"Hey, Everyone! Food Has Suddenly Appeared!"

"H-Hey, everyone. Food has suddenly appeared here in abundance!"

At Kim Jung-min's excited voice, the people gathered around. Sure enough, four massive wooden trays filled with food had materialized on the display shelf. Each tray was enormous—enough to feed all seventeen of them with plenty to spare.

"Ji-woo is a god!"

"They say people eat according to their looks, and damn if that ain't spot on."

-Can I keep dropping these bombs on them like this~?

"It looks so delicious."

"You won't know until you try it."

Those were Jonathan, Josh, Kayla, Ariel, and Brody in turn.

Mitchell paid four Dungeon Coins to buy all the food.

"But now... how do we eat this?"

Priest Dennis examined the food with a serious expression, prompting Seol Ara and Kim Jung-min to step forward.

"We'll show you."

"This is called bossam. It's really tasty. Oh, but the oijeori might be... pretty spicy, haha."

"Nah. I just tasted the seasoning—it's not spicy."

"Oh, yeah, that's what they say. Everyone, grab your chopsticks or forks and follow along!"

The dungeon survivors had utensils like chopsticks, forks, and spoons made from monster bones. Irene's Armor Crafting skill allowed her to make accessories too, and she could customize their shapes freely. That's how she'd made these for everyone. Of course, as standard utensils, they had no special effects.

Seol Ara picked up a single lettuce leaf. The others followed suit.

"Put some rice, pork, ssamjang, and garlic in here and eat it like this. If you don't like spicy, skip the garlic."

A few people who had been about to add garlic put it back at her explanation.

"And then—ahh~"

*Nom nom nom.*

*Gulp!*

"Mmm~ This is the taste!"

Seol Ara's eyes sparkled as she slowly chewed and swallowed the wrap. How long had it been since she'd had a proper ssam like this? Sure, since all the crops and livestock from Hidden Space were shared, she'd occasionally wrapped some meat in leaves, but without proper condiments, it had always felt too plain. That wasn't a true ssam! And with garlic added? Perfection.

Watching her reaction, the dungeon survivors shoved ssam into their mouths one after another. That's when Brody got caught trying to halve his wrap—right in Kim Jung-min's line of sight.

"Bro! You gotta put the whole thing in your mouth! This ain't a taco! Who cuts ssam?! All in one! Shove it all in, chew, and savor the flavors!"

Brody flinched at Kim ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Jung-min's sudden outburst—the first time he'd ever raised his voice—and hurriedly stuffed the entire wrap in. Snapping out of it, Kim Jung-min scratched the back of his head and bowed in apology.

"S-Sorry. I'm just really sensitive about this stuff."

But Brody, who'd followed instructions and taken a bite, wasn't mad at all. His eyes just went wide at ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the flavor.

"Mmm! Mm!"

He gave a double thumbs-up instead of words.

The others who'd tasted it let out gasps of admiration one by one.

"This is insane!"

"I saw them eating it like this in a Korean drama. Was always curious—it's legit good."

"Ji-woo never misses."

Seol Ara beamed with satisfaction at her comrades' reactions, but Kim Jung-min jumped in.

"Try it like this too! Take a piece of this oijeori kimchi~"

Then Duduk-i, watching from the side, mimicked him and quacked.

*Piiing!*

"Wrap it in the pork like this~"

*Piiing~*

"And nom into your mouth!"

*Piit-!*

Kim Jung-min's face lit up with indescribable bliss as he savored the pork and kimchi together. The others, already hooked from the ssam, scrambled to grab their utensils.

"Whoa, this is good too."

"Not quite Japanese food level, but pretty solid."

"Gotta rethink Korean food. The stuff they sold where I lived was trash."

"Truly a holy taste. Amen."

The group was thrilled with their first proper taste of Korean cuisine. Seeing it filled Seol Ara and Kim Jung-min with pride.

*Piiit-!*

...Duduk-i too.

'Looks like... helping the dungeon survivors boosts the growth rate.'

That seemed to be the secret to the Dungeon Tree's growth. After tilling and sharing the garlic field, and mass-displaying items at the Dungeon Shop for them to buy, the growth had jumped over 9 percent.

And now, after making food and displaying it for them to purchase, it had risen again.

As Han Ji-woo's hunch solidified into certainty—

A quest appeared.

But the content was weird.

"...The 7th Demon Prince of the Demon Realm Was a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Delinquent? What kinda fantasy novel title is that? Telling me to go to the Demon Realm? Alone?"

And the objective was resolving Dirke Village's mission, with a reward of increasing that village's revitalization. He didn't even know where the hell that village was, and now it wanted him to bust his ass for it? Was this even a legit quest?

"Is this really going according to my convenience?"

For the first time, doubt crept into his mind about Hidden Space.

And there was a failure penalty too.

"Dungeon Tree growth down 10 percent?"

That was a brutal hit. He'd barely scraped together 10 percent by helping the dungeon survivors, and now it could all vanish?

But he couldn't refuse the quest. It had auto-accepted, and abandoning it would count as failure.

In short: he had to clear it.

Then, black light flared from the Dimensional Gate at the Logaku house, followed by a system message.

"Well, I'll be."

One of the Dungeon Tree's quests had been to rescue Brisong (Chunsik back then). Once he did, he'd modified the wolf pup's Dimensional Gate skill and was putting it to good use.

"Feels like that whole Chunsik quest was buildup for this Demon Realm one."

Instead of an activation percentage, a 5-minute countdown ticked down above the gate.

"This is tricky."

Han Ji-woo's top priority right now was arming the dungeon survivors. And now this out-of-nowhere Demon Realm trip?

"...Think simple."

He couldn't skip the quest anyway. Best to zip in, handle it quick, and get back.

Hidden Space wouldn't throw him into a death trap, right?

Changing his mindset, he asked:

"Can I bring my pets?"

"Fine. Actually, better this way. Can't risk dragging them somewhere dangerous."

Comforting himself like that, Han Ji-woo activated his registered gear. Red Dragon Bone Armor clad his body, twin swords gripped in his hands.

As he stood before the gate, his pets rushed over.

"What happened, sir?"

Ferrofero asked in a voice full of worry.

"Gotta pop over to the Demon Realm."

"W-What? The Demon Realm, sir?!"

"Yeah. You know anything about it?"

Ferrofero shook his head side to side.

"Nothing at all, sir. Just that it's supposed to be hellish."

"Hell? Shit. Worse than sending me to my death."

"Do you have to go, sir?"

"Yeah. Seems like it. Worst case, I can come right back here, so don't worry too much."

Han Ji-woo bid each worried pet farewell.

"Lucy, Pao, chubby one, Chunsik, Ferrofero. Been fun."

"Don't say goodbye like you're off to die, sir!"

"Heh. Just messing to loosen up. For real now."

"Please come back safe, sir!"

Han Ji-woo waved as he stepped through the black gate.

"Thanks to you guys, I was happy!"

"Aaaah! Why do you keep saying that, sir?!"

The gate where their master had vanished. The pets sat in a row before it, eyes glued.

The Creator could make or unmake the universe's myriad things with a mere thought.

But there were worlds beyond even his power: Heaven and the Demon Realm.

The Creator had made the Mid-Realm, but Heaven was forged by the Archangel, and the Demon Realm by the Demon God.

These three worlds, perfectly independent under their own creator gods, occasionally erupted into interdimensional great wars.

But a thousand years ago, Heaven, Demon Realm, and Mid-Realm signed an absolute non-aggression pact. They'd warred for decades over each other's territories, nearly mutual destruction.

As proof, the three gods entrusted their hearts to one another.

The Demon God's heart to the Creator.

The Creator's heart to the Archangel.

The Archangel's heart to the Demon God.

And they swore an unbreakable oath: Any who tread unauthorized lands shall have their disembodied heart vanish. The entrusted hearts could not be destroyed by any means unless the oath was broken—meaning the gods' annihilation.

Peace held for a time, but now, a thousand years later, unrest stirred again in the Mid-Realm.

-Have you forgotten the absolute oath? This world is not yours. No ground for your feet—begone.

Something formless, yet more imposing than any embodied being, spoke. Not in voice, but energy piercing straight to the mind.

The intruder, the 'Creator,' laughed at the eviction notice.

-Too cold for our first meet in a millennium, you.

-Your flippant tone hasn't changed.

-A Demon God nitpicking manners? Hilarious.

The Demon God: sole creator and ruler of the Demon Realm.

The Creator stood at the Mid-Realm/Demon Realm border, one foot across, facing the blocking Demon God.

Clashing energies from the two birthed massive turbulence, churning the air into a rain-lashed typhoon, lightning crashing everywhere, earthquakes shaking the earth. Nearby terrain warped from the sudden calamity, lifeforms dying en masse—but the gods spared them no glance.

-Your kids dying left and right, and you don't blink? I'd be heartbroken.

-One more step, and you break the oath. You know what that means.

-Just wanna give you a shot. Devour Heaven.

-Looks like you wandered here sleep-talking. Go home.

-A thousand years ago, war wasn't started by Mid-Realm or Heaven. You guys. Want me to spell out why?

-…….

The Demon God fell silent; the Creator continued.

-Demon Realm's dying. Needed a new nest. Shoulda designed it better—such shoddy work.

-Before I rip you apart, shut that dog mouth.

-There it is. Finally sounding like a Demon God with those cheap words.

-Gonna keep yapping?

-Nah. Can't visit empty-handed, so brought a gift.

*Whoosh!*

Black heat bloomed in empty air, condensing into an energy mass. The Demon God's eyes widened.

It was her heart, unseen in a millennium.

No time for thought, she pulled it in. Into her formless energy body it settled. Veins sprouted, bones grew, flesh filled in. Black skin, thick horns, massive wings—the Demon God manifested.

"...Have I truly reclaimed my flesh?"

Her voice after a thousand years brimmed with uncontainable ecstasy.

The Creator smiled, watching her joy.

-No more risk holding you back from invading Heaven, huh?

Finally grasping the scheme, the Demon God smirked viciously.

"You want me to invade Heaven and fetch your heart."

-Demonkin get prime new land. Eat the pheasant and its eggs.

"You think I'll play along nicely?"

-Of course. Not dumb enough to twiddle thumbs while Demon Realm crumbles.

True enough. They'd eyed Mid-Realm and Heaven because their world was doomed.

She could choose Mid-Realm over Heaven.

But 'Heaven's lot would crash the party.' Chaos, or worse, Mid-Realm and Heaven allying against Demon Realm. No needless risks.

Decision made, she asked:

"But odd. Why now, after staying quiet so long?"

This could've happened anytime.

But—

-Never been close enough for heart-to-hearts.

No deeper reason from the Creator.

Either way, key point:

"I'll prepare."

No loss for the Demon God—a sweet deal.

"No shit, I can tell."

Han Ji-woo, unceremoniously dumped into the unwanted Demon Realm.

Red jagged rocks, surging lava's scorching heat, sky choked with thunderclouds. Everything screamed threat.

But the biggest one:

*Kieek?*

*Gruk! Gruk!*

*GRRROOOAR!*

The Demon Realm beasts encircling the sudden intruder.

"...Should I just bail?"