Chapter 66
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 66
Chapter Title: That's Not the Problem
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Finishing up our baths, we decided to grab an early meal.
Come to think of it, I'd just realized something: women take forever to dry their hair.
Mine isn't exactly short either...
Brüel must've noticed me getting bored because she used some kind of ability to dry her hair in seconds.
If not for that, I probably would've been sitting there for a good thirty minutes.
"Brüel, what was that earlier? Wow, even the inside of my hair is completely dry!"
Ga-eun was still running her fingers through her hair in awe as she asked.
"It's a sort of parlor trick. We have a natural talent for manipulating mana."
Ga-eun's eyes widened, and she immediately perked up with interest.
"Not an ability, but mana? So, could I learn to do it too?"
"Theoretically, yes. But unlike humans who instinctively move mana inside their bodies, this uses mana around the skin. It might be tricky to get the hang of, and the efficiency isn't great."
"But it means I can do it, right? This is revolutionary!"
"That big a deal?"
"Totally!"
It's just a super-fast hair dryer, isn't it?
Su-hyeon tilted her head skeptically, and Ga-eun looked at her like she was crazy.
"Drying my hair every morning and night takes forever! I can't skip washing it or half-ass the drying. Holding a hair dryer for ten minutes makes my arm ache, wastes time... and if I focus too long on one spot, my hair gets damaged."
"Ugh, fine, I get it..."
Su-hyeon jumped ahead with a fed-up expression.
"Yours dries so fast anyway..."
Su-hyeon's hair seemed to soak up the moisture like a sponge, looking fresh in no time.
So she didn't need to fuss over drying it much.
Brüel, who'd been listening quietly, spoke up.
"That technique requires a high level of proficiency in handling mana. It also uses a lot of ambient mana unnecessarily. I could do it easily just now because you were nearby, Su-hyeon. But if the chance comes up, I'll teach you."
"Really? But when you say 'if the chance comes up'..."
"It means it's still too advanced for your current level, Ga-eun."
"Oh... So it's like the skill outpaces the student."
Ga-eun sounded genuinely disappointed.
Anyway, all fresh and fluffy now, we headed back inside the jjimjilbang to find the restaurant.
Su-hyeon had insisted that a true jjimjilbang experience required eating a meal too.
Ga-eun scanned around, wondering if Serena might be there.
'Did she already leave?'
She must've missed her; no sign of her anywhere.
Maybe she'd gone into the baths while we were drying our hair.
Before long, Su-hyeon arrived at the restaurant.
She stood confidently in front of the menu board, arms crossed.
Her cheeks puffed out a bit from propping her chin so firmly.
Large photos of dishes flanked her on both sides.
"Jjimjilbangs are all about miyeokguk at heart, but..."
Whoosh—
Her leaves swayed to the left, toward the miyeokguk photo.
"I kinda wanna go for jjajangmyeon too."
Whoosh—
They swung back to the right.
"Hmm..."
Ga-eun watched her leaves sway back and forth in indecision and spoke up.
"We can't finish everything anyway, so let's order a bit of each and share."
"But then it's not one dish per person..."
That weird stubborn streak she'd brought up before.
"Didn't we conclude last time that wasting food is worse?"
"W-Well, yeah, but..."
"Let's just get the double portion and split it. It's only a thousand won extra."
"...Okay."
Su-hyeon accepted reality under Ga-eun's persuasion.
"But what if we both want the same thing?"
I didn't want them picking around me.
"Brüel, what do you feel like?"
"Noodles feel more familiar to me than miyeokguk."
"Perfect. I was craving miyeokguk."
"For real...? You're not just going easy on me?"
"Come on, it's just food. Why would I?"
Ga-eun ruffled Su-hyeon's hair with a bit of force.
Su-hyeon looked a tad deflated for a moment.
But she quickly perked up, sitting at the low table with her feet kicking excitedly, full of anticipation.
Legs stretched out on the cushion, her pale toes on full display.
We didn't have to wait long.
"Thank you for waiting!"
A tray emerged from the serving window: double-portion jjajangmyeon and miyeokguk.
"Smells amazing..."
The rich beef miyeokguk aroma tickled my nose.
"Here."
Ga-eun mixed in most of the rice but left a spoonful out before stirring it into the miyeokguk.
"Thanks."
"Not super hungry yet?"
Nod nod.
We'd had snacks earlier, and our stomachs were full of water...
It was just past five now.
If needed, I could photosynthesize on the way home.
"Try this first, Su-hyeon."
Brüel scooped some jjajangmyeon onto a side plate for her.
"...What, is it pasta now?"
"Might as well make it look nice."
"W-Well, you're not wrong, but it feels kinda weird."
Plated like this, plain jjajangmyeon looked surprisingly fancy.
But jjajangmyeon was supposed to be casual comfort food...
I wasn't sure where to even start.
That's when Su-hyeon spotted Ga-eun pulling out her phone instead of a spoon.
'Gonna snap pics for her fan cafe again.'
Women are such a mystery.
...Usually people take food pics before digging in, though?
Hehe.
Ga-eun smiled as she snapped the shutter.
The screen captured a little girl staring sparkling-eyed at the jjajangmyeon and miyeokguk in front of her.
Feeling intense gazes after the shot, Ga-eun looked at Brüel.
'Me too.'
Her face was blank as ever, but she clearly wanted in.
'...I know.'
While they exchanged looks, Su-hyeon picked up her chopsticks and started eating.
Jjajangmyeon first, since it was hard to blow on.
Ga-eun snapped one more of her digging in without a care, then started her own meal.
Mid-bite, Ga-eun spoke up as if something just occurred to her.
"Oh, and I'm planning to meet up with Chan-seong soon."
"Hm?"
Splat—
At the sudden name drop, Su-hyeon looked up with a few black streaks on her chin.
Before Brüel could stop her, she wiped them away with a tissue.
Ga-eun inwardly lamented.
'Aw, that would've been a cute shot.'
Brüel still had a ways to go.
Su-hyeon chewed and swallowed before moving her sauce-darkened lips.
"Why Chan-seong all of a sudden?"
We'd crossed paths enough times that it wasn't awkward anymore, but we didn't see him often.
Unlike Ga-eun and me, who could meet daily, he wasn't a student and was busy prepping for job exams.
Unless we deliberately set something up, our paths wouldn't cross.
"I'm clueless about the Hunter exam. I tried looking it up myself, but the official site just has formal stuff... nothing substantial."
"Ah."
Chan-seong had a complicated past, but he'd been a Hunter for over five years—a veteran.
He could offer advice from an insider's view.
"But hasn't it been ages since he took the exam? Will he even remember?"
"It's not like the college entrance exam with past papers or set patterns. It hasn't changed much."
"Hmm... You think?"
"Yeah. And he didn't seem totally clueless. He said he wasn't sure if his level would help."
"Oh, you've already talked about it?"
Well, it all boiled down to combat anyway.
How much could really change?
Maybe just added safety rules at most?
"Even if he doesn't know, it's fine. I can ask friends for tutoring recs—they always hook me up. We can study fresh with Chan-seong then. Sounds fun, right?"
"...You're inviting him for broadcast content, not the exam."
Su-hyeon's eyes narrowed.
Turning every moment into content.
This was a pro streamer at work...
Brüel, who'd been quietly wiping Su-hyeon's mouth, offered her help readily.
"If you need my assistance, just say the word. I'm specialized in PvP, but I know magic beast combat too. I'd need a day to sort out non-classified info, though."
"Seriously? That'd be perfect! ...But no broadcasting it, right?"
Ga-eun's eyes lit up at the content potential again.
"No, that won't work. We share some curriculum with the Navy SEALs, so appearing on your stream could raise suspicions about our connection."
"Bummer."
The U.S. military had as many enemies as power; it could spell real trouble.
Korea was safe, but kidnapping active-duty personnel was harder than targeting Ga-eun.
Some unhinged fanatic might try something.
"Sigh."
Su-hyeon let out a breath watching her.
She was obsessed with streaming.
Her recent B-rank promotion had gone viral, flooding in viewers.
Her NewTube subs were nearing 500k yesterday...
Considering her streaming history, the growth was insane.
No wonder she was paddling so desperately.
'But isn't she too fixated on streaming?'
Ga-eun paused mid-scoop to jot down content ideas, and I watched her quietly before speaking.
"You gonna be okay with that?"
"Huh? With what?"
"The exam."
"Yeah?"
Ga-eun tilted her head.
Was there a problem?
The Hunter exam wasn't competitive, no leaks, and passing was just meeting the bar, right?
"Not that. Exams start this week. Can you juggle studying, streaming, and Hunter cert prep?"
"...Huh?"
Ga-eun's face went blank.
"Your major textbooks aren't like high school ones—you gotta start from scratch organizing them. Took me forever as a freshman to get it."
"Ah?"