Chapter 9
The food cart became lively in an instant.
“Hey! Let’s drink properly tonight!”
“Yes, hyung!!!”
Like a swallow returning with good fortune, Seokhyeoi-haem came bustling in with a whole crowd of his underlings.
They immediately began placing orders in booming voices.
“Give us the freshest side dishes you’ve got!”
“What’s good today?”
A bunch of drunk men.
Normally, this would have been enough to give anyone a headache.
However, unlike yesterday, the tattoo-covered Seokhyeoi-haem stared straight at Hong Mangi and gave him a friendly smile.
“Boss. We’re planning to really fill our stomachs today, so just bring out everything you’ve prepared, one after another. What was that thing called again? Ocarina?”
Someone beside him grinned.
“It’s omakase, hyung!”
“Hey, omakase, ocarina, they’re both Japanese words, aren’t they?”
Embarrassed, Seokhyeoi-haem unnecessarily raised his voice.
Then he looked at Hong Mangi and flashed his gold teeth with a sheepish grin.
“Please prepare the food.”
His attitude was completely different from yesterday, when he had rudely called out, “Hey!”
On top of that, he was speaking standard Korean instead of using his dialect.
Hong Mangi snorted in disbelief.
“…What’s with you? You’re suddenly speaking politely.”
Seokhyeoi-haem cleared his throat.
“Well... you’re a Hunter, aren’t you? I figured I shouldn’t be treating a Hunter however I please anymore. Anyway, can you make that romantic gukbap from yesterday again? The one that fills your heart with emotion, makes everything churn inside you, and somehow makes you reflect on your whole life?!”
“Today I prepared seafood ramen and grilled hagfish. Is that okay? They’re special recipes.”
“How could I possibly complain? If a Hunter personally prepares it for me, I’d even drink your piss!”
“You’re surprisingly good at standard speech. But piss... yeah, that’s taking it too far. Anyway, just wait.”
His underlings began whispering among themselves with doubtful expressions.
“Hey, he really must be a Hunter.”
“What kind of Hunter runs a food cart? Isn’t that a terrible use of his talents?”
“Look at that. Isn’t that a summon? He must be a Hunter if he walks around with a summon.”
“Yeah, definitely a Hunter.”
Poming was sitting quietly at the edge of the cooking area, calmly grooming its fur.
After glancing toward Poming for a moment, they continued talking.
“I guess this is just his hobby. That guy’s apparently pretty strong. I heard he even killed a B-rank dungeon boss recently. Saw it on a Hunter community I lurk in.”
“Damn... then what if he gets angry while cooking and starts throwing knives at us?”
Hong Mangi waved his hand tiredly.
“Instead of wasting time throwing knives, I’d rather keep the broth boiling.”
Poming immediately smiled brightly and scampered over to Hong Mangi.
“Are we preparing? Are we cooking?”
“Yeah, let’s start. And just like last time, I’ll act as your hands, so keep telling me what to do from beside me. Make sure the measurements are exact too.”
“Understood! But if you memorize all my recipes, improve your cooking skills, and then dismiss your summon because you don’t need me anymore, I’m seriously going to be sad!”
“That’s not going to happen, so don’t worry.”
While Hong Mangi and Poming began preparing the food, Seokhyeoi-haem slapped the table and shouted.
“Then start us off with seafood ramen and grilled hagfish!”
A short while later.
The atmosphere inside the food cart had become incredibly lively.
It was the very definition of a chaotic rush hour.
Pots of seafood ramen boiled furiously.
Hagfish sizzled on the grill.
Thick fingers repeatedly poured glasses of ice-cold soju.
Seokhyeoi-haem and his underlings drank without pause while constantly ordering more food.
“Whoa~! Boss, this hagfish is insane!”
“This stuff steals your alcohol!”
Seokhyeoi-haem frowned.
“Steals? Hey, I washed my hands of that life a long time ago. What are you trying to say?”
“Boss! What the hell did you do to this seafood ramen? Why does it taste this good? Did you catch the ingredients in a dungeon or something?”
“What kind of seafood would there be in a dungeon, you idiot?”
“Then you’re saying this came from a normal ocean? But the freshness is completely different.”
“It only feels that way because the broth is good!”
The heavily tattooed men all raised their thumbs toward Hong Mangi at the same time.
“Isn’t this guy actually a cooking genius?”
“Can we start calling you hyung?”
“Hey! Stop bothering the boss! Can’t you see he’s trying to concentrate on cooking?”
Hong Mangi barely seemed to listen.
He simply gave a small chuckle before silently stirring the boiling broth once more.
And while the drinking party was in full swing—
“Huh...?”
Poming sensed something strange.
It landed on Hong Mangi’s shoulder and whispered.
“Something is coming. Can’t you feel it?”
“Yeah. I can feel it too.”
There was a presence coming from somewhere.
Something was approaching the food cart.
Not a human.
It was the aura of something spiritual.
It’s here...!
“……”
A man wearing an old Hunter suit stood there.
His clothes were torn in several places, as though he had just crawled out of a dungeon.
Hong Mangi’s eyes turned toward him.
It’s a soul.
A Hunter on his way to the afterlife.
He had probably met his end inside a dungeon and had been wandering around ever since.
Or perhaps he had died only moments ago.
The man—
No.
The man’s soul quietly entered the food cart.
Naturally, the tattooed Seokhyeoi-haem and his underlings couldn’t sense his presence.
They continued eating, drinking, laughing, and making a huge racket among themselves.
Hong Mangi was the only person who noticed the lone man entering the cart.
Pretending to stir the broth with his ladle, Hong Mangi quietly spoke.
“…Would you like something to eat?”
The dead Hunter dropped heavily into a seat at a table in the corner.
Then he slowly looked up at Hong Mangi.
“So... you can see me.”
Hong Mangi quietly nodded.
The man continued in a low, heavy voice.
“I wandered around for half a day. I couldn’t believe it. The fact that I was dead.”
“I can imagine. It must be like that for everyone. May I ask your name, Hunter? I’m Hong Mangi. F-rank.”
“B-rank. Oh Dalsu.”
As Hong Mangi and Oh Dalsu looked at each other, the lights inside the food cart flickered slightly.
It created a strange scene.
Amid that awkward atmosphere, Seokhyeoi-haem and the others were already completely drunk, loudly enjoying themselves without a care in the world.
