Gourmet Gaming

Chapter 144: Beanie’s Innocent Transformation

Holy Power was a stat that could affect buff ability and deal additional damage against the undead. It was a very difficult stat to raise, even if one was an ordinary priest. After all, the methods for increasing the stat were quite tricky and very particular.

‘Wasn’t it something like not eating meat? My god! What a crazy way of obtaining stats, right?!’

Obtaining an increase in holy power was so particular and tricky that it even forbade the players from doing a lot of things. However, the benefits of these sacrifices were huge.

After he finished eating, Minhyuk finally remembered the Kong Qing Elixir quest that he had received from Boroto.

“Rald.”

“Yes.”

“Do you happen to know anything about Kong Qing Elixirs?”

Rald looked at Minhyuk in surprise. He said, “You’re not from the Northern Continent, but you know about the existence of the Kong Qing Elixir!”

“A person named Boroto had requested that I bring him some Kong Qing Elixir.”

“Oho. So it was Boroto, huh? I remember him,” Rald nodded as he continued to say, “Kong Qing Elixir is located either deep underground or under the sea, a place that is quite hard for humans to enter. It is a mysterious liquid that falls one drop at a time and will only accumulate after a huge amount of time.”

Minhyuk nodded in understanding.

“However, to be truthful… I also have no way of getting any Kong Qing Elixir either.”

“...Eh?!” Minhyuk exclaimed in surprise. Rald was also helpless?!

“Even if it was deep underground, the location where the Kong Qing Elixir can be found changes every time. Before, it used to be frequently located in Valkyrie Kingdom. However, I don’t think that that is the case right now. It has been years since we’ve last seen it here.”

“H…how can this be...!” Minhyuk said, feeling a bit discouraged. It was the Kong Qing Elixir that tasted like a carbonated drink! Was it really hard to find?

Rald looked like he could not bear to see Minhyuk with such a sad look. So, he opened his mouth again and said, “But?he?might know where it is.”

“He...?” Minhyuk asked in confusion.

A hint. This might be a hint!

“The Dragon King.”

“Ho?”

The Dragon King. Simply put, the king of the seas. The Dragon King’s Sea was located not far from Valkyrie Kingdom. From what Minhyuk heard, there were plenty of mysterious things that were yet to be discovered by the local players there. And even if he did not want to, Minhyuk still had to go to sea since he needed to proceed with Ellie’s quest. Not only that, there were plenty of delicious seafood waiting for him at sea.

‘Blue crab, shrimp, clam, flatfish, rockfish, oysters!’

Minhyuk could not even count them on one hand!

“But it’s not easy to meet the Dragon King, after all, he is the king of the seas. He must be living deep beneath the sea. Also, just in case you need this information, he has three children.”

“Three...?”

“The three of them are all strong individuals. One of them is even comparable to Sir Perle in strength.”

Minhyuk nodded. He knew that Perle was comparable to Rumad in strength, so if he compared their strengths, they must be truly powerful.

“Make sure to avoid any friction with them.”

[Hidden Quest: Meet the Dragon King!]

Rank: S

Requirements: Encounter with Rald.

Rewards: Boroto’s Buffed Dish.

Penalty for Failure: Decrease in Boroto’s favor.

Description: You have met the elusive Legendary Chef, Rald! According to him, the only person who might know of the location of the Kong Qing Elixir is the Dragon King. So go meet the Dragon King!

Minhyuk nodded happily.

‘The sea! I’m looking forward to it!’

He said his goodbyes to Rald and left the restaurant to prepare for his journey to the sea. He first went and bought a fishing rod, some bait, as well as the?‘Dorito’s’?bubblegum. Dorito’s bubblegum was Valkyrie Kingdom’s specialty, an item that could help anyone breathe underwater.

“Oh, this bubble gum tastes really good!”

Since Minhyuk was deemed by every citizen of Valkyrie Kingdom as a hero who had saved their kingdom, he was able to buy items at a 10% discount. It was a special perk that was given to the person who saved their king and their kingdom from the catastrophe.

As Minhyuk chewed on the bubblegum, a notification rang in his ears.

[You can breathe underwater for one hour.]

“Phtew!”

Once the sweetness of the bubblegum faded, Minhyuk quickly spat it out on a tissue before taking five more out and placing it in his mouth.

[You can breathe underwater for one hour.]

“Phtew!”

He spat the bubblegum out and popped in a few more in his mouth. The merchant selling Dorito\'s bubblegum laughed incredulously at Minhyuk’s actions.

“On…one piece is worth 50,000 gold… why waste so much money on such an expensive item?”

“It doesn’t taste good once the sweetness has faded away!”

“...”

“I’ll buy 300!” Minhyuk said, deciding to buy Dorito’s bubblegum in bulk.

[Beanie is asking for a summons.]

Minhyuk was quite confused when he saw the sudden notification. Still, he summoned the baby piggy. The moment Beanie was summoned, it dropped down on the ground and dashed off somewhere.

“Huh? Where are you going? Beans!” Minhyuk shouted, quickly chasing after Beanie. After chasing for quite some time, Minhyuk saw familiar faces, ones that he had not seen in quite a long time.

“Woow. The poopy pig is taking a real piggy with him!”

They were Hyeminnie and Hyemin’sDaddy. Minhyuk quickly approached them in surprise. However, he could tell that something was strange with Beanie. That was when he saw Hyeminnie holding a bag of Jupa-chups?lollipops in her hand. Beanie quickly sat down in front of her like a puppy and then…

“Oiiiiink...”

…Beanie oinked as if it was trying to say that it wanted to eat it, looking at the Jupa-chups with twinkling eyes.

“Huh? This is Hyeminnie’s, baby poopy.” Hyeminnie said, quickly jerking her hand away and hiding the candy behind her. Beanie’s eyes started to shine with tears as it bowed its head in disappointment.

“Oiiiiink...” Beanie cried sadly. It looked like it would shed tears at a drop of a hat. Hyeminnie and Hyemin’sDaddy both looked at Beanie in pity.

‘Oh my god. How can there be such an adorable and pitiful pet like this?!’

‘It’s a waste of my candy but... should I give him one? I feel so sorry for him...!’

Hyeminnie rummaged through her pockets and gave a lollipop to Beanie. It was as if she could not bear to see the baby piggy sad. The still-sullen and depressed Beanie brightened in an instant at the sight of the candy. It tapped its tiny head on Hyeminnie’s legs, as if it was asking if it could really eat it.

“You can eat it, baby poopy!”

Beanie nodded fiercely, a happy smile plastered on its face as it ate the lollipop.

‘This swindler...’?Minhyuk thought, well aware of Beanie’s con-man personality. He looked at his pet absurdly.

‘Huh? Wait. He got it just like that...?’

Minhyuk found Beanie’s method to be amazing.

“Oh. Huh....?”

“Ack?!”

Hyemin’sDaddy could not help but gasp. After all, Minhyuk suddenly sat down like Beanie in front of Hyeminnie and looked at her with twinkling eyes as he cried out, “Oooooiiiiink...?!”

Minhyuk copied Beanie down to the T. When Hyeminnie did not give him any candy, he also looked down sadly.

“Ooooiiiink...” Minhyuk also cried sadly.

‘This is the most important! A voice filled with tears!’

Hyemin’sDaddy and Hyeminnie were both speechless. They were shocked at how Minhyuk copied Beanie, just to ask for some candy.

‘He’s still as weird as ever...’

‘P…poopy piggy is really strange...’

Hyeminnie and Hyemin’sDaddy eyes met as they looked at each other with wry smiles.

***

“Hehe. This is really delicious, Beans!”

“Oink!”

[Beanie is happy.]

Minhyuk and Beanie were both eating their lollipops happily. Hyemin’sDaddy had told him that it had been quite a while since he had last accessed?Athenae. Minhyuk also just found out that Hyemin’sDaddy was also a guild member of Legend Guild.

“Hyeminnie, how are you these days?” Minhyuk asked Hyeminnie as he ate his strawberry milk Jupa-chups.

She played with Beanie happily while answering, “I got better! I also gained 10 kilograms. And I’m going back to school.”

“That’s a relief,” Minhyuk said, smiling brightly. The fact that his unintentional benefactor, Hyeminnie, was getting better was great news to him.

Then, Minhyuk suddenly remembered something. He said, “Ah, that’s right! Beanie can now equip two artifacts, so is it alright if I make a production request?”

Minhyuk was not sure, but there might be a possibility that Beanie’s ability to find medicine would get enhanced after he equipped him with two artifacts.

“Ah. Of course, it’s possible,” Hyemin’sDaddy smiled at him. Then, he continued to say, “I’ll take gold as payment.”

Minhyuk’s movement suddenly paused. The smile that Hyemin’sDaddy was giving him was quite different from his smile earlier. It was like he was saying ‘Student, I’ll give you a discount so buy from me.’?or something like that. Well. It was also a fact that Minhyuk had received his frying pan as a gift from him, right?

“I also need some artifact materials. Do you have any on hand?”

Minhyuk thought carefully if he had some artifact materials on hand. He thought,?‘I have the Basilisk’s Heart, don’t I?’

The Basilisk’s Heart was an SS-ranked artifact material! It was a material that was not worse than the Sacred Branch that he got last time. He also had the Phoenix’s Feathers, as well as some Twin-headed Ogre’s Blood. Looking back, it seemed like his inventory was filled with amazing materials.

After seeing all of these materials, Hyemin’sDaddy was left in shock. He asked, “W…what is your level now?”

“I’m a little over 250 right now.”

“...”

Hyemin’sDaddy shook his head in disbelief. There were plenty of materials here that could not be obtained by someone at Level 250.

‘But, I wonder if it’s really fine to make pet artifacts with these good materials? Hmm. Well, it’s also good to make pet artifacts,’?Hyemin’sDaddy thought. He gulped at the power that he felt from the artifacts that Minhyuk was wearing. The armor, the cloak, the sword, the helmet, even the frying pan that he made for him… everything that Minhyuk had equipped were unusual artifacts.

‘Pets are existences that can help a character gain more strength. Some can even add around 100~120 in strength and power to their owners.’

Characters had obvious limitations. Once the character had equipped all possible artifacts that can be worn, they could not wear anything more. Once their skill level had reached MAX, they would not be able to level up any more. High-leveled players often run into these difficult problems. The only way left for them to grow more was to either level up, or get a higher quality item. However, it was very difficult and time-consuming for them to get the materials for a good item. In fact, growing with the help of items was almost close to impossible.

That was when the concept of a ‘pet’ came into view. A pet would be the fastest way for a character to achieve tremendous growth. That was because pets could increase their buffs and abilities whenever they grow. What more for an artifact-wearing pet?

‘Making a pet wear an artifact is almost the same as adding a character equipment slot.’

Once Beanie wore an artifact, his capabilities would increase, which in turn would also boost his owner’s powers.

“I hope that the ability to find delicious food gets enhanced.”

Whisper, whisper━

“Ah. Yes...” Hyemin’sDaddy answered with an awkward smile.

“Ah. Can you please take care of this too?” Minhyuk said, handing over Pandora’s Helmet to him. Pandora’s Helmet was giving off a subtle glow.

“It’s too eye-catching.”

“Ah. Then, shall we add some cloaking ability to this artifact?”

“Wow. Can you do that for me?”

“That’s 41 platinum. Ah, since we’re guild members… I’ll give you a guild member discount. You only need to pay 40 platinum.”

Minhyuk finally realized that Hyemin’sDaddy was a total businessman! He gave out a quotation of 41 platinum, smiled at him, and said that he would give him a discount when it was originally priced at 40 platinum!

“Ah. I know,” Minhyuk said. Minhyuk had a lot of gold under his disposal, so it did not matter that much. Furthermore, the problem in the kingdom had already been sorted out, so he could sell his items at twice the price soon. Just in time, he could see the commander of the kingdom knights, Sir Perle, running towards him.

“How long will the production take?”

“Artifacts for pets are much easier to make compared to player artifacts, so it can be done by today. However, you have to leave your pet with me.”

“My pet?” Minhyuk asked in confusion. He was wondering how he could leave his pet with him when the summoning time was only for a few hours.

“Yes. If you place your pet in a pet storage, it can be summoned for a whole day. In the meantime, I will use a potion named ‘Pet Conversation’ to try and talk with your pet so I can produce the artifact that your pet wants the most.”

“Oho.”

That was quite a good idea. Minhyuk temporarily left Beanie in a pet storage, before leaving quickly since Perle kept on urging him.

“Hyemin. Let’s go buy some potion.”

“Yeah Dad! Baby poopy, protect this place while I’m away. Okay?!”

Beanie waved pitifully over the fence. Its tail wagging sadly as it watched Hyeminnie move away from it.

“Oiiiink...”

‘Don’t leave me behind. Oink~’

Hyeminnie kept on looking back at Beanie. Then, once her figure disappeared from Beanie’s sight, it plopped on the ground. The pitiful look on it face had disappeared, replaced with a tough, weary expression. It looked like it had stayed at a desolate and dreary place for quite a long time.

“Oiiiink.”

‘It’s really hard to play with a child. Oink.’

Beanie sighed loudly as it massaged its own shoulders. It slowly looked around until it saw a pet cat sitting nearby. It raised its hand towards the cat.

Pause!

The pet cat was surprised when it saw Beanie looking at it! Then, Beanie grinned wickedly as it gestured at its own shoulders.

‘Massage my shoulders. Oink!’