[What's life, just living as it comes]
[What's life, just living as it comes]
Team Leader Jo In-hyung of KFU Seoul Branch 67 kept investigating to find the whereabouts of the mysterious Master-level user.
"Seoul-Chuncheon Expressway, and if it's towards Seoul, they must have started from the Gangwon-do side. Plus, a hat, plain clothes... it's a guess, but the sun isn't even that strong, so there's no need to wear one on purpose. Are they a soldier?"
"Why would they be a soldier? Can't they just declare they're a Force User and get an exemption from military service? They even pay more."
"Some people think it's better to serve in the military than to get paid less for risking their lives. Besides, you know that if you're a Force User and don't work for the state, you get taxed, right?"
"Do you know how many Force Users have been dragged away because they couldn't pay that tax? The country has lost its mind. Are they telling poor people to just die?"
"Anyway, they don't want to fight, and they don't want to pay taxes. If that's the case, they have no choice but to hide that they're a Force User. Then, naturally, they have to go to the military. They wore a hat, but it's not like they're balding. Then they must be a guy with some experience. Wait a second..."
Team Leader Jo In-hyung pulled out his smartphone and searched for information here and there. Mainly regarding military units in the Gangwon-do area.
Before long, he found satisfactory information.
"That's exactly the time when the April '18 military service batch would be discharged. Don't know which unit, though."
"You're really sharp about the military."
"Chang-in. I'm over forty this year. A few more years and I can retire cleanly and collect my pension. Do you think I didn't serve in the military? I went to the army before the Enemy Species appeared."
"Ah, old man......."
"Most of the kids on our team joined because they didn't want to go to the military. And then they just settled in. Anyway, bring me the list of everyone discharged from units in the Gangwon-do area on that day. We need to investigate."
"You're going to do that?! There's going to be so many........."
"You punk, it's a time when every single person counts, so how much of a waste would it be to miss a Master-level expert? Even if we get rejected, we should get rejected in front of the person himself, rather than leaving it alone without even trying; it feels unsettling."
Team Leader Jo In-hyung thought about the blurry image of the man remaining in his memory.
The scope of being a discharged soldier had narrowed significantly, but the fact remained that the number was still huge. It was just the difference between an ocean and a lake.
"Come to think of it, what did you do with the Enemy Species corpses and cores that came in this time?"
"Half were taken by the research institute, and half were put up for corporate bidding. Did Leverage Inc. take them?"
"Leverage?"
Team Leader Jo In-hyung recalled Leverage Inc. from his memory.
Leverage Inc.
A multinational corporation with its headquarters in the United States, it invests in Gaia Force research, but its main business is Raf Energy research. That is why they spare no expense in purchasing Enemy Species corpses and cores.
The state also likes having as much money as possible, so while they take some of the obtained corpses and cores for research, they also sell some. They do it via corporate bidding, but it's safe to say that Leverage Inc. buys nearly half of them.
Naturally, Leverage Inc. is the first company to refine Enemy Species cores and turn them into an energy source. Enemy Species cores containing Raf Energy cannot be used by ordinary methods, but if they go through a refining process, they become an excellent energy source.
Even the weakest Pentagon (pentagonal) small core, if it goes through the refining process, emits enough energy to power a small car for half a year without needing to be refueled.
However, because the supply is insufficient, it is difficult for individuals to use it, but they are contributing by building power plants and supplying only the energy emitted from the cores.
"Well, if they sell well, I hope some crumbs fall our way too."
"Nah, they're too busy skimming off the top to do that. I'd be grateful if they just bought us some equipment."
"Anyway, Chang-in. Let's suffer a bit for the time being."
They have to look through the list of discharged soldiers, which will be numerous, and compare them one by one. It will be hard and grueling work, as it becomes manual labor.
"You're going to cover overtime pay, right?"
"Does such a thing exist in our country?"
".........."
His complexion turned to rot.
Whether it's liberal arts or science, since they say it's the chicken shop tree, I'm not going to college and will go straight for the chicken tree. That's why I started this chicken shop.
Actually, I was confident that business would go well. Even without marketing, it's a natural principle that if the taste and location are good, business will go well.
I made the shop an open-style one. It's a small shop where many people can't enter like a restaurant, but I'm thinking mainly of takeout without putting many tables. Ah, I don't do delivery.
I put up a part-time job recruitment notice on a part-time job recruitment site. The conditions were [Male, age doesn't matter, must be sturdy, available for at least half a year, hourly wage determined after interview]. I didn't set any other conditions besides that. Since they'll only be doing serving or dishwashing anyway.
Frying the chicken is my job.
Not long after, a few applications came in on the part-time job recruitment site.
Just as I was choosing while looking at the resumes and self-introductions of the applicants, there was one person who stood out.
It wasn't for any particular reason. Like my name, Choi Ak (Worst), the name was just a bit unique.
I called the phone number written on the resume. The call connected, and soon they picked up.
[Hello?]
"Excuse me. Is this Ha Baek-ri's phone?"
[Yes, that's right.]
"You applied to my place on the part-time job site, right? It's a part-time job for serving and odd jobs at a chicken shop."
[Ah, yes. That's right.]
"If you have time, would you like to meet and talk? I thought it would be better than talking over the phone."
[Where are you? I'll go there.]
"Let's meet in front of the shop. The shop location is on the recruitment site, right?"
I called them over and cleaned up the shop while waiting. I wanted to show at least a neat appearance. The impression has to be good.
Still, I had some time left after cleaning, so I turned on the news.
[At around 2 AM today, an arson incident occurred near Yonggang Elementary School in Daeheung-dong. Fortunately, there were no casualties, and according to the police investigation, they have launched an investigation keeping the possibility of intentional arson in mind.]
The world is truly terrifying, I thought, and considered it a story far from me. I have no intention of getting involved.
And an hour later, he came to the shop. Since the remodeling and facilities are all set up and I just need to open, it's fine to bring anyone in.
He looks like a beginner in society who still has a youthful appearance. My appearance is also in my early 20s, so it might be similar, but my eyes are fierce, so I look older. Perhaps I look at least in my mid-20s.
He has an impression that I've seen somewhere before. Where have I seen him........ I searched through the memories accumulated while reincarnating, but perhaps because it was quite a while ago, it doesn't come to mind. Well, it probably isn't anything important.
"Hello, I'm Ha Baek-ri."
"Ah, welcome."
"Oh...... by any chance, are you the owner?"
"That's right?"
"No, it's just that you're young......."
It's not that starting a business when young is unheard of, but it is rare. Honestly, if I didn't have the shop location, I wouldn't even have dreamed of starting a business like this.
"I'm the owner, Choi Ak."
"..........Yes?"
"Name's unique, right? That's why I picked you, Mr. Ha Baek-ri. The name 'Baek-ri' isn't exactly common."
"Ah, yes. I'm glad you looked favorably upon me."
I've had a hard time in various ways because of the name Choi Ak. Teasing me about my name is a daily occurrence. When I said "Private Choi Ak!" in the military, what the seniors said was really something else.
"I saw your resume. You're 21, but you've completed your military service?"
"I applied as a recruited soldier right after graduating high school and went immediately. My father said it's better to go to the military early."
"Then, by military service number, you're my senior. I was discharged in January."
"This January? Sir, by any chance, how old are you......."
"22. One year older than you. There's not much difference, so just call me 'Hyung' comfortably. There's only a one-year difference, so it's uncomfortable for me to hear 'Owner' all the time."
"Ah........ then I'll call you Hyung."
"You don't have a license. Well, you went to the military right after graduating high school. You didn't have time to get one. What about your family?"
"Both parents and a younger sibling below me."
"College?"
"Ah......... I'm not thinking about it much for now. My younger sibling is entering college next year, so considering the tuition, I can't."
Tuition for one semester is several million won. It's not money that comes out if you dig the ground, and in a year, it reaches nearly ten million won.
If it's a four-year course, then 40 million won. Since expensive places are even more expensive, it's hard to afford tuition unless you earn a decent amount.
"What are your parents' jobs?"
"My mother is a housewife. My father is a firefighter. He works at the Yeongdeungpo Fire Station."
"Firefighter? He does good work. It must be hard because the pay is low compared to the work."
"Besides, my younger sibling is a Force User, and they opposed becoming affiliated with the state....... It's a bit difficult because of the taxes."
"I want to smash the National Assembly to pieces to find out who made that fucking law."
"That's for sure."
I pride myself on having an eye for people as I've reincarnated repeatedly. This kid is a young man rarely seen these days. If he's working a part-time job to provide for his younger sibling's tuition and grew up under a firefighter father, there's no need to doubt his character. Personally, he's the type of person I like.
"Alright, the shop opens next Monday, so the day after tomorrow. Business hours are from 11 AM to 8 PM. We're closed on Saturdays. The shop is small, so it's comfortable, but can you work full-time?"
"Yes, that's fine. But does a chicken shop not need to operate at night?"
"I don't like nights. I have to go home too. My wife, who is the cutest in the world, will be waiting with dinner ready."
"Oh......? Hyung, you're married?"
"I'm 22, but I'm married. I just submitted the fresh marriage registration last month."
"I heard not many people get married in their 20s, but you did it early."
"For your information, this building. It's my wife's."
"A building owner?!"
"I'm doing it to make money, but it's half a bluff. Since it's the beginning, I'm only hiring one part-timer for now. If business goes too well, I'll hire one more."
"Will business really go that well?"
"Do you want to try some first?"
I have chicken marinating in the fridge. Chicken is delicious if you fry it roughly with just a little bit of technique, but it's even more delicious if you invest time. I put it in the fridge with a little extra seasoning to let the flavor soak in for a day or two, so even though it hasn't been long, it should taste decent.
I take out the chicken that has been aged with various ingredients and make the frying batter. For chicken, the chicken itself is important, but the frying batter is also important. Only when the balance between the two is right does a truly excellent fried chicken come out.
While cooking, I asked Baek-ri various things.
"What position did you get in the military?"
"Cooking soldier. I originally wanted to go as just an infantryman, but that was the only way to go quickly."
"It's a world where it's hard to even go to the military. That's why I went as an engineer, not infantry."
"If you're an engineer, do you build bridges and stuff?"
"No, something tougher. I'll omit the detailed explanation because we're going to eat chicken."
Still, if you're a cooking soldier, it's a position that rolls hard without weekends. The bastards who say cooking soldiers are honey are the ones who don't know who cooked the three meals they ate in the military every day.
"Sometimes on Boknal (dog days of summer), they give you a small chicken each so you make Samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup), right?"
"Don't even mention it. That day was truly like hell........ It was summer, so it was hotter and harder."
There's a saying that when men gather, they only talk about the military, games, and women. It's almost true. A fresh reservist who hasn't been discharged for long only has military stories to tell.
"I went to the engineers, so I also did work repairing various facilities. I also know how to install air conditioners."
"Wow, I heard that doing that once in Daegu costs hundreds of thousands of won?"
"I thought about trying it once, but I quit."
"Why?"
"A house that installs an air conditioner means it doesn't have an air conditioner."
"Ah........."
Why would I necessarily have to install an air conditioner in a house without an air conditioner in that hot Daegu.
Well, thanks to meeting Sion, I was able to open a shop like this. It's worth it to meet a good wife.
"You said you were married. What's your wife like?"
"She's pretty."
"You've got rose-colored glasses on........"
"It's not a joke; she's genuinely pretty. If you ask people passing by, 10 out of 10 would say she's pretty."
It's just that her appearance looks young, but she's an alien. Changing her form is her specialty, and since a Transcendent of that level basically has an appearance that follows her soul, she is bound to be beautiful by default.
But still, she looks like a child on the outside. So, no matter how much older she is than me, I just see her as young.
"But she had a pretty severe illness in the past. Because of the treatment, her hair bleached, and her growth stopped, so when I introduce her later, you'll wonder if a child came out."
"Really?"
"I don't joke about my wife. I can tolerate people cursing at me, but I don't tolerate people cursing at my wife; I'll punch them in the jaw or smash their head in. If you ever get a call to pick me up from the police station, please come."
"............."
Baek-ri is probably wondering right now, 'Is the owner a sane person?'. Seeing that he seems sociable and has a good character, I can think about hiring him and just need to set the hourly wage.
"Alright, the chicken is done."
I shook off the oil from the chicken that was fried perfectly at the right time and brought it out on a plate. Since we aren't doing business yet, it's okay to drink alcohol, so I take out beer from the fridge. As expected, chicken goes with beer.
"Here, try it. Even though it looks like this, it's chicken with various know-hows."
I added various spices to the seasoning to age the chicken, and curry powder is exquisitely added to the frying powder, stimulating the appetite. Among the skills I've purely learned while reincarnating multiple times, cooking is one of the few categories.
There is rarely anything as delicious as freshly fried chicken. Baek-ri picked up a leg and took a big bite, even though it was hot. I also picked up a leg and chewed it.
Chicken that stimulates the appetite just by the smell. You can feel the crispy frying batter and the oil, and soon the plain meat is chewed. The meat is also seasoned, so you can feel an exquisite salty taste. Since it's leg meat, it's soft, but conversely, even if you eat the breast meat, it won't be just dry.
And the beer that naturally makes you crave it. I took a big gulp and swallowed the cool beer down my throat. As the oiliness of the chicken was washed away with the beer, it made me make a 'Kuh!' sound naturally.
"Wow! This chicken is insane! It's delicious!"
"Right? Doesn't it seem like business will go well with this much?"
"Yes, it will definitely go well. It's an open-style where you can see the cooking. Even if delivery isn't possible, if takeout is possible, there will be many people coming, right? How much is one chicken?"
"8,000 won per chicken."
"With that taste at that price, there will be many people coming. I saw that the chicken chain I used to order from charged over 20,000 won."
"For chicken, you have to do 1 chicken a day. You have to be able to eat one chicken and one glass of beer after working for 2 hours."
"Ah, come to think of it, the hourly wage is........"
"The minimum wage these days is 7,530 won."
This damn minimum wage rises like a rat's tail. It's like they want all the part-timers to die; while prices are rising sharply, the minimum wage only rises by a few hundred won.
Self-employed people die if the minimum wage rises?
Then don't hire. Are they the only ones living?
"It's annoying to calculate the change, so how about 8,000 won for the hourly wage? Of course, it's that much because it's the beginning, so I'll give you a raise later after a long time. Aim for 10,000 won per hour!"
"You're generous, Hyung. I'm grateful."
"I'll give you bonuses occasionally after seeing how you work."
"Is that okay? There won't be anything left over......"
"If I thought about what was left over, I wouldn't have started from the beginning. Anyway, labor costs are only for you, and above all, there is no rent. I'm worried because there will be enough left even after taking care of you."
Originally, among the houses that appear on broadcasts saying business is going well, it often appears that the owner is a building owner, so there is no rent. Since it has a big impact on the price, not having that one thing is a big merit.
"By the way, how is the seasoned chicken?"
"Shut up and wait. I'll show you heaven."
The time has come to take out my secret sauce.
"Doesn't it seem like business will go well?"
"I acknowledge it."
Only after feeding him the seasoned chicken did Baek-ri give a thumbs up.
The seasoned chicken sauce, which is subtly sweet yet spicy, simply cannot be made without technique. You have to change the mixing ratio slightly depending on the ingredients and the condition of the chicken at that time, and if you don't do that, this exquisite taste won't come out.
"Business will go well. Fry some for me when work is over so I can take it home occasionally."
"Come to eat. Pay money."
"Hey."
"If you bring your father, I'll give you the chicken for free. Since he's a person who does good work, I have to treat him."
They are people who are not treated by the country, so citizens like us should treat them.
On one side of the shop, I immediately wrote [Fire officials (firefighters) get free chicken *Alcohol is charged].
"Is that okay?!"
"Can they come in a group and have a company dinner? Even if they come, there won't be many people. Besides, the shop is small. It's fine in terms of profitability."
"Hyung, you're a cool guy."
"Anyway, bring your father sometime. I'll fry it deliciously."
"I'll bring my mother and younger sibling too."
Alright, now that I've hired a part-timer, the work is finished.
I have to start business in earnest. I'll pray for the prosperity of the business and call some friends to serve them as decoys.
After Baek-ri returned and I closed the shop door, I finished up and came back.
When I returned, there was a slightly large box in front of the entrance. Thinking it was a bit heavy, I brought it inside and opened the contents in the house.
Inside, there was a naked Sion curled up in the box. I covered my face at the strange sense of déjà vu I felt for some reason.
"Are you a mail-order alien........"
"I quite like this kind of play too."
Sion opened her eyes slightly and said in a small voice. Since it has come to this, I have no choice but to respond.
I took her out of the box and entered the living room.
After that, we had a messy sex.