By Zephyria Fragments of the World
After the fact that the Hanover Soup Restaurant’s part-time worker had Awakened spread rapidly through the Hanover Soup Restaurant regulars’ network, the story of J disappeared among the regulars. The fact that Mana Stone seller EZ was presumed to be a resident of this neighborhood was long forgotten.
All their attention was focused on, ‘Congratulations on the part-timer’s Awakening. But is the Hanover Soup Restaurant closing?’
A Hunter who has Awakened should enter a good Guild, receive 4 major insurances, and work while receiving a steady salary. Even if the grade is low, getting a clerical job in a Guild is better than getting a job in a regular company.
That was the common perception, and since most of the regulars belonged to a Guild, that perception was even stronger. Moreover, the diligent Hanover Soup Restaurant part-timer was a talented person who would succeed no matter what he did, so every Guild would try to scout him.
But if he joins a Guild… who will cook the Hangover Soup?
Grandmother, the Master, has difficulty with her legs and cannot handle the orders of the Hunters who eat quickly and a lot alone. Moreover, even if a new part-timer is hired, it was uncertain whether they could work as well as the current part-timer, Cha Eui-jae. After all, his Hangover Soup tasted like The Artisan who had been cooking Hangover Soup for 30 years!
Fortunately for Cha Eui-jae, who wanted to live quietly, he was an irreplaceable manpower in the Hangover Soup world. Therefore, the regulars who held high positions in Korean Hunter society miraculously reached an agreement among themselves.
It was called the Hanover Soup Restaurant’s recycling alley secret meeting.
Bae Won-woo, who managed to sit on a plastic box in front of the non-burnable trash, quickly poured a protein powder stick into his mouth.
“Well, talent development is good. Scouting is good too. Everything is good, but let’s stretch our legs while keeping business ethics, Team Leader Han. He says he has no intention of joining a Guild. Huh? Do you think his mind will change if we force him? His intention. That’s important. We have to preserve our Hanover Soup for a long time, right?”
Team Leader Han, standing in front of the burnable trash, also pushed up his glasses with his middle finger.
“I don’t think I should hear that from Wave Guild, which calls itself a small elite and sweeps up all kinds of talents… but that’s what I wanted, Vice Guild Leader Bae Won-woo. Let’s go in and have a bowl of Hangover Soup.”
“Wow, I like this guy for the first time. Let’s go! Let’s order two bottles of soju too.”
“Sounds good.”
Wave’s Vice Guild Leader Bae Won-woo and HB Guild’s Personnel Team Leader Team Leader Han completed some kind of deal at the recycling center near the Hanover Soup Restaurant and shook hands. After that, the Hunters who recommended Guild membership to Cha Eui-jae disappeared. It was a good thing for Eui-jae.
Instead, the secret gift offensive increased.
Eui-jae held up the neatly packaged gifts with his gloved hands so that everyone could see.
‘Special Limited Edition! Seclusion Training DIY Kit’
“Who dropped this in front of the kitchen.”
“…….”
“Confess who will be entering Seclusion Training soon.”
Silence. The Hunters slowly avoided eye contact. Eui-jae sighed deeply. This isn’t a martial arts novel, what Seclusion Training. Besides, the way they attach DIY to everything is the same as before or after the Day of the Rift. Eui-jae issued an ultimatum.
“If you don’t come out in 5 minutes, I’ll just throw it away.”
A Hunter suddenly raised his head and shouted.
“No! It’s a limited edition that I barely bought after breaking through Fomketing!”
“Are you going to Seclusion Training?”
Eui-jae pointed to the new A4 paper next to the limited sale of 2 bottles of soju.
!!!Hanover Soup Restaurant Not Closing!!!
No wreaths, gifts, or banners
No asking the part-timer about their grade
No recommending Guild membership to the part-timer
No headhunting
If you violate any of the above, you will be banned from entering the Hanover Soup Restaurant
Will you do Seclusion Training, or will you be banned from entering the Hanover Soup Restaurant. The Hunter groaned, grabbed the soju bottle, and squeezed out his voice as if leaving a last will before dying.
“…I’ll go…!”
“You, you bastard…!”
“How strong are you planning to become!”
“If you live this hard, you can only become an S-class!”
The Hunters sitting at the same table grabbed the Hunter who was about to enter Seclusion Training because he gave the wrong gift and wailed. Eui-jae calmly returned the Seclusion Training DIY Kit and returned to the kitchen.
This kind of thing happened every day. In those short moments when Eui-jae was washing dishes, cooking Hangover Soup, and preparing ingredients, the Hunters threw gifts in various ways as if trying to improve Eui-jae’s agility, speed, and reasoning skills.
He returned most of them to their owners, but he was really embarrassed when Hunter Market Gift Certificates were sometimes in the cash register. Eui-jae was even curious about how they put it in there.
Since every day was like this, there was slowly not enough space to put the gifts. The Inventory, which only contained empty Elixir bottles and Basilisk Fangs, was filled with new Elixirs he received as gifts, and the small side room where Eui-jae stayed was gradually filled with small items. Moreover, thanks to the excessive gift packaging, a lot of trash came out.
Eui-jae was organizing gift wrapping paper and boxes after closing the store today. At that time, he felt a small presence outside the store.
It was one thing to dismiss it as just a passerby, but from the moment Eui-jae started washing dishes, until he finished washing dishes and went out to throw away the trash, they kept lingering in front of the store.
‘Who is it this time.’
They don’t hide their presence like a Hunter, and they linger around for quite a long time to be a normal person. At this point, the formula that there is no normal person who comes to the Hanover Soup Restaurant during material preparation time and closing time was about to be established.
‘If they have something to say, they’ll come at me on their own, right.’
Eui-jae bravely took out the trash and went outside. And,
“Ah, are you really going in? Really? Am I really going in? Ah, really, this is too much….”
He faced a female student muttering while biting her nails.
It was a completely different person than Eui-jae expected. He expected it to be a TV program writer, a reporter who came to film a Hunter, or a Hunter who was secretly trying to leave a gift, but the sight of a student who looked like a bagworm thanks to her thick long padding and heavy backpack pacing back and forth in front of the store while grumbling was embarrassing.
‘What is it really?’
“What? Look behind me? Ah really, don’t lie. I don’t like that…”
“H, heak!”
The student who glanced back screamed and sat down on the spot. Of course, Eui-jae, who was about to reach out to help her up, stopped. It was because he realized that he was wearing rubber gloves and holding trash in both hands. Eui-jae, who had been standing in an awkward posture for a while, looked at the air for a moment and opened his mouth.
“Um, student?”
“Y, yes?”
“What brings you to the Hanover Soup Restaurant at this hour….”
Whoosh, a cold winter wind swept between them. The student unconsciously flinched. Eui-jae looked at the student’s red nose and cheeks and pointed to the inside of the store with his head.
“I’ll go throw away the trash, so would you like to go inside the store first?”
“C, can I?”
“Yes, it’s okay.”
“Thank you.”
Eui-jae hurriedly threw away the trash and returned to the store. The student was sitting at a corner table, rubbing a green hot pack diligently. Eui-jae took out the heater and placed it near the student and headed to the kitchen. He couldn’t make her coffee at this late hour.
He quickly made yulmu tea with hot water and handed it to her. The student bowed her head, receiving the cup with both hands. The student sniffled her red nose from the cold and said in a nasal voice.
“Thank you. And I’m sorry for suddenly coming.”
“No, it’s okay.”
The student bowed her head, and Eui-jae awkwardly nodded. A bun rolled up into a ball, a long padding, gym pants and sleeping socks visible below, and sneakers with some dirt on them. It was the appearance of a common high school student.
She was looking around the store with curious eyes. Her appearance, behavior, and even her energy. She really looked like an ordinary high school girl, and Eui-jae’s tension eased a little. Eui-jae sat across from the student.
“What brings you to the Hanover Soup Restaurant, student? Isn’t it time to be at home….”
What would bring a high school student to the Hanover Soup Restaurant at this late hour. Eui-jae pondered.
It would have been obvious to her that no one was here if she came to find someone, or was she being chased by something and came to ask for help? But the student in front of him was stable without any signs of surprise. She seemed a little nervous, though. Maybe she’s a fan of a Hunter who is a regular here and came to see the Hunter’s face.
Eui-jae was thinking about several possibilities. Then the student opened her mouth.
“That’s….”
The student, who was hesitating, lowered her head deeply. And she closed her eyes tightly and said.
“I know that Cha Eui-jae is J.”
In an instant, Eui-jae’s hand stopped. But he put on an embarrassed expression as if he had heard ridiculous words and smiled awkwardly.
“J? What are you talking about all of a sudden….”
“No, you don’t have to hide it from me.”
She interrupted and slowly raised her head and opened her eyes. Her eyes beyond her round glasses shone brilliantly with golden light. Intense eyes that seemed to pierce through the opponent.
“Please help me, J.”
The facial muscles that he had worked so hard to pull up slowly lost strength. When his eyebrows and the corners of his mouth returned to their original positions, a cool light shone.
A little later, a perfect expressionless face settled on Cha Eui-jae’s face.