Chapter 52
Chapter 52
52.
Yongyong Pork Belly
And a few days later.
“Hye-ya. Are you ready?”
“Shouldn’t you be asking Yong-yong, not me?”
“Yong-yong, are you ready?”
“Krrr!”
With Yong-yong’s powerful cry, Uncle and I left the house early in the morning. It was for the opening of Yongyong Pork Belly.
Originally, we could have left a little later, but we came this early because of reservation calls from acquaintances.
‘Too many people are coming.’
After some deliberation, we decided to receive acquaintances before the opening time.
The official opening was at 11 AM, but we would welcome acquaintances from 9 AM to 11 AM for a soft opening.
This was also due to the change in how we received customers.
As soon as the Dragon Charcoal Grilled Pork Belly article was published, people started setting up tents in front of Yongyong Pork Belly.
‘I was really surprised.’
Uncle hired two store managers and a sufficient number of employees, preparing everything well.
However, judging from the situation, it was expected that even more people would flock to the store.
-This won’t do. We need to use a lottery system.
The method we decided on was to receive customers through a lottery system.
There was some deliberation because we could also only take reservations or just have a waiting line.
Each method had its pros and cons.
If we only took reservations, there would be too much disparity in the online application process. There are things like macros, too.
‘I know how unfair it feels because I experienced it when I first worked as a Porter.’
Back then, when I had no connections and could only look at job postings, I couldn’t beat the Porters who used macros.
Hearing from people around me, if we used an online reservation system, people who couldn’t get a reservation wouldn’t be able to come at all.
-I absolutely can’t do a Queue System because people are setting up tents as soon as the article came out.
The Queue System was rejected due to concerns about excessive competition and inconvenience to nearby citizens.
The lottery system we decided on was simple.
The identities of the reservation holder and the person entering would be verified. In the case of foreigners, the name had to match the passport.
There might be better methods, but this was the best we could do.
‘We’re Hunters, not people who specialize in business.’
The lottery site that was opened crashed on the first day. The number of people who rushed in at once, including those from overseas, was said to be 20 million.
-US President considering a visit to Korea to ‘try Dragon Charcoal Grilled Pork Belly’?
-The British Royal Family…
Due to the enormous global attention, even the leaders of various countries were showing interest.
Is it that big of a deal? I was bewildered, but when I thought about it, it was.
It’s Dragon Charcoal Grilled Pork Belly. If I were the president, I wouldn’t be able to resist either.
I was even worried about whether we should accept a reservation if the president of a country came, even though we had a lottery system.
[Selling Yongyong Pork Belly Companion Ticket. ₩1,111]
[Yongyong Pork Belly Companion. ₩999,999,999]
Resellers also appeared among the winners. We couldn’t transfer the ticket because of identity verification, but companionship was possible.
The store managers hired by Uncle immediately took action.
-If you report a resale purchase of a companion entry at the store, you will be provided with a priority reservation ticket and a free meal. The seller will be permanently banned from entry.
It seemed like a good idea to hire several people. After all, we’re Hunters, so we hired a lot of people, and they took care of things on their own.
And at 9 AM. People soon began to arrive.
“Han Hye! We’re here!”
“……”
“Nice to meet you!”
Seo Seung-yeon and Kim San, along with two familiar Dawnlight Guild members, and four Iron Wall Guild members were together.
Even for acquaintance reservations, there was a certain limit.
Four Dawnlight members and four Iron Wall members came, and they were all familiar faces. They were the top 1 and 2 Guilds in the country.
While we were exchanging greetings, the Iron Wall Guild Leader approached me.
“Spatialist Han Hye, Dragon Knight Choi Cheol-gi. I am Jo Seok-hoon, the Iron Wall Guild Leader. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
It was amazing to see Hunters I only saw on TV. Of course, they were also looking at us.
It wasn’t uncomfortable. Both Uncle and I were figures of interest, and so were they.
“I hope we can meet separately if we have the chance in the future.”
Even though he was the Iron Wall Guild Leader, the greeting wasn’t long. People kept coming.
“…Sparring again soon.”
There was nothing particularly unusual, except for Shin Chang, the Sparring Enthusiast, saying that while being guided.
The next group was Park Seo-woong and the Association President, along with two Association employees.
“Nice to meet you. I am Kang Suk-doo, the Association President. I am grateful for your contributions and sincerely look forward to your future activities.”
Association President Kang Suk-doo, despite wearing a Prosthetic Leg, walked confidently and extended his hand. As he was once one of Korea’s heroes, I politely shook his hand.
“I am just grateful for the consideration the Association has shown us.”
“It’s only natural. I hope to see you again.”
Then, Recovery and Emergency Guild, Uncle and Aunt’s acquaintances, and Lee Shin-hee and Min-jae’s acquaintances came.
I wondered if Lee Shin-hee’s father or grandfather would come, but it seemed only her friends came. Min-jae was with his girlfriend.
Oh, and there was a call from Great Undertaking. I had blocked their number, so they called Uncle.
Uncle said that the reservations were full and it would be difficult.
-Are you sure it’s okay? They’re the 3rd ranked Guild.
-They’re those kinds of guys to you, how can I accept their reservation?
I asked just in case, but Uncle shrugged and joked.
-And so what if they’re the 3rd ranked Guild? They’re not 1st or 2nd like Iron Wall and Dawnlight.
* * *
All the acquaintances were seated. Now it was time for Yong-yong to light the fire in the specially made facility in the center of the store.
There was a place to light the fire in the center, and it was surrounded by special glass, an expensive fireproof facility.
“Ooh.”
“Dragon!”
Almost everyone who came today got up from their seats to watch.
After all, it was their first time seeing a Dragon in person.
“Crazy, so cute.”
“It’s really small.”
And I held Yong-yong forward.
“Yong-yong, fire!”
“Krrr!”
-Whoosh!
Flames poured out of Yong-yong’s mouth and lit the fire, and people applauded and cheered.
“Wow!”
“It’s real Dragon fire!”
Because it was a Dragon lighting the fire, the cheers erupted regardless of whether they were Hunters or ordinary people.
And the charcoal lit by Yong-yong was used to light the other charcoals.
This method was the best. No matter how much of a Dragon Yong-yong was, he couldn’t light each individual charcoal.
And soon the employees began grilling the meat, and the reactions quickly erupted.
“Crazy……”
“So delicious!”
“Is this really the best pork belly of my life?”
As expected, the reviews were overwhelmingly positive. Yong-yong’s fire was different from ordinary fire. Well, we didn’t do much in the process.
We hired plenty of store managers and employees. We paid them a lot, so the service was reliable.
“Thank you for the meal.”
“I have high expectations.”
“I’ll come again!”
“Let’s go into a Gate together!”
The acquaintances left one by one, not too late. The Iron Wall Guild Leader and the Association President seemed to want to talk to me for a bit longer, but…
There were so many people, so they took notice and exchanged light greetings before leaving.
There were countless people outside the window. Now it was time for the lucky people who won the lottery to enter.
The real opening had begun, so the fire in the center was lit again.
“Waaaaah!”
“This is crazy.”
“Amazing!”
Unlike before, over 90% of the people were ordinary people, so there was an even bigger cheer when Yong-yong lit the fire.
There were also many people filming. Anyway, that’s how the business started.
“There are so many people!”
Min-seok, who came to watch, was surprised to see the store.
I didn’t know, but Aunt and Uncle were quietly wiping away tears behind him.
‘I guess so.’
They must have had a hard time.
Not just Uncle, but Aunt too. She had been with Uncle through his difficult times.
“This is what I wanted……”
Yongyong Pork Belly had its good times, but it had never been this successful.
In the first place, it was difficult to use high-quality meat in a low-priced pork belly restaurant, and the commercial district wasn’t great either.
“Do you want to retire?”
“What?”
“I just thought that since you said this is what you wanted.”
I shrugged.
“I’ll light the fire with Yong-yong.”
“You!”
Uncle playfully pushed me.
“Why? You said you were going to retire.”
“I can never do that. How can I give up the Dragon I got?”
“Huh? You should say the Dragon I borrowed, since I’m the one who got him.”
Uncle glared at me slightly and looked around the store again. Then he put his arm around my shoulder.
“Thank you, Hye-ya.”
“No need to thank me.”
“Let’s go together forever.”
“Were you planning on not going together forever?”
“You ruin the sentiment to the end?”
Uncle extended his fist to me like before. Before Awakening, I was afraid of that playful fist and avoided it.
Even if it was a joke, an Awakened’s fist would hurt a lot.
My strength is strong now, but I remembered the old days and gave him a break.
“We have to go together forever. Let’s not die.”
* * *
After the first day, it was decided that Yongyong Pork Belly’s fire would be replaced by Yong-yong every week.
For a week, Yong-yong’s fire would be maintained in the specially made facility. A person was also hired separately to manage the fire.
As expected, sales soared. The reason was that all the ingredients prepared from the first day to now were sold out.
It was a huge success.
-The tremendous popularity of Dragon Charcoal Grilled Pork Belly! If you win the lottery, you can go with a celebrity who wants to accompany you!
-It’s not just about seeing the Dragon, the taste is also excellent!
-Famous food critic, the best meat I’ve ever eaten in my life.
-Is the Dragon’s fire different?
The media, as well as the internet, were in an uproar.
-No lie, it’s the best pork belly of my life. Better than Korean Wagyu? It’s twice as delicious.
-It’s so delicious.
-Ah, I’m so jealous. I failed the lottery.
-But if it’s more delicious than Korean Wagyu, what happens if you grill Korean Wagyu with Dragon charcoal?
-Huh?
-That’s right?
Uncle and I, who were watching the internet reactions together, immediately made eye contact.
“This……”
“Should we try grilling beef too?”
“Let’s do it right away.”
When I thought about it, we were fools. If pork belly was delicious, beef would be even more delicious.
We were so focused on Yongyong Pork Belly that we didn’t think that far.
“Yong-yong!”
“Krrr!”
And the words we said after grilling beef in the same state were one.
“Let’s open a second branch. Yongyong Beef.”
“That’s what I wanted to say.”
“Shall we look for a location?”
I wondered if we should open a second branch already, but to be honest, we hadn’t put our hands on anything other than preparing for the opening.
In the first place, we were Hunters, so we had set it up so that it would run without us.
Aunt would do the checkups in between. The only things we had to do occasionally were Yong-yong breathing fire once a week?
Well, the second branch wouldn’t open right away anyway. It took quite a while to find a location for the first branch.
“Hoo!”
After the opening, I devoted myself to training like a Hunter.
It was during that time.
“Huh?”
“Huh?”
“Huh?”
While we were doing Guild training, an alarming situation occurred among the Guild members.
We were practicing using Uncle’s Flying Dragon Pierce in succession, like we did against the Flame Guardian last time.
-Flap flap!
Yong-yong was flapping his small wings, trying to fly.
He usually flapped his wings when he was in a good mood, but this was the first time he had tried to fly.
And even his expression seemed focused, his eyes wide open. The party members’ attention was drawn to the sudden situation.
Cheering was natural.
“Yong-yong! Fighting!”
“You can do it!”
When Yong-yong failed to fly in the end, everyone expressed their disappointment, and Chunbae, who had been quiet, opened his mouth.
-It seems he is trying to grow. The recent battles seem to have stimulated him.
There were signs. Since chasing away the Nolls, we had encountered many strong enemies. Ogres, Grendel, and even the Apostle we met this time.
According to Uncle, Yong-yong had growled and glared at the enemy as if he would rush at them at any moment.
‘It’s time to harvest the Quasi-elixir too.’
The Quasi-elixir was also fully grown. In other words, it was time to confirm Yong-yong’s growth.