The Secret Chef

"What? Why?" Lee Se-yeon asked, looking puzzled as Tae-hyun stared at her.

Her attitude made it clear she didn't think changing her mind was a problem at all! Normally, she wouldn't do something like this because her undead summons would complain, but she possessed the flexibility to accept such penalties if the situation called for it. It was a necessary talent for any top ranker.

Tae-hyun nodded in agreement.

"I like that shamelessness of yours."

"...I don't know whether to feel flattered or insulted?" Lee Se-yeon glared at him slightly at his sudden remark.

"Then I'm attaching the bomb, okay?"

"It has to be something that works against spirits."

"Of course."

Tae-hyun began pulling bombs out of his inventory. Actually, Tae-hyun didn't carry that many bombs around. Bombs were surprisingly heavy and bulky items. In Pan-On, every item had its own weight and volume. Thanks to Towang-i, his walking material warehouse, he had plenty of leeway, but...

'It's better to carry the raw materials and craft them on the spot when needed.'

Therefore, the bombs Tae-hyun carried were usually reliable staples that could be used in any situation. These bombs were masterpieces of the bomb-making world, developed and refined through countless trials and errors. Bombs that perfectly balanced materials, cost, weight, activation time, and effects!

There was the Fire Bomb, used when he wanted to create a wide-area effect or turn the surroundings ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠into a sea of fire. And the Shrapnel Bomb, filled with fragments to deal physical damage and critical hits.

'Hmm. It's better to make it on the spot.'

If it had to work against spirits, then...

As a master of bombs, Tae-hyun instantly began crafting a bomb on the spot.

"Done?"

"Done. Alright, undead, get over here!"

-?

The Death Knights, who had been surrounding the spirit and fighting loyally, tilted their heads when called from behind.

-What is it, human?

-Are you planning to cast another enhancement spell on us? Excellent. My death sword shall not disappoint.

The undead approached Tae-hyun with clueless faces. Because of the metal magic he had cast earlier, they thought he was giving them another buff.

...But what Tae-hyun was putting on them this time was not metal magic.

Click-

-?

-This... gives off an ominous energy. What is this?

"It's like an accessory that makes your attack power a bit stronger."

Lee Se-yeon was relieved to see the undead fall for it so easily. No matter how high her black magic skill was, completely controlling the undead was harder than it looked. As the undead's level grew stronger, their ego also grew stronger. This was especially true when putting something like a bomb collar on them.

"By the way, you could teleport undead too?"

"Yeah."

"I've never seen you do that. You didn't hide it to use on me later, did you?"

"...N-No, of course not."

"I think your response was about a second late just now?"

"Something is strange lately."

"...Uh, shouldn't we call Tae-hyun?"

When Lee Da-bi asked for a consultation, the Team KL players panicked. Choi Sang-yun, Jeong Su-hyeok, and Cain exchanged glances.

'Do we even have the ability to give her advice?'

'If we did, would we have any reason to be stuck in this situation?'

"Hmph. Ask me anything."

"......"

"......"

Before they could stop him, Cain opened his mouth, and the two glared at him. Hey, you idiot!

"Right. What's the problem?"

"The home-cooked meals are too delicious."

"...R-Really? I'm jealous."

"This is a serious concern, you know?"

Lee Da-bi had been feeling something strange lately. Whenever her younger sisters were on house chore duty, the food was strangely delicious. It wasn't like they suddenly attended a cooking academy, so it was bizarre for the food to taste this good.

"Didn't your sisters just cook diligently?"

"That's right. Your sisters are very admirable."

Choi Sang-yun and Jeong Su-hyeok knew the truth, so they quickly changed the subject. Because Tae-hyun was the one cooking!

Lee Da-bi's sisters had used the excuse of the last match to suggest, "Then would you like to cook when it's our turn on duty?" and Tae-hyun had eagerly accepted and went over to cook. He was doing it with the determination to beat Lee Se-yeon next time, so they couldn't stop him, nor could they tell Lee Da-bi...

-If we get caught, we're the ones who'll be destroyed, right?

-Probably.

Starting with a ban on meat side dishes, in the worst-case scenario, Tae-hyun might go on a housework boycott. That meant the remaining players would have to prepare their own meals, which meant Cain's turn on duty would increase. A terrifying prospect for the players.

'We must keep the secret!'

But Lee Da-bi was sharper than they thought.

"My current hypothesis is that Tae-hyun is secretly coming over to cook for them..."

"Gasp...!"

"?"

"A-Ah, nothing. I just yawned suddenly."

Everyone was horrified by Lee Da-bi's sharp intuition. How on earth did she know?

"Why do you think that?"

"The food tasted exactly like Tae-hyun's cooking."

'Terrifying!'

'No, is it really possible to guess just by that?'

'It's completely possible, isn't it?'

Cain nodded in agreement. Having eaten his food every day, he could easily distinguish it.

"Still, isn't that a bit much? Tae-hyun is busy, there's no way he would do something like that."

"Right, right. Of course."

"Exactly."

"And unless my sisters have lost their minds, they wouldn't have done something so crazy."

"......"

"......"

Everyone trembled in fear at the faint murderous intent in Lee Da-bi's voice. It is always the people who rarely get angry who are the scariest when they do.

"Maybe your sisters learned from Tae-hyun?"

"They ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠would do something so insolent when he's busy?"

"N-No... they could learn..." Cain said, shrinking back. Cain was also learning how to cook from Tae-hyun. Was that really so wrong?

"And he's probably not just teaching them, but going there to cook himself, right?"

"????"

"!!!!!!"

Choi Sang-yun and Jeong Su-hyeok turned pale and stared at Cain.

'Are you crazy?!'

'If you want to die, die alone! Why are you dragging us down with you?!'

As the two stared at him in horror, Cain asked, puzzled.

"Why?"

"Why would you say that...!"

"He didn't tell me not to say it."

"...Do you really need to be told that to know?!"

As Choi Sang-yun turned pale, the terror began to infect Cain. Cain asked in a slightly panicked voice.

"Was I not supposed to say it?"

"Of course not."

"Uh... b-but she won't be too harsh on us, right? Kim Tae-hyun didn't tell us to keep it a secret either."

"That actually sounds plausible... Wait. I almost fell for that for a second."

Choi Sang-yun almost agreed, but stopped himself. Nonsense was still nonsense.

"Still, there is one silver lining."

"Huh? What? Why? Is something good happening to Kim Tae-hyun? Will he let us off?"

"No. Not that. Since only Cain said it, I think the rest of us might be safe..."

"......"

While Cain threw a look full of betrayal, Lee Da-bi slowly spoke.

"Anyway, so that's what was happening, right?"

"......"

"N-No. Tae-hyun did do something crazy, but he probably didn't mean any harm."

"I'm not particularly mad at Tae-hyun right now, you know?"

Lee Da-bi's fingers moved busily as she sent a text message... to her sisters.

"Y-Your sisters probably didn't mean any harm either!"

"Then tell me the truth."

"W-What?"

"If you don't tell me the truth, I'll order the Power Warrior guild members to leave malicious comments on your channels."

"......!"

This was truly terrifying. The Power Warrior guild members boasted numbers and free time that wouldn't back down even in a keyboard war against Chinese netizens.

"Was it Tae-hyun or my sisters who first asked to prepare the meals?"

"...Your sisters."

The Team KL players felt sorry, but they had no choice. The living had to survive.

At those words, another text message was sent.

Tae-hyun was furious when Lee Da-sol and Lee Da-saem urgently contacted him. Who on earth dared to touch them?

Tae-hyun clicked his tongue at the barrage of text messages.

Tae-hyun yawned as he waited in front of the school gate. As dismissal time approached, students in school uniforms began walking out one by one.

"?"

"???"

"?????"

Passing students glanced at the sharp-eyed man standing in front of the school gate, tried to walk past, but turned their heads to look again.

Wait, that face looked familiar...

"Isn't that Kim Tae-hyun?"

"Just because you got wrecked in Pan-On yesterday doesn't mean you can talk nonsense. You got me killed too."

"No... I really think it's Kim Tae-hyun?"

At his friend's words, the student turned his head again. Then he said firmly:

"Kim Tae-hyun is way handsomer."

"Isn't that because of the in-game filters?"

Everyone was unsure, so they didn't dare to strike up a conversation. How embarrassing would it be if they talked to him and he was just a lookalike?

Meanwhile, Lee Da-sol and Lee Da-saem walked out. They looked quite warm and friendly, chatting with their friends.

"Over here..." Tae-hyun was about to wave and call them, but hesitated.

'Wait.'

High school was a sensitive, adolescent period. During such times, even having family show up at the school gate was embarrassing. Having a close acquaintance of the family show up and act friendly might be even more embarrassing.

"That's Kim Tae-hyun!"

"...I-It really is Kim Tae-hyun!"

But regardless of Tae-hyun's consideration, the two excitedly bragged about him. The moment they ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠pointed him out, the friends next to them abandoned them and charged at Tae-hyun.

A speed that could have qualified them for the Sky Island Grand Prix!

"I-I'm a fan! I'm a huge fan, Oppa!"

"Thanks."

"Is Cain here too?"

"He's at home cooking... no, training right now."

"Are you really close with Da-sol?"

"Yeah."

"Have you ever cooked for Da-sol too?"

"Yeah."

"Do you happen to like cooking?"

"No. I do it because I cherish them like family."

"Then why do you cook for Cain?"

"Because he's also like family. All the players are close."

"Still, I think Cain is too much!"

"Yeah! Cain is really crossing the line!"

Suddenly, a debate broke out among the students about "Why is Cain in the wrong?"

Tae-hyun, who was defending Cain on his behalf, suddenly felt a surge of anger.

'Wait. Why am I getting heat because of this bastard?'