Chapter 73: The Start of a Hybrid Character

“You’re Poopy Piggy!”

“My name is not Poopy Piggy, it’s Minhyuk. Minhyuk Oppa.”

“Poopy!”

“N…no. It’s Minhyuk, you know? Follow me. Min. Hyuk.”

“Mi...”

Minhyuk immediately fixed his gaze on Hyeminnie’s mouth. For some reason, this little girl was making him feel nervous. His mouth started to dry up in anxiety as he watched Hyeminnie’s mouth move. Then…

“Poopy!”

“Gasp?!” Minhyuk gasped, shaking his head in defeat. However, despite winning their small argument, Hyeminnie’s face scrunched up again! She looked like she was about to cry. Seeing this, Minhyuk hurriedly lifted her and gave her a ride on his shoulders.

“Kyahahaha. Poopy Piggy!”

“Oink, oink, oink? Oink!” Minhyuk squealed. He did not feel bad since he liked kids. He could also tell that Hyeminnie, this child, was a player. He thought,?‘But, where did her parents go? Did they just leave this young girl here?’

Even though?Athenae?was still a game, there were not that many parents that would willingly leave their child alone to play. So, he asked, “Where are your parents?”

“My poopy daddy is always busy everyday, he also cries whenever he sees me. My poopy daddy is really pitiful. And my poopy mommy went to heaven!”

“Ah...” Minhyuk said, shaking his head. It seemed like they had circumstances on their own. However, there was one thing that he could do right now, and that was to make Hyeminnie feel happy and excited!

“Oink, oink, oink! Kuwiiiiiik!”

“Kyahahaha. You really sound like a piggy!”

They continued to play around until a dashing, handsome man came rushing inside the smithy. The man was well over 180 centimeters in height, and had a cool hairstyle. Minhyuk could tell that this was Blacksmith Ron. Minhyuk slowly let Hyeminnie down and prepared to make an apology. After all, he should at least apologize for using the man’s furnace without asking permission. He said, “That… I’m… I must apologize for something.”

Just as he was about to bring up the cause for his apology...

[You have gained Ron’s favor.]

[You have gained Ron’s favor.]

[You have gained Ron’s favor.]

…notifications unexpectedly rang!

‘Huh?’

Minhyuk was confused. He thought,?‘I…is this a bug?’

The only thing that Minhyuk did was to console Hyeminnie and play with her after he accidentally ate all of her chocolate. ?So, what did the notification mean? But then, he had no time to think in his momentary stupor, as he heard Ron say, “You’re sorry? Actually, who are you?”

Before Minhyuk came here, he had asked others what Ron was like and there was only one answer. His skills were the best! However, he was also well-known for his very bad temper. But that bad-tempered man was smiling softly at him. Minhyuk thought that it might be because his favor increased due to the bug.

“I really wanted to eat grilled pork belly, so I used your shovel and made grilled pork belly with your furnace! I’m sorry!” Minhyuk exclaimed loudly as he bowed his head in apology.

Ron laughed and thought,?‘He’s different...’

People would normally pretend that nothing happened. Yet, this man in front of him came clean and apologized. Ron was initially a little skeptical since the shy Hyeminnie had willingly approached this man, and even laughed and smiled comfortably with him. However, he realized why that was the case when he saw the young man.

‘They’re the same, he’s also like a little kid,’?Ron thought with a grin.

“It’s fine. You can use it.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, it’s just a furnace. Besides, using it doesn’t mean that it will disappear.”

After clearing things up, Minhyuk explained the reason and story behind his visit, including the things that the coachman Baran had told him.

“Oho. I see. That Coachman Baran sent you here. That friend of mine is also strict and bad-tempered.”

“Eh? But he was very kind to me though?” Minhyuk asked, tilting his head in confusion. Baran had always looked at him with a fatherly smile so he could not understand what Ron meant.

“Let’s head inside and talk,” Ron said, leading him inside with Hyeminnie tagging along. Hyeminnie even acted cute and asked to sit on Minhyuk’s lap! Minhyuk had no choice but to place her on his lap. Hyeminnie hugged him tightly and fell asleep not long after.

Ron smiled as he looked at the two of them. He said, “Right. That special ingredient. I have it.”

“Oh. So that’s really the case. Can I know what kind of ingredient it is?”

Ron said, “However, cooking ingredients are materials that will disappear once you eat them so don’t be too expectant. The ingredients that I have is the ‘Pancake Dish Set’.”

“P…pancake dish set...?” Minhyuk asked, body starting to tremble. There were only two national holidays every year. However, his household never served any holiday dishes during these days. It was because his father and the medical personnel did not think of cooking anything due to Minhyuk’s condition. They also did not want to trigger his appetite from the savory smell of the food.

So, what kind of existence was this pancake? Pancake was a dish that everyone ate during the holidays. It was a magical dish that could instantly let one gain three kilograms once they tasted everything! However, all of the dishes in the Pancake Dish Set were extremely delicious! Furthermore, Minhyuk had not tried any pancake dishes for a very long time. That was why the words ‘Pancake Dish Set’ had a huge impact on him.

“Grilled beef skewer, fried tofu patty, meat pancake, sesame leaf pancake and potato pancake. You mean the ingredients for all of this?!”

“Yeah, they’re regular and lousy ingredients, right…?”

“No!” Minhyuk interjected firmly. He shook his head hard as he continued to say, “How can you say that it's regular and lousy? You have such great ingredients on your hands! Those are really delicious ingredients!”

Minhyuk could barely hide his excitement. He wanted to eat those pancake dishes! He imagined himself tearing some kimchi pancake and placing it in his mouth. The taste of the chewy pancake made with wheat flour and spicy and sour kimchi would definitely spread in his mouth!

Then, what about the meat pancake? He was sure that its savory flavor, when dipped in soy sauce, would be able to bring a smile to his face. The best thing about these pancakes was that they would remain delicious even if they turned cold. It was a type of delicacy that one could eat while walking around once they cooled down! To think that Ron had the ingredients for the Pancake Dish Set!

“I think Ron is an amazing person. I can’t believe that you have such a thing!”

“I…is that so? Is it really such a great thing?”

“Yes!”

Ron chuckled. He was sure that this young man truly loved eating. However, there was no such thing as a free lunch in this world. So, Ron said, “Then, if you do me a favor, I would give you the Pancake Dish Set as a reward!”

“What favor?”

“I’ve been having some troubles with the places that I previously signed deals with. I need you to talk to them and try to help me get those contracts and deals back. Then, I will give you the ingredients for the Pancake Dish Set, I will even teach you blacksmithing if you want!”

[You have completed the?Linked Quest: Meet Blacksmith Ron.]

[You have acquired 5,000 EXP.]

[You have leveled up.]

[The Linked Quest has been changed to a Hidden Quest.]

[Hidden Quest: Solve Blacksmith Ron’s Worries]

Rank: A

Requirements: Ron's Favor

Rewards: Pancake Dish Set, Novice Blacksmithing Skill, EXP

Penalty for Failure: Sharp decline in Ron’s favor

Description: This quest can only be obtained when Ron holds high favor towards you. ‘Fame’ will be created for you. Your fame will increase when you help renew contracts or recruit new contractors for Ron. The rewards will also change depending on how high your fame is.

[Fame has been created.]

[Your rewards will vary depending on your fame.]

It became a hidden quest! Minhyuk did not know it, but it was extremely hard to get this quest. After all, one had to gain Coachman Baran's favor first. However, there were not many players that would go find Blacksmith Ron just because he told them?‘You will get something to eat when you go and meet him!’.?No one would go if there were no good items to get.

“I understand. I will help you renew your contracts.”

“Then, here’s the list,” Ron said, handing over the list of people that had broken their contracts and intended to stop dealing with him again. It was the same as what the quest described.

“If you bring me additional contractors, then I will give you even better ingredients!”

“Yes, I understand!” Minhyuk said as he quickly stood up to leave. Just then, he paused as he remembered about Hyeminnie, and asked, “Ah, wait. What is Hyeminnie’s father like?”

“He’s a blacksmith like me. I heard that he’s part of a guild... what was it... hmm...” Ron said, trying hard to remember, but it looked like he would not be able to remember it in a short amount of time.

“Well, I’ll see you soon.”

“I’m sure we will. Have a safe trip.”

Minhyuk quickly moved to fulfill the quest. However, Ron remained sitting there with a frown on his face as he tried hard to remember. Then, he said, “Ah, that’s right. It was Legend Guild.”

***

TTBC reporter Go Eun-Ah sighed wistfully. She said, “He’s a pro mukbang BJ, but he is extremely mysterious. We couldn’t even find anything about him. Don’t tell me that this guy really does not care about being popular?”

Even though it was a tournament with players at around only Level 80, Player Minhyuk, the person that swept the competition, had become the talk of the town. Everyone was curious about who he was. However, if he really wanted to be popular, then he would definitely be the one to reach out and contact the reporters, or the broadcasting stations first.

However, that did not happen at all. Others might have been swept away by the mood and believed that Minhyuk was an ‘NPC’, but that was something impossible. Go Eun-Ah believed that she would definitely score a big scoop if she could just get some news about him out there. Unfortunately, his whereabouts remained unknown. Then, she accidentally saw the list of People of Interest. She hummed as she tapped her finger on one of the tables listed there. There was no hint of pro mukbang BJ on the list, but there was someone else.

‘God Class. Hepas’ Descendant.’

God Class. The number of people in the country with such a class could be counted on one hand. From what Go Eun-Ah heard, there were only fewer than 100 people who seemed related to this, and even then, they were only listed under ‘Maybe, Maybe Not’. She was only able to get some information about this God Class after much difficulty.

“He’s in the Barras Kingdom right now. And he’s also a member of the Legend Guild.”

Legend Guild was a guild that was shrouded in mystery. Almost all of their members were hidden rankers. However, Go Eun-Ah was sure of one thing; the power that this guild wielded was enormous. The man who was Hepas’ Descendant was nicknamed Hyemin'sDaddy.

‘Hepas’ Descendant created the most powerful artifact ever made by a production class, the Dragon Sword,’?Go Eun-Ah thought. So far, no one had been able to produce a more outstanding artifact than the one that Hyemin'sDaddy made.

Recently, Kald, the second in the Blacksmith Rankings, has produced an epic artifact and gained plenty of attention. However, compared to Hyemin'sDaddy, he was just a rookie.?The item that Hyemin'sDaddy made, the Dragon Sword, made history on the trading site. It was the only artifact to have been sold at the highest auction price. It was sold at an astounding price of ‘1.3 billion’. Hyemin'sDaddy wielded a very strong power. However, he hid everything about himself when he posted his item up for auction. Even his nickname had been hidden. Yet, Go Eun-Ah found out that he was Hyemin'sDaddy!

‘Why the hell is he in the Barras Kingdom?’

The Barras Kingdom was teeming with places where people could learn according to their production classes, and it was definitely not a place for someone like Hyemin’sDaddy.

‘I should first go to the Barras Kingdom.’?Go Eun-Ah thought. Perhaps she could get a scoop there.

***

Team Leader Park and Lee Minhwa were having a conversation.

“I think that it’s really because of his daughter?”

“I feel the same way.”

Hepas’ Descendant, Hyemin'sDaddy, was a person of interest among the operators. The operators were aware that he was the one who made the best artifact in the game, so they all wondered what his second artifact would be. However, he suddenly disappeared from the game, his whereabouts unknown for the last three months. When he came back, he appeared with his daughter in tow. As they monitored him, the operators were able to listen to the story that he had told Blacksmith Ron and why he appeared with his daughter.

“I believe the three months that he was gone was during the surgery and therapeutic treatment. Hyeminnie’s still at the children’s hospital too.”

“...Sigh. That’s just too sad.”

“Yeah. She can’t even eat because of the aftereffects of the leukemia treatment. They’re both having a hard time. Still, I’m glad that the child was completely cured.”

“That’s why he was grateful to Player Minhyuk, right?” Lee Minhwa said as Team Leader Park nodded.

This was not because he was an operator, but because he was a person, an adult with responsibilities. For the first time, they have realized why Ron’s favor towards Minhyuk increased. It was because Minhyuk played with the gloomy, depressed child and had made her laugh. The two of them smiled at the screen.

“Aside from that, you know about the material that Hyemin'sDaddy got, right?”

“Ah. You mean the Gryphon’s Spirit?”

The?Gryphon’s Spirit was one of the important materials that blacksmiths used to make weapons and armor. It was an ancient material that was so valuable, it could not even be compared with the current price of goods in the market right now. At the moment, it was in the hands of Hyemin’sDaddy.

“With that material, I’m sure that Hyemin'sDaddy will be able to make an artifact that is way better than the Dragon Sword. I’m curious about what he will do next. Of course it will not happen any time soon, but I’m still curious.”

It did not seem like it would happen for the time being because Hyemin'sDaddy was quite busy. It seemed like he was meeting with various doctors in real life to find a cure for Hyemin’s mental trauma. Whenever he logged in the game, he was always busy taking care of Hyeminnie.

“Sigh. Let’s leave this talk aside. Right now, Player Minhyuk has received that quest. How much fame do you think he will get?”

“I think he’ll be able to fill up 50%?”

“That’s what we can predict right now, but…argh, this player has been so unpredictable…” Team Leader Park blurted it unconsciously, although Lee Minhwa agreed with him.

In fact, Ron’s contract renewal quest was something that was supposed to happen sometime soon. However, this was not the original intended scenario. The original situation was supposed to be when the traders had turned their backs on him. It was also a difficult task to increase his favor with others and renew their contracts with Ron. He would be going all over the place for the smithy. However, to complete the quest, it was necessary for him to renew at least one contract with someone who had lost their faith and trust in the smithy once.

“If he gets 80%, then he will be able to receive the Special Pancake Dish Set...”

The Special Pancake Dish Set! As a matter of fact, even if Minhyuk was only able to fill 30% of the fame, he would still receive a pancake dish set. However, the Special Pancake Dish Set was filled with special ingredients and was much more delicious compared to the normal one.

“What about when he gets 100%...?”

“...He’ll be able to get an even bigger, and much better reward.”

1. (?) - A dish made by seasoning ingredients and coating it with flour and egg.