Ryoko Kui’s 2015 award-nominated manga “Delicious in Dungeon” presents the classic hero’s quest with a delectable twist.

Many groups of warriors headed to the underground castle to complete its challenge and earn the old king’s prize. Laios thought his party would be the one to reach the end, but complications led to his little sister Falin taken by the Red Dragon and a sudden teleportation to the starting point. The adventurer wanted to rush back down to save her, but he and his two remaining companions Marcielle and Chilchuck barely had any rations left for another endeavour. Out of desperation, they went back with what little they have while ready to capture and cook any mystical creatures they encounter. Luckily they picked up a new member named Senshi who had plenty of wild culinary knowledge. Regrouped and hopefully prepared, the team descended back down and began their rescue mission.

Kui’s story would be one of the strangest Dungeons & Dragons campaigns. She fills it with some of the typical character types like a sorcerer, rogue, and knight along with familiar monsters. It appears that dungeon crawling is a normal part of life, including being revived to restart. “Delicious” is also like Gido Amagakure’s “Sweetness and Lightning” with Kui using the skilled Senshi to teach his new friends how to cook in detail and even leaving a recipe panel in each chapter. The characters dive into zoological discussions of the creatures, giving more life into known fantasy lore. As mentioned before, the series gained recognition and it earned a nomination for the 2016 Manga Taisho Awards. It was part of the list of 11 new titles that included Kei Sanbe’s “Erased” and Akiko Higashimura’s “Tokyo Tarareba Girls.”

Volume Three of “Delicious in Dungeon” will be arriving in November. For more information, visit Yen Press’s site.