My Sister the High Ranker
I eyed her suspiciously. “…You’re really my sister?”
“Of course!”
Arms crossed, I scrutinized the face of this woman claiming to be my noona.
“Something’s off. Your eyes look a bit bigger, your nose a tad higher, and your jaw…”
“Shh—I only tweaked it a little. Barely anything compared to what others do.”
“Doesn’t look little to me.”
“Oh-ho? Getting cheeky, are we?”
Her deep blue eyes narrowed sharply, and she flicked my forehead with a knuckle rap.
Boom!!
A shell exploded against my forehead—or at least that’s what it felt like. The devastating impact sent me flying without so much as a scream, like a baseball smacked by a bat. I slammed into a tree and finally came to a stop, sprawled out on the ground.
My noona came rushing over in a panic. “Hey! H-Hey! You okay?”
Her startled voice sounded muffled. My head was spinning. Spin, spin— I could almost see my late grandpa.
“Dude, aren’t you way too weak? How’d you even make it this far?”
She shoved a potion into my mouth in a fluster.
Gulp, gulp, gulp. As the potion slid down my throat, I finally came back to my senses.
“Ugh… How are you so strong, Noona…? You a ranker or something?”
It hit harder than that ranker’s knuckle rap back in the gorge.
“You bet! I’m a ranker. Not just any ranker, either—top of the top, a high ranker.”
She kept pouring potion into my mouth, bragging all the while.
“Blub— What?”
I bolted upright, giving myself a potion facial, but that was beside the point.
“You’re a high ranker?”
“Yup. You’ve probably heard of me.”
“What’s your character name?”
“Geogi Seora.”
“…Huh? What’d you just…?”
I stared at her blankly. She grinned.
“Geogi Seora, Lee Seora. Ring a bell?”
“……!”
How had I not noticed? That nickname I’d been yelling all along.
‘Hee hee hee! What’s so funny? I’m taking this!’
‘Ack! Give it back!’
‘Ebebeb, catch me if you can~’
‘Geogi Seora, Lee Seora!’
“Noona… Rank 3?”
The words tumbled out of my mouth, an absurd mismatch.
“Oh ho ho ho. That’s right—your noona’s a big deal. Anyone bullying you, just say the word.”
I glanced up at the massive spaceship still hovering in the sky. “…And what’s that?”
“My baby, Black Stone No. 3. Want a ride?”
“…Nah. But can’t you do something about it? It’s way too conspicuous.”
“Easy.”
She snapped her fingers, and the huge craft seemed to melt into the sky, vanishing.
“It’s not gone—just cloaked. You can make anything you imagine here. So fun.”
She spun around with a grin, then suddenly stomped the hill. Thud, thud.
“Hm? This is…”
Her face turned serious in an instant as she murmured and placed her hand on the ground. The massive Machine Hill hummed in resonance.
Vrrrroooom—
It flashed blue again and vibrated fiercely. Then the elevator I’d seen before popped up.
“It was here…?”
Noona gaped at it. “I scoured everywhere… This the quest I told Dahyun about?”
“Yeah. Let’s go in.”
I stepped into the elevator with my dazed noona. It carried us to the giant robot I remembered.
“Whoa…!”
She let out a pure gasp of awe.
Welcome, my successor Geogi Seora. You’ve finally arrived.
This is the final trial. This is my greatest masterpiece. Repair it to its original state and control it freely, and it’s yours.
The robot’s power shut down with a static hiss. Then the pale ghost I’d seen before floated out, drifting lightly.
“Greetings, successor. I am the Iron Empress, Ptah.”
“…So cute!”
Noona scooped her up in a hug. Ghosts here could be touched and fed. Convenient.
“Eek! Put me down!”
“Lady Ptah, I missed you. But how does that robot work?”
“Hmph, impressive, isn’t it?”
“Yes! Super impressive!”
“Its chest holds my ultra-high-output mana engine, DH-9900. And with utility magitech linking the parts for mana flow…”
The two magitech nerds dove into jargon I couldn’t follow. They chatted for ages until noona grabbed tools and jetted toward the robot.
(Note: “Jetted” is literal—blue energy blasted from her soles and back like rockets, sending her whooshing away.)
“Hee hee hee!”
…Giggling like an idiot.
“Hura, was it?”
Lady Ptah approached me, having blankly watched their convo.
“You really brought her. My successor.”
“Just got lucky.”
“I wasn’t going to say, since it’s not certain. But you deserve to know.”
Gulp. I waited silently. The truth about the Demonic Chef.
“After Sulis vanished, I tracked him with my machines. Guess where the last signal came from?”
“Where?”
“The root of all evil. The heart of darkness. The Demon King’s Castle.”
“…The Demon King’s Castle?”
Unthinkable.
“That was when rumors swirled of the Demon King’s revival. Monsters grew savage, evil energy thickened across the continent.”
“Did the Demon King really revive?”
“No. He didn’t, and folks dismissed it as rumor, returning to normal life. But my data shows Sulis’s disappearance aligned perfectly with the evil energy’s fade.”
“So then…”
Ptah nodded. “Yes. Somehow, Sulis stopped the revival alone. The continent enjoyed peace, oblivious.”
“……! I see.”
Demonic Chef
📍 Become the Demonic Chef who enchants the world!
🎁 Travel the continent following his footsteps, gathering clues about the Demonic Chef.
🔑 Keywords acquired: ‘Dark Chef’, ‘Demon King’s Revival’
“Lady Ptah. Where’s the Demon King’s Castle?”
“Northwest continent, where eternal blizzards meet barren wastes. You’re not thinking of going now, are you?”
“Nah, just asking.”
Ptah nodded. “Thanks for guiding my successor.”
“No problem. I’ll head out.”
“A-Already? Stay longer…”
Regret tinged her face.
“Got stuff to do.”
Noona—
“Hee hee hee!”
…No need to say bye.
As I headed for the elevator, Ptah called out. “W-Wait! Take this at least!”
She held out a round coin-like device.
“What’s this?”
“Magitech teleporter to here. Flick it in the air. Reusable—don’t lose it. It recharges from ambient mana in a day.”
“Got it. Thanks. I’ll visit.”
“Yes. Farewell, Hura. Successor of Sulis.”
With her wistful smile, the elevator doors closed.
A pleasant forest near Shin-dong Village. A cool breeze tickled my hair.
Leaning against a tree, I jotted Ptah’s words in my notebook.
“The Demon King, huh…”
Shocking news. What could a mere chef have done storming the Demon King’s Castle? Stopped the revival with… food charm?
Anyway, shelve that. Time to seriously tackle monster cooking, like the old man said.
“Let’s see… any good info?”
I flipped through notes from the kimchi fried rice info, scanning quickly.
“Hm… This looks good.”
I circled one and set off.
“Lunch is wild boar.”
Baekbal Baekjung, Rank 10. He hated crowds.
He preferred quiet spots for napping in the breeze. Shin-dong Village fit perfectly—mid-level, sparse players, lush woods, cool winds.
Today, dozing in a tree, a noise woke him.
“Got the plan?”
“Yes, Master.”
“Go.”
Frowning, he started to move—then curiosity hit at their odd setup. A frying pan-wielding user and two white-suited summons, man and woman.
What job is that?
Baekbal Baekjung watched wide-eyed.
“Stealth.”
The black-haired user vanished, sneaking to the sleeping wild boar and whacking its head.
Clang!
“Cooking Throw!”
Stunned boar got kimchi fried rice splashed on it. He yelled back, “Defense down! Kids, pound it!”
“Yes!”
One-sided beatdown. The chef kept stunning with pan smacks; the suited pair pummeled it to dust.
“…Fun guy.”
Baekbal Baekjung smirked, watching.
Five minutes of brutality later, the wild boar perished.
“Huff—huff—gonna die. How many’s that?”
“Sixth, sir.”
“Success this time, Master!”
Hura drew a knife, butchering the boar. Guts out, portions separated, meat filleted.
As the old man said, monster cooking was leagues beyond normal. One slip in fire control charred it; timing off brought bitter gamey stench.
Hura barbecued meticulously. Brushed pre-made sauce, sprinkled spices, controlled flames for even, unburnt cook.
He sweated buckets, focused.
Finally, success shone.
“Done! Nailed it!”
The savory aroma filled the forest. Birds flocked, beasts gathered—even deer drooled.
Flash—
◈ Carefully seasoned and grilled wild boar from the forest.
◈ Eating it fills you with boundless energy.
First star rating, plus description. “Whoa! The old man wasn’t kidding—monster cooking’s the real deal.”
Hura pocketed some in inventory—his habit for samples.
Then he chomped his glossy masterpiece.
Tender meat tore, juices bursting forth.
“……!”
It invalidated every grilled meat he’d ever had.
“How’s the taste?”
“Success?”
Geum Taeyang and Tteoksoon-i asked anxiously.
Hura nodded slowly. “Big success.”
“Congratulations!”
“Well done, Master!”
Rustle—
Hura turned at the sound. A long-haired man drooled, staring.
“……”
“……”
“…Who’re you?”