Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Today's Menu? (2)
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Today was truly...
A monumental day.
After eight long years of dating, the moment had finally arrived!
It was a setup specially arranged to propose to Hee-ji properly.
Today was the day I planned to seal the deal.
Hee-ji's soulmate best friends were all here too, and I'd worked hard to put on a modest event while holding onto my image as a good guy.
Right up to the final moment.
I'd strived for perfection.
Really, I'd busted my ass like a dog.
Over those eight years.
All to marry that picky demon queen Jeong Hee-ji.
I'd poured my entire life into it.
Of course, there were countless moments when I wanted to give up.
But I'd held on, staring at Hee-ji's voluptuous body.
Waiting for the day it would all be mine forever—and that D-day was today!
It was right around the corner.
Right around the corner until I finally claimed her...
But.
But...
But......
'Fuck!!!!'
All that preparation over eight years crumbled in a single instant.
The upscale restaurant, filled just moments ago with a refined atmosphere, had now transformed into a slaughterhouse reeking of human flesh and piercing stench.
Just one hour ago.
A headless waiter appeared before us.
At first, everyone was intrigued.
We were no different.
Until that waiter opened his mouth.
That was a warning.
But a middle-aged couple ignored it, voicing their disgust as they stood up.
"Get the branch manager out here right now! Fuck! How do you even train your staff?!"
The headless waiters turned toward the defiant middle-aged man, gripping small knives in their left hands.
Slash—
The legs of the standing middle-aged man were mercilessly severed.
Thud—
With just a swing through the air, the man's legs were cleanly lopped off, powerless.
"Gaaahhh!!"
The man, who had lost both legs in an instant, writhed on the floor in agony.
The waiter continued without pause.
Another warning.
But who could endure that ripping pain after losing legs that had been fine moments ago?
Slash—!
The left hand sliced through the air, and soon a heavy head thudded to the floor.
"D-dear... honey!! Nooo...!"
Slash—
The middle-aged woman's head followed her husband's, dropping limply.
The diners, having witnessed the couple's deaths live, sat frozen as if scripted.
No one else dared stand after that.
To survive.
To avoid a dog's death.
They just stared at the couple's heads rolling on the floor.
After that exchange, the restaurant echoed only with tense silence and muffled sobs.
But even that silence didn't last.
Clack—
A headless waiter approached a couple's table, carrying a dish.
"!!"
"!!"
The terrified couple stared at the waiter, who set down the bowl with sudden formality.
It was clearly labeled as a normal dish: pickled shrimp and scallop salad.
But what was in the bowl...
Flinch—
Salt-pickled human 'fingers' and 'tongues,' artfully arranged to look appetizing.
No, it wasn't food at all—just a murderer's sick joke.
No one would touch that.
No one would salivate over it.
The waiter didn't force it either.
He just infused his voice with implication.
At those words, a bespectacled man at the table mustered courage.
"If... if we eat it all, you'll let us leave?"
The waiter confirmed it: finish the courses, and you can go.
The man's gaze fell on the fingers in the bowl.
"......"
Then to his girlfriend across from him, her face pale with terror.
He forced a twisted smile.
"D-don't worry, Su-ji. The food... I'll eat it all."
With that, the bespectacled man popped a finger into his mouth.
Squelch—
Crunch—
Eating all the fingers and tongue in her place, he glared at the waiter with bloodshot eyes and bulging veins.
"...Next... course... urk!!"
But he couldn't finish.
Crack—
Crunch—
Crrrrunch—!
A grotesque rupturing sound filled the restaurant from his direction.
And soon—
Boom—!
His abdomen burst open, countless fingers crawling out.
His girlfriend, witnessing it all—
"N-no... nooo!"
Slash—!
Another loudmouth, another head gone.
From then on, the same nightmare repeated.
A woman whose lower body melted after eating.
A young man who fled in terror—legs severed, bled out.
A burly guy who snapped and punched a waiter...
Turned into a meatball, served to the next table.
All in under an hour.
The restaurant became a hellish scene.
Boom—!
!!
With that final ear-piercing explosion, only five remained: me, Hee-ji, and her three friends.
We all wore the same expression.
Terror of death.
Despair that we'd die the same way.
Trembling hands clutching pant legs—
"Excuse me!"
"!!"
A bright voice from the entrance drew all eyes.
Trampling casually through blood and flesh,
Whish-whish—
A man approached, waving cheerfully, with a woman in a backward black cap beside him.
The man even started counting us.
"1, 2... 5. Oh! Perfect! Thank goodness."
"......"
Thank goodness?
Thank goodness in this scene?
I nearly jumped up and decked him.
But the suited man's boldness didn't stop.
"Waiter."
"!!!!"
The black-suited man casually summoned the killer.
The one who'd driven everyone to death.
So casually.
The waiter appeared, bowing to the man.
We at the table ducked our heads like mice.
Terrified.
Scared.
Wanting to live.
Breathing shallow to avoid offending.
Except two.
"These folks are with us. Mind if we join?"
The mystery man suggested merging tables.
His words sparked the same thought in the other five:
Another lunatic's joined the party.
"Thank you."
Thankfully, the join request was accepted.
Honestly, that was my biggest worry.
But it went smoother than expected.
'Good start.'
As they say, a good beginning is half the battle.
If things kept going to plan, we could all walk out alive.
While the waiter prepared, I assessed the five to save.
Wanting to avoid another Late Night Radio fiasco.
'Who looks promising?'
I scanned for the steadiest mentality.
First eye contact: a glaring man.
Zing—!
......
His intense stare unnerved me; he'd probably swing if I spoke.
'Pass.'
Shifting gaze to the women, one met my eyes amid the four.
She was wary like the man.
But her eyes held composure too.
She seemed okay.
I addressed her.
"No need to be so tense. I'm here to save you all."
Straight to the point.
They'd seen tons of deaths before I arrived.
First, ease their guard against me.
"No matter what, your safety comes first. Trust me and follow."
"......"
The woman, voice quivering slightly, fired a sharp question.
"Our survival... what's in it for you?"
Cold and calculating.
Even trembling, her eyes burned stronger than anyone's.
I answered fittingly.
Warm smile mixed with sincerity, as always.
"We'll talk benefits after we survive and get out."
"......Sounds like you're sure you can save us all."
"If I wasn't confident, I wouldn't have stepped foot here."
"......"
Clack—
My last words echoed as heels approached our table.
The waiter.
"......"
As the dish hit the table, everyone but me and the dark-hatted woman paled.
I knew why, and my move was simple.
"This is..."
Eying the "pickled shrimp"—fingers—in the bowl.
To the watching waiter, I said:
"Serving garbage like this? Truly disappointing."
"!!!"
"!!!"
"!!!"
"!!!"
"......"
With that, the knife in the waiter's grip gleamed.