic it sounded. This wasn’t his thing, but he felt a bit silly not even considering what to say to people as they arrived.

  It wasn’t even necessarily for himself that he wanted some kind of peace. More so that it seemed right? Right? That was what would be best for humanity, wasn’t?

  “Ahh, dammit!"

  Shaking his head, Aaron massaged his temples. He didn’t want to be some UN-like diplomat of the new world that managed world affairs. He just wanted to be him. To keep exploring the multiverse, unraveling its secrets, and making breakthroughs.

  But there was an intrusive thought that told him to be mature about everything that it was stupid not to have some kind of plan. That if he wasn’t part of the discussion, he would miss out.

  Society had rules, after all. And there was no rational reason to think that would change, superpowers or not.

  There would be rules and negotiations in this new world. Alliances would be formed, and pacts would be made. Did he want to be on the inside or the outside?

  Was he okay with being left out of the decision-making, or was he going to come up with a plan?

  Aaron’s thought trailed back to Tutorial takers. That Johan cult-like guy was the next highest rank. That didn’t necessarily mean he would be next to join them, but it was a reminder that he wasn’t necessarily going to enjoy the company of whoever came next. But this wasn’t about making friends. It was about figuring out who he needed to keep an eye out for.

  He had to be pragmatic about it. To think about Earth and how some kind of relative peace could be brought to it. Even if it was violent, he didn’t want to be the reason for it. There were still going to be kids and old people, he guessed. If not for any other reason, he should at least consider the ramifications for Earth’s weakest.

  And then there was Darius, the necromancer, who was obviously bad news. His entire path seemed to be related to death, and more importantly, killing humans and adding them to his army. As long as he was following his path and trying to ascend, he would be a threat to Earth, simply because of what that path meant.

  That was before even considering the threat of the thal’kesh, or even the goblins, for that matter.

  With enemies like those, humanity had to come together and put their differences aside.

  So, that begged the question of what kind of framework needed to be put in place?

  For one, Aaron doubted people with great powers would just submit themselves to oversight by others, so there needed to be autonomy. Besides, he didn’t see himself as a leader, and he certainly wasn’t bowing to anybody else.

  I need to know more about how these Systems work.

  He decided it was time to go look for Douglas. He’d rather talk to Mo’han, but couldn’t find him. He was probably still talking to whichever god he planned on taking a blessing from.

  “It’s you. What do you want?” Douglas said. “Can’t you see I’m busy? We’re entering the final leg. Intake is only going up from here, and I have many things to do.”

  “It’ll only take a second.”

  “Fine. What is it?”

  “I was wondering if you could explain a little about how the world works after this. The rules and such.”

  “I thought I told you I wasn’t a Tutorial screen. Hmph,” Douglas grunted. “Fine, I’ll explain a little. Consider it a reward for surprising me.”

  “Great!”

  “So, what exactly do you mean by rules and such?”

  Douglas explained territory control briefly. System purchased buildings and structures could be placed on owned land, and the ruler could place laws upon said land.

  It was quite a complicated interface, and he explained that Aaron would probably have to see it before he understood the finer details.

  But he also reminded him about the Sphere of Binding. It was a very valuable tool for organizing integrated worlds and setting up rules and agreements. In fact, it could even be used to create binding agreements between nations themselves.

  This was good news for Aaron. If they could agree on some kind of rules that suited everyone, they could use the sphere within the trials and have some kind of foundation for this new world.

  However, Douglas also reminded Aaron of the sheer size of the new world. It would likely be at least three hundred times the size of Earth, and there was a good chance it would have a smaller population by the time everything was said and done. A population that was likely to shrink further afterward. With so much land and so few people, he had no idea what kind of rules would even be needed. It would be vastly different from the world before.

  Not that he needed to figure it all out himself. He just wanted to feel like he had done his homework before mentioning it to others.

  Hmm, okay, we have autonomy, but what else?

  No wars between those who joined the pact made sense—some kind of territorial agreement. And pledge to work together against those who would harm humanity.

  Yeah, that all sounded reasonable. Aaron decided this would be the foundation of what he would present as an idea. Of course, nothing was set in stone, and Talia might have other ideas. But at least he wouldn’t stroll into a conversation about it clueless, as if he hadn’t even bothered to stop and think about what an ideal world would even look like.

  With that in mind, he realized he still hadn’t seen Mo’han or Talia around. His brain was already hurting from having to plan and think things out, and he needed a distraction while he waited for them.

  But Aaron didn’t want to rush away to another trial or cooking episode. Both were likely to become a time sink. In fact, he was fairly surprised that Talia, at the very least, wasn’t back yet. He wasn’t exactly sure how long he had spent cooking, but he knew he had gone into a bit of a trance, and in all likelihood, hours had passed at the very least.

  With that in mind, he figured he might as well check out the viewing room again. After all, it’d be nice to see who the next people were on their way to the trials.

  Despite Johan Svensson, the cult leader with the army, being the highest-ranked human still in the Tutorials, Rudolf turned the screen to Joseph Lefiti when Aaron asked him to show the person closest to beating the Tutorial. Although he also mentioned that one of the thal’kesh was ahead of him, and the goblin frontrunner, Erdek Foulbreath, wasn’t far behind.

  But since Aaron was focused on building alliances, he wanted to just focus on learning more about humans for now. He doubted anything much would come from relations with the thal’kesh, although he was still somewhat open to the goblins, but they were far lower on the priority ladder than other humans.

  The bulky Samoan appeared on the screen, swimming through an underwater lair. Apparently, it was the boss dungeon of the Tutorial. Aaron himself had already tested his own breath and knew he could remain underwater for a long time, but this guy was something else.

  Joseph was level 81 and made short work of the aquatic monsters attacking him. That said, what really intrigued Aaron was how at home he looked beneath the sea. Aaron was fairly certain that whatever Class he had evolved into, it had some water-based benefits, and he wondered if all elements could be woven into a person’s Class or Profession, and how exactly that worked.

  It was an intriguing thought and one he would have to ask Joseph about his affinity to water when he arrived.

  Finishing his beverage, Aaron decided to get up. He couldn’t sit around watching forever, and it looked like the big guy still had some time left in the dungeon, however long it took him to take out the boss after that.

  Oh well, that was entertaining.

  “A-ran! There you are! I’VE BEEN LOOKING ALL OVER FOR YOU!”

  Aaron turned to see the six outstretched arms of the asura heading his way.

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