Chapter 466
“Hmm? What’s the matter now, Master?”
“We’ve been behaving.”
“Yeah, yeah. We absolutely weren’t planning on stabbing you in the back and escaping to the Spirit Realm. Right?”
“Of course. Unless we want to end up as grilled lizards, we’d never betray you.”
“Enough. Quiet down. My head hurts.”
The Five Great Elemental Spirit Kings dashed out.
Following them, Havelian, Malang the Azure Dragon, and Fried appeared.
“Miyo?”
“Kyaooo!”
“For what reason did you summon this great divine beast, Malang the Azu—no, the Azure Dragon?”
The divine beasts and ancient species affiliated with Veteran Corporation.
While consuming mana stones was a challenge for humans, for them, it was far from impossible.
In fact, they were an excellent source of magical energy, more akin to a fine meal.
‘Well, the mana stones belong to Behemoth anyway, so there’s nothing to lose.’
Of course, if they lost, they’d be reduced to dust…
But that wouldn’t happen.
“You’ve all worked hard, haven’t you? So, I’ve prepared a special feast. Don’t hold back, eat up.”
“Wow, Master… I’m touched.”
“You idiot, Undine. Can’t you see it’s obviously a trap?”
“Huh? A trap?”
“Look over there…”
Sylphid pointed at Behemoth.
A small girl was inhaling mana stones with incredible intensity.
Above her, in stark contrast to her petite frame, floated a massive purple sphere of incomprehensible proportions.
Whoosh!
Just a brush against it, and one’s bones would evaporate entirely.
Even now, the sphere continued to expand in size.
“This feels off… There’s no way this food is just a simple reward for our hard work.”
Even Malang the Azure Dragon sensed something was amiss.
“Don’t worry about it. Just eat to your heart’s content. Even if your stomach bursts, there won’t be any issues as long as you eat more.”
“Wait, you’re not saying we have to eat more than that girl, are you?”
“Come on, would I drag you into such a dirty contest?”
“…Knowing you, you absolutely would. More importantly, tell me—if we lose, that purple mass won’t come crashing down on us, right?”
Oh. It seemed this one had spent enough time around to grasp the situation quickly.
“Our Malang the Azure Dragon is quite sharp. But sometimes, being too perceptive can be a curse.”
So just do as you’re told.
No complaints. No resistance.
That’s the only way to survive long in this Tower.
“Damn it.”
Thus began the eating contest.
⁕ ⁕ ⁕
Crunch! Crack!
…Gulp!
Fifteen minutes had passed since the match started.
The time wasn’t particularly long, but the sheer amount of mana stones consumed in that brief period was beyond imagination.
With their lives on the line, everyone desperately stuffed mana stones into their mouths.
“Hiiik… W-why is my belly swelling like a mountain?”
Undine patted her stomach, now stretched to its absolute limit.
Her small frame had been force-fed to its physical limit.
“J-just kill me already… please…!”
Sylphid flapped weakly in the air before plummeting to the ground.
“Huff… huff…”
“Miyoooo…”
Malang the Azure Dragon and Fried were also gasping for air, utterly exhausted.
They had only endured due to sheer coercion, but their bodies had long since surpassed their limits.
“Master, at this rate, we’re all going to die.”
“Yeah, yeah. I know. I can see how hard you’re struggling. But don’t worry, I prepared a special trick for this exact situation, so you can relax.”
“A-a special trick… You mean we can stop eating now?”
Undine’s eyes sparkled with a sliver of hope.
Of course,
In most realities, a sliver of hope remains just that—a sliver.
“No, I’m casting a spell that will let you eat even more.”
Jinhyuk skillfully flipped his frying pan.
[Lv15 ‘Otherworldly Restaurant’ has been activated!]
With the speed of lightning, a special sauce was drizzled over the mana stones.
Eating the same thing over and over again would get boring, so this was his attempt to make the flavor as appealing as possible.
“Ugh, Master, there’s skull-shaped smoke rising from this purple soup.”
“It might look bad, but it actually tastes quite decent.”
“Still, this is a bit…”
“If it’s really that hard, should I stick a funnel down your throat? It’ll slide right in, gulp gulp.”
“N-no! I can eat on my own! Look, slurp… ugh… gulp! Slurp…!”
With tears in her eyes, Undine choked down the special mana stone soup.
And then—
…it was delicious?
No, more than that. The flavor was so overwhelmingly good that it made her forget her fullness entirely.
“No way… How can something taste this good…?”
Undine hurriedly grabbed a second bowl.
“For real? Is it really that good?”
“There’s no way something made by Master would taste that—”
Sylphid, who had been skeptical, took a bite and immediately widened her eyes in shock.
There was no need for further words.
Her expression said it all.
“I want to taste it too.”
“Me too!”
With that, the rest of the Spirit Kings also jumped into the second round.
How much time had passed since then?
Before they knew it, the enormous purple sphere above Veteran Corporation had swelled even larger.
However—
“I can’t… anymore…”
“I… I give up too.”
The taste and aroma may have deceived their minds, but their stomachs remained full.
‘I knew it would end up like this.’
Observing the entire scene, Behemoth grinned in satisfaction.
Well, he had to admit, gathering such gluttonous subordinates was impressive.
Especially since Malang the Azure Dragon, one of the divine beasts, had a size advantage far beyond the others.
And seeing them desperately lathering mana stones in strange sauces to keep going—it was, honestly, quite amusing.
‘If their opponent were anyone but me, this trick might have actually worked.’
Indeed.
Unfortunately for them, their opponent in this contest of ‘Gluttony’ was Behemoth.
From the very start, this battle had only one possible outcome.
Even without going all out—
Behemoth had already consumed twice as many mana stones as them.
[Remaining Time: 0h : 12m : 38s]
Kukukukuku!
The massive purple sphere in the sky trembled as if it were about to come crashing down.
“Regret provoking me as you die.”
Behemoth chuckled as he glanced at the dwindling time.
“You talk as if you’ve already won.”
“Isn’t that obvious? There’s only ten minutes left. Even if the sky splits in half, there’s no way you’ll catch up.”
Gulp!
A mana stone the size of a human head vanished.
Unlike the relaxed Behemoth, the Spirit Kings’ faces had gone beyond pale—they were foaming at the mouth.
Even if Behemoth stopped eating entirely at this moment, a comeback was impossible.
“Hm, with only twice the difference, an upset still seems possible…”
“I get that you’re frustrated about dying in such a pathetic way, but don’t make up nonsense. More importantly, why did you even challenge me? If you had just stuck to using those cheap little skills of yours, you’d have had a slightly better chance.”
“Don’t get too cocky. The thing about battles is, you never know how they’ll end until the very last moment.”
“That’s the same tired excuse I’ve heard from countless losers. Fine then, let me put an end to this.”
Behemoth, no longer interested in hearing more, approached a nearly one-meter-wide mana stone.
He planned to crush all hope by consuming the largest stone in one gulp.
However, something was off.
“…Huh?”
Behemoth’s pupils trembled.
And for good reason—
The one-meter-wide mana stone that had been right in front of him just seconds ago had disappeared like an illusion.
…Did they use an inherent ability or skill to deceive his eyes?
Or was it some other trick?
No, that couldn’t be.
This battle was being directly overseen by the system under the rule of ‘Consuming Growth.’
All kinds of possibilities raced through his mind when suddenly—
“Moogi.”
An odd voice rang in Behemoth’s ears.
⁕ ⁕ ⁕
Amber eyes.
Obsidian-black skin.
The ancient species, Goguma, stared at the pile of mana stones, gulping with anticipation.
“Moooogi!”
“That’s right, Guma.”
Jinhyuk stroked Goguma affectionately.
The Spirit Kings? They were merely a distraction to lower Behemoth’s guard and create the illusion of a possible comeback.
The real key to victory was Goguma.
‘Ten minutes left.’
The perfect moment to make a move.
“All you have to do is eat all of this. Once you finish, more mana stones will appear, so don’t worry about the supply. Just eat as much as you want.”
“Mooogi!”
Drool dripped from Goguma’s mouth.
“This is ridiculous. What do you expect that little reptile to—huh?”
Behemoth’s eyes widened in shock.
Crunch! Crack!
Chomp! Chomp!
It was beyond comprehension.
Goguma leapt onto the mountain of mana stones and devoured them at a rate faster than the blink of an eye.
“What… what the hell is that insane lizard?!”
What else?
“It’s an ancient species, just like you.”
“That dim-witted thing… is an ancient species?”
That was impossible.
At a glance, it looked no different from a starved mutt.
Still, regardless of its appearance, Behemoth couldn’t afford to be careless.
In just seconds, it had already eaten dozens of kilos of mana stones.
Even with the gap still significant—
The real problem was…
His pace had been completely disrupted, and the sudden chase had thrown off his rhythm.
‘Damn it! So this was the plan!’
Behemoth hurriedly swallowed another mana stone.
Damn it. It wasn’t as easy as he thought.
Watching Goguma devour at such an insane speed only made him more anxious.
“Mogi! Mogi!”
Goguma, purely enjoying himself, had now nearly caught up.
At this rate, there was a real chance he could be overtaken before time ran out.
And in the worst case… he might actually lose.
Behemoth’s carefree attitude completely disappeared.
He finally realized this was no time for playing around.
[Behemoth activates Lv?? ‘Gigantification’!]
Kukukukuku!
Behemoth’s body transformed instantly.
Now standing over 30 meters tall, his gaping maw and razor-sharp horns exuded an overwhelming presence.
Even compared to the Kraken, he was just as terrifying.
So gigantification was also considered part of his ‘consumption’ abilities, huh?
A bead of sweat ran down Jinhyuk’s cheek.
“I’ll swallow every last mana stone here.”
Behemoth opened his mouth and inhaled the entire mountain of mana stones at once.
He was trying to widen the gap and crush the competition in one fell swoop.
However—
Nom nom nom!
“…What the hell is wrong with that thing’s body?!”
It was like a black hole.
Ignoring all laws of physics, Goguma’s eating defied common sense.
[Remaining Time: 0h : 0m : 53s]
Chomp!
Crunch! Mogi!
This was no longer a battle.
It was a war of pride between two ancient species.
And the result—
A tie.
They had consumed exactly the same amount.
They had stuffed themselves to the absolute limit within the time given.
Even with a knife to their throats, they couldn’t eat another bite.
“…Impressive lizard. To think you have a stomach as strong as mine.”
“Mogi… Mogi Mogi!”
After such a heated battle, a strange sense of camaraderie formed between them.
Had they not been mortal enemies, they might have wanted to do this again sometime.
Now, only one second remained.
And just as the timer hit zero—
[Time limit has…]
Crunch.
“Ugh… how do people even eat these?”
Jinhyuk casually nibbled off a tiny corner of a mana stone.
[…The battle has ended.]
[The winner is Veteran Corporation.]
“Oh? We won?”
Jinhyuk grinned.