Chapter 42

[Ingredient Identification] [Blue Water Droplet]

[Quality: Excellent]

The subject indicated by the system prompt was none other than a common snack packet.

“Blue Water Droplet”

It’s not the kind of name you’d see attached to a snack packet.

I discreetly moved my body towards it.

Confidently.

“Hey.”

“Yes?”

“Sergeant Shin? Did you call me?”

As I stood in front of the snack, I spoke.

Strangely, the soldiers nearby who were on guard answered.

Sorry, but I ignored them a bit.

“Hey, you.”

“What are you doing…”

“Well, this kid is quite audacious, huh?”

“Yes?”

I pointed the knife directly at the snack packet and said, “You’ve been caught, dude.”

It was at that moment.

Crash!

The snack packet seemed to distort strangely,

Gray thorns seemed to sprout out and aimed at my head.

“What, what’s happening!”

“Sergeant Shin!?”

The soldiers watching my actions were also startled by the sight, but.

“If you anticipate it, avoiding it isn’t that difficult!”

I dodged the thorn.

Instead, I swung the knife towards the snack.

Squelch.

The sensation was like cutting through jelly.

Then.

[You have gained experience points.]

Grumbling

The appearance of the seemingly ordinary snack packet changed.

A silver-gray jelly-like substance flowed out from the snack corner’s shelf.

“Sergeant Shin? What in the world is this?”

“The identity of the ghost.”

“Yes?”

A ghost, what?

It’s absurd when you see it like this.

“It’s so well hidden that it could easily go unnoticed. To hide this well…”

“Since earlier, we’ve been wondering what you’re talking about…”

“It’s mimicry.”

[Chef’s Eyes activated]

[Acquired Junior Grade Cooking Secret – Handling Method of Blue Water Droplets.]

[Handling Method of Blue Water Droplets.]

[Blue Water Droplets are magical organisms with the ability to mimic their surroundings to lure prey-.]

[In their original form, they consist of a large amount of liquid forming a silver-gray body and a central core where magic is concentrated. While some classify them as a type of slime, due to their ability to regenerate as long as the core remains intact, they are difficult to classify as such]

[The key to handling lies in the core, which is practically the same as the body of the water droplet]

“It’s not a ghost. It’s his ability to blend with the environment to the point of giving you chills.”

“Are you talking about this jelly-like thing?”

“Yes, it can perfectly blend into its surroundings to the point where it’s nearly invisible.”

“We’ve been completely fooled then. We thought it wasn’t visible, but it was clearly there, just like the surrounding objects.”

After perfectly blending with the surroundings, they attack unsuspecting prey from angles where they’re not visible.

The reason there were no additional attacks when we stopped is simple.

It’s just that these creatures weren’t around at that time.

‘First, they lure you into their preferred surroundings. Then they let you drop your guard and after that only they will start hunting.’

When the prey panics from the unseen attacks and tries to flee these creatures, who blend with the environment and attack people running around them like traps.

The survival of the siblings was also due to the sacrifice of the adults but fundamentally, it was because these creatures didn’t pass through where they were hiding.

It was luck.

And…

“Those creatures are unlucky.”

Although I’m repeating what I said just a moment ago, an enemy that hides and conceals itself?

If they were strong from the beginning, there would be no reason for that.

The fact that they resort to such tactics.

‘It means they lack confidence in a head-on confrontation!’

I shouted to the soldiers as I looked around.

“They have a very clear-cut weakness! There’s a black jelly-like thing at the center of these creatures’ transparent bodies! Just take that out, and it’s over!”

“Yes? Well, that’s easier said than done.”

“It’s meaningless to know the weakness if you don’t know where the monster is!”

“Leave that to me.”

After confirming that there were no other monsters on the shelf in front of me,

I scattered the snacks on the floor and stood on top of them.

And I looked around the whole store.

[Aluminum]

[Glass Fiber]

[Filament]

[Synthetic Fiber]

[Blue Water Droplet]

“Gwang-il!”

“Yes! Corporal Jeon Gwang-il!”

“The dairy refrigerator next to you! Attack it!”

“Roger!”

The soldiers still seemed a bit bewildered upon hearing the identity of the monster but as soon as the order was given, they acted without any hesitation.

Without any doubt, Corporal Jeon Gwang-il swung his fist towards the refrigerator.

Then.

Whoosh.

His fist plunged into the refrigerator.

“There’s something in here!”

When he retrieved his hand there was a black sphere in his fist.

The core of that monster was clutched in his hand.

Crunch.

He crushed the core with all his strength.

As a result, the refrigerator itself turned into a gray jelly and spread out on the floor.

“It’s taken care of!”

“Good job! Next, Private Byeong-min!”

“Private Lee Byeong-min!”

“The table in front of you! Tear it apart!”

“Affirmative sir!!!”

Crack.

Various objects piled up inside the mart.

Monsters were hiding their identities by mimicking those objects.

“The creatures.

Crackle.

Squelch.

Squish.

One by one.

They all lost their cores and sprawled out on the floor.

“……Sergeant Shin, just what on earth.”

“How can he recognize them?”

Soldiers, even while defeating the monsters, couldn’t recognize them until the last moment.

They looked at me as if I were something incredible.

Sorry, but I didn’t have the leisure to respond to those gazes.

“Next is Han-il!”

Thankfully, the Chef’s Eyes, unlike the other magical skills, didn’t consume mana, or I might have fainted again.

Did we really defeat that many ‘Blue Water Droplets’?

Phwaaah.

Suddenly,

A loud noise reverberated throughout the entire store.

“What, what’s that?”

“What could it be? Look over there.”

“Oh.”

The source of the noise was soon apparent.

Monsters disguised as items scattered throughout.

“Hiding is meaningless at this point.”

They leased their disguises, revealing their silvery-gray forms.

“Oh, my goodness.”

“There are so many of them… hidden inside.”

As they released their disguises.

What appeared before us were not the shapes of their mimicked form, but dozens of giant jelly-like monsters.

If they were as powerful as they say,

If they were powerful entities like the Mac, then we might have to shove my cooking in their mouths like we did with the Mac.

But.

“Why did release their mimicked form?”

“It might actually make hunting them easier!”

These creatures were problematic because of their shape-shifting abilities.

They weren’t that strong.

At that moment, when we rushed in without hesitation to hunt them down,

“Huh?”

“These creatures. They’re trying to transform again!”

Just when it seemed like all the jelly was churning,

Their forms changed significantly.

The shape was quite familiar to us.

“A person, is it?”

“It appears to be a woman.”

Armed with a sword and shield.

A woman in her late twenties to early thirties.

Although she looked like a woman, she seemed quite muscular.

A somewhat peculiar point was that,

Apart from the sword and shield, her attire seemed very modern.

It resembled the attire of a career woman in a faded suit.

“Packet ajumma…”

Suyeon muttered upon seeing her.

What?

“That’s Sunni ajumma?”

“Yes?”

“…But she looks quite young to be called an ‘ajumma,’ doesn’t she?”

“Well, you know, to kids, once you’re over twenty, you’re pretty much an ajumma.”

Suni ajumma.

The name of the leader of the survivor group Suyeon belonged to.

“Indeed. She was said to be an awakened warrior.”

“Yes.”

Indeed.

“Hiding is meaningless, and it’s difficult to fight in jelly form.”

“Seems like they have taken a form suitable for combat.”

There must be a reason why they took that form.

Maybe they can only take the form of creatures that they directly hunt?

They wouldn’t have transformed just for appearance’s sake.

Probably, that form is the strongest one the creature can take.

“I don’t know, but… Could their combat capabilities be similar to the originals?”

“Are you talking about those numbers…?”

The number of monsters before us.

It was similar to ours, or slightly higher.

In other words,

We should consider that we’re facing an equal number of awakened warriors.

“What a foolish thing they have done.”

“W-We need to run away quickly…”

“Huh? Why should we?”

“Sunni ajumma is an awakened warrior! And there are so many of them. Running might be futile…”

Come to think of it,

That woman was rumored to be quite strong among the survivors.

An awakened warrior specialized in combat.

But sorry.

“Hehe, now it’s starting to get a bit more interesting!”

“Let’s make it more enjoyable for ourselves!”

Crack.

Phwaaah…

The monsters mimicking the formidable awakened warrior.

They were being chopped down by our soldiers.

“…Huh?”

“I told you, didn’t I?”

I said to Suyeon, who was speechless at the sight.

“It was a foolish thing to do.”

If you were going to copy, you should have copied Gwang-il.

He is the strongest awakened warrior in our unit.

“Our soldiers are the epitome of no-fail factors, aren’t they?”

We didn’t spend our time in the mountains for nothing.

We had leveled-up quite a bit while killing those lizard monsters.

Combat techniques honed by a hundred awakened warriors while competing against each other and sharpened in real battles.

Equipment made from the leather of steel lizards that could even withstand bullets.

And my cooking buffs on top of that.

Sorry, but.

It’s hard for just one famous awakened person to catch up with us.

The difference in level is too great.

The battle concluded without any crisis whatsoever.

And since we emerged victorious from the battle,

It was time for the spoils.

“Look! There’s an abundance of rice here!”

“Fresh produce is all spoiled, but the packaged side dishes seem usable.”

“When was the last time we saw ramen?”

Food supplies.

“Toilet paper, toilet paper!”

“Thank goodness. We can maintain our dignity as humans…”

Essentials.

“It’s not a pharmacy, so we only have basic first aid supplies and over the counter medications”

“For now, this should suffice. Securing bandages and alcohol is crucial.”

Medicine.

“Sigh…”

“I missed this taste.”

Including cigarettes and other luxuries.

“This is amazing.”

Considering the group of over 100 people, it’s uncertain how long these supplies will last.

But at least we can extinguish the urgent fires.

“And yet, there’s still plenty left?”

“It’s still going to last a long time, right?”

Two siblings sitting in a corner, seemingly dazed.

It makes me want to pinch their cheeks at least once.

While the troops were transferring goods to the vehicles,

“Sergeant Shin?”

“Hmm? What is it?”

“The empty bottles you mentioned. I’ve brought them.”

“Oh. Thank you.”

“No need to thank me…”

I asked some soldiers to gather empty bottles for me.

“Where do you intend to use these?”

“Well, you’ll see.”

The empty bottles collected by the soldiers.

I poured…

The silver-gray jelly was spread out on the floor.

I collected the [Blue Water Droplets].

“Sergeant Shin? Are you planning to use those for cooking too?”

“Oh, you catch on quickly.”

“Eek…”

The soldiers were startled.

Yet each of them grabbed a bottle and sat down.

They began collecting the jelly together.

“It feels like jelly even when touched. It certainly looks like it… Are there any dishes where you use this?”

“Well, it’s just a matter of creating the recipe. I guess I should give it a try later.”

The soldiers may not know it, but these jelly-like monsters possess incredible culinary potential.

“If you cook it well, you might create something remarkable.”

As they were discussing,

“Young-joon.”

“Yes? What’s up, hyung?”

Min-jae hyung approached from a distance.

He smelled of cigarettes, as if he had just tasted one after a long time.

“Are you planning to use these creatures as ingredients too?”

“For now, there’s no harm in trying, right? We have nothing to lose if the result isn’t great.”

“Hmm. In that case… come with me for a moment.”

“Huh?”

As we headed to where Min-jae hyung called us several soldiers from the mage division were standing there.

“What’s going on?”

“You’ll see if you look inside.”

Curious about what they meant; I approached a bit further.

I could see what the soldiers were surrounding.

“…Surely this isn’t…”

“It’s just as you’re thinking.”

A silver-gray jelly, similar to the ones they had been collecting.

The difference was:

“Is it alive?”

“It seems so.”

The fact that its core was intact

Although not moving actively, it seemed alive.

“How did this happen? We killed them, didn’t we? Why did it become like this?”

“Well, we mages aren’t confident in close combat. We could render them incapable of fighting by using our magic, but in the heat of battle…”

“We couldn’t strike their cores with magic to kill them, so they ended up being subdued like this?”

“That’s right. We thought they might be useful for cooking.”

Hmm.

I recalled the handling method’ I learned from the system.

[Some classify them as a type of slime, due to their ability to regenerate as long as the core remains intact, they are difficult to classify as such]

“The core seems to be the key, and the rest might not be as important.”

If that’s the case…

The core might have concentrated nutrients.

“Let’s take them.”

“Excuse me?”

“Is it okay to take a living monster?”

“Their only means of attack was through their silver-gray jelly. The core was just a vulnerability.”

The core is the main body.

And it doesn’t seem to possess combat abilities.

“The nutrients might be concentrated in the core. If we can keep them fresh, I’d like to preserve them.”

“Hmm. If that’s your judgment, Sergeant.”

There were a few more monsters subdued by Min-jae hyung and the mages.

We collected their cores and sealed the opening of the containers.

…They won’t die from neglect like this, will they?

After finishing all the tasks.

As we were about to board the vehicle to return to base.

“…”

The siblings, Suyeon and Suhyuk, were there.

They were still staring at us blankly.

“Why happened? You look like you’ve lost your mind.”

“…Those monsters. They were as strong as Suni ajumma.”

“Ah, it seemed like it.”

“Even though there were dozens of us, we couldn’t handle them…”

“Hmm?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

Suyeon tightly grasped her brother’s hand as she spoke.

“It seems like it was a good deal.”

Heh.

“We gained a lot because of you. It’s a win-win situation.”

“As promised, you’ll let us join as members of the unit, right?”

“Yes. But remember, it’s not a free ride.”

There’s a difference between providing protection and joining as members.

“Soon, you’ll have to pick up weapons too. It probably won’t take too long.”

Just because they’re kids doesn’t mean we can protect them forever.

This world has changed.

There might be situations where we can’t protect them, even though we want to.

They have to strengthen themselves to survive.

“I didn’t freeload even when I was in the survivor group.”

“I, I won’t either!”

“Haha. That’s the spirit.”

Come to think of it.

That kid who swung an axe at me was quite impressive.

These kids seem like they’ll become good soldiers.

At least, I need to make sure they can handle themselves.

Of course, awakening procedures should be conducted as safely as possible.

Also,

Although not perfect, we now have a temporary base.

And through vehicle modifications, our mobility constraints have somewhat lessened.

With the supplies obtained today, we should be able to sustain ourselves for a while.

Hmm.

We have a bit of breathing room now.

In that case…

“Let’s start tomorrow.”

“…Huh?”

Finally.

The time has come to increase the number of awakened.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Translator: One Force

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