The Slapped Fairy and the Chef's Fury
“Argh!”
Startled by something buzzing right in my ear, I swatted at it reflexively like chasing off a mosquito. My hand connected with something.
“Squawk!”
I heard a hit, too.
“What the—?”
Still rubbing my stinging ear, I looked down. Something was wriggling on the ground.
“Sniff. It hurts… it hurts, customer-nim…”
I carefully picked up the sniffling thing from the ground.
“…Tinkerbell?”
Not some nickname comparing her to a giant moth—this was a tiny fairy with actual butterfly wings, straight out of Peter Pan, sobbing in my palm.
“Sob. I’m not Tinkerbell, customer-nim. I’m the guide assigned to help new players entering the Fantasy World for the first time. Sniff.”
“Sorry! You startled me—I didn’t mean to. I thought you were a mosquito buzzing around.”
“Hic. I’m not a mosquito, customer-nim.”
The self-proclaimed guide—Tinkerbell—was clearly in pain, rubbing her teary eyes and sniffling nonstop.
“Sorry. Please stop crying. Does it hurt a lot?”
“No. It doesn’t hurt at all. I’m fine, customer-nim… sniff.”
Even as I asked worriedly, Tinkerbell wouldn’t stop sobbing. Desperate to calm her, I rummaged in my pocket and pulled out a single strawberry candy.
“Um, here—have this at least.”
Tinkerbell took the candy from me mid-sniffle. She struggled to unwrap it, fumbling this way and that, then handed it back.
“…Can you unwrap it?”
“Oh, sure.”
With one cheek puffed out, Tinkerbell stuffed the tiny candy—king-sized for her—into her mouth and chewed away. Her sniffles gradually faded.
We were now sitting on a bench in the shade of a tree near the square.
“Feeling better now?”
Nod nod.
“What’s your name?”
“I’m Dahyun.”
“Dahyun, huh?”
She snapped to attention and corrected herself.
“Ah, no! I’m Sebastian, the fairy guide for Fantasy World, here to assist you, customer-nim.”
Standing in my palm, she curtsied elegantly, skirt in hand—like those Everland staff leading you to the land of dreams and hopes.
“Sebastian?”
“Yes.”
“Just stick with Dahyun. That’s way better.”
“…You think so? Is Sebastian no good?”
“Yeah. It’s terrible. Sounds like a dog’s name.”
“…That’s our dog’s name.”
Dahyun hung her head, looking glum.
“Uh, w-what I meant was, it’s perfect for a dog! Sebastian’s gotta be super cute!”
“Right? Our Sebastian is adorable and so sweet! Wanna see a pic?”
She patted her pockets for her phone, then caught herself.
“Ah, not the time.”
Shaking her head, she got back to business.
“Welcome to Fantasy World! Would you like a general overview?”
“Sure.”
Her eyes blinked wide in surprise.
“…Sure? For real? You actually want to hear it?”
“…? Yeah. Tell me. This is my first time with VR or Fantasy World.”
“Oh, oh! Got it, customer-nim. Lucky I met you.”
Lucky how?
I asked the relieved-looking fairy.
“Huh? Why?”
“Most players already know the game inside out, so they skip the explanation. Leaves us fairies with nothing to do.”
“Isn’t less work good?”
I thought of idle times at the convenience store or snack shop with no customers.
“At first, yeah. But after a while… it’s not so great. Feels like we’re not doing our jobs right. And when everyone coldly rejects us? Kinda hurts.”
I remembered handing out flyers as a part-timer. No big deal if they refused, but constant cold shoulders made you feel small.
“Must be tough. I get it—I’ve done similar gigs.”
“Right…? Life’s not easy. Anyway, here’s the rundown on Fantasy World.”
Guide-fairy Dahyun launched into an excited explanation of the world’s lore. In short: mysterious evil forces invade, and we heroes must protect the residents and slay the baddies. Standard stuff.
“Fight evil forces? I’m not really into combat…”
“Or ignore ’em and just have fun. Plenty of players handle the fighting anyway.”
Sassy for a fairy.
“Any more questions?”
“Tell me about classes.”
“Of course!”
Dahyun perked up like a teacher with a eager student.
“Swordsman, spearman, gunner, fist fighter, mage, archer, spiritist, priest—tons of options. Interested in any?”
“Chef.”
“…Chef?”
She blinked in surprise.
“Yeah, chef. Is that a bad class?”
“Not bad! Chefs are one of our most detailed production classes. But low combat power means most switch to sub-class. We recommend that, too.”
Hm… sub-class. Second fiddle to chef? No way. I dropped 300,000 won on this for a reason. Cooking’s always priority one.
“Nah. Main class: chef.”
“Got it. Shall I take you to the class changer?”
“Please!”
“Follow me.”
The tiny fairy fluttered ahead.
Dahyun led me to a large building.
“Here. Tell the class changer you want chef.”
“Okay. So you’re leaving now, Dahyun?”
The little fairy giggled.
“Haha, no. We stick around till class change unless you say no. I’ll help till you’re done, if that’s okay?”
“Great, thanks. Off to change, then.”
First times always mix excitement and nerves. Before entering, I took a deep breath to steady my pounding heart.
“Fighting! You got this!”
Dahyun pumped her tiny fists. Bolstered, I pushed open the door.
Inside: rows of empty prep stations, like a cooking academy. Up front, a man chopped briskly.
Tap tap tap—
I approached cautiously.
“Um, excuse me. I want to learn cooking.”
Whoosh—
The sharp knife slicing ingredients halted right before my eyes.
…Gulp.
“Who dares interrupt sacred cooking?”
“Sorry. Wrong place.”
Scamper—
I bolted out.
“Huff. Huff. Dahyun! This the right cooking spot? Feels wrong!”
“W-well… we made the chef class changer a bit grumpy on purpose.”
“‘A bit’? I nearly died!”
Explained the empty stations.
“It’s fine. Just a scare. Chefs handle fire and knives—gotta be tough, right?”
“Tougher than that!”
“Haha. Go on back. You wanna be a chef, don’t you?”
Chef. Right—300,000 won of sweat and blood. Nothing easy in this world.
“…He won’t kill me, right?”
I recalled that knife flashing by.
“Haha, kill you? No way.”
Then why’re you hiding behind me…?
Anyway, her cheer pepped me up. Let’s do this!
I marched back in.
“I’m here to learn cooking!”
Whoosh—
His cleaver flew from his hand with a terrifying whistle, embedding in the wall beside me.
Thud!
…Gulp.
“…Probably not.”
“You idiot! You call this food?! The meat’s so fresh I could stab it dead with a knife!”
Crash!
“Do it again!”
“…Yes, Gordon.”
I silently cleared the overturned plate and its ruined dish.
“‘Undercooked’—creative way to say it.”
His name wasn’t Gordon for nothing.
How many times was this?
“D-don’t get down. It’s only your 32nd try.”
“…Thanks, Dahyun.”
The fairy fluttered nearby, looking apologetic she couldn’t help. She’s set to have zero influence—no NPCs or other players can see or touch her. Anti-cheat measure.
“Ugh, exhausting.”
I flopped onto the prep station after cleaning.
Gazing at the bobbing fairy, I called out.
“Dahyun.”
“Yes?”
“Truth is, I picked chef to learn real cooking. Will this help IRL?”
She lit up.
“Absolutely! We consulted world-class chefs for the curriculum. It’ll help for sure.”
“Really?”
“Yep. All this hard work means big rewards. Hang in there!”
“Haha, this is nothing. For chef? I’d do it 100 times.”
I didn’t think he’d take it literally.
I was joking!
Gordon chewed my 100th dish thoughtfully.
Gulp.
Please, no fork this time. Spoon’s fine—less pointy.
“Hura.”
“Yes?”
“My mother’s dying soon. Can’t even move properly.”
“…And?”
No plate flip, no utensils thrown. First normal reaction. Heart racing, I perked my ears.
“Even she could make something tastier with her feet!”
Crash!
…There it is.
Sighing, I bent to clean the mess.
“I’m not done!”
His bellow made me jolt upright.
“Y-yes, sir!”
“Tasted like crap, but edible. Stage 1 clear.”
Then why flip it?
“What’s that look? Complaints?”
“N-no, sir!”
“Next: go outside, sell your best dish!”
Class Change Quest - Chef's Qualification 2
📍 Description: A chef's cooking means nothing without customers savoring it.
📍 Objective: Move customers with your most confident dish!
🎁 Remaining Time: 3 days