Multiverse Gourmet Hunter

Haruto stared at the chunk of flesh in his hand, his expression shifting between unease and disbelief.

At this point, he was almost certain he really was inside some enormous living creature.

The tentacled monster from earlier was probably a parasite that had made its home within the beast’s body.

Just as fear began creeping back into his thoughts, however, a strange sensation came over him.

The faintly sweet, metallic scent lingering beneath his nose had somehow turned into the mouthwatering aroma of fresh meat.

It was not especially strong, yet it carried through the air with startling clarity, making his stomach growl before he could stop it.

’Can this stuff... actually be eaten?’

Haruto swallowed.

Common sense told him the idea was completely insane, but his taste buds seemed determined to disagree.

He glanced around.

The passage remained silent, with no sign of movement anywhere nearby. Even the tentacled monster outside appeared to have left.

After a moment of hesitation, Haruto gritted his teeth and decided to trust his instincts.

He pulled the alcohol stove and lighter from his backpack, sliced the meat into evenly sized strips, and carefully arranged them over the small burner.

The moment he lit the stove, a flame sprang to life.

"Sssss..."

As soon as the meat touched the heat, it began to sizzle invitingly.

Fat dripped from the edges and burst into tiny sparks when it struck the flame.

The aroma intensified at once, becoming at least ten times richer than before.

It carried the deep savoriness of beef, the juicy fragrance of pork, and another distinctive flavor Haruto could not quite describe.

His mouth was already watering uncontrollably.

Once both sides had turned golden brown, he sprinkled a little salt over the meat, picked up a slice, and stuffed it into his mouth without waiting another second.

The instant his teeth sank into it, the tender flesh almost melted against his tongue.

Rich juices burst free and spread across every corner of his mouth.

There was not even the slightest trace of gamey flavor, only pure, concentrated deliciousness!

It was softer than any premium beef he had ever tasted, yet still had just enough bite to make every chew satisfying.

...

"This is incredible... It’s so damn good!"

Haruto closed his eyes, nearly groaning with pleasure.

The fear and tension that had been weighing on him vanished almost entirely beneath the overwhelming taste.

He devoured every last slice, then licked the corner of his mouth, still craving more.

When he looked at the pale red walls surrounding him, he found himself seriously tempted to cut off another piece.

Unfortunately, his stomach was already stretched tight. Unless he wanted to eat himself sick, he would have to stop there.

After packing away the alcohol stove, Haruto tightened his grip on the kitchen knife again.

This time, there was a little more confidence in his eyes.

Whatever this place was, at least he would never run short of food—and absurdly delicious food at that.

Once he had steadied himself, Haruto began following the pale red passage deeper inside.

It was time to properly explore his surroundings.

The corridor twisted and turned, occasionally splitting into branching paths until it felt like an endless maze.

Haruto had no idea how long he had been walking when a flash of green suddenly appeared ahead.

He stopped in his tracks, staring in disbelief.

There was a tree growing inside a space made entirely of flesh.

Wasn’t that taking things a little too far?

Haruto approached and discovered that it was a modest-sized orange tree with thick, lush branches.

Its green leaves gleamed beneath the faint light, while the boughs were weighed down by plump golden-orange fruit.

"A tree growing inside a monster... This world is completely insane!"

Muttering to himself, Haruto hurried over and plucked one of the oranges from a branch.

It felt surprisingly heavy in his hand.

The peel was smooth and hard, nothing like the soft skin of an ordinary orange.

’The meat was edible, so the oranges should be too... right?’

He tried peeling it as usual, but no matter how hard he pressed his fingertips into the skin, it refused to budge.

All he accomplished was making his fingers ache.

...

"Why is this thing so hard?"

Annoyed, Haruto examined the completely undamaged orange, then brought it to his mouth and tried biting into the peel.

His teeth scraped against the surface with a gritty crunch, leaving fine powder across his lips and tongue.

A powerful salty flavor exploded in his mouth, followed immediately by the familiar sweet-and-sour taste of citrus.

Strangely enough, the two flavors blended perfectly.

It was salty without being overwhelming, and the citrus kept it refreshingly balanced.

Haruto froze for a moment before hurriedly pulling out his kitchen knife and chopping down at the orange.

The blade bit into the peel with a crisp crack.

With a little more force, Haruto split the fruit cleanly in half, revealing what lay inside.

Instead of ordinary pulp, the orange segments were formed from translucent amber crystals.

They glittered like gemstones beneath the light, scattering brilliant reflections across the passage.

"Is this a Salt Orange?"

Haruto stared at the crystalline fruit as scattered pieces of information began clicking into place.

The tentacled monster.

The fleshy passages.

The edible walls.

And now, a Salt Orange growing inside the creature...

The details fit together like pieces of a puzzle, and Haruto finally realized which world he had entered.

Toriko.

His expression became very strange.

This was a world built around gourmet food, filled with rare ingredients and terrifying beasts.

In the world of Toriko, an ingredient’s Capture Level usually reflected both how dangerous it was to obtain and how delicious it would be.

Even a beast with a Capture Level of 1 required ten fully armed soldiers to handle.

More terrifying still, the world was divided into the Human World and the Gourmet World, with the Human World making up only a tiny fraction of the planet.

The Gourmet World was home to countless creatures capable of wiping out human civilization.

...

As for where he was now...

Haruto looked around at the pink walls of flesh as a horrifying possibility took shape in his mind.

He seemed to be inside a Regal Mammoth.

A fully grown Regal Mammoth could reach fifteen hundred meters in length and had a Capture Level of 48.

More importantly, somewhere within its body was the legendary ingredient known as the Treasure of the Ancient World—Jewel Meat.

Haruto’s heart began pounding wildly, caught between lingering terror and overwhelming excitement.

He had somehow wandered into the body of a beast with a Capture Level of 48.

If he had encountered the Regal Mammoth outside, he might as well have lain down and waited to die.

It could probably kill him just by breathing in his direction.

But right now, he was already inside it.

Even better, although the Regal Mammoth’s internal structure was incredibly complex, parasites only seemed to appear around the stomach.

The other areas were relatively safe.

In other words, Haruto had landed inside a massive natural safe house—and somewhere within it was one of the finest ingredients in existence.

Jewel Meat.

The piece of flesh he had roasted earlier had already tasted so incredible that it had completely overturned everything he thought he knew about food.

So how extraordinary would Jewel Meat, the legendary Treasure of the Ancient World, taste?

Haruto’s eyes lit up with burning excitement.

He had to try it!

Without wasting another moment, Haruto quickly picked every Salt Orange from the tree and stuffed them into his backpack.

These were no ordinary salt substitutes.

Using their crystal powder as seasoning would undoubtedly elevate any ingredient to an entirely different level.

Once he had gathered them all, Haruto’s objective became perfectly clear.

He was going to find the Jewel Meat!

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