Chapter 18
Translator: Roshi
The tonkatsu restaurant was a small building.
Contrasted with the large Taegeuk Guild building behind it, it appeared even smaller.
Do-yoon and Hanuri suddenly popped out of the shadows in front of the small building.
Fortunately, the people who saw them...
"Gasp?!"
"...!"
Were there.
And there were two of them.
Ahn Soo-hwa and Park Ki-ho.
"Perfect timing."
Do-yoon spoke nonchalantly toward the startled pair.
Unfortunately, the Bear Siblings were left behind.
It wasn't a big problem since he had attached shadows to them.
Though Hanuri seemed quite disappointed...
But that didn't last long.
To distract her, he quickly took her hand and led her inside.
As soon as they entered the tonkatsu restaurant, the delicious smell of oil wafted through the air.
Sniff, sniff!
Hanuri must have smelled it too, as her nose twitched.
“Ajosshi... It smells yummy.”
“The tonkatsu here is probably different from what you had at the hospital.”
“Different?”
“Of course, it’s different. It’s much more delicious.”
“Wow... Hehe.”
Just from the smell, you could tell it was a great restaurant.
It was obvious that the tonkatsu here would be on a whole different level compared to the hospital’s food.
He looked for a place to sit with the eagerly excited Hanuri.
But strangely, there was no one else there.
“I rented out the place for a bit. But since this is such a popular spot, I couldn’t borrow it for long. Even with how close I am with the owner, an hour is the limit.”
At that moment, Ahn Soo-hwa spoke up.
She smiled lightly and nodded toward the chef, who peeked his head out of the kitchen, before immediately guiding Do-yoon and Hanuri.
“This way, please have a seat.”
A representative of a major guild. Not just any major guild, but one of the top guilds in the nation, politely guided them to their seats.
She had clearly seen Do-yoon and Hanuri appear suddenly from the ground earlier.
'Even I couldn't sense it.'
She didn’t know what ability it was, but it had sent a chill down her spine.
If that ability were used to attack, could she block it?
Of course, it wouldn’t be easy to take her down, but the ability she briefly witnessed was undeniably lethal.
‘There’s probably more he’s hiding. I guess I don’t need further testing.’
Having quickly made her judgment, Ahn Soo-hwa’s eyes sparkled as she carefully struck up a conversation with Hanuri.
Do-yoon quietly observed her actions.
"I wonder if the princess likes tonkatsu?"
"Princess? Is Hanuri a princess?"
“Of course~ You’re so pretty, so you’re definitely a princess.”
“Hehe, unnie is pretty too!”
“Oh my~ The princess has good taste too?”
Surprisingly, Ahn Soo-hwa was good at conversing with children.
It was unexpected.
It was rare to see a renowned Hunter acting like this.
Hunters were individuals with overwhelming power, practically superhuman.
Naturally, their treatment was on another level.
Even though he didn't know much about this world's customs after living in that other world for so long, he knew that much.
'Whether here or there, those with power are all the same.'
Arrogant, full of conceit, and acting as if the world revolves around them.
Not all of them were like that, but many were.
Ahn Soo-hwa’s first impression was that of a cold and sophisticated woman with sleek black hair.
Because of that image, Do-yoon had unconsciously lumped her into that category, which made her unexpected side stand out even more.
But there was one thing that needed clarification.
“Hanuri.”
“Uung?”
“She’s not unnie, she’s ajumma.”
“Ajumma? Not unnie?”
“Yeah, she’s not.”
At Do-yoon’s firm words, Park Ki-ho thought he heard a faint cracking sound from somewhere.
‘Was that a hallucination?!’
Looking at where the sound seemed to come from, it didn’t appear to be his imagination.
Ahn Soo-hwa’s eyebrows were twitching.
Her nickname was the Fire Witch.
If she exploded here, it would be trouble.
“G-Guild Leader? Please hold back!”
Park Ki-ho whispered softly to his guild leader.
“...Hohohoho!! That’s not true, Hanuri. I’m unnie~.”
Perhaps thanks to Park Ki-ho’s quiet restraint, Ahn Soo-hwa managed to control her expression with effort.
She even forced a smile as she refuted Do-yoon’s statement.
But this left Hanuri confused.
“Uung... It’s hard. Ajosshi, why isn’t unnie, unnie?”
As Hanuri tilted her head, looking puzzled, Do-yoon was about to speak again when Park Ki-ho hastily interrupted with a shout.
“Excuse me!! Four orders of tonkatsu, please! Haha... It’s a single-menu restaurant, so I hope everyone’s okay with that?”
“Hanuri likes it!”
It was an appropriate diversion.
With Hanuri’s agreement, the other two also nodded.
“Hehe! Tonkatsu... Can Hanuri eat a whole one by herself?”
“Of course.”
With Hanuri’s attention redirected, Do-yoon said no more.
‘Phew-.’
Park Ki-ho let out a sigh of relief and wiped the cold sweat off his forehead.
***
On the white plate.
Thinly sliced cabbage drizzled with pink salad dressing.
Tangy-sweet yellow pickled radish.
Golden-brown pork wrapped in a crispy batter.
On top of it all, a thick beige sauce was generously poured.
The aroma of the buttery sauce wafted through the air as a knife and fork approached the dish.
Crunch! Crunch!
Despite being covered in sauce, the clear sound of the crispy coating being sliced through resonated.
And then, the knife gently cut into the tender meat inside.
Should one call it a delicate pink hue?
The interior briefly revealed itself before being coated again in the sauce.
The knife and fork moved to attack another spot to see more of the inside, but
Hanuri’s voice interrupted.
“Hanuri, Hanuri wants to do it...!”
“Do you want to try, Hanuri?”
“Yup, yup!”
Do-yoon carefully handed the knife and fork to Hanuri.
For Hanuri’s small hands, the utensils were still quite large.
Grrr!
But seeing her try so hard in her own way was adorable, so he left her be.
If there was any chance she might hurt herself, he was ready to intervene immediately.
In the meantime, he took out his phone to record the moment on video.
Why was her grunting effort so irresistibly cute?
At that moment, Ahn Soo-hwa casually spoke up.
“You’re not eating? A. Jo. Sshi?”
It seemed like she still had some lingering resentment.
She appeared to mimic how Hanuri addressed him.
“I’m eating, ajumma.”
“......”
It was a fight Ahn Soo-hwa couldn’t possibly win.
Considering the time Do-yoon had spent in the other world, being called ajusshi was actually a compliment to his youth.
Moreover, he didn’t care about such trivial matters in the first place.
Frustrated but unable to outdo him, Ahn Soo-hwa simply chewed on her tonkatsu.
Do-yoon, unconcerned with Ahn Soo-hwa, sliced his tonkatsu into smaller pieces and fed them to Hanuri.
“Hanuri, say ah~.”
“Ahh! Hehe... Aaaaam! ...Mmmm, so tasty...!”
“Is it really that good?”
“Yup, yup! So delicious! As delicious as Hanuri!”
“As delicious as Hanuri?”
Even though the piece he cut was small, it must have been big for Hanuri.
Her cheeks puffed out as she chewed, trying to express that it was 'as delicious as Hanuri'. He absolutely had to capture this moment.
Her round, mochi-like cheeks moving as she chewed were equally adorable.
Adjusting the angle with a shadow hand, he diligently recorded Hanuri’s delightful expressions.
As the little dumpling of a child exclaimed, “As delicious as Hanuri”, every moment was preserved on video. Then, a playful thought popped into his head.
“Hanuri, then which one is more delicious, what I made for you or the tonkatsu?”
“...!!”
At his question, Hanuri looked utterly shocked, as if the world had just collapsed around her.
Her already large eyes widened even more, trembling slightly...
“Too cute...”
“Ugh! She’s so adorable!”
Even Ahn Soo-hwa, who had been holding back her frustration, and Park Ki-ho, who had been absorbed in his tonkatsu, were completely mesmerized.
Of course, Do-yoon felt the same.
‘I feel a little bad, but she’s just too cute.’
Before he realized it, he had fully embraced being a doting parent.
In the short time he’d spent with Hanuri, everything about him had changed.
Even teasing like this, something he never would have done before.
That prank he played on Ahn Soo-hwa earlier was also because of how he’d changed.
He didn’t think this change was bad.
All thanks to Hanuri.
“T-that’s... Both are as delicious as Hanuri...”
Snicker!
At Hanuri’s muttering, he chuckled lightly.
It was time to stop teasing her and rescue the little lamb who was stuck in panic.
“Then let’s say both are as delicious as Hanuri, okay?”
“...!!”
As if she couldn’t believe such a solution existed, Hanuri’s eyes widened again.
Not just her, this time, even Ahn Soo-hwa and Park Ki-ho laughed quietly.
“That works?”
“Of course, that works.”
“Hehe, then both are as delicious as Hanuri!”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Though he was slightly, just very slightly, disappointed that she didn’t say his cooking was better, he was satisfied just watching her reaction.
“Hehe.”
Reassured by Do-yoon’s confirmation, Hanuri happily went back to chewing on her tonkatsu, continuing her earlier task.
After watching her for a bit longer, Do-yoon was about to start eating his own meal when,
Swoosh.
A fork suddenly appeared in front of him.
On it was a precariously balanced piece of clumsily cut tonkatsu.
“Ajosshi, say ah~.”
The little girl was imitating what he had done for her.
He quickly ate the piece of meat before it could fall off the fork.
‘Delicious.’
So this is what it means to say something is as delicious as Hanuri.
It was a strangely moving flavor.
Tonkatsu was already delicious to begin with, but this one was exceptionally tasty.
“Hehe, is it yummy?”
“Yeah, it’s delicious. Even more so because Hanuri gave it to me.”
“Hanuri thought Ajosshi’s was even, even more delicious!”
Hearing Hanuri speak so sweetly, he couldn’t help but stroke her head.
“Aww.”
“Haha.”
Of course, this sight was unbearable to watch for Ahn Soo-hwa and Park Ki-ho, but deep down, they felt...
‘I’m jealous. I wish I had a daughter too...’
‘Ugh! My heart can’t take this.’
They were envious.
Envious of Do-yoon, who ate Hanuri’s clumsily cut tonkatsu and received her affectionate smile.
Shrug!
As if he fully understood their feelings, Do-yoon looked at them and shrugged his shoulders.
Unable to contain herself any longer, Ahn Soo-hwa dropped a bombshell.
“I’ll agree to all the contract terms you want. But I have one special condition.”
“What is it?”
“Share the video you took of Hanuri. I saw you recording earlier.”
“...??”
She had made sharing Hanuri’s video a condition of the deal.
Of course, Do-yoon thought there might be some kind of value(?) in her request.
But it wasn’t something he had any intention of doing.
“I’ll give you the salary you want, a Hunter license, and dungeon information. On top of that, I’ll even add the profits from dungeon clears.”
“Guild Leader...?”
At Ahn Soo-hwa’s increasingly extreme proposal, Park Ki-ho looked at her in shock.
Wondering if she was actually serious, he observed her carefully, and she truly seemed sincere.
While debating whether he should intervene, Do-yoon thankfully(?) rejected the offer without hesitation.
“No.”
“What?! Why not??”
Setting aside whether he should intervene, Park Ki-ho looked baffled and asked.
“Because I can’t use Hanuri’s videos as a bargaining chip.”
It wasn’t something that could be made into a condition in the first place.
They were precious memories to him.
***
And so, the meal came to an end.
Although Ahn Soo-hwa couldn’t secure the condition of sharing Hanuri’s videos, she left with a satisfactory result in her own way.
Do-yoon had given a definite answer that he would sign a contract with the Taegeuk Guild.
It was the result of both Ahn Soo-hwa and Do-yoon quietly evaluating each other in their own minds.
‘She’s a decent person.’
From Do-yoon’s perspective, Ahn Soo-hwa wasn’t the type to stab someone in the back or secretly plot against them.
Having encountered all sorts of scum in the other world, he could tell such things just from a conversation.
And most importantly, Ahn Soo-hwa’s attitude toward Hanuri was genuine.
He could tell from how Hanuri interacted with her.
Those with an innate ability for forming bonds could instinctively sense the true feelings of others toward them.
And Hanuri seemed to like Ahn Soo-hwa quite a bit.
She called her a fun ajumma.
That’s why Do-yoon decided without much hesitation.
‘Now that I think about it, the people at the hospital probably felt the same way back then as I do now.’
At the time, he had found it a little strange, but now he completely understood.
‘The details can wait until the inspection for issuing the Hunter License.’
The group parted ways in front of the tonkatsu restaurant.
“Oh, right! But, Ajosshi...”
“Hm? What is it?”
Since it had been a while since Do-yoon and Hanuri had been out, they decided to take a little walk.
Just as Hanuri’s mouth opened wide at the unfamiliar scenery different from home, she called out to him as if something had piqued her curiosity.
And at her innocent question that followed, he had to hold back his laughter.
“Why is unnie not unnie but ajumma?”
"Ah, that?"
Holding back his laughter, he finally gave her an answer.
“That ajumma is older than she looks.”
“Uung? How old? How much older? As much as Hanuri?”
“No, you’d have to multiply Hanuri’s age by eight.”
“Ah! Multiply... Multiply how much? One, two, five?”
Hanuri didn’t know numbers very well yet, let alone multiplication.
Even as she earnestly counted with her fingers, there was no way she could figure it out.
“Puhahaha!”
In the end, Do-yoon burst into laughter at her antics.
“Hing...”
Her small fingers, now frozen mid-air, and her crestfallen expression made it impossible not to laugh.
‘I regret not recording this on video.’
He swallowed his regret, wishing he had kept his phone recording, and began explaining the numbers to Hanuri.
He roughly explained that it was a very big difference.
“Woaaah! That’s super olddddddd!”
As if not disappointing his expectations, Hanuri shouted in amazement.
If Ahn Soo-hwa had heard that, she probably would have trembled with frustration.
She wouldn’t have been able to argue back, and it would have been a spectacle to witness.
Though he found it amusing, Do-yoon decided to keep this to himself.
But just then,
“Huh? Hanuri?”
Someone who recognized Hanuri’s voice suddenly appeared.
*****