Give Me Another One!

Jack had no idea what to do with the bundle in his hands, which was packed full of ingredients.

In the end, the most eye-catching method he could think of was—

"Come take a look! Delicious ingredients from the dungeon! Absolute delicacies you've never tasted before!"

Selling them by shouting on the street.

It happened to be the time when the adventurers were "getting off work." The Ancient City on the surface of Sain Underground City was bustling, and the streets were extremely noisy. There were merchants everywhere shouting even louder than he was, so no one paid him any attention.

"This isn't working."

Jack dragged his bundle through the crowded street, but no matter what he did, he couldn't trade places with the merchants for a good spot. In the end, he could only set up his stall in a relatively deserted street corner.

Shouting couldn't attract anyone, and no matter how good the goods were, they wouldn't sell. Jack's eyes turned as he thought of a brilliant idea.

Clang, clang, thud—

A moment later, he had set up a grill. He put plenty of charcoal on it, then added several Lobster Fish, Snake Frogs, and other strange ingredients. After seasoning them with spices he could buy immediately, "Old Jack's Barbecue Stall" was freshly established!

"Luckily, I learned how to barbecue when I was young." Jack fanned himself while congratulating himself on having learned quite a few life skills in his youth.

Late-night snacks were supposed to be beer and barbecue. It was the same in every world. On top of that, the Ancient City currently had its peak foot traffic of the day. As long as the stall wasn't too terrible, someone would always take a look. Whether they bought anything was another matter.

"What do you want to eat tonight?" Several adventurers passed by.

"Whatever." "I'm fine with anything."

"Then how about stew?"

"Forget it, it's too greasy." "The stew's broth will remind me of the swamp. Please don't make me think about it."

"Weren't you the ones who said anything was fine?! Then what do you want to eat?"

"Whatever." "I'm fine with anything."

"Fine, fine, fine."

That adventurer had been tormented into silence by his companions. Suddenly, his nose twitched, and he spoke subconsciously:

"That smells great, but I can't tell what it is."

His companions also twitched their noses when they heard him and chimed in. "It smells like roasted meat, but—but I can't tell what kind of meat it is."

Their earnest expressions happened to confirm a classic joke:

When you fart, as long as you say, "What's that smell?" everyone else will greedily inhale your fart.

"Over there! That barbecue stall!"

Seeing customers arrive, Jack put on a professional smile. It was something he had perfected while working part-time as a waiter when he was young. "What would you folks like to eat?"

"Boss, what exactly are you selling—" The young adventurer had just begun to speak when he caught sight of the things on the grill and suddenly fell silent.

"What the hell is that?!" he blurted out involuntarily, attracting the attention of passersby as well.

Jack looked at the strange things on the grill, fell silent for a moment, then calmly introduced them one by one. "This is Lobster Fish, this is Snake Frog, this is Bacon Leaf, and this one is called, uh, Tuna Octopus."

"What?" The young man understood every word, but still couldn't make sense of it.

As adventurers, they often encountered all kinds of strange monsters. But monsters had also evolved naturally, and their appearances followed certain patterns.

Lobster Fish, Snake Frog, Bacon Leaf, and the like were completely unlike anything that could have formed naturally!

If the young man had lived on Earth, he probably would have said, "Did this fish mutate after drinking too much nuclear-contaminated water?"

Unfortunately, he didn't. After struggling for a long time, he finally managed to ask, "Can this stuff really be eaten?"

His companion stared at him in shock, thinking, This isn't a question of whether it tastes good! These things look like the products of an alchemist's deranged experiments! They can't be eaten, can they?

"Why don't you pick one and try it?" Jack noticed that the crowd around him was growing, so he raised his voice. "These are specialties of Sain Underground City. You can't eat them anywhere else!"

Specialties from the dungeon!?

So they came from Sain Underground City. That explained everything.

Everyone unexpectedly had that thought. Ever since the mutation, the monsters inside Sain Underground City had taken on forms no one recognized. Even professional monster experts would be completely stumped.

"Sain Underground City produces strange creatures" had recently become a common consensus among adventurers.

"Then give me a piece of this." The young man who had spoken first chose the Bacon Leaf, which looked relatively normal.

It was a thick, yellow-green leaf, but its appearance resembled beef with a very high fat content. After being roasted over charcoal, fat dripped down steadily. It certainly looked much more appetizing than the Lobster Fish and the others.

"Here." Jack cut off a small piece and handed it to him. He hadn't added any extra seasoning, letting him taste it in its natural state.

The young man hesitated, then stuffed it into his mouth.

"So salty!" he cried out. But after chewing carefully, his eyes lit up. "What a unique texture! It's like eating high-grade beef, but it also has the crispness and distinctive fibers of a plant. The charcoal roasting is just right, too. And this saltiness comes from the meat—no, the leaf itself, right? It cuts through the greasiness while stimulating the taste buds."

He excitedly gave a thumbs-up. "I give it a perfect score!"

Since when did you become so eloquent?! His companion stared at him in even greater shock.

"Give me one slice—no, three slices. No, wait, five!" The young man pointed all over the grill. "That one, and that one too. I want to try them all. Boss, add up the price!"

"Take it easy, take it easy. If you order so much, how will anyone else get a chance to eat?" Jack cheerfully pointed behind him.

Only then did the young man notice that a large crowd had gathered behind him at some point. They were all watching!

"Hey, kid, is it really good?" A burly man swallowed. The young man recognized him. He was Gutsy Tel of the Strategy Group, a Silver-rank adventurer!

Normally, the young man acted extremely respectful whenever he encountered a Silver-rank senior. But this time, faced with delicious food, he showed some backbone and said, "I already reserved five pieces of Bacon Leaf. Go buy something else!"

"Why, you little—" Tel glared at him, then said to Jack, "Old man—cough, cough—sir, please give me one Lobster Fish."

"Here." Jack broke the roasted Lobster Fish apart, sprinkled it simply with salt, and handed it to Tel.

The fish meat was white and fragrant. It didn't have much fat, just enough to make its surface glisten. The salt made it look even more appealing. The two pincers had been split in half and covered with a layer of melted cheese. Jack had also thoughtfully brought over a small box of butter, about the size of a thumb, as dipping sauce.

Tel opened his huge mouth and swallowed the slippery fish meat in one bite. Then he picked up the tender white pincer meat, dipped the cheese-covered piece into the butter, and slurped the whole thing down.

Everyone watched his reaction. After all, he was a Silver-rank adventurer, and everyone trusted his judgment.

"Hmm." After swallowing the last bite, Tel pondered for a while and said, "I couldn't taste it. Give me another one."

Although he deliberately furrowed his brows, anyone with eyes could see the slyness in his gaze.

So everyone stopped holding back!

"Give me one Lobster Fish!"

"I want the tentacles from the Tuna Octopus!"

"Don't listen to that picky bastard! Sell me the whole Tuna Octopus!"

"Bacon Leaf! I want Bacon Leaf!"

"Get lost! I reserved that!"

Jack was overjoyed.

Many thanks to the readers who provided inspiration!

Everyone, give me more suggestions to copy~