Chapter 88
The moment Song Hwa-rin finished speaking,
"Chef...."
Cold sweat poured from Kang Jae-min's forehead.
He had survived countless deadly situations as a B-rank Hunter, but the pressure coming from the woman before him existed on a completely different level.
Song Hwa-rin was practically a walking disaster.
Hong Man-gi slowly controlled his breathing.
'If I fight this woman head-on, I'll die.'
His instincts warned him.
Even with Full Moon,
even with the abilities of the Gourmet Alchemist,
he had no chance against an S-rank Hunter who was already on the edge of going berserk.
But at the same time,
Hong Man-gi saw something else.
Deep within her hollow eyes was despair deeper than death itself.
And a plea to be saved.
'I'm curious.'
'What exactly happened to her?'
A crisis was also an opportunity.
From everything surrounding the situation, Cha Mu-jin had probably sent her here to kill Hong Man-gi.
But what if Hong Man-gi could satisfy her?
He could gain the master of the White Lotus Guild, one of the strongest forces in South Korea, as an ally.
It would mean acquiring the sharpest blade possible to point at Cha Mu-jin's throat.
Hong Man-gi slowly backed toward Kang Jae-min and Lee Yu-han.
Then he whispered,
"Jae-min, Yu-han. Listen carefully."
The two stared at him nervously.
"Do not fight her. Don't even draw your weapons."
He glanced at Song Hwa-rin.
"That woman came here as a customer looking for food."
Kang Jae-min's face twisted.
"She looks more like she's about to chew us up instead of the food."
"That's exactly why we need to feed her properly."
Hong Man-gi's eyes flashed.
"A lion with a full stomach doesn't hunt."
He lowered his voice.
"This is a deal. Think about why she's blindly saying whatever she wants like someone completely out of her mind."
"She's... not normal right now."
"Exactly."
Hong Man-gi looked toward Song Hwa-rin.
"If we satisfy her tongue the way she wants, we might gain more than our lives."
His gaze sharpened.
"She could be the one card that allows us to overturn the board Cha Mu-jin created."
Kang Jae-min and Lee Yu-han's eyes widened.
A faint spark of hope returned to their frightened gazes.
Lee Yu-han asked seriously,
"Understood. What should we prepare?"
Hong Man-gi looked toward the grill.
"We'll use what we're most confident in."
He made his decision.
"Bichi Forest Boar Barbecue and Mala Chicken Skewer Tteokbokki."
His expression hardened.
"We'll fight with strong, direct flavors. If she's lost her sense of taste, we'll wake her tongue with powerful aroma and flavor."
"Understood!"
The three immediately separated.
Hong Man-gi returned to the grill.
Song Hwa-rin stood with her arms crossed and watched the entire process with cold eyes.
Her gaze resembled that of a supervisor inside a slaughterhouse.
'Go ahead. Struggle all you want.'
That was what her expression seemed to say.
Cooking began immediately.
[Siiiiizzle!]
Hong Man-gi's hands accelerated.
He transformed Full Moon into a kitchen knife and selected the best section of the Ironback Boar loin.
'Material Reconstruction.'
He began adjusting the distribution of fat within the meat.
Dry sections became tender.
Fatty sections became richer and more savory.
He rearranged the muscle fibers so juice would explode into the mouth with every bite.
"Yu-han, sauce!"
"Here!"
Hong Man-gi brushed on the special barbecue sauce Lee Yu-han handed him.
The sauce, made with Golden Honeybee honey and soy sauce infused with smoke, sizzled as it coated the meat.
At the burner beside him, Kang Jae-min spun a wok.
"Mala sauce going in! Maximum heat!"
[Fwoosh!]
Red flames surged upward.
A spicy, numbing mala fragrance spread through the air.
The surface of the chicken skewers crisped as though fried.
The tteokbokki sauce reduced until thick and glossy.
The aroma was perfect.
Even the Hunters watching from a distance swallowed saliva.
Soon,
Hong Man-gi plated the completed dishes on a large plate.
Glossy boar barbecue.
Beside it sat red Mala Chicken Skewer Tteokbokki.
It was one of the finest meals the Full Moon Restaurant could currently produce, attacking both sight and smell.
"Thank you for waiting."
Hong Man-gi politely placed the food before Song Hwa-rin.
She silently stared at it.
"The smell... isn't bad."
Her expression remained cold.
Over the past three years, she had been fooled countless times by food that smelled wonderful but tasted like garbage.
"Hmm...."
She lifted her chopsticks.
Every eye focused on her hand.
Kang Jae-min swallowed dryly.
Lee Yu-han clasped his hands together and prayed.
Even Poming, who had hidden herself, carefully poked her head out to watch.
Song Hwa-rin picked up a piece of barbecue.
Then she put it into her mouth.
[Chew.]
She chewed.
Chew.
Chew, chew.
Chew.
Hong Man-gi watched closely for even the smallest change in her expression.
Then,
her brow slowly furrowed.
"Ptoo!"
Song Hwa-rin spat the meat onto the ground.
Then,
[Crash!]
She picked up the plate and smashed it against the floor.
The carefully prepared meal fell into the dirt among shattered pieces of ceramic.
"You dare... call this food?"
Her voice burned with rage.
"Disgusting. It's fucking disgusting!"
She crushed the fallen meat beneath her foot.
"It tastes like rotten mud. No, chewing sand would be better than this."
"...That can't be."
Hong Man-gi could not hide his shock.
The dish had been perfect.
The ingredients.
The cooking process.
The balance of flavor.
Even the senses of the Gourmet Alchemist could find no flaw.
Yet it had failed completely against Song Hwa-rin.
"I'm the idiot for expecting anything."
