A crowd had formed around the fire pit to observe the ‘experiment’. With the help of the construction crew, they built a simple spit roast setup with the logs. The construction crews' skilled hands made quick work of turning the straighter branches into wooden spits.

Georgia, the mana circuit specialist that was supposed to oversee the portal construction stepped forward to volunteer as the chef for the occasion. She was apparently a home cook, an incredibly rare hobby given the scarcity of non-premade meals on Earth. With all the portal equipment missing she was currently out of a job.

She went around asking the expedition members for whatever spices they had brought with them to make their rations more palatable. In the end she amassed a respectable quantity of table salt, MSG and various fermented sauces.

They got to work cutting the meat into chunks small enough to run through with the sticks. It was decided they should cook only enough for a few bites each. It would be a massive waste if they used up all their ingredients and then found out the meat was inedible.

It didn't take long before the delicious smell of roasting meat filled the camp. Georgia was busy lathering the roasting meats with the sauce she threw together. The roasting will take a while given the size of some of the meat slabs. In the meantime, the expedition members had done their best to make the camp more comfortable.

The hydroponics equipment was removed from their containers as they were built to function out in the elements anyway. The three now empty containers were then repurposed as makeshift shelters. They used their parachutes to build hammocks to maximize space. With each container being 40 feet long they now had space for more than half the members to sleep in at one time. They could probably all fit if they squeezed tight enough but then no one would get any quality sleep.

Some of the members immediately went to take a nap. Andre looked at his digital watch which read 5:34pm. It was still pretty early back on Earth, but it was the dead of night here. They had electricity but the lights that were supposed to light up the camp were among the missing containers. It was best that they waited for sunrise before going about their tasks as the surroundings had proven itself to be unsafe.

The five agricultural scientists had enlisted the help of the construction crew to help them build the prefab greenhouses where they would do their work. Amongst all the people here they were probably the ones least affected by the missing containers.

If all goes well, they will have thousands of vegetables by next month which would mean food security would be solved.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Andre found himself the center of attention as he had the dubious honor of being lab rat number one. The smoking piece of monster meat was placed in front of him. He was immune to most toxins which made him the perfect poison tester. His near complete control over his body allowed him to isolate and expel any unwanted material he consumed.

To be fair the dish looked appetizing. If he didn’t know where it came from, he could be convinced that it was a luxurious print meat roast.

Sergei, Lisa and about 30 others surrounded him waiting for his verdict. He pierced the piece of meat with his fork and threw it into his mouth with little hesitation. If the animals in this world were toxic enough to kill him, they were all screwed anyway.

The meat was edible…. If he was being nice. It wasn't toxic at least. Georgia's sauce was probably its only saving grace.

The meat was extremely gamey and fishy. To someone who had only tasted uniform tasting print meats before it was honestly nauseating. It didn't help that he enhanced his sense of taste to be able to discern even the smallest quantity of toxin.

Andre gagged but he still swallowed the piece of meat. He wasn't about to throw up in front of a crowd.

Sergei approached him with worry clear on his face.

“Was it that toxic?” he asked.

“No… no, it is safe to eat but honestly it's best you just try it yourself.” Andre answered while pushing the remaining meat towards Sergei.

The madman raised his eyebrow at his answer but didn't hesitate to taste the meat himself. Andre was honestly astonished at the man's lack of survival instincts.

Within moments Sergei was puking on the ground. It seemed the meat was equally disagreeable to him as it was to Andre.

Andre saw Georgia frown at the disgusting display they had shown after eating her food. He quickly tried to reassure her it wasn't her skills that were at fault.

“It isn't your fault Georgia honestly the sauce was delicious. But the meat itself tastes unique to say the least.” He gestured at the pieces still roasting over the fire.

Georgia immediately grabbed a knife and ate a piece of meat herself. She quickly spat it out with a grimace.

It probably wasn't a good idea to eat the first snake alligator thing they found. But at least they confirmed that the monsters were indeed edible now it was just a matter of taste.

Georgia glared at the distasteful slabs of meat still roasting in the fire. Maybe the other creatures would taste far more agreeable or maybe she had done something wrong with the meat's preparation. A fire burned within her eyes. This was a direct challenge to her skills. She wouldn’t rest until she turns the creatures of this world into sumptuous meals.