Leveling Up Through Eating

Chapter 484: The King’s Building

Following this doctrine, which eventually became Kentaro’s famous line, Kentaro’s physical body became healthier, which in turn allowed him to obtain strength in Athenae better than before. To Kentaro, Minhyuk was his benefactor. So with his call for help, Kentaro led his guild members, the members of the best guild in Japan, to where Minhyuk was.

However, no matter how prestigious the position of a guild leader was, it was impossible for him to make all of his guild members come to Minhyuk’s aid with just one order. The reason for everyone’s participation? There was only one.

‘Perhaps… we can taste the Food God’s dishes.’

‘I heard that we’ll be able to hear heavenly harmonies with just a bite of the Food God’s dish.’

‘I can’t wait!’

That was right! Anyone that tasted Minhyuk’s dishes, whether they were a gourmand or not, would always find themselves moaning, even with just the side dishes! There would be some people in the world that felt that eating was an annoyance, but none of them hated the act. And Minhyuk already knew that this quest was an extensive quest. In fact, he only ‘barely’ received the quest when these notifications had already appeared in front of him:

[You are the one that directly received the quest.]

[You will be given special privileges during the quest.]

[You can now make quests.]

[You can personally set the rewards.]

He was given the ability to create quests! Of course, as the king of ‘Beyond the Heavens Kingdom’, he already had the ability to create quests to have players help in his kingdom. However, that was an ability that was only possible in the confines of Beyond the Heavens Kingdom.

Now, that was not a problem anymore.

‘Through this, I can make a linked quest. I can reward them accordingly through each step. It will definitely foster a good environment and spur people\'s enthusiasm to work.’

A lazy worker would definitely be of no use. Only those that were willing to try and work hard would become more useful and create good results.

“I will give a present to those that came here to help,” Minhyuk said as he looked around with Kentaro.

“Wow~ Are we finally going to be able to taste the dishes of Our Lord Food God?”

“Kghhk!!!”

“Kyaaaa!”

Minhyuk took the opportunity to create quests while everyone was in awe of their luck.

‘Three linked quests per day. I’ll also set the rewards so that they will get better as time goes by. The meals that they will get will become tastier the better their performance.’

At this point, it was certain that Minhyuk would not participate in the construction. His job here was to cook for them.

‘They’re definitely curious about Korean dishes. After all, they all ate a lot of kimchi stew, soybean paste stew, and bulgogi when they visited Korea.’

But Minhyuk was fully aware that finding a place where they could eat authentic and delicious bulgogi and kimchi stew was really hard. After all, Japanese tourists would often flock to ‘tourist attractions’. To be honest, most of the restaurants in those places were considered bad by Korea\'s standards. In fact, there were even plenty of rip-offs among those restaurants. That was why Minhyuk wanted to give them a taste of authentic and delicious Korean dishes!

[Have you completed the Quest Creation process?]

“Yes.”

At the same time, all of the people present have received a quest.

[Linked Quest: Korean Dishes Will Come Out While Making a Building?!!!]

Rank: D

Requirements: The Ones that participate in the creation of the King’s Building.

Rewards: You can choose from the following choices: Kimchi Stew Set Meal, Soybean Paste Stew Set Meal, Seaweed Soup Set Meal, etc.

Penalty for Failure: You will not be able to continue participating in the King’s Building Quest if you fail to achieve 100% of the participation rate within 24 hours.

Description: This is a quest presented by Minhyuk, the person that directly received the King’s Building Quest. You can get food whenever you reach 100% of your participation rate. Everytime you get food, your participation rate will return to 0%. You will be able to get another dish once your participation rate reaches 100% again. If you reach the final link, a surprising and shocking dish will be prepared for you.

“Oh? A quest where we can get food from the Food God?”

“It’s getting me excited, huh?”

“That sounds excellent.”

Kentaro led around 20,000 of his guild members. This was the best way to get them to do their best. However, plenty of them were still complaining.

“Are you kidding me? The reward is just food?”

“Are there no other rewards besides food? The quest doesn’t seem to be easy and the rewards are terrible too.”

Even in reality, they would be provided with full meals as long as they went to work in construction sites.

But to think the rewards that they were being given here were only food?!

Kentaro could only smile bitterly at the ones that were complaining. Minhyuk was also aware that these reactions were inevitable. It was only natural since everyone here was going to invest their ‘precious time’. They already did not have enough time to do various quests and increase their levels, but the only reward that they would get was food. It was definitely a ridiculous quest!

‘I’ll do my best so that the food I make will not look sloppy.’

Besides, even if he wanted to, there were too many people for Minhyuk to give another reward. Also…

‘Fufufu. Do you really think this reward is bad?’ Minhyuk thought, expecting a very rare scene in the future. Then, he unfolded a large parchment in front of Kentaro and the Five Stars.

“This is the blueprint for the building.”

“…Th, this…”

“Isn’t this really grand?”

“No. It’s not only cool, it’s also perfect. Look at that interior?! Who in the world made this?!”

In fact, Jarrod was someone that had dabbled in construction and had a considerable amount of knowledge about it. Even the well-versed Jarrod had never seen such an intricate and perfect design.

The answer to his question was Roadol, the president of Ilhwa Construction. The blueprint was something that Roadol had spent a long time planning and drawing.

“This will be the greatest building in existence once it’s finished,” Minhyuk declared confidently, his confidence making all of the Five Stars believe in him.

Finally, the construction started.

***

The construction site of the building was set in a huge forest located close to Arsa Village. This forest was called the Forest of the Sun. Although trees and grass grew lush around it, nothing grew in the middle. That place was where they were going to construct their building.

Thousands of people began to pull out the small and large stones embedded on the ground. They gathered it together and placed it in a cart to dispose of it somewhere else. Then, the people that were unearthing the rocks…

“Fwaa. This is tiring. So backbreaking.”

“If only I could taste the Food God’s dish.”

“Ugh… I don’t want to do it anymore. Doing something like this just for one dish?!”

Many of the players among them were forced to come because of Kentaro’s call. All of them grumbled. After all, in places that required strenuous labor, most of them would reveal their true personalities. Some worked silently and diligently, carrying the stones away, wiping their perspiration with the towels on their necks, before running back to carry more. There were others already feigning exhaustion, showing that they were having a hard time carrying one or two pieces of rocks.

“Aenil. Take it easy. Why are you working so hard when there’s no reward?”

“Even so, it’s a quest given by a Korean player that came to our country. If I do it half-heartedly, I feel like I’ll be showing them that Japanese people are all like this. Anyway, doing something like this is fun in its own way.”

“Well, you work hard at everything you do. That’s a problem on its own.”

The man, Aenil, smiled. He was the typical model student! However, his friend just leaned against a tree while whistling leisurely. Just when Aenil was preparing to work hard again, an unexpected notification rang in his ears.

[Your participation rate has increased dramatically in just a short period of time!]

[You can choose between Juicy Juice and Iced Americano for your special reward.]

“Huh?”

It just so happened that his throat was getting dry. Aenil went to where the people had gathered. There, he saw a handsome young man handing out drinks.

“Gorfido?”

“Heok! It’s, it’s really Gorfido!”

“Gorfido’s handing out drinks here?”

There was no one that did not know who Great Pirate Gorfido was. After all, he knelt in front of Minhyuk and swore his allegiance not too long ago. But what he was doing now…

‘He’s giving out drinks?’

‘Keok?!’

The shock did not end there.

“Gorfido. Can’t you go any faster when handing out drinks?! Can’t you see the crowd lined up here?! Oh my~ our dear gulli… no, brothers! Haha! Have some refreshing drinks! The Juicy goes in, glug, glug, glug~ until when are we going to do the~ shoulder~ dance~”

This was the typical business owner! Smiling kindly to customers while getting angry with their part-timers! Aenil, who was also in line, finally received a glass of watermelon juice from Gorfido.

“Thank, thank you for the drink,” Aenil said, eyes and body quivering as he received the glass of watermelon juice from the fierce Gorfido and tipped it to his mouth. The moment the juice entered his mouth…

Blink—

Hallelujah~ Hallelujah~ Hallelujah, Hallelujah~ Minhyuk-llujaaaaaaaah~

Aenil blinked blankly, eyes growing wider by the second, as a heavenly voice rang in his head! After that? Well, he could not stop his mouth from gulping down everything in his glass!

Gulp, gulp, gulp, gulp, gulp—

After gulping down his watermelon juice, Aenil could only shout in shock, “Cra, crazy…! This is very delicious!”

It was just watermelon juice, so how could it be this delicious, right?! Of course it would be delicious. Even though it was just a simple watermelon juice, after passing through the hands of Minhyuk, someone that had 5,000 DEX, that was doubled by the effects of Ellie’s Kitchen Knife, it would definitely be able to attract anyone’s attention!

But that was not all! A set of shocking notifications even rang in Aenil’s ears.

[You have drunk the Refreshing Juicy Watermelon Juice.]

[Strength starts to fill your body as your exhaustion fades away.]

[Your STM will increase by +20 for four hours.]

How could a buff from a simple juice produce this much effect?! This was the thought that flashed in everyone’s head.

‘I, I want to drink it again…!’

However, that was when Aenil realized why Gorfido was the one tasked to hand out drinks. Just one look and he could tell that he would be logged out if he tried to ask for another drink.

‘I, I have to work harder! I’ll definitely get another drink.’

Rush, rush, rush, rush—

Aenil immediately ran back to work. And the ones that had a taste of the drink with him…

Rush, rush, rush, rush—

Rush, rush, rush—

Rush, rush, rush—

…all ran at full-speed and went back to work.

“Huh? What the hell?!”

“What the hell’s wrong with them?!”

“For a moment, I thought we’re in a zombie movie?”

Minhyuk smiled viciously at the sight of the rushing people. He was making full use of the ‘quest system’ by using the juice as a special reward for those that worked hard. Once they got a taste of it, they would definitely work harder. Then, what would happen if someone that was doing things half-heartedly saw them?

“Can I have one of those drinks too?”

“…You do not meet the requirements to get a drink.”

“No. I also worked hard so why don’t you give me a drink too… Ah, I know. Of course not, huh? I won’t drink it.”

One of the grumbling and complaining players immediately dashed away when he saw Gorfido’s hand settle on the hilt of his sword. The player thought, ‘I want to drink it too, you know? Hoo… I have no choice but to work hard for a bit, huh?’

They would have no choice but to work, out of sheer curiosity for the drink. And once they got a taste of the drink? They could only change and turn into ‘Aenil’’s state and…

“Minhyuk-llujah!”

…do their best!

‘Fufufu! Work hard, slaves!’

Minhyuk grinned widely.

***

PD Haruo of Japan’s top broadcasting station, KBTV broadcasting station, was walking around in Athenae with his filming crew. He declared, “Either way, the situation will be interesting. We can film how the Food God and the Japanese Players fail in creating the King’s Building.”

Reporter Yuka nodded when she heard his words. PD Haruo believed that they would fail simply because…

“Just now, I’ve heard that the rewards that the Food God offered is food, you know? On top of that, Kentaro brought 20,000 people there. Do you think they went there willingly? They just went there because they can’t disobey Kentaro. Also, who would want to work hard when the rewards are that poor? That’s 100% a failure. That’s why we came here to film.”

It was the quest to build a building for a king! That was why it was not unusual to fail. However! This was the Food God failing! PD Haruo had already thought of a title too. It went like this: The Food God Can’t Do Anything in Japan!

Yuka nodded since PD Haruo’s words were well-founded and convincing. But still, she raised his doubts and said, “But, wasn’t the Food God known for making the impossible possible?”

“This time is definitely different. They have to make the grandest building in the world. The Food God is just a player that eats well. He’s not a builder, you know?”

Yuka nodded once again while Haruo smiled in a cunning manner and said, “I don’t really like that Food God. I’m sure that the rumors about the food that he made is just something exaggerated for marketing!”

Haruo was definitely certain that the testimonies about the greatness of the Food God’s cooking were only exaggerated by the Beyond the Heavens Kingdom.

‘And even if the food that he made is really delicious, there’s a limit to how much that can motivate others to work.’

Moving with such thoughts in mind, they finally arrived at the construction site. Just then, the Food God appeared to meet them. He said, “Oh my~ Aren’t you PD Haruo, the famous PD from KBTV broadcasting station? Hahaha!”

“You know me?”

“Of course~ Of course~ You’re very famous. What was that… Ha… ha…”

“Happy Days!”

“Ah! Yes, that! I always watched Happy Days!”

Haruo could feel that Minhyuk had not seen a single episode of Happy Days. Even so, he said, “Oh. I guess my programs are famous in Korea too.”

As they talked, Yuka said, “PD, I’ve already informed you but I have something to do so I’ll log out and come back later.”

“Alright.”

Then, Food God Minhyuk handed out drinks to the PD and the rest of the broadcasting station’s employees while singing, “Until when are we going to do~ the shoulder~ dance~ Glug~ glug, glug, glug~”

Yuka just shrugged and logged out. She did not have the time to receive and taste the drink because she was busy and had work to do in reality.

An hour later, when she came back and reconnected inside the game, Yuka tilted her head in confusion.

“Where did everyone go? Why are their whispers off too?”

Haruo said that they would start their shoot after talking with the Food God. He said that discussions would definitely only last for an hour. But she could not find anyone after coming back after the hour was up. So, Yuka moved forward to find them.

What greeted her was a shocking sight.

“Uwoooooooh!”

Crack, crack, crack, crack!

A man was digging the ground like crazy. But that was not all, there were around twenty people that gathered around the man and were also digging crazily. These crazy people were none other than PD Haruo and the rest of the broadcasting station’s employees. All of them were smiling weirdly.

“Fufufufu… I, I can drink a bit more of that drink…”

“Refreshing and sweet… watermelon juice…”

“My, my melon…”

“He, hehehe…!”

“Uwooooooooh!”

Then, Haruo said, “Everyone, you can do it! Just a few more and we will be able to drink it again!”

“Uwoooooh! Long, long live the Food God!!! Long live the Sect Leader!!!”

Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!

“…?”

Yuka could not understand what was happening in front of her. Why were they working here when they only came to cover what was happening here? What was worse, this was Haruo, the one that said that the Food God’s food was only exaggerated by the rumors.

‘What in the world happened?’