A Child's Clever Trap
Truth be told, even if the food at Seona's Restaurant wasn't particularly delicious, most people would still eat it with genuine enjoyment.
That was the kind of bond they shared.
They'd simply assume something must have come up, or that Jungwoo had been distracted by one thing or another.
That said, while they might praise a bad dish as decent, they would never call a good one the absolute best.
The greatest strength of Seona's Restaurant wasn't its flavor.
Every menu item might not reach the absolute pinnacle, but they always ranked in the upper tier. More than that, the unique atmosphere you could only find here was its true charm.
A place that always made you feel at ease.
Whether you were a hunter or an ordinary person.
Whether you had money or not.
Everyone was equal inside Seona's Restaurant.
Of course, other restaurants weren't all that different in atmosphere. As long as you could pay for what you ordered, no one really paid much attention to anyone else.
But that indifference mattered.
A place where no one pried or judged.
Places where the only transaction was money given and service received.
When the restaurant owner's daughter suddenly disappeared, customers came running to help. Even though their assistance wasn't accepted, Jungwoo still felt grateful for their hearts and shared food with them.
And then there was Seia, who could practically be called the restaurant's mascot. She was the biggest difference of all.
There was no need to even mention Seia's appearance. Jungwoo had always been told he was handsome, yet even his looks seemed to fade in comparison.
And these were exactly the things other people felt.
Seona's Restaurant was a place where it didn't matter if the food was a little less than perfect.
Which was why, when Park Geon-su showed such a strong reaction, the others couldn't help but look forward to it as well.
Especially Seong Ye-eun, who visited Seona's Restaurant more often than anyone else here. She hadn't tried many items on the menu yet, including the savory pancakes that had come out as today's snack.
After a brief moment of marveling at the taste, the forgotten spiciness that suddenly struck her tongue made her fan her mouth. While she did so, she looked at Seia with fond eyes, and both Seong Ye-eun and the others tore off a piece of the kimchi pancake to try.
“Wow, how is this even possible?”
There wasn't a single person who hadn't tried this kind of pancake before. It wasn't something they ate often, but everyone had tasted it at least once.
Of course, their memories of it might differ slightly.
But the fact that the difference was this stark meant today's version was anything but ordinary.
Even though they'd eaten from the center rather than the crispy edges, the crunch was still unmistakable. And yet it wasn't burnt at all.
The appetizing golden-brown color, varying slightly in shade, stimulated their appetites in the most delightful way.
What about the others?
They tore off a long strip of the potato pancake with their chopsticks. Dipped in soy sauce, the unique savory nuttiness of the potato combined with its chewy-yet-crispy edges came through perfectly.
It was delicious!
The flavor was startlingly good. It tasted like something you'd get at a restaurant that specialized in pancakes.
Yuhyeon's impression was no different.
The kimchi pancake he'd eaten as a child—something he could barely remember now—was nowhere near as good as this.
There weren't many things that reminded him of the days before he entered the gate.
Yet here it was, in a dish.
“I-it's so good…!”
Seo Se-yeon, who lived almost like a recluse, usually solved most of her meals with delivery. Given the enormous number of animals she raised herself, she made sure to prepare their food properly. But that was only for the ones who couldn't hunt on their own.
Birds were released to roam freely, and so were the cats. If they couldn't catch anything while out hunting, she'd give them food then. It wasn't simply a matter of feeding and neglecting them.
Because she could talk to them.
As long as she clearly explained what they could and couldn't do, they usually listened well. They even helped by catching mice that hid in every corner, so in a way, she took pride in keeping the city's harder-to-reach places clean.
While she prepared all their meals by hand, her own food was mostly delivery. As a result, she'd been eating things that weren't exactly the healthiest.
They might taste good. But if you picked the wrong place, you'd end up with something that was neither tasty nor nutritious.
Still, the number of those bad experiences had decreased with accumulated wisdom, and these days she at least managed to eat food that tasted decent.
For someone like Seo Se-yeon, today's meal brought back memories of the last time she'd eaten with other people so long ago.
She had eaten at Seona's Restaurant before, but that time she'd been alone.
“What's this one?”
“This is called potato pancake. You know what a potato is, right?”
“Potato… potatooo…”
She was sure she'd heard it somewhere before. She couldn't remember the details, but she had a vague memory that they were round.
The most famous potato dish that came to mind was french fries, but Seia had never tried them. Jungwoo felt too guilty giving her that combination of carbohydrates and fat.
The only potatoes Seia had ever eaten were the ones in the braised short ribs she'd had a long time ago.
“The potato pancake is good too,” Yuhyeon added in his usual blunt tone.
Watching the conversation flow like this, Seo Se-yeon felt like she wasn't alone.
Everyone was talking about the same things. Sometimes it was about Seia, sometimes about the food right in front of them.
What mattered was that it felt relaxed, peaceful, and quiet.
In the meantime, Jungwoo finished the students' tteokbokki and served it.
“Let me know if you need anything else.”
“Yes! Thank you, boss!”
It was tteokbokki that wasn't much different from last time, but there was one change today. Instead of regular rice cakes, he'd used cheese tteok.
Jungwoo didn't know what others thought, but cheese tteok was his favorite kind. Whether it was in dakgalbi or in tteokbokki.
After leaving that special little gift for the students, he headed toward Seia's table.
“How is it? Does it suit your taste? I made it a little differently from last time.”
“Hehe, as someone who's eaten many kimchi pancakes, I must say this is even better.”
“It's the best pancake I've ever had.”
“It's good. As always.”
“Eating together like this… it feels even better.”
Seia wore an expression of pure satisfaction.
To think her dad's cooking was receiving such praise. It felt almost like they were praising her instead.
“Daddy. What's a potato?”
“A potato? Oh, right. You've never actually seen one, have you? Just a moment.”
He brought a potato from the kitchen and handed it to Seia. Since he'd just gotten it from the market, it was still covered in dirt.
“This is a potato.”
“Can I eat it?”
“This? Well, you could, but it wouldn't taste very good.”
“Then what's the yummiest thing made from potatoes?”
Seia's expression looked exactly like a little villain plotting something. What could she be scheming?
She always showed the most adorable sides of herself at times like these. He was genuinely curious what cute trick she'd pull today.
“Hmm… I think it depends on the person?”
“Ah, the potato that Daddy likes the most!”
Seia's reaction grew a little urgent. Jungwoo immediately understood.
She wants to eat something made with potatoes.
Potatoes were a very friendly ingredient to people. They went well with almost any dish.
“For me, potato pancakes are the best.”
Unfortunately, Seia didn't get the answer she wanted.
“Tsk…!”
It was always like this. No matter how much she racked her little brain to get the answer she wanted to hear, her dad never gave it to her so easily. It was like he was always one step ahead.
So what should she do?
If it had been like last time, she might have said, “Not that, something else!” But there were other people around now.
“Grandpa!”
“Hm?”
“What's the potato that Grandpa likes?”
The question flew toward Park Geon-su, who had been watching the situation with interest from a third party's perspective.
It was obvious. Seia wanted him to recommend a delicious potato dish other than potato pancakes.
The potato pancake had been good. It was a dish that suited even a child's palate perfectly. And most potato dishes tended to have that kind of appeal.
They rarely divided opinions. While preferences might differ, it was extremely rare for someone to completely dislike them.
“Hmm… My favorite potato dish, you say.”
Seia looked up at him and nodded. Her eyes were filled with expectation.
If he answered with potato pancakes here, it would be a complete betrayal of that expectation.
But if he wanted to see her reaction to that… wouldn't that be too mischievous?
“Hehe. Grandpa's tastes are a bit different from what young people like these days.”
“That's okay! If Grandpa thinks it's yummy, Seia will think it's yummy too!”
He'd been about to decide whether to say potato pancakes or something else based on her answer, but after hearing that, he had no choice but to give her what she wanted.
“Grandpa really likes french fries.”
Of course that wasn't true.
Both Seong Ye-eun and Yuhyeon knew it well. French fries were something Park Geon-su didn't particularly care for. In his view, they barely even qualified as proper cooking.
“French fies?!”
Finally, the answer Seia wanted had come out.
She didn't know what french fries looked like or how they tasted. But she knew that fried things were delicious. Chicken was fried, and so was pork cutlet. So even though she'd never tried them, those things called french fries were surely delicious too.
“Yes, and I imagine the others here would like them too.”
“Do big sis and Master like french fies too?”
“Yes. I like them,” Seong Ye-eun said.
“I like them too,” Yuhyeon added.
“What about Cat Big Sis?”
“M-me? I love them so much!”
Seong Ye-eun and Yuhyeon were simply going along with Park Geon-su's opinion, but Seo Se-yeon was completely sincere. That crispy-yet-fluffy texture, combined with the savory and salty flavors that flooded the mouth, made her feel like she could eat them all day.
“Hehe. Daddy!”
Seia hadn't even gotten to the main point yet, but Jungwoo already knew exactly what would come next.
“Haha. You want to eat french fries?”
“Heehee. Yes! French fies look like they'd be super yummy.”
It was a scene he faced all the time, but as always, it was impossible to refuse.
“Alright. If my daughter wants them, then I have to make them.”
“Waaaah—”
Seia grabbed Park Geon-su's hand tightly as if to thank him.
Look, the little boss is holding hands…?!
And then Park Geon-su turned toward Seong Ye-eun, Yuhyeon, and Seo Se-yeon with an obvious, triumphant smile.
Seong Ye-eun didn't seem particularly affected since they'd already grown closer, but Yuhyeon and Seo Se-yeon looked slightly shaken.
Especially Yuhyeon, who had been Park Geon-su's primary target.
You dared to pat my head?
Yuhyeon had probably noticed the mana Park Geon-su had used earlier. After all, he was an S-class hunter who had reached the pinnacle of his abilities.
That earlier action had clearly been done on purpose, to show off.
Thinking it was the perfect revenge, Park Geon-su looked at Yuhyeon.
And then he gave him the smile of a victor.