The Solitary Glutton

I boiled the eyeball for nearly an hour. A savory, mouth-watering aroma began to permeate the surroundings. The moment I caught a whiff, I knew: any living creature would do anything for a single spoonful of this broth.

"Whew. That smell is killer..."

So that was why there was a condition to eat it alone without sharing it with anyone. If the people on the rooftop weren't my slaves, a murder might have broken out over a single bowl of this soup.

*Gulp...*

*Slurp...*

*Gulp...*

The sounds of swallowing echoed from everywhere. Those damn jackals were eyeing my Dragon-Eye Bear Soup. "Get lost, all of you!! Stop staring and get off the roof!! I’ll kill anyone I catch drooling!!!"

"Ugh... damn it..."

"Tsk... if only he weren't our master..."

"I'm starving to death..."

"He always eats the good stuff alone..."

The sentries on the roof clicked their tongues and headed downstairs. Those devious bastards. They were eyeing the broth without any regard for the hierarchy between master and slave. Crazy sons of bitches.

'Damn it... I should lock the roof door...'

If my women smelled this and came up asking for a bite... it would be awkward to refuse. In human relationships, a lot of resentment stems from food. Like that friend who devours all the sweet and sour pork before you even start your own meal, or that shameless bastard who suggests pouring the sauce over the fries just to eat more of them.

'I must not get caught... I have to eat this all by myself...'

I locked the roof door and stirred the pot with a ladle. After boiling it for another 30 minutes, the dragon's eyeball had completely dissolved, turning the liquid into a golden broth.

*Thump...*

"Wow, it's done..."

The broth shimmered with a golden hue. This was the Dragon-Eye Bear Soup made from the eye of a Golden Dragon. I could have made a fortune selling this at the Black Market...

'If I add ramen to this, would the effects as a spiritual medicine disappear...?'

'Still... wouldn't it be okay to mix in some rice?'

As a Korean, I felt a strong urge to mix rice into the broth, but I held back. I was terrified the effects of the spiritual medicine might vanish or be halved.

"Bon appétit."

There was about three servings' worth of broth. I had to finish it all by myself without letting anyone steal ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a drop. I dipped a spoon in to taste it.

*Slurp.*

"Wow... to think I have to eat this all by myself..."

My heart wanted to share it with everyone. Honestly, this was the best broth I’d ever tasted in my life. It was a magnificent flavor that made 50-year-old traditional soup restaurants look like jokes... I’d only had a single spoonful, but I already felt my energy recovering. I felt like I’d only been eating weird things until now... but this was a proper spiritual medicine for once.

"Haa... delicious..."

As I was tearing up from the sheer emotion of the taste, someone came up to the roof.

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

"Oppa! Are you in there?"

It was Eunji. My god... does that girl never sleep?

"Should I... answer this... or not..."

I kept my mouth shut. This was a spiritual medicine that only worked if eaten 'secretly and alone.' Only if I devoured it all by myself, without even the King knowing, could I reap the massive benefits of gaining 200 Magic stat points and 20 points in all other stats.

'Right... let's pretend I'm not here... she'll leave eventually...'

But contrary to my hopes, Eunji showed no signs of leaving. Instead, she was busy gathering more people. Eunji, seriously...

"He's definitely on the roof..."

"Eunji, what are you doing?"

"Ah! Aram-unnie! The roof door is locked... I was worried Oppa might be dying alone again like last time..."

"What? Hmm... but... doesn't it smell like something delicious?"

"It definitely does. Is he eating something alone? Hmm..."

"Cough... *cough, cough!*"

I choked on my own spit. The conversations coming from beyond the roof door were getting ominous. If this continued, they would surely break down the door and my wives would come flooding in.

'No...'

It couldn't end like this. I decided to take drastic measures.

'I'll wrap myself in the Void Veil... and use Abyss Construction.'

First, I blocked the roof entrance with my tentacles. Now, even if the door were destroyed, entry wouldn't be easy. But my wives were already beings who had half-transcended humanity. They could just jump to the roof without needing the door. So, I decided to cast the Void Veil, which blocks all attacks, and use Abyss Construction, a skill I had never used before.

'The wider the range of the Void Veil, the more extreme the mana consumption... So I'll wrap it only around myself and this pot... and hide the rest with the Abyss.'

Using Abyss Construction allows me to dye a certain area in darkness. Anyone who enters that darkness is effectively in the belly of a giant monster called the Abyss. It’s an ultimate finishing skill where Abyss Fangs bite at limbs from all directions, twisting the senses and making it impossible to move properly. Of course, that’s when used for offense. I didn't need to go that far. I just needed to blind them for a moment.

'The time I can maintain all these techniques at once is... at least 5 minutes, at most 10. I have to finish the broth within this time.'

I grabbed the hot pot with my bare hands. My hands would get burned, but I could just heal them with regenerating flesh. Or I could ask Anna to heal me later.

"Hoo..."

I took ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a deep breath and began chugging the Golden Dragon-Eye Bear Soup.

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

"Oppa!!! What's going on!! Open the door!!!"

"Are you eating something weird and dying alone again?"

"Everyone, move aside. I'm breaking it down!"

"KWA-A-ANG!!!!"

The roof door shattered. At the same time, I felt my tentacles being sliced away by Aram and Eunji’s blades, causing them to be unsummoned. Their breakthrough was faster than I thought.

"Kyaaa!!! What is this!! Shadows? Darkness?"

"S-something... strange... is in there!"

"Everyone, smash it! Hwayoung! Use Blood Explosion!!"

"KWA-GWA-GWANG!!!"

I was halfway done. The attacks were intensifying. Of course, the Void Veil absorbed all those attacks. Normally, I could reflect double the damage back at the attackers... but I couldn't handle the aftermath of that, so I just kept the attack nullification active.

"Call Merhere-unnie!!!"

"Huh? Wait..."

"Eunji, why?"

"W-we... left Merhere-unnie in America... After telling her to take the plane... we didn't bring her along..."

"Ah... oh no... Jun!!! Come out!! We have to go get Merhere-unnie!!!"

I almost spat out the broth I was drinking. 'Crazy..! I forgot about Merhere...!!' Distracted by Meiling and Hilde... we had completely forgotten Merhere.

"Achoo!! *Cough.*"

New York Stewart International Airport. Merhere, who had seized the private jet left behind, had captured five humans: the pilot, the co-pilot, two stewardesses, and Ryu Jin, who had barely escaped Hilde and Surt and arrived here in five hours by taking drugs.

"Why are they not coming?"

She had been waiting alone for eight hours for Jojun and his party to arrive.

"*Burp.*"

Thinking I had to go get Merhere, I drank the rest of the soup in three minutes without even being able to savor the taste. Perhaps because my physical abilities had increased, I had no problems finishing that huge amount all by myself. It seems my appetite grows as much as my stamina does. Is it because I'm half-snake? Anyway, I immediately deactivated the skills.

"Oppa!!! What happened!! And what is this smell!! What did you eat again!?"

Eunji sniffed the air and shoved her face close to mine. I couldn't meet her eyes and stammered out an excuse.

"Ah... that... everyone was sleeping... and the Sari-gomtang (instant soup) was about to expire... so I ate it. I was so hungry."

Honestly, the smell was similar to instant soup. Please, just fall for it.

"I thought you died again!! I told you not to eat alone!!"

Eunji fell for it. Eating instant ramen alone was acceptable enough.

"*Sob...* I thought you died..."

Hwayoung hugged me while crying. I patted her back. The atmosphere seemed to be settling down.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt? It's nothing weird, right?"

Aram ruffled my hair ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and asked. I felt sorry. I had only eaten the spiritual medicine by myself... yet they were all so worried.

"*Sniff, sniff...* Oppa, what is this pot? And why... is there no ramen wrapper? And why were you using those skills just to eat ramen? Oppa. You're hiding something, aren't you? Yes, you are."

Aram asked, looking at the pot lying on the floor. That sharp girl. This is why I hate people with quick wits... I had no choice. I had to change the subject.

"It's nothing, everyone. Just... uh, while I was eating ramen, the Evil Gods started talking to me. We were having a deep conversation... so that's why. You don't need to worry. And I had my subordinates clean up the ramen wrapper earlier."

I threw the Evil Gods under the bus. I could feel their skeptical gazes, but what could I do? Most things can be solved by blaming the gods. For the sake of domestic peace, the gods would have to endure it.

"I'm perfectly fine, so don't worry so much. And... about Merhere..."

As I changed the subject and brought up Merhere, everyone smiled awkwardly and avoided my gaze. I could forgive those who stayed at the base, but those who fought on the front lines shouldn't have forgotten her. But they had all been too busy wanting to go home...

"Uh... I'll go get her myself... so everyone, get some more rest."

"Okay..."

"Yes...!"

Once I turned the topic to Merhere, they all scurried away. Thank goodness. No one was interrogating me about what I had eaten alone anymore. But I shouldn't just be standing here; I needed to go get Merhere quickly. How hard must it have been for her to wait for me all alone...

'First... I need to go to the Abyss and digest this...'

I could feel the liquid sloshing in my stomach with every step. I would only see the effects of the spiritual medicine once I digested it. I entered the Abyss.

"Ugh... I'm so full..."

I rubbed my stomach and slumped into a chair. Even if I spent a few hours here, not even 10 minutes would have passed in reality, so it was fine to take some time to digest. After watching the parasitic humans working busily for about three hours, the digestion was complete.

With this, my Magic stat finally surpassed 1000. Since I had 880 Magic before, I had gained 1080 Magic by consuming this. My Magic stat was over 1000... would I get anything?

"Haha... this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠is it..."

I had become stronger again. As expected... I only get stronger when I eat something. From the Black Snake's inner core to the Nagaraja's three juices, and now the Golden Dragon-Eye Bear Soup. I felt like this lineage of gluttony would make me endlessly stronger. Yes, I was gradually becoming a true, solitary glutton.

'Let's see... what did I get this time...'

I immediately checked the reward for the 'Golden Dragon Predator' achievement.