Leveling Up through Eating

Translator: ChubbyCheeks 

PR: MattForgenti

16 During Weekends Too…… 

“Oh…!” 

Minhyuk was a bit surprised. 

My tangsuyuk’s rank is rare? 

He checked on it right away. 

(Tangsuyuk) 

Ingredient Rank: C

Rank: Rare

Restrictions: None

Storage Date: 7 days

Preservation Time: 24 hours

Special Abilities:

— +10 increase in all stats

— +10% increase in critical hit probability. 

— Permanently revive the sense of taste. 

Description: This dish was made by the disciple for his teacher. He poured his heart and soul into it to make it more delicious. The Orc Tribe Leader’s essence has also further improved its taste. 

“Olé! [1]”

Minhyuk lifted his hands in delight. The reason why he was very delighted was because he saw ‘further improved its taste’ in the description. 

He was so happy that he got up and even danced Shin-chan’s hula dance. 

“Hula, hula~ hula, hula~” 

In addition, Len would be very happy if he was able to eat a tangsuyuk that was more delicious. 

Minhyuk quickly placed the tangsuyuk in his food storage inventory. 

‘There’s also that Trance.’

Everything that was written in the Trance skill was ‘?’. 

And this was the first hint. 

According to this hint, Trance could increase the ranking of the dish depending on various factors. 

There were also the achievement points. 

Achievement points were needed in every skill you have in your job class, it could only be received if the item was made by the user personally. He also heard that achievement points could be used to exchange for items or skill books. 

Minhyuk was now waiting for Len in excitement. 

***

Dressed in his most comfortable clothes, Len walked towards the kitchen carriage. 

This was the first dish that was made by his disciple. 

‘I can even taste the dish……’ 

He chuckled lightly. As soon as he entered the kitchen, he saw Minhyuk smiling broadly as he waited for his arrival. 

“Did you relax and take a breather today?!” 

“……But taking a breather is a bit troublesome.” 

Len played along with his tune. 

“Did you wash up?!” 

“I didn’t.” 

“What about your butt?!” 

“Hmm……” 

He groaned a bit as if what he heard was too much. However, Minhyuk suddenly burst in admiration. 

“Wow! You’re really leisurely.” 

“What.” 

Len smiled in embarrassment while Minhyuk guided him in front of the table in the kitchen carriage. 

Then he took out the dishes from his food storage inventory. 

He first took out the jjajangmyeon and jjamppong. He took out a great amount of food since he made 20 servings. 

Minhyuk’s eyes narrowed to a slit. 

“Next is the most important main dish.” 

Minhyuk pulled out the tangsuyuk out of his inventory. 

The tangsuyuk was well-fried and looked very appetizing. It was so crispy that it could even make a crunching sound just by touching it. The sauce was a bit dark but was glowing brightly. 

He smiled at Len. 

“I specifically prepared this for you, teacher. It’s tangsuyuk made from the essence of the Orc Tribe Leader. It’s actually in the sauce. Huhuhu…!” 

“Oh.” 

Len was a bit in awe. The smile that was on his face was slowly fading away. He wanted to laugh but he couldn’t.

He had never tasted food in his life. Even when he was cooking for others. Tears were about to come out of his eyes. 

And at that moment… 

Grab! 

“Boy, what are you doing right now?!” 

“Eh? I’m trying to pour the sauce on the tangsuyuk?” 

“No. Why would you fry it if you’re going to pour the sauce on it? Didn’t you learn that frying food is to make it crispy? I have never taught you this!” 

This was the moment of confrontation between dipping and pouring. 

Minhyuk’s hands slapped the table with a bang! when he heard his words. 

“Teacher, you can pour the sauce on the tangsuyuk. This is so the soft and moist breading and the meat will meet and create a fantastic taste.” 

“No. Frying food means that you wanted the crispy and crunchy texture. Why would you fry it if you’re going to do that, you should have just stir-fried it!” 

“Teacher doesn’t even know what it tastes like. You haven’t tried pouring it yet, have you?!” 

“Oho. I may not know what it tastes like but I do know something! I should hear the crunch whenever I eat fried food!” 

“Eeck……!” 

“Uurck……!” 

There was a tension in the air between the two men at odds with each other. 

Then Minhyuk suddenly said… 

“Then I will explain it to you logically.” 

“Go on.” 

“There’s only one reason why you should pour the sauce on tangsuyuk. Teacher. It’s bad to leave food behind, right?” 

“Yeah.” 

“If you dip it then you would throw away plenty of sauce. However, if you pour it then the amount of food that you will waste will be less.” 

‘My god!’ 

Be logical. 

And you would be the one in the right. 

Minhyuk was at least an educated man. 

Not long after, Len suddenly started laughing. 

“Kgghk.” 

“Huhu.” 

“Hahahahahaha!” 

“Hehe.” 

Both of them started laughing together. 

Minhyuk divided the tangsuyuk and made some separately. He poured the sauce in one half then made the other half with a dip. 

Minhyuk hated the gloomy atmosphere but of course he was still a big fanatic of the pouring the sauce. 

“Oho, this way we can both taste the crispy texture of the tangsuyuk and the soft texture of the breadings.” 

“That’s right.” 

“Then, let’s eat.” 

“Please eat this first.”

Minhyuk suggested that Len start eating the tangsuyuk first. Although he was a promoter of dipping it in sauce, he first tried the tangsuyuk soaked in the sauce so his taste would be revived. 

Crunch—

The sauce was poured not long ago so the breading were still not soggy and the texture was still crispy. 

Crunch, crunch—

The more you chew, the softer it gets in his mouth. 

Faintly. 

He could feel something very faintly at the tip of his tongue. Slowly, very very slowly, he could feel a sweet taste.

His mouth was soon filled with the juicy, sweet and sour taste of the tangsuyuk. 

I can taste it. 

All his life, whenever he ate food he always felt like he was chewing dirt. Others were happy to eat his food but he was not. 

“It’s delicious.” 

Len picked up the jjajangmyeon placed in front of him. 

“This is how you eat it.”

Minhyuk first picked up the gleaming black noodles. 

Then… 

“Sluuuuuuuuuuuuurp!“

The moment he placed the jjajangmyeon in his mouth he has never cut off the noodles. Then he stuffed a pickled radish in his mouth. 

Crunch, crunch. 

The fresh pickled radish and the greasy jjajangmyeon boasts a perfect match. 

Then he took a piece of well-fried meat and some onions to try.

The black bean paste gave a deeper flavor to the meat while the crispy onions added to the texture and tasted deliciously. 

Len followed his example and ate it like how he did. 

“Sluuuuuuuuuuuurp!” 

“You’re doing well!” 

He closed his eyes and savored the flavor. A small smile curled in his mouth.

He then took the jjamppong. 

“This one might be a bit spicy.” 

“Sluuuuuuuuurp!” 

Len was given a passing mark on his review.

He lifted the noodles and inhaled them. He could feel a tingling sensation in his mouth. He quickly picked a pickled radish and chewed on it. 

Next, he picked up the bowl and tasted the soup. The spicy flavor of the soup and the full flavor of the seafood tasted excellent. 

“How was it? It may feel a bit spicy but it’s also a bit refreshing.” 

“This is the charm of jjamppong!” 

Len grinned widely. 

“It’s absolutely delicious!” 

Delicious. 

It was just these three characters. These words that others used very often Len spoke them with desperation. 

“Truly, it’s really delicious!”

Minhyuk smiled at him. 

Then… 

“Sluuuuuuuurp!” 

Minhyuk started to inhale his noodles rapidly. The same was true for Len who was sitting in front of him. 

***

Lee Minhwa was urgently making a call somewhere. 

“Is this the Chinese restaurant?! Yes, this is the 7th floor of the Athenae building. Yes, yes. Jjajangmyeon, jjamppong and tangsuyuk.” 

“Yes, please add one more kanjjajang.” 

Lee Minhwa stealthily looked around. Before she knew it, Seongwook from the customer center had already arrived. 

“Yes, please add one more kanjjajang.” 

After ending her call, Lee Minhwa turned around and looked at Seongwook. 

“When did you arrive?” 

“Just now. Wow……Those two are eating so deliciously.” 

“Yeah.” 

Seongwook spoke but Team Leader Park was the one who answered. 

“But it’s not the time for you to get lost like this, right?” 

Team Leader Park came back to his senses when he heard Lee Minhwa’s words.

His mind flew out while he watched the jjajangmyeon mukbang on the monitor. 

“Yeah. But in the end, he really got it. Hyoo……” 

“He got it? What?” 

“The artifact that Twilight Chef Black was supposed to get.” 

“You’re talking about Kim Seokhyun, right? Did that user get the item that he was supposed to receive?” 

Team Leader Park nodded while Seongwook grinned. 

“But aren’t you guys too worried about this user? He has cooking skills and he can increase his stats whenever he eats. But no matter how strong that user gets he wouldn’t be strong enough to be a balance breaker. And I don’t think that he’s going to distribute buffs carelessly. Just look at that other God Class. The Death Knight who made a mess by continuously summoning things.”

Anyway, he doesn’t have the skills to be a main. 

Lee Minhwa shook her head at his words. 

“Really…” 

Team Leader Park whispered his words. 

“He thinks that he will only get stats?” 

“Does that mean that he will get something else?” 

“You’ll know once he gets his 2nd job class.” 

“What is it, tell me!” 

Lee Minhwa and Team Leader Park glanced at each other. 

“Secret.” 

“Secret.” 

***

Len left the kitchen carriage. He said that he would just go out for a bit and that he would also come back soon. 

Minhyuk, who ate everything including the last drop of the tangsuyuk sauce, answered him with a delighted expression on his face. 

“The subjugation is complete!” 

There was no buff effect on Minhyuk. There was only one dish, and only one person could receive the increased buff from the dish. 

Also, the calorie count for this dish was probably the same with the standards that could be found on the internet. 

‘Ha…… Now I only need to get my Sun’s Wheat reward.‘

What should I make with it? 

It was such a blissful problem. 

Should I put egg on the bread, fry it and sprinkle some sugar on it? Or should I make kalguksu and eat it with ripe kimchi? 

He was already picturing his happy future. 

At that moment… Len came back from the outside. He was holding something that was covered in cloth. 

He was feeling good. 

The Gods of Athenae? 

I’ll tell them to screw themselves! 

Minhyuk might not have received the quest but he was able to accomplish what needed to be done. He brought back Len’s sense of taste. 

What about the rewards? 

It was obvious that Minhyuk should take it. 

‘As expected……’ 

As Minhyuk thought, it really did lead to a quest. It was just a bit suspicious since he did not receive any notification. 

Soon enough, Len pulled the cloth away from the item that he was holding. 

What appeared was a kitchen knife with an impressive pattern engraved on the end of the handle. The pattern was none other than a phoenix. 

[You have received Ellie’s Kitchen Knife.] 

[You have acquired 10 reputation.] 

[You will now be able to learn skills related to dexterity.] 

He did not hear any notifications about a quest, however he heard notifications about the rewards. 

He was now able to learn skills related to dexterity. 

Users could learn production skills like cooking, repairing, fishing, painting and drawing, and even sculpting. However, he learned that there were limits to learning these skills. He heard that they could only learn 1 before Lv200, and 2 before Lv400. 

Len looked at him and told him… 

“It’s a present for my disciple.” 

He smiled softly. 

“This is too much……” 

“Why, are you not going to take it?” 

“Of course not. I’ll use it well!” 

Minhyuk took the kitchen knife from his hands. The moment he touched the knife, he felt the handle wriggle. He looked at it curiously as he checked its information. 

(Ellie’s Kitchen Knife) 

Class: Epic

Restrictions: Primary Level has no limits, the secondary level requires user to be at Lv120

Durability: ∞/∞

Attack Power: 50

Primary Level’s Special Abilities:

— DEX acquisition x4

— +50 DEX

— Can be equipped with a sword. 

— Can automatically clean itself. 

— Can change to any variety of tools. 

Secondary Level’s Special Abilities:

— Sealed

— Sealed

— Sealed

Description: This was an artifact that the Empress bestowed upon Len, the best chef in Eivelis Empire. 

‘Oh……’ 

It was a mysterious artifact. 

Minhyuk continued to check the more detailed description. 

‘What does it mean when the Secondary Level was restricted?’ 

[The Secondary Level’s restriction refers to the growth and development of the artifact. After the Primary Level’s limit, if the restrictions for the Secondary Level will be lifted then all restrictions will be removed.] 

Simply put, since the Primary Level’s restrictions were gone. Once Minhyuk’s level reaches 120 then all of the parts that have “sealed” written on it would be removed. 

Minhyuk really liked what he read. There was only one reason. 

‘The DEX stat acquisition rate has been raised to x4!’ 

Having DEX means that he could also have ‘Flavor’. 

The artifact that Len gave him was an item that Minhyuk really needed. 

“How was it, did you like it?” 

“Yes, yes. I really, really, really like it! But what does it mean when it says that I can equip it with a sword?” 

Minhyuk tilted his head in confusion. 

“Take the knife to your sword.” 

Minhyuk brought the knife near his sword. 

[Do you want to equip Ellie’s Kitchen Knife on the Sword of Rebellion?] 

[ Yes / No ] 

‘Yes.’ 

Then something amazing happened… 

The kitchen knife slowly transformed into liquid. It then stuck itself on Valan and started to assimilate itself in it. 

‘Heok……!’ 

***

Footnotes 

[1] 올레 this word has a lot of different meanings in KR but in this situation it’s like he was cheering for his dish so he said Olé! 

TL’s corner!!! 

So are you a dip or pour kind of person? I like both. Lol. Totally depends on my mood. 

PR’s corner!

Dip or pour…it really does depend, but I think I’m gonna have to side with Len on this case.

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