Gourmet Gaming-Chapter 44: Sweet Potato Pumpkin?

Minhyuk’s level increased by three in an instant. It seemed like what he heard about the subjugation forces giving a substantial amount of EXP was true. Minhyuk smiled in satisfaction. At that moment… ｂｅ𝚍𝚗ｏｖｅ𝚕．𝚗𝚎𝚝

"What?! Did you say that my son-in-law is here?!" Venetto shouted loudly.

Minhyuk tensed up at Venetto’s words. He looked at the golden key in his hands.

‘I’m heading to the hidden dungeon anyway, so I might as well.’

He had already received and gathered enough Sun’s Wheat, so he had enough delicious food to eat. His job here was finished. He clenched the key to the hidden dungeon tightly

[Would you like to enter the hidden dungeon?]

"Yes," Minhyuk answered the moment he heard the notification. Then, a bright light covered his body.

***

Inside the hidden dungeon.

Bran, the guardian of the dungeon, heard the notification that a player had entered the dungeon.

"Phew. I'm tired."

Bran was wearing a straw hat, shabby clothes, and a pair of muddy boots. He was the epitome of what a farmer should look like. Stepping out of his hut in preparation to meet with the foreigner, he thought,?'This guy will leave right away the moment he realizes what this place is.’

This hidden dungeon was somewhat special. Even though it was a ‘hidden’ dungeon, there had been a total of five players that came and left from this place already. All of them had said the same thing.

'Eyy, f*ck. Do you think I would dig up sweet potatoes while I'm playing games?!'

'Ah, what the hell! What bullshit, ‘twice the EXP acquisition rate and item drop rate’. There's not even a single mob here!'

'I have never seen such a bullshit dungeon like this!'

Bran had heard those words from all five of the players that entered this dungeon, hence he believed that this player would be no different. However, what he saw made him stop in his tracks.

"N… no way… Is this for real?!"

Bran tilted his head in confusion. He witnessed a man appear in the middle of the large farmland, looked up to the sky, and clasped his hands together to pray to the God of?Athenae.

"God of?Athenae, you gave me this blessing so I could eat more delicious things, right? Thank you. Amitabha!"

"Eh?" Bran said dumbly, looking at the man in confusion. He wondered if the man had heard what the dungeon was like before he came inside. The task for the players inside this dungeon was simple. Dig the ground, harvest the sweet potatoes and increase their EXP.

Yes, this was a very rare, and very unusual, farming dungeon. It might sound terribly boring, even lacking, compared to other dungeons, but this dungeon had hidden rewards. No one had ever cleared this dungeon because all the players were only focused at the rewards right in front of them. Then, Bran heard the man shout.

"It's a sweet potato pumpkin, wow!"

Bran thought that the foreigner was strange after hearing his words. He coughed lightly and said, "Ahem! My name is Bran, I am this dungeon’s guardian."

“Oh. I understand. Bran, you seem to have an excellent taste in fashion! Even your boots look great!”

“Haha. You’ve a way with words, foreigner. Ah. By the way, this is not a sweet potato pumpkin, this is a?pumpkin?sweet potato.”

"Alright. I understand.?Sweet potato?pumpkin."

"No, it's?pumpkin?sweet potato…"

"Eh? Yes. Sweet potato?pumpkin!"

.

"That's right. It's sweet potato pum… Huh?"

That was the moment that Bran realized that he had almost fallen to the man’s momentum. He coughed again and said, "Ahem!?Enough of that. This dungeon is not a difficult dungeon. You just have to dig up the?pumpkin?sweet potato with the hoe. If you continuously dig them up, you will encounter sweet potatoes that have a black glow on them. Those guys are very bad news, they suck up the nutrients from the other sweet potatoes. You should bring me twenty of those black sweet potatoes. You have three days to do it."

[Player Minhyuk has accepted the Quest: Dig Up Twenty Black Sweet Potatoes. ]

"I have a question!"

"What is it?"

"Can I eat the sweet potatoes that I dug up?"

"You can," Brain said, smiling at him. He thought,?'How much can you eat though?'

The main point of the quest was to dig up the black sweet potatoes, eliminating the things that suck up the nutrients from the other sweet potatoes. Once this was done, the quest would evolve into a linked quest. Minhyuk would only be able to get a huge reward if he cleared all of the quests.

"Wow! I understand. I'll work hard on digging up the?pumpkin?sweet potatoes!"

"No, young friend. It's not?pumpkin?sweet potato but?sweet potato?pumpkin."

"...Isn't it?pumpkin?sweet potato?"

"Ah, that's right. It's?pumpkin?sweet potato. Wait…."

“???”

'I must have been confused by this foreigner earlier...'?Bran thought, coughing loudly in embarrassment.

“Ahem.?Digging up those sweet potatoes is not as easy as you think. You have to keep in mind that this is different from digging sweet potatoes in your world.”

Bran knew that most of the players that came in this hidden dungeon were between Levels 20 - 50. Even if they improved their DEX constantly through blacksmithing, cooking, or painting, they would still find it difficult to perform the quest.

"Then, you can use this hoe."

"It’s fine, I have a hoe of my own," the man said as the sword in his hand turned into a hoe.

“Oh!” Bran exclaimed in awe. He continued to say, “Then, do your best. Remember that you need to get at least five black sweet potatoes by the end of the day. Otherwise, you will be sent out of this place.”

"Yes!"

Bran turned around and headed back towards his hut.

***

Minhyuk looked around happily after Bran left. He thought,?‘I can’t believe he allowed me to have the sweet potatoes that I can dig…! My goodness!’

‘How could there be such a delightful, ridiculous quest in such a hidden dungeon in this world?’

Sweet potatoes were best eaten during a cold winter day while lying down under a blanket with some radish water kimchi next to it. Once the skin was peeled off, the piping hot and golden flesh of the sweet potato would appear. One would be able to enjoy the sweet, rich and flavorful taste of the sweet potato in a single bite. Next, grab a bite of some kimchi to remove the dryness in the throat. Drinking some of the refreshing and cold radish water kimchi could also alleviate the dryness in the throat. The coolness would definitely let one scream out?‘Kyaha!’?in happiness. That was not all. There were many different recipes that used sweet potatoes. The first dishes that came to mind were caramelized sweet potato and sweet potato pizza.

'Phew…There’s probably enough Sun's Wheat so I should try it after digging up some sweet potatoes!'?Minhyuk thought. Before he started digging up sweet potatoes, he decided to check something first.

[Farming Skill Proficiency.]

Minhyuk received the skill the moment he accepted the quest. Once he filled up 100% of the proficiency bar, he would be able to learn Novice Farming. Furthermore, according to the quest rewards, he would also be able to receive 500 EXP each time he dug up a sweet potato, along with some Novice Farming EXP. In other words, this hidden dungeon was much better than others since he could gain a lot of EXP.

In comparison, hunting one orc would give him the same amount of EXP, but it was too tiresome. Minhyuk started to dig the ground with his hoe.

Thud!

'What? Why isn't it working?'?Minhyuk thought. He was confused. It was as if the ground was frozen solid. His hoe couldn’t even put a dent on it. Minhyuk tried to dig with his hoe again.

Thud!

As Minhyuk had expected, it still did not go well. Minhyuk now understood what Bran meant earlier. However, he thought,?'Do you think that this can stop me from eating pumpkin sweet potatoes!? This setback can’t stop me at all. Let me show you my tenacity!’

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

Minhyuk used his entire strength to dig. After around 25 minutes, he was able to dig up one sweet potato. He shouted with joy, "Oooooooooooh, sweeeet potatoooo!"

The sweet potato was extremely solid, and looking at it was enough to bring out a smile of delight on his face. It took him another 25 minutes to dig out his second sweet potato. Even so, Minhyuk did not rest and just continued to dig up sweet potatoes. He was able to dig around six sweet potatoes after two hours.

Bran originally estimated that he would be able to dig up five sweet potatoes, but due to Minhyuk's tenacity, he was able to surpass that number. In addition, he was already starting to get used to the work, so his speed had already started to pick up. The additional sweet potato was the glaring evidence for this. Minhyuk was also able to dig up the black sweet potatoes that was needed for the quest. However, seeing it made him look sullen.

"...I can't even eat this!" Minhyuk shouted. While he managed to dig up the black sweet potato that he needed for the quest, he was still disappointed. Why? It was because the black sweet potato was something that could not be eaten. Minhyuk went back to dig up sweet potatoes again. After quite some time, he heard the sound of a notification…

[You have gained 1 DEX.]

This notification rang since digging continuously was also a method of increasing DEX. Minhyuk felt satisfied since he would be able to increase his DEX, his EXP, and most importantly, eat sweet potatoes.

'Wow, a dungeon like this really exists in this world?!'

Personally, Minhyuk believed that this dungeon was extremely amazing. However, if any other player knew what was on Minhyukl’s mind, they would find it shocking. Just like that, Minhyuk continued to dig up his sweet potatoes.

***

Cain, the third in the Local Rankings, was a man sporting short hair, wearing a lively and cheerful expression on his face. On the other hand, Lucia, his sister, was a cold and frigid woman with a short silver bob. The two of them were standing together in front of countless reporters and players.

Click, click, click, click, click, click!

The players that were reporters also clicked their cameras continuously.

"There’s an unprecedented number of amazing novices set to join this tournament. What are your thoughts about this, Miss Lucia?”

"I think that it will be fun."

Click, click, click, click, click, click!

"Miss Lucia has acquired the country's 30th legendary class, the Shadow Warrior! According to?Athenae's official announcements, this class is considered to be among the best in the legendary classes. Miss Lucia, what's your secret to getting such great physical abilities and acquiring such a legendary class? A lot of people are curious about it, please impart us with your knowledge!"

"It’s only natural that strong players get something special, right?" Lucia answered, a small smile on her lips.

However, Cain was worried as he watched his sister acting like that. He thought,?'It's released too early.'

His sister was drawing a lot of public's attention. The problem was with her sister's skills and physical abilities. It was true that no player of the same level could beat her, but Cain still thought,?'Nothing is easy in this world.'

There was no one in this world who would keep on winning. His younger sister, Lucia, was already conceited at such an early stage. She was acting as if she had already reached the top of the world. Cain was worried about how she would handle herself when she finally suffered a loss. Even so, underneath the concern, he had to admit that his sister was indeed superior in all aspects.

"Miss Lucia, if you learn Ellie's Swordsmanship, wouldn’t your strength be too much of a balance breaker?!"

"Hohohoho!"

"Hahahahaha!"

The reporters laughed happily, but Lucia only smiled a bit.

"Mr. Cain, can you please tell us a bit about this tournament?"

"The world is big and there are plenty of strong people. I cannot predict anything in this tournament."

"You're quite modest."

However, it was really what was on Cain's mind. He thought,?'There are plenty of variables that exist in this world.'

***

"Phew! Phew!?Pumpkin sweet potato!"

Thud, thud!

Minhyuk dug up the sweet potatoes for seven hours straight. The amount that he dug up continuously increased the longer he spent digging. Right now, he could dig around four sweet potatoes in an hour. He even dug up more than ten black sweet potatoes already. Minhyuk wiped the sweat off of his forehead; he was having a lot of fun.

[You have gained 1 DEX.]

"Oh yeah!" Minhyuk shouted happily. By right, a normal player would probably already feel tired after digging potatoes for so long, but there was not a trace of fatigue on his face at all.

[You have leveled up.]

Minhyuk truly found it fun to raise his level and EXP this way. His speed had also increased. In fact, he had already dug up around forty sweet potatoes over the course of the quest so far.

Thud, thud!

Minhyuk, who was still digging up sweet potatoes, saw the pot begin to boil. The sweet potatoes that he dug up earlier were inside the pot, boiling happily.

"Fufufufufu." Minhyuk chuckled as he lifted the lid off of the pot. He could see the sweet potatoes shining with a golden luster inside the steaming pot. It seemed like they were ready to be eaten.

'Well then, shall we try it?!'

***

After eight hours, Bran walked out of his hut. He thought,?'I haven't heard any notification about him getting out yet.'

Bran arrived at the place where he left Minhyuk off earlier, but what he saw there made his eyes go wide. He said, "B, boy... what's all of this?!"

"Chew, chew, I'm eating sweet potatoes!"

"No, I can see that… What I wanted to know is why you're doing that in there...?"

“It’s more delicious to eat it this way!”

'What...? Is this guy crazy...?'?Bran thought. After all, Minhyuk was lying on his stomach under a blanket while peeling and eating sweet potatoes.