La Dero was the best restaurant in t.i.tan. The dishes were guaranteed to be of good taste and quality since they were presented to the empress.
Grid and Raiders sat down in a place where even the renowned n.o.bles of the empire couldn’t visit without a reservation. There are no guests except for the two of them. The reason why they occupied the entire restaurant was because the owner was brainwashed by Raiders’ magic and drove out all the other customers. Then he brought the food over himself.
A sharp knife cut the meat without scratching the tableware. First was to dip it in salt, then pour the sauce and add the garnish. Ah, was this spice for eating with it?
Raiders enjoyed the meat in various ways and made a pleasant smile. “It maximized the flavor and savory taste by using so much parts it would seem the fat content is excessive. I felt that the acidity of the sauce balances it well. The most commendable part is the garnish. It melts the moment it touches the teeth and the thin layer of fried root vegetables makes up for the lack of texture.”
Grid mulled over it and said how he felt, “Just... it’s delicious.”
La Dero’s food was excellent enough to make Grid smile when he had been shrinking back after seeing Raiders’ destructive nature. He wanted to ask the chef of La Dero for a lunch box every day. It was surprising that Grid felt this desire when he ate rough bread when working or hunting.
‘The chefs at the Overgeared Kingdom’s palace are good, but they aren’t at this level. Should I hire a world-cla.s.s chef?’
d.a.m.n Idan...
If Idan was good at cooking, then he wouldn’t have to worry about this.
Grid was grumbling when Raiders finished the desert and wiped his mouth with a napkin. “It was a delicious meal.”
[You have heard Gourmet Dragon Raiders say that the food is delicious! (1/60)]
The gourmet cycle quest was simple. Take Raiders to at least 80 restaurants and hear him say ‘delicious’ 60 times. Grid succeeded in hearing the word ‘delicious’ at the very first restaurant, but his expression wasn’t bright.
‘I was hoping for him to be happy...’
Appreciation beyond deliciousness. The quest stated that every time Raiders said he was ‘happy,’ there would be a special reward. Meanwhile, La Dero was a restaurant with great expectations. The restaurant that made authentic dishes for the empress was one of the best restaurants on the West Continent.
‘It will be hard to hear that he is happy in other restaurants when he didn’t say it at La Dero.’
Grid was filled with great regret. His expectations were so high that his disappointment was also big and his spirit was shaken. Then he soon controlled his mind. First of all, it was most important to succeed in the quest. Hidden compensation was just a secondary matter. Yes, all he had to do was clear the quest. He heard that it was delicious from the beginning so it was starting well.
Grid tried to think positively and turned his gaze outside the window with a smile. ‘I thought the level was going up too quickly...’
The VIP room in La Dero was the most popular room and it took one year to make a reservation. The magnificent view of t.i.tan was like a canvas on the large window frame that occupied one entire wall of the VIP room. Inside that canvas was a statue of Grid.
A temple for the Overgeared G.o.d was established in the empire. Most of the people who witnessed the reality of the G.o.ds in the Drasion raid were from the empire, thus they converted to the Overgeared G.o.d Church.
‘There is no need to wors.h.i.+p me just because they are disappointed in G.o.ddess Rebecca.’
Apart from the G.o.ds of Asgard, there were many other G.o.ds. A prime example was Garion, the G.o.d of the earth. He was born from the aspirations of humans who appreciated and gave meaning to the earth. Garion was a G.o.d loved and respected by the people of the continent, even if he wasn’t from Asgard. He didn’t give off an absolute feeling like Chiyou, but it was true that Garion was much more famous than a newcomer like Grid.
‘There are so many other G.o.ds. Thank you for choosing me...’
The influence of Empress Basara and the dukes must’ve played a big role.
Raiders urged Grid who was sending them grat.i.tude in his heart, “Where are you going to guide me to next?”
Raiders had obviously seen the statue of Grid, but he wasn’t interested. For dragons, a new G.o.d was not much different from a human.
“How about seafood next?”
“Seafood is good although I don’t think flour or rice is bad either.”
There were many dishes cooked with seafood and carbohydrates.
“Can I guide you straight away?”
Raiders had eaten all of La Dero’s menu. He ate a quant.i.ty that would be enough for 30 people. Raiders nodded at Grid who carefully asked the question.
“Just because I’m disguised as a human doesn’t mean that I’m human, including my stomach. Personally, I hope to progress without any breaks.”
“I understand.”
It was nice to hear. Grid was very uncomfortable accompanying Raiders. He honestly hoped to send this fearsome dragon away quickly.
“The next destination is here.” Grid took out the map and pointed to Media. It was once a famous marine kingdom. It was also where the Behen Archipelago was located. It was destroyed and absorbed by the empire during Emperor Juander’s time so it now belonged to the empire.
“Let’s go.”
Coordinate retrieval was tricky magic. It took a great magician at least a few minutes to look at a map and determine the coordinates. However, Raiders already determined Media’s coordinates and used Ma.s.s Teleport.
Grid reached his destination in the blink of an eye and clicked his tongue. ‘Crazy.’
At this point, wasn’t it comparable or even better than Braham’s magic ability? Grid was reminded of how Bunhelier had 99,999 strength and agility, and once again realized that he should never be hostile to dragons.
‘First... it is too much that there is no penalty on the earth.’
The G.o.ds exerted their full power in Heaven and the great demons in h.e.l.l. Only the dragons weren’t confined to a place. The most threatening being on earth was a dragon.
“Delicious.”
Raiders tasted several foods one after another in Media and showed satisfaction. Yet once again, he didn’t state that he was happy. It was the same at the next destination and the one after that. Grid guided Raiders to a total of 20 restaurants throughout the day, but Raiders’ appreciation stayed at the level of delicious.
‘Fortunately, there were no failures...’
Grid was trying to ease his regret when Raiders praised him.
“You didn’t let me down at all. Compared to the past gourmet cycles, this is the happiest cycle.”
Just then...
[You have heard from Gourmet Dragon Raiders that he is happy!]
[A special reward will occur since the special condition is achieved!]
“......??” Grid’s eyes widened as he was in the middle of giving up. Then he realized something. The purpose of the gourmet cycle quest was to hear the word ‘delicious’ 60 times. However, the quest instructed him to take Raiders to ‘at least’ 80 restaurants. Even if he heard the word ‘delicious’ 60 times in a row, he would still need to visit 20 more restaurants. It had been questionable and now he knew the reason.
‘It was an arrangement to aim for the maximum possible special rewards.’
Raiders’ happiness was a hidden system that occurred only after delicious was said 20 times in a row...
The reason why the quest insisted on visiting 80 restaurants was to increase the probability of triggering the hidden system. The reason for this consideration was simple. The difficulty of the quest was actually very high.
‘Certainly... it would’ve been too hard if I tried to find the places on my own without the help of my colleagues.’
In particular, the Overgeared Shadows led by Faker were great. After being joined by the members of Eclipse, the Overgeared Shadow’s ability to obtain information was one of the highest on the continent. If it wasn’t for them, he wouldn’t have been able to find so many high quality restaurants within a short period of time.
‘I naturally have to reward them.’
Just then, Raiders’ eyes that contained infinite magic power contemplated Grid. “Hmm. Pagma"s Successor.”
“......”
Did he know Grid now? He believed he was famous, but it wasn’t enough to get a dragon’s attention.
‘Is this a good thing?’
It wouldn’t be good to have a dragon’s interest. By the way, it was amazing that Raiders knew Pagma. Grid once again realized how great Pagma was.
“I’ll give you this.” Raiders opened his subs.p.a.ce and pulled out a small needle. It was a golden needle.
“This is...?” Grid read the information of the needle and his eyes widened with surprise. The performance of the needle itself was great, but it was more surprising that Raiders gave it to him.
“This is something I use occasionally when I’m bored. I think it is the greatest gift for you now.”
[The Gourmet Dragon’s Needle has been acquired.]
[Gourmet Dragon’s Needle]
[Rating: Myth
Durability: None Defense: 350
* Increases the speed of fabric and leather sewing by 80%.
* Increases the proficiency gain rate of the Tailoring skill by two times.
* Can pierce all types of fabrics, leather, and scales.
* There is a normal probability of attaching magic to items created using the Tailoring skill.
This needle was used by Gourmet Dragon Raiders to make tablecloths. It is made by grinding the scale of a gold dragon and contains Raiders’ magic power.
Weight: 0]
Grid had a cla.s.s quest that hadn’t been cleared in several years.
[Tailoring Technique Training]
[Cla.s.s Quest
The possibilities for your development have become greater after learning the Tailoring technique.
If you get to the point where you can combine blacksmithing and tailoring, your foundation as a blacksmith will expand exponentially.
However, it is still difficult to utilize the Tailoring technique.
The gap between the intermediate Tailoring skill and legendary blacksmith skill is too large. The intermediate Tailoring technique is likely to degrade the quality of the legendary blacksmith’s work.
Raise the level of your Tailoring skill to the point where it can be combined with blacksmithing.
Quest Clear Conditions: Master the Advanced Tailoring Technique.
Quest Clear Reward: Level +6. The opening of craftsman level Tailoring Technique.]
A cla.s.s quest that rewarded him with six levels. Grid had been making underwear every day for the past few years to clear this quest. Making underwear while wearing a beautiful crown on his head and a glamorous cloak behind him... to be honest, it wasn’t a pleasant thing to do.
‘However with this needle...’
He would be able to gain experience in the Tailoring skill several times faster than before. He would soon be liberated from the d.a.m.n task of making underwear.
‘There is even a chance of attaching magic.’
Grid received the needle with trembling hands and bowed to Raiders.
“Oh great dragon who has existed since the beginning, thank you for understanding the shortcomings of this little human and helping me.”
The nature of a dragon was ferocious, but he wasn’t a bad guy...
Grid realized this and lost some of his aversion to Raiders.