Chapter 135

Now that he had come to his senses, Ju-hyeon wasn't afraid of The Black Cape.

“Since you’ve woken up after a long time, I prepared porridge for your first meal.”

“You know how to make porridge too?”

“I may look like this, but I know how to make most dishes.”

“It smells wonderful, thank you.”

Ju-hyeon, who had recovered his energy while sleeping, smiled affably and expressed his gratitude.

‘A monster is making porridge??’

Of course, that was separate from his inner thoughts.

Ju-hyeon was breaking out in a cold sweat inwardly amidst deep bewilderment and a feeling of utter absurdity.

An evil god who cooked himself, served it to a human, and expressed pride in his own actions.

The reason he wasn't scared of him right now was largely due to this absurdity.

‘No, even if he’s an evil god, this is… rather, it’s even weirder to call him an evil god.’

The Association reported The Black Cape as a monster, but Ju-hyeon, who had accumulated some experience, knew the reality.

The Association often hid the truth for various purposes in the name of the greater good.

It seemed similar this time.

But he still didn't understand.

It was very rare for a god to serve a meal for a mere human.

But no matter what, they wouldn't cook it themselves.

‘Besides, if I think of this world as a kind of dungeon, it becomes even more difficult to explain. Only those who meet the qualifications among monsters can create their own dungeons. But a god… a god shouldn’t have something that could be called a dungeon to reside in, right?’

Ju-hyeon stopped his thoughts at that point.

“…It’s delicious?”

It was because the porridge was delicious.

“It’s the most delicious porridge I’ve ever had in my life.”

“I’m so happy that you’re eating it with pleasure.”

“Why is the porridge so delicious? Is this even allowed?”

It wasn’t some trivial flattery, but a shock and astonishment that truly came from the heart.

Ju-hyeon didn’t particularly like porridge.

Porridge was usually for making a small amount of rice go a long way, or a food to eat when one was sick.

But the porridge The Black Cape served was so delicious it made his brain tingle.

“Porridge can be this delicious.”

“That was the best compliment a cook could ever hear.”

“You’re amazing, this taste and texture… I wouldn’t get tired of eating it every day.”

For the first time in a long time, it was pure admiration, not social skill, that came out.

“It’s really delicious.”

He found himself uncharacteristically repeating the same thing like a fool.

The rice grains in the porridge were almost melted, and its softness was similar to that of thin rice gruel.

However, the fluffy traces of the rice still remained, giving it a texture that crumbled softly like the warmly simmered rice grains of well-made Korean sweet rice drink in a restorative dish.

And just as much, the unique savory and sweet taste of rice gently spread in his mouth.

The vegetables embedded in between were also chewed with a gentle warmth, and especially the generous amount of meat added to the heartiness.

‘It feels quite filling….’

Sagol?

“…Is there sagol broth in this?”

“You guessed right, you have a talent for gourmet food.”

“A ta, talent is a bit of an overstatement….”

“Thank you for savoring it so deeply.”

A bright smile blooming on his pale face.

For some reason, The Black Cape looked genuinely happy.

“I gave you a small portion since it’s the beginning, would you like some more?”

“Ah….”

When he came to his senses, he saw an empty bowl.

“…If it’s not too much trouble, I would appreciate it.”

He was very embarrassed to be troubling none other than an evil god, but he shamelessly received another bowl.

“Do you need more side dishes too?”

“Yes, by all means….”

“It’s good to see you eat well.”

Even though it was porridge, it was a very filling dish, but apart from that, The Black Cape, perhaps genuinely pleased to see him eating well, brought a larger bowl full of porridge.

“I think the first one I gave you was too small, so I increased the amount.”

“Th, thank you.”

“I made it to be as digestible as possible, but it would be best not to overeat.”

“Yes… I will.”

The porridge The Black Cape served melted in his mouth like cotton candy.

He could feel the shape of the rice grains intact, yet with a texture that seemed to melt on his tongue, he could tell how much care had been taken in rolling the rice.

‘And it feels like some kind of restorative dish.’

It seemed to have a slight scent of medicinal herbs….

“……”

Medicinal herbs?

“…Excuse me, The Black Cape… sir?”

“Mr. Ju-hyeon, you can call me by the name Jio.”

“Yes, Mr. Jio. Are there any medicines in here?”

“…? I didn’t add any separate medicines.”

“I see.”

“Except for the rice, I used ingredients from this place.”

“Aha, thank you for the explanation.”

Ju-hyeon’s insides, who expressed his gratitude with a good-natured face, were not as calm.

‘Ingredients from this place?’

It was information that couldn’t help but make him break out in a cold sweat.

The strength in his smiling lips tightened.

Ju-hyeon recalled the fairy-tale-like scenery he had taken in as soon as he woke up.

That dreamlike sight that shook a person just by looking at it.

‘What are the chances that an ingredient from the mysterious domain of a divine being is an ordinary ingredient?’

An era overflowing with all sorts of oddities and mysteries.

Among them, Ju-hyeon had studied a lot in order to be a help to the world.

He especially knew the influence the act of ‘eating’ had within the mystery.

‘Am I not… right now… being too bold in gulping down a mystery in the form of porridge?’

But the porridge was delicious.

“……”

Nom.

The food was not at fault.

‘…It’s a lost cause anyway.’

Ju-hyeon was someone who had even thought of becoming a sacrifice to Sankalut, surrendering his body to impulse.

Even if he were to become something other than human in the embrace of an unknown mystery now, well, it probably wouldn’t be a huge blow.

After finishing the meal with a strangely bittersweet feeling, The Black Cape asked.

“For dessert tea, would you prefer something light or a sweet tea?”

“…Light tea?”

“Perhaps you don’t enjoy sweet things.”

“That’s not it, but I prefer my tea to be savory….”

“Savory tea, you say.”

The Black Cape, who made a show of thinking about something, was seen blinking twice.

“Teas brewed from grains mostly have a strong savory taste.”

“That is true.”

“I will keep that in mind for the next meal.”

“…Thank you?”

Ju-hyeon suddenly felt afraid, as he seemed to show a willingness to improve in serving his guests.

Even now, he was having thoughts like ‘did I just ingest something in a realm humans shouldn’t eat’.

Soon after, The Black Cape brought out a cup of tea with a warm, bluish hue.

“This tea is excellent for restoring immunity.”

“Ah, I see. Thank you for your consideration.”

For a moment, he had a suspicion of ‘is it really just at the level of immunity restoration’, but half out of the despair of a lost cause, and half enchanted by this captivating aroma, Ju-hyeon took a sip of the tea.

The aroma was sweet like cream, but the taste itself was light.

“…It’s nice.”

“It’s a tea brewed from dried flowers from this forest.”

“I saw the forest you mentioned from the terrace of the room you gave me.”

“Isn’t it peaceful and beautiful?”

“Yes, my heart felt at ease just looking at it.”

The moment the tea warmed his body, Ju-hyeon felt his reason becoming clearer and clearer.

“……?”

Is it just my imagination?

‘To call this my imagination seems a bit shameless.’

What am I drinking right now?

‘Something feels off. If I were an Appraisal Skill Awakener, would I have been able to check?’

Ju-hyeon, not being an Awakener, didn’t know, but for an ordinary human body, Baibamunil Flower Tea would restructure the cells, making one constantly immune to minor illnesses.

A mere human’s brain couldn’t possibly be sluggish while consuming the Source’s elixir.

It wasn’t for nothing that the previous visitor, Yu Seong-un, had been afraid, saying ‘at this rate, I’ll die before my time in a different sense.’

However, Ju-hyeon, unaware of this reality, simply sipped the delicious tea.

“Hmm….”

As his head cleared, he finally felt like he could breathe.

“Am I perhaps drinking too much tea?”

“What is there to be precious about food? In the end, it goes into a person’s mouth.”

“That’s true, too.”

He was reminded of the human society where people risked their lives for a single elixir and potion, but Ju-hyeon didn’t bother to refute The Black Cape’s words by bringing up the greed and desperation of such humans.

Ju-hyeon was a possessor of excellent social skills.

Only then did Ju-hyeon gradually gain the motivation to grasp and organize the situation.

“I was very rude when we first met. I was in such a confusing situation that I seem to have committed such rudeness. Thanks to your consideration, I think I was able to recover a lot.”

At the time when he was swept away by destructive impulses, he was literally in a state of having given up on everything.

But Ju-hyeon, having regained a fairly clear sense of reason, began to calculate the situation he was in.

It wasn't for any particular reason; it was a habit of a master of social skills who had lived his whole life weighing everything.

The habit that had allowed him to endure everything even in a disadvantageous position.

“May I introduce myself properly?”

“By all means.”

“I am Ju-hyeon. I have no last name, and I turn 36 this year.”

“I am Jio. I have various names, but right now, I am 29 years old.”

“To receive help from someone so young, my dignity is in tatters.”

He said it as if bantering, but Ju-hyeon’s insides were still a mess.

‘29 years old…? Surely that can’t be true, is it some kind of play? Or a role? Considering most evil gods enjoy some form of amusement, he might be immersed in the setting of a 29-year-old young man named Jio… Does having various names refer to how The Black Cape’s color changed?’

He was busy acquiring and organizing as much information about The Black Cape as possible.

‘If my memory is correct, he has black hair now, but there were times when he turned platinum blond or red. But even when his color didn’t change, there were times he acted as if his personality had changed. In human terms, is he an actor? Or maybe the expression of changing clothes is correct after all.’

Ju-hyeon fiddled with the transparent glass teacup in which the blue tea water shimmered.

“You may already know, but I worked at the Association’s research lab.”

“The Association’s research lab, I hear it’s a place with a quite harsh working environment.”

“Yes, although there were various incidents, and I’m currently suspended.”

“You must have had many tiring things happen. You need some rest.”

The Black Cape nodded and asked.

“Then what would you like for dessert?”

“……”

Is he even listening to me?

‘…Since the opponent isn’t human, I can’t tell if this is some kind of consideration, or if he’s really not interested. He introduced himself as an evil god, so I tried recounting my misfortune, but there’s no reaction… Why?’

The reason an evil god, no, just a god, seeks out a human is because they want to use a toy they like for a purpose they like.

But The Black Cape seemed to have no interest whatsoever in Ju-hyeon’s unfortunate circumstances.

Ju-hyeon, who had thrown a kind of bait, was inwardly flustered, but as expected, he didn’t show it and answered with an affable smile.

“Hmm, let’s see? What kind of desserts are there?”

“There are small cakes, fruit pudding, and ice cream.”

“In that case, could I have the pudding?”

“Of course.”

The pudding was soon brought by a fluffy teddy bear.

“……”

“Thank you for your help, Father.”

The teddy bear is his father?

“Thanks to you, I am always receiving a lot of help.”

“Kukuku….”

Did it just laugh with a ‘kuku’?

‘I think I had a similar thought before I fell asleep.’

Feeling a strange déjà vu, Ju-hyeon tried his best to smooth out his face that was about to distort subtly.

Not being an Awakener, he didn’t know that the Sun God was inside the soft-looking teddy bear in front of him, but he knew anyway that it wasn’t ordinary.

When Jio looked back, Ju-hyeon immediately put on a neat smile.

“Thank you for the pudding.”

“Kuku.”

The teddy bear nodded, then took its own share of pudding and went outside the house with the large cat.

Seeing Ju-hyeon looking at the cat’s swaying jewel tail, The Black Cape added an explanation.

“There are chairs and a table outside the cabin. The sun is rising, so I think he intends to enjoy a snack with Dana while watching it.”

“Ah… Dana?”

“That is the name of the long-haired cat you saw just now. I started raising her after bringing her from a dungeon called the ‘Vein of Jewels,’ and she’s grown quite a lot. She’s a child I’m raising like a daughter.”

“I see, I can feel the affection.”

As expected, Ju-hyeon’s insides were noisy.

‘A cat from the Vein of Jewels… Jewel fur… long-haired… is it really an Anticat? But I heard that Anticat is a monster as small as a kitten. They thought that was its complete form because it didn’t grow from that state no matter how much time passed. But was there room for it to grow further?’

They were materials that would get his collar grabbed at an academic conference with people demanding ‘where did you witness such precious information by yourself,’ but Ju-hyeon soon swallowed a dry laugh.

He wondered what was the point of all this worrying when he had been suspended from the Association.

“The pudding is….”

“I added a fruit called Mangdung Fruit.”

“So there’s such a fruit. I’ve never heard of it.”

“It’s the most common fruit you can see in this forest, and it’s very sweet.”

“It has a nice aroma.”

“I also added an aged fruit called Weeping Garok.”

“It seems like a lot of care went into it.”

He took a bite of the pudding while maintaining a good-natured smile out of habit.

“……”

“Is it delicious?”

“It’s so delicious I don’t know if I’m worthy of eating it.”

“It’s not to the point where you should give such an over-the-top compliment.”

“No, really….”

The pudding, savory as if it contained milk and full of the sweet scent of fruit, literally melted in his mouth and disappeared as if it were seeping into his tongue.

It was a pudding with an excellent creamy flavor, even though a faint sour taste remained.

“……”

And he felt himself getting healthier.

“…It’s too delicious.”

He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination.

Why has my eyesight improved?

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