Moonlit Forest Deal
In a forest somewhere, bathed in the moonlight pouring down from above.
Crackle—crackle—sparks flew from the campfire, and a woman sat before it, scribbling away intently.
Then, a notification chimed in her ear.
"Hello?"
Dahyun answered the call with a tap near her ear, not pausing her report-writing for a second.
From the other end came the incredibly soft voice of her colleague from the game planning department, Min Jaehong.
-Haha, Dahyun. Hi there?
"…Hi."
Dahyun replied to his cheerful greeting with a suspicious tone. What's up with this guy? was written all over her face.
-Haha, Dahyun. You busy right now? Can you talk?
He wasn't usually this nice…
Dahyun responded awkwardly. "
…Why, Jaehong? Is this about the report? Don't worry, I'm working hard on it right now."
-Oh, I see. You're writing the report.
"…Is that why you called?"
-No, no. Of course not.
A tense smack of lips came from the other side.
-I just have a favor to ask.
"…A favor?"
It was an utterly unfamiliar word coming from Min Jaehong of all people.
"What kind of favor?"
-Well… it's not anything major…
"Not major? What then?"
-Haha… I'm just mentioning it, so no need to feel burdened.
"I'll be the judge of that."
-This is… something from upstairs, so…
"What from upstairs?"
-I, uh, my senior asked me, so I had no choice…
"Team Leader Kim? Or Manager Park?"
-Ahaha… I'd rather not say.
Min Jaehong's awkward laugh echoed from the other end.
Dahyun cut in firmly. "Forget it."
-…Pardon? What do you mean, forget it…
"I said forget it. I refuse."
-B-but I haven't even said it yet.
"From the way you're talking, it sounds shady. Am I right?"
-W-well, not shady exactly…
"Forget it. Tell your senior to come ask himself, or better yet, don't mention it at all."
-Uh… Dahyun…
"Isn't our company all about that flat, horizontal culture? This is getting awkward."
In a workplace where saying yes to every request meant the same pay but double the work, you had to push back hard on stuff like this.
Dahyun knew that all too well.
But Min Jaehong wouldn't back down easily.
-But it's a free culture too, right? Favors are fair game.
"Refusing is free too."
-Come on, just hear me out first. You can say no after.
"……."
-It's really no big deal, and you're the only one who can do it, so…
Her ears perked up at "only one who can do it." Getting recognized for your skills by others at the company felt pretty damn good.
"…What is it?"
Min Jaehong asked cautiously.
-Uh… are you with Hura right now, by any chance?
The unexpected name jolted her awake. "Why do you ask?"
-Haha, saw you together in the video. Wondered if you're still hanging out.
Dahyun realized this was about Hura. She replied calmly. "No. We're not together now."
-Oh, really?
"Yeah. I had to come out first to write this report. Someone kept rushing me. Otherwise, we'd still be together."
Grrr… The beastly growl at the end made Min Jaehong gulp.
-I-I see… Then, did you at least add him as a friend?
Sigh— Dahyun let out a breath. "Yes, I did. So stop beating around the bush and spit it out. Why the suspense?"
-Well, you see… Actually… Uh, hear me out to the end? You can refuse, but please consider it positively if you can…
"Sigh."
-Our planning department is thinking of holding a cooking contest soon!
Dahyun's eyes widened at the surprise announcement. "…A cooking contest?"
-Yes. The chef class has really hit rock bottom in popularity, right? Bad rep too. But with all this sudden interest in chefs floating to the surface, why not use a contest to hype it up like other classes?
"Ah… That's a great idea."
Strike while the iron's hot—hell, buy a motorboat and go full throttle. The planning team had been bummed watching their lovingly crafted chef class flop hard. To them, Hura was a once-in-a-lifetime hero, and this was a golden opportunity from the gods. Miss it, and you're an idiot.
-Right? Upstairs already greenlit everything.
Min Jaehong's tone brimmed with confidence.
-So I was wondering if Hura might be interested.
"……."
She saw right through the ploy. To make the contest a smash hit, they needed Hura—the box-office gold.
She got the picture now.
"Hmm… I see?"
Min Jaehong gulped at Dahyun's loaded murmur.
"So I'm Hura's one and only connection, huh?"
-Y-yeah, pretty much. We can't contact users directly.
Pangwol was super cautious about staff interference to preserve player freedom. No direct outreach to Hura, so they hunted down his friend Dahyun for the ask.
Dahyun was Hura's friend first, company drone second. Friends chatting? No issue.
-If you, who’s close to Hura, could just mention it…
"Heh heh heh…"
-…….
Dahyun chuckled slyly. "So, convince Hura to join the cooking contest?"
-W-well, bluntly put… yeah.
"Hmm… I'd need some incentive to get motivated."
As she trailed off, Min Jaehong bit.
-Th-the results report on the contest and user reactions? I can give you that. Easy stuff, and you'd score big bonuses.
"And?"
-…Uh…
"Ah, to convince Hura, you'd need to treat him to something tasty first, right?"
-…….
"Jeez. Hura's such a master chef, regular food won't cut it. This is tricky."
-…I'll give you the company card.
Dahyun grinned. "Heh heh, got it. Send over the contest docs first. Gotta know the details to sell it."
-S-so you'll do it?
"I'll give it my best shot, so don't worry."
-Thank you! I'm counting on you, Dahyun!
"Sure sure~ So I can turn in this report late, right?"
-Of course! Who cares about that report now?
"Got it. I'll give convincing him a whirl. Don't get your hopes too high."
-Yes! We're banking on you!
"…I said don't expect miracles."
Dahyun ended the call and chucked her half-done report into her inventory.
She muttered excitedly. "Score! Time to eat something yummy with Customer-nim!"
The contest itself? Whatever. She was just thrilled for an excuse to dine with Hura.
Humming a tune, Dahyun called Hura.
* * *
"Hello?"
-Customer-nim!
"Ah, Dahyun. You ditched me first, huh. Where are you now?"
-Somewhere in the woods south of Yuten Village.
"What'd you go there for?"
-Gotta grind monsters and level up fast. Quest done?"
"Heh heh, obviously. Rewards are very satisfying. Ever heard of the Flame Ray Sword?"
-…What's that? Anyway, something came up. You free tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow? That's… Sunday, right?"
-Yes. Make time, even if you have to. Evening-ish."
"Eh, I'll try."
-Something good's up, so clear your schedule and wait. Got it?"
"Something good? What?"
-No fun spoiling it. See you then! Bye!
Click—
What's that about? I scratched my head.
Then I picked up the pace to catch up—the call had left me lagging a bit.
* * *
We left Harten and pushed north, north through the blizzard.
Past the Ice Devil's ice wall, into fiercer and fiercer snowstorms, north without end.
Good news: No monster attacks, thanks to the powder from Dapam.
And even if there were, Molrangkau had our backs.
The blizzard howled so hard you couldn't see ahead, but we strolled comfy as could be.
Thanks to the fire Molrangkau floated in the air.
It burned with warm light, forming a big round barrier-sphere around us.
No snow leaked in, so it felt like a damn tour.
I glanced at the fire's owner.
Molrangkau kept fiddling with the necklace around her neck—my gift clearly thrilled her.
She caught my eye and looked over.
"Aren't you cold?"
The fire kept it from freezing, but her skimpy outfit—shoulders and legs bare—looked chilly.
But the wearer just curved her eyes demonically with a wicked grin. "Oh? ~Worried about lil' ol' me?"
"……."
She flipped right back to polite speech like the banmal never happened.
I could've sworn she went informal earlier, but she played dumb: "Me? When?" Thick-skinned as hell—I never knew.
Side effect from fighting the Shovel Knight? How's it selective?
"I'm the Red Witch. Ultimate fire mage. Think I'd feel cold?"
"…True."
Come to think of it, she hadn't worn a stitch of fur in Harten either. Who's worrying who?
I sighed and hurried on.
Molrangkau tucked her hair behind her ear, batting those eyes with a flirty smile since our gazes met—but I ignored it and headed to Besta.
"Lady Besta."
"Hm? Didst thou call?"
"How much farther? We've come a ways."
"A bit more."
…….
Three hours later.
"Huff… Lady Besta. Still far?"
"Almost there."
…….
Another three hours.
"…Lady Besta. Be honest. We passed it, didn't we?"
"Truly just a little now."
Besta strode on calmly. As a ghost, she glided over the snow without sinking—damn enviable.
"Hoo…"
I caught my breath. Felt like we'd hit the continent's edge. Off the map? Extinction zone?
"Hura-nim. If you're tired, want a piggyback?"
Molrangkau poked my back, grinning foxily.
"…Shut it."
I glared at her a sec, then stepped forward—when a thunderous rumble shook heaven and earth.
Ruuuumble…
"Wh-what?!"
Ahead: A massive peak capped in eternal snow, spewing ice instead of lava.
"…What the hell."
Heard of fire volcanoes, but an ice-spewing mountain? Ice volcano?
Besta pointed. "Right there. Follow."
Destination in sight, we arrived quick.
At the base—ice mountain's roots—Besta scanned the wall, hands roaming.
"Aha! Found it. Been a while; got confused."
She pressed a spot and called to Molrangkau. "Molrangkau. Lend a flame."
"Sure."
Besta tossed the flame onto her handprint.
Fwoosh—
Blue light flared; a small door for one person appeared.
Besta hit the doorbell-like button beside it.
Ding-dong—
Actual doorbell sound.
"……."
No response. She rang again.
Ding-dong—
"……."
Besta mashed it.
Dingdong-dingdongdingdongdingdongdingdong—
"This jerk! I said stay awake!"
Finally, she fiddled with a panel below, punching in a code like a friend's door lock.
Besta bolted through the open door.
"C-come on!"
We rushed after.
Straight shot, no forks—long though.
At the vast opening after the endless tunnel…
I nearly fell over in shock.
The world's grandest, mightiest being crouched there.
"Hey! Get up already!"
And Besta was hopping on its head.
"B-Besta!"
"What're you doing on a dragon's head?!"
"Stop her!"
We charged toward Besta in a panic.