Chapter 7
Chapter 7
Joo Do-gyeom's brow furrowed slightly.
There was only one possible explanation for what had just happened.
Embedded in his mind.
Heaven-Slaying Star.
Just as he reached that conclusion—
A hand shot out from the alley's shadows.
Without even turning his head, Do-gyeom leaned back slightly, dodging the grasping fingers.
"......!!"
The would-be assailant stared at him in shock.
Do-gyeom said nothing. He simply grabbed the man's elbow.
"What the hell—?!"
Before the thug could finish his sentence—
CRACK!
A sickening snap echoed as Do-gyeom twisted the man's arm in an impossible direction.
"AAARGH—!"
A scream tore through the alley.
"It hurts—! You fucking bastard—!"
The man howled, then immediately started cursing.
It was almost laughable.
This guy had tried to ambush and rob him, yet the moment his arm got caught, he had the audacity to act indignant and hurl insults.
But this was the average human in the Red Zone.
No.
Come to think of it, maybe it wasn't just the Red Zone.
While that thought crossed his mind, Do-gyeom remained calm. His gaze shifted past the screaming man to the rest of the gang emerging from the alley's darkness.
One of them, seeing their comrade writhing on the ground, paled and shouted:
"Y-you bastard...! You hurt Jun-ho—!"
His trembling hand fumbled for the pistol hidden in his jacket.
Pointless.
By then, Do-gyeom had already activated Lightning Flash Step—his explosive dash—and closed the distance in an instant.
But here was the problem.
At that very moment, something inside Do-gyeom shifted.
Heaven-Slaying Star.
The moment he recognized it—
His hand shot into the black bag at his side, yanking out the still-flopping tail of a Steel Fish.
Like drawing a blade—
SWISH!
The fish thrashed wildly in his grip.
"......."
"Ghk—!"
The gunman screamed.
Panicked, his finger twitched toward the trigger.
No time to think.
Tch.
Do-gyeom clicked his tongue internally and swung the Steel Fish with all his might.
At the same time—
His eyes locked onto a red dot hovering over the thug's temple.
Large.
Instinctively, he knew.
If he struck there, this man would die.
He had no qualms about killing.
But despite that, Do-gyeom forced his strike off-course.
THWACK!
"AAAH—!"
The fish's tail smashed into the man's brow instead of his temple. The gun clattered to the ground as he collapsed, clutching his face.
Do-gyeom's foot snapped up, connecting with his chin.
CRUNCH!
The man's head whipped backward, and he went limp.
At the same time, Do-gyeom's fish was already arcing toward another thug charging at him with a sword.
The man's lips curled into a sneer.
This lunatic. Swinging a fish at a blade?
Even if it was dungeon-bred, this was ridiculous.
Besides, he was a Hunter.
I'll slice this Steel Fish in half and then—!
He'd make this bastard pay for hurting his crew.
But just before his sword met the fish—
The fish changed direction.
Up—then slightly down.
Do-gyeom's eyes were locked onto another red dot, this time etched onto the blade itself.
I need to confirm.
The next instant—
The smug thug's eyes bulged.
His mind flooded with disbelief.
......!??
W-what?! The sword... got cut by the FISH?!
Wasn't it supposed to be the other way around?!
This doesn't make sense—!
He never got to voice his confusion.
Do-gyeom's Steel Fish, now certain of the red dot's nature, came crashing down onto his skull.
THUD!
Three men down in seconds.
The remaining thugs, realizing something was very wrong, turned to flee.
Do-gyeom lunged after them.
Moments later—
"AAAH—!"
"P-please, spare me—!"
"Don't worry. I won't kill you."
Screams and desperate pleas were met with Do-gyeom's calm reply.
BANG! CRASH! THUD!
The alleyway became a symphony of violence.
Seven.
After subduing the entire gang, Do-gyeom turned the tables and robbed them instead.
He took anything of value—money, gear—and when he discovered one of them was a Hunter, he beat him unconscious and looted his inventory too.
Luck was on his side.
The bastard had three low-grade Magic Stones stashed away.
Whether he'd earned them or stolen them didn't matter.
What mattered was that they now belonged to Do-gyeom.
They more than covered the cost of the Steel Fish he'd battered into oblivion.
The hassle of traveling to Yongsan Dungeon Market was another matter, but he didn't mind.
There was nowhere else to sell the loot anyway.
The next morning.
On the subway to Yongsan Dungeon Market, Do-gyeom slowly raised his right arm.
Even a day later, the memory was vivid.
The Steel Fish's lifeless, upturned eye staring back at him from his grip.
Of course, it had died.
No matter how tough a dungeon-bred fish was, hacking through swords (?) and bashing skulls would do it in.
But that wasn't the point.
No, that's not what matters.
What mattered was that, for the first time, he'd beaten someone with a fish.
No—that wasn't it either.
In that split second when he'd grabbed the fish—
His consciousness had vanished.
His body had moved on instinct.
A clear sign of madness.
Jin Woo-seong had said Heaven-Slaying Star's madness made his bloodlust uncontrollable.
It was also what made his chaotic movements so easy to track.
But Do-gyeom—
Why did mine...?
Manifest as an urge to wield a fish?
......Will I go berserk every time I see seafood now?
Or could the madness take other forms?
Lost in thought, Do-gyeom steadied himself.
No way to know yet.
He couldn't draw conclusions about Heaven-Slaying Star's madness from just one instance.
But there was a silver lining.
The mark of death—the red dots Heaven-Slaying Star manifested—had appeared clearly to him.
And despite his body instinctively targeting them, he'd been able to hold back.
Unlike Jin Woo-seong, he hadn't been overwhelmed by bloodlust or uncontrollable rage.
The madness surfaced, but the worst part—the loss of control—didn't happen.
Well.
He smirked faintly.
Better a fish-wielding maniac than a mindless killer.
That settled it.
One piece of knowledge ingrained in Do-gyeom by his Universal Chef profession:
The fresher the ingredients, the better the dish.
Obvious, right?
It should be.
But Do-gyeom had never thought about it before.
In his past life, he'd had zero interest in food—no, in eating itself.
Now, though, flavors registered vividly without him even trying.
Probably another effect of his Universal Chef class.
Back in his tiny shared boarding house kitchen, he pulled up a tutorial on preparing dungeon fish.
The kitchen knife he'd looted from the Mansion of the Cannibal moved with surprising skill.
Following the basic braising formula, he placed the prepared fish into a pot and brought it to a simmer.
The key was the seasoning.
Or rather, the Magic Stone that would become the seasoning.
The hard stone dissolved like snow under heat and soy sauce, transforming into a rich, savory liquid.
A quick taste test confirmed—
Not bad.
No, actually—it was better than the practice runs he'd done with regular fish.
This was the wonder of Hunter skills.
The knowledge was implanted, yet the mere existence of the skill made such feats possible.
Who in their right mind would think to melt a Magic Stone into braising sauce?
It should've been impossible.
But Do-gyeom could do it.
Because he was the Universal Chef.
The cramped kitchen filled with the sweet-salty aroma of soy-braised fish.
Any fishy odor was suppressed, leaving only an irresistible umami fragrance.
A few of his boarding housemates peeked out, drawn by the smell.
A man in his mid-thirties approached hesitantly.
"Uh... I'll pay you. Can I have some?"
"No."
Out of the question.
This wasn't just any braised fish—it was made with dungeon ingredients and Magic Stones.
The man clicked his tongue and retreated, clearly displeased.
Do-gyeom wouldn't be surprised if a complaint reached the landlord soon.
And if that happened, he'd be kicked out.
Not that he cared.
I should start looking for a studio.
He'd planned to move straight to the Blue Zone, but that wasn't feasible yet.
For now, any short-term rental would do.
As he mused, the Steel Fish Magic Stone Braising finished.
Do-gyeom plated it and pressed his spoon through the crispy skin.
CRUNCH!
A satisfying crisp echoed.
Must be because of its natural toughness. Sounds like fried chicken.
Meanwhile, the flesh beneath was tender, glistening with translucent oil.
Without hesitation, Do-gyeom loaded a spoonful with extra sauce and took a bite.
And then—
"Mmm...!"
A groan of satisfaction escaped him.
No reason.
It was just that good.
In his personal opinion, it surpassed anything those "skilled" chefs from his past life had ever made.
Crispy outside, moist inside—the umami was deep and rich.
A perfect marriage of soy sauce and fish.
Paired with steamed rice—
"Mmm...!"
Another involuntary sound of bliss.
Inside him, his magic power surging.
The next day.
Do-gyeom was promptly evicted from the boarding house.
No regrets.
He rented a cheap studio in the Red Zone instead.
There, he cooked Magic Stone Braising a few more times, alternating between fish and meat to avoid monotony.
Through this, he realized two things.
First.
Unlike his past self, he'd become something of a foodie.
Looking back, he'd never cared about taste before—hadn't even been interested in eating as an activity.
Now, flavors registered vividly without effort.
Probably another effect of his Universal Chef class.
Second.
This one was disappointing.
The magic-boosting effect of Magic Stone Braising had limits.
Low-grade stones no longer increased his power.
In short—
The magic amplification wasn't infinite.
I've been steadily gaining power, but since yesterday, it's clearly plateaued.
Sure, there were microscopic gains.
But at this point, the cost outweighed the benefit.
So, starting today, Do-gyeom decided to stop consuming low-grade Magic Stone Braising.
A shame, but reality was reality.
Actually—no.
He smirked.
What other job lets you gain this much magic power so easily—outside dungeons, no less?
None.
Even with his vast past-life experience, he couldn't think of anything comparable.
And his Universal Chef profession had barely started.
If it really lives up to its name—if I can cook anything—
The possibilities were endless.
Do-gyeom's verdict:
Minimum S-rank profession.
Here, "rank" wasn't assigned by the system.
It was the Hunter community's unofficial tier list.
And given his regression experience, his judgment was accurate.
A profession he deemed S-rank at minimum—
And its true highlight was yet to come.
[Special Magic Stone of the Cannibal]
The last of his special stones went into a gochujang-glazed braised fish.
Maybe it was his growing experience.
Or maybe the higher-grade stone.
Either way, the result was exceptional.
Just as that thought crossed his mind—
A system message chimed in his head.