Having eaten and drunk his fill, he cleaned everything he had used, and packed up the leftover food, which also solved his dinner problem.
But...
Bai Luan looked at the two-person portion of food with a troubled expression.
It had been too long since he last cooked; he got carried away making food for himself, and combined with his hunger, he felt like he could eat a whole cow, so he ended up making too much.
He would keep one portion for his dinner, but what should he do with the other?
Throwing it away was out of the question; waste was shameful.
Keeping it overnight for breakfast the next day was a bit much.
Are there any storage methods like a Refrigerator AI here?
The kitchen is so large and well-equipped, there should be one. He should look around a bit.
Bai Luan, carrying the two packed bento boxes, began to explore the kitchen.
That one could be used for desserts and cakes, this one for pasta, this area for skewers, and over there for deep-frying...
No matter what, the scale of this kitchen was simply too large. If there were enough people, you could completely open a food street here.
Just as Bai Luan was complaining about Herta's habit of creating incredibly luxurious facilities on a whim, only to abandon them to gather dust once her interest waned, his eyes suddenly lit up.
Bai Luan saw a purple refrigerator.
Excellent, this is exactly what I need.
Bai Luan walked with a cheerful step to the refrigerator. Just as he was about to open the Refrigerator AI door, an electronic voice suddenly sounded.
"Who are you?"
Where did that voice come from?
Bai Luan looked left and right but couldn't find the source of the sound.
"Take your hand off my face!"
"?"
The Refrigerator AI spoke?
Bai Luan released the Refrigerator AI door and saw a dark blue dot appear where he had been holding it.
This seemed to be the appearance of the intelligent AI installed in this Refrigerator AI.
By the way, why would you install an AI in a Refrigerator AI?
Next to it was the ingredient production line; ingredients were taken as needed, so there was no need for preservation at all.
Could it be... that inside this Refrigerator AI, there was some peerless treasure? A thousand-year-old ginseng? A ten-thousand-year-old sculpture? A million-year-old turtle?
"I'll ask again, who are you? Why are you trying to open me?"
"Oh, my name is Bai Luan. I just used the kitchen to make a meal today, and I made too much, so I'm planning to put one portion in you."
Bai Luan slightly raised the bento box in his hand to show it to the Refrigerator AI.
"Cooking? There are actually other people cooking here? Since Ms. Herta's enthusiasm for cooking faded, I haven't seen a living person cook in a long time."
Does that mean it's always been the Herta Puppets or Ms. Herta herself cooking?
I didn't expect Herta to have a period where she was passionate about cooking. I just wonder what level her culinary skills reached.
Bai Luan believed that Herta could make a good meal, but he also believed that Herta wouldn't cook honestly.
This was also recorded in Herta's PV.
"By the way, how good is your preservation ability?"
Bai Luan's casual remark seemed to have completely breached the Refrigerator AI's defenses. It trembled slightly and roared:
"You dare to question my professional abilities!?"
"So, you're very good at preservation, then?"
"Of course! I'm super good at preservation! My internal structure uses unparalleled technology. Whatever state something goes in, that's exactly how it comes out!
The oldest dessert stored in me is older than you are! But if you take it out, it still tastes as if it just came out of the oven!"
Perhaps, if he had heard about the function of this Refrigerator AI when he first woke up this morning, Bai Luan would have been shocked.
But after experiencing the successive shocks of the flying carpet, the Botanical Garden, and the laboratory, Bai Luan's acceptance of these extremely powerful tools had greatly increased.
It was hard to imagine he had only been here for less than two days.
It was also hard to imagine how long he had actually been here, including the time in the Little Black Room.
So, facing the Refrigerator AI's proud self-praise, Bai Luan merely said perfunctorily:
"Wow, that's amazing. Can I put this bento box in now?"
"...Why are you so calm about accepting this?"
"Because creations like you are everywhere here."
"That's hurtful, but it's true."
But then, the Refrigerator AI changed its tone and said:
"But being stored by me isn't that simple!
Ms. Herta has imported a large amount of delicious food data parameters into me, which serve as the basis for my judgment as a food arbiter! If the food you make is deemed not delicious enough by my inspection, then your food is not qualified to be stored by me!"
"Is this a trial?"
"That's right, this is a trial! Food that isn't delicious enough has no value in being stored! Let alone being eaten by Ms. Herta! I shall guard Ms. Herta's taste buds!"
No matter what, Bai Luan did hear a sense of conviction from this AI.
Herta put too much into the program when she wrote it.
The Refrigerator AI didn't explain further. Instead, several mechanical arms suddenly extended from the main body of the Refrigerator AI and took the bento box from Bai Luan's hand.
Bai Luan expressionlessly slapped away the mechanical arm that tried to take the bento box from his other hand and said:
"Don't touch my dinner. I'm only putting one box in."
"Hmph! What's with the arrogance! Maybe not even one box will get in!"
The bento box was delivered to the AI's front by the mechanical arm. A scanning light shot out from the AI's eye, scanning the bento box up and down.
The Refrigerator AI evaluated very seriously, even the dot on it furrowed its brow.
Bai Luan watched curiously from the side. He was also quite interested to know what level his casually made home-cooked meal could reach.
"Eh? Wait a minute... Something's not right... Ten, no, nine parts of it aren't right..."
The Refrigerator AI's incredulous voice came, and at the same time, the mechanical arm wasn't idle. It gently lifted the bento box with extremely high precision, opened the lid's clasp, and began to observe the food inside.
"It's clearly just home-cooked food, and the ingredients are just the normal quality for Ms. Herta's residence, but why... why..."
"What's wrong? You look like you're about to crash."
"...Your food has been rated as the best meal by my inspection system."
No, is the cheat code written by the system so powerful?
Now, his cooking, which was only generally tasty, could reach this level. If he went back to the Little Black Room to further refine his skills, Bai Luan couldn't even imagine how magical the food he made would be.
Would the food he made come with a sparkling special effect? Could it cure diseases?
Would clothes burst off after eating it?
Uh, bursting clothes might be a bit much; he felt like he'd be chased and hacked by diners.
"I retract my previous presumptuous remarks about you. You are a respectable chef."
The mechanical arm carefully fastened the bento box, then, with a gesture like carrying a grand sedan chair, almost escorting it, tucked it into the Refrigerator AI.
Bai Luan also took this opportunity to see the interior of the Refrigerator AI. Originally, Bai Luan thought the Refrigerator AI didn't have much storage space, but the moment the Refrigerator AI opened, Bai Luan realized he was wrong.
This small Refrigerator AI actually used space-related technology, and its internal space was much larger than it appeared.
Various delicacies were arranged horizontally and vertically inside, looking densely packed. This also explained why a dessert could be stored for so long.
Because there were simply too many delicious things, it never got its turn.
The mechanical arm directly sent that bento box to the best compartment of the Refrigerator AI and stored it.
Then, the Refrigerator AI door closed with a click.
"I hope you cook more often and add more delicacies to my storage."
Rather than cooking, Bai Luan now wanted to dismantle this Refrigerator AI to understand its spatial storage technology.
Just then, his phone in Bai Luan's pocket vibrated.
This was the time he had set earlier; four o'clock had arrived.
This also meant...
Bai Luan could finally go back to his room and lie down.
He simply bid farewell to the Refrigerator AI and headed straight for his room.
Rest! I must rest immediately! I've learned far too much in this one day!
Some time after Bai Luan left, several Herta Puppets came to the Refrigerator AI, tapped it gently, and woke up the AI.
"Is Ms. Herta going to have dinner?"
The Herta Puppets nodded slightly.
It is not widely known that the Refrigerator AI has a strict hierarchy within. All levels have the same preservation ability, but from highest to lowest, the deliciousness also decreases accordingly.
Ms. Herta always takes delicacies from the very top when she eats. As for the bottom ones...
They just sit there; they won't go bad anyway.
The Refrigerator AI's mechanical arm appeared and took out what it currently deemed the most delicious food from inside the Refrigerator AI—Bai Luan's bento box:
"According to the data, this bento box is most suitable for Ms. Herta's dinner!"
...
The bento box was delivered to Herta.
"A bento box? And it's even packaged in a generic bento box? Is the program faulty?"
Herta then thought it was unlikely that the program she wrote was faulty, so she opened the bento box.
The Herta Puppets surrounding Herta handed her a pair of chopsticks. Herta took the chopsticks and looked at the three dishes and one soup inside the box.
"The presentation isn't bad."
Herta picked up a piece of diced chicken and ate it.
"Oh my? It's quite tasty. My program really wouldn't have any problems..."