Aiden did not rush to answer Smoker.
His Observation Haki acted like invisible sonar. It instantly swept across the entire island's terrain.
A moment later, Aiden pointed toward a direction deep in the jungle.
"Over there. Two kilometers away, there's a waterfall. Behind the water curtain, there's a dry cave. Let's go there and set up our camp first."
Smoker and Rosinante followed behind him, though they were still skeptical.
When they actually pushed through a thick patch of jungle and found the perfect camp exactly as Aiden had described, both Smoker and Rosinante were shocked.
It was a massive, natural cave hidden behind a waterfall.
Outside, the sound of the crashing water was deafening.
However, the inside of the cave was exceptionally dry and quiet.
The ground was made of flat rock, and the ceiling was very high, so it didn't feel cramped at all.
It was essentially a perfect natural shelter.
"Alright. For the next two weeks, we will live here for now," Aiden announced.
Smoker and Rosinante were still marvelling at this "god-tier" camp.
They were getting ready to gather firewood and dry grass in the most primitive way possible, but Aiden stopped them.
"Wait."
Aiden didn't want to reveal that he had a storage ring.
However, he also didn't want to actually live like a savage, eating raw meat and drinking blood for two weeks.
Under their wide-eyed stares, he placed his backpack on the ground.
The bag looked like it could only hold a few changes of clothes at most.
He opened the backpack and reached inside.
He acted as if he were struggling to find something deep within.
Then, he pulled a soft moisture-proof mat out of that tiny bag.
Before the two of them could even react, he pulled out a second one, then a third.
Next came three warm down sleeping bags, a bright kerosene lamp, a set of shiny cooking pots, and even a portable tent large enough for three people...
Smoker's eye twitched violently.
He looked at the huge pile of gear on the ground, then at the small, deflated backpack in Aiden's hand.
He finally couldn't take it anymore.
He snatched the backpack away and checked it over and over again.
Then he shouted: "Do you take us for fools?! How could a bag this small hold so many things!"
Aiden looked at him and put on a "kind" smile.
"How could it not? Just watch."
He took back the empty backpack.
Right in front of their eyes, while they watched with disbelief, he "stuffed" the massive tent back in, bit by bit.
Then came the sleeping bags, the pots...
The small backpack seemed like a bottomless pit, easily swallowing everything.
In reality, of course, he was just quietly putting everything back into his storage ring.
When the last moisture-proof mat disappeared into the bag, Smoker was completely frozen.
He couldn't say a single word.
He just watched this magic-like scene, feeling like his understanding of the world was being crushed and rubbed into the dirt.
"Wow! Aiden!" Rosinante looked at him with eyes full of worship.
"Are you... are you a magician?"
"It's just basic packing skills," Aiden said, patting nonexistent dust off his hands with a bit of a boastful tone.
A few minutes later, a "luxury camping" base was fully set up.
To give the two idle guys something to do, Aiden pointed toward the jungle.
"The first dinner is up to you two."
Smoker, feeling a surge of energy, rushed into the woods.
Not long after, he caught a strange-looking wild chicken.
Rosinante went to a nearby stream and poked a few fish with a spear.
When the two returned, they briefly cleaned the food outside the waterfall.
Then, they chose the most primitive and direct way to cook—putting it straight over the fire to roast.
The result was predictable.
The outside was burnt black, while the inside was still raw, and it had a heavy, muddy smell.
Rosinante excitedly handed a piece to Aiden.
Aiden took it with a blank expression.
He took only one small bite, and then his chewing stopped.
He was silent for a full three seconds.
Then, he calmly threw the piece of roasted meat into the campfire.
He stood up and said only one word: "Wait."
Then, he disappeared into the jungle.
In less than five minutes, accompanied by the sound of footsteps that shook the earth, Aiden returned.
He was dragging a giant boar the size of a small truck, and he tossed it easily in front of the two men.
What followed was Aiden's personal performance time.
He pulled the sword from his waist.
The thin blade didn't reflect any light under the glow of the fire.
Smoker and Rosinante saw only a blur of sword light flash by.
The giant boar's hard bone plates, thick fat, and lean muscle were all perfectly separated in a way that looked like a work of art.
the entire process was smooth and efficient, without a single wasted movement.
It was as if he wasn't processing food.
"This guy... even his swordsmanship is..."
Smoker looked at the perfectly divided piles of meat.
His heart was shocked once again as he discovered Aiden's strength.
Aiden ignored their shock.
He skewered the best pieces of tenderloin and ribs and placed them over the fire.
Then, he slowly pulled several small glass bottles filled with different seasonings from his "four-dimensional" backpack.
He unscrewed one and poured out a pinch of coarse sea salt.
With a flick of his finger, the salt fell evenly onto the roasting meat.
He opened another bottle and crushed a few black peppercorns in his palm.
The spicy aroma instantly filled the air.
Finally, he took a small bunch of herbs, crushed them, and gently rubbed them onto the surface of the meat.
Sizzle—!
The sound of the first drop of fat falling into the campfire rang out.
An unprecedented, rich aroma of meat—mixed with the complex scent of spices being toasted by the flames—instantly filled the entire cave!
Smoker's and Rosinante's stomachs growled at the same time.
Finally, when the meat was roasted to a perfect golden brown—crispy on the outside and tender on the inside—Aiden handed them two portions.
Smoker and Rosinante no longer cared about dignity or acting cool.
They directly reached out and grabbed the piping hot meat, taking a huge bite.
Delicious—!!
At the moment their teeth broke through the crispy outer skin, they felt as if their souls were taking flight!
Hot, rich juices exploded in their mouths.
The meat was so tender it barely needed chewing.
The pure saltiness of the sea salt and the perfect touch of spices created a flood of flavor that instantly smashed through all their taste defenses!
The two of them couldn't say a single word.
They were like two wild beasts that hadn't eaten for three days and nights.
They frantically tore at the meat in their hands, their faces covered in oil, wearing expressions of pure happiness they had never shown before.
This was the first truly delicious meal they had eaten since arriving at the training camp.
While the two of them were eating with tears of joy in their eyes, Aiden let out a sigh.
His face was full of dissatisfaction.
He cut a piece of the most tender loin and tasted it. He frowned.
"Sigh, this won't do. The heat control was a bit off, and I didn't have enough spices."
"Most importantly... why isn't this dish glowing?"
Smoker's and Rosinante's movements stopped at the same time.
With their mouths full of roasted meat, they stared blankly at Aiden as if they were looking at an alien.
Glowing? Why would a dish glow?
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