Leveling Up through Eating

Translator: ChubbyCheeks 

QC: MattForgenti

The others thought that it was fake but Minhyuk just grinned at their comments. 

“I’m the person who made that.” 

However, Changwook did not believe him and just answered him in a perfunctory way. 

“Ye, ye. I’m sure it’s you. No one can stop our king of lies, Minhyuk.” 

“But it’s true.” 

“Ah, sure. Minhyuk-ssi who’s a Lv15 will slap even the number 1 ranker in the cheek.” 

“Hmph.” 

Minhyuk sipped his water while Changwook continued to scroll down. 

“If it’s really you then I will call you hyung, I will also open the door for you and ask you if you have eaten yet.” 

While he was scrolling through the post, his expression suddenly became amazed. 

“Hey, that person posted a picture too?” 

He continued to scroll down and looked at the newest comments. 

“Wow, he’s even posting the user’s picture as an identification and clarification that it’s not fake. What bull…” 

When Changwook scrolled down his smartphone, he saw the picture of a man eating on his phone. 

“……” 

“……” 

“Hyung-nim, have you eaten yet?” 

It was such a quick switch in attitude! 

“Not yet, you rascal.” 

“……Yes. Oh come on.” 

“Oya.” 

“B, but hyung-nim.” 

“?” 

“Is this really real?” 

Minhyuk nodded his head as Changwook suddenly turned speechless. 

‘A fraudulent buff skill that even caught Kim Seokhyun’s eyes…’ 

As he was thinking that, Minhyuk coughed loudly as he started to go to his room. 

“Ahem. Hey, male servant.” 

Oh Changwook quickly ran and opened the door for him. 

“I have troubled you a lot.” 

Minhyuk patted his shoulders and went inside. He then proceeded towards his capsule and accessed Athenae. 

***

After accessing Athenae, Minhyuk went to the kitchen carriage. He was already cooking at the time when all of the people of the subjugation forces were still asleep. 

The weather was quite cold that if you talked and blew on your hands you would see a cloud of white fog coming out of your mouth. 

It might be a bit heavy for a cold day like this but I still feel that I should try it out. 

‘Should I make this for the soldiers to eat~’ 

The soldiers breakfast menu for the day was different from what Minhyuk was going to eat. He made this purely because he wanted to eat it. 

Bubble, bubble, bubble—

A bright red soup was boiling in the earthen pot. It was a food filled with thick slabs of meat and plenty of greens. 

It was bone hangover soup. 

It was a food that could easily be bought for 7,000 ~ 8,000 won. Whenever colleagues and friends gather together and ask ‘What should we eat for lunch today?’ the answer would most likely be bone hangover soup. 

You could enjoy meat at a low price and after finishing off the meat you could also savor the taste of the spicy soup with rice. Wouldn’t you agree that this was the best food ever? 

“He……” 

Once the soup finished boiling, Minhyuk carried a spoon over. The meat in the backbones were sprinkled with some sesame seeds[1] on it. 

He then ladled out some soup and sprinkled it with more sesame seed powder. The sesame seed powder’s flavor would spread in the soup and would make the taste of the bone hangover soup more mellow and soft. 

“Theeeen, let’s try this guy now.” 

He picked up a set of bones and carried it to his plate. 

“Hot, hot, hot.” 

Since the backbone was just picked out of the piping hot earthen pot, he easily felt the heat when he grabbed them. 

After dipping the bones in the seasonings, he grabbed the bones and pulled them hard. 

“Waaaaaaa.” 

The bones were easily separated. Steam quickly rose from the separated bones and appetizing meat was revealed from inside. 

He picked the meat and placed it in his mouth. 

“Chew, chew.” 

Since the bones were stewed well, the meat that he chewed was tender and soft. Sometimes, when you visit a bad restaurant, the meat would definitely be hard and chewy. 

“This, this is a bone hangover soup that a good restaurant has!” 

Minhyuk smiled brightly as he used the spoon to scoop some of the bright red soup. He blew on it happily with a hoo! hoo! sound. Once it cooled down a bit, he sipped on the spoon to taste it. 

“Kgghk!” 

The soup was just the right amount of spicy and could make you feel warm inside. 

It’s now time to get started. 

He had a small bowl filled with soy sauce and a wasabi on the side. He added as much wasabi as he wanted on the soy sauce and stirred it. Once the soy sauce and the wasabi met, it exuded an enticing glow. 

Minhyuk picked another piece of bone with his hands. He dipped it in the wasabi sauce and chewed on it. 

“Chew!” 

The wasabi has a pungent and stinging flavor but it had a sweet aftertaste. The tender and spicy meat met with the pungent flavor of the wasabi and gave off a pleasant harmony.

A happy smile hung around Minhyuk’s mouth. 

Minhyuk could taste the savory taste of the meat that he sucked in between the cracks of the backbones. 

He followed the truth that the bone hangover soup would taste better if you rip the bones off and suck the meat up. 

Once he finished sucking on the bone, he threw it towards a large bowl. 

Slurp— slurp—

After he sucked the leftover sauce from his fingers, he wiped his hands with wet wipes. Then, he scooped a big spoonful of rice and put it in his mouth.

He roughly ate the soup in that state. 

“Kghhk, ah. A bottle of soju would be nice here.” 

After having such a sad thought, he scooped out the greens in the soup. Then he poured the soup and the vegetables on top of his rice and placed a big bite in his mouth. 

Chew, chew—

The rice that was soaked with the soup was softened and easily chewed over.

When he finished eating the bones from the bone hangover soup earlier, he left a piece of bone for later. 

He tore the meat off of the bones and dropped it in his soup. He then dropped the white rice in the bowl of bone hangover soup and pressed on it hard. Once he finished pressing on the rice, he scooped a bite and savored the taste. 

The harmony of the spicy soup and the well-cooked rice is perfect. 

Minhyuk also tried the pickled onions, a side dish usually served with the bone hangover soup in restaurants. The pickled onion had a sweet and sour flavor. After trying the pickled onion, he also took a bite of kkakdugi and chewed on it earnestly. 

Crunch, crunch—

The sound of kkakdugi being chewed was oddly cheerful. 

Then, he took a bite of the well-ripened kimchi. 

“Ah, bone hangover soup. You’re very delicious.” 

Minhyuk was so impressed with the taste that he ate everything in one sitting. He did not even leave a drop of soup in the bowl. 

Minhyuk grinned when he saw his empty bowl. 

“Clear.” 

[You have eaten a bone hangover soup.] 

[Your attack power and defensive power will be increased by 7% for 8 hours.] 

Minhyuk was experimenting with his skills. 

No matter how much he loved eating he would still be interested in the skills that he acquired. 

He wanted to see how much his buffs would increase every time he made food and ate it. 

I’m curious as to how far its limits are. 

Besides he always had a lot of fun whenever he was cooking. 

Suddenly, Minhyuk recalled what happened yesterday. 

‘It’s better to be strong than being weak.’ 

So I can eat more delicious food later!

There were many people ahead of him that might want to take those away from him. 

Minhyuk started to prepare to make meals while he tapped on his warm stomach. 

***

They have been preparing for the breakfast meal for quite some time. 

“It’s noisy outside.” 

The subjugation force has finally arrived at the Bordy Plains. 

The troops were pushing and fighting against the goblins fiercely the moment they arrived at the Bordy Plains. 

“We have to move quickly. We’re going to serve the meals soon.” 

“Yes.” 

Minhyuk sped up his work. 

At that moment… 

[Ingredient Tracking Skill.] 

[The search for the ingredients is successful.] 

[The essence of the Orc Tribe Leader has the characteristics to revive the sense of taste.] 

[The dish is available for Lv1 Food God’s Cooking Skills.] 

[Suggested Menu: Tangsuyuk.] 

“……?!” 

Minhyuk was so surprised that his movements stopped for a moment. 

“What’s wrong?” 

“N, nothing.” 

It was within 1km. 

If he used the essence of the Orc Tribe Leader then he would be able to make a dish that would revive the sense of taste. 

***

The subjugation force was fiercely dealing with the goblins. 

Slam! 

Soldier Venetto pierced a goblin’s head with his spear. He then looked around his surroundings. 

“Huwaa……!” 

After roughly exhaling a breath of relief, he saw that the others were already starting to clean up and finish off their battles. 

Mabal was also running on horseback and checking out the overall situation. 

“It’s all done, I’m hungry!” 

“I’m also dying of hunger, can we eat Minhyukie’s food?!” 

“Minhyukie is going to leave soon. I don’t think that I would be able to eat my missus’ cooking.” 

They were all already looking forward to what surprise they would get in today’s breakfast. 

As they were thinking about the approaching time… 

Rumbleeee! 

The ground began to shake. 

“Hmm?” 

The troops tilted their heads in confusion. 

“What?” 

“It sounds like the trampling of feet……” 

The users also looked around in curiosity. 

Mabal, the leader of the subjugation force, hurriedly pulled out his telescope to check the situation from the direction of the sound. 

He then saw the things that were making the sound…

“T, this……!” 

His eyes widened in shock. 

There was one user running at high speed at the lead and there were thirty orcs chasing after him. 

And it wasn’t just that… 

Among them was the Lv50 Orc Tribe Leader. 

“Gasp…!” 

Mabal’s forehead creased in worry. 

There were large numbers of goblins running their way in escape after being shocked by the heavy sound of footsteps. 

But Mabal was an NPC. 

And there was no room for retreat. 

All they could do was advance forward. 

“Everyone pull out your swords, we must defend the Bordy Plains!” 

The soldiers started to pull themselves up. 

“It’s orcs. There are a bunch of orcs coming this way!” 

“T, they’re huge!” 

The average level of the soldiers in the subjugation force was 25. In fact, since it was a novice subjugation force its main purpose was to attract the users. 

The orcs were gradually getting closer. 

Mabal had a hunch… 

‘At least half of us will die here.’ 

And Mabal was an NPC that would still join the hunt even if half of his troops would die. 

The soldiers started to come forward. 

“Chiiiiiik!” 

“Chwiiik, chwiik, humans… Over there…!” 

The orcs were getting closer and closer. 

“Oh my lord……” 

“Oh, Harmen [2].” 

“Ah, XXX are you not going to log-out?!” 

“Won’t we be like fXcking cowards if we logged out from a novice subjugation force?!” 

The users were clamoring in shock. 

At that moment… 

Venetto who was standing at the forefront saw someone arrive beside him. 

“New recruit! Boy, you shouldn’t be here. Go back!” 

“Delicious Tangsuyuk. Pouring instead of dipping.” 

Minhyuk only stared at the orcs. 

Tangsuyuk. 

Isn’t it like the TOP of Chinese cuisine? 

It was a true pleasure to have a set of two jjajangmyeon and tangsuyuk for 18,000 won. It was the best food to eat when you just got up and had nothing to do during the weekends. 

Minhyuk really wanted to eat tangsuyuk.

He was already gulping even if his mouth was dry. 

Finding a way to save Len’s taste was just like a free fried dumpling service on the side! 

“Let’s eat!” 

[Bardy Swordsmanship] 

[All 5 basic stats have a +12 increase for 6 minutes.]

“What can a weak military chef like you do!” 

The orcs were already near their vicinity.

The fastest orc, that was on the lead, targeted Minhyuk as he swung its rusty axe. 

“Chwiiiiiiiiiiik!” 

At that moment, everyone’s attention was focused on them. They even forgot that foreigners would be able to come back to life even if they died. 

It was because the situation was very urgent.

Venetto shouted at him. 

“I, I’m supposed to introduce you to my daughter……! N, no! You’ll die!” 

As he was shouting, Minhyuk threw a punch forward. 

Punch! 

“Kuuaaack!” 

The orc rolled back from the force. 

“Pak-ssi! Tell your boss to come out!”

Minhyuk lightly punched his fist together. 

Another orc tried to bypass him and attack Venetto. 

Bang! 

Grrrrrrr! 

Minhyuk’s sword easily cut down his opponent. The flames from the sword quickly covered the orc. 

“Chwiiiik, chwiiiiik, h, hot!” 

[Salamander’s Blaze] 

[The attack will inflict continuous damage to the enemy.] 

He analyzed a lot of things in this fight. 

‘If I increase the morale of the soldiers then my favorability will also increase!’ 

But how can I do that? 

“Phew, they’re not that much of a big deal! I’m just a novice chef after all, you’re not running away are you? Soldier-nims?” 

“Oooh…… A, are they really not that big of a deal?!” 

“Wow, that weak new recruit beat the orcs easily!”

‘I, isn’t that too sloppy…’ 

“Let’s gooooooo!” 

“Help the new recruit!” 

“Waaaaaaaaaaah!” 

The soldiers started to shout loudly. 

Mabal, who was sitting on top of the horse, narrowed his eyes at him. 

‘He’s fast…… And he even deliberately raised the morale of the soldiers.’ 

That guy knows his stuff. 

As he thought of that, the soldiers and the orcs finally clashed. 

“Chwiiiiiik!” 

“Chwiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiik!” 

Swoooosh! 

[Vital Strike] 

[Additional 17% attack power if attack is successful.]

Stab! 

[Three Consecutive Quick Assault] 

[Your attacks will have three consecutive strikes.] 

He quickly began to stab through his opponents. 

Stab! 

Baaaang! 

Fwoooooom! 

Minhyuk was running around and killing in the whole battlefield. The soldiers were in awe. 

“Wow……!” 

“N, new recruit……! That’s an awful lot!” 

At that moment, he heard the sound of a notification. 

[You have acquired 1 Charisma.] 

***

Footnotes 

[1] 들깻가루 : accdg to HH and Skye, this could be sesame seeds or perilla seeds powder. If it was sprinkled right before eating then it could be sesame seeds but if it was the other way around then it’s probably perilla seeds powder. Kek. Apparently sesame and perilla are under the same order. So they’re still highly related.

[2] Idk what they want to say by this but it says that Harmen means soldier, there’s also a painting by a dutch artist Harmen that has a skull, i think it was called vanitas

TL’s corner!!! 

Man, I want to eat that soup too. Sigh. When can I go to KR and binge eat these things. 

QC’s corner!

Yup, another entry into the ever-growing list of food I now need to eat. I swear, I’m going to be broke because of this story. No regrets though!

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