The Foreigner on the Periphery

There was no dragon in the world that had a bad taste or texture. Baked, boiled, fried, sashimi, mixed with vegetable ingredients and kneaded, dried, and then mashed over fire, soaked in alcohol, boiled in a double boiler, frozen, carbonated, infected with parasites, and fermented, on ultra-high pressure… Even if only the essence was extracted through the process, or if it was inhaled through nasal membranes after crystallization, or even if it was dissolved in Gellert-Sheet or oil and solidified, a dragon was delicious. Quality may suffer because of its youth, but flavor was another matter. In terms of taste, old dragons had the strengths of old dragons, and young dragons have the strength of young dragons. 

As Minjun conversed with the dragon, who hadn’t even eaten a hundred years old, he felt the taste he enjoyed a long time ago on the tip of his tongue. Due to the productivity issue represented by the quality of dragon hearts, it was common to wait until a suitable age before slaughtering, but there were times when a young dragon had to be caught. It was a rare delicacy. 

‘I’m not going to catch and eat that guy right now.’

Even though he had no intention of doing so, he thought the reason why he was suddenly moved was because of the current situation. It was a situation where one would hold a frying pan (cooking tool) and show off one’s talent (cooking) in front of the dragon (ingredients). 

It was certainly the first time since he had awakened to himself as a prisoner. His bluffing words became an unexpected trigger. The moment he assured himself that he was good at cooking, the vast amount of dragon cooking recipes and high pride filled his head reflexively. Even without using a frying pan, as was the case when stir-frying a large amount of dog food that was fed to members of the National Assembly, he knew how to cook ordinary food. To a certain extent, he was genuinely angry when Cathy raised the question, ‘Even if you don’t have a frying pan, isn’t Minjun’s cooking similar to mine?’ 

However, he seemed to have had more talent than that when he was living with a dragon. The swelling memory in his brain imprinted that fact on Minjun. He glanced at Kentius. ‘I can’t catch it right now, but at least a little bit of tail meat…’ 

He barely suppressed the thought before it became firmer. ‘No, no. No.’ 

It was a similar situation when he saw the Lord’s body. It restrained the way of thinking of the past from sweeping in like a tide. In that short moment, Minjun’s eyes changed several times. Meanwhile, the young dragon, Kentius, who was looking at him, was seized by an unfamiliar sensation.

“·······?!” The dragon didn’t know what to call the feeling. He certainly recognized the person he hadn’t seen in a while, but the name was vague and he couldn’t easily recall it, so it felt like a tickling sensation in his head. If Minjun had heard about that psychology, the dragon quickly shook off the sense that would have been defined as ‘an eerie sense of danger and chills that are similar to déjà vu in that they are not based on memory, but difficult to define precisely because they are rooted in instinct.’ 

‘Nonsense. Why am I…!’ 

Why did the dragon shrink in front of an alien with a frying pan? Despite intense denial in his mind, Kentius involuntarily said: “Hmm, if that’s the case, I’d rather have my personal chef in charge of the meals in polymorph state…” 

“Now that we are holding hands, it would be right to present the greatest entertainment that I can treat. And I can’t eat anything made by anyone other than myself. So good workmanship ruined my taste buds.” 

It was a blatant lie. Minjun then spoke in a dry tone, as if he were only listing facts. “Somehow, this Earth is the seventh dimension to which I was sent.” 

The dragon’s expression was as if he wondered why the prisoner was suddenly bringing up that story. “In one of my previous dispatches, dimension #91-002, I was entrusted with escorting the Crown Prince of the Empire who controls all sentient beings there.” 

This was true. “Whenever security issues arose, instead of bringing in outside food, we had to cook our meals with the ingredients there in isolation, to the point where the prince, who happened to taste my cuisine once, appointed me as his exclusive chef after that. Until the dispatch period was over, I didn’t even touch anything unless I made it myself. I even submitted a petition to the committee to retain me, but it was rejected.” 

“…Was the exclusive chef of the crown prince the one who controls the entire dimension?” 

There came a tempting look. Of course, there were things that Minjun didn’t say. ‘I had a hard time poisoning that bastard without the knowledge of the palace staff.’ 

The prince begged Minjun, who was in charge of the escort, to teach him black magic, and Minjun, of course, ignored it. Then, Minjun found himself enraged at the treatment of the crown prince who arbitrarily cut the wages. Although he received a separate Talent fee from the committee, apart from that, he couldn’t stand the broken promise. 

After that, Minjun devoted himself to developing a black magic drug that could work without being caught by the palace. Unlike Happy Bug, which had an immediate effect, the drug had to be taken for a long time. Instead of having such a drawback, it could be poisoned without anyone noticing. As a result, the prince became a docile sheep who followed Minjun’s words, and his security work went smoothly until the last day. 

“Men of the Bellev tribe die sooner than humans, but women are long-lived, so there must be many maids who still remember those days. If you don’t believe it, check it out for yourself.” 

As he spoke, he suddenly thought: Come to think of it, the extreme difference in lifespan between men and women is similar to that of the Auber spider. It was rare to see such a species among intelligent beings. 

“Ah, well… that’s all. great. Let’s see your skills.” It was as Minjun expected. That dragon head probably didn’t know where dimension #91-002 was, or how to contact it. And that the tribes living there were those close to insects. If he was of a different race, he would have worried that this might be a conspiracy to poison himself, but Kentius, intoxicated with the dragon’s supremacy, couldn’t even come up with such an idea. Even if it was not poison, one might suspect that there was something in that frying pan or that the act of cooking itself was a kind of curse. 

However, Kentius did not doubt that he believed in the dragon’s sense of magic. If one were to see such a sign, you were guaranteed to notice immediately. In fact, he never imagined that Minjun would harm him by leaving everything. According to the Dragonic code, it was certain that there would be a headwind. Leaving him behind, Minjun took out ingredients from the refrigerator. It was enough to feed a dozen people. 

“Why did you buy so many? Are you planning on staying in New York for a long time?” 

Minjun replied without changing his expression. “…I stocked up a lot to serve guests. People who visit me rarely want to eat outside.” 

“Are you really that good?” 

“I’m amazing.” Read the most updated version of this novel and other amazing translated novels from the original source at Novel Multiverse – “NovelMultiverse dot com”

Then, a mental wave that the dragon couldn’t hear flowed. It was a lament of a frying pan with absurd emotions. 

= And… Conscience···= 

*** 

Profit! Tsar! 

In the kitchen, Minjun’s hands moved busily. Kentius sat down at the table and waited leisurely. Crossing his arms and crossing his legs, he wiggled. His expression gradually changed. The more the smell of cooking filled the residence’s kitchen, the more his eyes became blurry. He spontaneously unfolded his arms and put down his crossed legs. Then, he straightened the posture in which he had been sitting obliquely. 

He sat with his back pressed against the back of the chair. Minjun also noticed the change. Unlike when he stir-fried dog food in Korea, he was cooking it with great care. Steak was on the menu. The garnish was grilled vegetables. Instead of mixing them all together and frying them, they were baking them in their own order. 

It was because he thought that even if it rotted, he should be careful in front of the dragon. He was concerned that if the visuals were dog food, it might break the immersion of the brainwashing. 

“Okay, it’s done.” As soon as the first plate was served, the dragon rushed at it. It was an unbelievable action for a dragon to keep its dignity. Kentius was already in a state where he was not even aware of how he would look. However, this wasn’t enough. The frying pan rang throughout his mind. 

=It is better to use plenty of prepared ingredients safely. To see the desired effect. = 

‘Okay.’ 

Minjun didn’t prepare too many ingredients for nothing. A dragon was a dragon. It required more investment than feeding the legislators. He devoted himself to cooking again, and as soon as one frying pan was finished, he set it on the table. Kentius gobbled it up with bloodshot eyes. 

Seeing this, Minjun felt his heart warm and his pride filled up. ‘Yeah, eat a lot. When I saw you in Hong Kong, you guys were so skinny. I can’t even sell it anywhere.’ 

After Kentius ate dozens of steaks, his expression completely changed. The frying pan who saw that said confidently. =Now, that dragon will express absolute trust and unconditional liking for the words of the agent. =

This frying pan decided that it was unwise to offend its creator. If you can make yourself, many other things are possible. ‘You mean they trust me and follow me?’ =

= Yes. From now on, I will believe it even if the agent points to shit as gold and it means that I will applaud even if the agent were to produce that thing itself! 

‘Then, let’s experiment.’ 

At this, Minjun took out a chair and sat facing the dragon. Then he begged, having just chewed up and swallowed the last piece of steak. “More! please give me more! I can’t stand it. bring more! Please… more!” Kentius’ voice cracked harshly.

Staring at him, Minjun spoke firmly. “Eating too much of this is not good for you. Stop eating.” 

“…!” 

The dragon’s expression changed in an instant. The expression he had a while ago, the sense of urgency, as if he would die of thirst and hunger if he didn’t pick off more dots, disappeared. Kentius, who quickly returned to a peaceful and calm façade, spoke. “Oh yeah? If you say that, you’re right. I will stop eating.” 

Actually, that was nonsense. Even in a polymorph state, a dragon could digest that amount. But Kentius meekly agreed. They even responded by obeying Minjun’s ‘order’. ‘It’s actually useful?’ 

With a grin, Minjun decided to try a few more experiments. “By the way, do you know?” Minjun placed the frying pan he was holding on the table. As anyone can see, the handle was one. “Does this look like a one-handed fan? No. If you look closely, there are two handles.” 

Kentius was amazed. “Really? The other handle is barely visible to my eyes. A transparent metal that deceives the dragon’s eyes exists in the world!” 

“And you thought it was beef, the meat you’ve eaten so far, but it’s actually meat to be grilled.” 

“What?! No, but how come I don’t come out at all? You are a really good cook.” 

If there was a discrepancy between his own senses and Minjun’s words, he concluded that his senses were wrong. Minjun increased his intensity a bit. He even mobilized self-deprecating lies to stage an extreme situation. “One more confession. I am a dragon.” 

“Red? Black? I knew it. Somehow, he wasn’t nervous in front of me.” 

“You are actually a woman.” 

“I’ve never felt confused about my identity… I’ll have to move soon. The rare is too narrow right now for me to lay eggs myself.” 

“This world is the dream of the gods. They say that when they wake up, all dimensions will perish.” 

“It is a big deal. Why are the elder dragons watching this situation? I need to call a Balaur meeting right now. Dragon Heart is not the problem now! Shouldn’t something be done to ensure they never break again?! There are so many things I don’t have yet, what if the world perishes before then?!”

“But I don’t think you need to worry. Because there are those who are trying to keep them from waking up.” 

“Ah! okay? Good thing. If you think it’s okay, then I guess it’s really okay.” 

“…” 

The dragon, who was frightened and startled a few seconds ago, then began to calm down as soon as Minjun gave the command. Minjun saw absolute trust and psychological dependence there. He felt like he had become a cult leader. 

‘Enough of the experiment.’ 

Minjun decided to drive a wedge. “From now on, answer all the questions I ask truthfully. It doesn’t matter who and what arrangements were made beforehand. Even if it was promised in terms of words, from now on, my question comes first. Do you understand?” 

Minjun’s instructions were interpreted as absolute rules, morality, and truth in Kentius’ mind. The dragon nodded dumbly, without any doubt. “I’ll do that.” 

Minjun then asked. “What is the way to avoid the special gift tax? Who told you that?” 

“I don’t know how either. Inais did that to me. All I know is there is a way.” 

Nice. The answers to all the questions Minjun was curious about came out. ‘Is it that woman?’

Minjun remembered the dragon that was weeping bitterly as he was the last to arrive in Hong Kong among his bereaved family. Inais was Lord’s partner who recently gave birth to a child.