I Discovered the Saintess's True Identity
"But is there a big supermarket around here?"
"Let me check real quick. Hmm... There are a few markets nearby, but how about we just head to the department store? They've got a supermarket in the basement."
"If we're buying a lot, we could make it a little walk and it'll be fine."
This was definitely our first club meeting, but we'd actually met three years ago. We'd spent nearly two and a half years together almost nonstop, so our back-and-forth was quick, and we knew each other's tendencies inside out.
The three of us decided to get some fresh air and headed to the big supermarket in the basement of a department store a bit farther away.
Lee Seo-yeon paused for a second, grabbed the wrist of Yoo Seol-ah who was trailing behind slowly, and rejoined us. Yoo Seol-ah, dragged along reluctantly, spoke up with a slightly uneasy look in her eyes.
"You're not seriously thinking of walking there, right?"
"We could walk, but it's just two subway stops from here. Let's walk to the station."
Yoo Seol-ah wasn't lacking in stamina at all—she just hated walking.
"If we use teleport..."
"Little Seol-ah, it's not even five minutes to the subway entrance. You can march right along, can't you?"
Lee Seo-yeon cut her off sharply.
Honestly, Yoo Seol-ah had some childish tendencies in certain areas. She was a total genius with magic, but stuff like this—she knew we'd stop her, yet she still threw a tantrum.
From my perspective, having spent so much time with her, Yoo Seol-ah was definitely in the late stages of magic addiction.
On Earth, maps were super precise, so with her skills, she could calculate exact coordinates and pull off wide-area teleportation even without line of sight. We all had ways to hide ourselves from normals, so it wouldn't freak anyone out. But seriously, did we have to burn mana on a trip that took no time at all...?
Even with near-infinite mana, you could just walk that distance. She was worse than me, and I wasn't exactly an outdoorsy type. Back in Astasia, she'd invented and used every kind of spell imaginable, but who knew it'd lead to side effects like this.
"Plus, we can chat while we walk. It's nice."
"We can talk after we get back quick to the party room..."
"...Seol-ah, you know cats have survived this long mostly because of their cute looks, right?"
Lee Seo-yeon was great at communication. She phrased it so smoothly: If you weren't so pretty, I'd have flicked your forehead hard.
Yoo Seol-ah clammed up the moment she got it. Her lips pursed out just a tiny bit—the kind of subtle pout only someone who'd known her forever would catch.
But yeah, Yoo Seol-ah did resemble a cat in looks and personality. And cats survived because they were cute, after all.
Thinking back to when we first met, seeing her this relaxed was just adorable.
In Astasia, after our party first formed, Yoo Seol-ah was the last one to open up. At the start, she showed zero human side and barely spoke. But as time passed together, she gradually revealed her true self.
Her acting like this now meant she truly trusted us.
"...But if we'd bought booze ahead of time, we wouldn't even need to move right now... Ow!?"
I grabbed the bangs of Yoo Seol-ah walking on my left and flicked her forehead hard.
She'd been asking for it.
"Hey, you... Did you just hit me?"
"Yeah, I did. What're you gonna do about it?"
Cute means you can get away with anything? She was getting all cocky.
"No, guys. Don't fight. Honestly, I should've thought to buy stuff ahead..."
"Stay out of it."
"Don't butt in."
"......"
I could hear Lee Seo-yeon consoling our totally deflated club president—"It's not like you should get between a couple's spat"—but that wasn't the point right now.
"Acting all smug after hitting me?"
"It didn't even hurt that much. You've been acting like a total kid."
"That was... just a joke. But what if it left a mark on my face?"
"If it scars, just ask Lee Seo-yeon to heal it. What's with the whining? And look at you worrying about your pretty face even now. If you didn't look like that, seriously..."
"You think you've got anything going for you besides your face? Unbelievable."
"Guys?"
"And you blew off one of my arms with magic before, but you're complaining over a flick?"
"That wasn't aimed at me—it was a wide-area spell I got caught in. And Lee Seo-yeon regenerated it anyway, so what's the problem?"
"Wow, you were bawling your eyes out back then, and now..."
And that's when the words stopped coming. Not that we didn't want to speak—sound just wouldn't come out.
Silence spell from divine incantation.
Then Lee Seo-yeon's slightly subdued voice came through.
"I don't mind you two fighting like a married couple, but we need to catch the subway. Lots of people around—how long are we gonna stand here...? It'll wear off in three seconds, so play nice till then. Got it?"
Thinking about it, we were right at the subway entrance talking about wide-area spells and lost arms—during rush hour, no less.
The silence lifted, but we couldn't say another word.
We finally made it to the supermarket after all that drama.
"What do we need to buy?"
We grabbed a shopping cart and asked Lee Seo-yeon. She'd said she was good at cooking, so she'd handle the shopping, right?
"We'll grab booze from that aisle later. Shabu-shabu ingredients first. Gotta make broth, so kelp, bonito flakes, soy sauce, and such."
I'd thought shabu-shabu was simple, but hearing her, it sounded more involved. Most people had tried kimchi stew or pasta, but home-cooked shabu-shabu? Not so common.
She'd agreed instantly when Yoo Seol-ah suggested it, so she seemed confident. Food and nutrition major, right? They probably didn't focus on cooking itself, though. Must've practiced a lot at home.
I pushed the cart, following Lee Seo-yeon as she tossed broth ingredients in without a second glance.
"Salt's in, we'll get cooking wine later... Pork or chicken's fine, but beef's better, yeah?"
"I'm trusting you."
"Me too. Expert picks sound right."
Sudden surge of trust—we left it all to her.
She took the cart reins, picking and adding ingredients like a pro.
"...Did you run a restaurant in another world or something?"
"Yeah, weird. We killed the demon king together."
"Maybe she returned and went to yet another world?"
While we stood there dumbfounded, muttering, she loaded up beef and veggies, handed us the cart, and vanished again.
"......"
"......"
She returned with knife-cut noodles in one hand and a kitchen knife in the other.
"Anyone wanna chop? Hope it's not me."
"Baek Sion... Now I get why you keep fighting with Seol-ah. I saw—they don't sell kitchen knives for shabu-shabu. Can't just toss whole veggies in."
I got the purpose, but who buys a kitchen knife just for one shabu-shabu session? Even a decent one costs a few bucks. Was she secretly from a rich family?
"Got the noodles too. Fried rice can be instant rice, kimchi, and seaweed, but no need. Follow me."
We trailed after her like zombies.
At the instant foods aisle, she snatched a product without hesitation.
"This one's perfect for fried rice. Eum's hot new release: Choppy Green Onion Kimchi Fried Rice. Super cheap at 3,990 won for 400 grams. Killer after shabu-shabu."
...Looked tasty, but what was with the sales pitch?
Both of them looked baffled too, so I asked.
"Wha... Eum stuff's always good. But that ad tone? You invested in them or something?"
Kids started stocks in elementary these days—plausible.
Eum was affordable, tasty across the board. Great rep for its size. New player, but popular overseas and holding strong against giants in Korea's food scene—a supernova, they said.
"If Eum stock rises, sure, great. But nah, just tried it once and it was that good."
New product, though.
"Isn't this recent? Parents work there?"
"...Kinda? CEO's part of the company, obviously."
"......"
I pulled out my phone, searched "Eum CEO" on the portal site.
News everywhere: Eum's president and CEO, Lee Da-eum.
Oh... Probably named the brand after herself. Always thought it was a cool name.
Before the other two could jump in, I spoke up.
"I've always said Eum's gonna blow up. Every product's delicious."
"S... Seo-yeon. Call me whatever—Seol-ah-chan or anything. Please call me..."
"Seo-yeon—no, sis. Just one Eum stock... It kept rising last I checked..."
"You two are different from me. I love their iron plate stir-fried noodles too."
Lee Seo-yeon looked exasperated, but a halo practically glowed behind her.
As expected, the saintess was on another level.