57
After returning to the pension. Perhaps because they had moved around so much, Jang Hyeonseong and Hong Chan volunteered to take over the kitchen, saying they were hungry.
And those two made hot pot and kimchi stew. Since both were soup dishes, there was an opinion to make just one, but neither of them would back down from their stubbornness.
‘How amazing would it be to put pork in spicy kimchi stew and mix it with rice.’
‘You can make that at home too. A light hot pot with cabbage, mushrooms, and meat is proper pension cooking. What’s the point of kimchi stew when we’ve come all the way here.’
‘What do you know, hyung! If we’re going to be like this, let’s make both.’
‘Think I can’t do it?’
In the end, two stubborn hunters insisted on their way, resulting in two large-capacity soup dishes. With so many people, the big pots were brimming with broth.
“Wow. Hot pot and kimchi stew? What’s with this combination?”
Samin muttered as he arrived in the kitchen. Doun glanced at Samin as if he’d been waiting. Unable to tell whether they were arguing or if this was how they normally bickered, he ended up taking charge of serving food while just observing. Since he now had a role, he intended to fulfill it faithfully.
‘He sweats from spicy tteokbokki, so he’ll probably find kimchi stew spicy too…’
Doun generously ladled the mild-looking hot pot into a bowl. As he handed Samin the bowl filled with his thoughtful consideration, he added:
“Here, you eat this.”
Samin brightened up. It was clearly a menu chosen with him in mind. He politely took the bowl Doun handed him with both hands, then suddenly screamed.
“Ah! Chan! Heat resistance buff! Quick! It’s hot! The bowl is hot! What are you doing!”
Hong Chan, who had been tasting the kimchi stew by fishing out pork to check the seasoning, jumped in surprise with wide eyes.
“…Wait a moment!”
Along with his response, a shimmer of light indicating skill use rippled. It was so swift and precise that Doun unconsciously muttered, “Oh, that’s fast.”
“What? Kyung Samin, what’s wrong! Why are you yelling?”
“Something interesting happen?”
When a commotion broke out, the guild members all rushed over wondering what was happening, so everyone ended up gathering in the kitchen. Under the gazes demanding explanation about what was wrong, Samin put the bowl on the table and muttered.
“The bowl was hot, but why did everyone come running to worry about me. Living as a popular person is so hard…”
“Ah. I thought it was something else.”
“You really need to fix that habit of making a fuss. Aigoo. What am I going to do with this kid, really.”
Kim Chansol was disappointed it wasn’t something interesting, and Choi Jiyoon, who had been startled, hit Samin’s back. Samin was the same age as Choi Jiyoon’s younger brother and often acted even more immature. Because of this, Choi Jiyoon had no choice but to treat Samin more strictly than her own younger brother.
“What’s for lunch? Hot pot?”
“There’s kimchi stew too, noona.”
Perhaps getting hungry after washing up, the guild members started loitering around the bubbling pots and began taking out side dishes and serving rice on their own. Doun, in charge of serving, diligently distributed the hot pot and kimchi stew that the guild members chose.
The lunch began without Doun ever knowing that the guild members secretly found him adorable as he couldn’t hide his pleased expression while ladling out the soup.
Only when they were almost done eating did the thought occur: ‘If the bowl was hot earlier, couldn’t he have just put it down right away?’ But there didn’t seem to be much point in wondering about it now.
When Dong Jiwon, who had won the dishwashing duty, was collecting the bowls:
“Anyone who wants the snacks we bought can have some, and since we worked hard in the tower yesterday and today, should we rest comfortably until dinner?”
“Guild Master, don’t tell me you’re filling time with free time because there’s no schedule in between?”
Kim Chansol, who seemed to want to fill the day tightly with activities, quickly asked back.
“Aigoo. What’s the point of talking to a youngster who doesn’t know the charm of a relaxed schedule. Should we try a minute-by-minute suffocating Spartan unity competition this time?”
“When did I say anything like that? I was just asking. Free time is totally good!”
He wanted to play busily while taking appropriate rest time, not move minute by minute. Kim Chansol quickly changed his words and gave a thumbs up.
Samin was the type who would do whatever it took to accomplish something once he set his mind to it. Wasn’t he the guy who had his eyes blazing saying he would definitely bring Magnetic to Yeoun, and didn’t he succeed in the end? He was having a unity competition with Magnetic, who had disappeared so completely that no one who knew his situation could find him. He didn’t know what method was used to lure him, though.
“We have to eat cake!”
When Kim Chansol quietly left his seat and everyone was finding things to do, Samin, who was expected to move actively, said something unexpected.
“I’m going to take a nap. Please wake me up before dinner. Anyone.”
“You’re going to sleep instead of playing?”
“Yeah. I told you I don’t sleep well in unfamiliar places, right? That was true.”
“Ah…”
While Doun was nodding in understanding, Samin thought to himself.
‘That’s a lie but he believes it again. He’s so cute, really.’
Samin slept well as soon as his head hit the pillow. There was only one reason he lost sleep today. Because he shared a bed with Doun.
How many people could sleep peacefully when sharing a bed with someone they liked? His nerves were completely focused on one side, and as time passed, he only became more wide awake.
Today too, Samin had to grill meat for Doun in the evening. Since grilling meat perfectly required considerable mental strength, supplementing his lack of sleep was essential. He repeatedly reminded Doun until he went back to the cool room with the air conditioner on and lay down with the blanket pulled up to his neck.
“Hyung, I won’t let it slide if you do anything fun while I’m sleeping.”
“I’m just going to play board games with Hyeonwoo and Minhyeok in the living room.”
“That’s fine. Just don’t play truth games or anything.”
“…Who plays that kind of thing during the day.”
Truth games were games you played when heavily drunk and swept up in the mood, weren’t they? It was an inappropriate game to play during the day when the sun was high in the sky.
“Hyung, can’t you pat me to sleep well?”
“Yeah. No. Go to sleep quickly.”
“Tsk.”
Samin clicked his tongue but had a happy expression. He was too cute how Doun had followed him all the way to his room, seemingly concerned when he said he was taking a nap.
For a grown adult to look cute. It was terminal lovesickness with no cure.
‘If I show hyung a little more of my sincere feelings, won’t he date me? Maybe. Maybe hyung will ask me to date him first.’
Samin closed his eyes while dreaming of a happy future.
“Sleep well.”
At Doun’s casual words, Samin swallowed and muttered a slightly delayed response.
“…Yeah.”
As he’d felt since this morning, if Doun was lying next to him every morning when he woke up, and gave him good night greetings like this before bed, he felt like he’d have no regrets.
‘It would be really nice if hyung kissed me good morning when I wake up and kissed me good night before bed.’
He thought of hopeful wishes drenched in sweet dreams, but strangely, concrete imagination was a bit difficult. Even though Doun seemed soft, he put up quite solid walls, so how much more coaxing, persuading, and seducing would it take to make him initiate physical contact first? Just imagining it felt overwhelming.
‘But hyung told me to sleep well.’
Though he almost became a bit gloomy, Samin knew how to be happy about small things. Even after Doun quietly left the room, he had to toss and turn for a while, unable to fall asleep easily because of his pounding heart.
“This is driving me crazy. Really…”
The yearning soliloquy scattered in the quiet room. And only after a long while could regular breathing be heard.
* * *
“Last night’s barbecue was excellent, but I think there were some shortcomings. I want to make up for that.”
When Dong Jiwon, who had walked the pension’s hiking trail twice, spoke in a serious tone, Kim Minhyeok chuckled.
“Are you upset because there weren’t enough vegetables yesterday?”
“A balanced diet has a positive effect on the body, buddy.”
“You only pick at vegetables instead of meat, like a monk. Did you cut ties with the secular world? Always meditating and taking walks. You still haven’t bought a TV?”
“Modern society is saturated with overly violent content. There’s no need to spend money to watch such things.”
While the same-age hunters bickered, the other guild members were busy preparing charcoal and checking ingredients.
“We need to light the charcoal but where did Hyeonwoo go again?”
“He probably went to smoke.”
“Hmm. I could light the fire but it’s hard to control, so that’s the problem.”
“…Should I light it?”
When Doun, who had been carrying drinks from behind, casually joined the conversation, Choi Jiyoon brightened up.
“Would you? We can trust Doun!”
Within Yeoun Guild, Doun was practically a symbol of trust. Not only did he perform beyond expectations, but his character was perfect too. Even if he accidentally made a big fire, there was well-founded belief that he would quickly handle it.
“Then I’ll just put this down and come light the fire.”
Just as Doun was about to move the drinks in both hands to the table.
KUGUGUGU-GOONG!
With a roar like lightning striking the ground, the earth shook violently. It felt like hair was standing on end.
Maintaining balance during the unexpected earthquake, Doun looked up at the sky. He muttered while blankly watching flocks of birds flying away in the distance.
“…Dungeon?”
A bright blue pillar of light was shooting up from the forest. It was the light that appeared whenever a dimensional space created irregularly by incomprehensible human forces was born.
“Hey, where’s Kyung Samin? Haven’t you woken him up yet? Is he sleeping on the second floor?”
“What is it? What’s happening?”
“Did the gas explode?”
“Isn’t it a dungeon?”
In the chaotic moment when the guild members’ voices merged together, a notification window flashed before everyone’s eyes, just as Doun had guessed.
[Notification: Dungeon occurrence!]
[A dungeon has been spontaneously generated nearby. The grade of this dungeon is ‘?’. You can confirm the dungeon’s grade and epithet by approaching near the dungeon gate.
Remaining time: 4 hours 59 minutes 58 seconds]
On the peaceful second day of the unity competition, a dungeon had appeared nearby like a gift. Doun just blinked blankly.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
