Leveling Up Through Eating

Chapter 773: Happy Island

A burst of sourness met his taste buds at the first bite of the Setoka, a larger variety of tangerine, which was immediately followed by a refreshing sweetness. Furthermore, there was something far more surprising than its flavor.

[You have eaten a Golden Setoka.]

[You have gained +1 in all of your five basic stats.]

[You have eaten a Golden Setoka.]

[You…gained +1…five basic stats.]

[You have eaten a Golden Kanpei.]

[Your total HP and MP volume have increased by 200.]

[…eaten a Golden Kanpei.]

[…HP and MP volume…200]

As mentioned before, the food storage warehouse housed a variety of rare and delicious ingredients and dishes, including the horned black pork.

[You have acquired 231 Surly Octopi.]

[You have acquired 313 Fatty Amberjacks.]

[You have acquired 21 kg of Sea Urchin Roe.]

[You have acquired 531 kg of Happy Tangerine…]

Minhyuk laughed in delight as he listened to the notifications that constantly rang in his ears, “Wahahahahahahahahahaha!”

It was truly a wonderful warehouse, filled with many rare and precious delicious ingredients! However, even if he looted this warehouse, Minhyuk did not feel any guilt, especially after he had dug through the memories of the knights that he brainwashed. The truth was, the Pluine Merchant Group was truly evil. All of the things that they had gathered here were either stolen, looted or monopolized.

Just when Minhyuk was about to pop the final piece of the Kanpei into his mouth, the doors of the warehouse suddenly opened.

“Let’s quickly check the condition of the items, after that, we’ll go gather a hundred knights to rip that bastard to shreds.”

The familiar voice of Loic rang out while he standing beyond the doors, and as he appeared, his expression was filled with shock after seeing the scene in front of him.

“You, you…!”

“Buuuuuuuuuuuurp—!” Minhyuk, who could not hold back his body’s natural reaction, released a loud sound that was akin to a dragon’s roar.

All of the ingredients and dishes stored in the food storage warehouse were items that the Pluine Merchant Group had to offer to the Happy Island’s God in a few days\' time. They had no choice. After all, the Happy Island’s God would always lose his temper and grow angry whenever he was hungry.

“We will receive far more special support with the offering that we will present this time.”

The top brass of the merchant group had mentioned it before, and Loic had also heard that it was likely the owner of Happy Island would change.But now, the man in front of him had eaten all of the offerings that they were supposed to send.

At the same time, Loic thought that this was an opportunity. They might have lost all of the dishes and ingredients set aside as offerings, but he was given the chance to rip apart and kill the damn bastard in front of him. To top it all off, they were inside the Pluine Merchant Group. That meant that hundreds of knights would come running to his aid the moment he opened his mouth.

Grab—

Grab—

However, the knights that stood beside Loic grabbed him by the arms and stopped him from moving. Loic looked at the knights beside him in confusion. “Wh, what? Let go of me?”

Shiiiiiiiiing—

Minhyuk looked coldly at Loic as he pulled his sword out and approached the confused man.

Loic was quite a strong man. He was able to shake off the knights that were holding him down in one go. But by then, Minhyuk was already in front of him, his sword slitting Loic’s throat as he passed by him.

Fwiiiiiiiiiish—

Loic could only watch the blood spurting from his neck in horror and collapsed to the ground.

Minhyuk looked down at him with a frigid expression on his face and said, “I don’t have the habit of leaving loose ends.”

***

It was said that the meat of the Horned Black Pig, a pig that only appeared in Happy Island, tasted better than ordinary black pigs. Upon hearing this, Minhyuk immediately thought of black pig ogyeopsal[1]. However, he tried his hardest to endure.

‘No. There must be an even more special entity than the horned black pig.’

Minhyuk did not have any doubt about it. The detailed explanation of the horned black pig only said that the meat tasted better than ordinary black pigs and did not even have any special abilities that increased the stats or skills of the consumer.

Minhyuk had been playing Athenae for years now. As a long-time player, he knew that places like Happy Island would have ingredients that were definitely out of the norm. That was why there would definitely be an ingredient of mindblowing standards on this island.

There was always a rainbow after the rain. April showers would always bring May flowers. Hard work would always be rewarded. So, Minhyuk endured and stopped himself from eating the horned black pork. This was because he wanted to eat what was probably the most delicious black pork on the island.

‘I’m definitely improving.’

Minhyuk felt like his eating addiction was improving. If it was the him of the past, then he would definitely not hold back and endure. The 200 horned black pork would be devoured in one seating.

After looting the food storage warehouse, Minhyuk continued to follow Gorac’s guidance.

‘If I go and find the man named Heaven, I will be able to eat hanchippang[2].’

Hanchippang was a local specialty bread and could only be bought in Happy Island. It was bread in the shape of a squid, or hanchi, and usually filled with various things inside like cheese and red bean paste.

Minhyuk, who was walking under the guidance of Gorac, heard a series of notifications in his ear.

[Ingredient Search has been successful!]

[You will be guided to where the Legendary Three Meter Great King Largehead Hairtail.]

“…!”

Minhyuk’s eyes grew wide.

In the short time he spent here, he already discovered that Happy Island was famous for its seafood, black pork, and various other specialties. Since the inspiration for this island was Jeju Island, the Ingredient Search was able to find a ‘largehead hairtail’, an ingredient that was as famous as black pork.

Before it became Ingredient Search, the skill was called Ingredient Tracking, which would track the ingredient that the skill user had specified. But now, the Ingredient Search skill had become completely different. It would not only search for the ingredient that the user wanted, but also guide them to where it was, as long as they were within a one-kilometer radius of the ingredient.

Minhyuk quickened his steps.

‘A Legendary Three Meter Great King Largehead Hairtail? Amazing! There was a hairtail that had grown to three meters in length?’

It had to be known that the hairtails in Jeju Island were already famous for reaching a meter in length. These one-meter-long hairtails would often be spread out like a fan. When the meat of the hairtail was scooped out and placed on top of piping hot rice, it was as if one had the entire world in their hands. Right now, the notifications were telling Minhyuk that there was a Legendary Three Meter Great King Largehead Hairtail.

Minhyuk moved as though he was possessed, until he arrived in front of Happy Island’s Castle. His brows furrowed. This had to be the castle where the king, whom Evelyn went to meet, lived.

‘Does the king have the legendary ingredient in his hands?’

Now, this was a problem. Minhyuk was a king, but this land was an unknown one, where his influence did not reach at all. The king would not come out even if he shouted for him. Basically, he could not meet him just because he wanted to do so.

Minhyuk only had one way to solve this problem. He had to make it so that the king would come and find him himself. He had to get the king’s interest and attention.

‘I have to make myself the talk of the town.’

Since Minhyuk was not from this island, he could use this to his advantage and spread nice rumors about him to the residents living in Happy Island. These rumors had to be a head-turner. It also had to spread far and wide to the point that it would reach the king’s ears.

‘Let’s follow the guide for now.’

Minhyuk continued to follow the guide and met the man named Heaven, who sold hanchippang. Heaven was an old man, who had a very simple problem.

“I’m in trouble. Because my hand has been seriously injured, I can’t make any hanchippang and cannot run my business properly.”

Gorac’s power would only guide and help Minhyuk find food in his vicinity. As for the rest, it would be up to Minhyuk and the NPCs that he would encounter.

[The Quest: Sell Hanchippang has been created.]

The rewards of the quest were simple. He would receive 100,000 gold for 100 pieces of hanchippang. It was obviously a quest for beginner chefs. However, Minhyuk still readily agreed to take the quest.

[You have learned the Hanchippang Recipe.]

After learning Heaven’s hanchippang recipe, Minhyuk began to work. After all, he was not only the Food God, but also someone with a DEX stat that was out of this world.

Minhyuk poured the dough made from Jeju’s buckwheat into the hanchippang machine. Then, he added a dollop of cream cheese, some hanchi powder, and some mozzarella cheese.

Once the hanchippang was done, he took it out of the machine and immediately took a bite. The hanchippang was crispy on the outside while the mozzarella cheese stretched out, connecting his mouth to the portion. He munched on the part of the hanchippang where the mozzarella cheese bit by bit, until he reached and tasted the sweetness of the cream cheese.

‘Wow. This is really delicious!’

This could also be attributed to Minhyuk’s high DEX stat, as well as his ability to create buffed dishes, which no longer had a limit per day.

[You have made a Hanchippang.]

[The fatigue of those that will eat the Hanchippang will disappear while their energy will increase.]

Then, Minhyuk added a drop of something to the hanchippang dough. This was none other than the ‘Sea Honey’, an item that he had not used for a very long time.

‘Fufu.’

All of the preparations for his business were finished.

Meanwhile, Heaven looked at his masterpiece in shock. “Wow, look at this. This is golden brown. How can you bake them so well?”

This was mainly because Minhyuk’s cooking skills were far better than Heaven’s own. However, even if he was able to make it well, the problem still stood.

‘Will he be able to do business?’

Hanchippang was a specialty of Happy Island. The problem did not lie in its taste. It was because the residents of Happy Island were used to its taste, and they did not find anything special with it. After all, they were the only ones that were able to eat this kind of dish.

But the quest would only be completed if Minhyuk was able to reach a certain amount of sales. For him to complete this, his practiced skill in speech would have to play a huge part.

“Sister, please come and try some of this hanchippang. I guarantee that it’s very delicious.”

The woman that Minhyuk called out to looked like a haenyeo[3], who was over fifty.

“Hoho. Did you just call me sister? I’ll be fifty-nine next year.”

“Goodness. This… I made a mistake. It’s because you look so young.”

“Hoho. You have a good eye, young man. Give me five hanchippangs!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Lauren, the old lady that Minhyuk called over, had been very exhausted from picking various clams and shellfish earlier. She slowly ate the hanchippang, savouring the sweetness that followed the crispiness of the bread. Somehow, the taste was slightly different from the hanchippang that she was very used to.

‘This, this taste is addictive,’ Lauren thought as she gobbled everything up in one go.

[Your fatigue has disappeared.]

[Your energy has increased.]

To her surprise, the fatigue and exhaustion that accumulated in her body after working hard today had disappeared, as if they had been washed away by the waves. Even her knees, which ached from time to time, seemed to have loosened up and allowed her to move freely.

Of course, Minhyuk did not stop his lip service and continued to drag in new customers.

“Oh my, brother! Are you tired? Come, come. Have some hanchippang that will definitely give you energy. Since you’re very handsome, I will give you a discount. Three hanchippangs cost 10,000 gold. But for you, I’ll give it for 9,900 gold!”

“Hahaha. Is that so? Then, give me three!”

Sometimes, there were customers with dark and gloomy expressions on their faces that would pass by.

“Dear customer, what’s the matter?”

“My fiance broke our engagement because I’m bald.”

“Eeeeeeeeh?! How can that be?”

Minhyuk looked like he was genuinely sorry for the man. He secretly slipped something onto his fingers. It was none other than the ‘Growth Ring’, an artifact produced by the Talmor Religion’s pope that had great effects when it came to growing hair.

“This hanchippang right here has a hair-growing effect. Brother, trust me this once!”

“Haha. You sound like you’re joking. But what’s the harm in trying, no?”

Minhyuk immediately rubbed the ring on his fingers the moment the man took a bite of the hanchippang. At the same time, the man felt a heat bloom on top of the empty fields on his head.

“U, uwoooooooh! It’s, it’s really growiiiiiiiing!!!”

“It’s really true. Hahahaha!!!”

This was not the only type of customer that passed by Minhyuk’s stall.

“It has been very boring lately. Is there something interesting out there?”

“Is that so? Then, how about giving this a read?”

“Why Did the Prince Go Out Tonight? What’s this?”

“It’s a very, very interesting novel. Brother, I’m only giving this to you, okay?”

The next day, the bald man and the bored man both came back to visit Minhyuk. There was actually some hair growing on the bald man’s head now.

“Thanks. I don’t know how I can repay the grace that you have given me.”

“It’s fine, brother. I’m already happy to see you happy, brother.”

As for the guy who said that he was bored, “This is the first time in a long time that I enjoyed reading a book. What happens next?”

Everyone grew to like and treat Minhyuk preciously.

“Kghhk! I heard that he’s a guest from another continent? You’re even a noble! You’re a noble that came to visit our dear Happy Island!”

“That’s right! He’s a noble!”

“Thanks to that child, my back is no longer hurting like before!”

[Carmel’s favor has reached the MAX level.]

[Evon’s favor…]

[Rokai’s favor…]

[Krucao’s favor…]

On top of all that, Minhyuk’s sales had increased at an exponential rate. It was around a hundred times more than the store’s usual sales. There was even a long line in front of the hanchippang store. After all, the taste of the hanchippang was very divine for these people. And Minhyuk, he was akin to a god, to all of these people who had grown addicted to Sea Honey.

[Many people have started to sing you praises.]

[As the master and leader of Minhyuk Religion, your divinity has grown quite a bit.]

The story of Minhyuk, who they referred to as the ‘noble’, was constantly being mentioned and discussed by the people, and his favor with the people was constantly increasing until they reached MAX level.

Quite a lot of people even began to sing of Minhyuk’s stories.

“Aaaaaaaaah, Noble~ Eat one hanchippang from his shop and your pain will fly away~”

“Someone grew hair!”

“Aaaaaaaah! He is loved by all!”

Minhyuk did not stop there. He continued to follow Gorac’s guidance and talked to all of the people who offered special dishes. There were obviously some customers who owned or cooked special dishes among those who bought hanchippang. He would then tell them something along the lines of, “I’ll give you five more hanchippangs, will you trade some mackerel with me?”

“Good!”

“I heard that you grow Great King Apples, the apples that are native to Happy Island. How about trading them for eight hanchippangs?”

“Call!”

Those who had tasted the hanchippang were soon addicted to its taste and effects. Everyone was willing to accept the trade, which allowed Minhyuk to pile up a huge amount of ingredients in his inventory.

Then…

[You have built a rapport and have received a lot of favor from many residents of Happy Island.]

[You have achieved the Easter Egg: ‘Happy Island’s Noble’]

[You have gained +10 in all of your stats.]

[Everything that you buy from the residents of Happy Island will be 30% cheaper.]

[Even though you’re a foreigner, the residents of Happy Island will not be wary of you and will even be friendly with you.]

[The Story of the Noble is being spread far and wide.]

This was the effect that Minhyuk wanted. Just like that, the Story of the Noble shook the entire Happy Island.

“A noble from another continent?”

Happy Island’s King Effer viewed him favorably after hearing that he was loved by the millions of people on the island.

“Bring him to me.”

1. 오겹살 similar to samgyeopsal but has five layers. Basically, it’s samgyeopsal with skin. ☜

2. 한치 - a type of squid with short legs and a diamond-shaped fin at the edge. 빵 - bread. ☜

3. A female diver that collects mollusks etc on the island. ☜