The Judges' Reviews
I ran into Dennis hyung by chance on my way to grab lunch.
"Little bro!"
"Huh? Hyung, isn't today a workday for you?"
This guy usually clocks out late in the evening, right?
Dennis looked a bit sheepish as he explained to me.
"Well... yeah, it was supposed to be, but this morning all the other researchers suddenly took half-days and bailed? So I figured, what the hell, and did the same. Honestly, missing today's event would've sucked. There's not much else to do in the shelter anyway."
Whoa... even the Magic Tower researchers ditched work to head home?
This event's impact was bigger than I'd thought. Everyone was prioritizing the showcase over their actual jobs.
"Yeah, entertainment options are kinda slim around here... But they actually approved all those half-days?"
"That? The managers basically encouraged everyone to take them off—they said they were heading out to relax too. The Magic Tower's basically on holiday today."
Hmm... If the shelter had actual days off, they would've scheduled events for those, but this was a world where stopping meant falling behind, so rest days were nonexistent.
Luna had been opening her stall every single day too...
A world where seven-day workweeks are the norm? Terrifying... Yeah, this is definitely an apocalypse setting.
From what Dennis was saying, the sudden showcase announcement had messed up everyone's schedules in the shelter, and I felt a twinge of guilt.
"Yeah... If we were gonna do an event like this, announcing it ahead of time would've been better..."
"Eh? Actually worked out great for me. I think the surprise factor made approvals easy—like we all got swept up in the momentum. Even if the Dungeon Master had announced it early, someone like Professor Aisha, who ignores the community, never would've greenlit a mass shutdown of the tower..."
...Well, if that's the case, then good.
We wandered around looking for a decent spot to eat...
CLOSED FOR BUSINESS
A surprising number of shops had "Closed" signs out.
"What the... Most places are shut down?"
A few were open, but packed to the gills—no way to get in.
"They were all open when I grabbed breakfast this morning?"
"...Guess the showcase announcement made everyone take off... I've lived here ten years and never seen anything like it. Kinda freaky."
"Evande..."
Restaurants closing just for a showcase? What kind of nonsense was this?
Like a chicken joint shutting down for the World Cup...
Haa... Lining up at some random non-tasty spot just to eat didn't appeal either...
Which left only one option.
"Hmmm... No choice, then. Hyung, this way."
"Huh? Oh, sure..."
I dragged Dennis toward a shop in the food district.
It was just as packed and bustling inside as the others—maybe even more crowded.
"Little bro? No seats here either, looks like."
"It's fine, hyung."
We stepped inside, and a staffer greeted us.
"Oh, boss! What brings you here?"
"Rana auntie around? Can we eat now?"
"Of course~ But first floor's full, so we'd need to set up a table outside. That okay?"
I glanced at Dennis.
"Huh? I'm good with that..."
"Outside it is, then."
Dennis and I sat at a table in front of Kkomangi's Moonlight Recipe.
"Whoa, little bro, what's the deal? Your shop? No idea..."
"Only been open a few days. Left it to a friend to run, but business has been meh."
Underwhelming revenue, surprisingly? Wasn't in it for the money, but fewer customers than expected.
Though today, with other shops closed, it was slammed...
"Makes sense. Shelter folks stick to their usual haunts. You know it's not about the food tasting good. No one's hunting for nonexistent gems..."
"Ah... Yeah, new places probably don't spark much interest."
Most shelter shops barely used seasonings or spices anyway, so everything tasted about the same.
Of course, fancy restaurants serve good stuff... but...
Even middle-class folks couldn't afford those often.
The spices and seasonings left in the shelter were preserved through special methods—and irreplaceable.
Yeah, most people here ate just to survive.
Unless you were upper crust.
But that ended today.
Sugar had flooded the shelter. Salt too.
Gourmet eating was no longer an elite privilege.
I turned to peek inside the shop.
Slurp—
"Kaaah~! This sagol guksu is a whole new world— so rich and nutty!! No gamey aftertaste; I could eat this forever!"
"Right?! And this cheap? Who knew a place like this existed... Gotta come back more! Uhahahaha!!"
...Everyone was devouring it happily.
And noteworthy: small containers on some tables.
...No way, those are...?
Shake shake—
The guy shook his container, sprinkling white powder into his sagol guksu.
Then a big slurp—
"Mmm, perfect. One more spoon of salt, and the seasoning hits just right—the broth is killer now."
That wasn't our shop's salt.
We didn't even put salt shakers on tables.
Sagol guksu came pre-seasoned lightly when served.
...People carrying personal salt shakers already? Just hours after salt dropped?
Come to think of it, I saw gallery posts earlier about buying food and sprinkling salt on it...
With the one-purchase-per-person limit, restaurants couldn't really use salt in cooking yet.
Even using their full allotment might cover dozens of servings at best. Force hundreds, and it'd be too bland.
So... era of personal salt shakers incoming?
The shelter's changes were hitting scary fast.
Was it because there was truly nothing left here? Add one thing, and reactions exploded.
Knowing I was the shelter's only wildcard—everything else stagnant or regressing—brought a weird pressure.
Didn't faze me before... but it was building.
I ignored it, but seeing shifts like this firsthand made my stomach churn, thinking the shelter's fate hinged on me.
"Anyway, little bro. Find out about what I mentioned?"
What you mentioned?
Oh!
"The spinster elf? Yeah, looked into it... You saved my ass, hyung... Gonna be way more careful now."
Without Dennis, I'd have been showering Aisha with mindless praise daily... Probably ending up like that other guy's tale on the gallery...
"Good you listened. Can't lose another friend right in front of me... Old maid elves are... really dangerous."
...This guy... No wonder he seemed so urgent back then. He'd already witnessed a victim firsthand.
We chatted idly, scarfed our sagol guksu heartily, and headed home together.
"Great lunch, little bro! Sagol guksu, right? Delicious. I'll drop by sometimes!"
"See ya next time, hyung!"
*
After lunch, the strategy contest winners finally posted.
For reference, I knew nothing about the winners.
Not an explorer myself, so strategies didn't click for me. Left it all to Joodak.
She'd tallied judge scores from Padak and post recommendations to pick them.
"Let's see..."
I squished and poked Kkomangi while checking the gallery.
......
......
"...Why are these reviews like this?"