—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Vine
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Today was a good day for Gang-so.
He hummed as he wiped the tables, and Yoo Soon-tae, seeing this, asked,
“You seem to be in a good mood today.”
It was Lim So-young who answered,
“Today is the 10th.”
“Ah! That’s right!”
Every 10th of the month was the day the government deposited the settlement support funds for isolated persons.
And Yoo Soon-tae also received the guarantor support funds on that day.
“Payday is always a good day.”
Yoo Soon-tae asked Gang-so,
“Are you going to buy bread again with the support funds?”
“How did you know?”
At Gang-so’s question, Yoo Soon-tae grinned.
How could he not know?
Every time he received his salary or support funds, Gang-so always went to the bakery to buy bread.
Gang-so loved bread, especially roll cakes.
He still couldn’t forget the texture of the roll cake he tasted for the first time during his training at the Awakened Association.
It wasn’t quite a rice cake, nor a cookie, but that soft, melt-in-your-mouth texture was hard to describe.
It felt like eating a cloud.
Gang-so looked at the clock.
He was looking forward to 3 PM, the time the deposit would be made.
In fact, Gang-so had enough money in his account to buy not only roll cakes but any bread he wanted.
Because he rarely had a reason to use the monthly support funds and his salary from Yang Chun Gak.
But there was a reason why he went to the bakery on payday.
‘If I don’t do this, the special feeling disappears. And things that lose their special feeling no longer move me.’
For Gang-so, things that moved him were very precious. Because they made him feel that he was still human.
Gang-so felt sad that as he grew stronger, the things that moved him gradually disappeared.
3 PM that day.
Beep.
Gang-so and Yoo Soon-tae’s phones notified them of a text message almost simultaneously.
They checked their phones and smiled.
The deposit had been made!
Gang-so jumped up.
“Soon-tae, I’m going out for a bit.”
“Okay.”
Gang-so headed for the local bakery, which was a three-minute walk away.
Lee Hyuk Bakery.
Gang-so read the sign and entered the shop.
“Welcome, young man!”
Lee Hyuk, the shop owner and baker with a kind, round face and a round body, greeted him.
“Hello.”
Gang-so quickly greeted him and turned his gaze to the display case.
“…!”
His face fell instantly.
Because the special cream roll cake, which should have been in the display case, was missing.
“Is the special cream roll cake… sold out?”
At Gang-so’s trembling voice, Lee Hyuk nodded.
“It sold out about two hours ago.”
“This can’t be!”
“But I put one aside, just in case you came today.”
“I-Is that true?”
Gang-so felt as though he had gone through heaven and hell in an instant.
“Why would I joke with you about something like that?”
“Thank you so much!”
Gang-so bought the special cream roll cake and a few other breads and returned to Yang Chun Gak.
“Did you buy bread?”
Gang-so nodded at Yoo Soon-tae’s question and placed one of the two paper bags he was holding on the table.
“I bought some for you too. Share it with So-young and Ha-young.”
Yoo Soon-tae looked inside the paper bag and said,
“Why did you buy so much?”
“I just bought this and that, and it ended up like this.”
Gang-so went into his room, put the special cream roll cake in the small refrigerator, and placed the rest of the bread on the table.
‘Just looking at this fills me up!’
Gang-so decided to enjoy the visual feast a little longer.
‘Bread has a long shelf life, so it should be fine if I eat it tonight or tomorrow morning. And since I put the roll cake in the fridge, it should be fine to eat tomorrow as well.’
It was almost 4 PM.
“Ah! It’s time to pick up Ha-young!”
Gang-so went with Lim So-young to pick up Ha-young, and only Yoo Soon-tae remained in Yang Chun Gak.
“Yawn-! It’s definitely April!”
Yoo Soon-tae, yawning widely from spring fever, went into the kitchen to check on the preparations for the dinner service.
“Kkikyu?”
Just then, a small creature appeared in the Yang Chun Gak hall.
It was Kkorong, moving around freely as though he owned the place.
Kkorong twitched its nose.
“Kyu? Kkikyu?”
Kkorong’s eyes sparkled.
It smelled something delicious.
It was the scent of the delicious food that its owner would sometimes give him.
Kkorong quickly climbed onto the table and knocked over a paper bag.
Thud.
Rustle.
As the paper bag fell over, the bread inside tumbled out onto the table, and Yoo Soon-tae came out of the kitchen at the sound.
“Tsk tsk, Kkorong wanted to eat bread, huh?”
Yoo Soon-tae put the bread back into the paper bag and hung it on a nearby wall hook.
And he took out a soft castella, tore open the packaging, and placed it in front of Kkorong.
“Here, this is your share.”
“Kkikyu! Kkikyu!”
Perhaps because dungeon rats lived in a special environment called a dungeon, they loved milk, which was rich in fat, and eggs, rich in protein.
They were essential nutrients for survival, and a dungeon rat’s instincts made them love those things.
So there was no way a dungeon rat wouldn’t like bread made with milk and eggs.
Kkorong dug its head into the castella and ate it diligently.
“Kyu?”
After devouring the castella, Kkorong patted its full belly and looked around, then stopped.
Because it smelled something even sweeter, nuttier, and richer than the castella it had just eaten.
Tap tap tap-.
Kkorong ran to where the smell was coming from, and it was coming from inside the refrigerator in Gang-so’s room.
Considering it could smell the roll cake inside the completely sealed refrigerator, the sense of smell of a dungeon rat was truly amazing.
“Kkookyu…”
Kkorong’s face fell.
Kkorong knew.
That even if there was delicious food right in front of it, it couldn’t touch its owner’s things without permission.
“Kkikyu…”
In the end, Kkorong had to turn away dejectedly.
Yang Chun Gak was busy that evening as well.
Gang-so diligently made deliveries, Yoo Soon-tae tirelessly tossed the wok, and Lim So-young served customers in the hall; it was another busy evening.
Just then, a customer entered.
“Welcome! It’s been a while, Mr. Lee.”
It was Lee Hyuk, the owner of Lee Hyuk Bakery.
“Hello.”
At his and Lim So-young’s greeting, Yoo Soon-tae poked his head out from the kitchen.
“Oh! If it isn’t Hyungnim!”
The round-faced Lee Hyuk greeted them with a smile.
“I came here because I missed your jajangmyeon.”
“Don’t you get sick of flour after handling it all day?”
“Not all flour is created equal.”
“Please wait a moment!”
Lee Hyuk sat down, and soon a bowl of jajangmyeon was placed in front of him.
However, Lee Hyuk was more preoccupied with looking at someone than eating his jajangmyeon.
‘Huh? Who is that woman?’
Lim So-young’s intuition kicked in, and she made a knowing expression.
‘It’s Baek Hyun-mi, who lives in a studio apartment nearby.’
But she decided to pretend she didn’t know.
A while later, Baek Hyun-mi left with her female colleagues, and after a long while, Lee Hyuk paid and left Yang Chun Gak.
“Thanks for the meal.”
“You’re welcome. Take care.”
A while later.
“I’m back from deliveries!”
The door opened, and Gang-so entered.
“I think I saw the bakery owner leaving our shop.”
“That’s right. He had a bowl of jajangmyeon and left. But he was acting a bit strange.”
“Really?”
“I’m a bit worried.”
At his words, Lim So-young smiled and said,
“Don’t worry. It’s just spring. Hohoho.”
That night.
Gang-so, who had worked hard again today, entered his room. He grinned at the sight of the bread piled high on the table.
It was a sight that always made him feel content.
“I can’t ruin this beautiful sight by eating it all. It should be fine until tomorrow morning, should I leave it for now?”
Gang-so took a picture of it with his phone and then went to bed.
Gang-so had a dream after a long time.
It was a dream where he was happily walking around a castle made of bread.
And by his side were Yoo Soon-tae’s family and the young girl he cherished.
For some reason, Gang-so felt happier being with his loved ones than being in a castle made of bread.
“…”
He opened his eyes, and it was 5 AM.
Gang-so sat up, assumed the lotus position, and circulated his energy.
After filling his body with pure energy, he opened his eyes, feeling a little hungry.
“It’s time to eat the special cream roll cake!”
Gang-so approached the refrigerator with an excited expression and opened the door.
“Huh?”
He realized something was wrong.
“…It’s gone?”
That’s right.
The special cream roll cake he had put in the refrigerator had mysteriously disappeared.
All that remained was… the packaging.
“My bread… my special cream roll cake…!”
Gang-so collapsed on the spot.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
That morning.
Gang-so looked like a wilted weed.
Seeing him so unlike his usual lively self, Yoo Soon-tae asked,
“What’s wrong with you all of a sudden?”
“My roll cake… is gone.”
“Roll cake is gone? What are you talking about?”
“My special cream roll cake that I put in the refrigerator is gone!”
Gang-so tightened his grip on the chopsticks he was holding.
Crack-!
The dozens of chopsticks in his hand crumpled like straws.
Seeing that, Yoo Soon-tae quickly waved his hands.
“Just so you know, it wasn’t me!”
“I know. If someone came into my room and opened the refrigerator, I would have woken up immediately.”
That was true.
His senses were always sharp and showed no signs of dulling.
So even when he was asleep, he would wake up immediately if he sensed someone approaching him.
‘Who took my roll cake? Is there a thief who specifically targets roll cakes? The bread on the table is untouched, so why is it only the roll cake that’s gone? And they moved so stealthily that even I didn’t notice! Is there someone stronger than me in this world?’
“Oh my!”
Just then, Lim So-young came downstairs with wide eyes.
“What happened? Uncle Gang-so, who’s usually so calm, is getting angry enough to break chopsticks!”
“Ah!”
Gang-so looked at the horribly crumpled metal chopsticks in his hand and was startled.
“I’m sorry! I didn’t realize! I’ll fix this right away.”
Gang-so quickly started to straighten the bent chopsticks, and Yoo Soon-tae said to Lim So-young,
“Gang-so’s roll cake is gone.”
“Huh? Uncle Gang-so’s roll cake? You mean the one you bought yesterday?”
Gang-so nodded.
“Only the packaging was left in the refrigerator. I checked the energy remaining inside the package, just in case, but there was no trace of any foreign energy.”
“Really?”
Gang-so sighed.
“There’s nothing I can do. I’ll have to go buy another one later. I can’t function without eating a special cream roll cake twice a month.”
Yoo Soon-tae nodded.
“Go after the lunch rush is over.”
Just then, Kkorong scurried past. Gang-so looked at Kkorong and tilted his head.
‘Come to think of it, Kkorong came into my room last night. Could it be Kkorong?’
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
