Chapter 268: Why Is This Guy Ranked Number One?

"Again?"

Park Sejun spoke indifferently as he saw a small bird, flustered upon realizing he was ranked the highest after greeting Cuengi. Such treatment was all too familiar to Sejun.

"Is your name Piyot?"

As Sejun initiated conversation with Piyot,

Piyo! Piyo!

[Yes! That is correct! I am Pirururur Yotra from the White-Headed Long-Tailed Tit¹ Tribe!]

Piyot responded in a disciplined voice.

"Oh! You're from the White-Headed Long-Tailed Tit? No wonder you're so cute. Alright, Piyot, let's get along well from now on."

Sejun gently shook Piyot's wing,

Piyo! Piyo!

[Thank you! I will serve Chairman Park diligently from now on!]

Piyot bowed deeply, feeling honored. Meanwhile, internally, Piyot was in deep confusion upon seeing Sejun, an existence that greatly deviated from the laws of the wild.

'Why is this guy ranked number one?'

To Piyot, who had only been alive for a month, the known method of ranking was solely based on strength. By that measure, Sejun should have been ranked below him.

'Let's just watch for now.'

Piyot, selected as a messenger bird immediately upon birth, had to leave right after receiving a few days of training, so the teachers didn't have time to teach Piyot everything.

"Pirururur Yotra, if you don't understand, just watch for now."

That was the advice given to Piyot. They were truly great teachers.

Without such guidance...

Krueng! Krueng?!

[Piyot, did Cuengi just see a disloyal look in your eyes towards Dad? Don't tell me you're disrespecting Dad?!]

Piyo!

[No... No!]

Otherwise, Piyot would have been punished by Sejun's bodyguard, Cuengi.

"Piyot, show Chairman Park the fried egg, meow!"

Thus, unknowingly avoiding a fatal situation, Theo instructed Piyot to take out an egg.

"Fried egg?"

As Sejun was puzzled by Theo's words,

Piyo!

[Here it is!]

Piyot took an egg out of its bag.

"What?! This is?!"

Sejun excitedly observed the egg Piyot had taken out.

However,

"This isn't... an egg?"

[Egg Fruit]

The name written on the egg was different from what Sejun knew.

Although it looked and felt like an egg on the outside, it was named Egg Fruit?

"What's this?"

Sejun curiously examined the egg.

[Egg Fruit]

→ A fruit harvested from the Mother Tree.

→ Encased in a hard shell are layers of white and yellow liquid.

→ Rich in nutrients.

→ Cultivator: Mother Tree

→ Shelf Life: 30 Days

→ Grade: C

A simple description.

Yet,

"An egg grows on a tree?!"

It was enough to astonish Sejun. He somewhat anticipated it due to the name 'fruit', but it was still fascinating.

"Was the fried egg given by the Black Rabbit also made from this?"

Thud.

Sejun prepared to taste the Egg Fruit by placing a frying pan over the fire and adding oil.

As the frying pan heated up,

Tap.

He lightly tapped the Egg Fruit against the edge of the pan and applied pressure to crack it open,

Sizzle.

The sticky white and yolk from the Egg Fruit started to cook in the pan, spreading a delicious smell.

"That's right."

It was the scent of the fried egg Sejun was thinking of.

Krueng!

[It smells like the fried eggs we had at the big brother's house!]

Cuengi also confirmed the scent. Indeed, the fried eggs eaten at the Black Rabbit's castle were made from this Egg Fruit.

As Sejun and Cuengi shared a fried egg and displayed content expressions,

"Puhuhut. Chairman Park, how is it, meow?! Did I, Vice Chairman Theo, work hard by trading peanuts for fried eggs, meow?! Did I not work hard, meow?!"

Theo asked with an immense air of smugness.

"There's more of this?! Our Vice Chairman Theo really worked hard!"

"Puhuhut. Of course, meow! I'm Vice Chairman Theo, so I work hard, meow!"

Having received Sejun's approval, Theo was completely over the moon. He lifted his head and looked at Cuengi and Piyot with a smug expression. You guys are way behind me, meow! Puhuhut. This is what it means to be a Vice Chairman, meow!

However, neither Cuengi nor Piyot paid any attention to Theo's gaze.

Krueng!

[Daddy Cuengi is hungry!]

Especially Cuengi, who was only upset that the grilled fish was getting cold.

"Alright, just wait a moment."

Sejun grabbed a Kudzu root infused with overflowing magic power and squeezed it tightly, sprinkling lime-scented Kudzu juice on the grilled fish.

As he sprinkled lime-scented Kudzu juice on the grilled fish,

[Grilled Piranha with Lime-scented Kudzu Juice is completed.]

[Your Proficiency of Cooking Lv. 8 has slightly increased.]

[The effect of Cooking Lv. 8 is applied.]

[The effect applies as much as the Overabundant Magic Power Kudzu Root is consumed.]

Messages appeared.

"The effect applies as much as it's consumed?"

Among them, there was a message Sejun saw for the first time.

With Sejun's cooking skill reaching level 8, the effect now applied proportionally to the amount of each ingredient consumed, even if not eaten completely.

"Nice. Let's eat, everyone!"

"Puhuhut. I will enjoy this meal, meow!"

Kueng!

[It looks delicious!]

Following Sejun's cue, Theo and Cuengi rushed towards the grilled fish.

However,

"Meoow! Chairman Park, what did you do to the grilled fish, meow?! It smells weird, meow!"

Kueng!

[It's so delicious!]

Their reactions were completely opposite due to the lime flavor. Theo disliked the lime flavor.

"Chairman Park, I can't eat this, meow! Please make the grilled fish again, meow!"

Theo whined about the lime-flavored grilled fish he couldn't eat.

"Just eat it. Alright."

Reluctantly, Sejun peeled off the lime-flavored fish skin and only served the flesh.

Then,

"Since Chairman Park prepared it, I'll eat it as something special, meow!"

Theo ate the grilled fish while tolerating the faint scent of lime. Although he disliked the lime flavor, he enjoyed that Sejun prepared the fish flesh for him.

'Puhuhut. I'm eating it because of Chairman Park's dedication, meow!'

While Theo was enjoying the fish flesh prepared by Sejun,

Swoosh.

Kuehehehe.

Cuengi also started sneakily eating the fish flesh prepared by Sejun, setting aside the grilled fish he was eating.

The fish flesh quickly disappeared as Sejun diligently prepared it to prevent the two from fighting.

While Sejun was busily preparing the fish flesh,

'Is this the secret to being ranked number one? Does preparing fish flesh increase one's rank?!'

Piyot observed Sejun and learned a new method of ranking hierarchy.

Then,

Ook!

Monkeys entered the kitchen to eat dinner.

Piyo! Piyo!

[Hello! I am Pirururur Yotra from the White-Headed Long-Tailed Tit Tribe!]

Piyot earnestly greeted the monkeys. The teachers said that just by greeting well, you can be loved!

After exchanging greetings with the monkeys, Piyot also grabbed a grilled fish and began to prepare the flesh using its feet and beak.

***

4th Floor of the Tower.

Drip. Drip.

10 beginner hunters were busily harvesting grapes in the vineyard.

"This is more fun than I thought?"

"Exactly."

The hunters' expressions had brightened compared to the beginning. They weren't assigned any difficult tasks, and they were given breaks in between.

"This isn't the time to be happy. Surely, they'll just make us work until we die."

Mendal said with a frightened expression.

Then,

"Stop now."

The Black Skeletons approached them and spoke.

'Are they really going to kill us?'

The hunters tensed up when,

"This is the payment for your work so far."

The Black Skeletons handed the hunters 10 bags filled with grapes.

"Payment?"

"Yes. If you're thinking of working again, come back. Follow them, and outside the vineyard, you'll get your weapons back."

The Black Skeletons said this and left.

"Come back if we're thinking of working again?"

The hunters were stunned by the Black Skeletons' words.

"Is this a trick to let our guard down before killing us?"

Suspicious, the hunters followed the Black Skeletons when,

Clatter.

The Black Skeletons truly returned their weapons and then left for the vineyard.

"What?"

"Let's hurry and go! What if they change their minds and come after us!"

"Yeah. Let's head back for now!"

Thus, the hunters returned to Earth, arms full of vitality-infused fragrant grapes.

***

'If I get them to eat the fish flesh I've prepared, they'll become my subordinates, so I should create more subordinates to increase my rank.'

Piyot was diligently applying seasoning to the grilled fish to increase its rank.

However,

Piyo?

[Why isn't anyone eating what I've prepared?]

Since Piyot had almost crushed the fish flesh to a powder, nobody wanted to touch it.

For the tiny Piyot, it was a manageable size, but not for the other animals.

Piyo! Piyo!

[Raising my rank isn't as easy as I thought! I'll have to practice diligently from now on!]

Piyot was determined to improve its skill in preparing fish flesh. If only Piyot's teachers had told it to simply ask when curious...

Thanks to that, Piyot's beak and feet became shiny with an oil coating.

Piyihihi. Piyo.

[Hehe. But this is actually quite tasty.]

On the bright side, Piyot discovered the taste of grilled fish.

However, the amount of grilled fish powder Piyot ate was very minimal,

"Huh?! Piyot, are you playing with your food?"

Piyo... Piyo...

[That wasn't my intention... I'm sorry...]

Piyot got scolded by Sejun for the remaining fish powder.

10 minutes later

Pirorong.

Piyot fell asleep to Sejun's scolding, using it as a lullaby.

"Huh?! Asleep already? Were you that tired?"

Sejun carefully picked up Piyot with both hands and exited the kitchen.

"Chairman Park, let's go together, meow!"

As Sejun stood up, Theo quickly grabbed a piece of fish flesh with its mouth and clung to Sejun's leg.

Thus, Sejun and Theo headed to the bedroom.

Swoosh.

Inside the wooden box house previously used by the Black Rabbit, Sejun laid down some straw and gently placed Piyot on top.

Then, leaving the bedroom, he headed back to the kitchen as Cuengi's meal was not yet finished.

Thus, Theo clung to Sejun's leg as they returned to the kitchen.

Lick. Lick.

Theo, clinging to Sejun's leg, finished eating the fish flesh and started cleaning the oil off its front paws.

"Meow! This unpleasant stuff got on my front paws too, meow!"

Lick. Lick.

As Theo was annoyed and diligently licked its paws to remove the lime scent,

Woong.

A soft silver light emanated from Theo's body.

"Meow?! Chairman Park, I just awakened a talent, meow!"

"Talent?"

Just like that? Unexpectedly?!

'Consumption may rarely lead to the awakening of absorption-related talents.'

Sejun recalled the information written on the Overabundant Magic Power Kudzu Root.

But considering the amount Theo ate was less than one ten-thousandth of a Kudzu... The already low chance was astronomically lower.

"That's impossible..."

Against such dreadful odds, Theo awakened a talent. Truly a lucky cat.

"Lucky guy... So, what talent is it?"

Sejun, envious of Theo's luck, asked in a languid voice. Why do I feel so drained? Did I overdo it today?

"It's a talent called 'Energy Drain', meow!"

"Energy Drain?"

"That's right, meow! I can absorbs energy from surroundings to become stronger!"

"Ah... absorbing energy from surroundings... I see! Hey! Get off!"

Sejun tried to shake off Theo, realizing the reason for his lethargy was Theo's new talent: Energy Drain, which was sapping his energy.

"Meow?! I don't wanna, meow!"

As Sejun attempted to remove Theo from his leg, Theo clung to him like a leech.

"Hey... get off... You're draining my energy..."

Thud.

Sejun collapsed while speaking.

"Meow?! Is it because of me, meow?! Chairman Park, snap out of it, meow!"

Then, Theo quickly controlled its talent and

Slap. Slap.

began slapping Sejun's face, using a healing spell.

"Chairman Park, wake up, meow!"

Slap. Slap.

Theo was giving trouble and then providing the remedy.

Thanks to Theo, Sejun was able to go to bed early and woke up feeling refreshed the next day.