45. The First Plate of Rice
Rangga's boat continued sailing across the sea. The cool afternoon breeze was a refreshing contrast to the humid swamp he had just left behind.
In an exceptionally good mood, Rangga opened the regional chat.
Rangga: Hello, everyone.
The chat became lively almost instantly.
Fajar: Bang Rangga!
Andre: Already heading back?
Siska: How's the Swamp Island?
Deri: Good afternoon, Rangga.
Deri: How did the expedition go?
Rangga grinned to himself.
"They're really enthusiastic."
He was already eager to share what he'd found—especially the rice.
But before he started typing, his eyes accidentally landed on the list of Garuda Pioneers on the side of the screen.
This morning, there had been 67 Pioneers. Now only 51 remained.
The smile slowly disappeared from his face.
"Huh...? Why are there only this many left?"
He immediately typed.
Rangga: What happened?
Rangga: Why are 16 people gone?
The lively chat suddenly fell silent. No one replied for several seconds then Deri finally answered.
Deri: Most of them were from Broto's group.
Deri: They still went to the Desert Island.
Deri: A few other Pioneers decided to follow them as well.
Rangga read the message slowly before letting out a long sigh.
"Huff..."
He shook his head gently before replying.
Rangga: Well...
Rangga: What else can we do?
Rangga: We already warned them.
Fajar replied immediately.
Fajar: Yeah, Major.
Fajar: Don't blame yourself.
Andre joined in.
Andre: We were all warned beforehand.
Andre: If they still insisted, that was their own decision.
Several other Pioneers also tried comforting Deri. The Major didn't respond right away, and Rangga noticed the atmosphere becoming gloomy.
He smiled faintly before typing again.
Rangga: Come on.
Rangga: I've got good news instead.
The chat immediately came back to life.
Andre: What is it?
Fajar: Hurry up, Bang!
Siska: More new information?
Rangga could no longer hide his smile.
Rangga: I found rice.
...
The chat froze for several seconds, no one said anything, as though everyone was making sure they had read it correctly. Then it exploded.
Andre: WHAT?!
Fajar: RICE?!
Siska: FOR REAL?!
Pioneer 27: Bang, don't mess with us!
Pioneer 41: Seriously?!
Rangga laughed at their reactions before typing again.
Rangga: Tonight I'm finally eating rice until I'm full.
Comments flooded the chat.
Andre: Damn...
Fajar: I miss rice so much...
Siska: Is the thing guarding it dangerous?
Pioneer 12: Bang Rangga has to be trolling us.
Rangga shook his head with a smile.
Rangga: The one guarding it...
Rangga: Is weird.
Rangga: Looks like a crocodile.
Rangga: But it's a vegetarian.
Rangga: And it's scared of people.
The chat fell silent again, then...
Fajar: Since when do crocodiles eat plants?
Fajar: What's it using those teeth for then?
Several people burst into laughter.
Rangga replied.
Rangga: Seriously.
Rangga: It just looks scary.
Rangga: I actually ran away the first time I saw it.
Rangga: Then it ran away too.
Rangga: Why would I make something like that up?
The chat exploded once more.
Andre: I'm going to the swamp tomorrow!
Siska: Me too!
Pioneer 19: I can finally eat rice again!
Pioneer 33: I'm making fried rice!
Pioneer 40: I'm making Padang rice... well, if I can find the spices.
Fajar: HAHAHAHA!
Even Rangga couldn't help laughing as he read the messages.
Then he typed again.
Rangga: Relax.
Rangga: In my opinion...
Rangga: Swamp Island is much safer than the desert.
Rangga: So don't worry too much.
A moment later, Deri spoke again.
Deri: Thank you, Rangga.
Deri: This information is extremely helpful.
Several other Pioneers chimed in.
Andre: Thanks, Bang.
Siska: Thank you.
Fajar: Tomorrow's destination is obvious now.
Rangga smiled in satisfaction.
Rangga: Good.
Rangga: Hope you all find rice too.
The conversation gradually turned casual again.
They joked with one another, talked about the foods they missed the most, and even debated whether fried rice was better than coconut rice.
Amid the lively conversation, one name never appeared.
Broto.
For the first time in days, the regional chat felt peaceful without a single comment from him.
Rangga's boat finally docked at his island. As soon as he stepped ashore, he opened the blue screen.
《Unload all items from the boat inventory?》
"Yes."
White light streamed from the boat toward the warehouse. One by one, the day's spoils disappeared.
Hardwood, Swamp Yarrow, Clay, Preservation Modules, Reinforced Synthetic Hide, Sacks of rice. Everything was neatly stored inside the warehouse.
Rangga barely paid attention to the rest. He practically ran toward the warehouse. The moment he opened the door, his eyes searched for only one thing.
And there it was.
In one corner of the warehouse sat several small sacks filled with rice grains that had already been processed into white rice.
A huge grin spread across Rangga's face.
"Damn... Rice."
He walked toward the sacks as if greeting an old friend. He grabbed an earthenware bowl and scooped out a generous portion.
The white grains filled the bowl and Rangga stared at them quietly for a few seconds.
"It's been so long..."
He carried the bowl outside to the campfire. Near the beach, he poured water into it.
He gently stirred the rice, the water immediately turned cloudy. He poured out the first rinse.
Added fresh water. Washed it once more until the water became much clearer.
"Perfect."
He poured the washed rice into an earthenware pot and added the right amount of water.
The pot was then placed over the campfire, which was fueled by charcoal.
The fire burned steadily. Not as large as a wood fire, but far longer lasting. While waiting for the rice to cook, Rangga took several pieces of meat.
He skewered them onto thin wooden sticks and slowly grilled them beside the fire.
Fat dripped onto the glowing coals.
Sssizzle...
The aroma of grilled meat quickly filled the air and Rangga's stomach growled again.
He chuckled.
"Hehehe... I seriously can't wait."
Every now and then, he lifted the pot lid. Warm steam drifted upward, carrying with it the unmistakable aroma of cooking rice.
Rangga immediately closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"I swear... I've missed this smell so much."
He slowly turned the skewers over and the smile never left his face.
"This is awesome... I'm finally eating rice today."
That night, for the first time since arriving in the Pioneer World, Rangga was finally able to enjoy something that had existed only in his memories.
A simple plate of warm rice with grilled meat.
Back on Earth, millions of viewers remained glued to Rangga's livestream.
They watched him carefully wash the rice. Stir it gently then place the pot over the campfire.
Beside it, the skewers of meat slowly released an aroma that the viewers could almost imagine smelling themselves.
The comment section, usually filled with analysis, became something entirely different.
"Bang... Now I'm hungry too."
"Man... I never realized rice was this precious."
"I eat rice every day, but seeing Bang Rangga like this actually makes me emotional."
"Enjoy your meal, Bang."
"He's so happy just because he can eat rice again..."
Many viewers simply laughed.
"The face of someone eating rice again after days."
"Way too relatable."
"The meat is ordinary, but the rice is what makes him happy."
"Rice with grilled meat. That's a god-tier meal for Bang Rangga right now."
Yet beneath the jokes, many comments gradually turned into gratitude.
"I'm going to eat rice after this. I won't complain anymore."
"My mom cooked rice earlier and I almost said no. Now I feel ashamed."
"We've taken our staple food for granted for too long."
"Thank you, Bang Rangga. Watching this made me appreciate what's on my dinner table."
Many people even began uploading photos of their own dinners.
Simple plates of white rice. Eggs. Tempeh. Vegetables. Accompanied by a short caption:
"Enjoy your meal, Bang Rangga."
At the Presidential Palace of the Garuda Nation, several staff members who had spent the day anxiously watching Rangga's expedition were now smiling.
General Suryo quietly watched the screen.
On it, Rangga sat patiently beside the campfire, occasionally lifting the lid to check on the rice as it slowly cooked.
The General smiled softly.
"Sometimes... what brings people the greatest happiness isn't defeating a monster."
"It's simply... being able to enjoy the ordinary things they once took for granted."
President Prabu nodded quietly, his eyes still fixed on the screen.
"I hope... Tonight, he finally gets to enjoy a peaceful meal."
For a brief moment, it felt as though the entire world was waiting for the same thing—Rangga's very first bowl of hot rice in the Pioneer World.