Gourmet Gaming

Chapter 1071

Even before he became a true Transcendental, Bender was already mighty. Although Minhyuk had broken his record of breaking the Transcendental’s trial, he could still break the first trial in just six minutes. Nevertheless, the fact that Bender was a powerhouse that was still out of Minhyuk’s reach remained the same.

Bender groaned after dropping the pen in his hand. He thought, ‘When did he... grow this much?’

Minhyuk tied down Bender’s movements using Overpower, a skill that could put any opponent before Minhyuk into a stunned state for two seconds. He then took the pen from his hands for a total of eight times.

‘He took the pen away, put it back in my hands, and took it away again.’

Upon a closer look, Bender realized that Minhyuk had done a combination of two moves. This meant that he made sixteen moves in just two seconds.

‘He has gotten faster.’

Bender realized that Minhyuk was incomparable to how he was a few months ago.

‘I want to see.’

He wanted to see how much Minhyuk had truly grown, but there was something far more important than that.

“Who wants to eat something delicious?!”

“...!”

The first to raise their hand was none other than Bender.

Now that Minhyuk had obtained Bender’s approval, he wanted to satiate the hunger of these people. After all, they had come a long way to get here.

“I-I raised my hands first!”

They had eaten rotten centipedes and bugs in the Fortress of Fantasy for thousands of years. Of course, they would never forget the taste of Minhyuk’s dishes. In particular, the taste of the very sweet Sea Honey still lingered in their mouths.

“Munch, munch, munch!”

“Chomp, chomp, chomp!”

“Slurp, slurp, slurp!”

Minhyuk smiled as he watched them devour the spaghetti he made.

They came here to visit Minhyuk and thank him, but the biggest reason was probably to eat.

Minhyuk said, “Nekk, does it taste good?”

“Aaah! It’s always delicious! Munch, munch, munch!”

“Do you know what this is?”

Nekk was a blacksmith with a gigantic, muscular build and a bald head. He looked at the plate of food presented to him with interest.

“These are oven-baked drumsticks and wings.”

The dish looked very appetizing. When Nekk stretched out his hand to pick a piece, Minhyuk pulled the plate back.

Minhyuk teased, “I got a lot of materials this time. Can you please take a look at them?”

“O-of course, I’ll take a look. So, quick! Give me some!”

[You have received Nekk’s consent and approval to confirm the artifact materials and artifact production.]

Minhyuk grinned. Bender had approved Minhyuk learning from him, while Nekk had agreed to check and process the materials for him.

“I’ll stop by once and make something delicious for you again.”

“O-ooooooooh...”

All of them were left in awe.

Having finally finished his meal, Bender said, “Is there anything we can do to help your empire?”

“Help?”

“Well, we ate such a delicious meal, so we can’t just sit still and do nothing, right?”

The Transcendentals’ help would surely have a tremendous effect on Minhyuk’s empire. Minhyuk felt deeply moved when he heard their offer.

‘My training succeeded... no! My graciousness and kindness worked successfully!’

“Then, can I tell you if I have something I need help with?”

“Unfortunately, we don’t have much time. We have to go back in five hours.”

“I understand. I’ll quickly check if there’s something and let you know. Ah. Please have some of these.”

The Transcendentals saw a bread in the shape of a fish. It was the food that they had been sniffing earlier!

“This is what you call a bungeo-ppang.”

Of course, the filling was made by mixing Sea Honey and sweet red beans in perfect harmony. The Transcendentals hurriedly devoured the bungeo-ppang.

“It’s so sweet...”

“Goodness, this flavor is so...! Ah, it’s crispy on the outside but moist inside.”

“T-there’s something sweet in here. It has a different color.”

“That’s custard cream.”

“C-custard cream... Amazing! So great! The name ‘custard cream’ is quite brilliant!”

While Minhyuk watched them eat the bungeo-ppang, a world message rang out.

[The Pillar Evaluators have chosen someone as the ‘Lord of the Masses’.]

“...!”

This was only an hour after they had stripped the qualifications of some of the Pillars, yet they had already chosen someone else as a candidate.

‘The Lord of the Masses?’

Confusion flashed on everyone’s faces.

[The Pillar Evaluators have chosen someone as the ‘Pillar of Courage to Never Back Down.’]

“...?”

Minhyuk finally realized that something was wrong because the words “Never Back Down” were familiar to him.

Bang–!

Minhyuk immediately turned to look in the direction where the explosion came from.

“I think there’s already something that I need your help with.”

Minhyuk instantly understood how unusual the situation was and immediately rushed out.

The Transcendentals, about to follow him, quickly wrapped their bungeo-ppangs with paper and held them tightly. There were bright smiles on their faces, and they looked like they had just gotten 1,000 won to buy and eat some bungeo-ppang.

***

Thirty minutes earlier.

Who was he? If Athenae was the sky, then he was the land. He was in charge of ensuring that the balance of Athenae would remain unbroken and unperturbed. Of course, he had never stepped forward himself.

The Pillar Evaluators received and followed his orders and his orders alone. It had been a very long time since the Pillar Evaluators had descended to the world. The last time was when they chose and appointed Evil God Obren.

He ordered them?? to remove the position of Pillar from those who no longer held any meaning to it. He also ordered them to evaluate and confirm whether those already recognized as Pillar Candidates were eligible and qualified. Not only that, he had also given the evaluators the authority to select other candidates.

The already recognized candidates and the selected candidates would then be subjected to another round of assessment to determine whether they had the qualifications. Only among those qualified would then become Pillars.

Thump, thump, thump–

The five Pillar Evaluators stood in front of the Beyond the Heavens Empire.

“I can feel the energy of the foreigner candidate from here.”

They had been out of touch with the world for a very long time and only descended to it recently. Because of that, they did not have much data on hand. All they had with them was something that he provided them, which was very brief and simple.

[He is the Food God and the next generation Battle God. He is also the Beyond the Heavens Empire’s emperor.]

The data they had on the foreigner was just this much, but it did not really matter. It was because they did not care who or where he was.

“The next generation Battle God and the humans’ emperor.”

The Eight Pillars were the center, the cornerstone, and the pillars that supported the world. They had influence and power beyond their time's Battle God. There had been countless Battle Gods who became candidates. However, at the end of it all, those candidates gave up.

Because of that, they did not see Minhyuk as something unique, only a little unusual.

“The foreigners, that filthy race, will become a Pillar?”

All five of them looked down upon the foreigners. It was only natural. A long time ago, when they still roamed the world, there were no such things as foreigners.

The foreigners were beings who crossed over from another world. They were immortals who would come back to life even after dying. Thus, the Pillar Evaluators could only view them as something filthy.

“Not only are they greedy, they are also tactless.”

“And that’s not all. They undergo a growth process different from that of guardians. They also always brag about their power, as if it resulted from their hard work.”

What they were talking about was leveling up. As long as one killed a few monsters, they would become stronger. Of course, the guardians, or the NPCs, could also increase their power. However, the increase in the strength of the foreigners was on the extreme side.

“The position of the emperor must be something that he obtained because of his special privileges as a foreigner.”

“The same may be true for the position of the Battle God.”

The evaluators could not understand why the world gave foreigners far too many favors and privileges. Because of this, they believed that the foreigners’ growth and strength were undeserved.

They slowly walked toward the gates of the Beyond the Heavens Empire. The guards blocked their path, but the evaluators flung them aside mercilessly.

BANG–!

“Keheok...!”

“Kghhk...!”

“G-go and report this to Sir Brod. Quick...!”

The evaluators ignored the guards as they slowly entered the Beyond the Heavens Empire while talking.

“The evaluation this time around should be more strict and demanding.”

All of them agreed. To be honest, they would rather cut him down and even undermine him.

Each of the Pillar Evaluators had their duty to uphold.

Captain Evaluator Luba checked whether the opponent truly had strength. Of course, he was naturally powerful and could match the opponent well.

For evaluators, most of their powers were sealed. Yet even though they were in that state, they were still at a level humans could never dream of attaining.

Evaluator Royer was in charge of checking the opponent’s special talents. Most of these talents were related to dexterity. Dexterity was essential to maintain the balance of the world. After all, most races required food, clothing, shelter, and tools to live.

The third evaluator, Evaluator Arshad, had a pair of round glasses perched on his nose and an evaluation sheet in hand. He was the one who would evaluate and see through what kind of person the opponent was.

All of the Pillars were naturally gifted. Every single one of them had their own stories as well. Arshad looked through the stories that detailed how much effort they had put in, the hardships and trials they went through, and a variety of other things that would express what kind of character the Pillar was.

Arshad sighed deeply. “There’s no way a foreigner would have a story like that. There will be no stories about going against adversities, trials, and sufferings and putting in effort beyond the human limits, or any of the sort for someone like that.”

Stories counted toward the evaluation more than what one might think. Taking Evil God Obren’s case as an example, he was hailed as the Evil God, but he was initially a good and kind being and had only fallen from grace after the betrayal of his dear friend.

Arshad also possessed an extraordinary power called Intuition. When he encountered a person suitable to become a candidate for a Pillar, his Intuition vividly relayed their information to him.

The evaluators walked toward the imperial palace. Captain Evaluator Ruba opened his arms gracefully and cried out, “Beyond the Heavens’ Emperor, come and welcome us, the Pillar Evaluators.”

The evaluators had always been treated graciously and generously wherever they went. Most of the candidates were leaders of their races or the strongest of the continent. There was one thing that they all had in common: they would always come running whenever the evaluators visited them. They would even go so far as to bow their heads courteously toward them. That was just how great the influence the evaluators have.

“...!”

At that moment, Arshad’s Intuition reacted fiercely.

‘Are you telling me that he did not become a candidate merely because he was a foreigner?’

Goosebumps rose all over Arshad’s body. His Intuition was a power with an ego of its own.

His Intuition explained briefly, ‘He is the one who has never shown his back to his enemies.’

When Arshad turned his head, he saw an old man standing with a spear. The moment he made eye contact with the old man, Arshad saw the life that the old man experienced in a panorama through his glasses.

Arshad was delighted with what he saw. He even unknowingly clapped his hands.

Clap– Clap, clap, clap–

It was thrilling, to the point that a shudder ran down his spine. What did he see through his glasses? It was a continental spear drunk on its power, killing many enemies that blocked its path. He saw a person who lost something dear and precious to him and wallowed in despair and frustration. Then, he saw it.

“Y-you even sold your soul to the gods?! And you even died hundreds of times just to achieve your goal!”

His Intuition was correct. This man had never shown his back to his enemies. He did not know how to back down.

“You have gone beyond the limits of a man and became a god!”

It was an incredible story.

‘It’s not him.’

The shocking thing was that this man was not the candidate they were looking for. Nevertheless, Arshad could not deny that he approved of this guy.

Brrrrrr–

“Heok!”

The other evaluators looked at Arshad, who was acting strangely and talking to himself as if it were normal.

For a moment, Arshad was left breathless. He was sweating cold bullets, and his entire body spasmed out of control. Something else made him react this way.

Twitch– Twitch–

Arshad felt like his blood was circulating backward. His body twisted and spasmed with every step he took toward this unknown being. Finally, his special pair of glasses caught sight of a wolf-like man. Just like before, this man's life passed by like a panorama.

“Heoooook!”

Arshad’s breathing turned rough from what he saw. This man had a talent that even the Battle God was afraid of. He was betrayed by a dear and trusted friend, who lost everything. Surprisingly enough, he overcame these hardships with willpower and became the king of the mercenaries. He started a new life. He worked hard and even protected a queen.

At that moment, the panorama in front of Arshad’s eyes was overshadowed by an illusion. It was the illusion of the man looking down upon hundreds of millions of people.

A shudder ran down Arshad’s spine once again.

“The greatest emperor! The emperor who overcame despair and ended up with the most beautiful story! Hahahaha!”

Arshad could not hide his joy and delight.

“Huh?”

Then, he saw something unknown in the illusion. There was a blurry figure of a man standing behind the wolf-like man. In the illusion, the greatest emperor, the wolf-like man, knelt before this person and worshiped him. The face of the man, who was sitting cross-legged on his chair, was vague and blurry, but Arshad could tell that this man's eyes were filled with pride, nobility, and majesty as he looked down upon the hundreds of millions of people below him.

Shwaaa–

Goosebumps rose all over Arshad’s body once again. Yes, what he saw in the illusion was the “master” that the man, who would become the greatest emperor, was serving.