Lovia carefully poked it with her finger; the skin of the cranesbill felt very hard. Then, her gaze was drawn to a cluster of pink, delicate things nearby that seemed to be surrounded by faint specks of light.
"That's a Sakura Bloom." Beidou had walked up behind them at some point, arms crossed as he smiled. "Those are petals that fall from the Sacred Sakura at the Grand Narukami Shrine. They carry the blessing of Inazuma's land and can only be gathered with the power of Electro. They're a bit astringent raw, but I've heard they're excellent for making snacks or brewing tea."
Xiangling had already picked one up and was sniffing it. His eyes brightened further: "What a wonderful floral scent! It's a bit sweet. Hmm! It would definitely be great for marinating meat or making sauces!"
Lovia listened as Xiangling analyzed the possible cooking methods for each ingredient as if he knew them by heart, feeling a secret sense of admiration.
After all, the reason her own cooking skills were good (were they really?) was because of her Melusine sense of smell and sight, plus a mysterious sixth sense—a triple cheat. It wasn't like Xiangling, who could speak eloquently about the texture of every part of an ingredient.
Lovia saw another crate containing some dried dark seaweed and some sealed jars with labels in Inazuman script she didn't recognize.
"That's sauce made from pickled Naku Weed, and some dried Onikabuto powder..." Beidou explained, seeing Lovia's curiosity. "They're local seasonings. The smell is quite strong, but I hear they're great for bringing out the umami."
Wow, Onikabuto powder? Although bugs sounded a bit intimidating, for some reason, she just felt it would be very fragrant!
Beside him, Xiangling was completely immersed in the joy of treasure hunting. One moment he was holding up dried seaweed to the light, the next he was carefully sniffing the mouth of a jar. The intense aroma made his nose wrinkle, but he immediately beamed: "Lovia, let me tell you, Inazuman seasonings are completely different from ours in Liyue. I've almost used up the ones I bought before. Now I can finally restock!"
He said as he briskly selected several ingredients he was most interested in, "Sister Beidou, I'll take these! This is enough to keep me busy researching for days!"
"Sure. Is that enough? Want to take more?" Beidou said generously.
"It's enough, it's enough! Thanks, Sister Beidou!" Xiangling held his "spoils" contentedly, his face flushed with excitement.
Looking around, Lovia also picked a few items: two of the best-looking cranesbills, a small jar of Naku Weed sauce, and a small bag of Onikabuto powder.
Lovia took out some Mora, offering to pay for Xiangling (who protested loudly), but Beidou only took a symbolic amount. He waved his hand, "Alright, a gesture is enough. Just come and support me more next time!"
"Thank you, Sister Beidou!" Lovia and Xiangling thanked him in unison.
Xiangling carried the ingredients, and Lovia carefully tucked her harvest into the large inner pocket of her cloak. After bidding Beidou farewell again, they left the noisy docks with excitement and anticipation, heading back toward Wanmin Restaurant.
On the way back, Xiangling was still talking non-stop about how to create dishes with these new ingredients: "...After roasting the cranesbills and dicing them, mixing them with minced meat seasoned with Onikabuto powder... maybe I can make a brand new filling! And the Sakura Blooms, that floral scent... using them to prepare Fish should remove the fishiness and add fragrance, right? Lovia, what do you think?"
"Mhm! It'll definitely be very fragrant!" Lovia nodded vigorously.
Having bought so many new ingredients, Lovia felt even more relaxed. Her small tail wagged happily, though luckily it was hidden by her cloak, so no one noticed.
When they reached Wanmin Restaurant, the two sat across from each other. Under Xiangling's curious gaze, Lovia took out the two books she had written specifically for him.
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