Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Limited-Time Friend
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"So, you're saying you're an illegal immigrant, Olivia?"
"...!?!)
She suddenly staggered.
It must have hit her pretty hard.
"Me, illegal...? No, even so..."
"You okay?"
"Ah, yeah... I just got dizzy all of a sudden."
'Was it that shocking?'
Having her status confirmed again through someone else's mouth seemed to shock her. Well, the term "illegal immigrant" does carry a heavy connotation. Anyway, I couldn't help but want to hear the story of how the daughter of a world-class chef ended up as an illegal resident.
"I'd love to hear the details of what happened. Is that okay?"
"Sure, of course."
What I was curious about was why she left home and why, out of all the countries, she chose Korea. Olivia sorted her thoughts for a moment before starting her story.
"My dad is way too famous in Europe. Naturally, being his daughter, I got a lot of media exposure from a young age, and I became known as a cooking prodigy. Because of that, I couldn't build normal social relationships."
The life of a celebrity kid might seem all glamour, but everything has its ups and downs. Olivia's life was no different.
"From a young age, so many people approached me with expectations. I don't have any real memories of making true friends."
Whether it was her family background or her looks, she was in a situation where flies couldn't help but swarm. I could roughly understand her position.
"So my dad was really worried. He said my cooking skills have no rivals my age, but at this rate, I couldn't become a proper chef..."
"What kind of talk is that? Isn't being a chef just about cooking well?"
From what I'd tasted myself, her cooking skills were undeniably top-notch. It wasn't for nothing that she was pegged as the youngest Michelin three-star prospect.
The harsh criticism she'd faced so far was possible only because Korean cuisine was so far from her main specialty.
Even that had run its course now that her Korean cooking skills had risen so high, exhausting all variations of nitpicking. How quickly she'd adapted was proof of her incredible talent.
"My dad always used to say that a chef isn't someone who just cooks by recipe like a machine. A dish only truly has meaning when it carries emotions for the person eating it."
"Oh, that's a good one."
Isn't that a cliché from cooking stories?
Food that tastes even better when infused with emotion!
"Yeah, I got that part. But the problem came after."
"Huh?"
"I think Dad believed that if I fell in love with someone, I'd become an even better chef."
"No way."
"Yeah, without my consent, he arranged my engagement to a guy from another prominent family. Even though I had zero intention of dating anyone."
"...That's rough."
Seong-muk tapped his forehead at the plot with no easy outs. No matter how great her cooking, forcing an underage daughter into marriage like that? Prioritizing her culinary skills over her life. The Ramsey family might have its own skeletons.
"Makes sense why you'd run. So you left home right away?"
"At first, I just resigned myself to it. But then, I came across a movie made in Korea."
"...A Korean movie?"
I could almost hear the Taegukgi flag flapping in my ears. No way she fell for a Korean actor and came for fan activities...?
"It was about a woman who runs away opposing an unwanted marriage."
"Hmm, standard Korean movie alright."
"It was the story of a woman who gives up the status of a chaebol wife and lives freely, doing what she wants."
"For the first time, I felt my emotions surging while watching it. That's when I first got interested in Korea."
Olivia had apparently been deeply moved by a K-movie where the girl goes, "I can't marry him!" and runs away. Teacher Kim Gu, are you watching...?
"So just because of that movie?"
"It was a big trigger, but not the only reason. I thought Korea, being so far from Europe, would be beyond my dad's influence, so I'd be freer there."
It made sense. No matter how famous a star chef is, he can't have the same pull overseas. Then a question popped into my head, and I asked Olivia.
"One thing doesn't add up. You wanted freedom, so why go on a broadcast show?"
Seong-muk couldn't understand why someone who fled for freedom would appear on a Netflix show broadcast worldwide.
But surprisingly, the reason was very practical.
"...I ran out of money."
"Ah."
"As a minor, there are hardly any cooking jobs available. Regular part-time gigs don't pay enough."
Even attending school on a scholarship, she had to cover lodging and food in a foreign country.
Netflix needed the "daughter of Gordon Ramsay" title, and she needed money—it matched perfectly.
Thanks to gaining some fame in Korea, she occasionally held pop-up events, solving her money issues.
"Did your dad see that?"
"Who knows? He's so busy, I doubt he watches Asian variety shows."
She looked convinced he hadn't. There seemed to be some complicated family dynamic I couldn't guess.
"........."
Olivia fidgeted as if she had something to say. As expected, she soon spoke up.
"Seong-muk, can I ask you one favor?"
"A sudden request?"
"Is that a no?"
She looked up at me with eyes like jewels embedded with gold. I hadn't expected her to ask for anything. She was so beautiful it almost softened me, but I couldn't issue blank checks.
"Tell me first."
"......"
She hesitated for a moment.
Then she said something unexpected.
"Could you keep evaluating my cooking from now on?"
"...!?"
Honestly, I was shocked.
I never imagined she'd ask that.
'She wants to keep cooking for the guy who always trashed her...?'
No matter how I thought about it, it didn't click. She couldn't have fallen for a thug like me.
Maybe she's an M? But that seemed too far-fetched. When I couldn't guess, I had to ask directly.
"Why?"
"While making dishes for you to eat, Seong-muk, I feel like I'm grasping something. What Dad said about infusing emotions into cooking."
"Hmm..."
What emotion did she infuse to grasp it? Since I'd dissed her endlessly, anger was the most likely, but still.
I love delicious food, and normally I'd accept without hesitation.
'But I should decline this.'
It wouldn't help either of us. I'd asked her for Korean food, but her specialty was French cuisine.
I like Western food, but only occasionally. For this odd relationship to continue, one side had to adapt to the other.
Olivia didn't need to waste time on Korean food that wouldn't boost her career, and I didn't need to eat her Western dishes when I had a perfectly good nutritionist.
Her food probably wasn't nutritionally optimal either. And I couldn't demand nutrition-focused meals from a chef who prioritizes taste.
There were plenty of other people she could cook for.
I was about to refuse.
"I guess not, hu—"
"I made another bento. Try it and decide."
Right on cue, Olivia pulled out a bento. It was still warm, so she'd prepared it fresh.
"...Hmm."
I took the bento and opened it. Inside was a hefty eel steak rice bowl.
It looked Western-styled, but she'd gone to the trouble, so I had to eat.
"Alright, I'll try it."
I took the chopsticks and scooped a big bite.
The moment I ate, my eyes widened.
"Hmmm...!?"
Delicious.
But that wasn't all.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Congratulations! You have tasted an excellent dish! Dish Name: Eel Steak Bento Chef: Olivia Ramsey Grade: 1 star★ Effects: • Stamina temporarily increases by one rank. • Injury probability temporarily decreases by 30%. • Training effects temporarily increase by 10%. 'What the hell.'
I couldn't hide my shock.
The one raison d'être of the cooking heroine.
The 'cooking buff' had triggered.
There was a reason I was so surprised.
'Olivia isn't even a romanceable heroine...?'
So I'd assumed no buffs and ignored it. Yet it activated, meaning even non-standard heroines with certain talents can trigger system buffs.
'...This changes the game a lot.'
Analysts, cooks, cheerleaders, healers, athletes, chaebols, etc. Heroines are designed to help the player in some way.
Among them, cooking heroines had particularly low utility.
To trigger the buff, affection + cooking skill total had to exceed a high threshold.
— Player1 The conditions to trigger cooking buffs are insanely tough fml — Player2 For something so hard to achieve, the cost-performance is meh... — Player3 Just skip cooking heroines unless it's someone you absolutely can't pass up — Player4 Cooking skill needs to be top-tier, and your affection for the chef has to be sky-high for it to trigger. It took years for a heroine's cooking to peak in quality.
Years for the protagonist to build affection.
Compared to other heroines who help from the start, their value plummeted.
Of course, at 3-star peak grade, the buffs are insane, jumping tiers. But hitting 3 stars is like reaching for the stars.
Even heroines labeled "good cooks" usually ended with B-rank skills, so few achieved 3 stars.
But Olivia, from a superior lineage, was different.
I was stunned by the detailed stats on her cooking.
Affection toward target: Slight curiosity (30%)
Cooking Skill: S
'For real...?'
Overwhelming skill crushed the low affection gap. Forehead in hand at this bizarre first-time combo.
'What is this? Cooking heroines are supposed to suck efficiency-wise...'
Shattering other cooking types' ceilings from the early game. With her skill, 2 stars didn't seem far off.
This changed everything.
I had to keep her close.
"...What do you think?"
Her golden eyes looked up anxiously, awaiting the verdict.
I gave my honest impression.
"Delicious. Insanely so."
"Phew... Glad. So you'll keep eating it?"
"First, one thing to clear up."
"What?"
"About our relationship."
"............!"
Olivia tensed up at my words.
Her guard was up, like she thought I'd confess or something.
"Not that way, relax."
"...I didn't say anything."
It was all over her face, missy.
I didn't particularly want to, but for a cooking heroine, this was essential.
'To break 2 stars or higher, need to build affection somehow.'
Not romantic affection—friendship affection could theoretically reach 2 stars.
Love gives more points and easier triggers, but that's tough. Her skill was so high, friendship should suffice.
So we needed to define our relationship now.
"Olivia, what do you think our relationship is?"
"...Classmates?"
"That's too distant."
I sighed deeply.
We needed to close the gap a bit.
"You said earlier, people approach you with expectations, so no friends."
"Yeah."
"Ever think that you approaching me for a favor might be similar to those people you disliked?"
"............!"
"Not criticizing. I think you can be friends with those types too."
"Huh...? How?"
"Simple. I mooch off them the same way."
"Ah."
Olivia looked shocked, like she'd never considered it.
"Sure, it's need-based, not pure. But I see that as a type of friendship too. Human relationships are too varied to chase only purity."
"That... makes sense."
She seemed freshly impacted by my words.
After thinking, she asked.
"Do you want to be friends with me, Seong-muk?"
"Yeah, I do."
I answered without hesitation.
Adding a tiny caveat.
"One-year contract, though."
"...What?"
"If I don't get pro-nominated, I'm off to somewhere far. Might never see each other again."
"........?"
Olivia tilted her head.
Of course, that far place was the afterlife.
I didn't want to go, but thanks to this damn developer.
Anyway, no plans to get too attached. I pointed at her as she pondered.
"Keep it simple. You gain insight into emotional cooking through me."
"I get tasty food and training stamina from your cooking."
"Just for senior year of high school. No useless emotions like friendship or love—just mutual benefits."
Olivia nodded, seeming convinced.
"That's your idea of 'friends'?"
"Yeah, exactly."
I extended my right hand.
She shook it.
"Deal. I'll be your friend."
Under the clear sky, we shook on becoming friends. Limited-time, one-year friends.
'...Nice weather today.'
I looked up at the sky, feeling the fresh spring breeze.
What this relationship becomes in a year, what I'll be like then—probably only the heavens know.