"Master, the rice and vegetables you asked for--"
"AH--!" Jin shouted as he stuttered. "W-What-- W-Who?"
Greed appeared behind us as his arms were filled with a mountain of greens, that entirely covered his upper body.
"N-N-Namsan??" Jin was startled as his visible shock was plastered on his face.
[ Namsan is a Mountain in Korea. ]
"Namsan?" I looked at Greed and back at Jin as I chuckled. "Although it's quite near from here, what you're looking at is Greed though, my summon."
Greed titled his head as he popped up behind the gigantic amount of green.
"G-Greed? A-Ah~ Greed! Your summon.." Jin awkwardly chuckled. "But why does it sound.. strangely familiar."
Jin's eyes widen as he finally realized. "G-G-G-Greed?! T-The D-Demon General we saw in the dungeon?!?"
"Yeah, long story." I chuckled. "He's my summon now."
Greed choked up a cough. "Ahem, slave."
I turned and looked at Jin. "Well, technically, yeah."
"Anyways, please pass the sack of rice to this gentleman right here, Greed." I went back to the system shop. "Ah, and put the rest on the counter."
He placed them on the kitchen counter and bowed afterwards.
"Master, I picked this boar on the way here."
"Excuse me, did you just say 'boar'?" I turned around and faced him as I saw a boar of the size of an orc. "This is quite unexpected. How did you even managed to find a Jargan Boar? And a fully grown one as well?"
"I was quite lucky when I've encountered it on short notice, the beast wanted to pick a fight with me." He handed me the boar as it landed on my arms.
"It seems that we're in luck." I chuckled. "Species like them don't usually pick fights out of the blue."
★Jojo : ["What made you guys lucky?"]
★Y/n : "Oh? you haven't wrapped up on your side yet?"
★Jojo : ["I'm just filling out the forms for the competition that's gonna be held in just a few days."]
★Y/n : "Well to answer your question, we're lucky because we can have samgyeopsal today."
[ Samgyeopsal : 'three-layer meat' or grilled pork belly. (Author-nim: I apologize for any muslim readers, please forgive me.) ]
★Jojo : ["Sam...gyeop.. sal?"]
★Y/n : "It honestly tastes heavenly when it's in a wrap."
"Ah, Martis included chilies and lemons in the pile, right?" I said as I placed the boar on top of the counter, beside the vegetables without batting an eye towards him.
"Yes, Master."
"Did he even start a fruit plantation next to the crops in the subspace? You guys are more hardworking than the dwarves."
"It's better to come prepared."
"Good mindset, you may go-- Ah, and before I forget." I inserted my hand into the inventory and took out a broadsword I've got as a reward earlier. I extended my hand and handed him the sword. "Here, you've lost your weapon since you've become my summon, right?"
"Use this to ward off any monsters that are able to sense concealment spells in the mean time, although it can't compare to the one you had before, this would probably suffice."
"T-Thank you, I am grateful that you've thought of me, Master."
"Alright, I might need some potatoes tomorrow morning." I chuckled.
"Understood, Master." Greed bowed as he continued.
"Ah, Master there's something I must warn you about, it's about the other generals."
"What about them?"
"Master, as expected, you already knew." Greed then continued. "There are exactly 9 of us, including me."
"How about the King?"
"M-Master, are you intending to fight with the King? I'm sorry if I offend you in any way, but the King's no average foe--"
"Is he also in Korea?"
"Fortunately, he's in Antarctica and the other generals had occupied other countries. Me and my aide, Martis, were residing in Korea before encountering Master."
"His skills are known for catastrophic destructions, ballistic fire type spells and severe AOE casting that are able to wipe out a whole country. If he learns that one of us generals, is dead, he'll go berserk."I
[ AOE : 'Area Of Effect'; Large scale damage in an area. ]
"Ah... and here I thought he's the real deal." I chuckled sardonically. "If he was that old geezer, then he would be able to eradicate continents if he wanted to."
"What do you mean, Master?"
"The Demon King you speak of, is a fake. Well, he's most likely a fraud or impersonating the real one." then, I continued. "Because the Demon King I know, wouldn't commit himself to his people that can't protect themselves. He's the type to favor the strong over the weak."
"...?"
"But now that I think of it, he's not your average... tsundere, per say. Even if he lived for thousands of years, he didn't show any sign of interest towards his people although that changed a while back, but he wouldn't go berserk for just that."
[ Tsundere is a Japanese term for a character development process with a personality who is initially cold & hotheaded before gradually showing a warmer, friendlier side over time. ]
"I still don't exactly get what master is saying.."
"Nevermind, forget what I've said. How old is he again?"
"Hmm, about 500? A little over 500 I guess."
"First of all, the most important answer lies in you, and of course the other generals."
"The Demon King that I came to know, does not have any aides by his side, not even disciples. And second, as I said, he would be able to obliterate a few continents if he truly wanted to."
"And lastly, he would be over a thousand if he was the Demon King that conquered the depths of hell. How the heck did he decide to participate being a boss monster on Earth, in a game of all things."
"And if he was the Demon King I know, he would've sensed my presence and invited me over if that's the case. And I would've visited him by now." I chuckled.
"By the way, I forgot to ask for his name. Is his name..." I glanced at Greed.
Greed stood silent for a few good seconds and finally looked at me straight in the eye.
"Baal, Baal Rufius."
"Ah, I think I've grasped onto the idea now. The world here has it's own characters derived from the legends, like you, Greed. I'm guessing the others would be.. Lust, Pride, Envy, Gluttony, Sloth and Wrath?"
"That's correct, Master."
"It's good that I remember the teachings from my history class on Mythological existence when I was a teen."
"Actually, there's something I've been meaning to ask." I glanced at him and finally turned around and faced him. "where exactly are you guys from?"
"We're from the middle realm, where all of the demonic species reside. Well, now that master says there was another realm other than ours with a more powerful Demon King, I don't think we could say we're superior anymore."
"Middle realm you say... It's quite similar to the realm the original demon king came from but still not quite." I paused for a quick while. "Zenith realm. That's what it's called, well, back in the day. It means incredible height in English terms but it means 'Hell' or 'chaos' in Athellian..."
I heaved a sigh. "Well, it's good to know that he does not pose a serious threat to us. Well, at least when he comes and decides to blow up Korea, I'll stop him from doing so."
"Yes, Master." He gazed at me for a short while. "M-Master, you may call me Mammon i-if you'd like to, of course."
"Anyway, thanks for telling me. You may go, Mammon." I waved my hand as I smiled at him.
"T-Thank you for showing mercy, Master."
Then, Greed disappeared into the shadows and no traces of him were found.
"He didn't really have to say it in such a way.." I sighed followed by a chuckle.
The rabbit suddenly revealed himself beside Jin. ["I'm done~!"]
"ACK--" Jin's heart skipped a beat. "M-Mr Guide--!"
I smacked the back of Jojo's head. "Stop popping out of nowhere will ya. You're screwed if Jin couldn't handle your surprise entrances every single time."
["It's not like I've committed some kind of treason."]
"Well let's see whether it's treason if I were to twist that neck of yours."
["I'd rather keep my neck thank you very much."]
"I see that you've become more brazen as time passes. Should I dispose you before you become more troublesome?"
"U-Uhm Y/n? It's fine if Mr. guide decides to appear every now and then." Jin chuckled as he washed the rice grains in the pot.
["See? He's fine~"]
"I'm not demented enough to take the words of a talking herbivore."
["Then would you rather take words from a carnivore?"]
I glared at him. "You even got used talking back I see."
I've sent chills to the rabbit's spine as I continued as if nothing had happened. "Jin, tell the boys to lightly spar each other at the sparring grounds for their training before dinner."
"Plus, the competition is in 2 days. Its good to get used to fight opponents of the same race rather than monsters for the time being." I smiled at him.
"Alright, I'll tell them to head over." Jin chuckled as he went to inform the boys.
"Noona!" Jungkook came whining as he continued, "...and Mr guide."
I chuckled at his behavior. "What is it?"
"Are we training again?" He pouted, I could imagine fluffy puppy ears and a tail attached to him.
"Yes, you have to~ Just have a light spar among the eight of you, Jin will be helping me with the rice and will soon join you all. I'll call you guys when dinner's ready." I smiled as I caress his head out of habit.
"Okay.." He pouted in defeat as he head over to the sparring grounds next to the mini cottage-like house.
"Y/n, I'm done with the rice. I'll go and join them now." He whipped up a smile.
I chuckled. "Okay, have fun."
["Humans are vulnerable no matter how I look at it."]
["I don't know what made them follow you despite the dangers it might bring and the trust they have for you is uncanny to that of a calf to it's mother."]
"You're fairly free despite being a guide, are there no tasks assigned to you?" My sharp gaze landed on him as I abruptly raised my eyebrow.
["W-Well, there's not much to do during the night, much more if there's no scenarios occurring in the meantime."] The rabbit had calmed himself. ["And I'm not a herbivore because it's not necessary for me to eat."]
"But that doesn't mean you can't." I scrolled through the constellation system shop.
「 Host purchased 'war bullock's meat' 」
「 Host purchased 'war bullock's butter' 」
「 Host purchased 'war bullock's milk' 」
「 Host purchased 'Queen's Nectar' 」
「 Host used a total of 900 coins. 」
「 Deducted coins from Host's possession accordingly. 」
「 Coin(s) in possession: 208,520 」
Items hovered above my arms as I diverted them to the kitchen counter along with the vegetables Greed brought.
"Oddly enough, ingredients in the constellation shop didn't cost a hand or a leg."
["That's because beings in the abyss don't have any use for these items except for a handful of them."]
"Precious cooking ingredients like these?" I looked at him as my eyes were wide open.
["Yeah, weapons, crystals, upgrading materials, skills and mana ores are more valuable to auction off in the shop, whereas the player's shop would only contain those and some food supplies."]
"Suit themselves, I can get ingredients for a cheaper price then." I chuckled. "Speaking of that, from what you've said, players should have a system shop to buy their necessities from. But none of them were using it?"
["That's because they don't have one, yet."] The rabbit then continued. ["I'll brief it to you on the day of the competition."]
"Why can't you explain it now?"
["Guides don't have all the answers every single time you know. I need to further confirm my information because I got the feeling I'll have my tongue chopped off if I gave you incorrect details regarding anything."]
"That's... kind of true."
["You see?"] He scoffed.
["I'm not asking because I'm curious, but what are you making?"]
"A barbeque set?" I took off my overcoat and rolled up my sleeves. "What? You want to help?"
["I'm just observing, I've never eaten nor cooked before, so I don't know anything about culinary arts. But the elk does know how, he does it from time to time."]
"He sounds like a guide from the way you're describing." I materialized the mana surrounding us and the plates from my inventory hovered around us.
["Yeah, a very annoying one at that."]
"I think you find everyone annoying or crude." I displayed a stoic expression. "Well, you should at least try taking a bite, who knows you'll like it."
["I'll just be drinking, I won't be eating anyways."]
"You can't drink on an empty stomach, you'll get knocked out from a single shot."
["Ah... is that so."]
I mumbled everything in a single breath, but barely audible to the ears. "I-think-you-didn't-know-I-was-insulting-your-alcohol-tolerance-but-okay."
["What?"]
"...And you'll be missing out. Food is heaven for others, and a paradise for some."
"And soju tastes the best when paired with some grilled meat." I grabbed the meat of the war bullock and sliced them, materializing the mana and traced them to my fingers as they took the form of a knife for me to grab hold onto it.
Then, with the knife, I swiftly sliced them into plausible pieces and placed them onto a plate I got from my inventory.
"I think I should duplicate the dinnerware."
["Then why you didn't duplicate the orichalum ores I gave you?"]
"That's because I can't duplicate something that is made from complex-formation of raw mana resources."
"I thought you'd know, it's basic knowledge for mages." I stared at him.
["It's not like I'm one or whatnot."]
"...Right. Well since the plates and bowls are only made from simple materials that are enough to withstand the food's aura, it's easy to understand the works."
"I just need to grasp the perception of the material then I would be able to create a complete replica of the item."
["Ah, so it's a shit skill--"]
A loud thud from the slam of my knife split the 6 inch cutting board into half.
"I like that a knife has many purposes like slicing off someone's tongue. A knife is a chef's pride, you know?" I sardonically smiled, I stared at him and raised the knife as the gleaming reflection displayed half of his face.
"My hands are rather itching to use this knife made of reinforced mana layers, you know?" I displayed a bright smile as my eyes showed a hint of menace. "It's rather sharp than any other sword, you may say it's 'cutting edge' for its preciseness."
The rabbit gulped as cold sweat grazed his fur.
I sighed as the knife dissipated from my hands and looked at him straight in the eye. "I do not have these 'skills' the system had provided after you've fulfilled a certain requirement."
"I've worked my ass off just to master every magic available and finally climbed up to the top in both realms. I didn't learn them for entertainment but for survival. Like them." I glanced at the boys behind us.
"The knowledge I accumulated were all converted to 'skills' in my system profile. How do you think I would feel after the system recognized my ability as itself? The system would label them as theirs that they've given me."
["Though I can't somewhat relate, I understand where you're coming from."]
"But I thought it wasn't much a big deal so I decided to accept fate."
"I've abandoned my pitiful, pathetic old self and started anew, and the result was satisfactory but I still have much to learn."
The rabbit was silent, speechless for a moment but his expression softened.
["...Every normal person would always start out like that, but believing the fact a constellation had gone through this much, it's really inconceivable."]
"It's inevitable, honestly." I spoke but quickly continued. "Wait, you're saying that a constellation doesn't have to go all that trouble to train? To become strong?"
["No, they do not. They are beings that--!&#@!&#@!?"]
"What?" I raised an eyebrow. "What are you trying to say?"
Something's wrong.
["--Abyss."] The rabbit looked at me as my confused expression never left my face.
"What were you trying to say?"
["Didn't I tell you?"]
"..No no, you did. Maybe my hearing's a bit rusty." I glanced at him but shrugged right after.
["How old are you to say that?"] The rabbit looked at me with 'seriously' plastered all over his face. ["Anyway, they're like what you people call them 'spoons' or billionaires' children."]
"Ah, so they were born with a golden spoon." I sardonically chuckled. "But they aren't necessarily someone's children right?"
["Well It depends, but I believe some are even born with a diamond spoon and grow from there."]
["Ironic, isn't it."]
「 The phantom ghost wondered what was the heated conversation about. 」
"By the way," I glanced at him. "Did you close your stream before we started our conversation?"
["No, why'd you ask--"]
That's when he realized. ["...Shit."]
「 War maniac was eavesdropping as if he tried to dig a hole into the wall. 」
「 Hell's chef ponders whether it's a spill on the recipes. 」
The rabbit abruptly opened his system window and pressed all sorts of buttons. He finally stopped after a few seconds as he heaved a relieved sigh.
["Phew~ it was on mute."]
Our expressions relaxed.
"But I actually didn't really have to worry since the skill I received is on passive at all times."
["--Y-YOU COULD'VE TOLD ME SOONER!"]
"And where's the fun in that?" I mischievously chuckled. "You can leave the stream open, unmute the sound too, we won't discuss this topic any further, and since they praised my food earlier, I guess they want to watch for their own curiosity."
["...Fine."] With the click on his screen various of
Then, I took the war bullock's milk and placed it in a large bowl as I poured a small amount of freshly squeezed lemon juice into the milk.
I placed my hand right above the bowl and an amber glow emitted from my hands.
["What are you doing?"]
"Fastening the acidifying process." The glow from my palm dissipated.
I got a quick glimpse of the sky. "It's getting quite dark, isn't it?"
I honed the holy magic in my palms and released it above us, small twinkling orbs of light hovered slightly above our heads, their warm light filling the atmosphere.
The rabbit went to touch the orbs of lights. ["What is that disgusting power emitting from it?"]
"Are you a ghoul or something? It's made from starlight holy magic." I frowned. "I guess it's magic that seem to be unnatural for guides."
["Holy magic? I've never seen it used by anyone other than the priests in the holy land."]
I looked at him as he peeked at my expression. ["Well, I guess you're an exception."]
["Well, it's not that we hate it. It just feels... rather weird when we are exposed to it long-term."]
"Anyway, I'm gonna add an ingredient into this." I gestured towards the bowl.
["And how you're gonna find that 'ingredient' exactly?"] He crossed his arms. ["Although you found supplies in the inexhaustible convenience store, there won't be any plausible fresh cooking ingredients."]
I grabbed onto a jar beside me. "And who says I wanted fresh ingredients?"
The rabbit read the jar's label that was literally plastered wide enough to see from afar. ["Rennet?"]
"Not just any rennet, a beast's rennet!" I said with excitement in my voice.
["And exactly what is a beast's rennet? Where did you get it?"]
"To answer your first question, it's typically 90% pure chymosin since it's from a young beast. Well, mostly war calves."
["I have no idea what you're saying but I guess it's used for cooking?"]
"It's used as a coagulant."
["Yeah, like I said, for cooking."] The rabbit had a stoic expression. ["Where and how are you able to get your hands on... that?"]
"I just saw it on the counter a few minutes ago, while you and I were talking. Funny, right?"
["And you don't find that suspicious?"]
"It's not from Greed, that's for sure. I'm guessing it's from one of the constellations."
「 Hell's chef winks at you. 」
"Ah.. so it was him." I chuckled.
「 Hell's chef says you're welcome. 」
["Who?"] Jojo tilted his head.
"A fellow constellation." I then continued. "Now, add some of the rennet into the acidified milk and test for its firmness."
Then when it's firm enough, I cut the curd into pieces, as I stir and cook it. Next, I washed it thoroughly with a pot.
The mana in the air had drained the water from the curd and I placed it on a wooden board as I took out some salt from my inventory.
Lastly, I salted the piece of curd and sped up the aging process as I placed my hand on top of it.
["Can you age humans if you put your hands on top of them?"]
"It doesn't work that way." I gave him an annoyed expression and smiled afterwards. "I'm done~"
["It's scary on how you're able to change your expression almost instantly."]
The salty yet unique aroma from the cheese slowly traced the atmosphere.
「 Hell's chef gives you a thumbs up. 」
「 Hell's chef gifted 100 coins for your achievement. 」
「 The phantom ghost stares in awe. 」
「 The phantom ghost donated 300 coins. 」
"If this was a cooking competition, I would've aced the time taken for cooking and prepping." I smiled as I felt a little proud of the results.
["What is this-- and what's this.. smell? It smells, pleasant to the nostrils."]
"Please refrain using the word 'nostrils' for something delicious."
"And I guess you like cheese from the way you're reacting." I chuckled.
["Cheese...? So this is what you call cheese~"] The rabbit hovered slightly, rotating around the cheese.
"What kind of rabbit likes cheese?" I jokingly laughed. "There are lots of fat inside for a normal rabbit to consume but I guess it won't affect a guide."
Then I took the whole Jargan Boar and swiftly butchered as I sliced them accordingly using the knife I made out of mana.
["Were you a butcher in your past life?"] He looked at me nervously, cold sweat grazed his face and there was a hint of awe.
"You can say I was a butcher. Let's just say it's for the experience." I placed the slices of meat onto the plates. "And I didn't know you believed in past lives."
「 The phantom ghost feels pity towards you. 」
「 The phantom ghost donated 500 coins to you. 」
Why is this guy pitying me for?
"Anyway, wanna try making ssamjang?" I raised my eyebrows repeatedly as I looked at the rabbit.
[ Ssamjang ; it's a thick spicy paste made with Korean soybean paste (doenjang), Korean chili paste (gochujang) and other seasoning to make a condiment for dipping. ]
["Again, these paws are not meant for cooking but sLaSHinG oFF hEaDs."]
"Blowing off heads to be exact."
A portal opened beside me as I extended my hand into it.
["What are you getting now?"]
I retracted my hand as I was holding a jar.
["Doenjang?"] The rabbit read it confusedly. ["Geez how many dishes are you going to make?"]
"A few dozen, why? It goes well with the barbeque."
["...You got that from the convenience store, right?"]
I shot him a finger gun and flashed him a wink. "Bingo."
["Don't do that. It's painful to look at, my eyes are already stinging."]
I smacked the back of his head. "Go deal with the other players if you have that much leisure time."
["T-That hurts just so you know!"]
"Of course I do. I smacked you because I knew it'd hurt."
Some of the vegetables hovered above us and I casted the water as it wrapped itself to clean them. I got some garlic and onions from the pile as I minced them, materializing the mana in the air.
Next, I estimated the amount of doenjang, gochujang and sesame oil and poured them into a bowl using a spoon.
Then, I added a few tablespoons of honey and teaspoons of toasted sesame seeds with 2 teaspoons of minced garlic. I added some thinly sliced onions, and some nuts Greed gave.
Lastly, I gathered the mana into my fist and exerted into the orichalum bowl and it was finely blended.
["Wow you really have a knack for cooking."]
"Really? Koreans find making these a daily routine in barbeque restaurants, it's quite simple and easy for them. I'm just following the recipes I've learnt over the years." I chuckled.
"Ah, the grill is a bit western though, I should modify it a little bit." Again, I transpire the mana flowing in the air and used it to shape into two large built-in grill instead of a full size American outdoor grill.
I whirled around and directed my gaze towards the rectangular table, my hands glowed vibrant violet as it slowly hovered slightly above the ground and reshaped the table into a fitting form for the grill.
I placed the finishing touches and the the table gradually descended and all the food that hovered landed on top of the table.
The rabbit stood in awe as his eyes were plastered onto the grill.
"Now what's left to do is the soju and maekju." I inserted my arm into my inventory and got out a few bottles of soju and some beer cans.
[ Soju & maekju{beer} are Korean alcoholic drinks. ]
["Fufu, finally~~"]
Then, I shouted. "Boys! Dinner's ready!"
End of chapter 10.