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I have no talent for cooking.
Even before the Zombie outbreak, I would shop at the Mart and cook for myself to save money, but my cooking skills were terrible.
I usually bought food that just needed to be heated up.
Things like meat, mushrooms, or eggs, I just fried in a pan and ate.
I'd never even tried making things like kimchi fried rice or kimchi stew, which students living alone often make.
Actually, I had tried, but after tasting it, I never did it again.
And then the Zombie outbreak happened.
I don't know why, but I became the owner of this Villa.
It told me to accept Tenants, so I did.
I could get supplies daily using Coins, but the Tenants couldn't.
The Tenants could only eat if I shared the food I received as supplies.
I'd been calling them to my place for every meal to serve them, but I'd never made anything impressive.
'Now, it's different.'
The new sibling Tenants, Im Ji-ah and Im Do-yeong.
Among them, the older sister, Im Ji-ah, had the job of Chef, of all things.
Of course, since her Level was low, I didn't expect her to turn out anything amazing.
Whatever it was, it had to be better than me, whose job is Housekeeper.
Kang Mu-yeol, Im Ji-ah, and Im Do-yeong came to my place for breakfast.
With everyone gathered, I asked Im Ji-ah.
"Do you know how to cook?"
"Cooking? I did work in a restaurant kitchen, but...."
As expected, the System doesn't lie.
If she worked in a restaurant kitchen, she's definitely better than me.
"Then, how about Im Ji-ah-ssi prepares the meals from now on? I have no talent for cooking. I'll provide all the ingredients."
"Preparing meals isn't difficult. When I worked in the restaurant kitchen, I prepared meals for the other staff too. But what do you mean you'll provide all the ingredients...? I saw a nearby Mart on the way here, and it had already been completely looted."
"I don't mean I'll provide whatever ingredients you want. You'll have to decide the menu yourself after looking at the ingredients."
"I'm used to cooking with leftover ingredients anyway, so you don't need to worry about that. Then, I'll handle the meal preparation."
Im Ji-ah readily agreed.
Now, I wouldn't have to worry about preparing every single meal every day.
Everyone should do what they're good at.
"In that sense, what should we have for breakfast today? I hadn't thought about it."
Since I'd intended to leave it to Im Ji-ah from the start, I hadn't decided on a breakfast menu.
"Then, I'll take a look at the fridge."
"Feel free to use whatever."
Im Ji-ah opened the fridge.
She marveled while looking at the ingredients inside.
"The ingredients seem fresh? The manufacturing date is... today?"
Im Ji-ah saw it correctly.
They were the ingredients I'd received as supplies with Coins this morning and put in the fridge.
"Did you go out to get supplies while we were sleeping? No, that can't be. Even at the Mart right now, there shouldn't be any ingredients with today's date...."
"I'm starting to get hungry, though."
"Ah. I'll prepare it right away."
Im Ji-ah looked through the rest of the fridge.
"There's meat and kimchi. Kimchi stew would be perfect. I'll borrow the kitchen, then."
The other three, excluding Im Ji-ah who was cooking, sat at the table and waited.
Tong, tong, tong, tong.
The sound of a cutting board could be heard.
It was a sound hard to hear when I was home alone.
When I use a knife, I can't make such rhythmic sounds.
Soon after, the sound of bubbling came from the pot.
A pungent scent stimulated my sense of smell.
"Ah."
I forgot.
There was something I had to do to eat even better food.
「Name: Im Ji-ah」
「Job: Chef」
「Level: 2」
「Leveling up costs 2 Coins.」
「Would you like to level up?」
「Yes / No」
I leveled up Im Ji-ah.
She became a Level 3 Chef.
I don't know how big a difference 1 Level makes, though.
She'll probably cook better.
Suddenly, Im Ji-ah flashed.
"Uh?"
Im Ji-ah, who was cooking, was startled.
It seemed the Status Window about leveling up had appeared before her eyes.
Im Ji-ah looked back and forth between me and the empty air.
"I thought it would be better. How is it?"
Im Ji-ah still had a bewildered look on her face.
Im Ji-ah, too, had no way of knowing how big a difference 1 Level made.
"Huh? Something...."
Im Ji-ah quickly began to focus on the cooking again.
She added a few more ingredients.
"Just a moment. It's hot."
Soon, she placed the bubbling kimchi stew on the table.
Just smelling it made my mouth water.
It wasn't just me.
Kang Mu-yeol and Im Do-yeong looked like they were about to pounce on it.
Im Ji-ah sat down.
The three of them looked to me.
It seemed they were waiting for me to pick up my spoon.
"Let's eat."
I ladled some kimchi stew and took a spoonful.
"...Oh!"
It was the taste of kimchi stew that I knew.
No, it was even better than what they sell at restaurants.
"This is really delicious."
That was the signal.
Everyone ladled out the kimchi stew as if they had been waiting.
"You're really good at cooking."
"Thank you. But I think it turned out better than usual."
"Noona, you haven't made kimchi stew in a while, but your skills have improved!"
"That's right. It's amazing."
The meal was satisfying.
The ingredients supplied daily are limited.
I looked forward to seeing how delicious the food she would make with those limited ingredients would be.
I also liked the fact that I didn't have to prepare meals anymore.
Kang Mu-yeol's job is Warrior.
He showed a performance worthy of his job, wielding just a baseball bat.
When saving the siblings Im Ji-ah and Im Do-yeong, he hunted dozens of Zombies all by himself.
I haven't faced a Zombie yet, but I doubted I could properly take down even one.
Dozens was an amazing feat.
Im Ji-ah's job is Chef.
From what I heard, she worked in some restaurant kitchen, but it didn't seem like a high-end restaurant.
Even so, the kimchi stew I ate this morning was better than most restaurants.
It must have been partly thanks to me leveling her up in the middle.
The Coins spent weren't a waste.
Compared to the Coins Kang Mu-yeol earned yesterday, 2 Coins was a cheap price.
Anyway, I gained a private chef who takes care of three meals a day.
Just that alone greatly improved the quality of life for the Tenants, including myself.
The remaining Tenant is Im Do-yeong.
Im Do-yeong's job was Repairman.
'Where should I use a Repairman?'
Of course, there's no need to consider a job when saving people, but since he's become a Tenant of this Villa, it's better if he has at least one role.
However, I doubted there would be anything to repair.
Anyway, Units 402, 403, and 404, where the Tenants are currently residing, are under the protection of the System.
It didn't seem like anything would break.
The System's ability was mysterious and excellent enough to provide an unlimited supply of electricity and hot water.
A house under the protection of such a System having minor breakdowns?
'That can't be.'
At the very least, it means there's no room for a Repairman to intervene in house maintenance.
There's no broken furniture or malfunctioning electronics.
And it's not right to just let him idle until something breaks.
'For now, shall I meet him and talk?'
Now that the meal was over, everyone had returned to their homes for personal maintenance.
I didn't have anything else to do either.
I was also curious about how the Tenants were living.
Since I always called the Tenants to my place for meals or when I had something to say, I never had a reason to visit other units.
Knock, knock.
I tapped on the wall.
Soon, the sound of the front door opening next door was heard.
Thump, thump, thump!
Someone knocked on my front door.
-It's Kang Mu-yeol. Did you call for me?
To think he'd come this quickly.
I opened the door.
"It's nothing else, I was just curious about how everyone is living. I'd like to take a look around the units, if that's alright."
"Would you like to see my place first? I'll guide you right away."
Actually, there was a reason I called Kang Mu-yeol.
The hallway was not yet a safe zone.
If I went out without thinking and ran into a Zombie, it would be a big problem.
I followed behind Kang Mu-yeol toward Unit 403.
As he opened the door, a cool scent entered my nose.
There was a diffuser in the entryway.
"Please, come in."
The house was neat with a white tone.
There wasn't a single messy spot.
"The house is clean. And it smells good, too. Where did you get the diffuser?"
"It's exactly as the room you gave me at the beginning. The diffuser was there too."
"I see...."
Suddenly, I felt resentful.
The Tenant's house looked much better than my own place right now.
I even wanted to swap rooms.
I didn't say it out loud.
"Is Room 402 similar?"
"I haven't been there either, so I don't know. I'll guide you."
If only the hallway were a safe zone, too.
Is there no way?
Still, it was a relief there were no Zombies.
I knocked on Room 402.
Im Ji-ah opened the door.
"Is Im Do-yeong-ssi here? I'd like to have a little chat."
"He's inside. Please, come in."
Room 402 had a cozy scent.
The interior was also wood-toned.
How can the atmosphere be so different even though it's the same Villa?
'It's unfair....'
"Do-yeong-ah, the Landlord-nim and Kang Mu-yeol-ssi are here."
Im Ji-ah knocked on the bedroom door.
The bedroom door swung open.
"Hello! I didn't know you were here. I tend not to hear things well when I'm focused...."
Newspaper was spread on the floor, and various tools were on top of it.
"Looks like you were in the middle of making something?"
"A slingshot. Would you like to see it?"
Im Do-yeong proudly held out the slingshot he was making.
It was a slingshot made by attaching a rubber band to a carved piece of wood.
It looked sturdy.
"Did you carve it yourself?"
"Yes. I've been making them in my spare time since I was at my parents' house. Ah! I'll give it to you as a gift. I don't know if it can be used in a real situation, though...."
"As a gift for me?"
"You saved us and even gave us a place to live. It's nothing much, but please accept it."
A slingshot.
It was the perfect weapon for me, since I have no intention of going outside the house.
"But you said it can't be used in a real situation? Why?"
"It's just a little weak in terms of power."
"Is that so?"
If the power is weak.
I feel bad for Im Do-yeong, but there might be a problem with the creator's skill.
「Leveling up costs 2 Coins.」
「Would you like to level up?」
In that case, you just need to raise the creator's skill.
"Huh?"
Im Do-yeong's eyes went wide.
I said to Im Do-yeong.
"Let's make a stronger slingshot. One that can be used in a real situation."