Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Genius
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Kalts applied medicine to his split forehead and wrapped it in bandages as he thought.
‘An ogre appearing in this region is strange. Strange enough to report to the higher-ups. But…….’
His gaze turned toward Kang Geohan.
‘This greenhorn piercing a goblin’s neck is even stranger.’
Genius.
Kalts thought he knew the word pretty well.
The Gigant Rider Academy was a place where all the talents from across the nation gathered. He had seen plenty called geniuses, and he himself had heard the word often enough.
That was why he had lived thinking that being a genius wasn’t anything special.
But now, goosebumps prickled across his entire body.
‘Is this when you’re supposed to use the word genius?’
It felt like seeing a ghost.
‘A kid who can’t even lift the mana stone over his head ten times yet…… is already using mana?’
Indeed, Kang Geohan’s recent best record was standing from a squat sixteen times. In terms of overhead lifts, he couldn’t even manage ten.
‘It can’t be…….’
In the world he had lived in so far, just awakening mana after being able to do twenty overhead lifts, twenty squats, hold a horse stance for two minutes, and run 200 meters continuously would earn you the title of ‘genius’……
‘No, to begin with, it’s been less than a week since this guy first touched a mana stone?’
It was unbelievable. Common sense itself was being overturned wholesale! But the goblin corpse sprawled on the carriage vividly proved it.
While Kalts stood there speechless, unable to make sense of it,
Kang Geohan was also gripped by a shiver as he stared at the goblin corpse.
‘Is this…… for real?’
It was because of the nutrition info window clearly floating in Kang Geohan’s vision.
[Goblin Flesh]
Contains a small amount of dark mana, the energy source for magical essence and main ingredient in essence synthesis.
Heating with flames from burning goblin bones and hide for 3 minutes 13 seconds to 3 minutes 15 seconds removes the poison. If the time is insufficient or exceeded, the poison remains, and the dark mana cannot be absorbed.
1kg remaining until optimal daily essence synthesis.
‘Main ingredient for essence synthesis!’
One word echoed in Kang Geohan’s mind.
‘Protein!’
Of course! Just like you need protein to build muscle, it had felt off and weird that nothing was needed to grow magical essence, no matter how grueling the training.
But there it was. The sacred substance at the source of essence synthesis. Something to consume after hard workouts!
Now the world felt like it had regained its order.
Kang Geohan asked Kalts in a trembling voice.
“Knight sir. What happens to this goblin corpse?”
“Huh? What’d you say?”
Kalts, lost in deep thought, hadn’t caught the question and asked back.
“I’m curious what happens to this corpse.”
“Oh, that…… Since you took it down, it’s yours. You can sell it at the training grounds. They’ll settle it then. Monster corpses don’t rot, so just leave it there.”
“They don’t rot? Wow…… Knight sir, then by any chance……”
“Hm?”
“Can I eat it?”
At those words, Kalts furrowed his brow sharply.
“You must’ve heard some nonsense rumor. There is a myth that eating monster meat makes your essence grow faster. I tried it myself, in fact. But I just got stomach pains and lost essence. Better not to bother.”
But Kang Geohan only smiled brightly at those words.
“I think I’ll be fine.”
“No. This is……”
Kalts, about to say more to dissuade him, suddenly clamped his mouth shut. He felt a sense of discomfort.
‘Why am I getting worked up? Whether he gets sick or loses essence, it’s none of my business, right?’
Mind your own business outside of missions—that was Kalts’ way of living in the world.
So why?
“Anyway, you said there are people who eat it, right? And it’s mine anyway, so I’ll eat it.”
“……Do what you want.”
Watching Kang Geohan eagerly draw his dagger and butcher the goblin clumsily made his chest boil.
It was like the frustration of seeing someone pour mud over deliciously baked bread, rising right up to his throat.
‘Why does this bother me? Don’t care. Whether that guy succeeds or fails, my situation won’t change anyway.’
Just do the mission. Just the mission. Muttering to himself, Kalts squeezed his eyes shut.
“We’ll be out of the monster zone soon, so cook then.”
“Yes!”
* * *
The reason no monsters appeared outside the zone was for good cause.
Rumble!
Whoooosh!
Lightning poured like rain from the right horizon,
while countless whirlwinds raged on the left.
The semi-automatic carriage threaded precariously along the thin boundary between the two regions.
The roaring wind and thunder made their ears ring.
The majesty of this otherworld, utterly different from Earth!
“Ah…… I want to eat already.”
But Kang Geohan had little interest in such majesty.
The only thing occupying his attention now was the 1kg hunk of meat that would soon enter his body and become nutrients!
“Man, this is a great carriage. It’s got everything on the roof.”
The semi-automatic carriage was spacious. Its roof was equipped not just for battle with large-caliber guns but also with simple cooking tools, so Kang Geohan could focus on cooking without issue.
“Well, ‘cooking’ just means slicing it up with a knife and grilling it.”
With no butchering experience, the meat chunks came out ugly, but that didn’t matter.
The key was the grilling timing.
Kang Geohan stared piercingly at the nutrition info window.
[Heating with flames from burning goblin bones and hide for 9~11 seconds removes the poison.]
Even as the cooking neared completion, the sizzling meat still gave off only a foul smell. Yet Kang Geohan didn’t waver in the slightest.
[Heating with flames from burning goblin bones and hide for 7~9 seconds……]
[……3~5 seconds……]
He watched the time tick down in real-time without even blinking.
‘Now!’
He snatched the meat from the grill at the perfect moment.
[Perfectly detoxified goblin flesh]
The name shining in the nutrition info window sparkled brilliantly.
‘Dark mana! Let’s go, muscle growth! Wait, essence growth!’
Chomp-!
Kang Geohan tore into the well-grilled goblin flesh. No sense of revulsion at all.
Back on Earth, hadn’t he eaten chicken breast and protein shakes because they were tasty?
Taste and texture were just tricks of the brain.
What mattered was the nutrition inside and the growth it produced, right? No need for salt. Just eat.
But……
‘Huh? Why is this tasty?’
The smell through his nose had definitely been revolting. But the moment it hit his mouth and he chewed once, the true flavor and aroma hidden within bloomed like charcoal fire.
The flesh melted smoothly in his mouth. A savory umami filled it completely.
The miracle of two seconds.
A taste impossible if undercooked or overcooked by even two seconds—the miraculous flavor inherent to goblin meat stretched luxuriously in Kang Geohan’s mouth.
Davis, who had been watching Kang Geohan’s dazed expression, grimaced and whispered.
“It doesn’t taste good, does it? The smell alone…… No, that’s why who in the world eats monster……? Should’ve listened to the knight sir.”
Hearing the whisper, Kalts sneered from inside the carriage.
“See? Probably tastes like chewing the sole of a shoe that stepped in filth. Expect stomach cramps within three minutes. But the carriage won’t stop, so tough it out.”
But,
Chomp.
Munch! Munch!
Chew chew.
Hoo— ha, hoo— ha.
Chew.
Gulp!
The two men’s jeers were soon buried under the sounds of Kang Geohan biting, tearing, tasting, and swallowing.
And as Kang Geohan ate more and more, the initial foul smell gradually faded, replaced by the sweet, nutty aroma wafting sweetly from the goblin meat.
Davis unconsciously wiped his mouth as he spoke.
“……It kinda looks tasty?”
Kalts had poked his head up onto the roof before he knew it.
“……W-what? Why does the meat look so tender? And what’s this delicious smell…… Driver! Eyes front!”
“Y-yes, sir!”
Everyone stared in awe at how deliciously Kang Geohan devoured the goblin meat.
Of course, no stomach upset either.
Kalts looked at him with eyes full of disbelief.
‘Monster meat causes major stomach issues. I tried it, and so did several of my friends, so it’s fact. So how is Kang Geohan……?’
Using mana already was one thing, eating monster meat without a care another—somehow every theory seemed to bend around Kang Geohan alone.
But Kang Geohan apparently misunderstood Kalts’ gaze.
“Knight sir…… Want a piece……?”
“……What?”
“Uh, I…… Awo…… I don’t have enough for myself…… but you saved my life today…… Want a piece?”
The words offered it, but the tone dripped with reluctance and regret.
Even after wounding an ogre and saving everyone, this reaction.
Kalts let out a wry chuckle.
“Fine. Give me some. You earned it today, so when we get back to the training grounds, I’ll get you another goblin.”
Another goblin! Kang Geohan’s eyes sparkled.
“Really?”
“Yeah. But give a piece each to Davis and the driver too. Everyone worked hard today.”
At Kalts’ firm promise, Kang Geohan quickly sliced off hefty pieces and distributed them.
Everyone went wild. Trying a cautious bite out of curiosity, the group devoured the meat chunks in a flash amid uproar.
“What? It’s actually delicious?!”
“What’s the trick?”
“……There is one, but even if I told you, you probably couldn’t do it.”
He wasn’t joking. The detox window was a mere two seconds or so. And the exact time varied slightly per chunk.
Without the ‘nutrition info window,’ pinpointing and cooking at that time was near impossible.
“Jeez……”
Meanwhile, Kalts quietly ate the meat while thinking. His mind was a mess.
‘It really is delicious. No issues at all. Does this make sense?’
As a knight, he had seen, heard, and experienced every kind of monster tale, but he’d never imagined goblin could be delicious.
‘What is this? Am I dreaming?’
What was this feeling? Kalts blankly looked once each at the goblin meat and Kang Geohan.
‘Could it be…… the saying that monster meat grows essence faster is actually true?’
The thought sent shivers down his spine.
‘Then Kang Geohan? With his insane talent already controlling mana, does his essence grow at super speed too?’
Goosebumps rose.
What kind of monster would such a Gigant Rider become?
Rumble!
Whoooosh!
Lightning on one side, whirlwinds on the other, across the plains.
Had this chaotic scenery made Kalts too sentimental?
He said something he wouldn’t normally.
“Kalts Black.”
“Yes?”
“My name is Kalts Black. You can call me Sir Kalts from now on.”
“Oh! Yes! Got it, Sir Kalts!”
Telling his name—what meaning did it hold? But he told him anyway.
‘This is weird…….’
Even though he could never ride a Gigant again.
Even though he’d never feel that thrill of the world dropping beneath him again.
Yet why was his heart pounding so foolishly?
Gulp.
Kalts swallowed goblin meat, his eyes shaking this way and that.
Actually, it was only natural.
Just as soccer lovers do,
those who love something— even if they can no longer do it themselves— often feel their hearts swell simply watching someone exceptionally talented.
“Don’t get cocky.”
“Huh?”
“Killing one goblin is nothing, so don’t act all high and mighty.”
“Ah, yes. Understood.”
“……Eat up and get back to training.”
Indeed. Kalts Black loved Gigants more than anyone, so he couldn’t easily regain his composure in front of Kang Geohan.