Gourmet Gaming

Chapter 1046

[Your third wish has been granted inside the Maze of the Unknown.]

[Aside from the two chefs and the one assistant, you can receive help from one additional person.]

Their last wish was granted inside the Maze of the Unknown.

The Battle God, who had grown impatient, left the Maze of the Unknown and said he would bring the God of the Directionally Challenged himself.

Now, the Battle God had finally returned.

Minhyuk could never forget how the God of the Directionally Challenged had paid him the for the labour and ingredients as a show of sincerity when Minhyuk served the gods with delicious food. Yet, the tactless god had laughed happily as if his little show of sincerity was the best among the gods.

The God of the Directionally Challenged, Abara, smiled at Minhyuk. “Greetings, God of Cooking and next generation Battle God.”

Abara thought, ‘I was brilliant when I paid the next generation Battle God the cost of labour and ingredients for the dish he made for us. Fufu. He definitely likes me. I can see that he cares about me by the look in his eyes.’

That was not the case at all. Minhyuk was just looking at him blankly.

“More importantly, how did you get lost?” the God of Cooking asked.

This was because any god could reach the Maze of the Unknown without any difficulties.

Abara rubbed his chin and said, “I don’t know. I was definitely heading straight to the Maze of the Unknown, but all of a sudden, I was in the human world. It’s extraordinary.”

It was not strange at all. It was because he was the God of the Directionally Challenged.

Abara continued, “This happens all the time. Not too long ago, I stepped out of my temple. But then, I got lost. When I opened my eyes, I was already in Hell. I ran away because the God of Death almost killed me. And when I opened my eyes again, I was in the land where the elves live.”

“...?”

“...?”

Everyone was puzzled. Usually, if someone was already at this level, they should have admitted that they were terrible with directions, right?

Meanwhile, Minhyuk was in awe. He thought, ‘Wow... He’s so tactless and slow that he doesn’t even recognise that he’s bad at directions himself?’

As strange as it might sound, their only way to break through the situation was the power of the God of the Directionally Challenged.

The Battle God knew it well. That was why he tapped Abara’s shoulder and said, “When this is over, I’ll treat you well later.”

When someone sitting in the leader’s position said these words, it usually meant receiving a better position or a surprising amount of gold and treasures.

“Why do it later? Shouldn’t you give it to me now?”

“...”

The Battle God clenched his fists.

“Wouldn’t it be troublesome if you give it to me later? Just give it to me now. Haha!”

This time, the one clenching their fists was the God of Cooking. Ultimately, the Battle God pulled out a heavy bag filled with money. There were at least hundreds of thousands of platinum inside of it.

Abara received the bag and thought, ‘Kghhk! When he said he would treat me well later, he meant that he would renege on it later and pretend that he did not say anything.’

He was utterly wrong. The Battle God had intended to give him a better position, not just mere money or treasure. It was even a position worth hundreds of millions of platinum, not hundreds of thousands.

‘But as expected, I’m really clever! Since I asked for it right away, I got some money!’

In the end, Minhyuk was also left clenching his fists tightly when he saw the grin on Abara’s face. He almost couldn’t hold it in when he saw the god being so complacent.

Minhyuk and the other two looked at each other.

‘Should we kill him...?’

For some reason, they all felt terrible thinking that this kind of person was their hope.

The Battle God said, “Since I already gave you your compensation, let me explain what we want you to do. It’s straightforward.” The Battle God pointed at the imposing maze behind them. “When we start cooking, the Supreme Monarch will enter that maze. Make it so he will not be able to find his way here.”

Abara looked at the maze with a faint smile on his face. “It’s not that difficult. Look, there’s even a maze set up.”

“It’s... not that difficult?”

Even if the God of the Directionally Challenged could get lost and make others get lost, the opponent was still the Supreme Monarch. Well, it was also true that their trust in him had decreased because of his tactless behaviour.

“Anyone can lose their way. After all, we rely on our memories, the signs and various other guides that point us in the right direction.”

The God of the Directionally Challenged looked confidently at the maze. He seemed so confident that he could rival the God of Confidence in prestige.

“How was it? Wasn’t I cool?”

“Let go of me! Don’t stop me! I can’t take it anymore!”

Minhyuk and Arlene hurriedly hugged the Battle God to stop him. Meanwhile, the God of the Directionally Challenged tilted his head in confusion. He could not understand what the matter was with the Battle God. Abara was indeed a god without tact.

***

Minhyuk, Arlene, and the Battle God were all tense.

‘Once the Supreme Monarch exits that maze, we will face real death.’

‘As soon as that bastard comes out, we must leave this place with the God of Cooking.’

‘Can we even run away with her?’

They were extremely nervous because a devastating tragedy would happen if they failed to escape with the God of Cooking the moment the Supreme Monarch exited the maze.

Despite the cold sweat dripping down Arlene’s forehead, she smiled and said, “Minhyuk, let’s start.”

The greatest and most difficult challenge in the world was now going to start. The film began to swell when Minhyuk placed the pork backbone in the water.

BANG!!!

A loud explosion reverberated through the maze, but the God of the Directionally Challenged was already inside. So, Minhyuk and the God of Cooking Arlene calmly worked on the dish that they were cooking.

They were quick to remove the film. This was their fastest record to remove the film; the process only took nine minutes.

Immediately after that, the scum caused by the boiling water floated and began to explode around them. The two endured the explosions and continued to remove the scum from the cauldron.

Bang!!!

The two could not help but cringe and turn to look at the maze when another explosion erupted within the labyrinth. They froze as if waiting for him to appear.

“How much time has passed?”

“Fourteen minutes have passed since you started.”

The Supreme Monarch, who had grown used to the maze, would reach this place within fifteen minutes of his summoning. That was why they only had around fifteen minutes of cooking time.

The God of Cooking was shocked. “D-did it work?!”

The Battle God raised a finger to his lips to silence Arlene. He slowly leaned on the walls of the maze and closed his eyes. He listened intently and focused on the sounds coming from the inside. When he opened his eyes, there was a faint sense of admiration in them.

The Battle God said, “It’s unbelievable... Right now... Right now, he’s still far from the exit.”

Arlene and Minhyuk’s faces brightened.

“He might have no tact, but he’s truly a god who can ensure that someone will get lost.”

“Now, we can focus on cooking, Arlene.”

The two looked at each other. Then, they hurriedly removed the scum and took out the doenjang.

***

The Supreme Monarch was alive but was not living. He was a being who could live infinitely and was created solely as the envoy who would protect the Frenzied Ingredients.

A deep smile dug at the corners of his mouth when he realised that the three gods, who had repeatedly died helplessly under his hands, began to cook again. After all, the Supreme Monarch was also aware that this was their last chance to challenge the ingredient.

Just like that, the Supreme Monarch entered the maze. Despite the ever-changing path of the labyrinth, he was confident that he would easily pass through it. Why? Because he had already grasped everything about it.

‘Once the maze shifts a third time, I can go this way.’

Rumble–!

The Supreme Monarch smiled leisurely as he watched the maze walls shake and move.

‘Was it the fourth time?’

‘No. Maybe it’s the fifth?’

He felt that something was off. He should have remembered the path, but he just could not for some reason.

Not long after, he convinced himself. ‘It’s definitely the fifth shift.’

The Supreme Monarch took a different path after the maze walls shifted for the fifth time. However, when he exited the path, he realised he had entered a completely different path—a path that he had never been to before.

‘What? Wasn’t it supposed to be here?’

The Supreme Monarch kept calm and composed. In the end, the maze had a set rule. As long as he could see through the rules of this place, then the path would eventually reveal itself.

‘Where am I?’

The Supreme Monarch could no longer hide his frustration. Although he believed he had followed the rules of the maze, he found himself moving to a completely different place each time. In the end, the rules of the maze faded from his memories.

Bang–!

The lost Supreme Monarch hit the walls of the maze in anger. However, the walls of the Maze of the Unknown would create more walls and make the maze more complicated whenever someone tried to damage it. He ran frantically, trying to find the exit. But there was no exit in sight.

Meanwhile, the God of the Directionally Challenged floated above the maze and looked at him with a faint smile.

‘Fufu.’

This smile signified his happiness at receiving hundreds of thousands of platinum from the Battle God.

***

Minhyuk and the God of Cooking worked well together. The two swiftly added the doenjang in the cauldron at the same time.

Blub, blub–!

The boiling water slowly changed colours as the smell of doenjang rapidly spread in the area.

“Uweeeeeeck!”

Minhyuk vomited, shocked by the smell that wafted in his nose. Even Arlene could not help but cover her mouth.

Why were they reacting like this? The smell that the doenjang released was nauseating. It was so disgusting that one could only retch and vomit the moment the smell reached their nose.

“Minhyuk!”

“Yes. Urk!”

Nevertheless, the two endured the disgusting smell and continued to cook the gamjatang. They added the prepared potatoes, outer cabbage leaves, and other ingredients to the cauldron.

“Uweeeeeck!”

However, Minhyuk could not help but vomit again.

‘What... What the hell is this...!’

The smell of rotten corpses wafted from the cauldron of gamjatang that they were cooking.

Arlene collapsed, unable to endure the smell.

‘A dish that should taste delicious has a smell like this...?’

Minhyuk understood that the Frenzied Ingredient was attacking their consciousness and rationality.

‘Why do I have to make this kind of dish? This kind of dish that could make someone vomit?!’

Minhyuk questioned himself like this because the ingredient was taking over his sense of reason. At that moment, several notifications were ringing in his ears, but they did not register. The only thought that filled his head was stopping what he was doing.

Thwack–!

Right then, Arlene slapped Minhyuk in the face.

“Wake up! Get a grip! Right now, the ingredient is trying to take away your sense of reason. Don’t forget that.” Arlene grabbed Minhyuk by the collar. “This. Is. The. Supreme. Dish.”

“...”

“The most delicious dish in the world, the Supreme Dish.”

The light in Minhyuk’s eyes slowly began to return, thanks to Arlene’s words. He nodded.

“And...”

A delighted smile appeared on Minhyuk’s face.

“...this is a dish that only we can cook.”

Minhyuk thought that he was fortunate to be cooking with Arlene. This ingredient would have already rotted away if she wasn't here. Strength finally returned to Minhyuk’s limbs.

Finally, he heard the notifications ringing non-stop in his ears.

[Please lower the heat.]

[If you cannot control the heat, the pork backbone will rot.]

[Please stir the contents of the cauldron.]

[If you don’t stir the cauldron's contents, the pork backbone will rot.]

These two actions could not be performed by a single person alone. They had to be done simultaneously.

Crackle–!

Minhyuk grabbed the ladle and began to stir when Arlene started controlling the flames. The two were absorbed in their work.

‘This dish... is the most delicious in the world. This is the Supreme Dish.’

Minhyuk smiled at the thought of eating such a delicious dish, while Arlene smiled at the thought of doing something that others could not.

‘Today will be the day that the Supreme Dish will be born to the world.’

Minhyuk slowly fell into a deep trance.

***

The entire world was watching Minhyuk and Arlene cook.

[This is crazy. A disgusting smell suddenly spread from the cauldron while they were cooking.]

[Minhyuk is being controlled by a type of mind magic. Goodness! I have never seen an ingredient that is this hard to cook!]

[The God of Cooking and the Food God endured the stench as they continued to cook.]

[Are you seeing this? The two are smiling happily! No ingredient can stop the God of Cooking and the Food God!]

[I think the cooking process is coming to an end now.]

[Various ingredients and the pork backbone are slowly being cooked inside the boiling broth. It looks delicious!]

[Ah... Ahhh! Did you see that just now?! Hundreds of transparent blades fell from the sky, cutting and slashing Minhyuk and Arlene!]

[Minhyuk is hugging Arlene and shielding her from the attacks!]

[Minhyuk and Arlene are both covered in blood. They are using potions to stop the bleeding before continuing to cook.]

[Rumbleeee–!]

[E-Earthquake! It’s an earthquake!]

[A terrifying earthquake is interfering with the cooking process.]

[The two gods are hugging the hot cauldron so it will not spill over.]

[I can see the determination in their eyes. It’s like they are saying nothing can ruin the dish before them!]

[This is amazing. Despite the intense earthquake, none of the broth spilt out of the cauldron.]

[It’s the final step! Minhyuk has grabbed the spring onion.]

[BANG!!!]

[CRACKLE–!]

[A pillar of blazing flames shot out and devoured Minhyuk and Arlene. Their bodies are turning black from being scorched by the fire, but Minhyuk is not letting go of the spring onion.]

[Arlene is reaching out toward the flames.]

[The scorched Minhyuk yells as he adds the green onion to the cauldron!]

[Finally... Arlene successfully turns off the flames!]

All people tuned in to the live broadcast stopped in their tracks. Everyone gulped.

Minhyuk and Arlene, whose bodies were all burnt and scorched, collapsed on the ground with a loud thud.

The Supreme—it was the highest level, a level that everyone wanted to reach.

The Supreme—it was the most dangerous challenge but would give the sweetest reward.

The Supreme—it was the last level that a player could achieve.

[Anonymous has successfully created the Supreme Dish!]

The entire world cheered when they saw the notification.

Meanwhile, Arlene and Minhyuk’s bodies were recovering at a rapid pace.

[Hic– Heuk, heuk, heuk– Master, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m really sorry. I wanted to avenge you. I really, really wanted to avenge you, but...]

The entire world witnessed the God of Cooking collapse and cry. She said that she was sorry, even though she had done it.

The viewers watching this scene understood what she was feeling. Although she did it, something was missing. They noticed that the reason why she was crying was because they were only able to cook the dish. Yes, they succeeded in cooking the dish, but she wanted revenge on the Supreme Monarch too. However, she knew that they would not be able to do it.

The viewers grew silent. Arlene’s sad and desperate cry for the master she had lost and whom she vowed to avenge was making their hearts clench in pain. They all knew that even though they were able to do it, it was still like they had not done anything.

Then, Minhyuk approached Arlene and hugged her lightly. He smiled faintly as he looked at her tear-stained face before standing up. This time, he grabbed his sword and not his ladle.

Minhyuk walked right next to the Battle God, who had finished all the preparations and looked at the maze before them.

[The title of the broadcast has been changed.]

The man standing in front of the maze has changed the name “Cooking the Supreme Dish” into something else.

[Hunting the Supreme Monarch.]

The entire world cheered when they saw the new title of the live broadcast.