Chapter 25
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Delivering Into the Dungeon
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Moon Chae-ryeon's heart pounded with excitement.
It wasn't because the man was handsome. It was curiosity.
'What kind of outlandish method is he going to use to help me?'
She was dying to know what solution this man, who had so casually offered to help her with such composure, would propose.
'I am terribly curious as well!'
Delicious Waitress Mimi was huddled in a corner of the booth, staring intently at the man who had vowed to aid her master.
Bathed in the gazes of everyone from Mimi's Humble Bento Shop, the nameless man happily munched and swallowed the sandworm meat dumplings.
He even crunched on the crisp pickled radish alongside as he asked,
"Before that, if I lend you an idea to turn this situation around, you promised to make delicious food for me several times as thanks—can you swear to keep that promise?"
"Pardon?"
Gulp. The man swallowed the food down his throat.
"Didn't you say so earlier? If you promise to honor those words, I'll gladly share my wisdom with you."
"Well... I did say that."
Chae-ryeon scratched the back of her neck awkwardly, and the man looked at her with eyes full of strange anticipation.
He resembled a cat waiting eagerly for a snack, which made Chae-ryeon chuckle a little.
'He looks like such a prickly, fussy person on the outside, but his actions are totally different.'
But she didn't dislike his attitude or behavior. If anything, she felt a fondness for it.
'It'll be fine. Things can't get any worse here.'
Even if his plan failed, Chae-ryeon had nothing left to lose.
So she promised easily.
"Alright. I promise. If I can sell all my monster meat today!"
"For real?"
The man's pale green eyes sparkled like jewels. His cheeks were puffed out like a hamster stuffed with nuts from the generous dumplings Chae-ryeon had given him.
'Why does he seem so thrilled?'
Chae-ryeon nodded, puzzled but agreeable.
"I always keep my word. If we sell everything, I can even give you a cut of the sales as thanks."
The minimum appraised value for the baby sandworm meat she'd gathered from the SS-Rank Dungeon [Mirage Quest] was a whopping 2,000 gold per unit. She'd caught hundreds, so even giving away 10% of the profits after selling wouldn't hurt her.
'If he helps me achieve a total sell-out miracle, that's the least I can do for his efforts.'
That had been her intention in offering, but the man waved it off with an awkward smile, showing no interest in the money.
"No, that's fine. I never planned to take any fee from the start."
"Pardon? Then..."
"What I wanted was to eat more of the food you made, Hunter."
'Whoa...'
The handsome man with long platinum hair loosely tied back like an elf from a novel smiled warmly, and the impact was devastating.
"Y-Yes! I'd love that."
'Wow... he's really beautiful.'
Was he even a real hunter? He seemed more like an idol.
Chae-ryeon accepted his proposal amid a stream of inner exclamations.
Watching this, Manager Sol-chan clenched the hem of his apron tightly, while Mimi ground her teeth from her hiding spot in the corner.
'How dare that parasitic pretty boy try his tricks on our innocent master!'
'Using his good looks to seduce her... Suspicious human! What if he's the con artist trying to scam our master?'
Sharp glares stabbed at the man's fair, handsome face, but he paid them no mind and suddenly grabbed Chae-ryeon's hand.
"Thank you. Then I'll take that as acceptance and contact you later."
It was a warmer reunion than with a childhood friend you hadn't seen in years!
The two summons burned with jealousy and wariness as they glared at him.
"Sure, if that's easier for you. Oh, right! We should exchange names. I'm Moon Chae-ryeon."
"Yi Seo-ro. I have a business card, but... I didn't bring extras today. My companions probably have one, so I'll give it to you then."
"Sounds good."
'Even his name is pretty.'
Having exchanged names on impulse, Chae-ryeon nodded repeatedly.
Yi Seo-ro had already polished off the sandworm meat dumplings in that time. Not leaving even a single glass noodle from the filling made Chae-ryeon proud.
"Thanks for the meal. It was delicious."
'He seems like a good person!'
Yi Seo-ro handed back his empty bowl and tray to Chae-ryeon, making no secret of his regret.
"Would you like more?"
"Oh, yes! It was so good... It's been ages since I had food this tasty, so I wanted more, but I felt bad asking for extra samples."
His fair cheeks flushed pink with shyness. The sight was like red paint splashed on white rice paper, and Chae-ryeon quickly rationalized it.
'Well, passersby weren't even glancing anyway, so what's the harm in giving out more sample dumplings?'
It absolutely wasn't because she was swayed by Yi Seo-ro's beauty. Absolutely not!
"Of course. I'll steam more right away—eat up, and I'll be grateful!"
"Wow, thank you!"
Chae-ryeon piled a large serving of dumplings onto Yi Seo-ro's bowl.
Her special dumplings, steaming warmly, were lavishly arranged before him.
Thanks to that, the sample dumplings were running low fast.
"Oh, Sol-chan! Can you steam more? I need to hold down the fort here."
"Ugh."
"Hm? Sol-chan?"
"It's nothing... I'll go steam more in the portable kitchen right away."
Sol-chan headed off to steam more dumplings, his face a bit pouty.
"Master, don't be too swayed!"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Better if you don't know!"
With even Mimi stepping away briefly, only Chae-ryeon and Yi Seo-ro remained in the now-empty booth.
Mimi could only watch from afar without intervening, making it feel like they were alone.
Nom nom nom. Chae-ryeon asked Yi Seo-ro, who was devouring the sandworm meat dumplings with relish,
"By the way, Mr. Yi Seo-ro. When do we start that solution of yours?"
They'd made the promise, and she'd given plenty of samples, but he hadn't budged from his seat, focused only on eating.
'Does he need some tool for it?'
Or maybe he needed his group to join in?
Yi Seo-ro shattered Chae-ryeon's various guesses in one go.
"Hm? No. I'm already putting the solution into practice."
"...Pardon? But you've just been eating dumplings since earlier."
Nothing special had happened. The shop still only had Yi Seo-ro, filming a solo mukbang.
'What method is he even using?'
"Nothing's changed, though...?"
As Chae-ryeon voiced her doubt with a rising inflection, he smiled with upturned lips.
"No. Take another look around. The atmosphere has shifted."
"How could it, when you just sat there doing nothing... Huh?"
Chae-ryeon glanced outside the booth and widened her eyes.
"Isn't that Yi Seo-ro? What's he eating so deliciously?"
"No way. Yi Seo-ro? First time seeing him at the Hunter Market!"
"Why's he eating monster meat? Is this his next investment or something?"
"Man... he looks like he's really enjoying it. Never seen 'that' Yi Seo-ro eat with such a happy face. Must be some damn good dumplings..."
"If it's Yi Seo-ro, I trust it. The smell was tempting, but I thought it was fake bait with artifacts. Guess that rookie hunter in the booth isn't lying."
"...Should I try some too? Ahem, if Yi Seo-ro's into it, I can believe it!"
A fair number of groups passing through the Hunter Market had stopped and gathered around Chae-ryeon's booth, chattering away.
And in a very positive way.
Just from Yi Seo-ro eating her dumplings so enjoyably, the reaction was the complete opposite of the rude SNS posts from moments ago.
Chae-ryeon blinked at the astonishing change.
"Uh... Mr. Yi Seo-ro?"
"Yes?"
Yi Seo-ro was still blissfully devouring her dumplings with a joyful expression.
His puffed cheeks looked so pinchable.
"If you don't mind... what do you do? Who are you that just eating my dumplings draws this kind of reaction...?"
Chae-ryeon had expected him to be a famous hunter YouTuber or influencer.
After all, she hadn't sensed any of the overwhelming presence he'd had when she'd bumped into Shin Ha-rang before.
His flashy looks and outfit were a bit over-the-top, but she'd assumed he was just a rank hunter who liked dressing up.
But Yi Seo-ro smiled brightly and gave an answer that utterly shattered her expectations.