Chapter 3.1

‘Let’s secure my place here first. Saving the Northern Region can wait.’

I had my reasons and objectives for volunteering as a chef despite the risks.

‘Working at the inn makes it easy to gather information, and I can earn money safely. Plus, as a chef, I can start immediately without any special conditions.’

My plan was to adapt to this otherworldly environment while working at the inn, safely earning money, and building a foundation for self-sufficiency.

This was my first objective.

‘Now that I think about it, this is pretty fun—my isekai life.’

The start had gone so smoothly that I didn’t feel the discomfort people often associated with medieval fantasy worlds.

It felt more like a vacation. Or perhaps a hyper-realistic VR game.

If not for the mission to “save the Northern Region,” this would’ve been a perfect isekai holiday.

—

About an hour later, I prepared my first dish using the ingredients and tools available in the inn’s kitchen.

The dish was a simple Northern-style stew, the most popular and affordable meal in the region.

“Wow… this is amazing!”

“You weren’t kidding about your skills.”

“It’s way better than Dad’s cooking!”

“Shut it, you brat.”

Since it wasn’t practical to make just one serving, I ended up cooking portions for the innkeeper and his son as well.

Fortunately, they devoured my stew and praised it to no end.

But the problem was me.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Unlike them, I could barely bring myself to eat a few spoonfuls.

‘They call this delicious?’

The stew had a strong gamey odor, and the flavor was overwhelmingly bland.

‘Even if I use salt to fix the blandness, the smell is unbearable.’

As I stared at the stew, my mind buzzed with the expertise and knowledge of someone with a maxed-out cooking skill—alongside my Earthly sensibilities.

‘This body, Arad, comes with knowledge of isekai-specific ingredients that match the cooking skill level.’

It was fascinating.

From an Earthly perspective, my body was like high-performance hardware, and my soul, the OS, had integrated seamlessly.

‘As expected from a fantasy world, the North has decent spices and seasonings. Even rock salt is relatively cheap thanks to nearby salt mines.’

Whenever I focused, a wealth of information surfaced in my mind, like accessing a personal chatbot.

‘Combining that with Korea’s herbal traditions could enhance the flavors even more.’

As a Korean, my cultural background was steeped in using herbs and spices.

In Korea, even slightly toxic plants were considered edible if properly prepared, and people prided themselves on their ability to make food out of almost anything.

With my soul’s culinary knowledge and Arad’s max-level cooking skill, I had managed to produce this bland, smelly stew.

‘This stew is an insult.’

While Jack and Tom scarfed down the stew enthusiastically, I felt deeply ashamed.

—

The next morning, before dawn, I left the inn to gather ingredients.

I wasn’t tired—despite this body being non-combat-oriented, my basic stamina and strength stats, built up from grinding in the previous game, kept fatigue at bay.

“Ugh, it’s freezing…”

The cold was another matter entirely.

At least I wasn’t wearing just a linen shirt and leather jacket like yesterday.

Now, I had a thick fur coat and gloves Jack had given me, allowing me to brave the icy morning air.

Crunch, crunch, crunch.

The snow that had fallen overnight made the path outside the city challenging to navigate.

Even a light snowfall in the North piled up to knee-deep levels.

“Damn this cursed demon dandruff!”

“Why are you getting worked up already? It’s not like this is new!”

As I walked, I overheard residents grumbling as they cleared the snow.

“Looking for snow shoveling laborers! Work until noon, pay is 2 coppers! First 20 people only!”

Despite being a mid-sized city, Haven’s population included many outsiders like adventurers and travelers.

This meant the local workforce wasn’t enough to handle the snow removal.

Unsurprisingly, low-tier adventurers rushed toward the recruitment calls.

—

I passed by the hustle and bustle and headed toward the city’s outskirts.

Haven, though a mid-sized city, was a frontline settlement bordering a magic zone.

Its walls were impressively thick, tall, and long.

By the time I reached the eastern gate, which wasn’t connected to the Northern Highway or the magic zone, I was slightly out of breath and sweating from trudging through the snow.

“Hmm? Aren’t you the healer from Jack’s inn who treated Renon and Jack yesterday? Heading out before sunrise?”

A guard stationed near the gate recognized me.

He was likely one of the guards who had intervened at the inn yesterday.

‘Discipline seems solid.’

I glanced at the guard’s armor and weapons.

His halberd, made from Northern iron, gleamed even in the cold.

Northern iron, being more labor-intensive to forge, was typically reserved for knights, but here even the guards wielded it as standard gear.

His secondary weapons were made of regular iron, and his armor was fur-lined leather. The other guard nearby was equipped identically.

‘Uniform equipment for guards? That means the duchy provides their gear.’

This level of standardization was remarkable in a world where soldiers usually supplied their own weapons and armor.

It spoke volumes about the Northern Region’s military strength and discipline.

“I’m heading out to gather herbs near the city.”

I hesitated, unsure whether to speak formally to the guard, but decided to match his casual tone since he had spoken informally first.

“There are herbalists in the city, aren’t there?”

“Why pay for something I can collect myself?”

“Haha! Fair enough. Go on, then.”

“Thanks.”