Who Is the World’s Strongest Appraiser? ~Living in Another World With Satisfying Meals~

Gathering Ingredients In The Harvest Dungeon

The Harvest Atelier is a gathering-type dungeon.

Yuuri had heard about it from everyone, so he knew. He also knew it was a fantastic dungeon with low difficulty where you could collect all sorts of ingredients. But still, when he actually saw the place, he couldn’t help but think:

“……This is less a dungeon and more… a farm?”

His muttered words went unheard by anyone. The first area Yuuri and the others stepped into was the root vegetable zone. Root vegetables were long-lasting, versatile, and convenient. Excited to see what they’d find, they entered—only to be greeted by a scene that, just as Yuuri had mused, looked suspiciously like a farm.

Spread out before them was what could only be described as a well-tended field. Sprouting from the soil were the leafy tops of root vegetables—radishes, onions, potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, and more. It all looked incredibly ordinary. By any measure, this was just a farm.

To make matters worse, ordinary people were casually harvesting the vast field’s vegetables as if it were the most natural thing. A boy yanking up radishes. A woman digging potatoes. A girl poking playfully at the onion sprouts. A man efficiently plucking carrots. At this point, it was undeniably just a farm.

“Yuuri, what do you want?”

“Huh?”

“I’ll pull ’em up for ya!”

Yuuri reflexively asked for radishes and onions in response to Lelei’s cheerful grin. Beaming, she strode into the “farm” section and started harvesting like it was nothing. He’d imagined something more fantastical when he heard about gathering ingredients in a dungeon, but this was way too much like an ordinary farm.

As Yuuri tilted his head in confusion, Kurresh patted his shoulder. Close in age and sharing similar sensibilities, the two were good friends. Kurresh often acted like an older brother to the slightly airheaded Yuuri.

“I get it, Yuuri. You’re wondering why there’s a farm inside a dungeon and why nobody finds it weird, right?”

“Ah, so everyone thinks that at first?”

“Yep, yep. At first. …But eventually, you just accept that this dungeon’s like that.”

“You just… accept it?”

“When you come here all the time for gathering requests, you stop overthinking it.”

“Makes sense.”

Yuuri nodded at Kurresh’s explanation. No matter how surprising something is at first, you get used to it after a while. Besides, since they were here for work, fixating on it would just get in the way.

This dungeon was truly bizarre. For one, despite being a dungeon, it didn’t resist intruders at all. The atmosphere was gentle and welcoming—so much so that you could believe the Dungeon Master actually wanted visitors. Though Yuuri did wonder… Was warmth and comfort really what a dungeon should offer?

“Here ya go, got ’em! Open your Magic Bag, Yuuri!”

“Ah, yeah. Thanks, Lelei.”

“No prob. This was easy.”

Lelei tossed the harvested radishes and onions into Yuuri’s open school bag. Dungeon ingredients were even more flavorful than regular ones. They might look the same (or slightly bigger), but taste-wise, they were strictly superior. Very convenient. That said, the radishes and onions here were about the same size and shape as normal ones.

Yuuri decided he’d make some stew with the fine radishes later. As for the onions, they’d work in stir-fries or soups—you could never have too many. Putting aside his nitpicking, he resolved to just be glad he’d gotten delicious ingredients.

After gathering ingredients in various areas, Yuuri’s eyes widened again when he absentmindedly wandered into another zone. This was the fruit area, filled with large trees. And on those trees grew fruit—but…

“…Why are there mandarins next to grapefruits, yuzu, and kabosu…?”

“Dunno.”

“Wait, Ali-san, ‘dunno’ isn’t an answer—”

“Ask the Dungeon Master. This room’s for citrus fruits.”

“That doesn’t explain why one tree has multiple types growing on it…”

Once again, the Harvest Dungeon defied Yuuri’s expectations. The other rooms hadn’t been this weird, so running into the dungeon’s oddities again left him baffled. The fruits looked delicious, but seeing grapefruits casually growing next to mandarins was just… what?

Still, he figured there was no point dwelling on it. Everyone kept saying this dungeon was just like that. Overthinking was pointless. After all, this was a dungeon.

As Yuuri gazed up at the tempting citrus fruits, pondering which to pick, a familiar voice reached his ears. …A voice he knew well—but never expected to hear here.

“Ali? Brook? What are you two doing in a beginner dungeon like this?”

“…Ugh.”

“…Why are you here?”

“Excuse me? I should be asking you that. Oh, Yuuri! Hello! Here with everyone to gather ingredients?”

“Yeah. Are you harvesting too, Leone-san?”

“Mhm. Here for work—needed some things.”

Standing there was the ever-gorgeous cross-dressing beauty. At first glance, she wore her usual attire, but over it was a long, hooded robe. The plain, pale-purple robe had no decorations save for a stylish gold brooch at the collar. To Yuuri, it looked like a classic wizard’s robe—surprisingly understated for someone so fashion-conscious. (He kept that thought to himself.)

Though Leopold was harsh with Ali and Brook, she offered the younger group a gentle smile. Her rough treatment of the two guardians probably stemmed from their former party member dynamic. Neither Ali nor Brook seemed bothered—this was just how they operated.

Then, Leopold’s sweet expression shifted to exasperation as she turned back to Ali and Brook. The two wore looks of weary resignation, already bracing for her words. Both had half-lidded eyes.

“Even if you’re worried about Yuuri, this is overkill. Ali alone would’ve been enough—why drag Brook along? He’s not the type for a peaceful dungeon like this.”

“Shut it. With Yuuri, you never know what’ll happen.”

“I won’t deny that, but even if a horde of monsters attacked here, you don’t need this guy, right?”

“Am I a ‘thing’ now?”

“Quiet, you overpowered freak.”

The cross-dresser showed no mercy to her former comrades. After being called a “thing”, Brook—now labeled “overpowered”—just glared down at Leopold without retorting. He knew arguing was futile. Ali, similarly, just looked away.

Admittedly, Leopold had a point. Bringing Brook along “just in case” Yuuri caused trouble was excessive—like using a nuke to kill a mouse. (Though Brook could adjust his strength, making him slightly less overkill.)

Meanwhile, oblivious to the adults’ bickering, Yuuri cheerfully inspected the citrus fruits. He knew he was the topic, but since Ali and Brook had made the call, it wasn’t his problem. The easygoing homemaker was in his own world.

“So, Yuuri, which one’s caught your eye?”

“‘Caught my eye’?”

“Yakk said you’re picky about ingredients.”

“Might as well go for big ones or the freshest, right?”

“Yeah. But not many people use [Appraisal] for that.”

“Really? It’s so handy, though.”

Kurresh sighed at Yuuri’s clueless smile. “Dude, you gotta realize how rare your skills are.” Appraisal-type skills were highly sought-after in this world—yet Yuuri only used his for ingredient selection and checking his friends’ health. He thought this was normal. The fact that he considered his [God’s Eyes] just “kinda useful” was peak Yuuri.

After using his cheat-like skill to browse the fruits, Yuuri smiled at Lelei, who was waiting eagerly. Pointing to a particularly glossy mandarin, he made his request.

“That mandarin, plus the yuzu and kabosu next to it, please!”

“Leave it to me!”

Lelei marched under the mandarin tree—a massive one, requiring people to take turns using provided step stools to harvest. “Gotta wait your turn,” Yuuri mused, but Kurresh and Ireissia shook their heads in unison.

“Huh?” Yuuri blinked as the two patted his shoulders and pointed at Lelei. Following their gaze, he watched as she stood under the tree, lightly bouncing in place as if keeping rhythm.

Then—

“WHAAAT?!”

“First one—done! Second one—done! Then this and… this!”

“Wait, what?! How high did you just jump?!”

“Well, it’s Lelei.”

“She is Lelei, after all.”

“…Wow.”

With effortless leaps, Lelei plucked fruits that would’ve required others to stretch on tiptoe. The surrounding crowd stared in awe, but Kurresh and Ireissia were unfazed. Then it hit Yuuri: Lelei had cat-beastman blood. Her father’s lineage gave her insane physical abilities. He’d known about her strength but forgot cats were also jump experts. This was entirely predictable.

“My, as expected of Lelei. …Perfect. Brook, be a dear and fetch those grapefruits and oranges.”

“No.”

The cross-dresser, watching the carefree youngsters, made her request to the other high-spec individual nearby. Brook refused without hesitation. Unfazed, Leopold played her trump card with a sweet smile.

“I may have bought extra of Luci’s limited-edition, limited-quantity cake. It was divine.”

“How many do you need?”

“Three of each, please~”

“Tch.”

The cool swordsman immediately caved and headed for the fruits. Leopold smirked, clearly pleased, while Ali sighed beside her. Brook’s sweet tooth strikes again.

There was a reason Brook folded so easily: his and Leopold’s tastes aligned perfectly. If she vouched for a cake, it was guaranteed to suit his palate. And if it was limited-edition? Even better. A small harvest in exchange was a no-brainer.

At the tree, Brook made tiny, effortless jumps—nothing like Lelei’s warm-up bounces—and plucked the fruits with zero wasted motion. The onlookers gaped, probably thinking he was some kind of superhuman.

“Whoa, Brook’s amazing. No wasted movement.”

“You could do it too. Cut the excess.”

“Like this?”

“Better. Big motions create openings.”

“Got it.”

Somehow, this turned into a combat movement lesson. Ali facepalmed in the background, but the two ignored him. Yuuri and Leopold, now with their desired fruits, were equally unbothered. Only the leader was left exasperated. Poor guy.

As Yuuri packed the fruits into his bag, he asked Leopold.

“Are these for work? Perfume ingredients?”

“Mhm. Scents aren’t just from flowers, you know? I could’ve outsourced it, but I wanted to check the quality myself.”

“Citrus scents are so refreshing.”

“Exactly! Floral scents skew sweet, so citrus is perfect for balancing.”

“Totally.”

Their conversation was peak girly—despite one being a homemaking otomen and the other a stunning cross-dresser both biologically male. The concept of “feminine energy” had never been more confusing.

Chalking their meeting up to fate, Leopold cheerfully joined Yuuri’s dungeon exploration. tried to shoo her away but gave up. Too much effort.