Chapter 72
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: Benefits
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Through my conversation with Brüel, one thing struck me again.
A lot of elves were working to take care of me.
Without even being noticed by me, let alone thanked.
And without taking any compensation.
I sometimes forgot or took it for granted, but that's no way for a person to act.
Before I knew it, Su-hyeon had started fiddling with her leaves.
"Brüel, how many elves are helping me right now?"
"Including everyone, about twenty-two."
She had three teams under team leader Brüel.
It might seem like a small number at first glance, but if they were all around Brüel's level, it was an absurd amount of firepower.
Only guild masters from fairly well-known guilds were A-rank, and even then, only major guilds had this many A-ranks.
Of course, Brüel had said she was on the higher end, so not everyone was at that level.
Still, it was more than enough to crush an average guild with ease.
Such elite personnel, working hard just for me.
A video I'd seen on YouTube a few days ago came to mind.
"Then, you know..."
"?"
Su-hyeon went grocery shopping for the first time in ages.
She planned to cook as a way to repay the elves who were helping her.
"Everyone, there's really nothing better than home cooking for conveying your feelings. That's why people say to share a meal."
She remembered what a certain NewTuber had said: when words fail, cook instead.
He'd been a gentlemanly uncle teaching Ga-eun how to cook, his voice gradually rising—it had been pretty funny.
Of course, he'd followed up by saying cash was the best method...
But there was no way for her to prepare an amount fitting their caliber, and since they didn't want payment, handing over money would make things awkward.
So she decided to gift them food made purely with her own efforts.
She even told Brüel not to follow.
"No, Su-hyeon-nim. It could be dangerous."
"It's just grocery shopping. What's the big deal? Didn't you say you'd follow my lead earlier?"
"But!"
"If you're that worried, just check the surroundings without staring. It'll be more fun for them if they don't know the menu in advance."
"......Understood."
She grabbed a shopping cart at the mart entrance and headed inside.
The handle was at nose height, so holding it was no issue, but as soon as she started pushing, her body slid along with it.
"...Ugh, this thing. Steering's not easy."
Su-hyeon yanked the cart to a stop and began adjusting her speed again.
To avoid bumping into corners, she had to go even slower than expected.
Su-hyeon slowly pushed the cart along.
'But what should I make?'
She pictured Brüel eating with her.
She'd devoured jjajangmyeon with pork and delivery chicken without issue.
'Doesn't seem like she can't eat meat.'
Su-hyeon didn't know her preferences, but she clearly wasn't a strict vegetarian.
'Anything Su-hyeon-nim makes, we'd eat even if it was coal.'
"...That doesn't help at all."
Did that mean she should make coal?
Su-hyeon picked up a ladle the size of her face with both hands, then hung it back up and slowly pushed the cart while pondering the menu.
She only had one pot at home, so she'd need to buy utensils depending on the dish.
'Sandwiches?'
Sandwiches were just stacking ingredients, right?
With her skills—limited to instant ramen—it seemed doable.
Easy to deliver, too, and they could eat them later.
Decision made, Su-hyeon pushed the cart more confidently toward the bread aisle.
White bread and whole wheat.
The variety in brands and prices was overwhelming.
"What's the difference between these two?"
After a moment's hesitation, Su-hyeon grabbed both.
One white loaf and one whole wheat would do.
She took two of the priciest ones each.
No more stretching one ramen pack over three meals.
Grandma had given her money, and one meal a day was fine anyway.
Wait, hadn't she always eaten like that?
If anything, she was eating more now.
She lifted the bread overhead and shoved it into the cart; it clanged as it fell to the bottom.
"Next."
Su-hyeon headed deeper into the fresh produce section for fillings.
"Lettuce, tomato, cucumber... Huh?"
As she added veggies one by one, she hit an unexpected snag.
She wanted apples too—thin slices would be tasty.
"No way... what kind of pyramid is this?"
The apples were piled like a mountain.
It looked neat and pretty, sure...
"But pulling from the bottom would collapse the whole thing."
It'd collapse eventually, but not by her hand.
And the top ones were out of reach.
What to do?
She couldn't climb in her shoes...
Su-hyeon whipped her leaves a few times, then had an idea and shoved the cart right up against the display.
She started clambering up the cart with determination.
"Oh, I can reach. Just a bit more..."
A little farther and she'd have it.
Stretching as far as she could, Su-hyeon climbed onto the cart's railing.
Her fingertips brushed the top—that instant.
Clunk—
The cart slid away.
"...!"
Her heart plummeted as she flailed her arms.
Thankfully, she grabbed the end of the shelf and didn't fall.
"Hah, huff..."
Now her hands were on the shelf, her feet on the cart.
A perfect reverse bridge—parallel to the floor.
Or in other words, one step from disaster.
"Grrrr...!"
She tried pulling the retreating cart with her core, but her soft belly had no chance.
"Hiiiiaaak! Brüel! Bruuueeel!"
I know you're watching!
'No, I told you not to follow...!'
"Uwaaa!"
"Oh no...!"
With help from a passing employee nearby, she barely survived.
"Don't do anything risky next time."
"Sorry..."
Su-hyeon ended up with thirty apples.
The kindness of the employee.
"Huh?"
The cart rolled toward the checkout on its own.
Self-checkout followed by self-driving cart...?
With self-checkouts everywhere now, off-peak hours meant hardly any customers reached this far.
In cases like this, it was usually the elderly or those needing assistance.
A light green something poked up from the handle.
And then a pair of big eyes peeked out.
"Oh my?"
The cart was so full she couldn't see ahead.
"...!"
Eye contact with the cashier—it ducked down, and the cart veered slightly, rolling slowly.
As the cart neared the checkout, a little girl with light green hair and chubby cheeks appeared from behind it.
"Shopping alone? Goodness, you bought so much!"
The friendly auntie cashier chatted, but Su-hyeon just gave an awkward nod.
Su-hyeon silently unloaded the cart: bread, fruit, ham, cheese, all sorts of veggies...
'So cute. But what's all this?'
Even at a glance, it was way more than one or two people could eat.
Beep—beep—
"Can you carry all this home?"
As the auntie scanned barcodes, Su-hyeon finally started worrying.
'Taxi...? No, even getting it outside would be tough.'
The auntie smiled and showed her something.
"This is drone delivery service—want me to set it up for you?"
"Ah, yes! Thank you..."
With the auntie's help, she divided the ingredients into two boxes and packed them securely.
"Be careful with the knives, okay?"
"Yes, thank you."
A deep bow from the navel, and the drones took off.
They soared higher than the building, heading straight home—Su-hyeon felt a twinge of envy.
She imagined renting an extra drone to ride herself, then shook her head and started walking.
"Phew!"
The boxes were all inside, time to cook for real.
"But... this is way more than I thought."
Her cramped kitchen sink couldn't handle it all.
No choice—she spread paper packaging out on the floor.
She set a cutting board on a living box and started prepping ingredients one by one.
She cut the corners off the bread, laid it out long, and piled on the chopped veggies.
The lettuce was more torn by hand than properly chopped.
Now for ham and eggs.
Fried eggs in the pot should be fine.
She pulled out her ramen pot, drizzled oil, and cracked in one egg.
"Hm..."
Pot wasn't hot enough? The egg stayed raw even after breaking.
Figuring it needed time, she stepped down from the living box stool and moved aside.
She dumped the hams whole into a bowl and popped it in the microwave.
Processed food, so no issue there.
But how long?
"One minute should do it?"
Click, whiiiir—
Sizzle sizzle—
As the microwave ran, the eggs in the pot started cooking with little pops.
"Time to flip?"
She dipped a spoon in and gently scraped the edge.
Spatula? Why bother?
Grandma managed fine with a spoon.
So she hadn't bought one.
She wasn't planning to cook much anyway.
As the whites lifted smoothly, a sense of accomplishment grew.
"Careful... Ah!"
But the egg, flipping slowly, folded messily in half instead of neatly turning.
The yolk burst out too.
"Ugh, scramble! It's scramble!"
She mashed and stirred it with the spoon.
Might as well crack in the rest of the eggs.
Not all—just seven.
Three batches should do.
As she vigorously stirred, a loud noise erupted from the side.
Bang!
"Hak!"
What, what...?
Boom boom!
"Eut! What...!"
She scrambled down the box in a panic.
Didn't forget to turn off the gas.
Bang, bang boom!
Clunk.
Amid the explosions, she yanked open the microwave—smoke billowed out with a salty aroma.
"......?"
Peeking cautiously, nothing seemed wrong.
Three packs.
Over forty hams, all cooked to tasty perfection.
"Do hams make noise in the microwave...?"
Su-hyeon's knowledge had grown by one.