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Chapter 4
“Whew, finally done!”
The moment B-rank Hunter Kim Minwoo stepped out of the gate, he ripped off his protective gear and shouted. They had finally cleared the gate after three whole days.
“That last part was seriously close, huh?”
“No kidding. I thought we were gonna die!”
“Well, we made it back alive, so that’s what matters.”
The gate’s rank had been about average, but for some reason this run had been unusually difficult to clear.
Still, everyone returned safely. The team members lightly smacked each other’s shoulders as they celebrated making it back alive.
“Good work, everyone. Let’s file the report and head home right away.”
At the team leader’s words, everyone nodded vigorously.
After spending three days barely able to wash or eat properly, exhaustion was written all over their faces.
“By the way, isn’t everyone starving?”
“Yeah, kinda…”
“Should we grab something from an awakened-only restaurant before heading home?”
At someone’s suggestion, everyone’s eyes lit up. The inside of the gate had been freezing cold, so hot soup sounded especially tempting.
The problem was that they were all awakened, and every awakened-only restaurant nearby was terrible.
“Let’s not go back to the place from last time. I swear they just dumped capsaicin into everything.”
“They think making food salty and spicy automatically means it’s ‘for awakened people!’”
“Ugh—and the prices are outrageously expensive too…”
A lot of places took advantage of the fact that awakened people couldn’t properly taste food anymore. Actually, come to think of it, every place did.
They made everything overwhelmingly salty, sweet, or spicy regardless of flavor, then charged several times more for the exact same ingredients just because it was labeled “for awakened people.”
And yet, because hunters still desperately longed for good food, they kept trying places that advertised themselves that way.
“I never imagined not being able to taste food would be this miserable…”
Sun Daeun, the youngest member of the group who had awakened just over a month ago, muttered gloomily.
Ever since awakening, every meal felt bland and dull, like chewing dry sand or eating underwater.
You could force yourself through it once or twice, but eventually eating itself became torture.
That was why so many hunters gave up on proper meals entirely and survived on meal replacement pills instead.
“I just want to eat real food one more time.”
“Seriously… can’t someone invent an item for that already?”
Depressed, they continued trudging toward the Hunter Management Bureau.
Ever since becoming hunters, money had steadily piled up in their bank accounts, but since they couldn’t enjoy food anymore, life itself felt far less enjoyable.
‘Maybe I should just go home and sleep…’
The suggestion to eat at a restaurant had already been abandoned long ago.
Dragging their feet, they headed toward the Management Bureau.
And the moment they arrived, they witnessed something unbelievable.
“What’s everyone eating? Are my eyes broken?”
“Nope. I see it too.”
“M-Me too…”
People passing by were all holding some kind of food in their hands.
Some were even letting out delighted moans like, “Mmm—!” as if it tasted unbelievably good.
Unable to resist her curiosity, Daeun grabbed a passerby.
“What are you holding?”
“You don’t know? It’s bungeoppang! Sky’s Place Bungeoppang.”
“…Sky’s Place Bungeoppang?”
Apparently, it was from a food stall that had opened in front of the Management Bureau a few days ago. The bungeoppang they sold was supposedly an item, allowing anyone to taste sweetness regardless of whether they were awakened.
“Y-You can actually taste it!?”
“Ah, you just got out of a gate, huh? This thing’s been causing a huge craze lately.”
The passerby kindly split the pastry in half and offered it to her.
Daeun carefully accepted the still-warm pastry and cautiously bit into the tail end.
“Maknae, how is it? Can you really taste it?”
“They didn’t put something weird in it, right??”
“Say something already!”
As her silence dragged on, the others bombarded her with questions.
Slowly, Daeun raised a thumbs-up.
“This is absolutely insane! It’s incredible!!”
Her face flushed bright red as she bounced excitedly in place.
The exhaustion that had been weighing down her face moments ago vanished instantly.
‘That reaction… it’s actually delicious.’
‘Her expression’s completely different from when she eats those so-called awakened meals.’
‘Where did they say it was? Sky’s Place?’
This bungeoppang was the real deal.
The moment they realized that, the entire group sprinted toward the stall in front of the Management Bureau as if they’d planned it beforehand.
“…Wait. Is all of this the line?”
“They said it was popular, but this is insane.”
Their jaws dropped at the enormous line wrapping all the way around the stall.
This was hell.
Bungeoppang hell.
Ever since opening, I hadn’t stopped baking for a single moment, yet the line refused to shrink.
No—in fact, it seemed to be getting even longer.
“Owner, how much longer?”
“Just a moment! I’ll have yours ready soon!”
Our once deserted stall had exploded in popularity after the free tasting event. Word spread rapidly, and now it had become a famous hotspot with lines just to buy one.
But there was one huge problem.
My bungeoppang mold still only made two at a time.
‘No wonder I can’t keep up.’
The maximum number I could make at once was only two.
No matter how hard I worked, there was no way the customers would decrease.
And this was after limiting purchases to one per person.
The moment a golden-brown pastry finished cooking, I slipped it into a paper bag and handed it over.
“Here’s your bungeoppang.”
“Wow, finally!! Thank you!”
After waiting forever, the customer took a huge bite.
“Gasp! It’s delicious!”
Covering their mouth with both hands, they closed their eyes and slowly savored the taste.
Everyone watching nearby swallowed hard.
“Ahem… maybe I’ll wait another thirty minutes.”
“I even took half a day off work just to eat this.”
“I’m definitely getting one today.”
If you were unlucky, you could wait hours before finally getting one.
And yet the line never shortened.
The reason was simple:
People could directly see the reactions of those eating the bungeoppang.
Some were overwhelmed with emotion.
Some gasped in amazement.
Some even cried tears of joy.
‘If I saw reactions like that, I’d get curious too.’
I patted my aching back and poured more batter into the mold.
Everyone was waiting so desperately for bungeoppang that I couldn’t bring myself to rest.
Ugh, I’m definitely going to need pain relief patches again tonight.
The moment I thought that—
Ding!
A system notification window appeared.
A gift for the hardworking owner!
You have acquired the skill: Iron Stamina (B)
Iron Stamina?
And it was B-rank too?
When I clicked it, the description read:
“Stamina increased by 200% while inside the shop.”
It was disappointing that the effect only worked inside the shop, but it was exactly the kind of skill I desperately needed right now.
‘Alright. Time to keep baking.’
I clenched my fist and steeled my resolve.
After that, it became endless repetition.
Bake bungeoppang.
Bag it.
Hand it over.
Repeat infinitely.
Still, little by little, I started getting faster.
‘This is kinda fun.’
It almost felt like one of those tycoon games where customers endlessly pour in.
I smiled inwardly at the silly thought.
Right then, the next customer stepped forward.
“Welcome!”
“Good grief… waiting this long for something like this… Huh? Jung Haneul?”
“…Gong Joohee?”
The moment I saw her face, my expression twisted instantly.
Her name was Gong Joohee.
We’d been classmates during our senior year of high school.
Her nickname had been “Princess.” She’d earned it because she always looked down on everyone else like she was royalty.
‘Looks like she hasn’t changed at all.’
She covered her mouth in surprise, then quickly swept her eyes over my shabby stall.
“So I was wondering who’d be running a rundown place like this… and it was you.”
“Yeah. Long time no see.”
“How have you been? Ah, sorry. Guess not so great.”
She shrugged while looking at me in my apron and headscarf.
“But did you awaken too? What rank are you?”
“F-rank. Why?”
“Oh my! F-rank? I’m C-rank.”
Joohee curled her lips smugly.
Yeah, good for you being C-rank.
I waved my hand dismissively.
I didn’t have time for pointless conversations.
“So? Are you buying bungeoppang or not?”
“…What?”
“If you’re not buying any, can you move aside?”
I pointed behind her.
Even now, a huge line of hunters was waiting behind her, and I was busy enough already.
