Player Farming in the Dragon’s Lair - Chapter 23

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

23
A calamity upon the Continent.
Worshipped by the Demon Race, feared by the Clergy, a terror so profound that adventurers dared not speak its name aloud.
The Demon Sword, Ammol.
For reasons unknown, it now lay sealed by divine power in a remote corner of the Continent, where no one dared venture; yet once, it had been the very embodiment of dread.
Now and then, those who revered and feared its power would seek it out in a fit of recklessness, but all who challenged it met their end.
Even the Demon Kings would not dare lay a hand upon it.
That was Ammol.
How much time had passed?
For centuries, Ammol had dwelt alone in this Graveyard, untouched by living hands.
Then, one day.
Without warning, the blades of the fallen challengers buried in the Graveyard vanished.
Was it the work of a Grand Mage’s Spatial Translocation Magic?
Or had the Gods themselves intervened once more?
It was impossible to say.
Yet.
‘What in the world is that creature?’
A guest had arrived for the first time in centuries.
He appeared to be a young man in his twenties.
He showed no sign of wielding any particular power.
In fact, he seemed weaker than any who had come before him.
Regardless, the youth had come to the place where Ammol lay sealed and—
“Tree Chopping, Tree Chopping!”
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
—had begun chopping wood with a Hand Axe.
Here, in this desolate place.
With a cheerful smile on his carefree face.
‘He’s lost his mind.’
Any fool could see this was a dangerous place.
Yet he went about chopping wood without a care in the world.
A guest after so long.
Ammol thought it fortunate—a chance to break the tedium—and decided to have the youth pull him free, toy with him for amusement, and then kill him.
– Who are you?
The young man turned at the voice.
He glanced about sharply.
“Huh? A Demon Sword that can talk?”
– Do you know who I am?
– It matters not. I will speak plainly: I will grant you power.
– Come. Draw me forth. Then I shall give you the strength to rule the entire Continent.
“No thanks.”
The youth refused outright.
Ammol had not expected him to pull the blade without hesitation, but this reply—delivered with absolute certainty and not a hint of hesitation—was entirely unanticipated.
– Kehehe. Amusing, aren’t you?
– Do not fear. Accept my power.
“I’m busy. Don’t talk to me. Tree Chopping! Tree Chopping!”
Thwack-thwack!
‘Need to cook the Pork Belly. And they’re getting in my way.’
Woojin’s mind was consumed entirely by thoughts of Pork Belly.
Tender, marbled raw Pork Belly.
When he’d glanced at it earlier, the ratio of fat to lean meat looked perfectly balanced—like the cuts at a high-end restaurant.
And on top of that, it was Korean Hanwoo beef!
Not cheap American or Australian meat, but one hundred percent domestic Korean Pork Belly.
Crack!
With a sharp crack and a groaning sound, the grain of the wood split. The tree tottered, then fell away from Woojin with a tremendous crash.
Boom!
“Nice.”
Woojin began to methodically chop the felled tree into pieces suitable for kindling.
– Listen here. Come over to me, will you?
– If you accept my power, you could fell trees like that in a heartbeat. What do you say?
[You have acquired Tree Chopping Level 3.]
[Your proficiency with Tree Chopping Lv. 3 has increased.]
[Your proficiency with Tree Chopping Lv. 3 has…….]
It doesn’t matter.
Either way, as his proficiency with Tree Chopping grew, so did his speed and precision when felling trees.
“All done!”
[Firewood is being stored in your Subspace Backpack.]
[Firewood is being stored in your…….]
[Subspace Backpack]
[Stored Items]
– Firewood ×50
“Hehehehe. Pork belly, just you wait. I’ll grill you up real good.”
He made his way toward the administrator’s passage with a light step.
The Demon Sword watched the departing figure of this stranger—some sort of adventurer he’d met for the first time in centuries—with a heart heavy with futility.
– …….
* * *
Woojin had retrieved a stone slab and a long piece of stone.
This was part of the cave wall that made up the Dragon Lair.
[Unknown Stone]
– Description: A stone possessing remarkably high hardness. It comprises the Dragon Lair.
He wasn’t entirely sure, but it was undeniably hard stone.
It was perfectly suited for use as a cooking plate.
The problem with grilling pork belly on a stone plate was that stones saturated with oil tended to crack easily when heated.
But since this one was said to have superior hardness, there seemed to be no need for concern.
‘Strange though. How something this hard breaks apart as easily as earth once I use the Earth Shaping skill.’
He didn’t know the principle behind it, but either way, the situation worked in Woojin’s favor.
He decided to first create supports to fix the cooking plate in place.
Gripping a small shovel that fit snugly in his palm, he picked up an uneven, elongated stone and shaped it into a rectangular support structure.
“Earth Shaping!”
Crunch!
He was able to carve the stone’s surface with surprising precision.
Once he had fashioned three stone supports, Woojin set them into the ground at regular intervals, forming a triangle.
“Woojin. Is there anything I can help with?”
“Hmm. Could you grab a handful of those grass clumps over in the corner?”
“Sure thing!”
Kkamangi scurried off, dug up some carrot greens, and brought back a handful of the dried grass bundles he’d set aside separately, laying them down before Woojin.
Woojin then prepared the cooking plate.
He carved the uneven, rectangular stone slab with the small shovel.
He shaped it like an upturned pot lid.
[Unknown Stone Cooking Plate]
– Rank: E
– Effect: Heat Retention +30%
– Description: A cooking plate carved from the Unknown Stone that comprises the Dragon Lair.
“It actually became an item?”
Woojin gazed at the cooking plate with wonder.
Then another system message appeared.
[You have acquired Craftsmanship Lv. 1.]
[Craftsmanship Lv. 1]
– Description: You become proficient at basic tool handling and crafting.
“Oh ho.”
A new skill too.
Excellent.
Woojin arranged several pieces of freshly cut firewood beneath the cooking plate in a crisscross pattern, then used a gas burner to ignite the dried grass bundles Kkamangi had brought.
He placed the burning grass between the stacked firewood.
Thanks to the burning grass, the dry wood gradually began to catch fire and blaze.
Crackle, pop!
“Hehe. Preparations complete.”
Now for the main event—the pork belly feast!
Thump.
Woojin pulled out the pork belly and aged kimchi from his Subspace Backpack.
He grabbed a generous strip of pork belly and laid it on the hot cooking plate.
Sizzzzzzle!
The sound of Pork Belly cooking on the heated stone plate filled the air.
Woojin quickly added two more strips, arranging three in total.
Sizzzzzzle!
“That’s a good sound.”
The Pork Belly strips began to brown, turning a perfect golden hue.
Kkamangi’s tail was spinning like a propeller gone wild.
Like a helicopter, practically.
“W-Woojin! It smells absolutely delicious!”
(……) I agree.
Woojin chuckled softly and flipped the Pork Belly over.
He browned the other side evenly.
Once it was cooked through, he cut it into bite-sized pieces with scissors.
The stone plate was shaped like an inverted pot lid, so the rendered fat naturally pooled toward the center in a glossy puddle.
Woojin reached for a portion of Kim Misuk’s Aged Kimchi.
Without cutting it, he simply dropped it into the center of the plate.
Whoooosh!
The Aged Kimchi sizzled, roasting in the pork fat.
The clear oil mingled with the crimson kimchi, and
the Aged Kimchi took on a brilliant scarlet hue.
At the same time, an indescribable aroma rose from the plate.
His mouth watered involuntarily.
He cut the Aged Kimchi into rough chunks.
Then he picked up Wooden Chopsticks.
Click!
He decided to start with a Lettuce Leaf wrap.
He held a generous Lettuce Leaf in his left hand.
He placed a piece of golden-brown Pork Belly on top, brushed it lightly with Sauce, and
the grand finale:
a piece of Kim Misuk’s Aged Kimchi.
He wrapped it all together…
and popped it into his mouth.
“Mmmmm.”
Delicious!
So delicious his eyes nearly watered!
Pork Belly in the Tower!
And with Aged Kimchi in a Lettuce Leaf wrap, no less!
I, Woojin, am the happiest man in this Tower.
“W-Woojin! I want some too!”
“Hold on. Just a sec—I’ll wrap some up for you real quick.”
Woojin prepared identical Lettuce Leaf wraps and popped one into Kkamangi’s mouth and one into the Doppelgänger’s.
Kkamangi’s eyes went wide after the first bite. (OㅅO)
“What is this insane flavor?!”
(……) Amazement!
(……) Thumbs up!
“It’s even better with Perilla Leaves. You should be able to figure it out from here.”
Woojin filled an empty small Yukgaejang Cup Ramen cup with Pork Belly and Aged Kimchi for Kkamangi, so he could wrap and eat them on his own.
‘I wish the Dragon Lord could be here too.’
He’d invited the Dragon Lord to the Pork Belly gathering, but he’d declined, uninterested.
Still, remembering how much he’d enjoyed the Yukgaejang Cup Ramen earlier, Woojin was sure he’d love the Pork Belly too.
On a whim, Woojin looked up through the open ceiling where sunlight streamed in, gazing toward the sky.
“Dragon Lord! Pork Belly! Come eat with us!”
There was no response.
Kkamangi shook his head.
“The Dragon Lord is a Constellation. No point calling. Constellations don’t even glance at adventurers whose Hell Difficulty levels exceed 200.”
“So what? I’m the master of this place, so I can call him anyway.”
That was when it happened.
[The Lord of Dominion observes you.]
“Huh?”
Woojin blinked.
The Dragon Lord watches over me? What does this even…
[The Dragon Lord sighs, saying he had no particular interest.]
Ah, so it was you, Dragon Lord.
[The Dragon Lord says to give him just a taste.]
“Of course! One moment!”
Woojin wrapped a piece of pork belly in a lettuce leaf.
Two especially thick slices.
He added sauce as well.
He also layered in a generous portion of aged kimchi, its crimson hue deepened by the pork’s rendered fat.
“Here you are!”
The wrapped lettuce leaf in Woojin’s hand vanished.
It seemed the Dragon Lord had taken it.
[The Dragon Lord places the wrapped lettuce leaf in his mouth.]
[The Dragon Lord’s eyes widen and he falls silent.]
“Oh! Is it not to your taste, perhaps?”
That was not the case.
Because.
[The Dragon Lord says this is the most delicious thing he has ever eaten, and asks if there is more to give.]
All right.
Let’s keep the pork belly feast going.
Farming in the Dragon Lair (Serialized)
Author │ Gaebyeok S
Publisher │ Kim Ju-hyung
Publishing House │ J Plus Media Co., Ltd.
Marketing │ Han Jae-hyeok
Address │ 401, 11 Digital-ro 33-gil, Guro-gu, Seoul (Guro-dong, Acetech Tower 8th)
Email │ [email protected]
Website │ www.jayplemedia.com
ⓒ Gaebyeok S 2026
※ This work is published by J Plus Media Co., Ltd. in accordance with a contract with the copyright holder, and its contents may not be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and the author.
Violation of this prohibition may result in criminal and civil legal liability.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————