[Cheonho]
[Sealed...]
[Target Hazard Level – 9↑]
[Time Remaining Until Seal Release – 235,928,304...]
Sealed?
The digits for the seal release timer were ticking down without pause.
Assuming it was decreasing at one per second...
At this pace, it would probably take about ten years.
"Sealed, huh."
When I shared that fact, Seohwan’s reaction was equally shocked.
"You don’t have any guesses?"
"N-no. When I woke up, it was already like this... No, wait. If they’re all sealed, then why am I the only one unaffected?"
"Good question."
I wondered that myself. That was something we’d have to verify.
"This is Junior Sister Ungyeon. Gentle as anyone in daily life, but she boasts tremendous strength."
The next I checked was a burly woman with bear-like ears.
[Ungyeon]
[Target Hazard Level – 7]
[Time Remaining Until Seal Release – 55,115,256...]
Hm.
Unlike the man Cheonho, her seal release time was only a tenth as long.
That left about a year.
"A hazard rating of 9 versus 7, huh."
I continued examining a few more.
"This one is Junior Sister Sarin. A master of poison arts."
"Hmhm."
"And this is Senior Brother Shin Jong. Even within the sect he was known for his striking arts. A playful sort—he often kept me company."
"I see."
After checking several in turn, a rough pattern became clear.
The hazard rating corresponded to the remaining seal time.
"You said you’re the weakest here, right?"
"That’s... shameful, but true."
"And because of your facial injury, you’re weaker now than in your prime?"
"Unfortunately, also true."
So that’s why he was the only one to open his eyes.
Makes sense.
In that case... hmm.
I ran through the calculations in my head.
If this works out...
"There might be a way."
"What!"
The words slipped out of my mouth before I realized it.
Seohwan grabbed my shoulder, gripping hard.
"A w-way! Are you serious!"
"I’m serious, but calm down first..."
"You’re no physician. How could a cook possibly..."
Of course he didn’t calm down.
"The issue is, I’m not certain if it’ll actually work."
"What?"
I had a feeling it would, but not universally.
"Don’t tell me it’s dangerous."
"No. Probably not."
Once I hinted at a method, Seohwan pressed me with impatient fervor.
"Well, trying it won’t be hard."
"Then hurry, as quickly as—!"
"But there’s one condition."
"A condition?"
"You. Earlier, you bound me with a Geumje because you didn’t trust me."
"...?"
Truth was, I didn’t trust him either.
"Add a new clause to the Geumje."
"What clause?"
"If those I awaken through my method turn hostile, you’ll stake your life to protect me."
"...!"
Right now, between Kkamang and my soldiers, I could probably handle him.
But if more of them were awakened, things could change.
"No, that alone isn’t enough. From the start, I said saving your life would cost you everything. Add that too."
"You mean this isn’t just about your subordinate’s martial art? If you don’t awaken them, you lose out as well."
"Come on. Taking losses is better than dying, isn’t it?"
"..."
"Remember—I only promised to spare your life. I never promised to awaken the others."
I could awaken them.
But only under firmer terms.
From his standpoint too, leaving his comrades lying here must be unbearable.
I gave him a confident stare.
Then—
"...I’ll believe you’re not lying."
[A Geumje has been amended.]
[If ‘Shin Youngjun’ succeeds in awakening disciples of the Heavenly Mountain Sect, then ‘Seohwan’ will obey all commands of Shin Youngjun.]
[Penalty – Death]
"Good choice."
Then first...
Time to sort them.
****
"Can’t say for sure it’ll work, but if it does, this is about the limit."
Before me lay three beastkin.
[Miho]
[Target Hazard Level – 3]
[Time Remaining Until Seal Release – 11,251,128...]
A fox woman.
[Jeochil]
[Target Hazard Level – 3]
[Time Remaining Until Seal Release – 9,784,734...]
A pig man.
[Woojin]
[Target Hazard Level – 3]
[Time Remaining Until Seal Release – 10,532,708...]
A horse man.
Three in total.
"...They have something in common."
"Oh? You caught it?"
"They’re the weakest in combat, aren’t they? Though still stronger than me."
Sharper than expected.
I asked Seohwan, "Among them, is there anyone who could open the Sealed Hall?"
"...Junior Sister Miho might be able to."
"Oh?"
Of the three, her timer was the longest.
"Her martial ability is lower, but within the sect her standing was quite «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» high."
"That so?"
Good.
In that case, nothing to hesitate about.
I began preparing to cook.
"...?"
Seohwan looked puzzled as I pulled tools from the shadows.
"What are you doing?"
"I told you. I’m a chef."
What else would a chef use to solve problems?
"Cooking."
From checking their condition, I’d discovered one thing.
The lower the hazard rating, the shorter the seal duration.
The stronger, the longer they remain bound.
The weaker, the sooner they break free.
That explained everything.
When I first realized it, words echoed in my head.
—As time passes, the enemies will grow stronger.
The last words of the Pope of the Deep Ones.
Even Seohwan had said the same.
So this sealing phenomenon... it fit perfectly.
At that point, I could even guess who had imposed the seals.
Almost certainly...
"Our world itself."
No one else could do this.
Even under invasion, the world wouldn’t just surrender.
If an overwhelmingly powerful being had been active on day one, humanity might have been erased instantly.
This seal was a defensive mechanism, restraining them.
One concern, though.
The monsters that attacked the army had included absurdly strong ones.
The lizards that raided us were mild in comparison.
The spider queen at the ammo depot.
Ariella in the bunker.
That eyeball horror with the tank battalion.
All foes far too strong to have been unsealed this early.
If the seal functioned properly, they shouldn’t have moved at all.
And Seohwan had said a monster powerful enough to topple an imperial palace had appeared.
The explanation was simple.
"A will of malice."
An evil force had forcibly broken the seals, letting those monsters loose to crush the world’s strongest defenders first.
That explained why stronger monsters emerged later.
Why the military outposts had been infested with them from the start.
It all matched.
But that wasn’t the immediate issue.
What mattered was this—
The ones before me...
"In a hundred days, they’d awaken anyway."
I didn’t tell Seohwan that part.
The problem was that I couldn’t afford to wait a hundred days.
Not in this world.
Not when Gwangil’s Madness could explode at any time.
So my course was simple.
"Accelerate it."
The seals due to break in a hundred days—
I’d break them now.
****
The idea was simple.
Their seal time varied by hazard rating.
Hazard rating reflected strength.
Seohwan had been the weakest, and weaker still after his injury.
That’s why he had opened his eyes.
So... couldn’t the same logic apply to these ones?
My recipe would exploit that.
If my past cooking focused on balanced nutrition and buffs—
This time, I’d go the opposite way.
Junk food.
"When I was a kid, I loved this stuff. Got scolded plenty for it, too."
The ingredients I drew from the shadows:
A lump of sugar.
And beside it—
[Poizner Starch]
[A crop from another world, starch of the Poizner. Its unique mana creates a chewy texture in cooking...]
[However, caution is required. Poizner carries a distinctive tox—...]
This came from the Alraune at the ammo depot, cultivated around her.
A starch substitute.
"What is that powder?"
"Our unit’s farmer cultivated it..."
Curious, Seohwan asked. I almost explained—
"...But you wouldn’t understand anyway. Forget it."
"Hm. True enough. Crops of this world are beyond me."
Good. Best he didn’t know.
I mixed the starch and sugar in measured ratio, adding water to blend.
"This much will do."
Next, I needed syrup and food coloring.
Both lacking.
"So I’ll just make them."
[Sugarnermite Leaf]
[Leaf of the Sugarnermite, famed for its flavor. Known to add distinct notes to dishes depending on leaf color.]
[However, caution: Sugarnermite induces specific illnesses...]
I pressed moisture from various leaves, producing natural food dyes with unique flavors.
Then—
[Juice of the Baroness Vine]
[Juice of the carnivorous Baroness Vine. A thick, sweet ingredient used in many confections.]
[However, caution: harmless by itself, but combined with starch it can cause serious health issues...]
Thick syrup of deep sweetness.
"Mix this in..."
"Hm."
"Blend well, then fill these straws!"
"Ohh."
[Chef of War’s Handmade Pangpolo]
[A confection of varied sweetness beloved by children.]
[Infused with the chef’s devotion, boasting a rich yet refreshing flavor.]
"Done."
"Interesting form. Is this a delicacy of your world? Let me try—"
As Seohwan reached for it—
"Hey!"
"!?"
I slapped his hand away in alarm.
"What are you doing!"
"This is for the patients. You can’t eat it."
"Mm? Right... sorry. The aroma was too tempting..."
His youthful face belied his stern tone. He probably was at the age where junk food was alluring.
I almost felt sorry.
But letting him eat it would be a disaster.
Instead, I handed him the pangpolo.
"...Didn’t you say I shouldn’t eat it?"
"Not for you. You’ll feed it to them."
"Why not feed them yourself?"
"Because the moment they wake, seeing a stranger in front of them won’t help."
"...True enough."
He bought it again.
The real reason, of course, was the Geumje.
[Binding Geas (Geumje)]
[No hostile acts toward disciples of the Heavenly Mountain Sect.]
Depending on how the system judged it, feeding them this concoction could be seen as hostile.
Better to have Seohwan do it.
Pangpolo wasn’t truly junk food. It had been smeared with that reputation by media, though its creator later proved it harmless.
I remembered the recipe, so I could recreate it here.
But what I needed now was actual junk food.
So I swapped the ingredients.
[Poizner] – A famine crop with deep toxicity.
[Sugarnermite] – A herb that lowers all stats and resistances.
[Baroness] – A plant that reduces physical resistance unless specially prepared.
All delicious, all ruinous.
[Upon consumption, all stats greatly decrease.]
[Upon consumption, Status Ailment – ‘Food Poisoning’.]
[Upon consumption, Status Ailment – ‘Esophagitis’.]
[Upon consumption, resistances decrease.]
...A perfect junk food.
"So I just feed them this?"
"Yeah."
I nodded. Seohwan nervously held the straw to the lips of the prone.
[Woojin]
[Target Hazard Level – 3]
[Time Remaining Until Seal Release – 10,531,552...]
"Excuse me, Senior Brother."
The horse-faced man received the sweet junk food.
Then—
[Target’s stats drastically decrease!]
[Hazard Level shifts.]
[Target Hazard Level – 3 → 2 (New!)]
[Time Remaining Until Seal Release – 10,531,552... → 231,552... (New!)]
Stats cut nearly in half.
[Multiple status ailments inflicted!]
[Hazard Level shifts.]
[Target Hazard Level – 2 → 1 (New!)]
[Time Remaining Until Seal Release – 231,552... → 42,857... (New!)]
Poison flooding the body, sapping his strength.
Finally—
[All resistances drastically decrease!]
To the point where even dust might sicken him.
Then at last—
[Target Hazard Level – 0]
[Time Remaining Until Seal Release – 10...]
[9...]
[8...]
The world judged his hazard as zero.
[2...]
[1]
[0]
At that instant, the horse-man opened his eyes.
"M-Maknae?"
"Senior Brother...!"
Watching, I felt a twinge in my chest.
"A reunion of brothers."
I’d done it for profit, but even so—seeing family reunite after long years...
It was touching.
"You’re alive. I thought you’d died from that wound to your face...!"
"By fortune, I survived, Senior Brother."
Seohwan wept as he embraced him.
"Truly heaven’s blessing."
"Yes. It really is."
"But... this sweetness in my mouth, what is i—ghrk!"
Then Woojin vomited black blood all over his face.
"Cough, gkh—what is this pain! Like some vile plague gnaws at me!"
"..."
"Kuhaak—M-maknae, save me! I feel like I’m dy—ghkk..."
Well.
So much for the touching reunion.
"...Maybe the effect was a little too strong."
