It was a meal sent on a simple whim.

To properly teach those Padak members who tried to fill their stomachs with just a snack.

All the trouble began after the Padak posted their food verification posts.

[“Got chicken and beer as a salary.
Author: HammerAndAnvil

I’ll try it once and post again.”]

(Comments)

“Saw it on the auction. What’s this chicken thing anyway?”
“I get the beer, but chicken??”
“Right?”
“Just chicken? Can that even justify being a Padak?”
“Right? It’s just food…”

At first, gallery users were skeptical.

The verification post from Strong Human that followed was no different.

“Just food,” “What’s chicken?” “Can it really taste that good?”

And then, exactly 30 minutes later, reactions flipped 180 degrees.

[“This is the food of the gods.
Author: [Padak] IWillBecomeTheStrongestHuman

At first, I was suspicious of the black liquid and round bread I received.
But that was because I was stupid.
The pizza was soft and salty, with an enormous amount of cheese melting in my mouth.
The crispy and chewy edges of the bread were exquisite.
But after more than five slices, it felt a bit greasy.
That’s when the black liquid, as commanded by ChiefDack, washed away the greasiness with its fizzy and sweet taste.
This is literally the food of the gods.
From now on, I am one with ChiefDack.
Any attack against ChiefDack will be considered an attack against me.”]

(Comments)

“Uh, uh… okay.”
“Kinda scary.”
“Seriously.”
“It really tastes that good?”
“Never seen them this serious before;;”
“Good enough to break the concept? That good?”
“But what even is pizza?”
“Never heard of cola either.”
“Black liquid? Fizzy and sweet? F**k, is that devil’s water?”
“Another religious freak appears.”
“Devil or not, just give me some lol”
Iris Goddess Church) “Are you defending the devil?!!”
“Oh, get lost grandpa.”

The long, almost manic post caused a stir among gallery users.

Then came HammerAndAnvil and WorldGuardian’s posts, sealing the deal.

[“How do you make chicken?
Author: [Padak] HammerAndAnvil

Tell me the recipe right now!!!!
Since eating the chicken and beer, I can’t even hold a hammer properly. I’m going insane.”]

(Comments)

“The dwarf… can’t hammer…?”
“Really that bad??”
Author Padak) “I can’t believe it either, but yes.”
“Wow…”
“At this point, shouldn’t someone fix this?”
“Seriously, ChiefDack, just throw all that chicken monopolized by you!!!”

[“Impressive.
Author: [Padak] WorldGuardian

This soup, gukbap, is phenomenal.
By far the best dish I’ve ever eaten in my life.
Fills the stomach perfectly, really helped with training too.”]

(Comments)

“Never heard this guy talk before.”
“ChiefDack can even make a mute elf speak.”
“Like some messiah lol”
Iris Goddess Church) “Blasphemy!!!”
“Ugh, religious fanatics, go away.”
“Is it true 70% of the church members died after the apocalypse?”
Iris Goddess Church) “You!!”
“Better worship a demon than that Iris woman lol”
“Tax evasion, sexual assault, rape, embezzlement, drugs… all true??”
“Wow… ruthless. You still believe in the goddess?”

WorldGuardian had never spoken once in over 550 years, making it even more notable.

“…By the way, what’s this church thing?”

All these crimes?

On Earth, they’d already be behind bars.

“Maybe bribes worked well because it’s the medieval era?”

Usually, judging a group based on one side is unwise…

But this many anti-Iris Church forces clearly indicate a problem.

“Better not get involved with them.”

As I kept deleting spam and posts, the coins spent sending food began to accumulate again.

Even if the Padak handled it, coins kept coming in.

“One person processing ten or more posts is guaranteed profit, huh?”

A win-win system: I get coins, Padak get their desired food.

But…

“How do I handle this?”

An hour after the Padak posts, the fire hasn’t died down.

[“Give us chicken!!”]
[“Tried making pizza”]
[“Made chicken, how’s it?”]
[“Tried alchemy to make cola”]

[“Tried making pizza.

Rolled out the dough, baked it, sprinkled tons of cheese.
Taste was okay.”]

[“Made chicken, how’s it?

Since it’s supposed to be a chicken dish, I fried a passing monster resembling a chicken.
Smells awful, tastes awful, been on the toilet for 30 mins. F**k.”]

[“Tried alchemy to make cola.

Should it bubble like this? Wanna try it?”]

(Comments)

ChiefDack) “? Not bubbles?”
Author) “Yes, boiling like crazy. Smoke too.”
ChiefDack) “F**k what did you make;;”
Author) “Oh, isn’t this it?”
“Sure lol”

Some tried making chemical experiments, but quick comments prevented them from drinking it.

The heated gallery vibe even came up in the chatroom.

[WorldGuardian: Gallery seems overheated. Some regulation is needed.]
[IWillBecomeTheStrongestHuman: Regulation is ElHwang]
[WorldGuardian: ……]
[IWillBecomeTheStrongestHuman: Silence is ElHwang]
[HammerAndAnvil: Shouldn’t we prevent people from discussing this?]
[HammerAndAnvil: If they wanted chicken, they should’ve applied to be Padak in the first place.]
[HammerAndAnvil: Don’t know why this even comes up.]

HammerAndAnvil showed some irritation.

Fair enough.

They mocked when applying to be Padak, now they completely changed their tone.

[ChiefDack: Opened a bit of chicken and pizza]
[HammerAndAnvil: Hm? Is that okay?]
[ChiefDack: Nothing wrong with it. This time I’ll set a price too.]
[HammerAndAnvil: Ahh, got it.]

“Fried chicken was 20 coins, so maybe raise to 25?”

Unsure of auction market rates, hard to post blindly.

Should I ask the Padak?

[WorldGuardian: If selling, 30 coins is reasonable.]

5 coins higher than I expected.

Good for me, but will people pay that much?

Equivalent to the value of 30 gross posts.

[IWillBecomeTheStrongestHuman: 30? Too cheap. Even killing passing monsters gives 2-3 coins.]
[WorldGuardian: We must consider non-combatants too.]
[IWillBecomeTheStrongestHuman: Checking public sentiment, ElHwang]
[WorldGuardian: ……]

“What.”

Killing monsters gives 2-3 coins?

I moved my finger and opened the shop tab.

Next to the usual food tab was a weapons tab I’d never checked.

Pressed.

[Sheath: 1 coin]
[Arrow: 2 coins]
[Mass-Produced Longsword: 3 coins]
[Mass-Produced Bow: 3 coins]
[Decent Longsword: 5 coins]
[Decent Bow: 5 coins]
…

At first, only basic medieval swords and bows appeared—disappointing.

Scrolling down revealed the true treasure.

“…Whoa.”

[K2 Rifle: 30 coins]
[5.56x45mm Ammo: 1 coin]
[5.56x45mm Magazine: 1 coin]

From the K2 rifle known to every Korean veteran, various weapons lined up.

Grenades, mines, C4, RPG, AK47, minigun, flamethrower…

Prices were insane.

“What, grenades 20 coins?”

Mines 30, RPG 50?

Feels like a firm “don’t use this yet.”

“Legendary items, huh?”

Guess earning coins from monsters is out.

While I browsed weapons, Padak argued over chicken pricing.

The fight was finally winding down.

[WorldGuardian: So chicken 35 coins, beer 5 coins?]
[IWillBecomeTheStrongestHuman: I say 40+10.]
[HammerAndAnvil: Given the taste, 50 coins isn’t too much, but fine, let’s agree.]
[ChiefDack: Not too expensive, right?]
[WorldGuardian: Considering taste and average coin value, this seems the most reasonable.]

“Well… if all three agree.”

WorldGuardian had watched the gallery for centuries. Even anti-elf Strong Human and dwarf HammerAndAnvil agreed. This price is right.

That day, I bought 13 sets of chicken and beer.

As expected, the gallery erupted with complaints.

[“Why is chicken so expensive?”]
[“Isn’t this cheap enough?”]
[“Chicken price is insane;;”]
[“What, did you sprinkle gold? What’s the price?”]

Then, the deadlock was broken.

[“Huh? Chicken in the auction!

Starts selling in an hour. Chicken 35 coins, beer 5 coins? Why so expensive?”]

(Comments)

“Who cares? I’m buying it.”
“Really, who cares?”
“Made 50 coins just killing monsters today, but who cares lol”
“Please don’t buy chicken. I want it all.”
“lol thanks for eliminating competition automatically”
“Yeah~ you never eat it for life~~”

These were the “I-must-know-how-chicken-tastes” hardcore fans.