It's a Bargain! One Watermelon for Fifty Thousand Won!

“Fresh squid, just caught this morning from the East Coast! Four for twenty thousand won! Come take a look!”

The human world was always surprising. There was so much to see, and especially so much to eat.

But what amazed him the most was something else entirely.

Whoooooosh-!

A flying object roared through the sky.

At first, Karanto had been excited, thinking it was a mutated Arutus.

If an Arutus (a passenger plane) of that size had laid eggs, the Demon God would surely be pleased.

But he quickly realized that wasn’t the case.

“Why are these airplanes flying around all the time?”

“Exactly, I don’t get it either. Tsk tsk.”

He figured it out through the conversations of humans.

There was something else that amazed him too.

Vroooom-!

Vroooom-!

They were objects moving at incredible speeds.

Their name was…

“Right, cars.”

Karanto smirked as he recalled the human conversations.

Planes were something he saw only occasionally, but cars were everywhere in the human world.

How convenient was that? No need to walk and tire yourself out.

‘If only our Red Orc tribe had something like this, we could have united all the orc tribes…’

War required mobility.

And those cars had immense mobility.

If they could be used in war against other tribes, the results would be overwhelming. A strategy of swift strikes and retreats would cripple the enemy.

‘That bus in particular could be extremely useful.’

He wanted it.

A single bus could carry dozens of Red Orcs, giving them the speed and transport capacity to dominate any battle.

“Tsk.”

It was nothing but a dream.

Right now, there was no way for him to return home. Even if he found a way back, there was no way to obtain a bus.

Of course, if he asked the Demon God, given His merciful and generous nature, He might just grant the request. But even orcs had their pride.

Besides, the Demon God might not know, but Karanto had once been saved by Him in battle.

“Sniff sniff.”

Clicking his tongue in disappointment, Karanto suddenly sniffed the air.

He followed the scent.

The source was a small stall with a red tent (a street food stall).

A tantalizing aroma was wafting from it.

As he crept closer and glanced inside, he saw all kinds of food spread out.

“It’s hot, so eat slowly.”

“You too, oppa.”

“No, this won’t do. I’ll blow on it for you. Hoo- hoo!”

Gulp!

Karanto swallowed his saliva.

He was twelve years old.

In all his twelve years of life, he had never experienced such inner conflict.

‘It looks like it’s free…’

Humans used money to buy things. But the food in that red tent seemed to be free.

The human male and female were taking food freely, yet the owner wasn’t saying anything.

This made him even more certain.

‘Maybe I should just have a little taste.’

In the end, Karanto cautiously stepped into the red tent.

“Welcome.”

Nodding in response to the owner’s greeting, Karanto pulled his hood down further.

“What would you like?”

“Chriiik!”

“Excuse me?”

“Chriiik! That…”

“Oh, you mean the fish cakes?”

Fish cakes… Yet another valhallan food name to remember.

Karanto nodded.

“Yes.”

“Here you go.”

As expected, it was free. The owner handed it over without hesitation.

“Thank you.”

“No need to thank me. I should be grateful. Let me know if you need anything else while you eat.”

“I will.”

Karanto took a piece of fish cake.

Making sure the owner and the human male and female weren’t watching, he turned slightly and cautiously took a bite.

“Ooooh!”

Before he knew it, an exclamation burst from his lips, and he felt the owner’s and the others’ gazes on him.

“Are you okay?”

“Ah… Yes. It’s just so delicious that I couldn’t help myself.”

“I’m glad to hear that. Actually, we use specially cultivated radish in the broth. It makes the fish cake taste even better than other places.”

“Is that so?”

“Of course! Once customers come here, they never go to other stalls.”

“I can believe that. It tastes like Valhalla.”

“Valha…la?”

“It means ‘a taste of heaven.’”

“Oh! Then how about trying this too? It’s a chicken skewer. We don’t use store-bought sauce; we make our own. It’s so good that customers call it ‘addictive chicken skewers.’”

“Chicken skewer…”

“Would you like one?”

“That would be wonderful.”

“Haha, here you go.”

The owner was kind.

He even wrapped a napkin around the end of the skewer to keep the sauce from getting on Karanto’s hands.

Karanto bit into the skewer.

“Oooooh!”

“Too hot?”

“No, it’s just so delicious that I couldn’t help myself…”

“Haha! You’re very expressive about food.”

“With a taste like Valhalla’s, who wouldn’t be?”

“Thank you.”

After that, Karanto devoured the fish cakes and chicken skewers. At the owner’s suggestion, he also tried something called a hot dog and another called a sausage.

The sausage wasn’t as good as the fish cakes, but it was still tasty. The hot dog wasn’t as good as the chicken skewer, but it was enjoyable.

Soon, the table was piled high with skewers.

“You have an incredible appetite.”

For an orc, eating well was the highest compliment.

Even though the owner probably didn’t mean it that way, Karanto felt pleased.

Not only had he met a kind human, but he had also eaten such delicious food. There was no reason not to be happy.

“I’ve eaten well. May the gods guide you to Valhalla.”

Karanto turned to leave.

“Excuse me, sir?”

“Hmm?”

“You need to pay.”

‘As expected.’

Park Yeon frowned.

He had wondered where the filthy stench was coming from, and it turned out to be one of the Demon King’s lackeys.

“What? You ate all that, and now you say you don’t have any money?!”

“But…”

“But what, you bastard?! Take off that robe! What, are you some kind of wizard? Why the hell are you covering yourself up with a robe in the middle of summer?!”

“Squeak! But the owner offered first…”

“I told you to try it because you were eating so damn well! What the hell do you think you’re doing, stuffing your face when you don’t even have money?! Call the police! Call the police!”

“Next time, I’ll squeak! Compensate…”

“Compensate next time? What kind of goblin nonsense is that? Pay up right now!”

Karanto trembled with betrayal.

The owner had been nothing but kind just a moment ago. But now, he looked ready to grab him by the collar.

The killing intent he exuded was enough to make even Karanto, a member of a fierce warrior race, feel a rare twinge of fear.

Park Yeon sighed as he watched Karanto.

‘Of course. Just like an ignorant orc to dine and dash.’

It was understandable that the owner was angry.

Given an orc’s appetite, he probably hadn’t just sampled a few pieces.

So yes, it made sense for the owner to be mad, but…

“You bastard, you think this is the first time I’ve dealt with scum like you? You’re coming with me, now!”

“Guys like you need to rot in jail for a bit! This pisses me off so much, seriously!”

“If you don’t have money, don’t eat! I swear, I don’t understand what gives you the nerve. And look at the size of you! If you had just eaten a little, I wouldn’t even be this mad. Argh!”

That was a bit harsh.

‘Orcs really do need a lot of supervision. If they needed a hero’s help, their everyday behavior must be even worse. Tsk tsk.’

Shaking his head, Park Yeon approached Karanto, who was being berated.

“Excuse me, sir.”

“And who the hell are you?”

“I don’t know how much he ate, but I’ll pay for it. How much does he owe?”

“You know this guy?”

“Well, rather than saying I know him, I’d call it an unfortunate connection.”

“An unfortunate connection, and yet you’re paying for him?”

“Ignoring someone in trouble just because of a bad connection isn’t the way of a hero.”

The owner squinted at him.

The way he talked made him sound like a lunatic. But if he was offering to pay, whatever.

“It’s 620,000 won.”

“620… Huh?! How much?”

“620,000 won.”

“……”

“Squeak! I am deeply ashamed, My Lord.”

“It’s fine.”

“But because of me, squeak! You had to go through such trouble…”

Seo-jun chuckled.

It wasn’t so much trouble as it was a minor incident.

He had been busy preparing for business when he received a call. The caller was the owner of the street stall.

“Did you at least enjoy the fish cakes?”

“Squeak! Indeed! They tasted just like Valhalla's food!”

“Then that’s all that matters.”

“However, 620,000 won does not seem like squeak! A small sum in the human world, and for you to have spent such a large amount, I would have no excuse even if I were to die. Squeak!”

Park Yeon scoffed.

“You’re right that you’d have no excuse. Do you even realize how many rubber gloves you could buy with 620,000 won? Exactly 62! That means it’s as if you ate 62 rubber gloves, you glutton! Tsk tsk.”

“Squeak! You talk too much for a hero!”

“Is that why there’s a saying that you should never save an orc? No race is as ungrateful as orcs.”

“Squeak! It wasn’t you who saved me, it was My Lord!”

“You should at least acknowledge the intention to help!”

“But you didn’t actually help! Squeak!”

“Stop that squeaking! It’s contagious!”

“Squeak! Squeak! Squeeeeeak! Squeeeeeeak! Squeak! Squeeeeeeak! Squeeeeeeak!”

As Karanto kept provoking him, Park Yeon’s face turned red with anger. He turned to Seo-jun.

“Demon King! According to legend, orcs are supposed to be quite the delicacy. How about we butcher him like Krekseg?”

“Squeak! My Lord! This hero must have some ulterior motive for sticking by your side so closely! Squeak! If you just give the order, I’ll send him straight to Detolan! Squeak!”

If valhalla was heaven for orcs, Detolan was the opposite.

Seo-jun chuckled at their antics.

Somehow, it felt like Park Yeon had found a friend.

Park Yeon was rather surprised.

No, to be honest, he was so shocked that his legs nearly gave out.

‘How…’

The priest Vorpian he had revered like a father had been exceptional in all areas, but he was especially renowned as an authority on mythology and the ancient gods.

He had even published over a dozen papers on the subject.

Growing up under such a priest, Park Yeon had naturally learned a great deal about the ancient gods.

And among them, the exploits of a certain god named Daikraus had remained deeply ingrained in his memory.

He was an evil god.

One who had descended upon the Middle Realm, corrupting people and turning them against each other.

But at the time, even the celestial gods had been unable to stop Daikraus.

Because of his divine power, Polymorph.

Polymorph was a spell so legendary that even among the ancient gods, it was classified as mythical.

Not only could it alter a person’s mind, but it could also transform their very form. Using this ability, Daikraus had managed to evade the celestial gods’ pursuit.

But that wasn’t why Park Yeon was shocked.

He was shocked because the spell, which was said to have been sealed away after Daikraus’s death, was now manifesting at the fingertips of the Demon King.