Chapter 55
Chapter 55
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: The Nuclear Chicken Feet Challenge
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Joy Luk stood blankly staring at the empty seat where Song Woo-yeon had abruptly stormed out.
Suddenly, he had no idea what was going on.
No Se-hee poked her head out from a nearby table.
"Should I go after him?"
"I have to."
Joy Luk gathered his things while speaking.
"I'll go."
"No Se-hee, you?"
"Yes."
No Se-hee got up from her seat, pulling on her outer jacket.
"You're busy with the franchise openings."
"I've wrapped up the urgent stuff, so it's fine."
"You'll end up pulling an all-nighter after coming back?"
Joy Luk had no comeback to that bullseye. No Se-hee chuckled once, then snatched the bags from his hands.
"You'll collapse at this rate. You need to hold it together until your team members get back."
The team members who'd worked under No Se-hee were one by one submitting resignations and clearing out.
"Park Deputy Manager will be in soon. He'll tidy up the distribution network nice and clean, so don't worry too much."
"......"
"Sure, President Song is pretty free-spirited, but you know he's not the type to act without thinking. I was surprised when he suddenly came back with a long-term deal with some village, yeah. But I checked the contract—it's airtight, no poison pills, total win-win for both sides."
No Se-hee stuffed the bags into a large carryall and hefted it up with a grunt.
"So yeah, I'm curious this time too."
A bright smile bloomed across her face.
"About how he'll turn this dying event around. It'll be a good lesson for me."
With her putting it like that, Joy Luk couldn't stubbornly insist anymore. She was right—there was still a mountain of work.
"......Alright, then. I'm counting on you."
Joy Luk bowed his head, and No Se-hee returned a silent nod before striding out of the office.
Time to head to Happiness Snacks.
It was just as No Se-hee entered the alley where Happiness Snacks was located. She could feel it was busier than before—not just locals, but quite a few tourists milling about.
'Weird. No reason for more customers... Oh.'
No Se-hee glanced down the alley and let out an involuntary gasp of admiration.
And no wonder—ever since Hapjae Neighborhood Gukbap 0212, the café across the way for waiting customers, Happiness Snacks, and Bingwa had all clustered together, the alley's vibe had leveled up.
What was once a plain neighborhood strip had become a photo-worthy hotspot, thanks to the harmonious interiors.
'The advantage of stores banding together with a shared concept.'
It felt like a chunk of the alley belonged to The Song. Like stepping into a mini theme park.
The atmosphere was perfect for borrowing old-school uniforms and snapping pics.
Sure enough, couples and young folks were snapping away nonstop.
'No wonder he put thought into the exterior design too.'
The buildings themselves were pulling double duty as ads. No Se-hee marveled once more at Song Woo-yeon's foresight.
Age aside, he was undeniably a rare talent.
There—Song Woo-yeon was visible in the distance, arms crossed, glaring at the shop like he was deep in thought.
As she drew closer, Song Woo-yeon spotted No Se-hee and whipped his head around.
"Oh? No Se-hee, you made it?"
"Yeah. Team Leader Jo seemed swamped, so I volunteered."
"Ah, right. Franchises opening one after another soon? I've been keeping tabs."
Song Woo-yeon was on top of the schedule too, chiming in immediately. He knew exactly how the company was running.
"Anyway, let's tackle this first. Da-on!"
Song Woo-yeon called out, and a server from inside the shop stepped out.
"What do you need help with?"
His beaming face was fresh as a young guy's that age. So young. No Se-hee glanced at Song Woo-yeon standing next to Jeong Da-on and really felt it.
Atmosphere, maybe? Jeong Da-on screamed college kid, while Song Woo-yeon had this oddly mature air.
Faces-wise, they looked the same age. Weird.
"Peel off that poster first."
Song Woo-yeon pointed to the event poster.
'Prime spot inside the shop. So they were pushing this event.'
New menu items usually got that wall space. No one could've missed what the event was.
"Got it peeled. Now?"
"Stick it here."
"......Here?"
Song Woo-yeon indicated the building's outer wall.
"Yeah. Passersby need to see it. Challenge foods like this have a different crowd from regular diners. No point posting inside."
True enough.
No Se-hee nodded in agreement right away.
Jeong Da-on slapped the posters up on the exterior one after another. Song Woo-yeon finally looked somewhat satisfied.
"Huh? What's that event over there?"
"Nuclear chicken feet in 20 minutes? Ah~. Saw something like that on YouTube."
"Yeah. Nuclear spicy noodles? Five bowls in 10 minutes or whatever? I watched it too."
Just moving the posters outside had people way more interested.
But no one stepped up to try.
A few hovered, asking Song Woo-yeon or Jeong Da-on about the details, but they just listened and left.
'Not enough.'
No Se-hee shot Song Woo-yeon a look of regret. He probably felt the same.
"...Let's drag out the outdoor tables. Planning to anyway when summer hits."
"Got it."
"Ah, Da-on."
Song Woo-yeon called back Jeong Da-on, who was heading to the storage room.
"You good with spicy food?"
"Huh? What's that?"
Gong Tae-min eyed the bustling street and asked his buddy.
"Fight breaking out or something?"
"Dunno. Cops around?"
"No cops."
Gong Tae-min tilted his head but kept walking. Curious since people were buzzing, but that was it—no deeper interest.
"PC bang after?"
"One shot of soju, then straight to PC bang~."
"Deal."
Same plan as always: booze it up, get buzzed, hit the PC bang for games. If the alcohol made 'em drowsy, they'd nod off mid-game.
"Huh?"
But something was off.
"Why's it so packed here?"
No fights or anything, but the local snack joint was mobbed.
It was exactly the spot they'd picked for chicken feet and soju, so they had no choice but to wade into the crowd.
"Ah, what a pain."
"You go check."
"Too lazy. Let's bounce somewhere else."
"No place around here beats this for taste."
"You go then."
"You're taller—better view. Go peek."
Prodded by his friend, Gong Tae-min scratched his head and grumbled.
Annoying, but fine, tall guy suffers, whatever. He trudged forward.
Pushing through the crowd, he glimpsed a guy seated at a table.
Thanks to his height, he could see over people's heads.
"Whoa, must be insanely spicy."
"Look at him sweat."
"Can he finish all that?"
Amid the murmurs, his view finally cleared.
'Huh?'
A guy around Gong Tae-min's age was demolishing a mountain of chicken feet and rice.
'What the hell?'
Behind him, a flashy poster caught his eye: Finish this massive ultra-spicy chicken feet in 20 minutes for a prize.
Unlimited milk or soda to cool the burn, rice refills on request.
"Only 5 minutes left—ain't gonna make it."
"You think you could finish that?"
"No way in hell~."
Gong Tae-min eyed the heaping bowl and thought.
'......I could probably do it.'
Baseless confidence surged.
'Psh, why not? Shovel down a bowl of rice first to line the stomach, then blast the chicken feet. Don't stop midway or it burns worse.'
Quantity was hefty, sure. But Gong Tae-min was a big eater—single portions never satisfied.
'Feels doable.'
That's when he noticed. Too focused on the poster, he'd missed the server girl holding up a paper.
Big bold letters: Today's Prize: 300,000 Won Culture Gift Cards.
'300k?!'
To a broke 20-year-old like Gong Tae-min, that was huge. Game top-ups? Items galore, skins for days.
'Fail? Just make it our snack. Price is like three portions anyway.'
They'd planned on three anyway—no biggie.
'Spicy? How bad could it be. Ate nuclear spicy noodles once—totally manageable.'
Sure, the toilet agony the next day, but whatever.
Beep beep beep!
"Aw~! Time's up—challenge failed!"
The alarm blared, the girl declared, and the sweaty guy slammed down his chopsticks.
Tongue lolling, panting, he chugged the milk she handed him.
Clap clap clap!
Crowd applauded—encouragement or pity, who knew. The guy bowed awkwardly and stood.
"Yes. Unfortunately, this challenger failed. Anyone else up next?"
People murmured and glanced around. No takers.
Gong Tae-min felt his heart pound and shot up his hand.
"Ah! We have a challenger!"
Onlooks went 'whoa~' toward Gong Tae-min. Chest puffed despite himself, he schooled his face casual.
Nail this? Free grub, 300k, crowd's attention. Score.
'Totally doable.'
Gong Tae-min strutted forward, convinced.
"Yes, have a seat right here."
The staffer set down the menu with a smile.
"Welcome, customer."
That grin somehow resembled some manga character smirking 'just as planned.'