Chapter 4 · 9 min
Chapter 4
Kimchi Stew
Click.
Kim Dohyeon pressed the button and turned off the flashlight.
That brought today’s business to an end.
After he began using the flashlight to attract hunters, more hunters started finding their way to the convenience store.
Two groups of hunters had visited just today.
Thanks to that, his stockpile of mana stones was steadily growing.
‘But the real thing starts now.’
There was no way the hunters heading back home would not run into other hunters along the way.
And if that happened, the convenience store was bound to come up in conversation.
‘By now, rumors about the convenience store have probably spread as far as they can.’
And if he wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to earn even more mana stones, he needed to stock a wider variety of products in advance.
Dohyeon pondered.
‘What product should I add this time?’
In order to escape the Tower and earn enough money to live comfortably outside, he needed to add some groundbreaking product that could earn him even more mana stones.
‘Let’s see. The thing outside the Tower that the hunters I saw on NewTube missed the most while inside the Tower was... Ah!’
Come to think of it, he remembered watching a video ranking the foods that homesick hunters wanted to eat the most.
‘Number one was definitely... that, right? Then the products I need to buy are...’
_____________
There was a convenience store in the middle of the forest on the 10th floor of the Tower!
When Lee Jihwan first heard that from hunters descending the Tower, he scoffed.
‘Looks like some homesick hunters started seeing things again.’
However, no matter how skeptical someone was of a rumor, hearing the same story repeatedly from multiple people was bound to make them wonder if there might be something to it.
As every hunter he encountered brought up the convenience store, even Jihwan began to have doubts.
‘Could it actually be real? No, there’s no way. A convenience store in the Tower, not even a supply base...’
He wanted to dismiss it as a ridiculous rumor, but the stories he heard were so vivid that he found it difficult to simply shake them off.
‘They say it sells bottled water and kimbap... Bottled water I can understand, but kimbap would spoil almost immediately.’
Logically, it made no sense, but in the end, Jihwan decided to confirm the rumor himself.
The 10th floor of the Tower.
Every member crossing through the forest wore an openly dissatisfied expression.
It was understandable.
To anyone watching, Jihwan looked like someone who had been duped by a ridiculous rumor and was needlessly extending their journey.
From the members’ perspective, who had been eager to clear the Tower and return home as soon as possible, it would have been stranger if they were not sulking.
Jihwan knew that too, so he repeatedly cleared his throat.
“Ahem. Still, there must be a reason the rumor has spread this widely...”
“...”
“And it’s also our duty to report anything suspicious inside the Tower to the guild master...”
“...”
Unlike usual, none of the members responded.
Feeling awkward, Jihwan closed his mouth.
‘Should I break out some of the alcohol I’ve been saving tonight?’
Drinking alcohol while climbing the Tower was forbidden, but there were exceptions.
When it was necessary to raise the members’ morale, a small amount of drinking was permitted if the captain approved it.
‘I was originally planning to bring it out after we climbed a bit higher, but...’
At that moment, one of the members collapsed to the ground.
Because of that, the group had no choice but to stop.
Jihwan’s face twisted.
‘Again?’
Not long ago, one of the members who had become homesick had started showing a noticeable decline in stamina.
The Tower’s mana seeped into the weakened minds of hunters.
If they steeled their hearts, they would be fine, but there were few people whose resolve did not weaken in the face of an otherworldly landscape so far away from home.
Homesickness was especially common among hunters, and because new members frequently suffered from it, it was sometimes regarded as a sort of initiation rite.
When homesickness set in, the Tower’s mana disrupted the hunter’s mind and body, causing their stamina to drop noticeably.
In the worst cases, they even hallucinated and drew weapons on their allies, so hunters always tried to keep their resolve firm.
But the member suffering from homesickness this time was a rookie, so there was only so much that could be done.
‘Do we have to give up here...’
Jihwan secretly sighed.
Hunters sometimes continued climbing if they still had enough stamina despite being homesick, but considering how the rookie had been collapsing repeatedly over the past few days, it seemed they would have to stop climbing the Tower here.
The thought that several weeks of climbing would go to waste left a bitter taste in Jihwan’s mouth.
“We’ll rest here for a while before moving on.”
The members nodded and sat down beneath the shade of the surrounding trees.
Some of them took bottled water out of their packs and gave it to the homesick rookie.
“Captain. The rookie’s condition is really not good.”
The vice-captain approached and spoke indirectly.
He was politely saying that continuing the climb would be difficult.
Jihwan remained silent.
They had harvested mana stones while hunting magical beasts on the way here, but they were still far short of their target amount.
To reach their target, they needed to climb farther up the Tower.
‘But even so, we can’t just abandon the rookie...’
Jihwan finished thinking it over and was about to announce that they would stop climbing the Tower.
“C-Captain. Look over there!”
One of the members raised his hand and pointed into the forest.
“What is it that you’re making such a fuss...”
Jihwan looked where the member was pointing and froze.
A building that should not have been there was visible between the bushes.
“A-A convenience store!”
When the member shouted, the others rushed over.
“What? There’s really a convenience store?”
“Where? Where is it?”
“I-It’s real! A-A convenience store!”
‘Tower Convenience Store - Main Branch’
The words “Convenience Store” were clearly written on the sign at the top.
Jihwan’s eyes widened.
‘Th-The rumor was true?’
“E-Everyone, we’re heading toward that building.”
At the captain’s words, the members shouldered their packs.
“I can’t believe there really is a convenience store.”
“They say bottled water is only 1g of mana stone. Do you think that’s really true?”
“I heard they sell kimbap too. Who cares if it costs 5g of mana stone? I’m buying two rolls, no, three.”
The gloomy atmosphere suddenly became lively.
In particular, judging by the light that had returned to the eyes of the homesick member, it was clear that he had recovered some of his energy.
Hope swelled in Jihwan’s chest.
‘At this rate, maybe we won’t have to stop climbing the Tower.’
Jihwan planned to resupply the members with kimbap and bottled water here.
It would cost some mana stones, but the loss from ending their Tower climb here would be greater.
As they approached the convenience store, they could see that, just as the rumors had said, the fluorescent lights were functioning properly.
‘Fluorescent lights inside the Tower, where electronic devices don’t work...’
“Welcome.”
A man politely bowed in greeting.
He was clearly the man rumored to be working at the convenience store.
Caught off guard, Jihwan bowed back.
“H-Hello.”
“Is there something you’re looking for?”
“I heard you sell kimbap and bottled water here... Is that really true?”
He asked just in case, but the answer did not differ from what he expected.
“Yes. That’s right. We sell kimbap for 5g of mana stone and bottled water for 1g.”
‘It really is true...’
Jihwan shuddered.
‘I can’t be the only one who knows about this.’
He absolutely had to report this to the guild master as his highest priority.
Jihwan even found himself wondering if they should end their Tower climb here and return to report it to the guild master.
‘It’ll disrupt the schedule somewhat... But considering how important this information is...’
“C-Captain!”
Jihwan turned at the sound of the vice-captain calling him.
“C-Can we buy some?”
The members were waiting for the captain’s order.
Every one of their eyes was gleaming, and they looked as though they wanted nothing more than to hurry up, buy kimbap and bottled water, and devour them.
‘These guys...’
“Fine. You brats. Starting now, we’ll eat lunch here before setting out again.”
At those words, the members immediately swarmed toward the kimbap and bottled water.
Jihwan watched them with satisfaction, then suddenly noticed that the homesick rookie was standing still, staring blankly toward one side.
Jihwan approached and asked,
“Hey, rookie! Why are you just standing there? Has your strength still not come back?”
“C-Captain...”
But even after Jihwan spoke to him, the rookie continued staring fixedly at the same spot.
‘What the hell is he looking at...?’
Jihwan followed the rookie’s gaze and froze.
“K-Kimchi stew?”
There, he saw a packaged instant meal of the sort that could normally only be found outside the Tower.
‘Th-The rumors definitely said they only sold kimbap and bottled water...’
Did that mean more products had been added in the meantime?
Unlike the bewildered Jihwan, the rookie picked up the kimchi stew with trembling hands and approached the checkout counter.
“I-I’d like to buy this.”
“Yes. That will be 10g of mana stone. We have spoons and disposable bowls here too. Ah! I added a table recently, so you can eat there. There’s a microwave there as well.”
After receiving a spoon along with the bowl, the rookie approached the table and opened the microwave.
Beep, beep!
Vrrrrrr!
At the sound of the microwave running, the members who had crowded around the kimbap and bottled water all turned to look.
Every one of them wore an expression of shock.
“A microwave inside the Tower...?”
“And this smell... That’s kimchi stew...?”
Beep, beep!
The microwave stopped, and the rookie took out the kimchi stew and poured it into the disposable bowl.
The rich smell of kimchi instantly spread throughout the convenience store.
Gulp, gulp!
In the quiet stillness, only the loud sounds of people swallowing could be heard.
The rookie scooped up some kimchi stew with his spoon.
Slurp.
“Ahhh.”
Even just hearing the rookie’s exclamation was enough to convey how spicy and satisfying it was.
Without a word, the rookie repeatedly brought spoonful after spoonful to his mouth.
“D-Damn it. I-I want some too!”
Unable to endure it any longer, the vice-captain grabbed a package of kimchi stew from the shelf and brought it to the checkout counter.
“E-Excuse me. I’d like to buy this too.”
“That’s fine, but... Are you sure?”
“What? What do you mean...”
The convenience store man tilted his head and said,
“I didn’t get a chance to mention it earlier, but we also have instant rice, so wouldn’t it be better to buy some together...”
“...!”
All the members’ eyes widened.
The rookie, who had been savoring the kimchi stew in particular, opened his eyes as wide as humanly possible and stared at the convenience store man.
The rookie muttered.
“...You have instant rice too?”