Chapter 769: A Taste You Cannot Escape (4)

{I shall use that ‘instant’ for you.}

Even though Mirinae could go outside at any moment.

It deliberately declared that it would remain in this narrow world.

Then pass through that hole, cross our world, and go outside.

It was far too enormous to remain in our world.

And once it went outside, interfering with the inside again would be extremely difficult, and it would also place a burden on our world.

That was why it was saying it would help during the single fleeting instant when it went outside.

The moment I heard those words, a thought came to mind.

“There is a demon in the north.”

{I know.}

The reason I had come here in the first place was to prepare for that very being.

“The being you mentioned when you appeared in my dream, the one you said bore hostility toward me. That is probably it.”

I had encountered a demon in Gangwon Province.

At the time, that demon had come to hold a grudge against me.

That must have been why it had forced its way down into this world to take revenge on me.

“If there is an opportunity for you to help.”

{That is not it.}

“That thing...... Hm?”

But.

At that moment, Mirinae’s words reached me.

{That is different from the one who bore a grudge against you.}

“......What do you mean?”

I could not help finding that strange.

A demon that had appeared while hostile toward me.

I had thought there was no being that fit that description other than the one I had met in Gangwon Province.

{There is more than one demon. And the one who bore a grudge against you.......}

Mirinae stared closely at me.

Then opened its mouth.

{After becoming able to see you in detail, it seems that being grew afraid and withdrew long ago.}

“......?”

Those words were difficult for me to understand.

{Perhaps that being was never a threat in the first place. This is the first time even I have been able to see you this clearly, so I simply failed to realize it back then.......}

It grew afraid and withdrew.

I wondered what it could possibly have been afraid of.

Even so, Mirinae’s words did bring something to mind.

[Demon Species - Demon]

[A demon, a resident of Hell, one of the most powerful dimensions in the entire universe.]

In the past.

When I fought the demon contractors and met that demon’s gaze.

Those were the words from [Ingredient Appraisal] that had appeared before my eyes.

I had only ever encountered one demon until now.

That was why I had naturally assumed there was only one demon.

But that was not the case.

‘A resident...... does not necessarily mean there is only one.’

A dimension powerful enough to rank among the strongest in the universe.

A resident of Hell.

‘Even Mirinae’s homeland, the Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts, had many immortals.’

The demon’s homeland was probably the same.

Just as the Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts had contained many immortals, there could be many demons in that place called Hell.

The surviving contractors in Korea had headed north.

But most of them had not been contractors from Gangwon Province, so there was no reason they had to follow the same demon.

However.......

Even so, one question remained.

“If it is not the being that bore a grudge against me...... why?”

According to Choi Wonjun, the [Demon Hunter].

The demon that had descended in the north had entered our world through methods so extreme that they were difficult to understand.

I had believed that was because of the grudge that being held against me.

“If it was not because of a grudge, why did that being attempt such a reckless descent?”

{Even I do not know that much. In my current state, I cannot know every thought within their minds.}

Even so, if it had gone to such reckless lengths to descend.

There had to be another reason.

A reason belonging only to that demon...... one even Mirinae did not know.

{An enemy approaching with an unknown objective. I understand why you are wary.}

In that case, all the more.

I thought Mirinae’s ‘instant’ should be used against that incomprehensible demon.

{Even so, there is no need to be impatient.}

Mirinae smiled lightly as it spoke.

{The instant in which I can help is as short as its name implies, so I shall help you at the optimal instant.}

“......I see.”

The Mirinae of the past had been sealed away, lost most of its abilities, and could not properly grasp the situation outside.

Even in that state, it had been of great help to me.

Now it had even gained its freedom, so it would probably be able to see and know far more than before.

It had promised to use that ability to help me in the ‘optimal’ situation.

If I ever found myself about to die to that demon, Mirinae’s help would surely come.

‘It is practically no different from gaining another life.’

It had not even been a full day since I entered Cheonsan Martial Hall...... no.

Since I left the Legion.

For the result of investing such a short amount of time, the rewards I had gained were almost excessive.

{Then...... it seems the time has come to send you back.}

At that moment.

Our bodies began to float away.

Our bodies, which had been freed from gravity, began moving again as though seized by some other force of attraction.

“......Master!”

“Must we, must we part like this?”

As they were pulled away by that force.

They shouted while looking at the enormous Milky Way.

Even if Mirinae had promised to help me, after providing that help, it would go outside.

From the beastkin’s perspective, meeting Mirinae again would become an endlessly distant prospect.

Their voices were filled with sorrow and regret.

{I told you not to be impatient.}

Even as we grew farther away.

Mirinae’s voice still rang out leisurely.

{Do not worry. This master is not such a stingy being. There is also a gift for you. You need only look forward to that gift.}

I looked in the direction my body was being pulled.

What lay there was a hole of black light.

The opening of the [Gate] that had originally been somewhere around the middle of Cheonsan.

SWOOSH!

And.

At the exact moment my body entered that Gate.

[You have achieved an achievement!]

A message appeared before my eyes.

***

[You have achieved an achievement!]

A dark space.

The message that appeared before my eyes during the brief time it took to return from [Cheonsan Martial Hall] to our world.

I stared blankly at the words.

As my level rose and my abilities gradually improved.

My body had become capable of handling most things without difficulty.

That had advantages, but there were disadvantages as well.

One of them was precisely this.

‘Achievements have become far too difficult to earn.’

No matter how impressive something was.

If it could be done without effort, it was difficult to call it an achievement.

Just as lifting a 10kg object would be difficult for an ant on the roadside, but easy for a human.

Most of the achievements I had accomplished in the past were things the current me could easily do.

But even if I did something similar now, it would no longer be regarded as an achievement for me.

As my abilities had grown stronger, ordinary feats could no longer even be considered achievements.

However, it seemed that what I had done this time was significant enough to count as an achievement even for me.

[A world that has now perished.]

[You opposed the evil dragon that destroyed that world, and integrated the evil dragon’s divided mind in the correct direction.]

[You brought a proper end to the world.]

[Because of your help, the best possible result was granted to a world that had wandered with nothing but fragments remaining, unable to reach a proper conclusion.]

[As a reward, a large amount of experience is granted.]

[As a reward, a title is granted.]

[Title : Chef of the Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts]

[As the being who brought an end to the World - Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts, the will of the world regards you with fondness.]

[You will be able to rapidly learn all cultures, techniques, and other things originating from or influenced by the Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts, and their effects will also increase.]

[By receiving the goodwill of an entire world, your resistance to the malice shown by beings from other worlds becomes stronger.]

[Due to your experience of exerting a great influence upon another world, the effects of cooking targeting beings from other worlds become stronger.]

It had effectively met its destruction.

But because Mirinae had sealed itself, the world had been halted immediately before that destruction.

The story of the dimension called the Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts had now come to an end.

It could not be called a happy ending, but it was the best ending the Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts, which had stood on the verge of destruction, could have experienced.

That vanished world seemed to feel some gratitude toward me.

‘......The effects are incredible.’

There were likely many techniques from the Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts.

But the most representative of them was naturally martial arts.

[Due to the goodwill of the world, you gain profound enlightenment regarding ‘Martial Art - Food’!]

[The level of your martial art rises rapidly!]

My martial art was an original martial art that had never existed before.

Even Miho and Seohwan had never encountered martial arts intended for a chef, so there had been no teacher who could instruct me.

Furthermore, my talent was not particularly exceptional, so despite consistently training in martial arts, my martial art level had remained low.

[???-Rank Martial Art - Food]

[Lv.36 - Lv.55]

Now.

Enlightenment regarding that martial art swept through my mind.

It felt as though the long memories of an entire world were personally organizing and explaining how I should incorporate my experience as a chef into martial arts.

‘My future growth speed will probably become incomparable to what it has been until now.’

Perhaps the day might even come when I surpassed Corporal Jeon Gwangil’s martial art level.

On top of that.

‘Resistance against beings from other worlds.’

While fleeing from the demon in the north.

I had experienced my influence being pushed back by the demon’s power.

Now the goodwill of a vanished world was accompanying me.

With that support, I would probably be able to fight more easily than I had back then.

‘Is it because this is a reward I earned at this level? This is absurdly powerful.......’

But.

As I was admiring the tremendous achievement rewards.

[You have achieved an achievement!]

“......Hm?”

The words I had surely just seen.

Appeared before my eyes once again.

***

[You have achieved an achievement!]

The message appeared before my eyes.

Because it was the same phrase I had read just moments ago, I wondered whether the System had produced the same message twice due to an error.......

But when I thought about it, there was no way the System would make such an error.

[A being from another world.]

[Among them, a great divinity.]

[Among those great divinities, you succeeded in moving a Great Divinity that had grown powerful by devouring countless beings through taste!]

The content that followed.

Was somewhat different from the previous achievement.

‘Could it be.’

Bringing a proper ending to the world called the Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts.

That had certainly been an incredible feat.

But strictly speaking...... it had not been an achievement as a chef.

It had been an achievement accomplished as an awakened, rather than as a chef.

However, my profession was chef.

And so.

[Among all achievements impossible for a chef to accomplish, this is an achievement that existed only within the realm of imagination!]

There was apparently a separate achievement for my professional field as a chef, rather than as an awakened.

[Achievement : A Taste You Cannot Escape (4)]

The name of the completed achievement appeared before my eyes.

When I saw the number, I felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

‘(4)...... the fourth achievement.’

A Taste You Cannot Escape.

I had first accomplished this achievement when I subdued Lieutenant Kim with my cooking.

After that, it had been when I subdued Ariella, a monster from another world.

And the last time I had seen it had certainly been when I dealt with Morzan, a divinity from another world.

‘Is this perhaps an achievement that grows in stages?’

The condition for accomplishing it was simple.

It appeared when I satisfied a particular target’s tastes and deeply moved them.

It had likely been achieved in the order of a human, a monster from another world, and a divinity from another world.

However, after accomplishing ‘A Taste You Cannot Escape (3)’ against Morzan.

I had not seen these words again for a long time.

It was an achievement that had to grow in stages, and I had already moved a fragmented divinity as early as the third stage.

Among the targets I had fed since then, there had been no being higher than Morzan.

Perhaps accomplishing (3) at that time had been far earlier than the System had intended...... that thought occurred to me as well.

Come to think of it.

“What was the reward this achievement gave me again?”

Because the next achievement had become so difficult to accomplish, I had been unable to complete another one for a long time.

As a result, I had temporarily forgotten what reward this achievement provided.

Therefore.

[As a reward for the achievement, ‘Highest-Grade Ingredients’ are granted.]

“......What?”

When I saw the next words that appeared.

My pupils could not help widening greatly.

“......Don’t tell me!”

I hurriedly opened the System log.

And checked the record of [Ingredient Appraisal] I had seen in the past.

[Stat-Increasing Potion (Strength)]

[Appraisal °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° results for ‘Stat-Increasing Potion (Strength)’.]

What appeared there was.

A certain potion I had seen in the past.

[Heart of a Lesser Dragon - 10%]

[Holy Blood of a Forgotten Saint - 10%]

[Core of a Thousand-Year Glacier - 10%]

[Droplet of the World Stone - 10%]

[Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng - 10%]

[Brain Fluid of an Ancient Sage - 10%]

[Collected Ingredients - 60%]

The ingredients needed to make that potion.

And.

[Unidentified Ingredients - 40%]

A single line announcing the amount of ingredients I had not yet collected.

Because I had not accomplished another achievement for a long time.

My ingredient collection had remained stuck at 60% for quite some time.

But now.

The message indicating how many more ingredients I needed to gather.

That number.

[Unidentified Ingredients - 30%]

Began to change.