Where the Hell is Pao?
"When the hell is that Pao guy coming?"
Pao had gotten up at dawn to check on the chicken coop and the cowshed. Then he grabbed a pot and some soybean paste before heading straight to the Dungeon Prison. By the time everything was ready for breakfast, he'd gone all out like a messenger from Hamheung.
"Hold on. He took the soybean paste and the pot? Is he planning to eat breakfast there and come back?"
It seemed that way, so Han Ji-woo decided not to wait.
"Let's eat!"
At his words, Os Gillro and Lucy approached the table.
"Wonder what he whipped up this time!"
The night before, Han Ji-woo had made gochujang egg fried rice. He'd originally planned to just mix freshly cooked rice with a half-boiled fried egg and some gochujang. Sesame oil would have been perfect, but without it, he figured he'd make do—only for it to feel a bit bland. Gochujang egg fried rice without sesame oil's aroma was like steamed buns without the red bean paste.
If that's the case, it needs more flavor depth.
Pondering this, Han Ji-woo grabbed a huge bunch of Salvia flowers on a whim and tossed them into the Creation window. The window's status changed like this.
Salvia Flowers: 300
— 'Wildflower Honey' 30gsynthesizable
Jackpot! Now the Creation window was reaching into cooking territory. It only took 100 Salvia flowers for 10g of wildflower honey—not the best cost-performance, but getting honey at all was a win. Plus, Salvia flowers were everywhere; even after picking a ton, it barely showed.
30g was about two heaping tablespoons.
That'll do just fine.
Drizzling a bit of honey or oligosaccharide over gochujang egg fried rice amps up the umami. It was his way of compensating for the missing sesame oil with savoriness. The plan was a smashing success—everyone enjoyed a deeply satisfying dinner. Han Ji-woo, savoring proper gochujang flavors after so long, was practically in tears.
Anyway, Os Gillro had feasted on delicious meals all day yesterday, so he was hyped for breakfast today too. On the table was something visually similar to yesterday's but with a different color: soy sauce egg fried rice, mixed with a half-boiled fried egg and soy sauce instead of gochujang!
"This is a simple dish I used to make back home when I had no appetite. Dig in."
"Looks good!"
Os Gillro took his first eager bite.
"Mmm!"
His face lit up—another perfect hit on his tastes. Satisfied with the reaction, Han Ji-woo tried it himself. Pure nostalgic bliss, a taste of truth. Sure, no sesame oil like with the gochujang version, but the soy sauce's salty, umami punch stimulating his tongue, along with the aroma hitting his nose, more than made up for it.
First time consuming Soy Sauce. Stamina +1.
This new food bumped his stamina up again. He'd stopped paying much attention to those messages at some point, but with his diet expanding and constant new dishes, his stamina had hit a whopping 122. Add in gear bonuses, and it was 189 total. Impressive compared to the average dungeon warrior's stats—but Han Ji-woo had no clue. He just felt good that it kept rising.
Nom nom. Gulp!
As he savored the soy sauce egg fried rice, moved by the moment, he glanced at the mansion Os Gillro was building and saw that the four walls were already up—only the roof remained. Os Gillro had stretched when he woke up and declared that it would be finished today.
Building that massive mansion in three days.
It was empty inside and rough without decorations, but still impressive. A full 30-pyeong (about 100 sqm) place, built solo. No small feat. Han Ji-woo had tested a wall during breakfast prep—it didn't budge, despite his solid stats. Durability was top-notch.
"Urp! Damn good meal!"
Os Gillro finished with a hearty belch.
"Yeah. Glad you liked it."
Nyaah~!
As the group wrapped up, Pao returned from the Dungeon Prison.
"I'm back, Boss!"
This time, Pao carried a wooden basket brimming with veggies.
"Pao!"
Han Ji-woo bolted out barefoot, calling his name enthusiastically. Touched by the unusual welcome, Pao opened his arms—
"Lemme see what you brought today!"
—but Han Ji-woo snatched the basket instead. His interest was in the veggies, not Pao. They were all familiar ones, though.
"No new faces, huh."
His disappointed mutter was cut short.
"Oh!"
One veggie made his eyes sparkle: perilla leaves.
"Pao! You got perilla leaves too?"
"Yeah!"
"Lots?"
"Not lots, but make perilla field!"
Perilla leaves meant sesame seeds were possible, which meant sesame oil!
"You nailed it again, buddy!"
Finally, Han Ji-woo pulled Pao into a tight hug.
"Yeah!"
Pao beamed with pride at the recognition.
"Pao. These new veggies—let's grow 'em here. You can do it, right?"
"Can do! Pao has Great Harvest skill!"
"Good, good."
Dreaming of Hidden Space's diverse bounty, Han Ji-woo wrapped up morning chores with Growth Acceleration. The growth-boosting power seeped everywhere. Pao's new crops shot up vigorously. Watching happily, his gaze shifted to the chicken coop.
"Oh?"
The chicks had become young chickens, fully shedding their baby looks. Curious about the mad cows, he checked the cowshed—the cow's belly was bulging.
"She's pregnant!"
One more Growth Acceleration tomorrow should trigger birth. Her udders were swollen too. Hoping, Han Ji-woo called Pao.
"Pao!"
"Yeah!"
"Grab a wooden tub and milk her."
"Got it!"
Pao entered the shed, awkwardly squeezing the udder at first, but white milk trickled out. Getting the hang of it, he pulled down hard—
Whoosh!
Warm milk sprayed like a stream, filling the large tub. Pao emerged.
"Here, Boss."
Han Ji-woo's eyes trembled as he received it. Handling it reverently like priceless treasure, he took a sip.
Then, voice thick with emotion:
"Milk. It's milk!"
First time consuming Milk. Stamina +1.
He'd only thought of meat from the mad cows, not milk.
Nutty and warm.
The mad cow milk was richer than his usual store-bought.
With milk and salt, egg scrambles are on! Maybe even cheese if I'm lucky?
Grinning at happy thoughts, Lucy's fierce cry pierced his ears.
Nyaahhh!
"Lucy?"
She stood by the lake, meowing urgently for him to hurry. Rushing over, Han Ji-woo beheld an astonishing sight.
The lake teemed with fish swimming everywhere.
"Insane."
It was fish-dominated waters. He'd overlooked it, but Growth Acceleration had supercharged the eggs, leading to explosive breeding. No extinction worries—he could net a dozen daily forever.
Perfect. Everything's perfect.
Basking in Growth Acceleration's blessings—
Booom!!
"……!"
"……!"
"……!"
Another ear-shattering roar from the Salt Mine.
* * *
"This is nuts—can't even think straight!"
Inside the Salt Mine, Os Gillro grumbled before the black rock. Today, he'd uncover what lurked inside, come hell or high water.
Han Ji-woo was curious too, but his instincts screamed warnings. Better not to know. Knowing might unleash the irreversible.
"S-scary, B-Boss."
Pao trembled uncontrollably near the rock.
Hiss!
Lucy on Han Ji-woo's head hissed nonstop.
What the hell is it?
As he pondered the flickering blue glow beyond—
Booom!!
The blue eyes surged closer; a roar and violent quake shook the mine. Something alive had headbutted the rock harder than yesterday.
Crack!
Cracks spiderwebbed across the black rock.
"……It cracked?"
He couldn't even scratch it himself. Yet this impact did it. Not over yet—
Craaack!
Cracks multiplied wildly, like a festering wound bursting.
Han Ji-woo frowned.
Don't tell me. The Growth Acceleration?
The enhanced skill affected everything within 500m of him. Yesterday's hit was just noisy. Today, two bumps nearly shattered it.
Did it accidentally supercharge something dangerous?
No time to think—
Booom!
Another roar and tremor.
Crack! Craack! Rumble. Groooowl!
"It's collapsing!"
"Everyone, back up!"
The black rock crumbled like a lie. The group retreated, battle-ready, eyes locked ahead.
Dust billowed from the rubble, blue eyes still gleaming through.
Grrrrrrowl—
The growl oozed malice and hostility.
Dust settled slowly, revealing the eyes' owner.
"……Aaaahhh!!"
Hiss!!
Pao screamed in abject terror, fur bristling; Lucy bared fangs fiercer than ever.
Han Ji-woo and Os Gillro:
"……."
"……."
Frozen, breathless under the overwhelming presence.