A Conscience-Free Lesson
Besides, thanks to Ju Hyeon-yeong being registered as his disciple, he was still steadily raking in Cooking skill experience. He had made the right choice from the very beginning.
'To be honest, Ju Hyeon-yeong winning the contest over all those prominent culinary guilds was a massive anomaly.' It felt a bit like Tae-hyun had dragged her across the finish line by force, but a win was a win. Tae-hyun had benefited immensely from it, too.
"What are you planning to do?" Tae-hyun fully intended to help Ju Hyeon-yeong. If you win, I win!
"For now, I'm going to gather as many ingredients as I can. I have to make do with what I have. Fortunately, only the crops grown in the fields are completely out of stock. I can still get meat and fish, so I'll try to adapt the recipe as much as possible by..."
"Too naive!"
"?!"
"The others are definitely going to throw money at the problem! Sure, ingredients are scarce, but if you pay a premium, you can still buy them at the Auction House!"
It was true that Chairman Yu was sweeping up all Advanced-grade and higher agricultural products. However, it was impossible to control every single item individual players wanted to sell. There were always ways to trade, like contacting sellers directly.
"In times like this, you need to make something expensive and extravagant to crush the pride of those other competitors!"
"Uh... I thought that if I poured my heart into my cooking, I could overcome this situation..."
The two of them were polar opposites.
"No! I'll help you, so let's go crush everyone else!"
"...I'll pass."
"?!" Tae-hyun was shocked by Ju Hyeon-yeong's refusal. He hadn't expected her to turn him down.
"Why?"
"You poisoned the food last time."
"...It wasn't poison, technically."
"And you went undercover..."
"...Well, that just sort of happened. Haha." Tae-hyun had no excuse. During the last contest, he had disguised himself as a noble and slipped something akin to poison into another player's dish. Although Ju Hyeon-yeong was grateful since he did it for her sake, she had no desire to repeat such an experience.
"Alright. I won't do anything like that."
"Really?"
"I never lie."
"Really?" This "really" carried a completely different nuance than the previous one.
"...The way you attack people with a smile on your face is even worse than Lee Se-yeon..."
"Pardon?"
"Nothing. Anyway, I'll just provide the backing, and you can handle the rest. As long as you have enough support, you'll be able to manage everything else on your own."
Tae-hyun believed in Ju Hyeon-yeong's culinary skills. Compared to other chef players with dark, ulterior motives, she certainly had her shortcomings. But she also possessed strengths that far surpassed them. One of them was her stubborn honesty! Tae-hyun liked people who quietly forged their own path regardless of what others said, just like Jeong Su-hyeok and Ju Hyeon-yeong. Of course, there was also the fact that if Ju Hyeon-yeong won the competition, he would receive bonus Cooking skill experience. In truth, that was his primary goal.
"Alright. Let's draw up a strategy." As he spoke, Tae-hyun thought to himself: 'Is there any way I can pull some strings behind the scenes without Ju Hyeon-yeong finding out?'
"Senior!"
"Oh, hey, Su-hyeok." Tae-hyun waved when he saw Jeong Su-hyeok. However, when a crowd of unfamiliar guys trooped in right behind Su-hyeok, Tae-hyun's expression turned utterly dumbfounded.
"Senior!!"
"Who are you guys?" his voice sounded thoroughly unenthusiastic.
"Hello! I'm from the Korean Language and Literature..."
"Ah, whatever. Why are you here? Did you come for the soup? Did Su-hyeok brag about how good the soup is here?"
"No, it's not that..."
Before they could even finish their sentence, Tae-hyun waved his hand dismissively. "If you're at a soup restaurant, you order soup."
"Ah, yes!"
Meanwhile, Tae-hyun gestured to Jeong Su-hyeok with his finger. As Su-hyeok approached with a guilt-ridden face, Tae-hyun whispered, "What's this?"
"Well, those seniors..."
"Hmm. I see." Tae-hyun nodded as he listened to the explanation. Situation understood!
"So, they wanted to meet me, but since they couldn't just contact me out of the blue, they bullied you to get my number?"
"Ah, no. They didn't bully me."
"Ah. Then did they beat you up and assault you to take my number?"
"What?! No..."
"You just said 'yes'."
"That's not what I meant!"
"So it was even worse." Tae-hyun, whose mood was already soured, was just hearing whatever he wanted to hear. Meanwhile, the juniors were giggling excitedly as they waited for their soup. They seemed completely oblivious to the ominous conversation taking place between Tae-hyun and Jeong Su-hyeok.
"Here you go!" 'These clueless punks had to ruin the mood right when things were going so well...' For some reason, the restaurant aunties were giving them strange looks, but the juniors decided to ignore it.
"Whoa! This is delicious?!" "It really is?!"
"Alright. Let's go." "??!" Tae-hyun stood up the very moment the juniors took their first spoonful.
"Senior?!" "I'm done eating. It's your fault for eating too slowly."
The juniors should have caught on right then. Rumors always exist for a reason! However, blinded by greed, they refused to give up and hurriedly got to their feet.
"Right. So you want me to teach you..."
"Yes! Just like Su-hyeok!"
"What exactly do you mean by 'just like Su-hyeok'?"
"Well, Su-hyeok is terrible at games. But seeing how far he's come, it must be because you're an amazing teacher, Senior. Haha!"
"Right. Haha. What's your class?"
"I'm a Mage."
"What's your magic skill level?"
"I've reached Intermediate level 2!"
"Right, right. I see." Tae-hyun's smile grew increasingly benevolent. Seeing this, Jeong Su-hyeok trembled in sheer terror. That was the exact smile Tae-hyun wore when he was digging a trap to bury someone alive!
"With your level, I bet you'd easily surpass Su-hyeok with just a little bit of guidance. Right?"
"R-really? Actually, I was thinking the same thi... I mean, I'm definitely better than Su-hyeok!" They eagerly snapped up the bait Tae-hyun dangled! Thrilled by what they thought was high praise, they began to chatter excitedly about this and that.
"I really enjoyed the last broadcast! You got all those weird quiz questions right! Was there a script beforehand? Do you think I could be on the show later too? If you could just invite me once..."
"We're here."
"?" When Tae-hyun suddenly stopped in his tracks, they tilted their heads in confusion. The building before them was a gym.
"Su-hyeok did improve a lot after learning from me. But did he never tell you how he managed to learn?"
...?
"He succeeded in holding out against me in a PK match."
"Oh... Ohhh! So that's how it is!"
"Now, come on in."
"Huh? But this is a gym." To PK, shouldn't they go to a capsule room or use a capsule to log into Pan-On? Why a gym?
"Aren't we going to PK?"
"Uh... are there capsules inside?"
"No capsules, but we do have gloves."
"..." The color drained from the juniors' faces. Tae-hyun shot a warning glare at Jeong Su-hyeok. 'Keep your mouth shut and stay still!'
"Alright, alright. Get in, get in, you punks." Shoving the juniors inside, Tae-hyun locked the door behind them.
"Hey, Ahjussi. Long time no see."
"Tae-hyun? What brings you here?" This was Yang Sung-gyu—his father Kim Tae-san's long-time friend, the number two in their old Lineage blood pledge, a priest of Archisus in Pan-On, and a gym director in real life.
"I came to do some sparring."
"...With those kids?" Yang Sung-gyu asked, sounding highly skeptical. No matter how he looked at them, they were complete amateurs! But Tae-hyun replied with a bright smile.
"Yes!"
"All of them at the same time?"
"No. One-on-one."
"Do you even have a conscience?"
After giving a brief safety lecture and whispering to Tae-hyun things like, "Go easy on them," "Don't make me call an ambulance," and "Where did you get your makeup done? It looked incredibly realistic," Yang Sung-gyu went back to his own business. There were plenty of other people training seriously in the gym.
"Uh, Senior..."
"What?"
"By PK... did you mean fighting in real life?"
"Yeah, so?"
"W-wait, that makes no sense!"
"It makes sense here. You can leave if you don't like it. Su-hyeok kept getting beaten up but held out. I was moved by his grit." Jeong Su-hyeok hung his head in embarrassment. The memory of him crying out, 'I want to get a girlfriend!' was still vivid in his mind!
"...I'll do it!"
"Oh. Good. Very good." Tae-hyun nodded with satisfaction. His satisfaction didn't stem from praising the junior's attitude. He was just glad the guy stepped up because he really wanted to beat him up!
"Alright, put on the headgear, the gloves, bite down on this mouthguard, and try to bear it even if it hurts."
"Senior, actually, I took boxing classes for a few years..."
"Sure, sure. A few years or whatever the hell..."
"Did you just swear?"
"You must have misheard. It's noisy in here, isn't it?" The junior fell for Tae-hyun's nonchalant lie. 'If Su-hyeok could hold out, I definitely can.' Jeong Su-hyeok was known as a gentle giant in their department. Despite his fierce appearance, he was a slow-witted junior in many ways! Seeing someone like Su-hyeok receive recognition and make a name for himself naturally sparked jealousy in others. The guys who came here today envied and looked down on Su-hyeok. And Tae-hyun saw right through their hidden motives.
'How should I beat him up...'
'Is it okay to attack him? He won't get mad, right? Maybe he'll even like it, thinking I've got guts.' Just as he said, the junior had indeed trained in boxing for a few years. 'Alright, let's do this!'
"Huh?" Whoosh! Thud! "Ah, oops." Knocking down the rushing junior with a single counterpunch, Tae-hyun clicked his tongue. He had wanted to beat him up for a bit, but he ended it in a single blow.
"Uh... what just happened?"
"Nothing happened. Come on, get up, get up. Let's play some more."
"Yes!" Still completely oblivious to Tae-hyun's true intentions, the junior quickly scrambled back up. Whoosh! Thud! "Come on, get up! Get up!"
"Uh... excuse me... Senior... something feels off..."
At first, they watched with expectant eyes. 'When is it my turn?''I want to go up and hold out too!''I'll show him my grit!'
Then, their eyes turned suspicious. 'W-when is he going to let him pass?''Why isn't it ending?'
Finally, their eyes filled with sudden realization. 'The rumors were true!''What Dong-hwan said was true!''Run!'
The illusion they had built up from watching him on broadcasts and tournaments was finally shattered.
"We'll be leaving now!"
"Wait, you guys haven't even had a turn yet..."
"Something urgent came up!"
"We have our next lecture!"
"I think the soup gave me indigestion!"
They scrambled out in a rush!
"Those... those... those cowardly bastards...!" The junior who had been beaten up all by himself cursed his friends with a tearful face. Jeong Su-hyeok whispered to Tae-hyun with a pitiful expression.
"Senior. Senior Kim Se-hyeong isn't actually a bad person."
"Are you slow or just plain stupid? Couldn't you see him looking down on you?"
"Well, yes, but it's not like other people don't look down on me too..."
"..."
"Actually, even I think what they just did was a bit much."
"Right. As long as you know."
"But other than that, he's usually nice to me! His personality is just a bit rough, but he's not a bad guy! He's different from the others!"
"If you ignore all their flaws, who isn't a good person?"
Though he spoke harshly, Tae-hyun's anger had subsided a bit. Hearing Su-hyeok say that, it seemed Kim Se-hyeong had looked after him reasonably well at other times. Of course, that didn't change the fact that the guy was still an annoying prick!
Left all alone, Kim Se-hyeong asked tentatively, panting heavily. "Pant, pant... C-can I give up too?"
"What? Let's go a bit longer."
"I-I don't think I can handle any more..."
"If Su-hyeok can do it, so can you! Fighting! Get up! Cheer up!"
"No, I really don't think I can..."
"Are you saying you're worse than Su-hyeok?"
"Ugh... I'm getting up! I'm getting up!"
And thirty minutes later.
"I'm worse than Su-hyeok! Please let me go home!"
"Good. You've finally come to your senses. You pass!"