Crackle and Burn
Whoosh!
As soon as they arrived at the clearing and he began lighting the fires, the guild members started raising their hands.
"Over here too, please!"
"Do mine first!"
Being chefs, they were naturally greedy when it came to their cooking fires.
"You rascals! You're making things difficult for the mage!" Chao scolded his guild members, putting on a solemn front. Then he turned to Tae-hyun. "Do mine first, please."
"Of course. I'll get right on it," Tae-hyun replied with a bright smile.
Seeing that smile, Chao felt a sudden, fleeting prickle of unease deep in his chest.
Wait, what was that?
But Chao wasn't sharp enough to actually pick up on the warning sign.
Whoosh!
Tae-hyun walked around the clearing, lighting the fires beneath the set-up cooking stations. He put extra effort into Chao's station. Watching Tae-hyun work so diligently, Chao nodded in satisfaction.
He's working so hard, I must have imagined it. He knows I'm the guild master, so he's putting extra care into mine. I like this guy.
The ability to recognize who was important and line up accordingly! That was the kind of social awareness that earned a person favor.
"Hey. Go to the warehouse and grab some dishes from the S-tier section to give to him."
"From the S-tier section? Isn't that a bit of a waste?"
"You idiot, we just brought in a high-ranking mage. You think that's a waste? Look at him. It's hard to find a ranker who works this hard like a total sucker—er, I mean, treats our work like his own. Usually, rankers are stiff-necked and look down on everyone, but maybe because he's a solo player, he's totally humble. This is the perfect time to make a strong impression and win him over."
"Understood!"
The guild member nodded in agreement and rushed off. Just then, another guild member raised their hand.
"What is it now?"
"By the way, what is that gentleman's name?"
"Uh... actually, what is it?"
"..."
When the guild members stared at him in bewilderment, Chao bluffed. He couldn't afford to lose his authority as the guild master!
"When your hearts are connected, you don't need names to understand each other!"
"Ah, I see."
"But still, a name..."
"Fine, I'll just ask. Hey! Mr. Mage! What might your name be?" Chao called out to Tae-hyun.
Tae-hyun, who was busy setting things ablaze, turned his head and replied.
"My name is DokdoIsOurLand."
"???"
"Look at that. What a great name. He must be a true patriot."
U-Uh, wait...
Even so, who names themselves that?
It's kind of creepy...
Meanwhile, Tae-hyun was wrapping up his work.
"Here, take these. Eat while you work. They taste amazing and have incredible effects."
One of the greatest perks of a chef guild was getting to eat the highly potent dishes made by chefs for free! Tae-hyun checked the items and beamed. Dragon Steak, Elixir Soup, Golden Roasted Meat, and more! To treat the newly arrived ranker mage, the guild members had brought out their finest culinary creations.
"Oh, but did you make these just now?"
"Haha, no. We preserved them after making them a while ago."
"How do you preserve them?"
"Heh. That is a secret of the culinary trade. I cannot tell y—"
"..."
"...ou, is what I would say, but since you're a guild member, of course I can tell you!" Chao quickly changed his tune as Tae-hyun's expression turned icy. Since Tae-hyun was a mage anyway, sharing information about chef-specific items wouldn't hurt.
"With this item, dishes can be preserved for a very long time." It looked exactly like a mini-fridge, but Tae-hyun chose not to point that out.
"How do you make this?"
"Well, the blueprint is this... Wait." Chao suddenly hesitated. Had he gone too far?
"You must never leak this to the public. It's a rare blueprint that most chefs don't even possess yet." While items that functioned as refrigerators were common enough, their performance varied wildly. In that regard, this item—whose blueprint Chao's guild had obtained by clearing a difficult quest—was a top-tier, highly efficient preserver!
"Of course. It's not like I'm a blacksmith, so why would I leak it? I'm just curious about how it's made. I've rarely seen things like this." Tae-hyun lied smoothly without batting an eye.
"Haha! True!"
You have acquired the blueprint for Mana Refrigerator.
You possess the Advanced Blacksmithing skill. You receive an understanding bonus.
You possess the Advanced Engineering skill. You receive an understanding bonus.
You have fully comprehended the blueprint for Mana Refrigerator. You can now craft it.
The moment he received it, he understood it perfectly. Showing a blueprint like this to a player with Tae-hyun's level of blacksmithing skill was practically spoon-feeding him! Tae-hyun bit his lower lip hard to stop his mouth from twitching upward into a grin.
Now then... No, I can squeeze out one more thing. Anyone else would have been nervous or tense, trying to escape as quickly as possible. But Tae-hyun was the exact opposite. Since things had already turned out this way, he might as well milk them dry, eat his fill, and enjoy himself!
Chomp, chomp. "Ah, this is delicious. Can you grill some more of this?" Tae-hyun immediately walked over and snatched a piece of meat right as a chef was cooking it! The meat was perfectly juicy and grilled to absolute perfection.
"Ah, hold on. I'm marinating it right now..."
"Just grill more!"
"...Understood." The chef was annoyed, but he threw more meat onto the grill anyway. After all, they had to treat their guest of honor well!
Is he possessed by a starving ghost?Nom, nom, munch! Tae-hyun began roaming around the clearing, stealing—er, receiving—dishes from the chefs.
Strength has permanently increased by 1.
Agility has permanently increased by 1.
Stamina has permanently increased by 1.
Cold Resistance has temporarily increased.
The level of Sadiq's Flame skill has increased.
As dozens of buffs stacked up all at once, Tae-hyun's face practically glowed with health.
You already possess the Cooking skill.
You have acquired the Culinary Plunder skill.
Culinary Plunder: Recreates new dishes using dishes made by others. This is not a method typically used by normal chefs.
⚠️ Warning: Using this skill in front of other chefs may decrease your affinity with them.
"Well... a skill is a skill, so it's good to have!"
You have overeaten. Your Agility is temporarily reduced.
Eating any more may result in additional status ailments.
"..."
The chefs' glares grew cold. Tae-hyun had practically cleaned out all the food in the vicinity! Chao cleared his throat with a dry cough and approached him.
"Well, now that you've stuffed your fa—er, now that you've eaten your fill, how about we get you signed up for the guild?"
His words were polite, but his eyes were burning. You've stuffed your face and taken everything we had to offer, you better not run! Fortunately, Tae-hyun had no intention of running.
"Ah, of course. I should join."
At that moment, the clanking of armor and heavy thuds of marching boots echoed from the distance. It was the sound of a large troop of soldiers rushing toward them.
"?"
"I heard there are Sadiq worshippers here!" the commander roared, his face flushed with rage.
"????"
"Sadiq? Who's that?"
"Is this some kind of event?"
The chefs were utterly bewildered by the NPCs' sudden intrusion. They had absolutely nothing to do with any evil god.
"Answer me, adventurers!"
"N-No! We have nothing to do with this! All of our guild members are good, honest people. We only know how to cook!"
"Hmm..."
Chao stepped forward to handle the unexpected situation. As the guild master, he possessed high Reputation and a significant amount of contribution points within the Erangs Kingdom. He even had the Beginner Speech skill (though he hadn't leveled it up on purpose). He was the perfect person to defuse this situation! Indeed, even the commander hesitated for a moment.
However...
"All hail Sadiq! Long live Sadiq!"
"?!?!?!?!?!"
"Die, dogs of the Erangs Kingdom! Even your king shall bow before the power of the great Lord Sadiq!" Along with his shout, Tae-hyun fired a Fire Arrow straight at the commander. Boom!
"Y-You crazy Sadiq bastard!"
"I knew it! They really are Sadiq fanatics! Arrest them!"
Tae-hyun ran wild, doing his absolute best to look like a complete lunatic. "Hehehe! Fire launch!"
"W-What is wrong with you?! Have you lost your mind?!" Chao screamed in protest, but Tae-hyun was already dashing away.
"How is a mage that fast?!"
Tae-hyun was already incredibly swift, but with all the culinary buffs stacked on him, he was practically a blur. Realizing they couldn't catch him, the soldiers decided to arrest the chefs first.
"Apprehend them all!"
The elite soldiers of the Erangs Kingdom are placing you under arrest.
If you resist, you may become a wanted criminal in the Erangs Kingdom.
If arrested, you will be imprisoned for a set duration.
"...$*#&!#(!'
As chefs, they couldn't possibly fight back against the elite soldiers. Chao and his guild members spat out a stream of curses as they were dragged away.
A priest NPC who had accompanied the soldiers cried out in horror. "Look! This is Sadiq's Flame! They were cooking their dishes using Sadiq's Flame!"
"How utterly wicked! To think they planned to present such a dish for His Majesty's birthday! They are truly evil to the core!"
The moment the deed was done, Tae-hyun changed his clothes, altered his face, and ordered Cain and Lee Da-bi to leave the Erangs Kingdom immediately. Even though they were both in disguise, it was better to be safe than sorry.
I won't really need their help to clear the Magic Tower quest anyway. It's better to summon them when needed rather than risk them getting caught. Having just Jeong Su-hyeok with him would be more than enough for this quest.
You have framed others and driven them into a corner. Heuk-heuk's power increases.
You have shouted Sadiq's name in the middle of the kingdom. Heuk-heuk's power increases.
Your Infamy increases.
—Master! You are a born follower of Sadiq! It was a wicked deed so magnificent that even Heuk-heuk was filled with admiration!
Ah, right. My Infamy management... Tae-hyun regretted it, but it was already too late. Once his Infamy surpassed his Reputation, it became incredibly difficult to clean up. Most of the things Tae-hyun did naturally resulted in his Infamy rising! To fix it, he would have to live with a kind and pure heart, which was the furthest thing from his nature. Whenever he did something bad, his body moved as naturally as flowing water! At the very least, it was a relief that Heuk-heuk was recovering his strength.
Well, at least he's recovering without leeching my EXP. Yong-yong was still busy catching rabbits back in their territory. In truth, Tae-hyun hadn't introduced Heuk-heuk to Yong-yong yet. Even for someone as shameless as Tae-hyun, introducing Heuk-heuk to Yong-yong felt like a bridge too far. No matter how gentle and diligent Yong-yong was, there was no telling how he might react or if he would go astray.
One Sadiq-like entity is more than enough... Without hesitation, Tae-hyun headed toward the Magic Tower. A long tail was bound to get stepped on. Although Tae-hyun hadn't revealed his identity, even back in Pan-On 1, there were plenty of people who would guess, Wait, did someone screw me over in the most unimaginable way possible? It must be Kim Tae-hyun! And surprisingly, those guesses were almost always spot on.
Hey, just because someone got screwed over in Pan-On, does that mean it's always my fault? Well, okay, this time it actually was me! Tae-hyun felt a bit wronged, but there was nothing he could do. There was no guarantee people wouldn't make the same connection this time. In that case, it was time to make a quick getaway! The best escape was always in a direction the enemy would never expect. Right now, that meant the Magic Tower. An escape not to the outside, but deeper inside.
I get to escape and clear a quest at the same time. With a light heart, Tae-hyun arrived in front of the Magic Tower and held out the recommendation letter written by Baron Terand.
"Here is my recommendation letter."
"To bring a recommendation letter from a noble, you must be quite an impressive individual. However, our Magic Tower isn't the sort of place that cares about such—wait, what?!" The gatekeeper gasped in shock the moment his eyes fell upon the letter. Seeing his reaction, Tae-hyun was suddenly seized by a wave of anxiety.