Main Character Hides His Strength
chapter-79

Chapter 79

Chapter 79 – Crusaders of Salvation (2)

The Crusaders of Salvation set up their camp at the dead centre of the Suicide Unit’s encampment . The retinue was responsible for their manual labor .

From this place, one could hear the sounds of horseshoes being fitted and the cries of their laborers . The Crusaders of Salvation, who had little else to do, gathered in small groups for idle chat or wandered around their surroundings . Some of the Crusaders visited the tent where Sungchul performed his Alchemy . Three men and two women, all so young it looked as though they had narrowly avoided the Curse of Extinction . One of them discovered the Alchemic cauldron and called her comrades into the tent .

“Hey look over here! There’s an Alchemist here!”

“What? There’s an Alchemist in a place like this? Weird . ”

“Should we go check out what he’s making?”

Sungchul was standing right before them, but they continued without giving him any importance . It was because of the prisoner number attached to his ragged coat . Sungchul peeked over at the unwelcome guests and continued what he was doing . He was making a Level 4 alchemic item called the Jug of Purification . It was a jar created from the clay found in the Demon Realm mixed with the Kaolin clay found further south .

The Jar was able to purify water into drinkable water, no matter how dirty or impure it was . It was an invaluable item within the Demon Realm where fresh water was difficult to find . Not only that, its Alchemic level was four . In the Other World where Alchemy was looked down upon, it was a significant level of difficulty .

Whoosh . Whoosh . Whoosh .

Sungchul continued to grow the flames beneath the Alchemic cauldron by stepping on the bellows with no particular expression on his face . The jar inside the lidded cauldron was beginning to take a solid form as it was baked . When the jar was properly baked, Sungchul opened the lid . The steam that had been circulating within flew out with fearsome vigor . Sungchul placed a spoon inside the cauldron with the jar and began to stir .

The act of stirring was more for the purpose of allowing the mana to flow into the Alchemic item, which granted the item a life of its own, rather than actually mixing the ingredients . He wasn’t aware of it at first, but it was knowledge he acquired through continued practice . The spoon appeared to touch the jar, but it didn’t . The spoon simply passed through the jar and stirred the bottom of the cauldron as though the spoon and the jar were on separate planes of existence . It was a small miracle that occurred within an Alchemic cauldron, but it didn’t seem to appeal to the onlookers .

“Boring . ”

“I thought it might be interesting, but it’s some useless jar?”

“I thought he was making a bomb or something . ”

“It looks cheap . ”

Each onlooker made their complaints before leaving the tent .

“…”

The pride of Sungchul, for whom everything had been going well recently, crumbled . It affected the results poorly .

[Synthesis Failed!]

With a poof, the jar inside the cauldron shattered into countless pieces before turning into black dust .

“Those fucking bitches…!!”

Sungchul’s face became twisted as he headed towards the members of the Crusaders of Salvation .

“Woah~ calm down . ”

Bertelgia shook her body within his pocket and spoke to him softly .

“Failure is the mother of success! A true Alchemist must be able to create the Philosopher’s Stone even in the middle of a busy market place . ”

“…”

Sungchul clenched his teeth as he left the tent . Noncommissioned soldiers nearby saw Sungchul and threw out their greetings .

“Hey! Alchemist! Is it going well?”

“So-so . ”

Sungchul went towards the back of the tent . There was a separate brazier and preparatory table installed here . It was a private kitchen which Sungchul sometimes used to cook . He glimpsed around his surroundings before he pulled out the ingredients from his Soul Storage . It was the Mandragora kimchi and blood drained from the corpse of the Man-faced Beast in the Demon Realm .

The meat of the Man-faced Beast was tough like leather, and when one bit down on it, the abscess within it exploded with unpleasant flavor which made it impossible to eat . However, fresh blood from a recently killed Man-faced Beast made for great soup .

He pulled out the ingredients onto a simple counter to the side, then headed over to the food storage with three low-grade healing potions .

“What? Another trade?”

The storage manager, prisoner number 132, peeked over at Sungchul’s healing potions then handed over a portion of the rations . Dried sausages, ham, and an unknown bird’s carcass were traded for three healing potions . Sungchul took the exchanged materials to his own barracks to begin cooking .

Even though it was called cooking, there wasn’t much to it .

The mountain bird’s bones were boiled to make meat stock and left to simmer as the alchemic cauldron’s lid was set upside down and used as a pan to cook the Man Faced Beast’s blood .

Once the blood was cooked to a certain extent the Mandragora Kimchi, Sausages and Ham he received earlier, and the Mountain Bird stock was added in and brought to a boil . After it had boiled enough, he added in the spices and adjusted the flavor . This was the Demon Frontline version of sausage stew .

Unfortunately, Sungchul’s cooking wasn’t popular within the barracks . It was because the food was seasoned heavily with spices that the Other Worlders weren’t familiar with . Their opinions might have changed if they had given it a chance, but the soldiers of the Suicide Unit weren’t feeling very adventurous when it came to their meals .

Sungchul didn’t judge them for it . His food was made for his sake anyways . However, unfamiliar onlookers arrived as he was putting the finishing touches . He briefly wondered who they were, but quickly realized it was the same five members that watched him do Alchemy .

“Huh? What’s this, Alchemy?”

A freckled girl with blonde hair looked over at the bubbling sausage stew and popped her question .

‘To call it Alchemy…’

The fact that the girl called his dignified cooking Alchemy meant that she didn’t see Sungchul’s food as food .

“Whatever it is, it reeks . Is he making something dangerous?”

A blonde youth oozing with pomp clenched his nose and made a disgusted expression . The fellows next to him had things to say as well .

“It looks like some kind of food? Look . There’s some sausage and ham floating on the red liquid . ”

“Uwek . ”

The conversation between the five fell right into Sungchul’s ears . Sungchul felt humiliation on a level he had never experienced before .

‘Making such judgement of a High-Class Chef’s dish . Such arrogance from mere petty nobles . ’

Judging strictly by ability, Sungchul was a level above the average royal chefs . Chef itself was a rare class, and not just anybody could become a high-class chef which was a rarity among the chefs .

Sungchul had actually spent considerable effort to become a high-class chef, and he had great pride in his own recipes; and those five had dared to mock Sungchul’s food .

Bertelgia could feel something big rumbling from Sungchul’s psyche and began to shake strongly as she whispered softly .

“Hold it . Woaaah~ Relax . ”

However, Bertelgia’s words didn’t reach Sungchul’s ears . Sungchul turned to face the group of five . An incredibly heavy aura exuded from his person, and the five leaped up from the sudden change in atmosphere . Sungchul slowly opened his mouth .

“Why not give it a try?”

He held a ladle with the Man-faced Beast stew with pieces of ham and sausage within towards the group .

“Go ahead and eat some . ”

The faces of the five froze at Sungchul’s sudden suggestion . Sungchul continued to insist .

“Hey . Why don’t you have a bite before you make a judgement? See if it tastes good or not . ”

Despite Sungchul’s repeated insistence, the group of five remained distant .

“Let’s go . ”

The blonde youth spoke coldly before turning to leave . The other four followed suit without question . Callous voices could be heard from their backs .

“How could anyone eat something like that?”

“Not even dogs would eat that slop . ”

Sungchul was unperturbed . He only smirked to himself .

“How dare they reject the food of a high-class chef . They lost an opportunity of their lifetime . ”

Sungchul returned to his place and swallowed the stew in his ladle in a single gulp . The clotted blood exploded with savory flavors and melted on his tongue like soft tofu as the sausage and ham that had a chewy texture filled his stomach . The Mandragora kimchi complemented the soup nicely with a deep vinegar flavor . It was truly a feast of flavors in his mouth . Sungchul wore a satisfied expression on his face .

‘I give it an 87 . ’

However, his class didn’t rate it so highly .

[This recipe is… 34 points . ]

‘I don’t know who is managing this class, but I really want to see his face just once . ’

Sungchul thought to himself as he pulled out a hard liquor from his supplies and downed it . The bursting flavor in his mouth mixed with the strong drink as it moved into his stomach . It was heavenly .

‘They rejected something this good . They’re truly pitiful . ’

Sungchul who was dining in this way felt someone’s gaze . He turned around to see if the five from before had returned, but it was someone unexpected .

‘This guy is…’

Curiosity rose in his eyes . His visitors were a blonde male who was the head of the Crusaders of Salvation, and a blonde woman who looked just like him .

“I thought I smelled something funky . It looks like it was the cooking of a Summoned . ”

The youth approached Sungchul then looked over at the boiling sausage stew in the cauldron lid with a sharp gaze . Sungchul didn’t reply and continued to look up at him .

The youth looked young and delicate, but his eyes were bold and prudent .

‘He looks like he’s got some spunk . I don’t know how it’ll be in reality though . ’

Sungchul shifted his gaze towards the girl who was standing behind the youth protectively . She had a similarly pale blonde hair and piercing blue eyes, and she was already looking at Sungchul . The moment their eyes met, Sungchul was reminded of a freshly honed blade of a knife .

‘The siblings are quite something despite their age . ’

Sungchul finished judging the unwelcome guests as the youth who was observing his food began to speak .

“Hmm . This red soup, and this provocative smell . It feels similar to the food they serve at the Order of the Iron Blood Knights . ”

“…”

“The food didn’t taste good, and I forced myself to eat it, but it was quite spicy and striking . I felt like I was looking at the Order’s heart . All flash with nothing to show for it . ”

“What do you want to say?”

Sungchul downed another shot of alcohol as he retorted . Even dogs should be left alone during their meals . He wasn’t feeling hospitable as these unwelcome guests were buzzing around him during his meal .

The corner of the youth’s lip rose as the hand of the girl behind him reached for the hilt of her blade . A thick aura of hostility flew out from her . The youth waved his hand towards her .

“Sophia . Stop . I am the one in the wrong here . ”

He slightly bent his neck towards Sungchul so as to express his apology for his disrespectful behavior .

“I apologize, unknown soldier . I smelled the scent of such foreign food, and I unknowingly overstepped my bounds . ”

To apologize to a no-name soldier that even Aaron Genghis, the head of the Suicide Unit, treated like an insect . It was an unusual occurrence . This guy was growing on Sungchul . Sungchul took a ladle and offered a portion of the soup towards the youth .

“Don’t just apologize with words, try some . ”

At Sungchul’s sudden action, the youth briefly froze .

“Brother . ”

The woman behind him had a worried expression and approached him . She glared towards Sungchul with a frosty gaze and shouted .

“You . Summoned! Who do you think he is that you can shove your slop of garbage towards him?”

Her blade was already pulled halfway . Sungchul looked at her shining sword and pulled back the ladle with a smile .

“Don’t eat it, if you don’t want to . ”

The woman’s face grew scornful after hearing his words .

“This bastard…”

The youth restrained the girl once again .

“Sophia . Restrain yourself . How long do you intend to remain hysterical?”

Unlike the fuming girl, the youth sat next to Sungchul with a relaxed expression on his face .

“Could I give it a taste?”

Sungchul made a faint smile and handed over a small bowl filled with the stew . The youth made a mysterious expression on his face as he looked at the contents .

“It won’t taste as good if it goes cold . ”

Sungchul said .

“Brother . You can’t eat this . ”

The girl objected, but the youth smirked and swallowed Sungchul’s dish in a single gulp . However, his attitude was like that of someone forcing himself to try and eat something that wasn’t food . It looked as if he was doing something reckless like a youth .

The youth who had the stew in his mouth began to chew a few times before his face turned to stone . The girl who was watching the scene became pale .

“Brother!”

At that moment, the youth let out a soft exclamation .

“Huh…?!”

Sungchul crossed his arms and made a smug expression on his face as he observed the change .

‘I made it . There is no way it’ll taste bad . ’

The youth who had a mysterious expression on his face looked behind him with a happy expression and spoke in a cheerful voice .

“It’s good!”

The mood changed completely .