The Ranch

Chef Raphael (3)

After half an hour, Instructor Raphael decided it was time to check on the child to see his progress. He came back to find to find the original mountain of unpeeled potatoes now peeled. A sharp knife that was too big for the child laid in the newbies hands as he was observing his environment, unfazed and unaware of what he just accomplished.

Chef Raphael stood stunned for a moment before turning his head to the other workers in the room,"Did anyone in this room help him? Speak! Now!" It's not that he didn't trust in the child, it's just that the situation is too unbelievable.

A workers replies weakly,"Chef, ah, we're just surprised as you are! Five minutes ago I glanced at the kid out of curiosity and found him watching us with a pile of peeled potatoes!"

"You mean to say, he was already done five minutes ago?!" Instructor Raphael got another shock.

"We're not exactly sure when he finished, Chef..." It couldn't be helped. They themselves were also busy working. They didn't have the leisure to focus on a newbie.

Wanting more information, the chef walked up to Tih,"Hey kid, when did you finish peeling the potatoes," his face took on a serious expression.

Tih replied with a stare. He wasn't keeping track, after finishing the potatoes, he immediately focused all his attention on the harmony of the workers, finding their teamwork interesting to observe.

Seeing the child's uncommunicative stare, he decided to give up his plan of getting information out of him. He looked at the newbie in dismay. Is it pure talent or something else? He doesn't know. Instructor Raphael's thoughts return to how he's only a newbie and just arrived here yesterday. He's only halfway through his integration period and he's already caught the interest of an instructor. Is this what people consider luck?

"...Wait a minute. Kid, don't you have some place to be? Your still in your integration period, so shouldn't you be touring around with Private Scott." He recalled the formal apology he received from Private Scott. That man was known for being very traditional.

Tih remembers he's supposed to go to the first floor of the cafeteria. He starts heading out when Instructor Raphael exclaims behind him,"Ah, Wait! You haven't eaten yet!" The chef stuffs some portable food into Tih's hands and he leaves. Tih climbs down the spiral stairs as he stuffs the small amount of delicious food into his mouth in a few bites.

He reaches the first floor with empty hands and chubby cheeks. Dashes of crumbs litter his mouth as he notices the group and walks over. Kai instantly notices Tih and hops over, pouting,"Tih! I can't believe you really left without me like that! And I considered you a friend!" Kai was about to complain more but his focus moved to Tih's pale chubby cheeks and crumb-lifted face and couldn't help but laugh.

Forgetting what he was just complaining about, he wiped off the crumbs with his hand and commented,"You really look like a rabbit! A white rabbit with curly brown hair." He chuckles.

While Kai teases the indifferent Tih, Private Scott calls the group over,"Hope you all had a good sleep, because we're going to be jogging even more today."

"Ughh" Sounds of groans could be heard throughout the group, Kai included. Without letting them start complaining, Private Scott leads the group east, jogging at a moderate pace. They pass the Lecture Hall and reach a large expanse of fields full of plants.

As they jog pass the seemingly infinite expanse of farm on their right, Private Scott starts explaining,"This is our garden! Is has almost anything you can think of from grains, fruits, to vegetables. All of our food supply comes from here. You can also get a job here if you want to earn some money. It's one of the few jobs that will hire you without and prior knowledge, meaning you don't need to go to any classes to work here, so it's especially popular with newbies." To the far right of them is the river that also turned east, but flowed in the opposite direction. At one point, they could see a bridge over the water that led to a marketplace.

Tih notes that this was a different bridge than the one he saw earlier this morning, meaning there's at least two way to pass over the bridge. Those looking at the river from far away might underestimate the intensity of the rapids and the width and depth of the river, but Tih was right in front of it to realize it would be almost impossible for a normal human to jump or swim across.

They eventually reach the end of the garden, to see its connected to a wide expanse of farmland. They pass different varieties of animals grazing and walking around. Private Scott explains,"We also have farmland and different sorts of animals. This is another type of job you need to know the basics for."

"Why do we need to take classes on farming? Isn't it just tending to animals, feeding, and taking care of them?" A panted student managed to slur out.

The lightly breathing Private replies,"Your partly correct, but raising animals takes a lot more knowledge than you might think. Don't look down on any of the professions on the island. They all significant to thriving on this island." Private Scott turns his head,"On your
right, you can see Lake Phil. All of our water supply comes from there and it's essential to our survival on this island.

The group look at the giant lake in the distance, Private Scott continues,"That's also where we get our supply of fresh water fish and other foods of the like."

They jog past the area and start curving southeast. Their terrain starts to change from wavy grassland to plains. They pause to take a breather and most of the group collapses to the ground. Tih, who's standing straight, looks around. The lake ended up having two exit points. The one he already saw with two bridges and the one in front of him. The river flowed from the southeast side of Lake Phil to curve around the plains back north and cut through mountains at the top right tip of the island. A bridge was laid south of the plains.