OCOB 22

Chapter : 22

The announcement that the tutorial was over carried several meanings.

First of all, it meant that I could finally start playing the game for real.

Up until now, everything had been nothing more than a preview.

After all, tutorials are meant to teach game mechanics and how to play.

Which meant that from now on, unexpected trials could strike at any moment.

Of course, sometimes the expected things showed up too.

Just like this.

Main Quest!
– The Road to Becoming a Beginner Boss 1

– Officially open “Yonggari Café”

Reward: 1,000 Gold & 10 Diamonds

This was something I had anticipated.

The real beginning of [Grandma Basha’s Café] would obviously start with opening the café.

So it was only natural that the first main quest would be “Open Yonggari Café.”
Wasn’t this what I’d been working toward all along?

This much, I could accept.

However, there was one fact that became a serious problem for me.

The benefits that disappeared along with the end of the tutorial.

That is…

“…What am I supposed to do about the coffee now?”

The guaranteed coffee quality.

I retraced my memory and recalled the contents of the system window I had seen back then.

Dripper, server, and filters required for the tutorial will be provided.
However, they will disappear once the tutorial ends.

During the tutorial, coffee quality is fixed at ‘Best Flavor’.

“…So it’s not just the taste that’s the problem.”

The dripper, server, and filters that had been provided were now gone.
I had saved a lot of money thanks to them, but now I’d have to buy everything myself.

At least tools like those could be bought at Millun’s Tool Shop or from the general market.

But—

“What about the taste…?!”

Up until now, the reason my café’s coffee had survived was definitely because of the flavor correction.
No matter how beautiful the scenery was or how pretty the café looked, if the coffee tasted bad, customers wouldn’t come.

Not to mention—

“It’s coffee so good it even moved the gods…”

It was one mountain after another.

That catchphrase I’d been satisfied with back then, the line that had worked so well until just yesterday, was now coming back to bite me.

“No, I did expect this.”

I just didn’t expect it to arrive this quickly.

I had at least thought I’d be able to prepare some decent tools before the tutorial ended.

I poked at my perfectly cooked sunny-side-up egg, looking troubled.
Millun, who had been watching my constantly changing expression, let out a long sigh.

“Do you have a complaint about the egg?”

“Ah… I’ve suddenly gained more things to worry about. Being a boss is… really hard, Millun.”

“It’s fortunate that you realized that sooner rather than later.”

“Yeah. If I’d realized a bit earlier, at least my body wouldn’t be so tired.”

I let out a deep sigh.
Even if I bought a dripper right now and practiced, the taste wouldn’t come out consistently.

Even yesterday’s strawberry latte had only turned out perfectly—and gained its bonus effects—because a certain level of quality had already been guaranteed.

“If only I could keep producing at least a consistent level of flavor, I wouldn’t have to worry like this…”

If only I had a coffee machine.

Even someone with clumsy hands could make decent coffee with one.

I blinked while putting the now-misshapen fried egg into my mouth.

“Did Millun’s tool shop have something like a coffee machine?”

Come to think of it, I felt like there was something.

I reopened Millun’s Tool Shop.

Once you opened the shop once, you could check the list anytime.

However, actually purchasing items required asking Millun directly, which was a bit inconvenient.

It was similar to how you had to physically visit Frisia’s Furniture Shop to use it.

Anyway, I carefully reread the tool shop list floating in front of me.

Tool Shop

Only magical tools created by Millun Bash are sold.

• Coffee Bean Grinder (Manual): 50 Diamonds
• “Grinds Anything” Container: 10 Diamonds
• Coffee Extractor (Manual): 50 Diamonds
• All-Purpose Kettle: 10 Diamonds
• Steamer: SOLD OUT

More items coming soon.

“Hmm…”

How many diamonds did I have again?

I’d had one left after buying the steamer, and I’d gained 10 diamonds as a tutorial reward.

That meant I had a total of 11 diamonds.

Which meant I could only buy either the “Grinds Anything” Container or the “All-Purpose Kettle.”

Of course, if I completed all the special quests, I could buy both.

I’d have 20 diamonds then.

But… flavor wasn’t something my ancestors could guarantee for me.

I frowned deeply, agonizing over the decision.

What exactly did that “All-Purpose Kettle” do?

I could roughly guess what the “Grinds Anything” Container did, but the “All-Purpose Kettle” was a mystery.

“Should I think of it like the steamer?”

A kettle that automatically produces espresso?

“No way—even for Millun, that’d be impossible.”

…Or maybe not.

I recalled all the things Millun had demonstrated so far.

The all-purpose hammer, the steamer, and even the teleportation ability he’d shown earlier.

It was definitely possible.

This was a game world where 21st-century Korean logic didn’t apply.

In that case—

“If I ask Millun directly, wouldn’t he make the tool I want?”

There wasn’t a commission option in the tool shop, but as I’d said, this was a place where even the impossible became possible!

My eyes sparkled as I looked at Millun.

“Millun, do you take commissions for magical tools?”

“Why do you ask?”

“The café’s opening soon, and I’m seriously lacking tools.”

“Are you saying my tools are insufficient?”

“No, I’m saying I don’t have enough diamonds to buy them all.”

Millun nodded as if he understood, then crossed his arms and looked at me arrogantly.

“So you want to commission me?”

“That’s right. If possible, I’d like to combine multiple functions into a single tool. Would that be doable?”

“Tell me first. Depending on the functions, the required materials vary, and completion could take a long time.”

“Then…”

I enthusiastically explained the coffee machine I wanted to Millun.
He listened quite carefully.

But that was all.

“That is impossible.”

“Why?”

“First of all, acquiring the materials would be difficult. For equipment that complex, you’d need at least three magic crystals, and additional materials would be required during the enchantment process.”

“Ah…”

“Just the tool cost alone would be quite high, and the commission fee would also be significant. Roughly estimating…”

“…You’d need about 1,000 diamonds.”

Yeah. Nope.

This was definitely something I needed to give up on.

I quickly let go of the idea and decided to buy the All-Purpose Kettle instead.

I’d just have to become a wrist-snap master myself.

I immediately purchased the All-Purpose Kettle from Millun.
As expected, there were no instructions. The description was simple.

All-Purpose Kettle

– Can a kettle really be this perfect?
– Everything you imagine becomes reality.

Usage Method: Not disclosed
Usage Duration: Permanent

With this, at least the kettle would probably manage water temperature and water volume on its own.

That meant all I had left to do was endless practice until I could produce consistent flavor.

“For today, I’ll give customers ice cream on the side so they won’t remember the taste.”

Making it sweeter would balance things out a bit.

And tonight, I’d master the kettle.

Then everything would be fine starting tomorrow.

Satisfied with my plan, I smiled and finished the rest of my food.

After that, we moved to the café and began another busy day.

That’s why I never expected it.

That a quest like that would appear.

A quest with a reward I desperately wanted.

“Did you say… you’re giving me a coffee machine?”

It was a quest with a coffee machine as the reward.