Chapter 22

That’s Monster Meat

“How are the new rookies?”

“They’re adapting pretty well. Most of them are a bit older, but getting older juniors is fairly common anyway.”

“Until it feels like they’ve completely turned over a new leaf, they’re staying rookies.”

“Yes, sir.”

Just like that, the threat that came to our unit was resolved in the form of new rookies being added. But that didn’t mean all of the unit’s problems were solved. If anything…

“We’ve gathered as much of the remaining oil as we can… but this is the limit. Excluding vehicle fuel, we can only run the generators for about a week.”

“…I see.”

Food, electricity. And all sorts of other problems that arose the moment supplies were cut off.

‘They were already limited resources. And now the number of people consuming them has increased.’

Those problems only accelerated with the survivors joining us.

In a situation like this, the path we had to take was probably only one.

“We’ll have to prepare to leave.”

I thought back to last time.

When the Lizard Chieftain attacked the base.

We were able to hold out against dozens of Lizard units not just because of various other reasons, but fundamentally because we were on the defensive. We were able to fend off the scattered attacks because we had been making use of the facilities of this Hwangjun Mountain Battalion and fighting a favorable defensive battle.

The safe and warm cradle that had protected us. But every child must one day leave the cradle.

If that was the case…

“We need to finish what we have to do.”

It was true that the time to leave the base was approaching. But we wouldn’t just leave like this.

‘After making full preparations.’

After accomplishing everything we could accomplish here.

We would leave the cradle behind.

To do that, first…

“How many Lizards did we hunt today?”

“Huh? About ten, I think.”

“Bring all of them to the front of the mess hall.”

We needed to push the unit’s rations to the next stage.

* * *

That evening, after dinner time had passed.

I called the people who could be considered the unit’s senior leadership to the mess hall.

Minjae Hyung, Gwang-il, and Su-hyeok, who had been the first to awaken and were now in charge of the mages, warriors, and shooters respectively. And Taejun as well, who helped with decision-making for the unit with his astronomical observation ability.

“You told us to come without even eating dinner. What’s going on?”

“Is there something you need help with in the kitchen?”

“That’s not it.”

After seating the people who looked confused by the sudden summons at the table,

I went into the kitchen and brought out the dishes I had prepared.

“Try some of this.”

“Oh.”

Kalguksu, skewers, fried dishes. Seeing the various kinds of food, their expressions brightened pleasantly.

“It’s good. What’s with the sudden spread?”

“Didn’t you say we’re short on ingredients? Meat-heavy dishes like this…”

With supplies cut off at the base, it was only natural that they would be curious about the source of the ingredients. The taste was good because I had put effort into it, but the origin of the meat was another matter.

If you’re curious about the source, I should tell you.

“That’s Lizard meat.”

“Pfft!”

“S-Sergeant Shin?”

Lizards, the very monsters we were fighting.

When they realized that what they had eaten was that monster, their expressions changed slightly, but thankfully, no one gagged.

To be honest, I had expected someone to start gagging. Thankfully, the people gathered here didn’t seem to have an extreme aversion to monster meat.

“…You’re not doing this just to mess with us. Let’s hear the reason.”

Of course, it wasn’t without reason.

The reason I suggested eating monster meat.

“Those guys who just became rookies.”

They had been the same humans, but to us, they had been enemies.

“So far, we’ve only been fighting Lizards. We were lucky they had clear weaknesses.”

“…”

“But according to what the survivors say, there are all kinds of monsters outside, including zombies. Some of them are even humans.”

It wouldn’t be the same as fighting Lizards.

Unfamiliar enemies, and humans we couldn’t fully trust. It would be a tough fight, so we had to be on high guard.

“Make full preparations.”

“What does that have to do with this…”

“Monster meat contains mana, so its effects are pretty good.”

Our unit’s food supply was now completely depleted, except for the bare minimum of combat rations.

We could buy rye bread from the shop so we wouldn’t starve, but that would cost points, and it wasn’t suitable for cooking. We would have to secure food on the ground, but a lot of time had passed since the incident.

‘Unless it’s preserved food, it’ll be hard to find fresh ingredients like meat.’

“We have to eat monsters.”

“…I get what you’re saying, but there are going to be plenty of guys who hate it.”

“Especially Lizards. The aversion will be strong.”

On weekends, the number of people stationed at our unit was originally around 200. About half of them had been eaten by Lizards. There were plenty of people who had watched the person sleeping next to them, or a close friend, get eaten right in front of their eyes. It was only because I had been managing the unit members’ mental states through the effects of my cooking that things were holding together. Otherwise, it could have turned into severe trauma, and on top of that…

‘Monsters that eat humans.’

There was no objection to hunting them, but being told to eat those monsters.

‘Does that mean people are eating monsters that ate people?’

If that monster had eaten someone they knew.

There would definitely be people who felt it was no different from eating their acquaintance. Whether it was an ethical issue or an emotional one.

The aversion would be significant.

“Who cares about aversion.”

Honestly, we didn’t have the luxury to worry about that.

I was a cook who had to keep this unit alive.

I had no intention of indulging the soldiers’ picky eating.

“As I said before, our number one goal is survival.”

“…”

“So let’s be clear. Either we end up getting eaten by monsters…”

“We eat the monsters and survive.”

The color of their faces changed slightly at my words. It might sound strange coming from me, but the answer was already decided.

“…Leave persuading the guys to us.”

“Hyung?”

“It’ll be more effective if we, as their squad leaders, persuade them, rather than you as the cook saying it directly.”

Minjae Hyung and the others nodded, seemingly without objections.

“We were already prepared for the day we’d have to make difficult choices.”

“…”

“With the world in this state, to be honest, eating monsters feels like an easier choice by comparison.”

Taejun even spoke as if it wasn’t a big deal. Some people, like me, saw eating monsters as a big deal. Others, like Taejun, could shrug it off with a ‘so what?’

Especially if it was for survival.

I trusted that the unit members would understand, even if they felt uncomfortable. If that was the case…

“Then I’ll leave the persuading to you. But…”

“Hm?”

“Whether it works or not, have everyone gather in the yard behind the mess hall tomorrow evening.”

“That’s not hard, but why?”

“Even if the ingredient is a monster, eating should fundamentally be something enjoyable.”

So that monster-based food wouldn’t remain as a bad memory.

I had to make an effort, in my own way.

* * *

Opportunities to eat delicious food in the army were, honestly, not that common. Our unit was relatively lax with regulations, so soldiers would sometimes have unit dinners among themselves, but even then, it was usually only when a department’s senior was about to be discharged.

In stricter units, unless there was an event like a sports day, even having a unit dinner was rare.

And today, a little after dinner time, the entire unit gathered in the yard behind the mess hall.

A long-awaited unit dinner.

“Wow, this is…!”

『A Hearty Low-Grade Cook’s Lizard Supreme Fried』

『A Hearty Low-Grade Cook’s Lizard Gochujang Stir-Fry』

『A Hearty Low-Grade Cook’s Lizard Kalguksu』

『A Hearty Low-Grade Cook’s Lizard Skewers』

『A Hearty Low-Grade Cook’s Lizard Steak』

.

.

.

“What is this feast?”

“What else? I put in some serious effort.”

One of my skills, 『Chef’s Eye』. It had been somewhat overshadowed by the combat-related ‘Insight into Butchery Techniques,’ but among its effects was clearly one that granted ‘Insight into Cooking Methods.’ It only taught a few representative cooking methods at most, but there was one thing I learned through this ability.

‘Lizard meat is basically similar to chicken.’

Lizards had a reptilian appearance. But since chickens’ distant ancestors were dinosaurs, I remembered hearing that snake meat and such tasted similar to chicken as well.

By the same logic, wouldn’t Lizard meat also taste like chicken?

And chicken was one of the most beloved ingredients among Koreans.

“I used every chicken recipe I know.”

Fried chicken, spicy stir-fry, chicken kalguksu, chicken skewers, and so on. Taking advantage of the fact that we still had a decent stock of sauces,

I tried to use as many different cooking methods as possible so people wouldn’t get sick of it, even though the main ingredient was only Lizard.

“This is… curry?”

“Yeah. Curry is one of the unit’s emergency rations, so we have quite a lot of it.”

“Wow! Fried chicken!”

“I prepared a variety of flavors, so pick whatever you want.”

Unlike the early days when fresh ingredients had been relatively abundant, recently we often had to make do with combat rations because we had to conserve food.

Considering that, this was truly a feast we hadn’t had in a long time.

Each Lizard was almost as big as a person. Thanks to that, there was more than enough meat. Thankfully, the unit members’ reactions weren’t bad.

“T-This is monster meat…”

“It’s good, though…?”

“The taste is good, but look at the stat increase. It’s on a whole different level compared to the food buffs we’ve had so far…”

For some people, there were ingredients they couldn’t bring themselves to eat even if they were familiar, just because of psychological aversion.

Dog meat, for example. Lizard meat was an ingredient they were trying for the first time, and it came from monsters.

Even so, seeing everyone eat so well…Honestly, as the one who cooked it, I couldn’t help but feel proud.

Still, there were soldiers who felt uncomfortable.

“I know that eating monsters feels really unsettling and emotionally difficult I do.”

“Sergeant Shin…”

“But trust me just once. I’ll make it damn delicious for you.”

When I approached them and spoke sincerely in my own way,

“Well… everyone knows your cooking skills, Sergeant Shin.”

“If the monster were humanoid or something, it’d be more unsettling. But Lizards, at least, seem manageable.”

“Honestly, thinking about all the Lizards we burned until now, it feels like a waste.”

Even the soldiers who had shown aversion to eating monsters seemed to relax. It was good because of the taste, but also because it was necessary.

In the end, every soldier came to agree to eating monsters.

“It’s a special occasion! Open all the soju and beer we’ve been hiding today!”

“Wait, you were hiding alcohol?”

“Where do you think all the leftover drinks from unit dinners went?”

“No wonder the cooks sometimes smelled like alcohol!”

Monsters had attacked the base, and I had been managing the unit members’ mental states as best I could. Even so, with the constant anxiety of not knowing when they might die, the overall atmosphere of the unit had inevitably grown tense.

‘We’ll be leaving the base before long.’

Before that, having a unit dinner like this to let off some steam once wasn’t a bad idea.

“Blegh.”

“Ah! Private Kim is about to throw up!”

“He can’t even hold his liquor, what’s he getting so excited for…!”

…Did we let them go a bit too wild?

That kind of scene did pop up here and there. But seeing everyone eat and drink excitedly, my mood wasn’t bad at all.

“And this is today’s main dish, the Lizard Chieftain dish!”

“W-What? When did you even kill that thing…!”

“I prepped it secretly, just in case a day like this came.”

“My god…”

I had let Lieutenant Kim try some as well, and the Chieftain’s meat was tastier and had stronger effects than regular Lizard meat.

Just in case, I had saved some, but I decided to release all of the remaining Chieftain meat today as well. Thankfully, the ingredients were plentiful to the point of excess, so it was pretty fun to keep refilling the dishes as I watched everyone eat.

In one corner, I could also see Ms. Lee Sang-ah, the representative of the survivors, walking around with a skewer in hand…

“Huh?”

Ms. Lee Sang-ah?

The reason we had to eat monsters was because, to survive, the buffs from cooking were essential.

In other words, it wasn’t something that needed to be forced on survivors who didn’t participate in combat. That was why only the unit members who took part in combat were invited to this dinner. So why was the survivors’ representative here?

‘She’s not thinking something weird, is she?’

Worried that she might think we were excluding the survivors and only taking care of the unit members, I hurried over to explain.

“Ms. Sang-ah? This isn’t because of any other intention.”

“…You’re eating monsters?”

“Huh? Yeah.”

It seemed she had already heard the unit members talking about Lizard meat and such. Thankfully, she didn’t seem to be thinking about discrimination or anything like that. She just looked shocked by the fact that we were eating monsters.

‘…Well, seeing people happily eating monsters does look pretty bizarre.’

In movies, you often see cult-like groups holding frenzied feasts while eating the flesh of demonic beasts, don’t you?

In reality, it was completely different, but from the outside, we might look similar.

“It might look a bit strange from the outside.”

“To survive… to go that far.”

Was she even listening to my explanation?

After muttering to herself for a moment, Sang-ah lifted her head and spoke.

“I have one request.”

“Huh?”

“Please let us officially join the unit as well.”