The Cook of a Perished World - Chapter 119
Episode 119: Abnormal Appetite (1) My
unit members and I somehow succeeded in returning to Chuncheon by rail.
“I haven’t been gone that long, but something has changed a lot.”
“Wasn’t it such a mess when we left?”
“is it?”
Although it was a short time.
In that short period of time, the scenery of Chuncheon has changed quite a bit.
There are still monsters roaming around everywhere, and some buildings are dangerous areas where even approaching is not allowed.
Also, in some areas, people seemed to have gathered together to form a safe area.
The representative safe zone… is near our unit.
Let’s approach the building where the unit is using as a temporary base.
There was something written on a sign on a collapsed shopping street nearby.
[We sell various useful items.]
[All items have been confirmed to work.]
[No refunds due to the buyer’s whim.]
“Huh?”
That’s right.
This is a city where thousands of awakened people were released.
When people gather, their own society is created, and within that.
“It looks like transactions are becoming more active.”
“This feels weird.”
The first place where this kind of society was created was near the ammunition battalion in Inje County.
The village there had a strong atmosphere of community life.
It feels like we all make it together and share it together.
It didn’t seem like there was any kind of deal going on.
On the other hand, the situation was a little different in Chuncheon.
The Awakened are spread out across several groups and have many awkward relationships due to their work in the dungeon.
It is said that in the first place, even within the dungeon, they exchanged their own forms of exchange if they needed anything.
This means that the transaction has been activated.
“It won’t be bad.”
In fact, most items can be purchased through point stores.
But the products there are often expensive and of poor quality.
Points can be saved if awakened people barter between unnecessary and necessary items.
‘It is much more profitable to invest in growth, such as raising abilities or purchasing random skill books with the remaining points. … huh?’
however.
One strange thing caught my eye.
[Large capacity power bank battery for camping (operation confirmed)]
[Price: 3 won]
The glass window of a collapsing commercial building.
The item inside was a large auxiliary battery,
the kind you use when you go camping or something.
I was curious to see if something like that still existed.
The problem isn’t that, it’s the price listed below.
“Three rounds?”
jeon.
It’s not a circle, it’s a jeon?
“It’s not like the Joseon Dynasty.”
The moment my steps stopped, I wondered what kind of unit that was.
“How much is that battery?”
“It’s written down, right? “It’s three rounds.”
“A single battery only lasts 3 watts?”
At that moment, someone entered the store and started bargaining.
“Operation has already been verified and more than 90% of capacity remains. And you know what? “All the electricity was cut off.”
“I know that, but it’s not too much. “This is something that would have originally cost less than 300,000 won.”
“What does that matter? “A person I saw a while ago was writing a 100 million won check with tissue paper.”
“Okay.”
…is 3 rounds expensive?
“If you don’t like it, you don’t have to buy it. I’m not hard selling. You can get a generator and gasoline somewhere and use them to generate electricity. “The generator doesn’t sound like a joke, but it would be perfect for bringing monsters and zombies away.”
After thinking for a moment, the man who was bargaining took something out of his pocket and handed it to him.
“Thank goodness we are in a situation where we need electricity urgently. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t have even paid attention to this price.”
“Hehe. Thank you for the great deal.”
A man who hands over an item with a frown and a merchant who accepts it with a frown.
Things that came and went in between.
When I saw that, I couldn’t help but frown.
‘Why is that thing coming out of there?’
It was something very, very familiar to me.
You can’t help but get used to it.
Because I made it!
‘It’s combat rations.’
* * *
“Ah, that? “I know, but I roughly tolerate it.”
The dishes I made are being used in trade.
It was so absurd that I brought up the story as soon as I returned to the unit.
Minjae hyung reacted quite calmly.
“Connivance. “My combat rations are being used as goods like that. Is that okay?”
“Ah, isn’t that a bit like being a chef?”
“Honestly, a little.”
“Even if you say so. Don’t you think Youngjun wants to see as many humans survive as possible?”
“But that’s it.”
That I’m a good person who can’t get over seeing people die.
That’s not the reason.
‘Because the more humans there are, the better to fight against the monsters that are currently invading the world.’
Moreover, the more survivors there are, the more people will join our unit.
This means that the number of customers who will eat my cooking will increase.
“I was a little surprised at first too. In the beginning, it seemed like it was just a matter of physical transactions, but it quickly became established as a currency.”
“…It’s a bit weird to make a trade with the food you sprayed on people who are about to starve to death.”
“I understand. In the end, it is the food that turns you into the monster you hunt. “For those who are not in combat positions, it is inevitable.”
ah.
I didn’t think of that.
I was processing only the monsters I personally hunted and making them into combat rations.
It’s beneficial for us because the number of monsters in the city is gradually decreasing.
It’s beneficial for them because they can get food.
However, not all awakened people are combatants.
“Since you can’t get it through battle, you probably want to secure combat rations in this way. “A buff to combat rations could save your life in a moment of crisis.”
Let’s hear the story.
It is said that the active trading in this area is also due to the influence of non-combatant awakened people.
‘Non-combatants are helpless against looting… but there won’t be any crazy people looting near our unit.’
Moreover, this is where the currency called combat rations is issued.
It is the optimal environment for doing business.
“Did the transaction take place like that and my combat rations ended up becoming goods?”
“To be precise, that is still barter. Why do you say that rice was the standard for price even in the Joseon Dynasty economy, which was centered on barter? “It’s like that.”
This is ridiculous.
In fact, the existing currency has now lost its value to the point where it is difficult to even use it as toilet paper.
It is questionable whether there are any countries that protect the value of currency.
On the other hand, combat rations can be eaten and also provide buffs.
The advantage of having it is that it maintains its value as currency.
In addition, it is constantly consumed as food and is steadily released into the market.
…if this is enough.
I can roughly understand why things are like this.
but.
“Does it make you a little angry to think like that?”
“What are you angry about? “Is it because I feel like I’m playing around with cooking?”
“no. “More than that.”
My cooking has become a commodity.
That in itself feels a bit strange, but it’s not a big problem.
The real problem is the sight I saw right before I came here.
“That battery is worth about 3 combat rations I made myself…?”
To put it the other way:
The dish I made.
This means that it is less than a third of the auxiliary batteries that used to cost less than 300,000 won.
Be honest.
Is your pride hurt?
“brother. Should we drastically reduce supply? “Then won’t the value go up a bit?”
“…don’t think crazy thoughts.”
“greatness.”
For a moment, my pride was hurt and I thought something strange.
‘Whoa.’
What can I do?
The market decided that way.
It’s a bit sad that my cooking is of low value.
Ultimately, the only way to reduce supply is to buy it.
I guess I can improve my cooking skills and increase the value of my cooking.
“So, what do you mean? “I think we’ll have to find a proper base sooner or later.”
“hmm? “Is this place a little different?”
“As I said before. Non-combatants are vulnerable to looting, so they gather near our unit, which is safer. “The environment here is not particularly good.”
It wasn’t a building I had thought about in the first place.
I literally needed a place to sleep, so I entered an empty building and created a temporary base.
“At best, people are trying to flock around us, but it’s not an environment where we can easily grow.”
“but.”
“The defense facilities here are insufficient, so we need to prepare for an emergency.”
“I guess we need to set up a proper base.”
“There are several candidates. “Something like the islands floating on that river, or the central part that is now in ruins.”
It certainly seems like this part needs to be resolved as quickly as possible.
But not right away.
‘For now…’
There is something else that I decided to solve first when I came to Chuncheon.
Questions about my job.
An ideal eater’s search to solve that problem.
* * *
“Didn’t you finish your work in the ammunition battalion well?”
“I heard something there.”
First unit meeting after returning to Chuncheon.
I described the man who escaped the dungeon.
A being who is expected to have helped the man escape from the dungeon.
Also a story about a person with an abnormal appetite.
“We have to find this guy.”
To be honest, it is personal business.
The reason is that I want to be clear about my job.
However, if it is postponed and the person with the abnormal appetite goes away, it may never be resolved again.
I wanted to resolve it first and foremost.
“hmm. Even if you say so.”
“I’ve never heard of a sighting of such a monster.”
What a cannibal monster.
Originally, I thought rumors would spread soon after the dungeon was cleared.
If such a monster is active, rumors can’t help but spread.
But the guy was strangely quiet.
Even the unit’s executives have nothing to say.
“I understand that Su-a is working hard to gather information about her surroundings using spirits. “There wasn’t really anything to talk about.”
“…Jung Soo-ah’s spirit eye is not all-powerful.”
It also consumes a lot of stamina to use for a long time.
Although it may be called the eyes of spirits, it is ultimately a task that is confirmed with the eyes.
It is not easy to find even hidden entities.
‘But I don’t want to give up.’
I want to somehow find it and solve my curiosity…
“…Now that I think about it.”
In my head.
One way came to mind.
“You said my combat rations have become like currency, right?”
“ah. “That’s right.”
From my perspective, the value is lower than I thought, so I get angry.
Basically, this is a phenomenon that arose because people consider combat rations so important.
and.
“The one who holds the most currency called combat rations is…”
“Uh. “Aren’t we?”
Because we are the ones taking pictures of it.
A whopping 80% of the completed combat rations are piling up in our unit’s warehouse.
Now it’s so overflowing that I wonder what to do with it.
There is information I want to know, but I have no idea.
In this case, there is one method that is most effective.
Sigh.
“Let’s use collective intelligence.”
“…?”
* * *
The center of Chuncheon.
A commercial district for awakened people began to form around the base where the soldiers were located.
It is safe from monsters as soldiers periodically clear out nearby monsters.
No one would go so far as to cause conflict near their base.
Safe from use of force or looting during transactions.
“Let’s see.” “Is today’s net profit 5 won?”
Because it’s that kind of environment.
Lee Sang-hyeop also settled here and started a business.
“…write. “It’s small.”
But business was not very smooth.
Even if it is a business, there is a limit to what you can sell.
Currently, most of his main sales list is items he picked up when he was trapped in the city in the past.
Other than that, it’s all things I picked up while walking around recently.
“Is there any way for business to go well?”
Lee Sang-hyeop also wanted to get rid of business.
I wonder how convenient it would be to hunt monsters directly like everyone else and process them into battle rations.
[Lee Sang-hyeop]
[New Merchant Lv. 6]
“Whew.”
His occupation is a merchant.
The problem was that I had no talent for combat.
‘I was awakened after hunting fishmen, but when I got a job like this… I really wanted to die.’
A society where power rules everything.
Let’s say it’s a trait or skill he has.
[Improved trust]
[Speech skills]
[Skilled in acquiring information]
Giving more trust in transactions.
There is a bonus to information acquisition actions.
Literally everything that can only be used as a merchant.
“You have the perfect skillset to get robbed and die somewhere. Shit.”
actually.
It is thanks to these characteristics and skills that the net profit increased by 5 coins.
‘The value of combat rations is enormous.’
Its value as food that is difficult to obtain in a destroyed world.
Its value as an item that provides a huge buff the moment you eat it.
Even considering just those two things, it is sure to be an item of enormous value.
but.
The third and final reason was the biggest reason for the increase in the value of combat rations.
‘Phoenix.’
The taste itself…
is so outstanding.
Lee Sang-hyeop once tried to sell cigarettes in the early days.
Supermarkets and convenience stores that may have cigarettes are usually on the first floor.
Everything in the dungeon was submerged.
I thought the scarcity value of cigarettes would be very high.
Isn’t it such a representative luxury item that some people seek out cigarettes right before they die from lung cancer?
As it is a situation like this.
I thought I could trade a carton of cigarettes for at least a week’s worth of combat rations.
“…It ended up being sold in the first round.”
This level was also possible thanks to his trading skills.
The commercial association was astonished.
People can’t taste the taste of cigarettes…
or cigarettes don’t taste good.
It wasn’t like that.
A really simple reason.
“Because combat rations taste better than cigarettes.”
Value as a luxury item.
In that confrontation, tobacco was miserably defeated.
“Even if it were me, I wouldn’t buy it.”
No matter how delicious cigarettes are.
Combat rations are more delicious, but what kind of crazy person would pay for combat rations to buy them?
The advantage is that it is consistently distributed in the market and its value is protected to some extent.
Although it is used like a good for various reasons.
The value of the first round was very, very high.
In reality, most transactions are done in decimal units.
‘Considering the normal value of the batteries sold during the day today, about 1 won would have been normal… no, it would have been below that.’
The other person may not have noticed.
Thanks to his characteristics and skills as a merchant, he was able to charge an outrageous price.
“Now that I still have things to sell, I can somehow make a living by being ripped off with this ability. But…”
There wasn’t much left of that item.
Even if you try to utilize your skills as a merchant, if you don’t have anything to sell, it’s a waste of time.
If you want to get something to sell sooner rather than later.
‘I guess I’ll have to get out there.’
Leave the safe area protected by soldiers.
Other awakened people whose true intentions are unknown.
And you have to go to a place overflowing with monsters.
“Whew…”
It was hard to hold back a sigh when I thought about that.
however.
The car is about to start business as usual.
A piece of paper pasted on the street caught my eye.
“This?”
Paper stuck to the wall.
Handwriting roughly scrawled on plain A4 paper.
It was a somewhat familiar format.
“This cumbersome, roughly scribbled finish… was made by soldiers.”
I’ve seen it before.
The paper on which I wrote that I would be given food if I caught the monster had something like this.
[Notification from the Iron Legion]
[Seeking information about the cannibals roaming inside the submerged city.]
By the way.
The text written was a little different.
“Cannibal monster? Did he do something?”
A cannibal wandering around the city.
At least there was no awakened person in Chuncheon who did not know him.
When a war between humans broke out.
Because everyone clearly saw the execution of numerous looters.
But that’s it.
“Recently, I honestly forgot about its existence.”
Since I haven’t seen it in person for a while, I thought it was just that, but I was going to pass on it.
Last line of paper.
When I saw what was written there, I couldn’t help but stop.
[The information provider will receive 300 combat rations after verification of authenticity.]
[Or we promise to pay an equivalent price.]
[Please contact the corps temporary base for details.]
[Scheme attached]
“… Four four. Four four… three… three f….”
Three hundred!?
The Sanghyup could not keep its mouth shut.
actually.
There are not that many combat rations you can receive when you bring a monster to the legion.
Because the fee is as much as 80%.
But surprisingly, there were no major complaints.
‘Because processing a monster’s corpse so that it can be eaten in the first place is close to impossible.’
It would be impossible for even soldiers to do something like that without any consequences.
‘It will take a lot of effort and ingredients… and the taste and effectiveness are excellent. There is a tendency to believe that such a fee is reasonable.’
It can be said that this also contributed to the high value of combat rations.
however.
It’s not even 30 combat rations.
300?
“A completed party would have to repeat a life-threatening battle dozens of times to obtain a certain amount of information… You’re giving me just one piece of information?”
That cannibal guy.
What on earth have you done?
‘…if. If only I could get that reward.’
Sang-hyeop’s face heated up with excitement for a moment.
“no. “What are you doing so excited?”
It quickly became salty.
In the first place, it is stated that compensation will be paid after verification of authenticity only if the information is correct.
From a point of view without information, it is like a pie in the sky.
“…for a moment?”
That moment.
There was one memory that passed through Lee Sang-hyeop’s mind.
“…this. Is that by any chance? no. Umm. “If not, I’m kicking you in the ass.”
The characteristics that a commercial association possesses as a merchant.
[Skilled in acquiring information].
Thanks to this characteristic, the merchant was secretly familiar with miscellaneous information within the city.
Among them, there was one part that made sense.
The problem is that I am not sure that it is information about the cannibal monster.
‘If this information is wrong, it will end up being hated by the soldiers who have to watch out for it.’
If that happens, it’s the worst.
but.
‘No. Either you will be hated by the soldiers or not. If I keep going like this anyway, I’ll have to risk my life to go out after all my supplies are used up, right? ‘What does it matter if I die like that or be hated by the soldiers?’
but.
If that is correct information.
300 combat rations are not important.
“A price equivalent to 300 combat rations… then.”
gulp.
“Maybe we can cut a deal with those soldiers.”
The most powerful force in this area.
If you can make a line with them.
As a merchant, he may be able to achieve tremendous growth.
‘no. ‘You can always grow.’
This is not the time to discuss this and that.
“What the heck. Why not try gambling!”
After the commercial association gave up preparations for business.
I moved towards the building where the soldiers were located.