Chef Gadon was famous for his scathing and poisonous comments. After eating a tasteless dish in a cooking program, he had spoken these words to the chef who cooked the said dish.
–What is this in my mouth? Is this trash?
–This does not taste like pudding. This tastes like vomit.
–It must be tough to turn such good ingredients into something like this, huh? Moron.
Of course, Gadon also gave compliments. The fact that his videos of praising others were selected as his greatest video was a testament to how few his videos were.
‘There are rumors that the dishes made by the vassals of the Beyond the Heavens Empire are exceptional.’
Gadon found it hilarious. He had visited countless restaurants in Athenae, and most of them were famous and well-known on social networking sites and blogs. Most of them made their interiors pretty, but their dishes, which should be the restaurant's essence, were just alright or ordinary.
‘I’m not the only one who feels this way.’
Many people were disappointed after visiting these restaurants that were highly praised on the internet.
‘Will the Beyond the Heavens Empire be different?’
The issue was that their vassals were famous for being only strong. After all, Gadon was also an Athenae player; he was not that clueless about those things.
[Gadon hyung, this is the 897th territory you have visited?]
[Shh! How dare you call Gadon ‘hyung.’ You’re going to get in trouble. Lololol.]
[Aaaaack! Lmao. Sry, sry. Anyway, Sir Gadon. This is the 900th territory that you have visited, right?]
[Yep, yep. That’s right.]
[Wow. If that’s the case, Sir Gadon has not yet completed his quest, right? If things go on like this, he may be unable to finish it for the rest of his life.]
Gadon sighed as he scrolled through the chat window. It was true; he had received a quest a long time ago.
[Class Quest: The True Master’s Taste.]
Rank: Class
Requirement: Level 450
Rewards: Lone Chef’s Cookware Set.
Penalty for Failure: You can no longer proceed with the Lone Chef’s Quest.
Description: The True Master’s Taste can only be achieved if you taste the dishes of at least three masters.
What the hell were the standards for one to be considered a master? He had flown over Athenae and tasted most of the chefs’ dishes, but Gadon had not yet completed his quest.
The first restaurant that Gadon visited was Beanie and Luna’s BBQ Gui. Like what was posted on the internet, Elizabeth acted as the server. When he entered, Beanie, the boss, took off his chef’s hat and greeted him politely.
Gadon’s eyes darted around. He thought, ‘The most basic thing about cooking is cleanliness. He washed his hands, right before he came out, huh? His three fingers remind me of pig trotters.’
‘It will feel like eating shit if there’s hair in my food.’
He looked at Beanie.
‘Ah... He doesn’t have any hair on his body.’
The baby piggy passed the cleanliness test with flying marks.
Not long after, the dish was grilled. Gadon ate silently.
‘Since it was grilled instantly, the outside is crispy, and the inside is juicy.’
The juices locked inside the meat would spread in his mouth with every bite. However, there was a chance that it would be greasy.
Gadon ate only a third of the food. Then, he stood silently and paid for the bill.
[Wow. How many times has Gadon raised his fork this time?]
[OMG~ Beanie and Luna are good at cooking. It’s because they’re the Food God’s pets!]
The people were amazed. But for Gadon? It was just some delicious food. It was nothing impressive. When thinking about where he should go next, he saw a place called ‘Conir’s Ramyeon, Herakel’s Gimbap.’
Gadon looked at the restaurant in confusion. He thought, ‘They are selling nothing but instant ramyeon. So, why is the line so long?’
Was it because they were using a special recipe? The puzzled Gadon waited at least two hours before he could enter the restaurant. When he entered, he saw hundreds of chopped green onions flying in the air above him.
“One second.”
“...?”
“That’s the time it will take for me to cut all the green onions.”
The boy, who was not even using a sword, took the quick-draw position and swung his hands. At the same time, the already-chopped green onions entered the plastic jar right away.
[No. Lolololol. Wait. Lmao. Isn’t that the Heart Sword? Kekekeke.]
[Did he use the Heart Sword to chop green onions? Lolololol.]
[Woah, sht. That’s freaking awesome. Lmao.]
Conir was very famous for his Heart Sword. He gained popularity for being able to learn the Heart Sword that even the previous generation Sword Gods could not use.
Standing right next to him was Herakel, who was wearing a tiny apron over his bulging muscles and bodybuilder-like body. His muscles twitched and bulged even further as he finished rolling the gimbap and applied some sesame oil to it with a brush.
“One gimbap. One ramyeon.” Gadon ordered the combination that the Koreans loved the most.
“Here’s your extra bowl of rice.”
Gadon frowned when he heard someone serving another customer’s order. He thought, ‘Korean’s are truly unique.’
This was because the customer was slurping ramyeon, a food that was definitely rich in carbohydrates, and eating gimbap, another carbohydrate-rich food, as a side dish. But they were not yet finished. They even added rice, another source of carbohydrates, to the ramyeon soup and ate everything. This was a massive carb-filled meal.
“...?”
‘This is impossible.’
How could a person cook tens of millions of bowls of a single dish? And the more shocking part? It was just ramyeon.
Then, another series of notifications rang in his ears.
[You have tasted and experienced the True Master’s Taste.]
[The gimbap is made by a master, who has made gimbap over a million times.]
[You only need to experience the True Master’s Taste again.]
Only at this moment did Gadon realize something.
“Conir! Conir sold 1,000 bowls of ramyeon today! Hyung praised Conir!”
“Herakel sold a lot of gimbap too. Herakel’s rich!”
“We’re rich?”
“Woah!”
Perhaps it was because they were lacking. Or perhaps it was because they did not know how to do it, so they continued to cook and practice until they reached the level of a master in what they were doing.
Gadon usually attached black ribbons to restaurants that he found to serve satisfying and delicious dishes. This black ribbon was a token that showed that this restaurant was approved and recognized by him.
Once marked with this ribbon, the restaurant would become a global sensation where people would flock. The black ribbons were also called Restaurant Saving Ribbons. Why? They could gather a huge crowd. In reality, Gadon had only given his black ribbons to five restaurants.
Gadon finally stepped out of Conir and Herakel’s restaurant. Then, he placed a black ribbon in front of the restaurant. The moment he did that, the real-time search rankings changed.
After a while.
Conir, who saw the ribbon, said, “Conir! Who was it?! Who puts a ribbon in someone else’s restaurant?!”
With a grim look, Conir moved to throw away the ribbon. Then he realized that it looked nice, so he changed course and decided to pin it on his chest.
Anyway, it did not matter if the ribbon was removed. After all, the entire world already knew that this restaurant was a Black Ribbon Restaurant.
***
Gadon, who chose to visit a cafe for dessert, was rendered speechless by the taste of the coffee in his hands.
“...”
The taste of the cat coffee made tears stream down his face. It was out of this world.
Gadon looked at Ben, the Beyond the Heavens’ barista standing before him with a kind smile. As he stared at the old man, a shocking notification rang in his ears.
[The word ‘master’ is not enough to describe what kind of person he is.]
[The number of cups of coffee that he has made can no longer be counted.]
[No one in this world can make a better coffee than his cup.]
[You have completed the Class Quest: The True Master’s Taste.]
The notifications meant that the old man in front of Gadon had made and extracted more cups of coffee than the number of bowls of ramyeon that Conir had made.
The teary Gadon asked, “How could you make so many cups of coffee?”
Ben, who was pouring hot water over his coffee, chuckled and said, “I just want His Majesty to drink a better-tasting cup of coffee.”
“...”
This man in front of him had made thousands of cups of coffee in a single day just because he wanted his emperor to drink a more delicious cup of coffee than before. This fact made Gadon reflect on himself.
A thrill ran down his spine as the old man’s lofty ideals resonated with Gadon.
[The Class Quest: Your Goal has been created.]
At that time, Gadon felt emotional as he looked at the newly created class quest before him. He finished his coffee and stood up with a determined look. It seemed like he had already made up his mind.
Of course, he also attached a black ribbon in front of Ben’s Cat Poop Cafe.
***
Minhyuk had turned off his notification window for two days and had been busy writing his autobiography all day and night.
Then, a man suddenly barged into his office.
“I also want to open up a shop near their shops! Seeing them and eating their dishes has made me reflect on myself and think about what cooking truly is.”
“...?”
“I have a lot to learn from them and want to learn from them! Ah. Of course, I won’t study and learn from them for free.”
“...?”
“I’ll help you manage your shops and open franchises and chains! So, please accept my migration request!”
“Who...?”
The man wore a mask so Minhyuk could not see who he was.
“My name is Gadon. Ah. I have around thirty million ZTube subscribers.”
“Alright. You have my permission.”
[You have accepted Gadon’s request to migrate to the Beyond the Heavens Empire.]
Just like that, the Beyond the Heavens Empire absorbed his thirty million subscribers.