Chapter 219: Samgyetang with Thousand-year-old Ginseng

Minhyuk smiled when he saw Ali’s astonishment and shock. He asked, “Is this enough for you to enter the Hall of Kings?”

Ali nodded furiously and said, “O…of course!”

Rankers would be able to shine even more, especially if they had any percentage increase in their stats. The 25% temporary increase in his WIS stat might not be comparable to the 1.5x increase in his mana from the Thousand-year-old Ginseng, but his other special abilities would be able to compensate for the difference, if not outweighing it. There was even a 20% reduction in the cooldown time. Ali was already vastly different to ordinary players in terms of cast speed and with this reduction, his cast speed would undoubtedly be faster. The 20% increase in his INT also meant that his magical attack would also have a temporary increase in potency.

“You’re really an amazing chef! I think you’re leagues better than Black, the Twilight Chef!”

Ali had also tried the Twilight Chef’s expensive dishes, but there was nothing that he could eat that would boost his strength in the rumored traditional Banquet Hall. With the temporary increase in his strength, he thought that it would be possible.

It was also at this moment that Ali believed that he and Minhyuk could have some sort of ‘friendship’, and they could be somewhat called friends. Ali did not have many friends! However, he had long thought of a sign, and when it came down to it, would show great trust between him and his friends. A promise that he would stay with them for a lifetime!

“Minhyuk.”

“Yes?”

“Can you please give me your left arm?”

Minhyuk extended his left arm to him.

“Can we be friends?”

“Of course!”

Minhyuk considered Ali as his benefactor since he gave him that magical snack box. No, Ali was much more than that!

Then, Ali drew an ‘X’ on Minhyuk’s left arm and with a serious expression, he lifted his arm high up in the sky. He said, “This is a sign of our friendship!”

“…?”

Minhyuk stared blankly at him for a moment. However, Ali did not notice his stare, all caught up in his passion as he lifted his hand high up in the sky and said, “Do you know the feeling when another person dies? When your chest is bound under a spell? No, when you’re under a curse? No, when you pass a river of poison?!”

Minhyuk faintly realized something,?‘I know these lines from somewhere…’

“That’s not it! The time when your friends have forgotten about you! But! I don’t believe that Minhyuk will forget about me! This is a sign of our friendship! Friendshiiiiiiiiiiip!”

Ali shouted loudly to emphasize that one word.

Minhyuk stared at him quietly and thought,?‘This person is an… otaku? Right?’

Then, Ali whispered to him, as if to urge him to respond to his words,?“If you join me, I’ll treat you to a meal.”

“Oooooooooooh!”

Minhyuk suddenly gained a lot of enthusiasm as he jumped up and lifted his left arm high up in the sky. It was a truly a quick change in attitude.

“No matter what happens, this?X?is the symbol of our friendship! Friendshiiiiiiiiiiip!”

“Beans, come on! You do it too! Quickly!” Minhyuk exclaimed, as Beanie stood up from its seat on Minhyuk’s lap and placed down the bowl of enjoyable noodle soup.

Then, Beanie copied Ali and used its magic to draw an?X?on its left arm, raising its paw high up in the sky and cried loudly, “Ooooooooiiiiink!”

Deep inside its heart, this was what Beanie felt,?‘This punk master. It’s really hard to live as a pet. Oink!’

Ali was beyond thrilled.

‘Aaah! What a beautiful scene! This is a very inspiring scene!’

Meanwhile, Minhyuk thought that he should introduce him to Legend Guild’s ‘Ace’.

At that moment, a rush of notifications rang loudly in both their heads.

[Three sculptures of the Ancient Monarch have fused together.]

[The Ancient Monarch has now become stronger.]

[Due to the increase in strength of the Ancient Monarch, his soldiers have been awakened.]

[The Ancient Monarch’s Soldiers have woken up.]

“…?!”

Ali’s eyes widened.

‘The Ancient Monarch has become much stronger?’

Only powerful players would have gathered in Beas Village to raid the Ancient Monarch. There was never a time when the raid resulted in failure and had wiped everyone out. However, what would happen if the Ancient Monarch became stronger?

‘What’s this? Something must have gone wrong.’

Then, another notification rang.

[The Guardians’ Tower will now be created.]

[The power of the three Guardians dwells in the tower.]

[The tower of the three Guardians will give out scores that are much higher than the regular tower of the Guardians.]

Every time the Ancient Monarch awakened, the Guardian’s Tower would also appear. However, it seemed that the current tower was different from the tower back then. The usual Guardian’s Tower was the guardian of the sculpture and its role was to give points to the players. The ‘Monarch’s Treasure Chest’ that the players would receive, depended on the score that they would get. The scores that could be obtained from the Guardian’s Tower would depend on a variety of actions.

1. A successful attack on the Ancient Monarch.

2. A successful fatal attack on the Ancient Monarch.

3. Successfully hunting the Ancient Monarch’s Soldiers.

4. Dealing the final blow on the Ancient Monarch.

The scores for the four actions were not explicitly stated because several different parties would be participating in the hunt for the Ancient Monarch. The smaller the party, the higher the score that they would get and the higher their score, the higher their rewards. However, on the flipside, if their party only had a small number of members, then it was only natural that they could not raid the Ancient Monarch effectively. All they could achieve was be left behind by the others.

Furthermore, just like what was explained above, the Guardians’ Tower this time would give a higher score compared to the regular Guardian’s Tower. The rewards were likely to be more generous.

‘What was it again? The best reward for successfully hunting the Ancient Monarch?’

Ali furrowed his brows and bit his lips tightly as he tried to recall the information.

‘A…a legendary artifact’s production recipe!’

There were a lot of different probabilities when someone produced an artifact. Having high-grade materials did not necessarily mean that one would be able to produce a high-ranking artifact. Aside from the artifact materials, it would also depend on the blacksmith’s abilities.

However, there was one thing that could ignore all of these, and it was the ‘Artifact Production Recipe’. In other words, if the player followed and collected all of the materials listed in the production recipe, then they would definitely receive the rank of the artifact indicated in the recipe.

‘Wait. The reward should be better than a legendary artifact…’

Ali had a hunch.

‘It’s like they’re saying that there’s a possibility that we could have the production recipe for the best artifact!’

He was thrilled.

Meanwhile, Minhyuk, who was standing next to Ali, also heard the same notifications, but he was looking at something else.

[Surprise Class Quest: The Ancient Monarch’s Yearning.]

Rank: SSS

Requirements: Food God

Rewards: Ingredients for Ancient Monarch’s Soy Sauce Braised Chicken.

Penalty for Failure: -20 to all Stats.

Description: The Ancient Monarch was one of the Food God’s subordinates during his lifetime. When his mind was being encroached by the devil, he had asked the Food God for a favor.?I don’t want to lose my precious subjects. I don’t want to kill them with my own hands.?But now, the Food God of the past is dead. Make his wish come true and save Beas Village. If you succeed, then you will be able to receive one of the ‘Food God’s Divination’ through the Soy Sauce Braised Chicken.

‘Soy sauce braised chicken…? Food God’s Divination?!’

Of course, Minhyuk was trembling in excitement due to the soy sauce braised chicken.

[The Guardians’ Tower will now warp all the players in Beas Village and Berest Mountains to the mountain range’s entrance.]

The two men were suddenly surrounded by light.

***

The players from all over the world waiting for the Ancient Monarch’s raid were all flustered.

“The Ancient Monarch grew stronger?”

“Wasn’t he already very strong from the very beginning?”

All of the players present in the area would be warped to the entrance of the Berest Mountains once the Ancient Monarch appeared. Right now, there were at least 50 people gathered together. However, none of these men could match up against the Ancient Monarch. The players were all in a buzz after another man appeared again.

“He’s Japan’s ‘Musashi’, Kentaro. Right?”

“Wow. Kentaro…!”

Kentaro was the player who ranked second in Japan’s official local rankings. He was standing with his arms crossed with two katanas hanging on his back. There were many strong players here, but it was quite rare for them to see one of the top five players of a country.

“Didn’t Kentaro raid the Ancient Monarch before?”

.

Kentaro was famous for getting the Legendary Artifact Production Recipe. Even now, it seemed that Kentaro had obtained the quest to enter Beas Village again. To him, he could not forget the thrill of that time. When Kentaro dealt the last blow on the Ancient Monarch, the global players were in awe and amazement.

Then, Kentaro moved calmly as he began to speak, “Now that the Ancient Monarch has gotten more powerful, In order to raid him, players should all team up.”

However, 50 people could not team up together.

Kentaro continued to say, “The most efficient number for each team is five. If the positions of the five people are good, the scores will be distributed perfectly. In addition, the limit for each party should be six people.”

Not many among these players would be able to get to the top. On the way up to the Berest Mountains, a translucent passage would be created depending on the number of teams. The players needed to go up this passage as quickly as they could. In a way, this system was meant for people to fight in a team and cultivate teamwork, but one could also say that the members of the team would be competing against each other.

Just as Kentaro had said, this was a common method that most of the players knew of.

[You are required to enter the Berest Mountains within 10 minutes.]

[For players who do not want to join the raid, you will return to the place you last visited before entering Beas Village once you log out.]

“We’d like to invite you to our party!”

“Our party already has a Level 420 archer, Level 421 warrior and Level 417 legendary class player!!!”

“We’re in a hurry. Our strongest combi is a combi of priests, warriors, archers, mages and bandits!”

The players moved quickly while Kentaro was constantly bombarded by love calls.

“Kentaro. Please party with me…”

“Beat it.”

“…”

There were many players that wanted to team up with Kentaro. After all, if their team had a higher team score, they were bound to get greater rewards. Unfortunately, Kentaro ignored the incompetent players who were only trying to ride the bus.

‘From the people gathered today, I can see a few people who stand out from their player IDs…’

Over time, the number of people from all around the world that came to Berest Mountains for this specific raid had continued to decline. Compared to the novelty of the first time, they would often be rewarded with treasure chests. However, most players were either too lazy, or stingy. After all, it was too inefficient for them, especially if one calculated the time it took to complete the entrance quest.

Kentaro had an artifact, a ‘Measuring Pocket Watch’. It was an artifact in the shape of a pocket watch, but instead of showing time, it would show the other person’s level. This artifact was a ‘legendary artifact’. In a fight against a player or a monster, this artifact was quite handy.

There was a man that suddenly caught Kentaro’s eyes. He was a man wearing a black robe and was presumably a mage. Next to him was a man wearing shabby armor, a rapier on his back, as well as an old, rusty helmet. Kentaro quietly aimed his Measuring Pocket Watch at the man wearing the black robe.

[You have activated the Measuring Pocket Watch. You can only use it five times a day.]

[The Measuring Pocket Watch is checking the level of the targeted player.]

Clack─

The cover of the Measuring Pocket Watch opened on its own.

‘…Ho?’

Kentaro’s eyes were filled with intrigue and curiosity. That guy in the black robe…

‘He’s at least at Level 470?’

The Measuring Pocket Watch would not show an accurate number, but it showed the approximate range.

Then, Kentaro approached him and said, “I need a mage player. Would you like to join me?”

Ali, the mage player wearing a black robe, nodded in greeting when Kentaro asked.

‘Kentaro… I don’t like the rumors surrounding this guy but…’

If he worked with Kentaro, he would most likely be able to enter the Hall of Kings. So Black Mage Ali nodded.

“Alright. Ah, he’s my friend. Can he come with us?”

“Is that so? Wait a minute. The time now is…”

Kentaro glanced at the man next to him as he used his Measuring Pocket Watch.

Clack─

Kentaro’s brows furrowed when he saw what was written on the pocket watch.

‘350?’

This was a player who should not be able to enter Beas Village.

‘Is this a bug?’ Kentaro thought,?‘He’s just a burden.’

Then, Kentaro asked the man firmly, “Excuse me, but what is your level?”

Minhyuk answered his question right away. “It’s Level 355.”

“…!”

Ali turned to Minhyuk in shock. He thought,?‘You’re only at Level 355. How can you be in Beas Village…’

Then, Kentaro smiled bitterly and said, “I’m sorry, but I don’t think it’s possible for you to come with me. As you know, the level of the party members is also very important in this party hunt. It’s a team score after all. Ah, of course, the smaller the number of people in the team, the higher the score… but they will not be able to make it to the summit.”

“…”

Ali realized that Kentaro was trying to tell him to leave Minhyuk behind. Since Minhyuk had still not logged out yet, he was required to join a party. He could not return anymore.

On the other hand, Ali wanted to enter the Hall of Kings, and for him to do so, he needed to team up with Kentaro. If he teamed up with Kentaro, it was likely that he would get a high score. Those with the highest score on the team were likely to be rewarded well and possibly crowned in the Hall of Kings.

There was a lot of buzz from the surroundings.

“Level 355?”

“Crazy… Who would even want that player as their party member?”

“If I accept that player, the team score will decrease, and so will the Ancient Monarch’s rewards. Right?”

“I think that player should go up there alone.”

“Kghk!?Level 355?”

Ali looked around and said coldly, “Everyone, shut up!”

“…”

The surroundings turned quiet. Then, Ali said, “I’m going up with this guy alone. Since we are?‘friends’.”

Ali raised his left arm which was marked with an?X. Next to him was Minhyuk, who did not pay attention to whether the other players were cursing him or not. He just munched on some cream bread while thinking ‘Kyaa! Cream bread is so delicious!’. He also lifted his left arm.

“I’m refusing you. I’m going to accompany this person. We’re friends.”

Minhyuk shouted brightly while he ate his cream bread. He said, “Frieeeeeeeends!”

Beanie also hurriedly lifted its left arm while standing on Minhyuk’s shoulder.

“Ooooooiiiiink!”

It was at this moment when ‘Ali’ had made the best choice of his life.

1. a Japanese swordsman, strategist, philosopher and ronin well known for his unique dual swordsmanship and undefeatable record.