Chapter 15
"Grand Mage, you're even more than that? 'When did you start cooking? I thought you were some pro chef watching you chop those veggies earlier.'
Yoo Seol-ah picked up a nicely cooked piece of meat, dipped it lightly in sauce, and fired off the question. I was wondering the same thing. Meanwhile, Lee Seo-yeon casually adjusted the flame while answering, her posture all relaxed as she explained that if it boiled too vigorously, the broth would cloud up fast.
"Mom and Dad both love cooking and are great at it, so I naturally picked it up from a young age. Once the company grew a bit, I started taste-testing new products a lot too. They always asked for my take since I'm just a regular person."
"But this isn't just 'liking it' level, is it? This tastes like it's from a legit shabu-shabu joint."
Yoo Seol-ah savored the meat, her eyes narrowing slightly as she added that. I tried a piece first, and damn, it was no different from what you'd get at a specialist shop. Could you really call a twenty-year-old who makes shabu-shabu this good a "regular person"? Even counting my three years in Astasia, she's barely twenty-three, and back there, we never had time for proper cooking anyway.
"Shabu-shabu's usually done with sirloin, but this is oosamgyeop, so that's probably why. It's pricier, but the extra fat makes it tastier."
"I bet even if I used top-grade 1++ beef for shabu-shabu, it wouldn't taste this good..."
The meat wasn't cheap from what I saw earlier, but this flavor wasn't just from good ingredients. I know the difference between boiling meat in plain water and doing it in a proper broth. She's just being modest.
"Come to think of it, I never knew you could cook like this back in that place."
"No time, and kerong was such a cheat ingredient there. Just grilling it over a fire made it delicious—no need to do more."
True. The four of us could go ages without eating and still fight, plus we rarely had downtime for meals. And kerong? That monster's ingredients were absurd. Depending on the cut, one beast gave meat, fish, or veggie flavors. No aggression despite being a monster, and its breeding and adaptability were insane—you'd find them everywhere. Exaggerating a bit, it was like one every hundred steps.
Listening more, Lee Seo-yeon learned from watching her parents, and studied on her own too. Her CEO dad focused on commercial viability, while her mom, on the front lines of development, cared about elevating flavors and nutrition—so she ended up with a balanced mindset somewhere in between.
"One thing I'm curious about—how much pocket money do you get?"
The chairman tossed that out once her parents came up. I'd been wondering since she pulled out that black card earlier. Black cards are special-issue things, right? Money talk's usually off-limits, but hey, company.
"No fixed amount. They just say spend whatever, don't worry about it. 'People with money should spend big to keep things moving,' they say."
"......"
"And it's not exactly a trend, but these days, with inheritance taxes, it's more common to give hefty allowances than dump it all at once. A few billion each or whatever. Lots of fast-growing new companies lately—their young CEOs don't run traditional chaebols, so they just let their kids do whatever."
The three of us excluding Lee Seo-yeon exchanged glances. We all had that hard-to-describe look—probably thinking the same. Hearing about their league where "pocket money" and "billions" coexist was mind-bending. You'd never hear this stuff in normal life.
Yoo Seol-ah recovered first and joked, "Miss Seo-yeon, need a live-in maid by any chance?"
"Ugh, don't even say that... And if you came as a maid, I'd make you wear a maid outfit."
Maid-outfit Yoo Seol-ah? Now that's intriguing. But against my expectations, she shot back laughing.
"Maid outfits are fine. You hiring for real?"
"...You actually gonna wear it? Nah, can't. I live in a regular house. You'd need a big mansion to hire maids."
Mansions are the go-to for rich folks in anime, but oh well. Was Yoo Seol-ah buzzed, or does she legit like maid outfits?
"I love the maid outfits from AnaMei. They're so pretty."
"Oh, same. Everything in there was cute."
So she just likes maid outfits in general? Your Personal Maid, an anime from about two Earth years ago. It obsessed over maid outfits—classic, cheongsam, Japanese-style, swimsuit variants, you name it—and got massive love from certain crowds. I enjoyed it too; the variety was fun to watch.
The chairman nodded along, so yeah, we've all seen it. Throw out any anime, and we'd probably all vibe.
"Speaking of, you're in fashion design, right? That's why, 'cause you're into that stuff?"
"Yeah, I even made the Erika maid outfit myself for cos—"
She slammed the brakes mid-sentence, sucking in a breath like she'd hit a wall. But stopping there? Too late. Her guard was down from that 3% peach soda.
"Ahem..."
"......"
Yoo Seol-ah cleared her throat and shoved a piece of meat in her mouth, acting like nothing happened. That's some guilty conscience. Own it or something. I stepped up as interrogator.
"Cos-what? Cosmos? Costa Rica? Not many words start with 'cos.'"
"......"
She squeezed her eyes shut. Cartoonishly, you could almost hear the crack.
Lee Seo-yeon went further, demanding outright, "Show me. Your cosplay pics. You took some."
"...No."
"I'll pay. Generously."
"......How much?"
Wait, the Erika maid outfit in the show was pretty revealing—hearts cut out at the chest, one-leg black stockings with garters, total maniac vibe. Hang on, how much is in my account again?
After Lee Seo-yeon whispered something, Yoo Seol-ah sighed and grabbed her phone like she had no choice. What'd she offer?
Yoo Seol-ah tapped a few times and showed the screen only to Lee Seo-yeon. Her mouth dropped wide, hand flying to cover it.
"Yoo Seol-ah, you..."
Full name, not Seol-ah? Must've been shocked. Me too, lemme see. Please...
"There, happy? Now drop it."
"Huh? Wait."
Yoo Seol-ah snatched for the phone, but at the last second, Lee Seo-yeon grabbed her wrist and yanked it away.
"Hey, Lee Seo-yeon! Give it back, quick!"
I gently pressed down on Yoo Seol-ah's head as she tried to stand, keeping her seated. Snatching the phone means more pics for sure. Lee Seo-yeon, I'm counting on you. Uncover the depths...
I blocked her hand swatting mine away and watched Lee Seo-yeon's expressions shift—mostly shock and delighted grins.
Her cosplay's gotta be wild. Wonder if she dyed her hair silver for it too.
"Fine! I'll show everyone, just give me the phone back..."
Yoo Seol-ah flailed from her chair before giving up, biting her lip in defeat.
"Haa... Make a group chat."
"Like and follow... I'll accept."
Input the address—private account notice pops up. Zero followers, following just one. Personal archive, huh. Friend request approved instantly, and I got why Lee Seo-yeon freaked.
First, cosplay quality. Did she make just the maid outfit, or everything? Accessories synced perfectly with the source. She's a bit short, but her proportions and figure are unreal—like characters leaped out of the manga.
First post's from after '23, so probably right after returning. Tons of posts—how'd she get all those outfits? Costly to buy. Magic? Wait, she actually could have.
And the second shocker...
"Seol-ah, you've seen some stuff, huh."
I thought it but couldn't say it—Lee Seo-yeon beat me to it. Not surprised from Ms. Sex-Joke-on-sight. The maid one's the most revealing; others barely show skin. But the reason we thought that? Angles and hand-over-face poses.
"...I haven't seen that kinda stuff..."
"Never seen anyone cover just their eyes with one hand like that except somewhere specific. Just do a self-intro like that, and boom—adult pic in one second? 'I'm... Yoo Seol-ah, Korea University Fashion Design, class of '23...'"
"Waaah!?"
Yoo Seol-ah practically screamed, clamping Lee Seo-yeon's mouth. That reaction screams she's seen it. And her voice acting? Eyes closed, it's spot-on, perfect performance. No wonder she shrieked saying it herself.
Normal folks sticker or blur faces later—that one-hand eye-cover? Industry symbol everyone knows. Otaku Yoo Seol-ah wouldn't miss it.
"And the angles are way too... you know who."
...Her filter's gone with the booze. Saintess's "saint" using a different kanji? But same thought here: kneeled pose shot from an overlooking angle. Add a long shadow over the face, and it's a classic from there.
Yoo Seol-ah downed her drink like her throat was parched, grabbing another beer from the bag. 3% got her tipsy—beer okay? Her call.
Half-can later, she spoke. "...Studied poses and anatomy from that stuff... Helps with drawing from photos at angles."
Excuse or not, whatever. Drawing research?
I probed, "Wait, you draw too?"
"Cosplay's recent binge. Illustration's my main thing. That one account she's following."
The sole follow: @yukinyan_. Yuki-nyang, with the "Seol" in the name. Classic otaku naming.
Wait. Illustrator... Yuki-nyang?
I clicked, half-doubting—but no follow button for a stranger, just unfollow. And below, nearly 150k followers.
"......"
Any more shocks, and my brain's gonna overload...