Ara Hongryeon Guild
As the weather cooled with the end of summer approaching, the guild became increasingly hectic as year-end tasks piled up.
Han Seok-jun, the guild master, wiped away a bittersweet tear, thinking of the first and second team leaders, as well as the deputy guild master, who must have arrived at Kyu-seong’s house by now.
“I wanted to go too…” he muttered wistfully.
Yet, it was a happy complaint.
Once the year-end work was completed, there would be more time.
Even before that, he could always make time if he truly wanted to.
Kyu-seong had never refused visitors, so he could visit whenever he wished.
But for now, focusing on the present tasks was a priority.
Since Kyu-seong joined the Ara Hongryeon Guild, it had experienced explosive growth.
The guild had consistently maintained its number-one ranking in the country every month, even surpassing the renowned Terror and Iron Blood guilds.
This achievement was made possible thanks to Kyu-seong’s crops.
With all the buffs and recovery boosts they provided, it became possible to handle two dungeons in a single day—a natural result.
‘These days, all eyes are on us.’
Terror and Iron Blood had already reached some level of agreement to share Kyu-seong’s crops and coexist peacefully.
Additionally, Ara Hongryeon frequently collaborated with lower-tier guilds on joint dungeon expeditions, offering support.
Thus, domestically, there were no issues.
The real concern lay abroad.
Although Ara Hongryeon was a guild in decline, it still held symbolic significance as South Korea’s first guild and remained among the top five.
Due to its status, it had always been under constant scrutiny.
Now, with the guild rising to the top in Korea, it naturally became a hot topic.
At this point, most of the world, including the European Union and the United States, had become aware of Kyu-seong’s existence and the capabilities of his crops.
Han Seok-jun, realizing it was impossible to keep things hidden, decided to openly reveal everything.
As a result, both the Korean government and the U.S. were closely monitoring the situation.
And that wasn’t all.
It triggered a wave of mutual checks and balances from all directions, making Ara Hongryeon Guild the eye of the storm and, ironically, the safest place to be.
“Looks like the contract is about to end soon.”
It had been a year and six months.
Discussions regarding a renewal should have already been underway by now, but Han Seok-jun, not wanting to pressure Kyu-seong, had been waiting patiently.
Still, he thought he should at least mention it as a reminder.
Knock knock knock
“Guild master, it’s Lee Hae-sol.”
“Come in.”
Lee Hae-sol hurried over to Han Seok-jun, who was immersed in work, and delivered surprising news.
“A major incident has occurred in the U.S.”
“The U.S.?”
“The monsters in the Dungeon of Lust have vanished, including the boss, the White Nightmare.”
“The monsters vanished?”
What was this supposed to mean?
How could monsters in a functioning dungeon suddenly disappear?
“Was it a dungeon break?”
“I’m not sure of the details, but it’s reported that there was no break.”
“Monsters disappearing from a dungeon…”
While there had been rare instances of monsters escaping during dungeon breaks and then vanishing, this was the first time all monsters, including the boss, had suddenly disappeared from inside a dungeon.
“This information hasn’t been publicly disclosed yet.”
“Understood. I’ll look into it myself.”
The Seven Deadly Sins dungeons were immensely significant.
Such an event would inevitably cause a stir across the United States and attract global attention.
Even the strongest awakened beings on Earth—those ranked at level 9—had never dared to challenge the Seven Deadly Sins dungeons.
‘If they escaped outside the dungeon, it would be a major disaster.’
Contrary to Han Seok-jun’s grave thoughts, the White Nightmare, which was supposed to cause global turmoil, was calmly cooking.
***
“Ashu is happy!”
Ashu leisurely served guests and enjoyed a peaceful time.
Since most of the guests had experienced dungeon life before, there was no need for strict schedules or plans—everyone did as they pleased.
“Look at this, isn’t it pretty?”
Hanul strolled around the village with his mother, taking in the sights.
Young-seong went fishing with my father.
Seon-ah, Jung So-yeon, and Si-young played with the children.
“I should go greet Frey.”
“I’ll come with you, So-yeon.”
“Me too! Let’s go together!”
Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.
“Great, great. No worries about the guests!”
While everyone was relaxing, I was working in the fields.
Hanul brought his mother over as I toiled away.
“This is the field.”
“Nice.”
Since the day we set the appointment, she had been taking the remedy right away.
Within just a few days, she was already showing signs of improvement.
“Young man, isn’t it tough for you?”
“I’m an awakened one too, ma’am. This is nothing for me.”
“Oh my, you’re impressive.”
She gave me a thumbs-up.
Unfortunately, she didn’t remember my previous visit, but she did remember Ara, probably because Ara had left a strong impression.
“Our mother used to farm too. At first, she started with a small vegetable garden, but over time, it kept getting bigger and bigger. Haha!”
Since she started going to the nursing home, she hadn’t been able to farm anymore.
However, with her recovery progressing little by little, perhaps she could return to farming someday.
“You should do it like this.”
With her guidance, we worked in the field together.
Thanks to her, I learned a few new things, and we wrapped up the work pleasantly.
“But young man, do you only work the fields?”
“I have rice paddies too. Would you like to take a look? Actually, how about a tour around the whole place?”
“Sure. By the way, what are those little creatures running around so eagerly?”
She smiled warmly, watching the slimes bustling about.
Their tiny, busy forms were undeniably cute.
I took Hanul and the elderly woman around to see the fields and rice paddies.
Along the way, we picked crops on the spot and checked out the jars where we stored our fermented sauces.
“Everything looks perfect.”
She gave another thumbs-up.
After tasting the gochujang and doenjang, she was full of praise and mentioned feeling a bit peckish.
“Are you hungry? Would you like to grab something to eat?”
“Sure.”
I wondered what kind of food she would prefer.
Almost any dish was possible to prepare.
Recently, Jae-seong had been teaching the rabbits how to cook.
Until the restaurant was fully built, it seemed like he would continue giving them cooking lessons every day.
Among the rabbits, Ashu had shown an extraordinary passion for learning how to cook, so they had mastered most of the recipes by now.
“Hello, everyone.”
Beep!
The rabbits in the kitchen waved cheerfully. Their adorable reaction surprised Hanul.
“What are these cute little things?”
“They’re new members of our village. They handle the cooking here.”
Come to think of it, I hadn’t introduced the newcomers to today’s visitors yet. I’d better do it properly when everyone gathered to eat later.
How surprised would they be to hear that a 24-hour rabbit-run restaurant had opened?
“Rabbits? Rabbits can cook?”
“They’re excellent chefs.”
“Oh my.”
The elderly woman seemed slightly uncomfortable. Since she had already been wide-eyed in amazement ever since entering the dungeon, I wondered how she would react when she met the other creatures here.
Beep
A rabbit approached and naturally handed over a menu.
For visitors who couldn’t communicate with the rabbits, we had prepared menus where they could simply check off their choices, and the rabbits would prepare the meals accordingly.
Beep
“Come here, oh my, how fluffy you are.”
A rabbit from the Breeding Tribe was scooped up by the elderly woman, who held it like a neighborhood puppy.
The rabbit looked up at me with wide, bewildered eyes, as if asking what was going on.
I pretended not to notice and chose from the menu.
“If there’s something not listed on the menu that you’d like, please let me know. I’ll relay it to the kitchen.”
“I’ll have doenjang jjigae, as expected! Haha!”
The elderly woman chose doenjang jjigae as well. Since both of them ordered it, I decided to go with it too.
“Three servings of doenjang jjigae, please. Make it generous—or better yet, prepare enough for six people.”
Beep!
The rabbit saluted, acknowledging the order, and headed back to the kitchen.
The elderly woman couldn’t take her eyes off the rabbit. She seemed utterly charmed by its actions.
“Would you like to see how they cook?”
“Is that okay?”
“Of course.”
After a moment’s hesitation, she got up and followed me.
As we headed to the kitchen, we saw the rabbits busily moving around.
It wasn’t just us—there were other customers too.
Three Kkumuris and five slimes were sitting together, waiting for their meals, looking adorably huddled together.
“Kkumuris!”
“Hello. What did you order?”
Glug glug
“Stir-fried vegetables? That’s tasty.”
Some had ordered scorched rice, others spaghetti. Seeing the variety of dishes they’d chosen made me smile.
In the open kitchen, the cooking proceeded with dazzling fire displays, and the way the chefs skillfully handled the cooking tools captivated Hanul and the elderly woman, leaving them speechless.
“They’re really cooking?”
“And not just cooking—they’re doing it exceptionally well.”
At Hanul’s astonished comment, I proudly added my own.
Soon, the food ordered by the earlier guests was served, and shortly after, our doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew) arrived as well.
It only took 10 minutes.
“Mmm, the smell is amazing!”
Hanul was already gulping in anticipation, but he wasn’t the only one.
Gulp.
The rich, savory scent of the doenjang jjigae, combined with its spicy aroma, seemed to numb my senses.
“Let’s eat.”
“Let’s dig in! Haha!”
I started by taking a spoonful of the broth.
Slurp.
“Mmm.”
The taste didn’t disappoint—in fact, it exceeded expectations.
After savoring the incredible flavor of the stew, I found myself craving rice.
Scooping up a generous portion of steaming rice, I blew on it gently before placing it in my mouth.
The lingering taste and aroma of the doenjang jjigae mingled with the steaming rice, creating a delightful harmony.
I slowly chewed, savoring each grain of rice.
“Mmm…”
The rice was perfectly cooked.
Could this be the work of the Breeding Tribe too?
As I chewed, I scooped another spoonful of the broth.
Slurp.
Ah, this was it.
After repeating this cycle a few more times, my bowl was soon empty.
“One more bowl!”
“One more bowl!”
Hanul and I simultaneously called out, grinning at each other as we refilled our rice bowls.
One bowl, then two…
By the time we reached five bowls, we were full.
“Ugh…”
Maybe I ate too much.
But how could I resist when it was so delicious?
White rice and doenjang jjigae—an unbeatable combination.
“One more bowl!”
Meanwhile, Hanul, with his large build, was still eating.
“Still eating, huh?”
Just then, Young-seong returned with my father.
“You’re back?”
“What’s with these rabbits?”
“They’re chefs. Our newest recruits.”
“You really have a knack for recruiting unusual creatures. Where on earth do you find rabbits that can cook?”
“Did you finish fishing?”
“No, we just came for a quick bite. We’re planning to head back and continue fishing. Where are Si-young and So-yeon?”
“They seemed to have gone toward the fairy village. They mentioned they’d visit Sky Island later. How about joining them then?”
“Is there a place to fish on Sky Island?”
“I think there might be? I’ll ask Father.”
It was nice to see everyone enjoying themselves.
Now that I was full, it was time to check on the kids.
When I opened the minimap, I saw Ara was still marked in the fairy village.
She mentioned taking Gomgom to harvest some mushrooms, and it was about time to gather the World Tree mushrooms.
As I got up to head toward Ara’s location, Young-seong tilted his head.
“Rabbits? Rabbits…”
“Why?”
“Well, just before leaving the guild today, I vaguely overheard some news.”
“News?”
“Yeah. You know about the Dungeon of Lust in the U.S., right? Apparently, all the monsters there suddenly disappeared. I didn’t hear the full details, so I’m not sure, but I remember the monsters in that dungeon were rabbit-like creatures.”
“I-I see…”
…Well, I had expected this would get discovered sooner or later.
In fact, it was surprising that it had taken this long to be noticed.
Still, I never thought there would be any connection to our little ones.
Think about it—who would even consider abducting one of the Seven Deadly Sins bosses and bringing it to their home?
It was absurd.
Yet Young-seong’s reaction made me flinch slightly.
“Call me when you head to Sky Island. I’ll be fishing by the sea.”
“Understood!”
Young-seong, still intrigued by the Breeding Tribe, accepted a menu from them without hesitation.
I hope we won’t get caught…
Cliche Novel 