This world has grown pretty unreasonable, yet there's one constant: the difficulty of a task always corresponds to the value of the reward.
The Dragon’s Tooth.
Judging from the accolades associated with it, there's no chance it’s some run-of-the-mill item. The ten Dragon Soldiers I can summon with it should be incredibly powerful.
However...
‘The quantity is too low.’
Summoning just ten soldiers and calling it quits felt lacking. The loss of even a single soldier would mean irreparable damage.
Then again... this situation reminded me of something that sometimes happened in the army.
‘Occasionally, due to a mistake by the supply sergeant, we’d receive fewer ingredients than needed for cooking.’
Not having enough ingredients was certainly an issue, but improvising under such circumstances was the skill of a seasoned field cook.
“Use fewer ingredients, add more water.”
The soup would end up rather diluted, but in the army, it’s always about quantity over quality. Even if the taste wasn’t stellar, there’d be enough to fill every stomach—one of a cook’s little tricks.
With the pot filled to the brim with water, I held the Dragon’s Tooth over it.
> [Warning!]
> [This is a /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ high-grade ingredient.]
> [The chef's skill level is lower than required for this ingredient.]
> [Attempting to cook with this ingredient may lead to failure.]
“Well, I’ve seen this message before.”
Though I was confident in my cooking skills, I was still only an [Intermediate Chef]. Dealing with such prestigious ingredients was a stretch for my level.
However, I wasn’t just anywhere; I was in the [Dining Hall].
> [Dining Hall Lv.2]
> [Skill adjustments applied based on chef's proficiency level.]
I remembered the Ammo Battalion days when Mr. Park and the engineers mentioned how building a [Workshop] would enhance their tools and work. The real benefit, they said, would come from official facilities made with Occupation Points, like this one.
As with other production roles, having the Dining Hall’s support would boost my cooking skills.
> [Skill bonus from Dining Hall Lv.2 has been applied.]
> [You can now attempt high-grade ingredients.]
Just like that.
> [Warning!]
> [This is a rare catalyst.]
> [If consumed as a cooking ingredient, it cannot be restored.]
> [Do you wish to proceed?]
I chuckled.
“In the past, I might’ve hesitated.”
A rare, powerful ingredient like this? Using it in cooking would’ve felt like a waste. But now I knew just how immense the potential of cooking could be.
After recent events proved this potential, I had no reason to hold back.
*Plop!*
I dropped the Dragon’s Tooth into the boiling water.
“Hm. Still lacking something.”
Making a proper broth is more than just throwing bones in a pot. In the army, opening a can was all we needed, but if I wanted this to be authentic, I’d need herbs to suppress any off-flavors.
“Herbs, huh...”
“...I do have something useful.”
Opening the shadow dimension, I took out a box that the farmer awakener Chulwook had given me when I left the Ammo Battalion.
Inside, there were rare ingredients, plants like [Roots of Kusak] and [Ladyal Leaves], filled with magical properties.
“I was saving these for something important, but this qualifies.”
> [Ingredient Analysis]
> [Ladyal Leaf]
> [Freshness - High]
> [This herb has a distinct aroma and is polarizing. It’s typically used to mask strong flavors or to complement other ingredients, enhancing their magical properties and often used in health foods.]
I picked out the ingredients suitable for this dish, washed and prepared them, and added them to the pot.
Now, it was time to wait. I skimmed off the foam as the broth simmered, watching the essence of the ingredients blend together.
> [Cooking complete!]
> [Successfully prepared a dish with high-grade ingredients despite chef’s skill level.]
> [Experience gained.]
---
With the finished dish in hand, I headed to the [Barracks]. In the middle of the altar was the serving bowl where I placed the delicate, ivory-colored broth.
> [Intermediate Chef’s Dragon Tooth Soup]
> [A broth made by simmering the Dragon’s Tooth, infused with its potent magic and enhanced by various herbs, greatly boosting the quality of magic.]
The completed dish was impressive. If it were meant to be eaten, it would grant an extraordinary buff.
The only issue was...
“There’s only one bowl.”
Ideally, I’d have more, but right before the dish was complete, all that water had suddenly evaporated, reducing the broth to just one serving.
“I don’t understand how that happened, but it’s not a big deal.”
Both my [Cooking] skills and the ingredient, [Dragon’s Tooth], held many mysteries. Strange phenomena were almost expected.
The real question was whether this dish could serve as a summoning catalyst.
I carefully placed the dish in the altar’s bowl.
> [Catalyst detected.]
> [Dragon Tooth Soup]
> [Summoning Soldier - Lesser Dragon Soldier x200]
“Whew!”
The most important hurdle had been cleared. If I couldn’t use it as a catalyst, all that effort would’ve been wasted.
“The quantity has increased twentyfold. It seems their combat power may have decreased a bit.”
Originally, the Dragon’s Tooth allowed me to summon ten Dragon Soldiers. After cooking, I could now summon 200 Lesser Dragon Soldiers.
> [Barracks Lv.2]
> [Troops: 0/200]
With 200 soldiers, I had reached the maximum capacity of the level 2 barracks. My goal of increasing quantity had been achieved.
“While the quality did drop, they’ll still be a formidable force.”
However...
“From 10 Dragon Soldiers to 200 Lesser Dragon Soldiers.”
Although the numbers had increased, the overall strength might not differ much. Given the herbs in the dish, these might even be slightly stronger.
Grinning, I placed my hand over the dish. There was a specific reason I had gone through the trouble of cooking the Dragon’s Tooth.
For this moment.
“Five Loaves and Two Fish.”
> [Skill - Five Loaves and Two Fish]
> [Do you know the miracle where five loaves and two fish fed thousands?]
> [Now, it’s a reality for you.]
A skill to replicate the finished dish.
Of course, it wasn’t as simple as it sounded.
> [This is a high-grade dish!]
> [Skill activation canceled.]
This had happened once before, when I’d tried to replicate the pope’s dish during a dungeon raid.
But this time, there was one key difference.
“If it doesn’t work, then I’ll make it work.”
I tapped into a power filled with sheer will... a cheat.
> [Condition met.]
> [Divine Power: 2]
> [With 2 points of Divine Power, you can make the impossible possible.]
My intuition told me that with just 1 point of Divine Power, this wouldn’t have worked. However, after restoring Lee Hyun-jin’s humanity, I had reached a Divine Power level of 2.
> [Skill reactivated.]
> [Please select the quantity to replicate.]
Time to go all in.
> [Skill activated.]
The miracle, once only spoken of in myths, came to life under my hand. I poured the ivory-colored broth from the dish into the altar bowl. The ancient vessel at the altar’s center absorbed the endless flow.
Even though the amount should have overflowed, the bowl took in every drop without spilling.
“Gah...”
> [Warning!]
> [Mana depletion severe!]
> [Status Effect - Mana Exhaustion]
When my mana finally ran dry, the ivory-colored liquid ceased to flow.
> [Barracks Lv.2]
> [Production of Lesser Dragon Soldiers has begun.]
> [Time per unit: 3 hours]
> [Calculating queued soldiers...]
The massive doors behind the altar began to glow with light.
> [Calculation complete.]
> [Amount: Indeterminable.]
Then, from within the glowing doorway, the figures of armored soldiers began to emerge one by one. Each knelt before me.
> [Barracks Lv.2]
> [1/200]
“With this...”
The preparations were complete.
---
As the date predicted for the monster wave approached, the city fully mobilized for war.
“These are temporary supplies for you.”
“Wow...”
A large number of awakeners gathered before the massive fortress that had suddenly appeared in the middle of the river.
They weren’t just soldiers of the Steel Legion.
Some were civilian allies—people who had decided to assist in the defense efforts. Some had even fought alongside us in past dungeons.
“These supplies are temporary, but the spoils after the battle will be well worth it.”
For those willing to support the Legion, we had promised generous rewards once the fighting was over. However, if they died in battle, those promises would mean nothing.
The Legion had reached out to the Ammo Battalion base to quickly mass-produce and lend out equipment.
“Your profession is swordsman, correct? Here you go.”
“Oh, yes.”
At first, the awakeners took the equipment without much enthusiasm. But as they held it...
“What is this?”
“Just wearing it raises my stats?”
Their eyes widened.
“Is this...an item?”
“I’ve seen items sold by production awakeners before, but they were cheap and barely effective. This, however...”
“It’s on a different level.”
Compared to the equipment provided to our troops, these were modest, yet for the newly awakened or those fresh out of dungeons,
they were top-tier gear.
“We’ve designed these items to raise absolute stat points. Lower-level awakeners will feel a noticeable improvement.”
“Whoa...”
The equipment was mass-produced specifically for low-level awakeners, providing a direct boost in stats rather than a percentage increase, doubling their abilities.
“But this monster wave... it’s really coming, right?”
At that, one of the survivors spoke up.
“It’ll come. Otherwise, why would we be preparing like this?”
“I know, but... wouldn’t these monsters avoid attacking if we’re this fortified? They’re not fools; why attack a stronghold?”
One of the soldiers glanced at the awakeners and sighed.
“As long as we defend this city, they will come.”
“What makes you so sure?”
“If they bypassed a force as strong as ours, they’d risk a surprise attack from behind.”
Though we called it a monster wave, in reality, they were an organized army of monsters.
“For them to continue their advance, they’ll have to go through this city. If they avoid it, that’d actually work in our favor.”
The monsters seemed to be actively conducting a [Territorial Campaign], securing their own domains across the regions. As powerful as they were, seizing cities overrun by monsters wouldn’t be easy.
“If they bypassed us and attacked another city, we’d simply strike from behind.”
“Oh...”
“That’s why we’re holding this position. Abandoning the city would give them more freedom, leading to more human casualties.”
“Wait, so the reason we’re defending this place...”
“Is to minimize civilian casualties. Even if we’re wiped out, the commander decided that holding here was worth it.”
The survivors’ expressions shifted.
Since civilization fell, many people had died, and the world had become a wilderness where the strong preyed on the weak.
These soldiers could easily have used their power to dominate others as slaves.
But here they were, risking their lives to protect others.
One thing was certain: the reason these soldiers were still standing, and, if they survived this, the reason they’d continue to stand, was clear.
“...We owe that commander a thank-you.”
