NOVEL NEXT Chapter 1 - Possession and the First Customer
Everyone probably had a dream when they were young.
Some might have wanted to be doctors.
Some might have wanted to be teachers.
Some might have wanted to be transforming heroes or executives of an evil empire.
There were even some who wanted to be dinosaurs.
Though not as interesting as those dreams, I had a dream too.
When I was young, watching foreign dramas with my parents.
I saw a unique restaurant and chef who could freely cook dishes tailored to customers without being bound by the menu.
To my young self, that seemed even cooler and more special than a transforming hero.
“What does our Yujin want to be when she grows up?”
“Mom, when I grow up, I want to be a cool chef like that!”
Enough to proudly declare it when asked about future aspirations by my parents.
But if it was that easy to achieve, it wouldn’t be called a dream.
A child’s fickle nature, parents’ expectations, standardized and rigid education, anxiety about an uncertain future, and so on.
For various reasons, or excuses, dreams often remained just dreams.
The child who proudly declared their dream ended up as an ordinary office worker, one of society’s cogs, decades later.
Still, unable to completely give up, I satisfied my lingering attachment by cooking as a hobby, and as an extension of that, I enjoyed making food in games too.
[Into the Dungeon] was the best game for me in that sense.
Was it because [Into the Dungeon] was a masterpiece worthy of being called a god-tier game, with a systematic combat system, story, attractive characters, and various content all set in a dungeon city?
‘Of course not.’
It was because the cooking content in [Into the Dungeon] had unparalleled depth and quality compared to other games.
Unlike other games that only had the bare minimum, you had to adjust everything from the quality and characteristics of ingredients to cooking techniques and recipes in detail.
It wasn’t just clicking a production button to get the finished product, but a very realistic level where you had to actually go through trial and error to cook.
Most users complained about why they had to go through such a troublesome process for a sub-content in a game.
But I was rather immersed in it, researching recipes and even practicing in real life, because I enjoyed the taste and had nostalgia for my childhood dream.
Thanks to that, I was able to achieve the amazing record of being the first in the world to unlock the hidden cooking achievement, so it was without a doubt the best game of my life.
[Congratulations on arriving at the Dungeon City!]
[Explore the dungeons of Dungeon City and gain wealth and fame!]
[When you reach the end of the dungeon, you’ll be given a chance to fulfill a wish!]
So… that was the case until just 1 minute ago.
“….”
Have you ever heard that when people find themselves in extremely unexpected situations, they tend to become calm rather than panicked?
Something about the brain overflowing when it exceeds the limits of cognition, causing a reverse calmness.
Looking at the hologram message that appeared in mid-air, I could feel my head cooling down in reverse, beyond panic, just as they said.
And with that cooled-down head, I thought.
“I’m fucked.”
That’s right, I was fucked.
I was definitely fucked, without even needing to think deeply about it.
Instead of a forest of concrete buildings and apartments, there were low and rough wooden buildings like those seen in movies.
Instead of uniformly and systematically laid asphalt and board blocks, there were bumpy and inconsistent roads mixed with sand and gravel.
Instead of streetlights illuminating the night and a hazy sky with murky air, there was a clear night sky with brightly shining stars and fresh, clean air.
Every scenery I sensed was clearly not a modern street steeped in the industrial revolution. Add to that the message that appeared earlier, and it was certain.
This was inside the game.
I had undoubtedly been possessed into [Into the Dungeon], the very game I enjoyed playing.
Why am I saying I’m fucked instead of being happy about experiencing the game possession that many people desire? Isn’t it a god-tier game, not a trash game?
Paradoxically, that was exactly the problem.
‘It’s a problem because it’s a god-tier game.’
I’m not joking, really.
Because it was a flawless god-tier game, I was even more fucked.
Obviously, a dungeon means monsters appear, and clearing a dungeon means fighting monsters.
With monsters that have a systematic and robust combat system without any cheating bugs?
How could I, who was just an ordinary modern person until a minute ago, deal with that?
It’s not something to brag about, but I’m the type of person who carefully steps aside when I see even a slightly large dog on the street.
Of course, I’ve never fought anyone risking my life, and I definitely don’t want to.
Wouldn’t the average modern person call the police first if such a situation arose?
If by any chance I had been possessed into a fully enhanced, max-level combat character with the best equipment, I might have considered it, but…
Of all things, I was possessed into a sub-character focused solely on cooking.
Yeah, I did pour so much affection and time into it that it was practically treated as a main character.
My main character, which had already chewed up, spit out, and even boiled the bones of the game long ago, was only used to earn funds to raise this cooking sub-character.
“But that doesn’t mean it had to be possessed here too…”
Anyway, for these reasons, I was fucked.
If we follow the cliché of such possession phenomena, I could probably get a wish if I clear the dungeon to the end.
And using that wish, I might be able to return home.
“But I can’t go to the dungeon?”
I’m stuck from the start, isn’t this a trash game?
At this rate, it seems I’ll have to stay in this world until I grow old and die, unable to return home.
“I guess it’s fortunate that I didn’t come empty-handed.”
Should I call it a blessing in disguise? Some aspects like skills and possessions were maintained when being possessed into the game.
This base I’m in now was one of those. To put it simply, it’s the housing system.
You can decorate it to your liking, invite others, and even get buff effects depending on how you decorate it.
The base was decorated like a restaurant, just as it was in my memory, fitting the concept of playing a chef character.
I could see some convenience furniture that I had installed using cash purchases, and it felt strange to actually see them.
Somehow, they seem better than what I have at home?
“Fortunately, I won’t starve to death on the streets right away.”
It was some consolation that I didn’t have to worry about basic food, clothing, and shelter thanks to this.
If I had fallen with nothing, as a bare-bodied beginner, it wouldn’t have been strange to collapse and starve to death on the street right away, let alone worry about dungeons.
The problem was that everything else was full of adversity, but.
‘I’ve avoided the immediate homeless death route, but what should I do from now on?’
Just as I was about to lose myself in such overwhelming thoughts while sitting on a counter seat installed in the base.
Ding-a-ling~
The bell attached to the shop door rang as the door opened.
“Excuse me, is this a restaurant?”
There stood a black-haired boy in worn clothes, with an awkward expression and a hesitant stance.
“Uh… I guess you could say it’s a restaurant?”
Looking back, this awkward exchange marked the appearance of the first customer in this world.
Slash-
Kieek Keukeuk!!
The old sword digs into the neck of a small green monster.
A gush of the monster’s unique purple blood and screams.
It wasn’t cut in one stroke. The boy wielding the sword was still unskilled, and the condition of the sword wasn’t great either.
However, the monster’s convulsing and staggering clearly showed that the recent blow had dealt a fatal wound.
The boy had been warned many times that one should be careful of an enemy making its last struggle.
Not approaching carelessly, he deflected the claws swung in desperation a few times while looking for an opportunity.
Slash-
He aimed for the neck of the monster as it lost balance and fell, and this time succeeded in completely separating its head from its body.
“Whew-”
As the monster’s body, which had been wriggling, stopped trembling and became a perfect corpse, the black-haired boy caught his breath for a moment and then crouched down to pick up the head he had just cut off.
“One, two, three… twenty! Ahh~ Finally completed the quota.”
The boy, Kyle, who had engaged in a fierce battle and cut off goblin heads, wiped off his sweat with a satisfied smile.
He had finally completed his first quest received from the guild.
Now, if he cuts off the goblin ears as proof and submits them, he can complete the quest. He will be promoted from a temporary adventurer to an official adventurer.
“Though I’ll start from F rank…”
Kyle, who would start his adventurer life from the lowest F rank, became slightly dejected.
He had heard that skilled individuals, like those from knight backgrounds or official wizards from magic towers, start at higher ranks.
But that didn’t apply to Kyle, an orphan with no background or experience.
Kyle was just an ordinary orphan who had only learned swordsmanship a few times from an adventurer who came to volunteer at the orphanage.
Of course, that adventurer did praise Kyle for having talent, but.
Kyle didn’t think he was naive enough to believe such lip service given to an orphan at face value.
‘I guess it’ll be hard to support the orphanage for a while.’
F-rank adventurers can earn enough to get by, but conversely, that’s all they can do.
After taking care of food, clothing, and shelter, it’s tight to save money for investing in equipment or training for the future.
(Considering that there are many adventurers who enjoy a life of earning for a day and spending it all, Kyle was actually quite diligent, but.)
Kyle, who wanted to support the orphanage where he grew up, even if just a little, like other seniors who had left before him, let out a small sigh of regret and headed towards the guild after leaving the dungeon.
A few hours later, Kyle’s hand held a crude wooden badge as he left the guild.
The official proof of an adventurer, received after completing the quest by handing over the goblin ears he had cut off.
Perhaps because it was the lowest F rank, it looked shabby, made roughly with cheap wood, but the fact that this crude wooden badge symbolized the first step as an adventurer remained unchanged.
Kyle, who was curiously examining it here and there, suddenly felt overwhelmed.
‘Will I be able to do well from now on?’
Wooden badge – Copper badge – Iron badge – Silver badge – Gold badge
Even excluding the heavenly realm for S-rank adventurers that he had only heard rumors about, the wooden badge Kyle received was just the lowest starting point of many stages.
How far could someone like him, with no status, education, or experience, go? Iron badge? Or copper badge?
No, would he be able to go anywhere at all?
He had heard that there are many adventurers who remain at low ranks for their entire lives due to lack of talent.
There was no law saying he wasn’t one of those common ordinary people…
Grumble-
But such thoughts were momentary.
With the loud warning sound from his body, Kyle’s spirit, which had been floating, fell back into his physical body in reality.
“Come to think of it, I haven’t eaten yet.”
Because it was his first real battle as an adventurer, he had forgotten to eat due to nervousness.
As soon as the work was done and the tension eased, his tired body immediately started crying for food.
Once hunger was recognized, it wasn’t easy to ignore it.
It was so intense that Kyle wondered how he hadn’t noticed it until now, to the point where even he, who was more accustomed to hunger than fullness due to his orphanage background, found it hard to endure.
Was it due to the reaction from tension and battle?
“I wonder if there’s a suitable restaurant nearby.”
Normally, he would have made do with a 10 copper piece of hard black bread and a bowl of thin soup with a few vegetable scraps floating in it.
But today was a momentous day when he safely completed his first battle and took his first step as an adventurer.
Even if luxury was impossible, he couldn’t help but want to reward himself with a slightly better meal.
Of course, he couldn’t even dream of expensive food like the high-class Minotaur steak he had only heard about.
‘Would it be okay to eat slightly less hard rye bread and soup with some meat scraps in it?’
As Kyle was walking with such thoughts, a restaurant caught his eye.
“Huh? Was there such a restaurant here?”
In a secluded alley away from the central street where the adventurers’ guild was located.
There was a unique restaurant that didn’t fit in with the slightly old and shabby alley, away from the central street, the busiest area of the dungeon city.
‘It’s not made of wood?’
To be precise, wood was used, but only for decorations like the roof and doors.
The building itself was made of white marble, like the goddess statue seen in temples.
It was already quite out of place in an alley where most buildings were wooden structures, but using pure white marble like a goddess statue gave it an almost mystical feel.
The bright light leaking from inside the shop added to that strange mystique.
Strong brightness that made the entire shop front visible despite it being evening time when the moon goddess was beginning to draw her curtains.
This level of brightness couldn’t possibly be produced by ordinary stoves or lamps. Perhaps it was the magic lamps that nobles and wealthy people were said to use?
‘Why is a restaurant using such rare and expensive items located in this secluded alley?’
Maybe it’s not a restaurant? But the exterior looks completely like a restaurant…
Should I ask? If it is indeed a restaurant, I’m curious about what kind of food they serve in such a place.
Kyle approached the mysterious restaurant as if enchanted.
Click-
‘Ah, but what if it’s too expensive?’
The moment he grabbed the handle, the thought of price flashed through Kyle’s mind.
Wouldn’t such a luxurious restaurant naturally be expensive?
In a letter from his childhood friend from the same orphanage who had been recognized for his talent and entered a magic tower, it was said that high-class restaurants charge gold coins even for portions as small as a rat’s tail.
‘If it’s the same here…’
Gulp-
Holding the handle, Kyle fell into contemplation about whether he should just turn back.
If he wasn’t careful, this day that was meant to be celebrated could turn into the worst day.
The reason he didn’t immediately turn back and fell into contemplation was entirely due to the location of the shop.
If he had found it on the central street, he would have passed by without even considering it.
‘It’s okay. If it’s not a restaurant or if the prices are expensive, I’ll apologize and leave.’
It would be a bit embarrassing, but he didn’t want to miss this mysterious encounter without even trying.
Ding-a-ling-
The clear bell sound that rang the moment he opened the door with force.
And a bright light incomparably brighter than what could be seen from outside.
Despite it clearly being evening, the restaurant was as bright as broad daylight, and Kyle asked in a slightly intimidated voice:
“Excuse me, is this a restaurant?”
“Uh… I guess you could say it’s a restaurant?”
It was a secret that the shop owner’s dazed and clumsy response slightly reduced Kyle’s burden.