Player Farming in the Dragon’s Lair - Chapter 99

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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99
The man looked to be on the brink of unconsciousness.
Lee Woo-jin, who’d stumbled into this improvised snow cave, resolved to save him with whatever time remained.
‘His stamina and vitality are badly depleted.’
He carved a vent hole some distance away to ensure proper air circulation.
Cold air seeped through as the cave began to breathe, but there was no helping it.
He’d need to build a fire now—freezing to death was worse than suffocating in smoke.
Whoosh!
He pulled firewood from his Subspace Backpack and lit it with a gas burner.
Warmth spread through the cave, and the space grew cozier by degrees.
Without hesitation, he retrieved a carrot.
[Tower’s Blessed Vitality Carrot]
– Grade: C+
– Effects
– On consumption: permanently increases Vitality +0.01 (+0.01)
– On consumption: increases Vitality Recovery Speed by +10% (+10%) for 10 minutes
– Description: A Tower’s Vitality Carrot cultivated by someone. Eating it will temporarily boost your recovery speed and raise your vitality. Blessed, so its flavor and effects are doubled.
A carrot with Vitality Recovery Speed attached would help him regain his strength.
Still, he had no intention of serving it raw.
In terms of efficacy, carrot juice would work, but when someone’s ill, nothing beats porridge to a Korean—so he decided to make Vegetable Porridge with the carrot instead.
For the second ingredient, he chose onion.
This one boosted strength and stamina.
Besides, onion in porridge lifted the sweetness and made it delicious, so why not?
“Lalalala.”
Humming softly, he retrieved one onion and one carrot.
He laid them on a wooden cutting board and diced both fine.
Chop-chop-chop!
Next, he poured a splash of olive oil into a small pan, sautéed the diced onion and carrot, then added water and cooked rice.
Glub… glub…
The porridge simmered slowly, thickening.
He adjusted the seasoning with salt and soy sauce, tasting as he went.
“Mm, perfect.”
Delicious.
[You have completed ‘Vegetable Porridge’.]
[Your proficiency with Cooking Lv. 8 increases slightly.]
[Vegetable Porridge]
– Grade: B
– Effects
– Flavor Bonus +50%
– On consumption: increases all stats by 15% for 60 minutes
– On consumption: increases Strength and Vitality by 15% for 60 minutes
– On consumption: increases Vitality Recovery Speed by 50% for 60 minutes
– Description: Vegetable Porridge made with carrot and onion. Eating it when you’re unwell will make you feel refreshed in an instant.
Just as the porridge finished, the man opened his eyes.
He stirred as he slowly pushed himself up, startled at first, then relaxed his guard a little when he saw the large, soft white cloth draped over his body.
“You’re awake?”
“Who are you?”
“I’m an Adventurer. My name is Lee Woo-jin.”
“… Did you save me?”
“Well, you could say that!”
The man was a Duke—a border lord of the Northern Continent.
Most called him the Northern Duke.
“I am Duke Fraushwitz. Thank you for saving me.”
He tried to sit up, but strength drained from his limbs. He remembered the battle against the Snow Queen, master of the Northern Snow Mountains, and his defeat—but after that, consciousness had fled. Now he found himself utterly drained, powerless.
“Please have this. It’ll restore your strength.”
“This is…?”
The porridge sent up wisps of pale steam.
He wasn’t sure when she’d made it, but the Northern Duke accepted the bowl from Lee Woo-jin gratefully and took a spoonful with his spoon.
“…!”
Soft, fluffy grains of rice melted on his tongue.
A mysterious vegetable that added a chewy texture and subtle sweetness.
The porridge itself was excellent, seasoned to just the right level of saltiness.
What was even more remarkable was that it carried not just flavor, but an extraordinary buff.
[Consuming Vegetable Porridge increases all stats by 15% for 60 minutes.]
[Strength and vitality increase by 15% for 60 minutes.]
[Vitality recovery speed increases by 50% for 60 minutes.]
I felt my body recovering in an instant.
My dropped body temperature rose, and as the blood circulated through my limbs—which had been frozen and numb—warmth crept back in.
Slurp!
Fraushwitz ate the porridge eagerly, clearly enjoying it.
Lee Woo-jin decided to begin the task he’d come here for: mining ice.
He took out the Dark Moon and transformed it into a pickaxe.
Then he began harvesting the clean ice scattered throughout the cave.
Clink!
Clink!
Even as he ate, Fraushwitz’s eyes remained fixed on Lee Woo-jin.
It was understandable—it was all so strange.
Being saved and led into this cavern was one thing, but to actually produce such rare cuisine?
And more than that.
The Northern Snow Mountains were bitterly cold, especially at night.
Even well-trained elite soldiers could easily freeze to death if they weren’t careful.
‘What in the world is he wearing?’
Short sleeves and shorts, with both arms and legs exposed.
And his footwear—while not the crampons necessary for traversing the snow mountains, it should have been something that blocked the wind.
But what Lee Woo-jin had on looked like sandals you’d wear in the height of summer.
Anyone who walked these snow mountains in such an outfit would have to be mad, hoping to die of frostbite. In all his years, Fraushwitz had never seen anyone dress that way in these mountains even once.
Clink! Clink!
‘Why is he mining ice anyway?’
Fraushwitz reflected that this was a figure shrouded in mystery from every angle.
.
.
.
[Ice ×1 stored in Subspace Backpack.]
[Ice ×1 stored in Subspace Backpack.]
[Ice ×1 stored in Subspace Backpack……]
Fraushwitz had finished his porridge and was warming himself by the campfire.
Lee Woo-jin realized that his time was running out before the Forced Return.
After creating an artificial cave where Fraushwitz could rest safely, cooking, and breaking ice, only one minute remained.
Still.
He’d harvested a lot.
Hehe.
[Subspace Backpack]
– Ice ×99
– Ice ×11
A total of 110 pieces of ice!
Now he could make Injeolmi Patbingsu to his heart’s content.
[Forced Return will occur in 0 hours, 0 minutes, 48 seconds.]
“Are you feeling better now?”
“Yes, I’m truly grateful. Thanks to you, I was able to survive.”
“Haha, I’m glad. Well then, I should be on my way. Time’s up.”
“Wait, just a moment!”
Lee Woo-jin’s body vanished in a flash of light.
* * *
He returned to Tower Floor 50, where the Transference Book lay.
He’d arrived back precisely at the one-hour mark of the Forced Return.
It was then.
[Fraushwitz has survived.]
[Tower Floor 63 has undergone a change.]
Messages appeared, but he paid them no mind.
Right now, the important thing was making Injeolmi Patbingsu!
Whoosh!
Lee Woo-jin returned to the entrance of Floor 99 via the Teleportation Ring.
He rushed straight to where the Black Mithril Pot sat and peered inside.
The Red Bean Paste soaked in water lay submerged in the Black Mithril Pot.
The beans that had begun as small, hard crimson granules had swollen considerably plump over the past hour.
The wrinkled surface had absorbed the water and grown taut, and the color had deepened to a richer reddish-brown than before.
“Heh. Now I can get started.”
Ice was plentiful.
All the ingredients were ready.
Lee Woo-jin drained the water from inside the Black Mithril Pot.
“Rainfall!”
Whoosh.
Fresh water flowed in again.
Then he brought it to a rolling boil.
Lee Woo-jin stirred the contents of the Black Mithril Pot with a long wooden spatula, sweeping it round and round.
The Doppelgänger and Kkamangi watched intently from beside him.
The beans grew softer by degrees, crushed beneath the wooden spatula—they found the sight fascinating.
After stirring awhile, sensing it had grown too thick, he added a bit more water and continued boiling.
To bring out the sweetness more fully, he sprinkled in a touch of salt, boiled it vigorously, and once it began to reduce, he added sugar and honey.
“Mm. Such a sweet aroma.”
The sugar and honey had gone in generously, releasing an abundant fragrant sweetness. Thanks to the viscosity of the honey, a rich, commercially-textured Red Bean Paste was taking shape.
He scooped up a small spoonful to taste and found it pure sweetness—perfect Red Bean Paste.
Lee Woo-jin chuckled softly and removed the Red Bean Paste from the Black Mithril Pot.
[Red Bean Paste]
– Grade: B
– Effects
– Upon consumption: Skill proficiency gain rate +20% for 30 minutes
– Upon skill level-up while under the effect of Red Bean Paste: Low probability of an additional skill level increase
– Description: Red Bean Paste made by Lee Woo-jin. The mysterious power of the beans is maximized, and it seems one could grow stronger at rapid speed.
Since it was hot at first, he drew cold lake water, added ice to it, then placed the sealed Red Bean Paste into the chilled ice water to cool it.
In the meantime, he prepared the Ice.
He retrieved Ice from his Subspace Backpack and shaved it finely with a kitchen knife.
Scrape-scrape-scrape!
Thanks to Lee Woo-jin’s high Craftsmanship Skill, the ice was shaved finely and beautifully, as if processed through an ice shaver machine, and the shaved ice accumulated in a wooden bowl.
Now all he needed was to heap the Red Bean Paste on top, and the Injeolmi Patbingsu would be complete.
But it didn’t end there.
“Heh. Plain Patbingsu is delicious enough, but they say it tastes even better with Injeolmi on top!”
Shaved ice.
Generous Red Bean Paste on top.
Beside it, about four pieces of Injeolmi heavily dusted with soybean powder.
And so one bowl of Injeolmi Patbingsu was complete.
[The God of Adventure swallowed hard and stepped up eagerly in line.]
Lee Woo-jin tasted it first.
Taking a generous spoonful of ice and Red Bean Paste into his mouth, the cool ice and the sweet flavor of the beans complemented each other perfectly.
This time, eating the Red Bean Paste together with the Injeolmi, it was nothing short of divine. A perfect summer refreshment!
“Ahhhhh.”
A slight brain freeze.
But even that felt good.
They made Injeolmi Patbingsu and shared it together.
“Really delicious, meow! It melts right on my tongue, meow!”
(……) Nod, nod!
[The God of Authority says the flavor is quite addictive—honestly, almost frightening.]
[The God of Order says the Injeolmi is pleasantly chewy and the Red Bean Paste is refreshingly cool—delightful.]
[The God of Adventure finishes the remaining Patbingsu broth with a slurp and asks for another bowl.]
“Of course. I’m practically wealthy in ice.”
[The God of Fate says he’d like another bowl too.]
Day 53 in the Tower.
Made Patbingsu for dessert.
A Player Farming in the Dragon Lair (serialized)
Author │ Gaebuk S
Published by │ Kim Ju-hyung
Published by │ J Plus Media Co., Ltd.
Marketing │ Han Jae-hyeok
Address │ Suite 401, Ace Tech Tower 8, 11 Digital-ro 33-gil, Guro-gu, Seoul (Guro-dong)
Email │ [email protected]
Website │ www.jayplemedia.com
ⓒ Gaebyek S2026
※This work has been published by J Plus Media Co., Ltd. in accordance with a contract with the copyright holder, and the contents may not be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and author.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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