~Chapter 16~
Is This an Ingredient?
Although only two groups were lined up in front of Onjeong Korean Restaurant, a waitlist had formed.
It had been 15 years since Cho Sang-man opened this restaurant.
In all that time, he’d never once experienced a waitlist.
It was only natural, as the place served ordinary Korean-style meals.
The chefs came and went, causing inconsistency in taste.
The chef and co-founder, who’d once promised to stay for life, had left, forcing him to hire new chefs repeatedly.
Selling the restaurant wasn’t an option due to the investment he’d already made.
Thankfully, he was able to make enough money to live.
Although the taste changed every time a chef came and went, it was never bad.
Then came today — after 15 years and 2 months of running this neighborhood spot — Cho Sang-man was experiencing a waitlist for the first time.
All thanks to Lee Seo-jin’s egg rice!
To Cho Sang-man, Lee Seo-jin was like a treasure, no, like a golden toad.
“Because of our Seo-jin, I’ve seen this happen for the first time in my life, huh?”
As Cho Sang-man embraced Lee Seo-jin, Yoo Tae-an was speechless, holding back rising anger.
‘This is unacceptable!’
He was the official chef here. Yet this part-timer making a simple egg rice was gaining more favor from the boss.
That wouldn’t do.
Yoo Tae-an clenched his teeth and promised himself:
‘I’ll create a new dish that will crush that egg rice.’
When Lee Ra-el arrived at Onjeong Korean Restaurant, her mouth fell open slightly.
As expected, a waitlist had formed.
Fortunately, it wasn’t too long — about three teams.
She quickly got in line.
‘I shouldn’t have posted it.’
She regretted sharing that egg rice spot on social media.
If only she’d kept it as a hidden gem for herself.
Who knew it would blow up like this?
But the post had taken off precisely because she had praised the egg rice so much.
If it had been any other ordinary dish, no one would have paid it much attention.
People came out of curiosity, wanting to see for themselves just how delicious egg rice could be.
Of course, many were also enticed by the mouthwatering photo she had posted.
By the time two more groups lined up behind her, Lee Ra-el was able to enter the restaurant.
Thankfully, the turnover was quick.
“Welcome~”
Jang Young-sim waved her in like any other customer.
Then, without taking an order, she called out to the kitchen:
“One egg rice, please!”
Clearly, she already knew what her daughter wanted.
With a beating heart, Lee Ra-el watched the other customers as she waited.
Observing what others ordered had long been her habit — if a lot of people liked a dish, she would try it herself next time.
Although shy, she liked watching people eat as well, often getting lost in eating shows online.
Today was no different.
She watched the patrons around her as she waited, and soon, her egg rice arrived.
“Enjoy, pretty lady~”
With a wink, Jang Young-sim set the plate down.
Lee Ra-el mixed the egg rice quickly and took a big bite.
Her eyes closed slowly in satisfaction.
It was exactly the taste she remembered.
She finished the whole bowl in moments and shyly raised her hand.
Although there was no call bell, she needed to ask for something more.
With so many male patrons already stealing glances at her, she felt embarrassed to raise her hand.
Thankfully, Jang Young-sim came to her rescue.
“Do you need anything else?”
“Could I… just add an egg fried?”
“Just an egg fry?”
Jang Young-sim glanced toward Cho Sang-man at the counter.
Since Lee Ra-el was sitting right next to it, Cho Sang-man overheard and jumped in:
“Of course! An egg fry? That’s 1,000 won each. Shall I put in the order?”
Lee Ra-el nodded shyly.
Jang Young-sim called to the kitchen.
“Seo-jin, one egg fry, please.”
“Not egg rice?”
“Just the egg fry.”
“Got it.”
Shortly after, a perfectly cooked sunny-side-up egg was placed before Lee Ra-el.
A smooth, golden yolk spilled out when she cut it open.
Lee Ra-el scooped a bite of the egg and rice together and felt herself melt.
Then, a thought came to her.
The flavor, the saltiness… it felt oddly familiar.
Where had she tasted this before?
Then it hit her.
“The Field dungeon.”
She remembered tasting an egg fry that Min-woo tried to sneak for himself.
It had been just like this — perfectly cooked, salted, and savory.
‘…Could it be?’
Lee Ra-el glanced toward the kitchen.
But she could only see Yoo Tae-an, not Lee Seo-jin.
Of course, she shook her head immediately.
There was no way the person making this egg fry was the same person Min-woo spoke about.
Although she tried to dismiss the thought, she couldn’t help but watch Yoo Tae-an closely.
Meanwhile, Jang Young-sim felt her heart sink.
‘That look in my daughter’s eyes…’
Lee Ra-el had never gazed at any man like that before.
And of all people, it had to be Yoo Tae-an.
That was completely unacceptable.
Jang Young-sim resolved to forbid Lee Ra-el from visiting this restaurant from now on.
After finishing work, Lee Seo-jin left the restaurant and headed to a nearby safe zone.
About ten minutes later, Seo Ri-na appeared from a distance, raising her hand.
“Hey, sorry I’m late.”
“No problem.”
“How many dishes do you have left?”
“Almost used up. By the way, about those egg stew bowls…”
That morning, he’d messaged Seo Ri-na to ask for more egg stew bowls if she had time.
Seo Ri-na pulled a stone-shaped bowl out of her inventory.
“Will this work?”
“Perfect. How many do you have?”
“One hundred. And I made two hundred more plates for you too.”
“That’s amazing. Thanks so much. And about the loot from yesterday…”
Seo Ri-na extended her hand.
“…?” Lee Seo-jin gave her a puzzled look.
“Take my hand.”
“Why?”
“Just do it.”
Lee Seo-jin placed his hand in hers, and she said, “Open your inventory.”
He did.
“Now, I’ve opened mine too. Try to imagine making a trade.”
Lee Seo-jin tried, and a new ‘Trade’ window appeared beside his inventory.
“See it?”
“Yes.”
“Move the items you want to trade into that window.”
Lee Seo-jin concentrated, and all the loot he’d brought from the dungeon appeared in the trade window. Similar items were grouped together with quantity labels.
“Wow, you can do this too?”
“I didn’t know until yesterday.”
“And you call yourself an intermediary?”
“Hey, you’re my first customer, remember?”
“Ah…”
“By the way, you sold a lot. Let’s see… 137 Steel Ant Fangs, 21 Queen Ant Fangs, 17 Fire Rabbit Forelegs, 12 Mantis Scythes… the total comes out to 7.35 million won.”
“7.35 million?!”
Lee Seo-jin was shocked. He’d felt like he sold a lot, but to make over 7 million won in just one night?
“Yep.”
“Wow…”
Although Seo Ri-na remained calm, she quickly explained why:
“That’s not even a big deal. I had continuous sale requests yesterday, so I didn’t make it to the Field. But for some strong Hunters, it’s not rare for them to ask to sell 20 million won worth of materials in one go.”
“…”
Lee Seo-jin was speechless.
20 million won in a day? Compared to that, 7.35 million didn’t seem like much.
“After deducting 20% for the intermediary fee and 10% for the joint party cost, your share is 5,145,000 won.”
Seo Ri-na pulled a thick bundle of cash from her bag and counted it out.
Lee Seo-jin swallowed hard as she placed the money in his hands.
Awakening the ‘Cooking by Feel’ skill and going to the Field had changed everything.
He was making more money in a day than he could ever make in a month before.
It felt too surreal, like a dream.
“Going to the Field tonight?”
“Yeah, but I need to cook a bit first.”
Although cooking in the Field was possible now — thanks to Moqyu heating the stone plate and the rock salt Lee Do-ra gave him — cooking at home was still faster and more efficient.
“Are you cooking at home?”
“Yep.”
“Then I’ll come with you.”
“…To my place?”
“Just to watch. So you don’t worry about anything strange happening.”
Although Lee Seo-jin felt awkward about letting a woman into his home for the first time, he reasoned that as long as they were working together, it wouldn’t be too odd.
“Alright, come along.”
As soon as Lee Seo-jin arrived home, he pulled Moqyu out of the inventory.
But he quickly remembered his mistake.
‘Ah! Ri-na’s here too…’
Moqyu hopped out, spotted Seo Ri-na, tilted its head, then bounded toward her and nuzzled her leg.
“Kyuuuu~”
Seeing this, Seo Ri-na’s eyes widened.
“Uh…?”
“R-Ri-na, this is, uh…”
“Is this… an ingredient?”
“Kyuuuu?!”
