A Talent for Everything

In truth, McCraney had judged him exactly right.

While looking over the quest, Kim Tae-hyun had fully intended to run for it if it seemed impossible to clear. Legendary quest or class quest, what mattered first was staying alive, wasn't it? If he forced the issue when he clearly couldn't beat it yet and ended up dying, the one taking the loss would be Tae-hyun. He could always leave it alone for now and come back later.

But from McCraney's perspective, it was a different story. If Tae-hyun took everything he could get and then kept putting it off forever...

"Now then, Sir Tae-hyun. Why don't you give it a try?"

"Sure. Let's do it."

Tae-hyun handled the scissors and knife, thread and needle with practiced ease. His skill level was low, but when it came to working with his hands, he refused to lose to anyone.

And as a result...

"...!"

The Tailors' Guild Master looked at what Tae-hyun had made and stared in open astonishment.

He was obviously a beginner. If McCraney hadn't introduced him, the guild master would never have personally taught someone like this.

And yet what Tae-hyun was showing him now was astonishing talent.

The kind of talent only a born tailor could display.

"Th-that is truly incredible...!"

"It's not that big a deal."

Tae-hyun, however, wasn't particularly surprised. He'd already seen reactions like this plenty of times while doing blacksmith work.

"If you have any further interest in tailoring, perhaps..."

"Ah. Not that much."

"..."

The guild master looked flustered.

No, but still. He was the master of Genoma City's Tailors' Guild, and this man rejected him without even one second of thought?

Still, there was nothing he could do. Tae-hyun had already changed classes.

"Then teach me whatever else you can."

"Ah, yes..."

* * *

Rufo, who had been yawning, asked once Tae-hyun finished speaking with the Tailors' Guild Master,

"Are you done with your business? Then let us be on our way."

"Go where?"

"Pardon? If we're going to the place where the pirate band is, shouldn't we start preparing now?"

"Ah. I'm learning a bit more first."

"...?"

Rufo suddenly felt a wave of dread.

Tae-hyun ignored him completely and asked,

"Who's the best cook in Genoma City?"

"..."

* * *

"The mayor's personal chef, huh? You've really got connections. To think I can meet someone like that."

"No, but is this really the time to be learning cooking?!"

"You ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠looking down on cooking? What, you live without eating? Huh?"

"N-no, that's not what I meant... it's just... we're already short on time even if we start preparing to attack the pirates right this second..."

"Try learning some patience, Rufo. You need to know how to stay calm. Do you know how calm guys like Pelmas and Nekdon are? I dumped them behind and went in here, and they're still waiting patiently, aren't they?"

"That's just because there's literally nothing those two can do..."

When Tae-hyun came outside, Pelmas and Nekdon had clung to his ankles and wailed.

Since he'd gotten McCraney's permission, he was able to have them remain inside the building.

Of course, McCraney had imposed one condition without compromise.

Alliance or not, there was no way she was going to let those two fools run wild in her casino.

So they were waiting quietly.

While Tae-hyun wandered around Genoma City learning skills.

"Enough of that. So where's the cook?"

"Inside."

"Oh. Did that chef make this? I can eat it, right?"

"You can eat it, but..."

A lavish mansion, an equally lavish reception room.

It was one of McCraney's residences.

She truly was a grand merchant.

This was one of the charms of Fantasy Online 2.

Its realism really did feel more real than reality itself.

Calling it the most perfectly realized virtual reality in existence wouldn't have been an exaggeration.

There were plenty of people who didn't stake their lives on levels or competition the way Tae-hyun and the other rankers did.

Enjoying this kind of experience—something impossible in real life—was one way to play too.

"Then of course I should eat it."

"...Aren't we ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠going to hunt pirates?"

"I'll eat this first."

Tae-hyun promptly picked up the honey-marinated meat dish and stuffed it into his mouth.

Rufo's protests at his side were ignored with total ruthlessness.

Windows popped up one after another at high speed.

Beaming from ear to ear, Tae-hyun started eating in earnest.

Watching from the side, Rufo stared at him in disbelief.

Is he the Avatar, or is he a beggar?

At a time when even preparing to raid the pirates would leave them short on time, he was wandering around guilds and wasting time like this.

It was unbelievable.

"Ahem. Ahem."

"Ah, you've arrived. This is the man."

The mayor's personal chef stroked his long beard and cleared his throat. Spotting him, Rufo introduced Tae-hyun.

"So this is the one who wants to learn cooking?"

"Yes..."

The chef beckoned Rufo over and moved with him to a corner.

"Why, exactly?"

"...I was wondering the same thing myself."

The chef couldn't understand it.

McCraney, as a wealthy merchant, often called him in to prepare meals.

But wanting to learn cooking?

He couldn't understand ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠why someone introduced by McCraney would want such a thing. Of course, cooks with high Cooking skills were respected anywhere, but the people close to McCraney were usually fellow grand merchants or nobles.

People like that had no reason to learn cooking.

"He's not looking down on cooking, is he? Hm?"

"That, I really don't know..."

The chef gave an annoyed-sounding cough.

He might have to comply when people like McCraney or nobles asked things of him, but he took immense pride in his culinary skill.

If this Tae-hyun fellow had casually asked to be taught because he thought cooking was easy, he was in for a rude awakening.

"Ahem. Very well. Let's see what you've got."

"I'm counting on you. And if you think you can't teach him, please just throw him out."

Rufo honestly thought that might be for the best.

This was no time for Tae-hyun to be doing this.

They needed to wipe out the pirate band as quickly as possible.

He's supposed to be subjugating pirates, not doing this...!

Frankly, getting kicked out by the chef might have been the better outcome.

With that thought, Rufo folded his arms.

This chef was not an easy man.

He had pride in his cooking, and his personality was exacting.

There was no way things would go as smoothly as they had at the Tailors' Guild, not when Tae-hyun obviously knew so little about cooking.

Without question, he'd fumble around for a bit, get chewed out, and then thrown ou—

"?!"

But what happened a short while later was nothing like Rufo had expected.

* * *

"Th-this... this is truly incredible! It's as if the fish is still alive!"

"That's because it is still alive. You haven't cooked that fish yet..."

"Ahem. Ahem."

The chef stroked his beard awkwardly.

He had mistaken it just now, yes—but there had been a reason for the mistake.

What Tae-hyun had cooked really was that astonishing.

The recipe itself was simple.

It didn't even use that many ingredients.

Just rabbit meat and spices, mixed together into a dish—but the flavor defied imagination.

A miraculous balance, in every sense of the word.

It was utterly unbelievable for something made by a cook with only Beginner-level Cooking skill.

If other players raising cooking classes saw it, they'd clutch the back of their necks and collapse from sheer outrage.

Truth be told, even Tae-hyun was a little surprised.

I just figured more ingredients would mean mixing in more stuff would be better...

He hadn't expected Luck to cover for his lack of actual cooking skill.

But with Divine Foresight guiding his hand as he casually grabbed and sprinkled spices, a proper balance had somehow formed.

The chef, of course, had no way of knowing about Tae-hyun's Luck, so he could only be stunned.

The technique was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠clearly that of a novice.

But the end result was extraordinary.

So extraordinary that he had mistaken the live fish beside the soup for another finished dish.

"This is truly incredible! Just who did you learn from?"

"Well... I just kind of picked things up living with hunters..."

"You reached this level without a master?! Do you have the hands of a god or something?!"

Listening to the two of them talk, Rufo stared in disbelief, then scooped up a spoonful of soup and drank it.

"...!"

The umami was absurdly good.

What the hell even is this man?

Rufo had thought he was an Avatar, but why on earth did he also have this level of cooking skill?

Anyone seeing him would think he was the Incarnation of the God of Cooking.

That was enough to make the chef seize Tae-hyun by the hand, visibly excited.

"Excellent, this is how a student should be! I'll teach you everything I can!"

"W-wait, no, we have to go hunt pirates—"

Rufo's words vanished into nothing.

* * *

"Whew. Finally."

Tae-hyun checked his skill window.

A whole variety of things had gone up.

If other cooks ever learned just how fast he had grown like this, they'd pound their chests in frustration.

This kind of explosive growth was possible for Tae-hyun alone.

Cooking could provide a huge number of buffs right before battle.

Even if he couldn't learn the secret techniques of professional chefs, it was still best to learn absolutely everything he could.

While Tae-hyun was checking his skills, the chef grabbed his hand and said,

"Would you perhaps consider studying cooking further under me? With your talent, you could absolutely surpass me! Becoming a royal chef wouldn't even be a dream!"

Judging by the quest, it was something that could be done even without a cooking-related class.

For a player like Tae-hyun, who didn't have a cooking class, it really was a honey-sweet quest.

However...

Rufo quietly placed a hand on Tae-hyun's shoulder.

Surely he isn't actually going to go with Christopher?

The idea that a man who needed to go kill pirates right now would wander off to become a royal chef was beyond imagination.

He could feel the silent pressure coming from behind him.

Rufo stared holes into the back of Tae-hyun's head.

"I appreciate the offer, but I'll have to decline. I've got things to do."

Only then did Rufo finally let out a sigh of relief.