“...If it’s just 2%, we don’t need to worry too much, right?”

“That’s right. We analyzed them just now and with Player Minhyuk’s level, stats and skills, clearing the trial is nigh impossible. That is, if no other variable appears.”

“A variable?” Team Leader Park asked weirdly the moment he heard the word variable.

Lee Seokhoon looked at him seriously and said, “If Player Minhyuk takes the risk and chooses to challenge the Food God’s trial, he will be allowed to take one ‘helper’ with him. If that helper somehow has the power to make Player Minhyuk more powerful then…”

“That’s impossible.”

Lee Seokhoon was talking about an outstanding priest. That was the only person capable of making Minhyuk strong enough to clear the trial! However, despite Legend Guild being a guild of elites, they still did not have a priest, or people with great buff abilities among their members. The vassal Corr? He was a ‘paladin’, so his skills were mainly focused on the offensive and would not be able to be of much help.

“Then, we can rest assured.”

“...”

Flinch!

Lee Minhwa stopped what she was doing and turned to look at Team Leader Park when she heard him say that. Those were the taboo words that she had specially determined for the Special Players Management Team!!! Whenever she or Team Leader Park Minggyu uttered these words, the situation always unfolded in a completely different direction from what they had expected. So, she made sure to make the words ‘We can rest assured.’ the department’s taboo words.

‘This is ominous…’ 

Lee Minhwa’s expression turned solemn as she looked back at her monitor.

***

Minhyuk extricated himself from the thought of eating beef and regained his senses to listen to Sword and Shield Crusoe’s explanation about the trial.

“The trial of the Sword and Shield is simple. Sect Leader Minhyuk… No, Minhyuk… and I will be given 100 troops each.”

Minhyuk nodded.

“Then, you and I will pass through the same stretch of land with our troops. We might be going through the same stretch of land, but we’re technically in different places.”

Minhyuk easily understood the gist of it. The place where the trial would take place was the same, however the both of them would still be in different spaces.

“Do you understand?”

“Yes. I understood the gist of it.”

Basically, they would both have the same conditions.

“If you reach at least a level that’s within 20% or equal to my achievement level, you will be able to proceed to the next trial.”

In other words, Minhyuk only needed to achieve around 60%~80% achievement level if Crusoe achieved 80% in the trial to pass.

“What if I reach a higher level than you?”

“...Who knows,” Crusoe answered with a wry smile. Even he did not know what would happen. However, he was sure of one thing, that would be a difficult task.

“During the time that I have been together with you, I learned that you are a very smart and clever person. However, I was called ‘teacher’ by those that used the sword and the shield in the past.”

Crusoe was one of the legends in the continent, recognized as the master and teacher of everyone who used swords and shields. There was even a legend praising his outstanding commanding ability and various tactics that allowed him to make 10,000 soldiers retreat with just 200 men under his banner.

He was a completely different person from the God of War, Eclei and the God of Death, Bach. The two of them might have the abilities of a commander through their ‘Monarch’ and ‘God’ classes, but they had never lived on the battlefield where one had to walk the tightrope of life and death. On the other hand, Crusoe had lived in the world of Athenae and had actually gone through hundreds and thousands of battlefields. In other words, he was in an entirely different league compared to them.

Then, Crusoe added on, “This trial is different from your regular subjugation quests. In this trial, your troops will be able to grow quickly with every hunt. That’s why it’s very important for you to make sure that your troops stay alive and you incur only minimal damage.”

This meant that they would be able to exert greater power if the troops survived every hunt and continued to minimize their losses and damages. However, if they continued to lose their men, there was a high chance that they would not be able to make it to the end of the trial.

“There are three boss monsters that will appear in this trial. As per common knowledge, the final boss is never an easy opponent. Also, make sure to remember that every boss monster that you hunt will drop useful parchments and potions.”

Minhyuk made sure to remember all of the information that Crusoe had told him.

“It’s going to start now. Be careful,” Crusoe sincerely said to him. After all, if he died during the trial, they would not be able to drink any more of those watermelon juice!

Then, Minhyuk disappeared under the cover of the bright light that surrounded him.

***

Soldier Park’s eyes were closed tightly as he clasped his hands tightly in prayer.

‘Please… Please…’

Even the 99 other soldiers were all thinking the same thing. They were the 100 soldiers who stayed in Atlas territory over a hundred years ago. All of them had long been dead, but thanks to the territory’s special power, they were able to awaken once again. All of them were given a chance to have their human bodies and wander around Atlas territory for a day, if they participated in this trial and survived.

‘I will make sure to survive throughout this trial so I can visit my mother’s grave…’

Park had awakened for the first time in hundreds of years. If he survived this trial and was able to gain that one free day, he wanted to go and visit his mother’s grave. That was why he prayed hard that Crusoe would be their commander. If Crusoe appeared here, he was sure that he would save a lot of them and complete this trial. But when Park opened his eyes…

“Hello, everyone?”

A man bowed politely at them with a soft smile on his face. The extremely good-looking man also shook hands with each and every soldier present, including Park.

‘This person… will be the one leading us through the trial…?’

That meant that this man was the one competing against Crusoe.

‘Did he make the wrong choice?’

Park was aware that the four trials in Atlas territory were trials that should be chosen based on the owner’s special characteristics and skills. If they had high dexterity, they should choose Eden’s trial. If they had high holy power, they should choose Louis’ trial. If they had high offensive and defensive power, as well as good commanding abilities, they should choose the Sword and Shield’s trial.

He knew this because they were not just ordinary soldiers. They were part of the 200 legendary troops that fought under Crusoe’s leadership and forced 10,000 troops to retreat. These 200 soldiers were equally divided between Minhyuk and Crusoe. Among them, Park was a remarkable and outstanding hidden NPC that acted as a Centurion.

“Excuse me. Is it possible for us to know what the commander’s class is?” Park asked, hoping against hope.

Minhyuk answered him, “My class is… a chef.”

“...”

“...”

At that moment, all of the soldiers went speechless.

‘Did, did he say chef?’ 

‘N…no! What is a chef doing here?!’ 

However, they believed that exceptions always existed!

‘That’s right. It doesn’t mean that he’s weak just because he’s a chef. Right?’ 

So, Park asked him again, “Then, what is your special ability?”

Minhyuk rubbed his chin as he pondered about how he should answer him.

“Hmm…”

Then, he spoke after careful consideration, “I eat really well.”

‘Gasp!’ 

‘We…we’re doomed!’ 

‘We’re completely done for!!! We might die the moment we start!!!’

Then, Minhyuk added again, “Ah, I really, really eat well.”

Park suddenly thought, ‘Mother…’

Somehow, Park felt like his longing to see his mother’s face had deepened. Although the soldiers tried their hardest not to show it, Minhyuk knew that they were disappointed. So, he said, “Ah, Since… I eat well. My soldiers should also eat well. You know?”

Then, they saw Minhyuk take out several transparent glasses, containing liquids with different colors, but mostly red and green. There was even some sort of sticks stuck inside the glass while dew dripped down the outside of the transparent glass.

“This, what’s this?”

Commander Minhyuk smiled and said, “Watermelon juice, melon juice, banana juice, strawberry juice, mixed berry juice.”

“...?”

All of the soldiers present looked at Minhyuk strangely.

***

“Kgghk~”

Park was in awe after he tasted the watermelon juice for the first time under the glaring heat of the sun. Luke, another soldier, sitting next to him was drinking melon juice, he said, “Wow… Are you telling me that there’s ice in this small bowl?”

“This is really amazing!!”

The soldiers’ mood had soared once again. However, Park was still left depressed.

‘I think it will be hard… to see my mother again, right?’

Park smiled wryly. Despite the soldiers admiring the flavor and taste of the drinks in their hands, all of them still believed that they would die in this trial.

Meanwhile, Commander Minhyuk, who declared that he was a chef, was busy cooking. When Minhyuk cooked his first legendary dish, he acquired the title ‘The Man Who Created a Legend’ and doubled his buff capacity. That meant that the buff capacity depended on titles and several other factors, just like when his buff capacity increased when he changed to the Food God class, and when he acquired his cooking skills. Right now, it was possible for him to make four times as many buffed dishes than his initial capacity. It was more than enough to feed all 100 soldiers in front of him.

“Let’s help the commander.”

“Ah. That’s right, let’s do that.”

The soldiers quickly approached Minhyuk to offer their help the moment they finished their drinks. Park was also among them. He had rolled up his sleeves ready to help. They might be disappointed with Minhyuk and his skills, but they were people who were raised properly. Even if he was weak, he was still their commander. And if their commander took the initiative to cook for them, how could his subordinates sit still?

“Thank you for helping out.”

“You don’t need to be polite, Commander.”

“Hmm.”

Minhyuk looked at Park and saw his name and level pop up above his head.

‘He’s a soldier but his level is at Level 473…’

Park was much stronger than any of the soldiers in Eivelis or Cordis Empire, so it was surprising.

Minhyuk said, “Then, let’s do that.”

Minhyuk wanted to cook chicken. It was mainly because he wanted to welcome the soldiers that would accompany him to the world of the ‘almighty chicken’. Of course, he also had his other reasons.

“You’re a chef, right? So, why did you choose to take the trial of the Sword and Shield?” Park carefully asked Minhyuk.

After thinking for a moment, Minhyuk answered, “I might be a chef, but I’m also very strong.”

“What?”

Minhyuk only smiled at Park when he saw him looking at him in confusion. He looked at the soldiers helping him with cooking.

“I should also do my best since these handsome and dashing soldiers are helping me, right? I should at least give Sir Crusoe a good bashing in the head, what do you think?”

“That would be nice,” Park smiled as he answered. Deep inside though, he was feeling bitter. They might never get any chance of winning against Crusoe. He might be called the Sword and Shield, but he was also a man hailed as the ‘God of Tactics’. With the sound of the buff notifications, Minhyuk finally completed cooking all of the chicken. Then, Minhyuk said, “Centurion Park.”

“Yes, Commander.”

“Sir Crusoe’s soldiers and the soldiers here have the same power, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Since everyone’s at the same level, what would happen if your strength and speed increased by around 14%, and your swordsmanship, spear techniques, and archery skills grew to the next level?”

“...If that happens, then we’ll have the advantage in the early stages. But, that’s impossible, right?”

‘Why did he suddenly ask that after cooking a dish?’

Park looked at Minhyuk in confusion. It seemed like he could not understand his train of thoughts. However, Minhyuk just smiled softly as he said, “I’m asking you this because it’s possible.”

“Yes?”

“It’s possible. And one more thing…”

Minhyuk looked at the wide stretch of land where the trial would take place. Once they went out of this safe zone, the monsters would come out and attack them. He continued to survey the land before saying, “We will move forward, but we will not hunt the boss monsters here.”

“...Wh…what in the world are you talking about?”

Minhyuk grinned and said, “We will make them our allies instead.”

Park truly could not understand the words coming out of Minhyuk’s mouth. However, Minhyuk was already thinking about one of the Food God’s secret skills. And this skill was none other than the ‘Allurer’s Cooking’.