The First Broadcast, Wyvern Egg Jangjorim 3
"Ugh..."
Lee Sia, the deceased saintess, was not the only one currently occupying the Curtala Mountain Range.
Since the Curtala Mountain Range was a massive A-grade active erosion dungeon roughly the size of a metropolitan city, hunters of all kinds stayed there for their own various purposes. Among them was Cheon A-young, an A-grade hunter and a highly popular streamer, often referred to as a "major corporate-tier" creator.
Among A-grade hunter streamers, Cheon A-young lacked both outstanding natural talent and an overpowered awakened ability. However, she was a hard worker who had clawed her way up from F-grade to A-grade. She possessed the sheer diligence to match, having consistently streamed for twelve years, starting from the moment she first obtained her F-grade hunter license.
"Ah, I'm so sleepy I could die. Everyone, don't ever camp out in the wild. Just stay home."
Currently, the twelve-year veteran streamer Cheon A-young was filming a content series titled A Week in the Dungeon.
She wasn't doing it alone. A group of major streamers, each averaging tens of thousands of concurrent viewers, had set up a variety-show-style concept and goal to stream together. It was essentially a hunter parody of the old, popular variety show 2 Days & 1 Night.
The theme and main content changed with every episode.
In some episodes, all the participating streamers would gather to raid a gate dungeon together while camping out. In others, a few unlucky members who lost a penalty game would be forced to suffer in the dungeon, spending three days and two nights with just one other partner.
When the A Week in the Dungeon content first started a year ago, only the streamers' dedicated fans watched it. But over time, as the editing and production quality improved, it became highly popular even among the general public.
Thanks to that, their average viewership now reached hundreds of thousands.
Moreover, because it was broadcast live, viewers could watch an A-grade hunter realistically struggle to survive and feed herself in a dungeon, which drew overwhelmingly positive reactions.
And now, the A-grade hunter known by her Hunter Name "Shield Protector," Cheon A-young, was filming a solo survival episode.
Normally, she would have companions. But after losing a penalty game a week ago, she was forced to survive in the dungeon entirely on her own.
To make matters worse, she had to do it without a single piece of supplied rations or support gear.
Ugh, honestly, those jerks definitely rigged the game before we started...
But she couldn't back out. The stream had too many viewers, and this was a precious series she had built up for a year.
Besides, she had her pride as an A-grade hunter. Even if the rigging was obvious, she had to endure it.
Fortunately, the viewers' reactions were quite good.
A pretty female A-grade hunter trying to survive alone in a dungeon for three days and two nights—it would be stranger if it wasn't popular.
Ugh, I'm so hungry... seriously starving...
The real problem was that she was genuinely starving.
Hunters consumed an immense amount of energy. Of course, because their basic physical capabilities were far superior to ordinary humans, they could survive much longer without food and water. But feeling hunger was a completely different story.
Even if a hunter stuffed themselves to the point of bursting in the morning, their stomach would start screaming for food by evening. The saying "hunters run on food" was not a joke.
In fact, a university thesis had shown that under the same conditions, hunters who ate well and slept well showed a dramatic increase in stats and condition, which ultimately led to an increase in their rank.
In any case, Cheon A-young was currently starving.
She wasn't going to collapse from hunger, but the empty stomach was pure torture.
"...Ugh, guys, I'm so hungry..."
"Damn it... even if you give me this, how am I supposed to order chicken in a dungeon?!"
"I mean, I'm grateful, but..."
"Thank you, Bankrupt Chicken Shop! Thanks to you, I feel so much... well, not really energized, but thank you anyway."
Even though she had been awake for less than three minutes, Cheon A-young was a twelve-year veteran streamer. She possessed the seasoned experience to smoothly guide the broadcast even in a half-asleep state.
"Sigh, I'm too hungry. Let's go hunt something first."
Although the A-grade erosion dungeon, the Curtala Mountain Range, was a world dominated by Wyverns, there were still various flora and fauna that made up the bottom of the food chain. Among them were plenty of things humans could eat. However, Cheon A-young, accustomed to modern civilization, had eaten nothing but a small rabbit-like F-grade monster she had caught and roasted on the first day.
And today, she hadn't managed to hunt a single beast yet.
Why was it that not a single creature was in sight?
"Ugh... I'm so hungry... Why can't I find anything? It wasn't this empty the last time I came here..."
"Ah, right. It's the breeding season for those giant lizards... Sigh, this is bad. I was planning to steal a Wyvern egg to eat if I got desperate, but if even one egg goes missing right now, every Wyvern in the nesting grounds will come after me... Ugh..."
"You guys don't know how intense a hunter's hunger is. There's literally a thesis published on this..."
"Hey! Do you know how bad the fuel efficiency of an A-grade hunter is? If I eat five servings in the morning, I have to eat another five in the evening!"
"Hey! Do I look like I weigh 90kg to you?! No matter how you look at me, I'm 50kg max!"
"Hey! Where do you live?!"
In reality, Cheon A-young wasn't actually that angry. She just knew that bantering with the viewers from the morning was the best way to raise the tension and keep them entertained. But banter aside, she was genuinely starving.
There was a limit to how much content she could generate just by chatting. Ultimately, viewers tuned into hunter streams to watch them hunt monsters with flashy skills and combat. She needed a decent monster to hunt so she could fill both her stomach and the broadcast runtime.
If she kept wandering without finding any prey, the stream would get boring.
But I can't mess with the Wyverns. A breeding Wyvern will let out a shriek that calls its entire pack if it or its eggs are attacked...
Even the beasts lower on the food chain were hiding due to the breeding season, making them hard to find.
"Huh?"
As she walked aimlessly in search of prey, Cheon A-young tilted her head at a shadow cast over her from the sky.
"What's with the Wyverns..."
As dozens of Wyverns flew overhead toward a specific direction, Cheon A-young instinctively deployed her protector shield around herself.
Even if a swarm of Wyverns comes at me, as long as I focus on defense rather than annihilation, I can safely escape the gate...
Fortunately, the Wyverns weren't heading toward her. She had been careful to avoid provoking them, knowing it was their breeding season.
"Usually, when Wyverns fly off like that, it means... someone stole their eggs..."
"......"
Cheon A-young's mind raced. If the one who provoked the Wyverns was a fellow hunter, she had to go help.
Her ability was Protector—a skill that created semi-transparent energy barriers to block and neutralize attacks, protecting her allies. But that ability had evolved significantly as she reached A-grade. Initially focused purely on defense, she could now use her barriers to strike, trap, or even cut off the oxygen supply of monsters. She could even compress the barrier to crush them to death.
Now recognized as a powerful, versatile ability for both offense and defense, it had earned her an official Hunter Name, a privilege reserved for the elite among A-grade hunters. She was, at her core, someone who believed in helping those in danger.
Yeah, I should go check it out.
Having made up her mind, and with her stream content running dry anyway, Cheon A-young began running in the direction the Wyverns were heading.
"Just in case, I'm going to head toward where the Wyverns are going. I don't know what's happening, but if there's a person there, I have to save them."
Filtering out the chat, Cheon A-young kept her protector active just in case as she surveyed the area. From this moment on, she was acting not as a streamer, but as a professional A-grade hunter.
Every sound, smell, and environmental change could be a threat. She couldn't afford to let her guard down.
If the one who provoked the Wyverns was a human hunter, that would be the best-case scenario. They could team up, get some good footage, and escape the dungeon together.
But if it was a natural predator of the Wyverns, it would be a true emergency.
Screeech!
"I hear them."
As the distant shrieks of Wyverns echoed, Cheon A-young slowed her pace and began to scan her surroundings warily.
Crunch!
Thud!
Crack!
The sound of something being crushed echoed from a distance, but the thick foliage blocked her view, preventing her from seeing what was happening. As a special ability-type hunter, she didn't have enhanced vision. With the dense forest limiting her line of sight, she had to advance cautiously toward the commotion.
Then, Cheon A-young caught a strange scent.
"...*Sniff, sniff*... What is this smell?"
Normally, a strange smell in a dungeon meant she should raise her guard. It could be toxic gas, mysterious vapor, or a hallucinogenic substance. But this smell... was incredibly familiar.
"...Why the hell does it smell like home here?"
It was the scent of soy sauce. A very rich, deep, and even sweet aroma. To A-young, who hadn't eaten properly in three days, the scent was incredibly mouth-watering.
Following the smell, she discovered a small campfire, a pot, and the very soy sauce that had lured her here, boiling furiously. And there were two pots... Why were there two pots here?
This wasn't some ordinary forest or mountain. This was the Curtala Mountain Range, an A-grade erosion dungeon. Let alone ordinary civilians, even B-grade hunters couldn't enter without permission. Only A-grade hunters with official Hunter Names like Cheon A-young were granted entry by the Association.
Yet, in this very place, a large pot was boiling on a fire, and next to it, a soy sauce mixture with a comforting, familiar aroma was bubbling away. Cheon A-young couldn't comprehend what she was seeing.
What is this? Did the other streamers or staff set up a surprise event for me? No, the guys I'm filming with are all B-grade, so they wouldn't even be allowed in here.
Flap!
"Huh? The Wyverns are fleeing?"
While Cheon A-young was distracted by the smell of soy sauce, the Wyverns shrieked and began to fly away as if escaping something. But while their flight was concerning, she was far more focused on why soy sauce was boiling here.
"...Let's just open it and check."
The pot had a transparent lid, so she could tell at a glance that someone was boiling a soy sauce marinade, the kind used for jangjorim or soy-marinated crab. And in the large pot next to it...
"An egg?"
Lifting the lid, Cheon A-young saw a smooth, hard-shelled egg.
"Is this... a Wyvern egg?"
Cheon A-young manipulated the drone camera hovering beside her to open the chat window again.
"No, seriously, I didn't set this up. I just followed the smell of soy sauce and found this."
"Are you crazy? Even if it's sitting here, it belongs to someone else! Why would I steal it?!"
No way. Making jangjorim with a 30-million-won egg?
Cheon A-young let out a hollow laugh at the viewer's chat. Surely, no one could be that insane...
"Let's see what it is first."
Since it was hard to see inside the boiling pot, Cheon A-young used her protector to lift the egg and float it in front of her. The egg was perfectly clean. The boiling water even smelled faintly of salt, suggesting it had been seasoned.
Examining the egg, which was about the size of her head, Cheon A-young concluded that it was indeed a Wyvern egg.
"This is a Wyvern egg. And judging by the size... it's a first-clutch egg."
"A first-clutch egg is the very first egg laid by a female Wyvern. Wyverns lay eggs during every breeding season throughout their lives, but the first-clutch egg carries the most concentrated nutrients and mana. So while normal Wyvern eggs go for 30 million won... this one would easily fetch 100 million won. Maybe even more. It's my first time seeing one in person, too."
"Exactly! From a hunter's perspective, this makes no sense. You could use the shell to craft high-grade gear, or hatch it to raise a tamed Wyvern for massive profit. Eating it is just throwing away a fortune!"
As a professional A-grade hunter, Cheon A-young found the situation utterly incomprehensible. What kind of lunatic would turn a 100-million-won Wyvern egg into jangjorim? Not to mention, stealing a breeding Wyvern's egg would draw the wrath of the entire pack...
"Wait... Is that why the Wyverns were swarming earlier...?"
The pieces of the puzzle finally clicked together in her head. The owner of this camp had stolen the Wyvern's egg, prompting the furious beasts to swarm them. And judging by how the Wyverns had fled in terror, they had been utterly defeated by the 'thief.'
"Hmm... I think a incredibly powerful hunter might have come here..."
"Huh?"
Seeing the sudden panic in the chat, Cheon A-young tilted her head. Behind her? There shouldn't be anything...
"..............."
For the first time in her life, Cheon A-young realized that when a person is truly terrified, they cannot even scream. The moment she turned around, something crimson was looming right in front of her face.
Blood-red eyes.
A figure a head taller than her.
And writhing tentacles sprouting from her back, one of which was crushing a dead Wyvern, while several others coiled around Cheon A-young, trapping her.
"...My egg..."
"H-Kyaaaaaaaah!"
In that instant, Cheon A-young instinctively deployed her protector shield to strike the tentacled figure.
Crash!
"...!?"
However, the shield she threw with all her might was shattered by a single casual punch from the stranger. The writhing tentacles instantly bound Cheon A-young's arms and legs, while another snatched the Wyvern egg from her floating barrier.
Bound by the tentacles, Cheon A-young recalled a certain parasitic monster that inhabited dungeons.
"A-Ah... h-help... please spare me..."
A parasitic monster with tentacles that hijacked human or beast bodies, devoured their brains, and used them as hosts to infect others and reproduce. The Hunter Association had issued a top-priority extermination order for them, and Cheon A-young herself had been deployed to such missions before. Horrific thoughts flooded her mind.
A parasitic monster must have infected a hunter. The Association said they were all wiped out, but some must have survived! Am I going to end up like that? Am I going to be stuffed through every orifice by these tentacles and become a host for parasites?
She didn't know how strong this stranger was, but her protector shield had been shattered in a single blow. Even if she wanted to resist and run, her limbs were completely bound. As a special ability-type hunter without physical enhancement, she couldn't break free by brute force.
Trembling like a leaf as she accepted her grim fate, the red-eyed woman slowly approached her.
This was bad. She was doomed. Genuinely doomed!
"...It's my egg."
"...Eh?"
"I said, it's my egg."
".........?"
What?
Before Cheon A-young could process the words, the tentacles binding her uncoiled, and she collapsed onto the ground, her strength leaving her. The silver-haired woman gently caressed the Wyvern egg as if it were a precious treasure, then placed it back into the boiling pot.
"......"
"......Uh, that is..."
Only then could Cheon A-young clearly see the face of the person who had ambushed her. Though partially obscured by the writhing tentacles, she had striking silver hair and a face as beautiful as a celebrity's. And the massive chest on her figure stood in stark, humiliating contrast to Cheon A-young's flat chest.
While Cheon A-young sat there dazed, the silver-haired tentacle woman casually cleared the surrounding area with her tentacles and went back to carefully boiling her Wyvern egg.
"U-Um, excuse me... I'm A-grade hunter Cheon A-young. Do you happen to know A-young Tube?"
"No, never heard of it."
A while later, after the misunderstanding was cleared up, Cheon A-young was squatting next to Lee Sia, trying to strike up a conversation. Sia had thought Cheon A-young was a thief trying to steal her egg, while Cheon A-young had mistaken Sia's monstrous appearance for a parasitic beast.
Fortunately, no one was hurt, but Cheon A-young tried to calm her trembling hands as she thought to herself.
But she shattered my protector shield with a single punch... Who on earth is she?
It was surprising enough that there was an A-grade hunter she didn't recognize, but she had never heard of a female hunter who controlled tentacles, had silver hair, and possessed such a ridiculously voluptuous figure.
"Excuse me..."
"Yeah?"
"What... are you planning to do with that?"
"Can't you tell?"
"Huh?"
"Jangjorim."
"...Pardon?"
Sia spoke as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, leaving Cheon A-young wondering if she was the crazy one.
"...?"
"Wyvern egg jangjorim."
This woman was boiling a first-clutch Wyvern egg worth over 100 million won, not just to eat it, but specifically to turn it into jangjorim. Was this even real life?
You could sell the egg and just buy normal eggs for jangjorim...
The chat had been in stitches for a while now. Although the flat-chest jokes were annoying, Cheon A-young couldn't take her eyes off the silver-haired woman performing this bizarre cooking show in front of her.
She couldn't understand it, but she watched in fascination as Lee Sia prepared the food.
"Hehehe..."
Seeing the terrifying red eyes vanish, replaced by a bright, innocent smile, Cheon A-young thought, Ah, she really is human after all.
Sia had even brought over a Wyvern carcass, butchering it to add the meat to the jangjorim. Despite the absurdity, her movements carried the dedication of a professional chef.
"...It looks delicious..."
No matter what the chat said, Lee Sia didn't care. Her entire focus was locked onto the Wyvern jangjorim.
"Now, to peel the Wyvern egg..."
"Ah, you know there's a thin white membrane inside the shell, right? You should peel that off carefully after cracking it..."
"...I know."
Taking the boiled egg out of the pot, Lee Sia carefully formed a sharp needle-like tip at the end of one of her tentacles. Although a Wyvern eggshell was four times harder than an ostrich egg, it would crack easily once a small hole was punctured into it.
Crack.
"Whoa..."
"Done..."
The tentacle precisely punctured the center of the egg, and with a gentle squeeze from Sia, the shell peeled away easily.
But as Cheon A-young had said, peeling the shell wasn't the end. She had to remove the membrane protecting the egg inside. Lifting the egg with immense concentration, Sia controlled her tentacles to slowly peel away the membrane.
The membrane was incredibly delicate and soft; one wrong move could scar the pristine white of the Wyvern egg. Sia worked with extreme precision, her senses heightened. The process looked like a documentary of a master craftsman delicately shaping porcelain, and Cheon A-young watched, completely captivated.
"Success...!"
"Wow, congratulations!"
Seeing the pure white, glistening Wyvern egg that had been boiling for over an hour, a look of pure joy washed over Sia's previously expressionless face.
Boiling the Wyvern egg: a complete success.