*Ding dong!*
At the sound of the doorbell, Kim Hyun-mi, who was cooking with Jae-seong, ran to the intercom.
“Yes? Who is it?”
“Hello, we’re from the Yangju Police Station. Is this the residence of Lee Kyu-seong?”
“The police?”
Surprised by the sudden visit, Kim Hyun-mi was flustered. Jae-seong got up and opened the door.
“Hello.”
“Yes. My brother is Lee Kyu-seong. What’s this about?”
“Oh! We’re here regarding an award and a reward. Have you heard anything about this from him?”
“A commendation?”
Jae-seong, looking confused as if hearing it for the first time, glanced at his mother. Kim Hyun-mi also tilted her head, indicating this was news to her.
“What did my son do?”
“…So, you haven’t heard anything about it?”
The visiting policeman seemed even more perplexed.
“Please come inside.”
As Kim Hyun-mi gestured, the police officer entered. Following her lead, he sat at the living room table.
“You might be surprised if you haven’t heard about it from your son.”
“He didn’t commit a crime, did he?”
“Oh no, don’t worry. Quite the opposite. He did something remarkable, which is why I’m here.”
The policeman took out his phone and showed them the screen.
“Do you see this? This is what your son did.”
“Huh?”
Kim Hyun-mi and Jae-seong leaned in close to the screen. It displayed an internet article.
**- Dungeon Break in Downtown Seoul! Heroic Actions of a Level 1 Awakened?**
Scrolling down, the article mentioned Kyu-seong’s name and how he prevented a sudden disaster. However, due to lack of information, the article ended with several questions.
**- How did a mere Level 1 Awakened stop a fourth class monster?**
└ It wasn’t just a fourth class, but a herd of horned beasts. Only a fifth class Awakened could handle that.
└ Wow, isn’t that even more impressive?
– Another Awakened guild doing PR? Which guild is he from?
└ Didn’t you read? The article says he’s unaffiliated. If it was PR, the guild would be making a huge fuss.**
After skimming the comments, Jae-seong looked up. His eyes met the police officer’s, who was observing his reaction.
“There are many stories we want to hear.”
“…What stories?”
“For instance, is he really unaffiliated? And is he truly a Level 1 Awakened? We’ve tried contacting him but couldn’t reach him. Do you know where he is?”
“Well, I don’t really know what my brother has been up to these days.”
Half-lying, Jae-seong genuinely had nothing to say. He knew Kyu-seong’s abilities, but so did the police. Upon registering as an Awakened, one’s abilities and names are documented, making it impossible not to know.
“According to eyewitnesses, Kyu-seong shot something like a beam from his hands…”
“I wouldn’t know.”
*Ding dong!*
The doorbell rang again.
Feeling there were too many visitors, Kim Hyun-mi got up to check.
“Hello. We’re from the Awakened Guild, Ara Hongryeon. Is this Lee Kyu-seong’s house?”
“Yes, it is. Just a moment.”
As Kim Hyun-mi opened the door, the police officer frowned upon hearing the name Ara Hongryeon. The government recruits Awakened individuals, but most join private guilds. The government was eager to recruit Awakened individuals.
“Hello.”
“Oh my, a pretty young lady! I think I’ve seen you on TV…”
“Thank you for the compliment. I’m Jeong So-yeon, the leader of Team 1 at Ara Hongryeon Guild.”
“I’m Lee Hae-sol, deputy leader of Team 2.”
The unassuming Lee Hae-sol appeared from behind Jeong So-yeon and greeted them.
“Hello. What brings you to our house?”
“We have a contract for Mr. Kyu-seong. Is he home by any chance?”
“A contract? Oh, Kyu-seong isn’t home right now…”
At that moment, Lee Hae-sol noticed the police officer sitting in the living room. His narrowed eyes scrutinized the officer.
‘Ugh, Jeong So-yeon and Lee Hae-sol?’
The police officer felt the situation had worsened. His superiors had instructed him to recruit Kyu-seong if possible, but this competition was unbeatable.
‘So the rumors about Ara Hongryeon being connected were true.’
The fact that both the leader of Team 1 and the deputy leader of Team 2 had come in person showed that something unprecedented was happening right before his eyes.
“We have guests already.”
Lee Hae-sol, who had been observing the situation, struck first.
“Oh, they just arrived as well. The police officer said he’s here about a commendation and a reward.”
Kim Hyun-mi spoke with a delighted expression. Not fully aware of Ara Hongryeon’s prestige, the idea of a police officer personally coming to their home to deliver a commendation was more impressive to her.
“Which department are you from?”
“An Awakened Guild member seems very interested in a public official.”
“He could be a scammer.”
Lee Hae-sol spoke leisurely, his eyes gleaming.
Under the piercing gaze that seemed to scrutinize everything, the police officer cleared his throat and took out his ID.
“I’m Sergeant Park Hyun-woo from Gangnam District Office.”
“Gangnam District Office?”
Since he initially claimed to be from the Yangju Police Station, Kim Hyun-mi tilted her head in confusion. Realizing his mistake, Park Hyun-woo hurriedly continued.
“I stopped by the Yangju Police Station on my way here.”
“…”
The awkward excuse made the atmosphere tense. Sensing this, Lee Hae-sol, like a snake finding its prey, sharply interjected.
“Ah, Sergeant Park Hyun-woo… Or rather, isn’t it Lieutenant Park Hyun-woo?”
“?!”
Park Hyun-woo looked at Lee Hae-sol in surprise.
“It’s not like you could confuse your rank… Lieutenant is higher and better, isn’t it? Why lower yourself?”
“Huh?!”
Park Hyun-woo was startled. He never imagined that Lee Hae-sol would know who he was. It’s not normal for an average person to know personal information about police officers.
“Ahem!”
Awkwardly coughing, Park Hyun-woo subtly rose from his seat. He then bowed to Kim Hyun-mi and Lee Jae-seong.
“Uh, I must leave now. I’ll personally deliver the commendation and reward to Lee Kyu-seong. When he returns, please have him contact the Yangju Police Station.”
Park Hyun-woo quickly spewed out the words and left in a hurry.
Seeing his suspicious and awkward departure, Kim Hyun-mi muttered.
“Was he really a scammer?”
“No, Mother. He was a real police officer.”
Lee Hae-sol said with a cold smile.
Kim Hyun-mi, even more confused by the response, tilted her head.
“Then why did he…?”
“Mr. Kyu-seong’s stock is very high right now. But since there’s no confirmed information, they came to test the waters. If they had solid information, the police chief would have come personally.”
Jeong So-yeon interjected.
However, Kim Hyun-mi couldn’t understand the words of the two Ara Hongryeon guild members.
“My son?”
“Yes! It may seem quiet, but there’s a fierce information war happening behind the scenes, all thanks to Mr. Kyu-seong.”
“Team Leader.”
Lee Hae-sol quietly called Jeong So-yeon, indicating she had gone too far. Realizing she got too excited about the topic related to Kyu-seong, Jeong So-yeon awkwardly smiled it off.
“Are you saying my brother is receiving recruitment offers from everywhere?”
“Very soon. For now, they’re just watching each other, but they’ll start making moves soon, like the police officer who just came.”
“What exactly happened…?”
Lee Jae-seong, who wasn’t very interested in Awakened matters, and Kim Hyun-mi, who knew little, were puzzled.
They didn’t understand the significance of Kyu-seong stopping a dungeon break.
“Thanks to Mr. Kyu-seong’s efforts in the dungeon break, hundreds of lives were saved. Among them were people I consider like siblings.”
“Hundreds of people?!”
“In simple terms, he prevented a natural disaster.”
Realizing the gravity of the situation, Kim Hyun-mi couldn’t continue and covered her mouth with her hand.
“We’ll leave the contract here. It was nice meeting Mr. Kyu-seong’s family.”
“A contract…?”
“It’s a contract to join Ara Hongryeon. Even for us, it’s not easy to recruit Mr. Kyu-seong. We’ll leave the contract for now, and it’s up to him whether to sign it or not.”
Jeong So-yeon spoke with a bitter smile, leaving Jae-seong speechless. Even someone unfamiliar with Awakened matters like him knew about the mighty Ara Hongryeon Guild, indicating that Kyu-seong was considering his options.
“Are you saying my brother is contemplating joining Ara Hongryeon?”
“Not exactly that he’s considering it…”
Jeong So-yeon gave an ambiguous smile, sensing the negative connotation. The more she reacted this way, the more bewildered Jae-seong became.
‘Wasn’t he just farming? What did he do to attract so much attention from these people…?’
Thinking that far, Jae-seong suddenly recalled the extraordinary ingredients Kyu-seong had brought home…
As if on cue, Kim Hyun-mi also had a similar thought.
“Have you all eaten?”
“Excuse me? Oh, we haven’t yet, but that’s alright.”
“No, it’s just that we’re experimenting with some cooking right now, and we have some leftover food.”
“Cooking experiments?”
Jeong So-yeon immediately thought of Kyu-seong’s produce, while Lee Hae-sol tried to hide his discomfort, suspecting they were just looking to offload surplus food.
“Well, can we try it?”
“Team Leader?”
Lee Hae-sol called out to Jeong So-yeon with eyes full of confusion. However, Jeong So-yeon’s spirit seemed long gone.
“Haha. This is perfect. We felt it would be a shame to eat it all by ourselves. Good food should be shared.”
“By any chance, are these the ingredients that Mr. Kyu-seong brought?”
“Oh my! You knew? Yes, we’re experimenting with the carrots, potatoes, and sweet potatoes Kyu-seong brought recently.”
“Please let us try them!”
Lee Hae-sol felt that the team leader had finally lost her mind. Here they were, supposed to be recruiting a valuable asset, yet they were eating a meal without even meeting the person.
In the end, Lee Hae-sol pressed down on Jeong So-yeon’s shoulder and called out to her.
“Team Leader?”
“Oh! Deputy Team Leader Lee, you should try it too. You’ll be surprised.”
“Haha, it feels awkward to say it myself, but I’m confident in the taste. Please, have a taste before you go.”
Glaring at the oblivious Jeong So-yeon, Lee Hae-sol gave up. Seeing the look in Jeong So-yeon’s eyes, it was clear her mind was elsewhere.
“Please, don’t feel burdened.”
As Jae-seong joined in, Lee Hae-sol secretly sighed and bowed his head.
“Thank you for the meal.”
Lee Hae-sol, who never expected the work-focused Jeong So-yeon to act so spontaneously, resolved to have a word with her once they returned. He then sat at the table.
And then…
“Whoa…!”
For the first time in his life, he tasted heaven.
* * *
“Whew! Finally back.”
After a long expedition to the Dungeon of Gluttony, I finally returned. Although the journey took longer than expected, my body was fine, but my mind…
“I got some real healing done.”
My mind was much clearer. In fact, I wished I could have stayed longer. But reality wasn’t so forgiving. There were pending tasks and things I had to handle personally, so I enjoyed myself moderately before coming back.
‘On the way back, I discovered a hot spring and a lake.’
This made the return journey longer. I never imagined a hot spring would exist in a dungeon. Unfortunately, due to time constraints, I could only briefly check the hot spring’s water before leaving. Next time, I might head straight to the hot spring as soon as I enter the dungeon.
I checked on Ara, who was sleeping on my back, and then headed to the field.
“Guys, we’re back.”
The slimes, busy with their work, sluggishly approached me upon hearing my voice. Smiling at them, I introduced the newcomers.
“Here are the Rookies.”
I spent a total of five days in the dungeon. During those five days, I created four slimes, leaving two at the fairy village and bringing the other two with me. The slimes warmly welcomed the new members.
“So, how have things been?”
Having left home for five days, I wondered what changes might have occurred. The Rookies seemed eager to inform me of something.
“Oh? Could it be?”
With Ara still on my back, I ran to the storage room and saw the piles of green and purple. The long-awaited new crops.
Eggplants and cucumbers.
Cliche Novel 