Paul handled the Vital Leaves with fragility and care as if tending to a baby. He was careful when he pulled them by their roots and even made sure to check them from time to time.

The task which would at most take ten minutes lasted up to thirty minutes. By the time he pulled the last bunch of Vital Leaves, he was sweating profusely, the sun shining directly overhead adding more to his misery.

However, Paul was unperturbed. He was ecstatic. The bundle of Vital Leaves was as thick as his palms and they smelled divine. He felt invigorated just by inhaling the smell. He wondered how amazing they'd taste.

'Umm... what do I do with them now?' Paul thought, silently asking the system for help. Barely had he finished when the bunch of Vital Leaves in his hands vanished, leaving his palms empty.

"What..."

[Item detected: Vital Leaves]

[Adding Vital Leaves to the Inventory]

[Item Added Successfully]

Paul noticed that the Inventory section which had previously been empty now held the Vital Leaves. His mind was frozen, and the sudden disappearance of the bunch of leaves from his hands rendered him utterly stumped.

"Wow," that was all he could manage to stutter.

Paul walked into the mountain searching for root vegetables. Although he could buy them at the market directly or from one of the villagers, he wasn't that keen on choosing either option.

From the host's memories, Paul knew not many people were kind to him. They looked down on him for being poor, especially the ones who could wield magic or elemental power. He was after all a mere human who no power or money.

The host didn't know who his parents were and Paul wasn't interested in finding out either. He had lived on his own once, he could do it again.

The mountain was a treasure trove. Although he had to venture deep to find the vegetables he was looking for, by the time he was done, he had harvested quite a lot of potatoes and turnips and some wild berries.

Even though he hadn't found all the vegetables required to prepare the Healing Soup, it was an incredible harvest and Paul couldn't stop grinning. He was over the moon, but he didn't forget to place all the vegetables in the Inventory leaving only a few potatoes in the basket.

This time, no one stopped him on his way back and he too didn't waste time on insignificant people. Walking inside his shabby house directly, he studied the recipe to prepare the Healing Soup and the Strength Boosting Chicken.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

'I still need some carrots, mint leaves, chicken and garlic. Do I have to buy them?' Paul sighed recalling the host's pathetic state.

"Does he have any money? Can I buy the ingredients?" he pondered as he rummaged through the broken house.

Paul was surprised to see that the inside was far from what he had expected. It was a one-bedroom wooden house and he had previously only looked at the kitchen and the small living room.

He was entering the bedroom for the first time. Although it was far from what he was used to, it was still habitable now that he examined the place thoroughly. It was clean and livable. There was even a window, through which the warm sunlight entered.

"It's not as terrible as I thought," Paul mumbled to himself as he rummaged through the host's belongings to find money. After searching for a long time, he found fifty-two copper coins, and his eyes lit up with joy.

Paul didn't know how things worked in the world he was in currently. But he didn't hesitate to give it a try.

The market was half an hour's walk from his house, two lanes adjacent to Thomas' Kitchen.

The market was bustling with excitement and Pau looked around for a while, not jumping into action right away. In his previous life, he was a chef who aimed for perfection and only cooked food using the best ingredients. So, he continued to explore, looking for fresh vegetables.

Paul stopped suddenly when he noticed a deserted stall. The vegetables the old man was selling were fresh and tender. However, they were priced one copper coin higher than the others, making the customers flee away.

Paul's eyes lit up and he approached the old man who was looking around anxiously.

"I would like one kilogram of carrots, a bundle of mint leaves, two garlic, and half a kilogram of radish."

The old man's eyes lit up on seeing his first customer. Jubilant, he started measuring all the items one by one.

"That would be twelve copper coins." The man placed all the items in Paul's straw basket.

Paul didn't hesitate to pay him and flashed him a smile before moving to buy the remaining ingredients.

The old man waved at him happily and even told him to visit again.

Paul next headed towards the meat shop. The array of meat dazzled him and he, instantly, imagined himself cooking all sorts of dishes from fried chicken to roasted lamb and grilled pork chops.

Paul was tempted. Even though he didn't have much money, he was lured into buying a whole chicken and four boneless pork chops.

Meat was almost a luxury to him, considering his current state and he had to part with twenty-six coins at once after haggling with the meat butcher for two coins.

He now had all the ingredients he needed to prepare the two dishes. With that thought, he hurried home instantly.

Paul was careful. When no one was watching, he hid all the items he had bought in the Inventory. It was only when his basket was clear he sighed in relief and hastened his footsteps.

"What an ungrateful person he is!" Paul heard a familiar voice even before he entered the lane that led him to his house.

"He did not even listen to my advice," Mary complained and Paul knew at once that she was talking about him.

"I was only wishing well."

Paul rolled his eyes as he entered the lane and gave Mary one cryptic look. His sudden appearance startled the gang of ladies, and they averted their eyes in guilt.

It was already bad that they were talking about him behind his back. It was even more embarrassing to have been caught red-handed.

Paul didn't give a damn about them. Sneering at them in disgust, he returned to his house and closed the door. Anyway, those people didn't matter to him. He wouldn't be staying in the village for a long time.

Paul's eyes gleamed and he entered the kitchen, ready to cook his first dish after he gained the Divine Recipe System.