There is a famous saying: life is like a comedy from a distance, but if you look closely, it’s a tragedy.

Choi Hyun-seok was experiencing it personally.

“Keueaa!”

“Aruu!”

The wolf-like demon beasts and the cooks were currently engaged in a skirmish.

Blood and flesh splatter everywhere.

The scent of death loomed.

Choi Hyun-seok widened his eyes at the chaos.

‘Get a hold of yourself!’

He doesn’t know when this opportunity will come again.

If he hesitates, the battle will soon be over.

‘I have to get the last hits somehow.’

It’s a lie if he said he wasn’t nervous.

It’s his first battle since he came to this world, so he can’t help it.

Even now, the kitchen knife he held with both hands was shaking.

Choi Hyun-seok was a veteran fighter who fought numerous battles on Earth, but the experience didn’t help much.

Fighting with rules in the ring and fighting for one’s life.

There was an impossible gap between the two.

But he can’t just stand here like this.

“Think! Blonde noblewoman! Five rabbit-like children! Old age in a mansion!”

Choi Hyun-seok gave a strong battle cry.

Rachel, who was next to him, gazed at him in disgust.

“Are you still spouting that bullshit!?”

“What? Why are you coming out right now!? What if you get caught?”

“Don’t worry. I’ve magically hidden myself.”

Rachel stepped on the top of Choi Hyun-seok’s head.

“Wait. I’ll put a simple buff spell on you.”

“I don’t know what it is, but do you have to step on my head?”

“Shh! It’s distracting, so be quiet.”

Rachel began muttering something with her eyes closed.

Then, Choi Hyun-seok’s body shined with a weak light.

“I’m lacking mana, so all I can do is increase your stamina and strength a little. Still, it’s better than nothing.”

“Rachel. You…”

Choi Hyun-seok looked at Rachel with a perplexed look on his face.

Rachel rubbed the back of her nose with a shy look.

“Eh…! I only did it because we’re bound together! You don’t need to thank me…”

“You…should have done it sooner if you could do this! Hey!”

“What did you say!?”

“How long does this last?””

“Three minutes or so…”

“It’s too damn short!”

“Hey…I’ve still helped!”

Rachel grumbled, but she couldn’t reach Choi Hyun-seok.

Because he was already far away.

The buff duration was so short that he couldn’t help it.

“Oraa! I’ll protect my old age!”

A very frank and honest spirit.

‘The only goal is to get the last hit. To do that, I have to hit the vital point.’

At this time, a demon beast came into Choi Hyun-seok’s view.

It was wounded and limping.

Obviously, it wasn’t normal.

‘Let’s get this guy first!’

Not knowing whether he was holding a kitchen knife or an axe, Choi Hyun-seok swung the weapon in his hand with all his might.

Swish!

Perhaps because of his lack of strength and skills, it was impossible to cut its throat in one swing.

But the knife stuck deep enough in the demon beast’s neck.

“Ke, keh!”

The demon beast, who is still breathing, stared at Choi Hyun-seok.

“I’m sorry!”

Choi Hyun-seok kicked the demon beast’s in the head without showing any signs of being sorry.

Pak!

Unlike his poor cutting skill, the extremely disciplined kick was very precise and powerful.

The demon beast was already on the verge of death after having a knife stuck in its throat, so it couldn’t withstand the kick and collapsed.

“Is it dead…?”

Choi Hyun-seok carefully looked at the demon beast.

At that moment.

[Level up!]
[Level up!]
[Level up!]
[Level up!]

He heard a series of cheerful notifications.

‘Four levels at once!?’

He didn’t expect to see so many level ups just because he got the last hit.

It was an unexpected gain.

Choi Hyun-seok’s heart started beating fast.

‘At this rate, I’ll be over level 20 by the end of today.’

Raising as much as 20 levels in a day.

He didn’t know how strong he’ll be at level 21, but at least he’ll be stronger than he is now.

‘I can finally grow stronger…!”

In fact, Choi Hyun-seok was intimidated in many ways after coming to this world.

He is Choi Hyun-seok, who has been called the strongest man on Earth.

But he came to this world and encountered so many monsters of different sizes.

Of all things, the first thing he encountered was the bullhead of the demon army, so what else needs to be said?

After meeting captain Hemi, he virtually gave up with a feeling of hopelessness.

It was a monster that couldn’t be resisted even if hundreds or thousands of Choi Hyun-seok rushed in.

‘But not anymore.’

Things have changed.

Now that he’s able to level up, he’ll become strong too.

‘What if I get too strong and beat the captain of the demon army?’

He was getting way over his head.

“Ah, this isn’t the time for that. I have to hunt the next one as soon as possible.’

He quickly looked around.

It was to find another demon beast.

At that moment, he caught sight of a battle.

“Kukuku. What a cheeky mutt.”

A cook was brandishing his kitchen knife to finish off the demon beast.

Choi Hyun-seok, who saw it, started running like crazy.

“Dangerous!!!”

“W-what?”

“You’re in danger!”

Choi Hyun-seok gave a headbutt with all his strength.

“Keuk!”

The cook flew away by the sudden attack.

“Phew! Thank god.”

Choi Hyun-seok smiled brightly.

The demon beast widened its eyes at the sudden situation.

“Keek…?”

“Goodbye.”

Choi Hyun-seok swung his kitchen knife without hesitation.

* * *

The battle quickly ended.

A fairly large group of demon beasts rushed in, but the cooks annihilated them without any problems.

‘They’re better than I thought.’

Choi Hyun-seok looked at the cooks again.

When he first saw them, he thought they were just a stupid suicide squad, but now they seemed to be quite capable.

“Kulkan, sir. Are we heading back now?”

Choi Hyun-seok asked Kulkan.

“No. We can’t go back yet.”

“Are we going to continue hunting?”

“What are you talking about? The hunt is over.”

“What? Then why…?”

Kulkan grinned at Choi Hyun-seok’s question.

“Why do you think we’re risking our lives?”

Kulkan chuckled as he spoke.

“I don’t know.”

“Look. It’s starting now.”

Soon after, Choi Hyun-seok could see the meaning of what Kulkan had said.

“Hey! Bring me some more meat!”

“Crunch! Chomp!”

There was a party.

They were eating the boar and wolf demon beasts they had hunted today.

“Is it okay to eat the ingredients like this?”

There is another reason why the cooks are risking their lives.

It was because of the special distribution rights that executives of the 3rd legion had.

“Freshness is the most important thing for demon beast meat. The mana dissipates as time passes and it’ll taste bad.”

The purpose of this hunt is to provide fresh meat to its own cooks.

He couldn’t help but worry because they were eating up the important ingredients.

“This is the privilege of a cook.”

“Privilege…?”

“Yes! The reason we choose the dangerous life of a cook is for this moment. Shruuk!”

Said Kulkan, ripping off a piece of meat.

“When could an ordinary soldier taste this kind of fresh meat? It’s impossible if you’re not a cook.”

“So you chose to be a cook to eat delicious meat?”

“Exactly! Fresh meat is the reason for life!”

Choi Hyun-seok simply closed his eyes.

‘I knew they were a bunch of idiots, but I didn’t know it was to this extent.’

Cooks struggle daily with demon beasts.

Dozens are killed every day.

But there’s no problem.

There were many demons who wanted to do it.

There were an endless amount of idiots lined up who would risk their lives to eat fresh meat.

“Go ahead and eat, Choi Hyun-seok. You also fought for your life. You deserve to eat this meat.”

“Thank you.”

Choi Hyun-seok accepted the meat.

‘Is it that delicious?’

Was this the meat they risked their lives for?

Choi Hyun-seok stared at the meat and bit a piece.

“Chomp…”

Meat he hadn’t tasted in a long time was definitely delicious.

Even though there was no seasoning, there was a strong meat scent and flavor.

But it’s a little disappointing.

‘It’s too bland and tough.’

Is it because it was cooked close to the fire without salt?

He took another bite, but his jaw hurt as he bit into it.

Choi Hyun-seok put down the meat and looked at the other cooks.

“Munch!”

“It’s so delicious! Meat is the truth of life!”

Everyone is busy eating.

“Hmm…”

Choi Hyun-seok patted his chin while looking at the scene.

‘Should I give it a try…?’

Before coming here, Choi Hyun-seok had been paying attention to the hero store and had thought of a plan.

That is cooking.

If he showed excellent cooking skills, he could gain favor with the other cooks and executives.

Of course, Choi Hyun-seok’s cooking skills aren’t that good.

It was about what you would expect from someone who lived alone and cooked as a hobby.

But there were things in the hero store that could make up for his poor cooking skills.

[Hero Store Lv.1]
– Skill
– Item

Two categories that exist in the store.

From the two, there was something he needed.

– Cooking (F): You become better at cooking.

– Flavored salt with a lot of MSG!

The Cooking skill and the MSG Salt item.

It’s a combination that can create a good enough synergy.

‘But there’s a problem.’

It sounds like a pretty good plan, but there was a problem here.

The taste bud of a demon.

Choi Hyun-seok doesn’t know how picky the taste of a demon is.

What if the cook and the executives are unexpectedly picky?

If he can’t satisfy them, he’ll only lose points.

‘It’s worth a try for now.’

Choi Hyun-seok was confident.

The cooks will enjoy a Michelin restaurant steak more than tough, unseasoned meat.

‘I’m going crazy watching them eat without salt.’

He currently has 70 Hero Points.

It’s because he spent 30 points on buying Bobo’s toy bone last time.

Now, he needs 50 points to buy the cooking skill and 20 points to buy the delicious salt.

He’ll have 0 points after the purchase.

‘It’s okay. If I get close to Bobo, I’ll get 200 points anyway.’

The reward for the hero quest once he raises Bobo’s favorability is 200.

Now that he’s not far from achieving that objective, he thought it wouldn’t be bad to use the points now.

‘Let’s do it…’

Choi Hyun-seok gulped and pressed the purchase button.

Then a faint light fell on his body, and a small bottle fell in front of him.

‘Is this all…?’

The amount of salt in the bottle was small, about 200 grams.

‘It can’t be helped. Let’s try it first.’

Choi Hyun-seok quietly took a piece of boar meat.

“Slowly cook…”

Carefully sprinkle with salt and roast over fire.

Sizzle…!

Perhaps because of the strong flame, the meat quickly began to cook.

‘Just slightly burn the outside. It’ll be tough when it’s well done, so I have to be careful…’

Is it because of his cooking skills?

Choi Hyun-seok guessed as the meat was deliciously cooked.

After a little bit of time passed.

“Done!”

The meat was finally fully cooked.

Choi Hyun-seok carefully ate a piece of the cooked meat.

“Chomp…”

Choi Hyun-seok, who was eating the meat, suddenly stood up.

Then he approached Kulkan.

“Kulkan, sir.”

“What is it?”

“Try this meat.”

Choi Hyun-seok held out the boar meat for Kulkan to see.

Kulkan tilted his head.

“I’m starting to feel full…”

“It’s meat that I cooked with all my heart and soul. If the great Kulkan eats this meat, he will die with no regrets.”

Choi Hyun-seok opened his eyes and held out the meat.

“Uh…if you say so…”

Kulkan accepted the meat in bewilderment.

“Let me taste it.”

Kulkan bit the meat.

“Chomp, chomp…”

Kulkan chewed the meat without saying a word.

“Chomp…chomp…”

Kulkan kept chewing on the meat like that.

Gulp!

Finally, the meat went down his throat.

Kulkan quietly looked at Choi Hyun-seok.

“…”

Eyes that are stiff and wide open.

It looked as if he was angry, but Choi Hyun-seok knew it.

Kulkan is at a loss for joy now.

“How does it taste?”

When asked by Choi Hyun-seok, Kulkan’s face suddenly began to distort.

“Keuhup…”

“Kulkan, sir?”

At that moment.

A tear fell from Kulkan’s eyes.

“Heu…eup…”

Once a drop of tear fell, tears began to pour out like a waterfall as if it had been blocked by a dam.

Before long, Kulkan began to cry like a child.

“Uwa! It’s so delicious!”

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