Gourmet Gaming

Minhyuk was kind and polite to the point that people often forget the fact that he was the successor to a large company. He had always stood against the strong and never ignored the weak. On top of that, there was often a pure, innocent and child-like smile whenever he was eating his food, which fascinated a lot of people. Many people benefited greatly from Minhyuk’s buffed dishes as well.

Just like that, people started to gather around him as he continued on his journey in Athenae. Before Aegaeon knew it, Minhyuk was already surrounded by countless people.

‘To be loved by all.’

Aegaeon looked at Valen, who had already stood up, with his sword aimed at him. Then, he looked around him. If he did his best, he was sure that he could devour Minhyuk right here and now. However, the problem came after that. If he devoured Minhyuk, the people who appeared here would make sure to hunt and destroy his fragments to the point that no trace would be left behind.

‘I can’t have that.’

If Aegaeon was honest, just the fact that Minhyuk was loved by all and had such power was enough for him to covet the child more. However, he knew that this was not the time yet.

Shwaaaaaaaaaa—

“I’ll stand down for now.”

All of the people present were glaring coldly at Aegaeon as he disappeared from their sight.

“Fwaaaaa…”

The moment he disappeared, Sword Emperor Ellie released a shaky breath. Many others also breathed a sigh of relief. They would be lying if they said that they did not feel fear at the thought of fighting a battle where their odds were completely unknown. Thankfully, it did not get to that point.

Then, Sword God Valen lowered himself once again and swept Minhyuk’s hair away. “You’re truly amazing, Minhyuk.”

Valen looked at the people around him. He did not expect Minhyuk to be loved by the Absolute Gods.

“Hmmm… want to eat… samgyeopsal… jokbal…”

Valen stared at the sleeping Minhyuk for a very long time.

***

Joy Co. Ltd. conference room.

Everyone felt very relieved. The ones that had been summoned and gathered in the Tomb of the Kings were now returning one after another through the paths opened by Athenae.

Kang Taehoon, who had recently connected Supercomputer Athenae to the conference room, called out, “Athenae.”

The screen in front of them immediately turned black.

[Speak.]

“Did you judge that this disaster could be prevented by opening that path?”

Everyone held their breath. Supercomputer Athenae was the one that managed and maintained the balance of everything inside the game Athenae. The choice that had been made earlier might have been done through Obren’s request, but this might have also been a decision made by Athenae herself to prevent the dire consequences.

[I cannot confirm nor deny anything.]

“…”

[I have opened the path because it is the ‘only method’ available.]

Athenae continued to speak, not stopping to hear whatever was in everyone’s mind.

[I did not predict anything like this.]

Even Supercomputer Athenae did not predict that this would happen. All she did was do her best to try and correct the error that suddenly appeared. The officials and operators of Joy Co. Ltd. remained silent. They felt extremely insignificant at this moment.

President Kang Taehoon smiled bitterly and said, “So, it’s not us, not you, but Minhyuk, who prevented this disaster?”

Silence enveloped the room for a few seconds. Then, Athenae said…

[That’s right.]

“Hahahahaha!” Kang Taehoon laughed loudly.

It was not the operators of Joy Co. Ltd. nor Athenae who did this. Perhaps even the supercomputer Athenae was hoping that there would be many people who would respond to her call when she opened the path earlier.

Then, Team Leader Park Minggyu, who vowed to further improve after reflecting and blaming himself for being incompetent and helpless in such a situation, said loudly, “Player Minhyuk… has truly become the heart of Athenae.”

***

[You have achieved amazing feats while clearing all of the trials of the Tomb of the Kings!]

This was the notification that rang in the ears of all of those present in the Tomb of the Kings. Calauhel and the Rothschilde Kingdom army felt that this was a very novel feeling.

‘We have been on the back foot since the very beginning.’

‘Thanks to Minhyuk, we were able to overcome these trials and even got amazing achievements.’

Minhyuk, who finally returned from the space that he was dragged into, was truly worthy of their admiration.

However, none of them was aware of what Minhyuk had gone through in that place. As for Minhyuk, he could check the situation through his guild chatting window.

[Vice Guild Master Genie: Minhyuk, are you alright?]

[Locke: Hoo… When I said that I will make him into an eunuch… everyone turned around. That f*cker…]

[Khan: You should get some rest when you get back. You must be very tired.]

[Ascar: We’re in trouble. Grandpa Ben, Brod and Elpis are making a fuss. They said they wanted to find Aegaeon’s fragments.]

[Ace: Looking for a girlfriend in Athenae. I’m Firefist Ace of Jungsan Middle School! My type are girls that are like Robin.]

[Crow: Hey, hey. How can you put a macro[1] here?]

[Ace: Aaack! Sry, sry. Minhyuk hyung, are you okay?]

Minhyuk smiled faintly. He was very grateful to all of them. Just when he was about to give his thanks, a constant stream of notification windows popped up in front of him. Well, Minhyuk thought that it would be better to just go back and personally give his thanks, so he looked at the notifications first.

[You have achieved amazing feats while clearing all of the trials of the Tomb of the Kings!]

[You have gained 933,311,000 EXP.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have acquired 53,317 platinum.]

[Something amazing will happen in the kingdom of the one that has achieved amazing feats while clearing the Tomb of the Kings.]

[The soldiers of Beyond the Heavens Kingdom’s Royal Army that are below Level 500 will grow 10% stronger.]

[The EXP Acquisition Rate of the soldiers of Beyond the Heavens Kingdom’s Royal Army that are below Level 500 will double for two weeks.]

[The EXP Acquisition Rate of the players of Beyond the Heavens Kingdom will double for two weeks.]

[You have acquired 300 Nurturing Parchments of the Ruaca’s Knights that Grew Powerful from the Strength of the Tyrant.]

[When applied, the Knights’ level will increase by 10%.]

[You have acquired 300 Nurturing Parchments of the Baramma Kingdom’s Archers that Received the Blessings of the God of Archery…]

[You have acquired 100,000 Immortal Guardian’s Swords and 100,000 Immortal Guardian’s Armor from the Blacksmiths Kingdom, Aggadon Kingdom.]

[You have acquired the legendary ingredients from the Banquet Enjoyed by the Kings.]

[You can acquire 130g~250g from every part of the Soft, Tender and Melt-in-the-Mouth Cow.]

[You have met the conditions to acquire the King Above Kings Class.]

[You have given up on the King Above Kings Class.]

[Easter Egg: The One that Went Beyond the King Above Kings.]

[As your reward for achieving the Easter Egg, you can get one of the rewards of the King Above Kings Class.]

This was the moment that he had been waiting for. This was the main reason why Minhyuk gave up on the King Above Kings Class. Of course, the other rewards were excellent, especially those that would help his forces become stronger. However, the reward that Minhyuk wanted the most was the ingredients for the Banquet Enjoyed by the Kings. Of course, he would choose the one that tasted the best.

[The Legendary Ingredients from the Banquet Enjoyed by the Kings have evolved into God-grade ingredients.]

[You have acquired 200g of Chuck Flap Tail.]

[You have acquired 200g of Rib Eye Steak.]

[You have acquired 150g of Skirt Steak…]

[You have acquired 200g of Flat Iron Steak…]

Minhyuk already felt like he was recovering well the more he listened to these notifications.

‘I’ve gained a lot.’

First, the EXP Acquisition Rate of all of the players in the Beyond the Heavens Kingdom had doubled for two weeks. In other words, Beyond the Heavens would be able to rise in terms of power. Since tens of thousands of players benefitted from the achievements made by their king, many people would come to visit the kingdom to see for their own eyes.

[The Seventh Absolute Demigod Class has been born to the world!]

[The Seventh Absolute Demigod Class is the ‘King Above Kings’!]

[There are a total of twenty Absolute Demigod Classes that exist in the world!]

The world message rang out. Minhyuk turned to look at Calauhel, who was trembling from excitement.

[The other king has cleared the Tomb of the Kings with greater achievements than you.]

[The other king has given up on the ‘King Above Kings’ class.]

[Your class will be upgraded to the Absolute Demigod Class!]

[Your HP and MP has recovered to 100%.]

[Only those that do not have the ‘God Class’ will be able to obtain the Absolute Demigod Class.]

[All of your stats and skills will change after you have acquired the Absolute Demigod Class!]

[Your level will go down by -200 within twenty-four hours after you have acquired the Absolute Demigod Class!]

[The Absolute Demigod King Above Kings is the one that brought all of the kings to their knees with just his sword.]

[The Absolute Demigod King Above Kings is a powerful man who can even fight against an emperor with his sword alone!]

Calauhel’s previous class was the Maestro of Destruction. That meant that all of his skills and stats had changed with the acquisition of this new class. When he looked at the new list of his skills, a shiver ran down his body. All he could do was look at it in awe.

“Your Majesty, congratulations on becoming the Seventh Absolute Demigod Class!!!”

The Rothschilde Kingdom’s army all knelt down and showed courtesy in front of Calauhel.

Was the Absolute Demigod Class more shabby when compared to an Absolute God Class? Not at all. According to the information that had been published before, Absolute God Classes could have an enormous influence in the world of Athenae. While the Absolute Demigod Classes could not exert as much influence, they were mostly ‘combat classes’ and had power that could potentially go beyond that of the Absolute God Classes. The prime example of this was ‘Asura Ascar.’

The trembling Calauhel said, “Minhyuk, I will give you all of the rewards that we have acquired today.”

“Your, Your Majesty…!”

According to their deal, the Rothschilde Kingdom should receive at least 10% of the rewards. This was supposed to be the reward for the victims and those who suffered from this trial.

“I’ll take care of the compensations for those that participated and died in this conquest.”

Calauhel did not think that it was a waste to do so. In fact, he had already firmly decided on one thing.

“From this day on, our Rothschilde Kingdom will be Beyond the Heaven’s Kingdom’s…”

But before he could finish his words, a notification rang out.

[Another person has entered the Tomb of the Kings!]

***

The global top Dungeon Explorer Ian had become a dog of the Great Luvien Empire. He deliberately leaked the information about the Tomb of the Kings to the Rothschilde Kingdom, knowing that these people would not be able to clear the dungeon. It was because he intended to get all of their drops once they had been wiped out.

‘Those two bastards must have already been forced to log out.’

When Aegaeon was temporarily awakened, the two mercenaries that he hired to stir up trouble had been forced to log out.

Ian felt his heart thump wildly.

‘It’s not only Calauhel, but even Food God Minhyuk that has died in this place.’

The challengers of the Tomb of the Kings would lose their skills, artifacts, and a variety of things in their possession upon failing in their trial. The most interesting fact here was the fact that the skill that they lost would not be deleted but dropped, just like when killing a monster.

‘They will not be able to survive against Aegaeon.’

Each of the top three dungeon explorers held special skills and abilities that allowed them to stand on top of other dungeon explorers. In the case of Bran, the 2nd in the rankings, he had the skill ‘Ancient Relics Tracker’. As for Ian, he had the ‘Dungeon Explorer’s Eye.’

If the Ancient Relics Tracker could track relics once every five months, the Dungeon Explorer’s Eye could be triggered once every month. It was much better than the Ancient Relics Tracker since it could help Ian read, analyze, and grasp the system of the dungeons, even in this Tomb of the Kings that he was currently tracking.

‘In the end, they had to awaken Aegaeon. Even if they defeated the kings and obtained amazing achievements, it would be impossible for them to defeat Aegaeon.’

Ian grinned widely. In the unlikely scenario they had killed Aegaeon, he would have gotten the notification. However, there was no such thing.

However, there was one thing that Ian had overlooked. Each skill had its own advantages. For example, Bran knew through his ‘Ancient Relics Tracker’ that one would be able to obtain the class King Above Kings inside the Tomb of the Kings. That was something that Ian did not know.

‘Who’s the one that got the King Above Kings?’

However, Ian quickly threw that question to the back of his mind. With his eyes stained by greed, he quickly entered the Tomb of the Kings.

“You’re still resorting to dirty tricks to gain benefits for yourself?”

“…!”

Ian was shocked when a voice suddenly rang in his ears. A figure emerged from the darkness, and it was none other than Bran. Ian had always ignored Bran. In fact, he believed that Bran would not be able to catch up to him. However, this was only because Bran did not resort to immoral and dirty methods.

“H, how…?” Ian stuttered, disbelief clear on his face.

“You must be the one that leaked that information to me.”

Another figure emerged from the darkness. This man was none other than Calauhel. Ian’s pupils dilated when he saw that the man was still alive. He took a step back.

“W, wait…”

Ian was a dungeon explorer. His power could only rival that of a high-level player, and he was absolutely no match against Calauhel.

Thump—

Unfortunately, when he took a step back, he was blocked by a tall man.

“When one enters the Tomb of the Kings, they will be subjected to greater penalties upon being forced to log out.”

The person blocking his path scoffed. This man was none other than the Luvien Empire’s greatest nemesis, the Beyond the Heavens’ King, the Food God.

“This… shit…!”

It was only then that he realized that these people had cleared the Tomb of the Kings.

‘Im, impossible…!’

Minhyuk, who was standing behind the shocked Ian, whispered, “Did you know? I obtained a lot of interesting things when I hunted the Evil Incarnate.”

Minhyuk took out an artifact from his inventory. This artifact was a one-time use artifact called the ‘Dagger of Despair.’

Staaaaaaab—

The moment the dagger stabbed Ian’s back, he received chilling notifications.

[Your penalty for being forced to log out will be doubled!]

[You will drop 30%~80% of your platinum once you are forced to log out.]

“W, wait. Let’s make a deal…”

However, Minhyuk’s sword had already pierced through his heart even before he could finish his words.

Staaaaaaaaab—!

[You have been forced to log out!]

[You have received the Tomb of the Kings’ Penalty!]

[The Dagger of Despair has doubled your penalty for forced log out.]

[You will drop 71% of your platinum.]

[You have dropped 44,313 platinum.]

[You have dropped the Veteran Dungeon Explorer’s Armor.]

[You have dropped Farimi’s Nimble Boots.]

[You have dropped your skill: Breaking Through Dungeons.]

His thoughts turned blank. The notifications that continued to ring in his ears made him fall into the depths of despair.

[You have dropped your skill: Dungeon Explorer’s Eyes.]

The nail in the coffin was when the best skill that had kept him at the top also dropped.

‘N, noooooooooooo!!!’

Ian screamed. Then he saw Minhyuk grinning, “Hey, thanks a lot.”

Finally, Ian’s vision turned dark.

1. automatic program that repeatedly inputs a specific command ☜