Leveling Up through Eating

Chapter 153: Grilled Clam

“Huh……?”

Minhyuk tilted his head in astonishment. As soon as he picked up the rabbit’s liver, a weak red light flashed along with the notifications. However, the light also extinguished as soon as it appeared. To be sure, Minhyuk first checked the item in his hands.

(Rabbit’s Liver)

Material Grade: A

Special Effects:

━ +5 increase in Abnormal State Resistance.

━ WIS +5

Description: It is the rabbit’s liver that was hidden by a rabbit. It has the same flavor as the liver in sundae but is much more delicious.

“OMG?”

Minhyuk was in shock.

It tastes like the liver in sundae? Those thinly sliced liver?! The liver that tastes a bit dry but still has deep flavor but is best dipped in salt or tteokbeoki sauce?! But…… it tastes much more delicious?!

‘Wait. If we’re talking about the Ingredient Appraisal Skill, then wouldn’t it taste better once I used that on it?’

Minhyuk gulped.

Using the Ingredient Appraisal Skill would have a huge penalty on him. He would need to consume 1,000 MP just to activate the skills and his basic stats would have a decrease of 3 points. However, such a penalty was nothing in front of a delicious rabbit’s liver.

“Ingredient Appraisal.”

[Ingredient Appraisal.]

[All stats will decrease by 3 according to the penalty.]

A white light glowed brightly from Minhyuk’s hands. Then, the light slowly engulfed the small rabbit’s liver. The liver looked like it soaked in the light as it slowly grew bigger in size.

‘Kyaa! The liver is getting bigger! If it gets bigger then I can eat more!’

As he admired the liver, the notification rang.

[You have appraised the ingredients.]

[You can now check the sealed unique and hidden abilities of the Rabbit’s Liver.]

Minhyuk immediately clicked on the rabbit’s liver and checked the information.

(Roves’ Treasure of the Seas)

Material Grade: God’s Given Medicine

Special Effects:

━ +200 in Abnormal State Resistance

━ WIS +100

━ Holy Power +400

━ Increase in defense and attack power towards undead monsters depending on the amount of Holy Power.

Description: Roves, the God of the Sea, hid his excellent treasure inside the rabbit’s liver. This holy treasure is said to be much more delicious than the previous rabbit’s liver.

Minhyuk’s eyes widened. The most surprising change was in the part of the material grade.

‘God’s given…… Medicine…… is there a medicine with this class?’

Minhyuk rubbed his chin in thought. After some thinking, he jumped up as he recalled about the update that he had read together with Geni, Khan and Locke in real life. It had said that there would be new classes of medicine that had not yet been found and obtained in the Northern Continent.

It was clear that it was referring to Roves’ Treasure of the Seas and if he looked closely, the abilities and effects of this material was truly not that simple. In particular, what catches the eye was the last special effect where the defense and attack power against undead monsters would increase depending on the amount of Holy Power.

Currently, Minhyuk has an additional 30% attack power against undead monsters. However, it should also not be forgotten that his Holy Power was twice as effective due to the effects of Pandora’s Helmet. In other words, disregarding the 30% attack power that would be written in the notifications, his real attack power against undead monsters had an additional 60%.

But with regards to this special effect, aside from the attack power, he would also have an increase in his defense against undead monsters which would further protect him against their attacks. In other words, Minhyuk would have as much as 60% increase in his defense if he was attacked by undead monsters.

And more importantly……

‘It’s much more delicious. Hahaha!’

Minhyuk smiled in satisfaction. Then he realized something.

‘But if you look at this rabbit’s liver……’

A while ago, he had seen a rabbit so he remembered a folk tale about the rabbit and the rabbit’s liver. It was a story about a rabbit that was tricked into the Dragon King’s Palace but it successfully ran away by tricking its captors that it needed to go out to land and hide its liver for safekeeping.

Will Athenae really use a real rabbit’s liver in this setting?

For 0.1 seconds, Minhyuk hesitated whether he would eat it or not. Then, he shook his head.

‘How do I know if that rabbit is a bad guy or not?’

Minhyuk pondered on this question deeply.

“Well, let’s go Kong-ah! Let’s eat grilled clams!”

“Oiiink!”

The two of them ran excitedly.

***

Minhyuk looked around happily as his setting was completed.

He could hear the refreshing sound of the waves crashing by the shore as the cool wind licked his face. There was also a griller placed on top of a coal briquette stove. And on top of the griller was a silver foil filled with a special red sauce that was made by Minhyuk. The special red sauce was starting to show signs of boiling. And the ones lined up next to the foil were grilled clams and its best partner, grilled prawns! Coarse-grain salt was amply sprinkled on top of the prawn.

“Hiyaa…… Look at how the color changes.”

The almost transparent flesh of the prawn was slowly turning red as it started to get cooked. On the other side, a grayish-white clam slowly opened its mouth. The shellfish lined next to it were cut in half as it slowly got grilled. The large pen shell, scallops and abalones looked completely appetizing.

Minhyuk layered a pair of plastic gloves on top of the cotton work gloves that he had worn earlier.

“Kong-ah. Hyung will peel it for you.”

“Oink!”

Minhyuk smiled deeply as Kongie looked at him in anticipation.

‘Huhu. The person who bakes the meat eats the most.’

He volunteered to peel it for Kongie not because he wanted to help Kongie but because he wanted to eat more!

Minhyuk quickly lifted one of the clams and pried it open with force.

Crack━

“Wow……”

“Oink……!”

Steam rose from the clam as soon as he opened the shell. Once the steam cleared, they could see the plump meat of the clam as well as the white soup inside. Minhyuk excitedly pried open all of the cooked clams, then he used his chopsticks to pick up a clam meat off of its shell. This was the start of their mukbang.

He couldn’t help but let out a sigh of amazement when he chewed on the white and plump clam meat. The refreshing soup from the clam meat slowly spread out in his mouth. The superb and chewy texture of the clam meat could also be felt with every bite.

Next, his attention was focused on the boiling special red sauce! This sauce was filled with plenty of seasonings and ingredients like cheese, butter, gochujang and other vegetables.

His eyes sparkled brightly as he dipped the clam meat inside. Once he lifted the clam meat up, he could see a string of cheese being pulled together with it. When he placed it in his mouth, he could immediately taste the cheese and gochujang. The greasy flavor was the best combination and complement to the bland and refreshing flavor of the clam meat.

This time, he set his sight on the pen shell. These shellfish were cut in half with a scissor due to its huge size. He lifted the meat off of the finely cut shell of the pen shell as he dipped it in gochujang before placing it in his mouth. It was mouth wateringly chewy and together with the sweet, sour and slightly spicy taste of the gochujang added flavor to the meat which spread slowly in his mouth.

“Hiyaa……”

Then, he pointed his chopsticks towards the king of the shellfish, abalones. After he skillfully chopped the meat of the abalone, he swiftly picked up a piece of meat and dipped it in gochujang. Abalones were much more chewy compared to other shellfish meat.

Next, the scallops. Minhyuk had added ample amounts of butter and cheese on the scallops earlier when he started grilling. At a glance, he could see that the pristine white meat of the scallops was gently covered by the melted cheese. His saliva dripped down as he smelled the savory scent of the cheese and scallops. Then, as if in a trance, he lifted the shell of the scallops as he slurped on the meat and cheese. The scallops and the stretchy and chewy cheese tasted wonderfully delicious together which gave Minhyuk plenty of joy.

What should we do when things are getting a bit greasy?

Of course the answer was to drink clam soup! The clam soup was filled with different types of shellfish that included clams, pen shells and mussels. Minhyuk quickly scooped a spoonful of the white soup.

“Kgghk! It’s so refreshing and cool! Kong-ah, try this one. The greasiness will all be washed away!”

“Oink!”

Kongie also bursted in admiration as he took a sip of the soup.

Minhyuk swiftly threw some shellfish meat in the red sauce that was boiling in the middle of the griller. The red sauce permeated the meat well and added a deep savory flavor to the refreshing taste of the shellfish meat.

In between bites of the shellfish meat, Minhyuk did not forget to eat corn cheese. The white corn was covered with cheese! When Minhyuk scooped some corn, the cheese stretched out! Once he took a bite, the corn popped out deliciously and the sweetness hidden in each kernel spread slowly in his mouth.

After eating a variety of shellfish meat, the prawns were finally cooked to a perfect red. Minhyuk, who peeled off a prawn by pulling off the head and the legs first, was truly a man who knew how to eat. Then, he swiftly dipped the prawn in gochujang before taking it to his mouth. As soon as his mouth closed on it, he could feel the plump and juicy texture of the prawn meat. He could taste the savory flavor of the lightly-seasoned shrimp with every bite!

Minhyuk and Kongie ate their grilled shellfish deliciously!

After filling their bellies with shellfish, Minhyuk did not forget to make ‘dessert’. It was tteokboki and rabbit’s liver, no, Roves’ Treasure!

“Kong-ah. Look at this. There’s plenty for you since you worked hard today. So eat a lot Kong-ah.”

“Oiiiink……”

Kongie shed tears when Minhyuk placed a plate full of liver in front of him.

[Kongie is feeling touched.]

‘Huhuhu……! My plan worked perfectly.’

But this was obviously Minhyuk’s scam! He pretended to cook Roves’ Treasure and served a common pig’s liver instead for Kongie.

‘Huhuhu……! It said that Roves’ Treasure was much more delicious after all!’

Minhyuk quickly dipped Roves’ Treasure in salt. Once he took it to his mouth, he couldn’t help but feel impressed with the salty flavor as well as the dry but soft texture of the liver.

“Wow. It doesn’t taste fishy at all, right?”

“Oink!”

And Kongie, who was completely deceived by Minhyuk, was happily eating the liver on his plate.

This time, Minhyuk dipped the liver in the tteokboki sauce before placing it in his mouth.

“Kggghk! As expected, liver tastes best when paired with tteokboki sauce!”

He completely emptied his plate in a blink of an eye, and with his last bite of the food a set of notifications rang in his head.

[The Food Fighter’s Greatness.]

[You have eaten Roves’ Treasure of the Seas in a variety of ways.]

[The penalty for the medicine has been ignored. However, this does not work for many people.]

[A Medicine Dish. You have obtained additional stats.]

[Your Holy Power has increased by +434 while your WIS has increased by +121]

[You have 20% additional attack power against undead monsters.]

[Your defense against undead monsters will be as high as your attack power.]

[Your defense against undead monsters attacks has increased by 50%.]

As soon as he finished all the food with Kongie, he moved to go out.

However, as soon as he came out of the cave, he had no choice but to tilt his head in confusion. That was because Ben was burying his head on the ground as he wept loudly.

“Because of me, that young chef had died. Keuhuhuhuhu!”

Minhyuk suddenly felt heartbroken at the sight of Ben. He couldn’t believe that someone that he had just met would care so much about him.

“I already told you not to go in there. Keuhuhuhu! What were you so confident about, you sloppy cook!”

‘I, I’m not sloppy. Right……?’

“You’re so sloppy! You’re a chef! What the hell! What do you mean! By! Trust me! Keuhuhuhu!”

Minhyuk was left speechless with his outburst. And he who had been labeled as sloppy called out to him.

“That, Old Man Ben……”

“……Hiiiiiiiiiik?!”

When Ben heard Minhyuk’s voice, he couldn’t help but stumble in surprise.

“B, boy. How……?”

“I’ve taken care of the Clam Golem on your behalf, Old Man.”

Ben’s eyes widened when his words finally registered in his dazed mind.

‘C, clam golem……?’

He did not know about the details, but if he did he would be shocked that Minhyuk fought against a monster that was twice as strong as the original Clam Golem.

“B, by any chance…… in the cave…… was there a pocket watch…… or something like that?”

Minhyuk was surprised by his question but when he thought about it, there was something like ‘Rusted Pocket Watch’ from the items that he had acquired inside the cave. When Minhyuk pulled it out of his inventory and handed it over to Ben he could see Ben trembling wildly.

“This…… was a gift that I gave to my son when he was young.”

Then, he held it to his chest as he closed his eyes. It was as if he was trying to feel the soul of his dead son through this small trinket. Ben slowly opened his mouth.

“The moment I lost my son, I realized that power wasn’t the most important thing. But…… what would I do if I lost it? I have lost my most precious treasure and now I have nothing.”

A small smile started to form on his dry lips as he slowly opened his eyes.

“Boy, I want to do something, anything for you. But right now I don’t have anything.”

Minhyuk had heard the notification about the completion of his linked quest. As he recalled, the reward was listed as ???.

What is it?

The next words that Ben uttered had given Minhyuk a complete and utter shock.

“I, Ghost Spear Ben, promise the God of Athenae that I will be your hands and feet and will follow you from now until forever.”

“……!”

Minhyuk’s eyes widened as his body trembled.

‘Th, this can’t be happening……!’

He was entirely shocked with this reward. First and foremost, he did not like this reward very much. There was only one reason.

‘I have another mouth to feed……?’

***