Chapter 30
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: Delivery into the Dungeon
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“Huh? Didn’t I tell you the person I’m looking for is at least A-Rank? But this one’s B-Rank, and their awakening class hasn’t even been properly identified yet, so they must be an incompletely awakened hunter. There’s no way it’s them.”
Shin Ha-rang replied with a lie, and Park Ha-young let out a groan as she slumped in despair.
[Aaah... No way... I really did my absolute best investigating... That A-Rank magic stone... I was gonna sell it and use the bonus to buy that game console I wanted...! The new kidney edition just came out, and I was so excited...!]
I have to find my Magic Academy legacy. Aaah, aaaaah.
Park Ha-young’s wails fell on deaf ears for Shin Ha-rang. He was simply basking in the pride of protecting the identity of the delivery hunter known only to him.
“Your personal issues are none of my business.”
[What? This jerk?]
“If you want that A-Rank magic stone as compensation, try harder. Awakener Management Bureau employee.”
[Hey! Hey!]
“Not that it’ll happen.”
[This XXX bastard?]
Click. Shin Ha-rang hurriedly hung up the phone.
“Phew... Park Ha-young’s gonna throw a fit later, but this is the right choice for that person, right?”
He patted his chest in relief, then hesitated before cautiously reopening the file in the chat.
“Moon Chae-ryeon...”
‘What a pretty name.’
Now that he knew the identity of the delivery hunter he’d been so curious about, Shin Ha-rang felt a surging desire to see her again.
More precisely, he wanted to be her customer once more, enjoying the luxury of having delicious food delivered into the dungeon. And if possible, this time, to chat leisurely with her too.
“...Is that okay?”
Taking it slow with a delivery person whose lifeblood was speed and timeliness? It was nonsense, but Shin Ha-rang was too lost in thoughts of the delivery hunter to notice the contradiction.
Ha-rang turned his head, and his eyes fell on the neatly stacked packs of monster meat on the table.
After hearing that their guild master had holed up at home using rest as an excuse, the guild members had rushed over with these.
“Guild master! Eat this and get better!”
Who knew when they’d stopped by her booth. They’d each bought a bundle, and now they were piled high. Staring at the towering stacks of meat packs, Shin Ha-rang felt troubled.
“...When am I supposed to eat all this?”
Even the newbie Min Hae-yul had made and offered him sandworm meat dumplings. And on top, there was a cute note attached.
[I’m confident you won’t be able to stop after one bite!
-From Min Hae-yul]
“Heh...”
A chuckle escaped him. Min Hae-yul seemed completely hooked on the delivery hunter’s cooking. He was sure she’d remain a devoted fan from now on, faithfully joining dungeon raids.
She wasn’t puking after successful clears anymore, so her team leader just assumed she had a stomach of steel. Well, if it’s good, it’s good.
“...Shall I start with the meat dumplings?”
Ha-rang wasn’t much of a cook, so he tore open the packaging on the easy-to-eat dumplings first.
Steam rose gently. Even though time had passed since packaging, they were still piping hot. No need for a microwave or air fryer—the dumplings were in perfect condition.
‘How is this even possible?’
Maybe it was a property of sandworm meat. Ha-rang chalked it up to that and quickly picked up a dumpling with chopsticks, dipping it in soy sauce before popping it into his mouth.
“Hot hot hot, so hot!”
It burned, but rich juices leaked from the edges. The flavor was on par with xiaolongbao—absolutely divine.
The minced sandworm meat blended seamlessly with chives, spices, and tofu, harmonizing without losing their individual flavors. The wrapper was soft and translucent-thin, with a perfect chewy texture.
Haaaah. When Shin Ha-rang snapped out of the blissful wave of flavors, he’d already devoured all the dumplings and was chopping up sandworm meat to boil, pulling out green onions, minced garlic, and spicy green chilies to pair with ramen.
With things progressing this far, Shin Ha-rang solemnly picked up his phone again and called somewhere.
[Yes, this is Na Bo-na from Dungeon Assault Team 1.]
“Hello, Na Bo-na. This is guild master Shin Ha-rang.”
[Gasp, guild master! What’s up? Are you calling the guild members...?]
“Nothing like that. How many dungeon assaults are left this month?”
[...Huh?]
“I asked how many.”
[Uh, uh, yes. Only one left this month. And it’s a D-Rank, so we were planning to send lower-grade hunters for some easy training...]
“Increase them.”
[Huh? Oh. Do you mean increase the number of hunters entering the dungeon?]
“No. I mean increase the number of dungeon assaults I can join.”
[...?]
Na Bo-na, the team leader of Wing Guild’s Dungeon Assault Team 1 and a fairly competent hunter herself, thought:
‘Has the guild master finally lost it after overworking too much?’
Or maybe it was that hunter’s competitive drive to climb the rankings kicking in. Either way, it was clear her workload was about to increase for a while.
A mere guild member, Na Bo-na quietly decided to follow the guild master’s orders.
[...Yes, understood. I’ll try to schedule as many high-difficulty S-Rank or above dungeons as possible.]
“Good, thanks.”
Only Shin Ha-rang was excited.
‘If I dive into more dungeons, I’ll get to meet the delivery hunter, Moon Chae-ryeon again.’
It’s all for a delicious meal. Yeah, that’s it.
“Aow.”
He grinned like a fool, oblivious to his live-in cat staring at him pitifully.
Chae-ryeon’s leave of absence request went through smoothly. Since her university allowed special leaves for late awakenings as hunters, everything proceeded without a hitch.
“Alright, Chae-ryeon. What rank did you say you were?”
“B-Rank, professor.”
‘Actually S-Rank, but...’
The ranking machine had shown B-Rank anyway. Chae-ryeon rationalized it to herself.
B-Rank. Not great, not bad—it was enough to make a living as a hunter, so the professor’s face was serene.
“Your parents must be thrilled. Awakening as a hunter at your age. You’ll earn more than a mid-sized company salary.”
She flinched.
“Ah, yes. I suppose... so.”
‘No, professor. If they knew I chose to be a delivery hunter and took leave for it, my parents would flip out more than anyone.’
Thank goodness her current status was college student. If she were a minor, a hunter awakening notice would’ve gone straight to her family. For parents who wanted a stable life for her, becoming a hunter would be poison.
‘I can never tell them...’
Feeling a pang of conscience, Chae-ryeon could say nothing. She just kept up the soulless smile essential for social life.
‘Mom and Dad would kill me if they knew.’
Unaware, the professor encouraged her with a pleased expression.
“As a support class, you won’t have to join dangerous combats, so that’s reassuring. Use this time to find your calling.”
Had he noticed her always drifting through classes?
“...Yes.”
Her heart pounded with half anxiety, half excitement.
“Huuuuh.”
In the girls’ lounge at school.
Sprawled on the sofa, Chae-ryeon let out a weary sigh.
‘Can I really do this...?’
After the interminable meeting with the professor, she’d gotten her leave approved as desired, yet she was still frowning.
Of course, she hadn’t forgotten the snacks Delicious Waitress Mimi and Manager Sol-chan had thoughtfully packed, and she was munching away.
“So good...”
The egg potato salad sandwich and yuja tea combo wasn’t bad. The fragrant tea soothed her nerves, and chewing the nutty, soft bread brought calm.
With carbs kicking in, courage welled up where there’d been none.
‘Screw it, I just have to make it work, right?’
Making others happy with her cooking had been Chae-ryeon’s long-held dream.
She’d vaguely wished for as many recipients as possible, and now that the chance had come, she couldn’t let it slip.
She boldly devoured the last corner of the sandwich and wiped her mouth.
‘I already nailed the first and second orders smoothly. Cleared the quests too! So I can do this!’
With renewed resolve, she sprang up from the sofa—only for the system window to pop up after ages.
(◜◡‾)◜◡‾)◜◡‾)◜◡‾)◜◡‾)₎⁾⁾
system:Hi Hello~
system:A hearty and healthy lunch, Moon Chae-ryeon user!
“...!”
She startled and glanced around. To check if anyone else could see the status window.
Fortunately, she seemed to be the only hunter in here.
‘This is tricky.’
No choice—she pulled out earphones and her phone, pretending to be on a call for cover.