Another day of hunting in a beginner field with the HG Guild allowed him to recharge his Divine Power to a decent level. He wanted to keep tagging along with them if possible, but HG Guild members all had day jobs and couldn’t commit full-time to guild activities. Even the Guildmaster’s main profession was freelance programming.
Now that I’ve got some free time, maybe it’s time I got my hands dirty with something practical.
Kim Sibaek decided it was finally time to take on the cooking challenge he had been avoiding.
[Death and Beauty asks when the last time was that you held a kitchen knife.]
“It’s been decades since I last cooked, but… isn’t slicing monsters and chopping vegetables ultimately the same thing? It’s all just cutting, right?”
[Death and Beauty scolds you, asking how you could possibly compare the act of delivering death to cooking.]
A god’s Incarnate Body, which could not even hold a kitchen knife with its wings, chimed in with unsolicited advice.
[Death and Beauty suggests not wasting Divine Power healing kitchen injuries and recommends using a meal kit instead.]
After hearing the explanation about meal kits, Kim Sibaek asked skeptically,
“Aren’t those like 3-minute curry packs? If all I do is heat it and plate it, how’s that any different from ordering takeout?”
[Death and Beauty argues that using the stove and going through the plating process makes it count as home cooking.]
Whether that logic held up or not, it did remind Kim Sibaek that there were convenient food options out there. Even if the cooking turned out a disaster, meal kits and ready-made meals were fallback options. Feeling slightly reassured, he began digging through the kitchen. Less than ten minutes later, he ran into a major obstacle.
“…There’s nothing useful in this kitchen.”
He already knew the fridge only held bottled water. But he hadn’t imagined the pantry would be completely empty. No salt, soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic—none of the basic seasonings. Not even a single pack of instant ramen.
He probably should have realized it earlier, considering the kitchen had nothing but a fridge, a gas stove, and a microwave. Even the stove looked like it came as a decorative option during the interior remodel. The microwave, at least, he had bought himself after moving in to reheat leftovers.
[Death and Beauty expresses disbelief at a kitchen without even a frying pan.]
“Now that I think about it, I had to buy the small plates and utensils after I moved in, too.”
No frying pan. No rice cooker. No pots. Not even a kitchen knife. Could this even be called a kitchen? He doubted it, but decided to at least visit the supermarket.
Monsters didn’t care where they lived, but if they settled in bustling urban areas, Hunters were quick to exterminate them. That’s why most monsters ended up in remote areas like mountains or rural villages. People who’d lost their homes and hometowns to monsters were still a lingering social issue.
But with farmland in decline, Awakened individuals with the ability to accelerate plant growth had emerged, and food production remained roughly the same. Sister Benedicta, the S-rank Awakened from Somang Orphanage, was said to have such a Trait.
If I went to the orphanage now, I’d just be a guest. I shouldn’t even be seeing the Sisters right now.
With a bitter smile, Kim Sibaek brushed aside a memory of the past and started browsing the market. As he filled his cart with seasonings and kitchenware, a sense of absurdity crept in. He had just wanted to test his cooking skills with a light meal, but now the side expenses were outweighing the purpose.
In the end, he took Lord Biendeoé’s advice and bought some ready-made food and ready-made side dishes from the store. Back home, he warmed up soup and rice in the few bowls he had and set the table. The only thing he actually “cooked” was a steamed egg dish made in the microwave—with Lord Biendeoé supplying the recipe via search.
He didn’t even have salt for seasoning, but he did have leftover soy sauce from a sushi order a couple days ago. He mixed that in and hoped for the best.
As he poked the steamed egg with chopsticks to see if it was fully cooked, Tae Woon walked in from work.
“Did you actually make dinner?”
“I didn’t. The microwave and a major food company did all the work…”
It felt kind of pathetic putting that on the table, but Tae Woon’s eyes lit up with excitement instead.
“Back when I visited your old apartment, you made tteokbokki and grilled spam. It was so good.”
“I’ve forgotten how to make tteokbokki.”
He couldn’t even remember exactly how it had tasted. As he furrowed his brow, Tae Woon smiled like he could read his thoughts.
“Let’s just buy tteokbokki next time.”
The fact that Tae Woon didn’t suggest he cook it again made Kim Sibaek feel even more self-conscious as he picked up his spoon. Tae Woon took a bite of the steamed egg—the only thing remotely “homemade.” Watching nervously, Kim Sibaek saw him chew and swallow with a satisfied look.
“It’s been a while since I had steamed egg outside a barbecue place. It’s really good.”
He had eyeballed the soy sauce measurement, and somehow the flavor turned out fine. Relieved, Kim Sibaek took a bite himself—and his eyes widened in shock.
“…?!”
He quickly poured a glass of water and gulped it down.
“It’s this salty and you’re okay with it?”
“Salty? The part I had tasted just right.”
“Maybe the soy sauce didn’t mix evenly.”
Holding back tears, Kim Sibaek dumped the rest of the steamed egg and renewed his vow to stick with takeout from now on.
***
If the Cataclysm had never happened and humanity had continued to flourish, October skies might’ve been murky with smog and warming air. But now, they stretched high and clear, streaked with faint trails of ashen smoke.
On the rooftop, enjoying an after-meal cigarette, sat Pi Minhyung and Seo Gaeun.
“All that happened while I was out in the field for a few days? What did Tae Woon Oppa say at the café? That’s borderline sexual harassment, isn’t it?”
“Tae Woon might kill someone, but he’s never harassed anyone.”
“And besides, the guy’s fourteen years older.”
“Every time that bastard sees Sibaek hyung, his eyes practically flip. You think something like age matters to him?”
“…Yeah, fair point.”
Eyes that normally looked at others with cold indifference turned almost absurdly gentle—sweet, even—when they landed on Kim Sibaek. In that sense, yes, something really had flipped.
Seo Gaeun often found it ironic that someone as emotionally detached as Tae Woon would throw himself into danger without hesitation when saving lives or hunting monsters. He’d even earned the less-than-flattering nickname “Mad Dog” because of it. Sure, he sometimes ignored monster sightings, but only when it was clear the situation would resolve without his help.
That just meant his true nature was still good. Just like back when he rescued the people stranded in Seoul.
But admiring and respecting Tae Woon as a Hunter was one thing—his love life was another matter entirely.
“The mentor seems like a good person, but I don’t think I should tag along to any more of their hangouts.”
“Honestly, I think Hyung’s part of the issue too. Anyway, about that tattoo—was it always that long? I don’t remember it ever showing above the collar like that before.”
Seo Gaeun tapped the link a teammate had sent her. The post titled ‘The Kneeling Mad Dog Is Real’ included an Instagram Reel where the tattoo on Tae Woon’s neck was clearly visible. Phone cameras these days had gotten ridiculously good. She didn’t even bother checking the comments—she could guess what they were saying.
“Could just be the shirt—it’s got a lower neckline, right?”
“Maybe.”
Pi Minhyung nodded vaguely. He’d only taken a second look because of that crazy comment about it being an erogenous zone, but he wasn’t particularly bothered. A tattoo could always be extended anyway.
They finished their cigarettes during the meandering conversation. Just as Pi Minhyung was about to suggest heading back, something came to mind. He glanced at Seo Gaeun.
“You ever get a weird vibe when Sibaek hyung looks at us or talks to us?”
“Weird how?”
“Eunho said the way he looks at us feels like he’s known us for years. And you know how sharp Eunho’s instincts are. But Hyung claimed he didn’t even know how famous Tae Woon was—like hell. If he didn’t know about Tae Woon, there’s no way he’d know us.”
Her line of suspicion was different, but she’d had a similar thought.
“Not the way he looks at us, but… I did ask once. It seemed like he and Oppa had known each other for a long time. But he didn’t really answer—just said it wasn’t something I needed to know. That even if I did, I wouldn’t understand.”
“Right? Tae Woon’s not the kind of guy to talk about stuff like first loves or whatever, but if they were that close, there’s no way we wouldn’t have known. Maybe it was so long ago we forgot?”
“Even if we were young, there’s no way we wouldn’t remember.”
Seo Gaeun echoed Pi Minhyung’s certainty.
Kim Sibaek’s power was overwhelming—and precise. A Hunter that skilled wouldn’t have Awakened recently. If he’d been someone they met after the Cataclysm, they’d have heard about him somehow.
Which meant he was probably someone from before the Cataclysm—assuming you overlooked the glaring problem that none of them remembered any adult male who had been close to Tae Woon.
“There’s a fourteen-year age gap between Oppa and his mentor. Sure, people in their twenties feel young to us now, but twenty or thirty years ago, our perspective would’ve been different. Back then, to us, he would’ve looked like a full-grown adult.”
Pi Minhyung sighed and scratched the back of his head.
“Shit, you’re right. There’s no way we’d forget an adult who was close to Tae Woon. Even if we forgot his name or face, we’d at least remember that someone like that existed.”
Tae Woon had been rescued at the age of five and brought to the orphanage—and at the time, he’d been terrified of adult men. Even the priest at the church had trouble getting close to him. Though the fear gradually eased as he grew up, even as a middle schooler, he remained wary around adult males.
“Back when we were trapped in Seoul… I didn’t think much of it at the time because we were just focused on surviving, but didn’t Sibaek Oppa seem… oddly familiar?”
