Chapter 288: Dangerous Company

‘What did I just hear?!’?

This thought flashed through the sorcerer’s mind. Meanwhile, Cracana suddenly paused mid-attack. His pupils that had been dominated by black suddenly started to shake violently.

“As expected, my sincere words worked!”

The sorcerer denied him vehemently, “It’s just a coincidence!!! The Dragon of Destruction, Cracana, cannot be shaken by such a cringy line!”

Black Dragon ignored him, and just continued to address Cracana, saying, “Just imagine it. You, Cracana, flying in the vast and open sky with Ambacca, Destiny and Britney! You will save those that are in danger and we will all speak our lines!”

The sorcerer wanted to cover his ears so badly. He thought,

‘What lines do you want to say?!’?

Then, Black Dragon spoke of the lines that he wanted them to say to the world, “Hero? If you want one, then I’ll become one. I’ll become the hero that will save you.”

“Urghhh!!!”

The chuunibyou and cringy lines seemed to distract the demon sorcerer. Just then…

[Cracana’s chaotic state has calmed down. He is now beginning to heal.]

‘This, this is ridiculous…!’?

That was when the sorcerer realized that the Dragon of Destruction had tendencies similar to the black-clad man with the chuunibyou syndrome.

‘No! What if…’?

Ruslein was not sure, but perhaps the man knew everything about the dragon in front of him!!!

“

Kiheeeeeeee!

”

It became clear to Ruslein after seeing Cracana slowly breaking free from his crazed state. Even Cracana’s eyes that were dyed black earlier had started to return to normal. From what he could see, Cracana was listening intently to Black Dragon’s voice.

“

Ah!?

I already thought of a name for you!”

Black Dragon knew that anyone would be shaken once they heard his wonderful lines. And, to deal the final blow… he even prepared a name for him!

“Breaker!”

Then, the notification rang.

[You have successfully ‘Communicated’ with Destruction Dragon Cracana in his explosive state.]

[Destruction Dragon Cracana’s explosive state has been lifted.]

[Destruction Dragon Cracana accepts you as his master.]

[You can now change Destruction Dragon Cracana’s name.]

“Breaker.”

[Breaker Level 547]

Black Dragon could tell what was going on in Cracana’s head after seeing the dragon fail to control his curling mouth.

‘This kid is thrilled with the name that I gave him…!’?

He could tell by the twitch of his lips. And Cracana, no, he was now named Breaker, began to hunt the Demon Sorcerer, alongside Black Dragon. Since Cracana broke free of his explosive and crazed state, the sorcerer was defeated easily. After all, the sorcerer was not that strong of an opponent.

Suddenly, the notifications rang one after the other.

[You have gathered all four of the Legendary Dragons.]

[You have met all of the conditions to transfer to the Royal Class.]

[You have now transferred to the Royal Class ‘Dragon Monarch’.]

[New skills will be added to your repertoire.]

[Your commanding ability has increased by +300.]

[The Class Quest: Monarch’s Qualifications has been created.]

[The Class Quest: Monarch Among Monarchs has been created.]

[You can only select one out of these two quests to proceed. There is no time limit for the selection.]

[The birth of the first Royal Class has spread worldwide.]

‘Choose between the two quests?’

Black Dragon quickly checked the two quests. He first clicked on Monarch’s Qualifications.

‘

Ho?

’

The Monarch’s Qualifications quest was simple. It had to do with the word ‘Monarch’. In other words, the quest required him to create a ‘kingdom’. There was no other player in

Athenae

that had built a kingdom as of yet. No. To be exact, there was no territory that had enough land and financial power to reach even half of the requirements to be considered a kingdom.

Then, he turned to the second quest, Monarch Among Monarchs.

‘Choose a person and help him ascend the throne?’?

It literally meant king of kings. The Dragon Monarch was also a ruler class. However, this quest wanted him to make a king of kings. It wanted him to choose a player and help him become king.

***

A game of deceit. Calauhel could not help but laugh deep inside. He thought,

‘It wouldn’t make sense if he noticed this.’?

The tricks and deceptions of the Great Thief Elion were truly spectacular. Great Thief Elion was not just a simple thief, he was also a God Class at around Level 480. However, his estimated strength was only at around Level 250. This was because Elion had given up his other abilities to focus solely on deceiving others.

Just like that, the party continued to move forward.

[You have reached the First Trial.]

[A powerful spell has been cast upon you. You have gone blind and cannot see anything in front of you.]

[The spell blinds you and makes the sound surrounding you turn quieter.]

“It’s dark.”

Minhyuk remained vigilant. He also did not act like a fool like usual. In the first place, the people around him knew who he was. It would be counterproductive if he exaggerated his acting.

Darkness surrounded them to the point that they could not see even an inch ahead of them. The sounds ringing in their ears were also small. It felt like someone had lowered the volume of the speaker to the lowest level.

Inside this space, Assassin Amber displayed her Five Senses. Using her five senses, she instructed them to destroy the traps while figuring out where the magic and monsters would attack them.

That was how they passed the first trial.

[You have passed the First Trial.]

[Those who passed the trial will be given a fragment of the broken blade.]

The notification was only heard by the person who had received the fragment of the broken blade. Calauhel, who introduced himself as the Black Monarch Orden, explained to Minhyuk, “As mentioned before, all of the fragments of this blade must be collected for us to hunt the Lesser Demon?Diablo.”

Along with his words, Assassin Amber handed the fragment of the broken blade to Calauhel. Then, they kept on advancing just like that.

For the second trial, they were tasked to tame a beast that was known for its power in the Demon World. For the third trial, the archer had to shoot an arrow through a small, needle hole-like space to turn off all the hidden mechanisms and magic that would come their way. four the fourth trial, the tanker and the Great Iron Golem, which boast a tremendous defense, had to compete against each other.

The fragments of the broken blade kept on piling up just like that. Finally, only the last trial was left. The problem that Calauhel and his party could not solve no matter what they did. The Chef’s Trial.

[You have reached the Sixth Trial.]

[Verogan, the giant monster, is hungry. However, he has an extremely picky taste.]

[Please prepare a dish for Verogan.]

[The cooking ingredients for Verogan are prepared in front of you.]

[The dish that he wants is a Gigantic Samgyetang.]

Then, Verogan, a gigantic monster that was four meters tall appeared, chained to the wall. He was literally a giant monster. In terms of strength, Verogan easily overwhelmed the other giant monsters. He was at Level 500 and had the power to rip apart a twin-headed ogre with his bare hands. That was how frightening Verogan’s existence was.

“

Grrrrrooooooooar!

” Verogan.

“Can you satisfy him with your dish?”

“Leave it to me,” Minhyuk said, nodding at everyone.

The ingredient that lay before him was none other than chicken. The difference was that it was a bizarre and mysterious chicken, that looked about 30 kilograms in weight.

Minhyuk was already aware of this trial.

‘Chefs’ dishes would taste different even if they used the same ingredients.’?

Minhyuk’s challenge was already sent out. All he needed to do was to cook a gigantic samgyetang. However, he did not try it right away. After all, the ‘Create a Recipe’ skill would help him check things more clearly.

[Creating a recipe that the other party desires.]

[You can now check the recipe for gigantic samgyetang.]

[The amount of buff that can be used has been decreased due to creating a recipe.]

(

Gigantic Samgyetang Recipe for Verogan

)

Required Ingredients

: Large native chicken in front of you, hundred years old ginseng, Bapae’s jujube… (omitted)

Expected Dish Grade

: Unique ~ Legendary

Expected Effects

:

?Verogan’s recovery.

?Verogan’s attack, as well as defense, magical attack and defense, will all increase.

“Can you do it?”

This was quite the tricky trial. Minhyuk needed to cook a lot. In all common sense, he would need more chefs on hand. However, the problem was that the cooking would usually become harder as the number of people increased. As the saying goes, too many cooks spoil the broth. Of course, he could think of a way to cook things separately, but there was a crucial and decisive factor why something like that was impossible.

[If the dish is not completed within two hours, then the trial will fail.]

Minhyuk needed to cook the dish within two hours.

In principle, samgyetang should be cooked only after the intestines, the head, the dirt, as well as the feet had been removed from the chicken. He had to follow the rules. However, if he did that, it was nigh impossible to cook a chicken that weighed nearly 30 kilograms.

‘Make cuts as deep as possible while maintaining the shape as much as I can.’

That would help cook the insides well. Thus, Minhyuk began to cook.

***

Calauhel and his group looked at Minhyuk with interest.

He was making deep cuts on the chicken after transforming his weapon into a giant kitchen knife. Then, in an instant, the giant kitchen knife had already transformed into a huge cauldron. Minhyuk placed the huge chicken inside the cauldron together with the garlic, salt, and other ingredients, before starting to cook over the firewood. Then, he covered the cauldron and controlled the fire to make sure that the dish would be cooked thoroughly. If perspiration dripped down from his forehead, he would dab it with his towel.

‘A gourmand…’

Calauhel found it funny. This was a game where strength was the dominant factor. For unknown reasons, the Frying Pan Killer was able to gain strength despite being a chef.

Regardless, Calahuel believed that Minhyuk was walking down the wrong path. If he had sought power from the very beginning, then he might have already surpassed Mei Wei, the number one player in the Global Integrated Rankings.

Cooking was basically just a part of a human’s routine. It was on par with clothes and daily necessities. Hence, Calauhel was not interested in cooking. What about the buff ability?

‘Buff ability is useless in the face of great power.’

Calauhel had also tried an excellent buffed dish. It was a dish that Twilight Chef Black had cooked. All of his stats had increased by 8% after he ate it. But, that was it. He would rather gain strength than learn cooking which would only increase his stats by 8% temporarily.

This was his theory. Calauhel would spend all of his items, and money, doing anything necessary just to become strong. That was how one got to the top. Cooking was only an ‘insignificant thing’ for him, so, the man in front of him seemed to be acting strangely.

‘He’s having fun?’

Was cooking in the game fun? Minhyuk was smiling broadly as he toiled in front of the fire. Although he was sweating, the smile that graced his lips was still bright.

Then, he said, “Hungry?? Just wait. I’m making you a really good meal.”

Then, he opened the lid of the cauldron that the samgyetang was cooking in. With a ladle, he carefully skimmed off the scum that was floating on top of the soup.

“

Grrrrrr…

”

Verogan was an extremely vicious creature. However, the brutality and violence that brooded in his eyes died down when he looked at Minhyuk.

Minhyuk continued to cook the enormous chicken with all his might. He looked like a blacksmith that was working hard to produce a huge artifact. Eventually, the dish was completed. Minhyuk transformed his weapon into a spoon. He even placed 20 kilograms of kimchi that he made with the Aging Jar in front.

“Just a moment. Can you taste it first?”

Calauhel could not understand why Minhyuk was working so hard. He was as diligent as a blacksmith working on a powerful artifact. However, a blacksmith’s artifact would remain permanently, whereas a chef’s dish would not.

‘Why are you putting so much effort into it? Is it even worth it?’

With those thoughts floating in his mind, he tasted the dish.

‘…!’

He could not say anything.

Then, at that moment, Minhyuk said to Verogan, “Try it.”

Verogan's body trembled as soon as he tasted a spoonful of the soup. Then, he began to eat with relish.

“

Keuheeeeeeee!

” Verogan roared.

His roar transmitted his joy. Crazed by hunger, he quickly ripped off a chicken leg and ate it. He even wolfed down the soup, along with some kimchi.

Minhyuk just stood in front of him with his arms folded across his chest. Calauhel’s body was still trembling as he watched Minhyuk and Verogan.

Finally, Verogan grabbed the cauldron with both hands and gulped down the last dregs of the soup left inside.

Gulp, gulp, gulp, gulp, gulp―

Verogan drank it all. After finishing everything, he let out a rough puff of breath from his mouth.

“

Guwoo…

”

Then…

Baaaaaaaaang―

…slowly, very, very, slowly, he bent his knees. He lowered his head on the ground and thanked Minhyuk. Everyone who witnessed the scene was left speechless.

“…!”

“…!”

“…!”

Verogan had always been vicious and ferocious every time they came here. When the other chef cooked for him, he just took a small bite before throwing the food away. However, right now, he was bowing deeply to the man in front of him to show his deep gratitude.