Chapter 36

After throwing my deep-fried metal dish at the monster, we took a moment before re-entering the warehouse. Amidst the iron plates scattered across the floor, a black, blob-like creature was curled up.

From it came faint sounds:

Creak.

Crunch.

Crack.

“Those sounds…”

“It’s eating,” I confirmed.

And it seemed to be enjoying itself quite a bit.

Given that it had consumed my dish, it couldn’t escape the effects of the chef’s special sauce contained within.

Step by step, I moved closer.

Flinch.

The creature twitched, sensing our approach.

What mattered was its next reaction.

Screeech!

Startled, it darted towards a corner.

“Don’t let it escape!” I ordered.

My team and I spread out, blocking its path.

Cornered, the monster had nowhere to run.

It crouched and trembled.

Looking at it now, it seemed pretty… cute.

“Isn’t it kind of adorable?” someone remarked.

“Indeed,” I agreed.

Unlike the armored steel beast it had been moments ago, it now resembled a small, black puffball. With four tiny legs, it really did look like a black cotton ball.

“Remarkable,” someone else noted. “To see such a powerful creature reduced to this… is it the effect of Sergeant Shin’s cooking?”

The effect of my dish was ‘defeat’.

This creature, once capable of obliterating us all, was now just a fearful, trembling weakling, weighed down by a sense of defeat.

Swish.

“I’ll end this quickly,” I said, drawing my knife.

The way to handle it: ‘cut into bite-sized pieces.’ Its main body was a vulnerable lifeform. One swift slash to the neck would suffice—

“Wait a moment!”

It was Corporal Lee Gong-woo, grabbing my hand mid-swing.

“What’s the matter?” I asked, frowning. The effect of my dish wouldn’t last forever.

We needed to deal with the creature before it regained its strength.

Delaying this action will only bring trouble.

“If you’re hesitant to kill a defenseless creature—”

“That’s not it. Please look at this.”

He picked up a piece of metal—one of the many scattered on the floor.

“What about it?” I started to ask, but then I saw it.

[Ingredient Identification]

‘Huh?’

My skill activated.

[Mac’s iron plate reinforced with magic power]

[The quality of the ingredient is high, but due to inadequate hygiene and cleanliness, it is not recommended as a cooking ingredient.]

……?

“What?”

For a moment, I thought I misread it.

The skill that had activated was definitely [Ingredient Identification].

However, the item being appraised was a metal plate.

The problem was.

‘Why is this skill…’

activating right now?

“Oh. Even if I show it to you, you wouldn’t understand. Only engineers have the [Material Identification] trait.”

Exactly.

Normally, I shouldn’t be able to see the effects of that metal plate since it’s not a cooking ingredient.

As I was bewildered by the sudden activation of the skill,

Corporal Lee Gong-woo spoke up first.

“This metal plate isn’t ordinary.”

Not ordinary? Could it be the same as what I saw?

“Corporal Lee Gong-woo?”

“What do you mean it’s not an ordinary metal plate?”

“It’s been enhanced with that monster’s magic.”

Just as I thought.

It was the same as what I confirmed through the system message.

“Even during the last battle, it was a bit strange. No matter how thick a metal plate is, it shouldn’t end up with just a few scratches from the attacks of awakened warriors. And those metal plates weren’t even that thick.”

“You mean the monster strengthened the metal plates?”

“Yeah. And this is even more important.”

Corporal Lee Gong-woo pointed at the trembling monster with a shaky finger.

“Even after being separated from the monster, the enhancement is still maintained.”

“You mean…”

“We might be able to use this enhanced metal for ourselves.”

I see.

I roughly understood.

I could guess what he wanted to say.

“Sergeant Shin.”

“Yes?”

“What if we keep this monster alive?”

Just as I thought.

“You mean to spare the monster?”

“Oh, come on, that’s a bit…”

The other soldiers reacted negatively to the suggestion.

A monster is still a monster.

It’s only trembling in fear right now because of my ability.

Once the cooking effect wears off, it might try to kill us again.

No, it’s highly likely to.

Dealing with it cleanly would ensure no future troubles.

But…

“If we can somehow keep it alive, we might be able to create amazing things using its trait. Isn’t it too much of a waste to let this opportunity slip by?”

“Hmmm.”

The benefits of acquiring enhanced materials.

That’s hard to give up too, right?

I subtly turned my head to look at the monster.

It looked like a black bear cub.

Black energy swirled around its body.

The same energy that grabbed and controlled the surrounding objects.

‘Hold on.’

I pulled a piece of cloth out of my pocket.

I used it to wipe the blood off my knife.

I brought it close to the black energy swirling around the monster.

“It doesn’t stick?”

Unlike the metal, the cloth didn’t get pulled in by the black energy.

“So, it can only control metal objects or hardware, not everything.”

In that case.

“Guys.”

“Yes?”

“Can you bring me a bag? One without any metal zippers or buckles.”

“Ah… I think we have one. Just a moment, please.”

Soon, one of the soldiers brought a bag.

“It’s more of a pouch than a bag, but it should work.”

“That’s fine. This will do.”

The soldier brought over what could only be described as a pouch.

The pouch itself was made of cloth, with an opening that could be cinched shut with a drawstring.

I cut off the metal ends attached to the string.

“Let’s put it in.”

Opening the pouch wide, I approached the monster.

“Oh no, it’s trying to escape!”

“Hey, stay still!”

With the soldiers’ help, we managed to grab the creature and, after some struggle, successfully shoved it into the pouch.

Whimper…

“It feels a bit like animal abuse,” I remarked, feeling a pang of guilt.

“But it’s better than killing it, right?” someone replied.

Despite its obvious discomfort, the monster didn’t put up much of a fight, perhaps due to a deep sense of defeat.

As I tightened the drawstring, the dark energy seemed to be contained within the sack.

What remained was a large pile of metal strewn across the floor.

“Wow. There’s so much of it!” exclaimed Corporal Lee, marveling at the sight.

He scratched his cheek awkwardly as our eyes met.

“Ah, I might have gone a bit overboard,” he admitted.

“You might not understand, Sergeant Shin, but this stuff… it’s amazing,” he said, his eyes sparkling as he gazed at the scattered materials.

‘I think I do understand.’

[Ingredient Identification]

[Nut Enhanced with Mac’s Magic]

[Monkey Spanner Enhanced with Mac’s Magic]

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[…. with Mac’s magic]

For some reason, I could also see detailed information about these items.

When we first came to the hardware warehouse, we were just looking for ordinary materials.

But what we found were objects enhanced with magic.

Nearly 90% of them had been strengthened by the monster’s magic.

In other words,

We have discovered a ‘Treasure trove’.

The reward far exceeded our expectations.

* * *

We successfully secured the materials and returned to our base.

If we could ensure safe passage, we could make a few more trips to gather the remaining items.

“We’ll keep this one locked up here,” someone said.

The hardware store had more than just metal tools; there were wooden items too.

We crafted a makeshift coffin out of wooden planks and put the monster, ‘Mac,’ inside.

Growl!!

The effects of the meal seemed to be wearing off, and the creature started to thrash about.

But.

“Hey, quiet down.”

Thunk.

Grr…

Without any metal nearby to control, the monster was helpless.

Since it seemed to feed on metal, managing it properly shouldn’t be a problem.

After that, we opened the truck’s back door.

The spoils of our mission were laid out for inspection, and the engineers gathered around.

“Wow.”

“These aren’t just ordinary pieces of metal, are they?”

“No way, the strength of this material is incredible!”

Everyone was impressed.

Corporal Lee Gong-woo approached.

“Thank you for prioritizing the acquisition of materials and trusting us.”

“No need to thank me. We secured the materials as you requested, so our part is done. Now, it’s your turn, right?”

“Yes, it’s our turn.”

He grinned widely.

“We’ll create something amazing with these materials.”

Carrying the materials, they headed somewhere.

It seemed they planned to start work in the spacious area behind the barracks.

I noticed some vehicles being moved there, likely necessary for their task.

I glanced at the vehicle.

And then,

[Junior Grade Ingredient Identification]

[Aluminum]

[Glass Fiber]

[Functional Ceramic]

…

My trait activated once again.

‘A list of materials used in the vehicle. I learned something I wasn’t even interested in.’

The trait that activated was the Ingredient Identification.

As the name suggests, it is the ability to detect and analyze ingredients.

Normally, it wouldn’t activate for aluminum or ceramics.

My skills and traits stem from my profession as a chef, so they are mostly limited to culinary-related matters.

‘Not anymore, though.’

This trait was also activated when I saw the hardware in the warehouse.

At the time, I didn’t understand why, but now I do.

When I succeeded in cooking that metal sheet, I saw the following messages:

[For the very first time in human history, a new horizon in cooking has been discovered!]

[A reward will be given to those who are ahead of others]

[Reward: The limitation on ingredients disappears]

“This must be the reason.”

I was too busy with other matters in the warehouse to check it out.

I had brushed off the reward, thinking it was nothing significant.

But after careful consideration, I realized,

“This is an unbelievable reward…”

The disappearance of ingredient limits meant that one of the restrictions of my abilities had been completely removed.

[Ingredient Identification]

[Chef’s Eye]

and others.

Most of my skills applied only to cooking or ingredients.

Well, my profession is a chef, so I thought such restrictions were natural.

However, after cooking a metal sheet, a material not typically considered a cooking ingredient, one of the limitations of my abilities essentially vanished.

‘It might not greatly help with cooking itself.’

The main customer base for my cooking is the military personnel.

Even if I could cook with aluminum or functional ceramics, I couldn’t serve such meals to them.

“But the Chef’s Eye can also detect weaknesses.”

This ability, which used to only activate for ingredients, could now potentially work against inanimate foes, given the variety of monsters we face.

“Especially the Ingredient Identification is pretty powerful.”

Though its name suggests it only detects ingredients, with the restriction removed, this trait has turned into an ability to analyze all items.

Considering that engineers with similar traits can only detect specific materials, having an unrestricted detection trait provides a significant informational advantage.

I am certain of this: though the mission’s goal was to secure materials—and we succeeded beyond expectations—the greatest reward is this newfound ability.

* * *

A few days later.

“It’s finished!”

“Huh?”

The engineers came to me while I was pondering the next menu.

I was thinking of Ssambap* with wild greens picked up from the nearby mountains.

“Finished? Does that mean the work is finally done?”

“Yes, sir. We apologize for the noise these past few days.”

The noise from their work had made the barracks quite loud during the day.

At least no monsters were drawn in by it.

“Come to think of it, I hadn’t really taken a close look since I’d been working behind the hangar.”

I had only vaguely heard about reinforcing the vehicles.

I’d never seen them actually working on it.

With a sense of anticipation, I followed the engineers.

The vans and cars we used in the unit.

I was hoping they might have transformed into armored vehicles.

And then…

“Ta-da!”

“So, what do you think, Corporal Shin?”

The engineers proudly presented their work.

“Oh? Oh, wow.”

It was impressive, for sure.

Impressive, but…

“It has horns…?”

The front of the once-normal van.

It now had huge horns attached to it.

The sides and wheels were equipped with sharp, spear-like blades.

A familiar visual.

Yeah, just like…

Is it some kind of Mad Max?**

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Translator: One Force

TL Note:

This is the second additional chapter of the day (For NU 30 votes milestone completion)

*Ssambap is a traditional Korean dish that consists of rice (bap) wrapped in leafy vegetables (ssam), such as lettuce, perilla leaves, or cabbage.

The wraps often include various fillings and condiments, such as grilled meats (like bulgogi or pork belly), fermented soybean paste (doenjang), chili paste (gochujang), garlic, green onions, and sometimes even fish or tofu.

Ssambap is typically eaten by placing a small amount of rice and other ingredients onto the leaf, wrapping it up, and eating it in one bite.

It is a popular and healthy dish that showcases the flavors and textures of Korean cuisine.

**Mad Max in this chapter it’s a reference to the Mad Max Cars which are post-apocalyptic, heavily modified vehicles featured in the “Mad Max” movie series.

These cars are characterized by their rugged, aggressive designs, usually equipped with various weaponry and armor to survive the harsh desert environment depicted in the films.

The “Mad Max” series, starting with the original 1979 film, showcases these unique vehicles as a central element of its dystopian setting.

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