The Grand Opening of the Demon King's Table
The ground rumbled with a deep vibration—Vrrrrm! The earth in front of the tombstone split open, and a bluish soul rose from the crack, coalescing into the form of a plump ghost sporting a thick mustache.
"Who dares... wake me from my slumber..." Kastab's ghost bellowed in a voice that shook the air. His eyes burned with the same fierce intensity they must have held in life.
"My soup never went cold! That damn servant boy was the one who showed up late!"
He launched straight into a tirade the moment he appeared. Just as the old saying went—master craftsmen really do have the worst personalities.
"Calm yourself, Chef Kastab. I'm well aware of the injustice you suffered."
"Who the hell are you? That gloomy robe... A dark mage?"
"I am the owner of the dungeon restaurant, Kim Daon. I've come to make you an offer."
"An offer?"
"Don't you want to cook again?"
Kastab's expression twisted. "Cook... Yes, cooking... But I don't have hands! No nose to smell with, no tongue to taste with!" The ghost wailed as he stared down at his translucent palms.
"Don't worry. I'll provide you with a body and link your senses to mine." I pointed at the fresh (?) skeleton I'd prepared nearby. Then I opened my status window and activated the Sense Sharing skill. Familiars contracted to a dark mage could share their master's senses.
"I'll lend you my sense of taste. And I'll give you perfect kitchen assistants who will move under your exact command."
"Perfect assistants?"
"Skeletons that don't complain, don't rest, and chop vegetables exactly as ordered."
Kastab stroked his beard thoughtfully.
"And... the deciding factor." I pointed to the red cat perched on my shoulder. "This person will be your VIP customer, tasting every dish. She has extremely particular tastes. Her status is so noble that a mere king couldn't even compare."
Lucy let out a soft "Hmph" and turned her head away. Her haughty posture alone was enough to overwhelm Kastab on instinct.
"Nobler than a king... A demon noble? No... something even higher..." A chef's fighting spirit ignited in Kastab's eyes. "Very well. I'll prove my cooking hasn't gone cold. I'll accept the contract, young man!"
I went ahead and awakened the patissier Marie and the butchery expert Baron from the neighboring graves as well. And just like that, with me as the lead chef, the Hell's Kitchen Team was officially formed.
One week later, the dungeon known as the Forgotten Abandoned Mine had transformed into something unrecognizable.
A glowing neon sign that read Demon King's Table now hung at the once-ominous cave entrance, created with magic that harnessed bioluminescent moss. Inside, elegant red carpets and chandeliers reflected Lucy's refined tastes.
And in the kitchen...
"You worthless boneheads! You call that an onion chop? How do you expect to get any broth out of that?!"
Kastab, now possessing a skeleton body, swung his kitchen knife like a madman while roaring. In front of him, skeleton assistants dressed in maid uniforms were slicing at blinding speed.
Clack-clack-clack-clack-clack!
Creak! Creeeak! (Sorry, Chef!)
They answered with the sound of bones knocking together.
"Watch the sauce thickness! It's burning! Are you even regulating the flame?!"
The kitchen was a literal war zone. Yet the aromas wafting out were pure heaven. The dishes created under Kastab's command operated on an entirely different dimension from my amateur attempts. A deep, rich demiglace sauce. Juices that exploded across the tongue. And the sweet desserts Marie pulled from the oven.
"Perfect."
I smiled with satisfaction from behind the counter in the dining hall. All that remained was for customers to arrive.
And finally, opening day arrived. The first customers stepped through the door.
As expected, it was the hero party.
"What is this place?"
The blonde female knight Karina stood frozen, mouth hanging open. Behind her, Elin, Seria, and Luna filed in one after another.
"Daon? What on earth is all this?"
"Welcome, heroes," I greeted them in a crisp suit. A skeleton wearing a tuxedo beside me bowed politely. The faint clack of bones was best ignored.
"As I mentioned before, I've officially opened the restaurant for business."
"I can see that it's a restaurant, but..." Seria pushed her glasses up her nose as she scanned the room. "All your staff are undead? Is this really okay? Wait— isn't this actual blasphemy?"
Elin made the sign of the cross while staring at the skeleton maid. But the moment the maid offered her a menu and the welcome drink—a refreshing lime ade—her expression melted instantly.
"Oh my, it even has a little ribbon? How adorable."
As expected, the saintess was generous. Or rather, she was weak to anything cute.
"Please rest assured. They are all legitimate workers fully controlled by my mana. They do not violate any imperial labor laws."
Of course, that was a complete lie.
"Hmm." Karina took a seat with a smirk. "This is interesting. A restaurant served by skeletons. The atmosphere is absolutely killer, though."
"May I take your order?"
"Give us the signature dishes. If it's not better than that boar we had last time, I'm flipping every table in this place."
"Don't worry. Our chef is pouring his very soul into every plate."
This part was actually true.
Soon, Kastab's roar thundered from the kitchen. "Send it out before it gets cold! If you're even a second late, I'll boil your bones down to broth!"
The food arrived shortly after.
Hellfire Chili Steak — A cut of premium monster meat seared in infernal flames, bursting with spicy juices.
Phantom Cream Pasta — Silky pasta coated in a sauce made from spectral herbs and fresh cream.
Soul-Soothing Mushroom Risotto — Perfectly cooked rice infused with dungeon mushrooms that calm both body and spirit.
Karina sliced a piece of steak and took a bite. Her eyes flew wide open.
"......!"
"How is it?"
"Holy crap."
Karina let out a stunned laugh. "What is this? It's so much better than last time. The meat is literally tap-dancing on my tongue?"
"Woowaa! The pasta is incredible! The sauce is so rich and deep!"
"The risotto is cooked to absolute perfection..."
It was a massive success. The hero party devoured everything with such enthusiasm they looked ready to lick the plates clean.
"Daon."
After the meal, Karina called out to me.
"Yes, ma'am?"
"Can I tell people about this place?"
"Pardon?"
"It'd be a shame to keep it to ourselves. Besides..." She gave a mysterious smile and jerked her chin toward the kitchen. "That chef back there wouldn't happen to be the legendary Kastab who died years ago, would he? The flavor is identical."
My heart nearly stopped. As expected, you couldn't fool a true gourmet hero.
"If you keep it a secret, I'll provide you with free desserts for life."
"Deal." Karina laughed brightly and tossed me a pouch of gold coins. "We'll be back often. Oh, and give my regards to that cat lady over there too."
In her reserved seat at the corner of the counter, Lucy—the red cat currently enjoying the finest tuna tartare—perked her ears.
Hmph. Acting all superior just because she's a regular.
Still, she didn't look upset. After all, the pleasant clink of gold piling up was hard to ignore.
And so the Demon King's Table successfully completed its first day of business.
But this was only the beginning. Thanks to the hero party's word of mouth, gourmets and adventurers from across the continent would soon come flooding in.
And...
It looked like the gallery offline meetup was now confirmed. My restaurant was about to host the hero party, the Demon King, and the most dangerous keyboard warriors in the world all at the same time.
"Daon, I want another cake."
"Yes, yes, Lady Lucy. Right away."
I dashed around the dining hall with a dishcloth in hand. My body was exhausted, yet somehow a smile kept tugging at my lips.
The Kim Daon who wanted to die as a pathetic grade-nine civil servant back at the district office was gone. In his place stood the greatest restaurant owner in this other world—or perhaps the genius dark mage—Kim Daon.
Of course, the part about still being the Demon King's slave hadn't changed.
The clear chime of a bell should have rung from the door. Instead, a strange metallic creak echoed through the dungeon.
"Welco— Ugh?"
The greeting died in my throat. The air inside the dungeon grew oppressively heavy in an instant. A sticky, damp pressure like being submerged in water or sinking into a swamp.
The one who had entered was a very small girl. She wore a black gothic lolita dress and clutched a worn rabbit doll tightly to her chest. Her skin was so pale it looked nearly translucent, with dark circles extending all the way beneath her eyes. And above all else...
"Mutter mutter... If it tastes bad, I'll curse you... Give you a stomachache... Or maybe I'll just rip out all your hair..."
The ominous monologue flowed from her without pause.
CurseGirl.
When I'd only seen the nickname in the gallery, I'd assumed she was just a high school girl who loved roleplay. The overwhelming aura radiating from her in person far surpassed anything I could have imagined.
Crazy.