Chapter 339: The Ruler of the Forest
“Was he aware of the trial from the very beginning?!!!” Team Leader Park shouted in shock.
The only thing that they witnessed earlier was Minhyuk eating like a madman. But, from what just happened, it almost seemed like he had been conscious of the fact that it was a trial the moment he entered.
“A person can still be conscious of what he has to do, despite being faced with his greatest desire?”
Most people would deny the truth and reality when faced with the sweetest of dreams. They would always want more.
“By the end, he took away at least 40 servings of bingsu. He really has my respect!” Lee Minhwa, a promising glutton herself, exclaimed in awe.
“...”
Team Leader Park went speechless at Lee Minhwa’s words. Then, he thought, ‘Player Minhyuk suffers from eating addiction, how did...’
Lee Minhwa might not know this fact, but Team Leader Park was fully aware. It was mainly because he knew that Minhyuk was suffering from a disease where he needed to constantly eat. That was why he thought that Minhyuk would not be able to overcome his desires. It was a very rare disease, what can a human’s willpower do against it? It was even a very terrifying and ridiculous disease that had killed someone just a few years back.
However, after thinking about it further, Team Leader Park wondered how Minhyuk stayed sane despite the hardships brought about by his disease. It must have been very hard, right?
‘It seems like he has been controlling his monstrous appetite with his strong mental power...’
The disease that Minhyuk had was a disease where he would not be able to stop himself from eating. But Minhyuk was able to control it to some extent. Based on that, Team Leader Park could tell that Minhyuk had a very strong willpower. After all, he was a man that was literally wrestling with his disease just using his strong mentality.
“He’s really cool, huh...?”
Fighting a disease with his willpower? Nothing could be cooler than that. Just as he was admiring the fact, the voices of the temporary employees rang loudly through the monitor.
[H...how can he eat 131 plates of food in an hour by himself...?!]
[Is...is he still human?!]
Then, Lee Minhwa said, “For Player Minhyuk, this trial was killing two birds with one stone. He can eat well in a buffet, and clear the trial at the same time.”
That was right.
However, the truth was the Production Team was very proud about the trial of desire, so much so that they had bragged about it. Alas, the trial that they were so proud of just made Minhyuk full and become stronger!!!
Meanwhile, Team Leader Park looked at Minhyuk through the monitor. He was smiling as he thought, ‘It was because it’s him. That’s the only reason why he can catch two rabbits at the same time[1].’
***
[The Innocent Hero’s Second Trial will now begin.]
[You will be undergoing the Trial of Desire. Please get your senses together and get away from your current situation and go to the next trial.]
[Completing the trial will give you +1% in both physical and magical defense.]
These were the notifications that Minhyuk heard when he entered the Second Trial, the Trial of Desire. However, this notification rang when Minhyuk was immersed in his happiness after seeing the variety of dishes in front of him. Minhyuk had always been constantly monitoring what kind of food, and just how much he ate, whenever he sat on the table to eat.
‘All I need to do is step on those stairs.’
That was all he needed to do to complete the trial.
Minhyuk was someone that constantly toed the line between reality and dreams. He could just grab his wallet and run out of the mansion to relieve his intense hunger anytime that he wanted, but he did not do so. There was one time when he got so hungry that he got angry and screamed inside the mansion. However, even if he shouted to vent out his anger, he still did not eat.
Minhyuk’s everyday life was a balance between ‘fantasy’ and ‘reality’, and he had always chosen reality. He had chosen to live longer for his father, for the people that cared for him, and for himself. Minhyuk was truly someone that had the power to overcome his desires and fantasy.
So, when he came in, he thought, ‘I can just leave here as long as it’s still within the time limit, right?’
This was the precarious balance between fantasy and reality! But this time, it was a bit different. Minhyuk would be able to eat to his heart’s content and earn rewards, despite still being conscious.
After eating well at Aeshley’s Buffet, Minhyuk made a huge serving of bingsu enough for at least forty people, before walking away with the basin in his arms with a hum. When he ate a spoonful of the deliciously sweet bingsu, the sweetness immediately pervaded his mouth.
“Kggghk~ Brain freeze!”
Then, he stepped on the stair’s third step.
[You have completed the Second Trial.]
[You have gained 5,000,000 EXP.]
[You have gained an additional +1% to your physical and magical defense.]
Unfortunately, there were no notifications that popped up in the Second Trial that mentioned anything about gaining ‘ingredients’. That was in fact the main reason why Minhyuk took his own sweet time in completing the Second Trial, as he decided to leisurely enjoy his food.
Through this trial, he was able to gain an additional 1% in his physical and magical defense. For rankers, the amount of physical and magical defense were usually in the hundreds. With that number, an increase of 1% meant that they would gain at least around 4 or 5 points in their defense, which was not small at all. There were even 23 steps left in this trial. What would happen if Minhyuk was able to conquer all of these steps?
‘Won’t I completely change by then?’
[All of your stats will reflect your body’s condition in reality.]
[All of your equipped artifacts will be restricted and cannot be used.]
[You can use whatever means necessary to hunt the monsters that will appear in front of you.]
[You will get a reward with every monster that you hunt. Successfully hunting all five monsters will give you a better reward.]
[With the influence of the Wishing Stone, you might be able to obtain ingredients whenever you hunt a monster.]
“Hmmm,” Minhyuk hummed as he looked at his stats.
(Minhyuk)
Level: 1
Class: Food God, Eccentric Gourmand
HP: 213 MP: 50
STR: 13 AGI: 10 STM: 14
WIS: Unmarked INT: Unmarked
Fullness: 100%
Minhyuk nodded. Reflecting his body’s condition in reality meant that whatever status his body had in reality would be expressed as stats.
‘Isn’t this trial quite extraordinary?’
For some reason, Minhyuk felt that this was similar to the trial that he took for Sword God Valen in the past. However, he could also tell that it was subtly different.
First off, the words ‘whatever means necessary’ was added in the notifications. Ordinary players might overlook this phrase, after all, it did not matter what they did, since they were just going to hunt monsters, right? However, Minhyuk interpreted it differently. Based on the notifications, he inferred that he could literally make use of everything around him and take full advantage of their usefulness.
Minhyuk looked around. He felt that the trial area was similar to a military training ground with swords, spears, bows, and even horses lined up. It looked like a common military training ground.
‘Normally, I would go for one of the swords over there.’
It was only natural. After all, he could not use his current artifacts now and he could not fight barehanded, right? However, what if he thought differently and leaned towards something unconventional?
“Oh! Isn’t Sir Arakhan’s sword very cool and amazing?”
“Boy, you have very keen eyes, huh?”
“Ahahaha! Is there anyone in this world that wouldn’t be able to recognize the greatness of your sword?”
“Hahahahaha! You’re good with words!”
Minhyuk grinned to himself and thought, ‘Let’s get on with it. Fufu.’
***
The Production Team and Story Team were both currently inside the Special Players Management Team. This was because the Third Trial was part of an important category.
Lee Suk-hoon, the Development Team Leader, was impressed as he said, “Wow. He noticed that in just one glance?”
He was amazed with Minhyuk’s sharp, keen eyes. However, Lee Suk-hoon smiled. He did not seem worried at all as he said, “Arakhan is not an idiot. Will he even willingly lend him his sword?”
Arakhan’s sword was truly available for use in this trial. However, it was nigh impossible to be used. After all, the NPCs in Athenae had a high degree of freedom! And for them, their swords were like their own lifeline, especially for someone like Arakhan, a once prominent figure in the past. He had often showed off his great love and care for his sword!
The Production Team willingly removed Arakhan’s sword’s ‘restriction’ for this trial. This was because they were confident that no one would be able to accomplish such a feat. Was there even someone that could borrow the sword of a past Legend, Arakhan?
At that moment, a very ominous voice rang in the room.
[Have you eaten?]
They could see Minhyuk smiling through the monitor. Lee Minhwa’s mouth opened blankly as she thought, ‘It...it started! Player Minhyuk has used his devil’s whisper...!’
Then, Arakhan said...
[It’s been hundreds of years, so it’s safe to say that I haven’t had a meal, right?]
[Nooooo!!!! This! You haven’t eaten anything for hundreds of years...?!! This breaks my heart!!!!]
Then, everyone in the room saw the corners of Minhyuk’s lips curling up ominously!
1. Might be referring to the proverb ‘If you try to catch two rabbits at the same time, you will not be able to catch one‘. A proverb that means trying to do two things at once won’t yield anything fruitful. ☜