Chapter 68. I’m Confident in My Knife Skills (3)
“Why can’t I come with you?”
Victoria complained with a pout.
Yukgap had already heard that question several times today.
“Look at the invitation. It specifically says I have to come alone.”
He held up the invitation he had received earlier.
It clearly stated that only those who had passed the test were to come to the meeting point alone.
Unlike last time, he could not bring Victoria and Robert along by pretending they were assistants.
But Victoria was not happy about that.
“That makes it even more suspicious! Why would they put a condition like that on hiring a chef?”
“He’s called the Mercenary King. It’s probably because of the risk of assassination. Just try to understand.”
Yukgap did his best to calm her down.
Victoria glared at the invitation.
“Tch. So are you really planning to change jobs? Are you going to leave our restaurant behind and become that Kevin guy’s chef?”
Apparently, she was worried Kevin might take Yukgap away from her completely.
Yukgap answered firmly to reassure her.
“Sorry, but no. My only goal is to ask Kevin about my past.”
He continued,
“If Kevin tells me what he knows about me, I’m walking out immediately. I don’t care about the test or the job after that.”
“Really?”
Victoria still looked doubtful.
Yukgap gestured toward the daggers at his waist.
“I swear on my daggers.”
“Fine, then.”
Only after Yukgap went that far did Victoria finally give in.
For some reason, he felt a little guilty.
It felt like he was making her worry because of him.
“So don’t cause any trouble while I’m gone. Stay quiet.”
“You make it sound like I cause trouble every single day.”
Victoria kept grumbling until the end.
Yukgap understood how she felt, so he simply smiled.
“I’ll be back.”
“Yeah. Be careful.”
Victoria waved at him, her voice filled with obvious reluctance to let him go.
“Is this really the place?”
Yukgap looked around after arriving at the meeting point.
The location written on the invitation was an isolated harbor.
There were no notable buildings, and the only vessels nearby were a few ordinary fishing boats.
“Hmm. I don’t see anywhere that looks like an interview location.”
Yukgap compared the map on the invitation with the scenery around him.
At least during the previous test, there had been a warehouse serving as a disguise.
There was nothing like that here.
“Excuse me. Did you come to apply as Kevin’s chef?”
Someone suddenly spoke to him from the side.
It was the applicant Yukgap had been watching during the previous test.
“Y-Yeah. I did. Why?”
Why was this guy here?
Yukgap was startled, but he tried to act as naturally as possible so he would not look suspicious.
The applicant smiled brightly.
“So did I. Nice to see you again!”
He laughed easily.
“When I arrived and saw nobody here, I thought I had come to the wrong place. Seeing another applicant is reassuring.”
“You remember me?”
“Of course. Your movements were incredibly fast. You left quite an impression.”
Yukgap had not realized it, but apparently the two had been paying attention to each other.
The man looked roughly Yukgap’s age.
He had a friendly, easygoing appearance.
And somehow, that made him even more suspicious.
After thinking for a moment, Yukgap held out his hand first.
“I’m Yukgap.”
“I’m Jo Jeonghyeon. Nice to meet you.”
The applicant introduced himself and shook Yukgap’s hand.
In that brief moment, Yukgap quickly scanned Jeonghyeon’s body.
Just as he thought.
No matter how he looked at him, this man did not seem like an ordinary chef.
The hand Yukgap had briefly grasped was covered in calluses.
His build was lean and muscular.
He had clearly trained his body for a long time.
Then why would someone like this apply to become Kevin’s chef?
With that question in mind, Yukgap casually probed him.
“Did you used to exercise? You look pretty fit.”
“Does it show? I practiced a little taekwondo until high school. I work as a chef now, though.”
Jeonghyeon was not only friendly, but also quite talkative.
Was he deliberately talking loosely to scatter Yukgap’s attention?
While Yukgap was caught up in that suspicion, Jeonghyeon looked around and tilted his head.
“By the way, it looks like we’re the only two who passed the third test.”
“Seems that way. There were quite a lot of applicants too.”
The appointed time was approaching, but no other applicants were in sight.
Apparently, only the two of them had passed the third round.
“What did you make for the third test, Mr. Yukgap?”
While they waited by the sea with nothing else to do, Jeonghyeon casually asked.
Yukgap answered without much thought.
“I made a salmon rice bowl. I’m pretty confident in my knife skills.”
Jeonghyeon burst out laughing.
“Really? I only caught a glimpse, but the examiner seemed so amazed that I thought you had prepared some extraordinary dish. Hahahaha.”
Apparently, he had seen the reaction of the examiner who tasted the universe-flavored curry.
Yukgap smiled awkwardly and tried to brush it off.
“Well, ordinary food is best.”
While they were chatting, a large ship slowly entered the harbor from the distance.
The deck was filled with men in suits Yukgap recognized from the previous test.
