Chapter 93
Hong Man-gi stopped her and urgently looked toward Kang Min-hyuk's spirit.
'I can't let her leave like this. If she does, this misunderstanding might remain forever.'
Kang Min-hyuk's spirit seemed to understand that as well.
With a desperate expression, he gestured toward Hong Man-gi.
First, he drew a square shape with his fingers.
Then he mimed grilling something.
'...Bread?'
Next, he cupped his hand and mimed sprinkling something.
'Sugar...?'
Finally, he made the motion of cracking an egg.
Hong Man-gi's eyes widened.
'Egg toast covered in sugar...?'
It was an incredibly ordinary and old-fashioned dish.
The kind of snack that seemed completely out of place in a story involving S-rank Hunters.
But Kang Min-hyuk's spirit desperately wanted it.
As if that simple food was the only key capable of opening the door between them.
Hong Man-gi called toward Song Hwa-rin's back as she was about to leave.
"Master! Please wait!"
Song Hwa-rin stopped, but did not turn around.
"I told you, I have nothing else to say."
"That person... asked me to make something."
"Food? Ha. The dead ghost is hungry now?"
"No. He asked for a very specific dish."
Hong Man-gi swallowed.
"He wants egg toast with lots of sugar sprinkled on top. And the bread... should be slightly burnt."
At that moment,
Song Hwa-rin spun around.
Her eyes shook as if she had been struck.
"...What did you just say?"
"Egg toast... covered in sugar."
It was a memory only two people in the entire world knew.
It was the first meal Song Hwa-rin had ever made for Kang Min-hyuk.
She had never cooked before.
She had failed to control the heat, so the bread had turned black.
Bits of eggshell had ended up inside the egg.
And thinking sugar would make everything taste better, she had poured in far too much.
It had been a complete disaster of a toast.
But Kang Min-hyuk had eaten every last bite, telling her it was the most delicious food in the world.
'Hwa-rin, even if we succeed someday and both become S-rank Hunters, I'll never forget the taste of this toast you made. This is my soul food.'
The smiling face of Kang Min-hyuk from that day came alive in Song Hwa-rin's memories.
She had never told anyone about it.
It was a secret belonging only to the two of them.
"How... how do you know that...?"
Song Hwa-rin stared at Hong Man-gi in disbelief.
This was not something he could have discovered through an investigation.
Hong Man-gi pointed toward the place where Kang Min-hyuk's spirit stood.
"He told me. He says he couldn't forget the taste of the food you made him, even after death."
Kang Min-hyuk's spirit smiled sadly at Song Hwa-rin.
Tears began flowing from her eyes again.
This time, they were not tears of anger.
They contained longing and confusion.
"Is... is Min-hyuk oppa really... here?"
She staggered back toward the table.
"Do it. If his spirit really is here, make it exactly the way he tells you."
She continued in a wet voice.
"Make that toast. If the taste is even slightly different... I really won't let you off."
Hong Man-gi nodded.
"Understood."
He headed for the kitchen.
There was no need for flashy techniques or expensive ingredients.
Two slices of bread.
One egg.
And sugar.
Hong Man-gi melted butter in a frying pan and toasted the bread.
He deliberately raised the heat slightly, letting the surface of the bread darken and burn.
Then he coated the bread with egg and sprinkled on what seemed like an excessive amount of sugar.
The savory scent of butter and the sweet smell of caramelizing sugar filled the restaurant.
It was not the fragrance of a luxurious restaurant.
It was the smell of days when they had been poor, but happy.
Beside him, Kang Min-hyuk's spirit watched with a sorrowful expression.
Hong Man-gi placed the finished toast onto a plate and set it in front of Song Hwa-rin.
Blackened edges.
Sugar crystals that had not fully melted and still felt gritty.
It was an ugly little piece of toast.
But to Song Hwa-rin, it shone more brightly than any jewel.
She lifted it and took a bite.
[Crunch.]
A simple, rustic combination of burnt bitterness and overwhelming sweetness.
[Flash!]
[Hummm...]
The power of the legendary item Hong Man-gi had created by pouring his very soul into it at the Chaos Forge, Full Moon.
A weapon, and at the same time, a cooking tool.
The unique ability possessed by Full Moon in its bowl form activated.
Soul Resonance.
'Food placed in the Full Moon Bowl resonates with the spirit, sharing hidden truths and memories.'
The desperate truth that Kang Min-hyuk had wanted so badly to convey connected directly with Song Hwa-rin's spirit through Full Moon and the toast.
'Ugh!'
Before her eyes, the terrible scene from three years ago unfolded as clearly as if she had returned to that day.
AX-rank Dungeon, Hellish Snowfield.
Everything turned white.
A razor-sharp wind swept across the land, cutting down to the bone.
The sky and earth could no longer be distinguished.
A white hell.
The Hellish Snowfield, recorded as the highest-difficulty dungeon in South Korean history.
"Haa... haa...!"
Song Hwa-rin was kneeling in the snow, breathing heavily.
The scene before her was horrifying.
The elite members of the White Lotus Guild had already been reduced to frozen fragments scattered across the field.
Her own mana had nearly run dry.
Exhaustion and fear crushed her so completely that she could not even move a finger.
And standing before them was despair itself.
The dungeon boss.
The Tyrant of Eternal Snow, the Yeti King.
It was enormous, with frost-covered fur over its house-sized body.
Even its breath froze the surrounding air.
[Grrrrr...]
The Yeti King's red eyes turned toward Song Hwa-rin.
