Chapter 35
……What is she talking about?
Bashing the “Ranger Club” for bullying her club?
“I don’t quite understand, but…….Can I ask you to elaborate on what you’re asking me to do, first by telling me what happened to you, and then how you want me to deal with them?”
“Oops……I left out the details, sorry!”
Isheri quickly realized her mistake and bowed her head in apology.
She took a breath and slowly began to explain the relationship between her club and the other club.
Clubs at the Academy are often closely related.
Just as importing foreign goods requires the power of the International Trade Club, so too do they rely on each other for their own needs.
“Our recipe development club is not a combat club, but rather a club whose main purpose is to create recipes for healthy food, using disciplines such as alchemy, manufacturing, and herbalism.”
The Ranger Club, however, was different.
They go by the name “Ranger.” Being a ranger in a dungeon is an essential position to navigate, and for them, the title of “ranger” is a point of pride.
“The Ranger Club is mainly made up of students who are skilled in hunting, exploration, or using ranged weapons, so we used to ask them to gather food whenever they went out to train or explore.”
And that’s where the incident seemed to begin.
“Then, one day, the Ranger Club started demanding more and more from us, first asking for buffed food with a commission fee because the cost of ingredients had gone up, and then they started demanding all sorts of ridiculous things.”
At first, the recipe development club gave in to their demands.
But then they started demanding more buffs, more dishes, and eventually, when they refused to make the food, they stopped delivering the ingredients.
They kept coming back, threatening to stop the other clubs from doing the work.
They had infiltrated the group once they realized that the food they were getting from the recipe development club was anything but ordinary, as they felt their physical abilities temporarily increase with every bite.
“And, eventually, they crossed the line, because they stole the recipe for the Golden Walnut Pie.”
‘Golden Walnut Pie’.
The recipe development club members said it was the best pie they’d ever made after months of hard work and experimentation.
“It was the recipe I was going to submit for my sophomore performance test, and I was confident that it was the best recipe I’d ever made because I’d put all my energy, all my skills, all my energy into it, but……”
The members of the ‘Ranger Club’ visited the recipe development club’s office to deliver the goods as usual.
They had read about the recipe’s effects among the children, who had collapsed from exhaustion from continued research, and had copied it.
“Permanent physical enhancement. That was the effect of the ‘Golden Walnut Pie’ that my [Skill: Creative Cooking] discovered.”
The other children’s eyes widen as they listen to Isheri’s story.
Permanent physical enhancement was the kind of effect that could only be found in elixirs.
“So, you’re saying that you, the president of the Recipe Development Club, have created a recipe for a dish that’s like an elixir?”
Isheri nodded in response to Se-ah, who stuttered to show how flustered she was.
“Yes, but I’m not that stupid! I always leave out a couple ingredients in my recipes, and only I know what they are.”
That’s why the Ranger Club had been pressuring them for so long, to ask her why they were failing, even when they followed the recipe with the expensive golden walnuts and to figure out the last missing ingredient and get their hands on the elixir-like recipe for Golden Walnut Pie.
“What a bunch of assholes, huh?”
Jin-woo grumbles after hearing Isheri’s story and she nods vigorously in agreement.
“That’s right, they’re trying to tell us some bullshit about being stronger so they can bring us better materials…….If they’re so worried about us, why would they threaten an all-out war and force us to cook for them?”
It was clear that she had been tearing up as she spoke, and she continued with an exasperated look on her face.
“The golden walnut pie is my life’s work and I can’t believe they threatened me like that.”
Golden walnuts were a very rare ingredient in the dungeon, and she had only been able to obtain them by begging.
She only had enough to make one batch.
“Even now, they’re doing all sorts of cowardly things to us……like stealing our cooking ingredients and secretly destroying our club’s items.”
Her voice starts to tighten as she says this.
“We just wanted to cook for fun…… I don’t know why we deserve to be treated like this just because we made a great dish…….Please……help our club.”
Slowly, tears welled up in her eyes. Soon, she grabbed my hand and began to plead.
“With our club’s abilities, we can only ask the bronze club, ‘Familia’, to help us……I will try my best to make up for your help, so please……!”
Isheri grasped my left hand with her eyes full of desperation while I naturally wrapped my right hand around hers and held on.
“I’ll accept.”
“Really……?”
Isheri looked up at me with tears in her eyes as she realized that I had answered so clearly.
I couldn’t believe this teary-eyed person will become a [cooking master] in the future.
[Cooking Master] was a name that everyone who played City of Seoul knew.
There were five individuals who were granted the title of ‘Master’ not through combat, but through crafting.
[Alchemist Master] [Blacksmith Master] [Farming Master] [Enchantment Master] and [Cooking Master].
The one and only who could create food that gave permanent buffs from every ingredient in the world.
Whenever you reach the mid-to-late stages of CS, she always rises to the position of Cooking Master.
The fact that she was now asking me for a favor could only be considered a stroke of luck.
“Have there been any instances where they’ve been violent toward any of the members?”
“……No, not yet.”
She nods as she slowly explains what’s happened so far.
“I guess what you’re most worried about is the whole ‘all-out war’ thing, but usually all-out war between support and clubs and combat and clubs don’t pass the student council’s scrutiny, do they?”
“Well, I’m sure they will try to pressure us somehow, even if it’s just by sending in freshmen, because if they say they’re only going to involve freshmen, they can get it passed by the student council.”
In other words, we would have no choice but to step up.
“Okay, I understand the situation, so the deadline is……this week.”
“Uhhh……is it that easy?”
If it were up to me, I could honestly bring them to their knees in five hours. But what we’re doing now is a club.
If I continued to do it on my own, it wouldn’t be useful as a club and the kids wouldn’t have a chance to grow.
That’s why I set a minimum deadline for this week.
I was confident that this week would be enough time to get them ready to compete against the Ranger Club and win.
“You can count on me.”
I smiled brightly and offered her my hand, and she grasped it, smiling.
“See, the boss has a plan, right?”
Jin-woo watches on, unaware that the plan is him, but…….Well, a good thing is a good thing and things are going very, very well.
* * *
After sending Isheri off, the kids gathered in the president’s office for a meeting to discuss the situation, and their faces were very determined.
“Boss, those bastards need to have their asses kicked.”
“I agree. Those who act like they’re always in the right need to be beaten to wake up, don’t they?”
“That’s what I think, too. With the ability to concoct elixirs, the growth potential of Isheri is beyond imagination.”
……She seemed overly determined.
Regardless, I hoped it was a good sign.
“I’m of the same opinion as you. So……I’ll assign each of you a task to accomplish this request. First, Young-jae.”
“Yes.”
He nodded as his name was called.
“Beginning tomorrow, you will attend the briefing and experience at the Ranger Circle to learn more. Mages who use the four attributes are very rare, so I’m sure they’ll welcome you.”
“What if they find out I’m from Familia?”
“We haven’t even started clubs yet, so I doubt they’ll recognize you.”
“Then it’s a no-brainer.”
I look at Young-jae, who nods, and then at Jin-woo.
“Jin-woo.”
“Yeah.”
“You’re to visit the ‘Recipe Development Club’ frequently until the situation is sorted out, so that you can serve as their escort. If something dangerous happens, you can stall for time.”
“Boss, why are you making me do this? I don’t go around getting beat up.”
He seemed confident, though.
“Okay, I don’t mind if you hit first if it is for a commission…….”
“Se-ah!”
“You’re to research what the ‘Ranger Club’ looks like from the outside, what rumors they’re spreading, and report back. Also, you and Jin-woo will train with me from now on, from three in the afternoon until five when the club ends.”
Before I can finish, Jin-woo squirms.
“Now, wait a minute, boss, we’re training during club hours?”
“You’re going to be doing a lot of this in the future, so you might as well get stronger.”
That’s why I’ve recruited you, because you have the potential to grow.
Of course, I didn’t plan on just throwing out assignments like that.
“If this goes well, I’ll give you two million credits as a performance bonus. Does that motivate you a bit?”
In response, the two people, who had been wearing complicated expressions just a moment ago, instantly changed their faces.
“Mr. Eugene, just leave it to us!”
“Two million…….I’ve always wanted to train!”
“……”
“Then I’ll go.”
