How to Win Over an S-Rank Hunter with Bungeoppang – Chapter 49

Author: Cireng

The next day.

When I casually brought up the subject of opening a second branch at the shop, Ari tilted her head.

“A second branch? It sounds nice, but isn’t it a little early?”

“Hmm, is it?”

Come to think of it, our shop had only been open for about three months. Opening a second location already seemed a bit hasty.

“I don’t know. I think differently.”

Gong Juwon, who had been listening to our conversation from the side, naturally joined in.

‘…Isn’t this guy a division manager? Doesn’t he have to go to work?’

He was even cleaning the dining area as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

No, seriously, what kind of person is he?

While I stared at him in disbelief, Ari’s eyes lit up.

“Huh? Really? What do you think, Oppa Juwon?”

He answered with a serious expression.

“This shop already has clear demand. It’s not just people from the Hunter Management Bureau anymore. Customers are coming from other regions now as well.”

“That’s true.”

I nodded with interest.

Holding up his index finger, Juwon spoke firmly.

“As the number of customers increases, it’s becoming harder and harder for me to make reservations. If there’s a second branch, it’ll definitely become easier.”

What the heck?

So he wanted a second branch not for the shop’s sake, but because it would make booking food easier for himself?

When I looked at him with a baffled expression, he shrugged playfully.

“I’m joking.”

“Although I’m 99% serious.”

“What kind of joke is that?! So do you think it’s a good idea or not?”

“I think it’ll be fine. As I said, there’s already enough demand. The customers would probably like it too.”

A customer sitting near the counter happened to make eye contact with me and nodded vigorously.

Come to think of it, he had said he’d taken vacation time and come all the way from Incheon.

Apparently, he was desperately hoping for a branch in Incheon.

Smiling, I nodded.

“Then maybe it would be best to open a branch somewhere with the most hunters after Seoul.”

“Or you could open a second branch near the current store.”

“Oh, that’s an option too.”

If we opened nearby, the fierce reservation competition would probably ease up a bit.

It would also be easier for me to manage.

“Boss, I really think Incheon–”

“No, if the goal is making reservations easier, then somewhere around here–”

Everyone had different opinions.

I fell into thought, wondering where the best place for a second branch would be.

That was when…

Ding.

“Um… is this the ‘Haneul’s’ bungeoppang shop?”

A middle-aged man carefully opened the door and peeked inside.

Before I could even answer, a little girl who looked about seven years old popped her head out from his arms.

“Wow! It smells delicious!”

“Jiyul! Stay with Daddy!”

The girl ran inside, her pigtails bouncing as she excitedly looked around the shop.

“Daddy, I want tteokbokki! No, wait, fish cake! No… bungeoppang!”

“Daddy will buy you everything. Pick whatever you want to eat.”

The man wiped his fogged-up glasses from the temperature difference and smiled warmly.

His young daughter was clearly adorable in his eyes.

But as I watched them choosing menu items after entering the shop, a sense of dread suddenly washed over me.

Ari seemed to feel the same thing and whispered in my ear.

“Unni, what do we do? I don’t think they know our shop runs on reservations.”

“…Yeah. Let’s just hope they made one.”

The little girl wandered around the shop happily chatting about all the food she wanted.

Internally, I desperately hoped this lovable father-daughter pair had made reservations in advance.

But bad feelings were rarely wrong.

“Excuse me. Do we order here? We’d like to eat together.”

The man smiled politely and took out a card in front of the counter.

Ari gave an awkward smile and pointed to the sign on the wall.

[Our shop operates on a 100% reservation-only basis.]

“A reservation?”

Beads of sweat immediately formed on his forehead.

He hurriedly took out a handkerchief and lowered his voice.

“Is there really no way to eat here without a reservation? We came from very far away.”

“…I’m truly sorry. It’s our shop policy.”

I wanted to make an exception.

But the queue of customers with reservations was already packed.

Up until now, we had turned away everyone who arrived without reservations.

I couldn’t bring myself to say it was okay this time.

‘I shouldn’t have given all the extra stock to Hunter Lee Hyunwoo yesterday. Then I’d at least have some bungeoppang left in my inventory…’

“Daddy, why? What’s wrong?”

The little girl, completely unaware of the situation, clung to her father’s leg and tilted her head.

The father hesitated, unsure how to explain.

“Jiyul, you see…”

“Do we have to wait? I’m really good at waiting!”

The girl climbed onto a chair at the back with considerable effort.

Swinging her short legs, she looked at me with bright eyes.

“Look, Daddy? Jiyul waits really nicely!”

Seeing her sparkling eyes, I couldn’t bring myself to tell her we couldn’t take her order.

“I should’ve saved some of the bungeoppang I gave to Juhee.”

Even Juwon sounded regretful.

Earlier that morning, Juhee had stopped by and picked up the bungeoppang he’d reserved.

Just as we were exchanging glances and trying to think of a solution…

“Why? What’s going on?”

Hunter Kang Min walked in through the door and looked around at the strange atmosphere.

Ari immediately brightened and grabbed his arm.

“Huh? Wait! What? What is it?”

She dragged him into a corner and quickly explained everything with animated gestures.

After seeing Jiyul sitting quietly in her chair, he grinned and nodded.

Then he approached her.

“Hi, Jiyul. I’m Kang Min. Nice to meet you.”

“Huh? Cotton-candy-hair mister! I saw you on TV! Hello!”

Jiyul smiled brightly without a hint of fear toward the unfamiliar hunter.

“I heard Jiyul is really well-behaved and listens to her parents. So I wanted to buy her something delicious today. Would that be okay?”

“Really?”

“Of course.”

Jiyul immediately turned toward her father with a huge smile.

When he nodded, she jumped off her chair and bounced up and down.

“Wow! Then I don’t have to wait anymore? Yay!”

“Jiyul, what do we say in situations like this?”

“Thank you very much!!”

She bowed so deeply her head nearly touched the floor.

Thankfully, Hunter Kang Min had reserved a wide variety of menu items.

As a result, Jiyul was able to try everything she wanted.

“Um, if it’s okay, you can have some of my bungeoppang too. It’s red bean flavored.”

“I think I ordered too much fish cake. Would you like some?”

The customers who overheard the situation started offering food one after another.

By the time the father and daughter sat down, their tray was already piled high with food.

“Haha, Hunter Kang Min, you should join us too.”

“Huh? Really? Because I definitely won’t refuse!”

Kang Min laughed playfully and sat down.

Since they were seated near the counter, I could hear the conversation without even trying.

“You said you came from far away, right? From where?”

“Busan. My daughter has wanted to visit here for months. I finally managed to get some vacation time and bring her, but I had no idea it was reservation-only.”

The man wiped away sweat as he said things could have gone very badly if not for Hunter Kang Min.

Across from him, Jiyul held a bungeoppang with both hands and took a huge bite.

“Wow! It’s so sweet and really, really delicious!”

Her chubby cheeks, still carrying traces of baby fat, puffed up happily.

Relief appeared on her father’s face as he watched her eat so well.

“Jiyul is actually the only awakened person in our family. So seeing her this happy makes me so glad…”

His voice caught with emotion, and he quickly dabbed at the corners of his eyes with a handkerchief.

Seeing that made my heart ache too.

Beside me, Ari was already making little sniffly sounds, her eyes shining.

“Unni, let’s open the second branch in Busan. Please? Pretty please?”

For Ari, who had been skeptical about the second branch, to say that…

I laughed and nodded.