Dungeon Bakery – Chapter 45

Author: isuzuuy

“……?”

What was he waiting for?

Baek Seol was momentarily confused, unable to figure out his intentions. She rolled her eyes around and casually asked,

“What kind of part-time job was it?”

Was he waiting for her to ask that?

Seo Doha slightly parted his lips, then closed them again. He looked almost disappointed. Apparently, that wasn’t the question he had been waiting for.

After a brief silence, he said,

“A long time ago, I used to go see a girl.”

“……A girl?”

Seo Doha nodded.

Had he taken care of a little girl for a while or something?

His next words proved that guess wrong.

“Cataclysm Year 12.”

“Yes?”

“It was Cataclysm Year 12. Back then.”

Then that was 15 years ago……

That was a really long time ago.

She would have been around ten at the time, and Seo Doha would have been eleven. So he wouldn’t have been old enough to take care of a girl.

“You had a part-time job when you were really young?”

“I guess I did. I don’t think I thought of it as a part-time job back then. But looking back on it now, I suppose it was.”

“In what way?”

At her question, Seo Doha went, “Hmm,” and tapped his index finger lightly against the table. He seemed to be thinking carefully.

His answer came quickly.

“Every time I went to see that girl, she gave me something.”

His voice sounded faintly distant, as if he were wandering through memories from 15 years ago.

“Some days, it was a snack. Some days, a flower petal. Some days, a pretty stone.”

“…….”

Baek Seol had unintentionally found herself listening to Seo Doha talk about his past. She had no idea how a conversation about part-time jobs had somehow led all the way to his childhood.

Out of courtesy, Baek Seol asked,

“Why did she give you those things?”

It was a casual question, but the answer she received was far too deep.

“It was payment for not giving up on life. You could say it was my part-time job wages.”

Not giving up on life?

Baek Seol’s eyes widened.

Does that mean… not dying?

Seo Doha had appeared out of nowhere and risen to the number-one spot in the Hunter rankings in an instant.

Nothing about his past was known. Who his family was, where he grew up, what kind of childhood he had.

Nothing at all.

The general assumption was simply that his past had probably been anything but ordinary. But hearing this now, it seemed that assumption had been right.

Baek Seol quickly composed her surprised expression.

“Hmm……. That was quite a part-time job.”

No, seriously. I asked if you’d ever had a part-time job. Why did such a deep part of your past just pop out like that?

It was bewildering.

Besides, why was Seo Doha telling her this?

Was he simply unrestrained because he was hiding his identity?

Baek Seol slowly turned her eyes away from him and said,

“Is it really okay for you to tell me things like this?”

“I’m telling you because you’re my senior.”

“…….”

At his immediate answer, Baek Seol was momentarily speechless.

Has her strategy of no longer avoiding Seo Doha and trying her best to act like a kind senior been that effective?

It seemed he had started trusting her far too much.

Feeling somewhat awkward, Baek Seol subtly changed the subject.

“So it sounds like you finished that part-time job with that girl successfully. Considering you’re alive and well right in front of me.”

“I couldn’t finish it. She suddenly disappeared.”

Oh. So that was what happened.

Baek Seol had no idea what she should say next. She fumbled with her lips, trying to choose her words, but Seo Doha spoke first.

“I did meet her again, though. But she didn’t remember me.”

“……Ah. Really?”

That’s kind of sad.

As Baek Seol thought that, Seo Doha continued.

“I suppose it’s because it was so long ago.”

There was a bitter smile on his lips.

The atmosphere suddenly made her feel as though she ought to comfort him somehow.

Baek Seol decided to sincerely offer him some consolation.

For the sake of their relationship.

It doesn’t seem so bad to stay like this.

That was something she had come to realize after meeting Seo Doha several times.

Since neither of them was attending graduate school anymore, she wouldn’t get in the way of his work.

And considering he wasn’t following her around excessively like he had at graduate school, it seemed his suspicions had subsided somewhat as well.

If so, perhaps it would be nice to remain as a kind senior who knew nothing about his identity and a junior who maintained an appropriate distance.

In fact, the most important thing was that if she hired him as a part-time worker, she would have to see him frequently whether she wanted to or not.

Since things had turned out this way, she decided they should both do their best to make sure neither of them felt uncomfortable.

She would pretend not to know too much about the identity he wanted to keep hidden, while maintaining an appropriate distance from him.

With that in mind, she spoke in her best senior-like manner.

“You said you met her again. Then I’m sure she’ll remember someday. Don’t be too upset. That person practically saved your life, so I don’t think that’s the kind of connection that can simply be severed.”

“……I like what you said about it not being a connection that can simply be severed.”

Seo Doha grinned, baring his teeth like a boy.

It was the first time Baek Seol had seen such a bright smile from him since getting to know him, and she froze for a moment.

If he had taken off those @-shaped glasses too, she might have joined his fan club without even realizing it.

Ah. Come to think of it, I already did…….

“I’m glad you liked it.”

Baek Seol said that while lightly scratching her cheek with her index finger.

Anyway…… yes. So that meant he had part-time work experience.

Now, how was she supposed to bring up the subject?

Would you like to work part-time at my bakery?

Baek Seol was thinking about how to approach it when Seo Doha spoke first.

“But why are you suddenly asking about part-time jobs? Since you’re the owner, I don’t think you’re planning to work part-time. Are you looking for someone to work here?”

“Uh……. Yes. That’s right.”

“Just as I thought.”

As Baek Seol nodded with a slightly flustered expression, Seo Doha’s demeanor suddenly changed.

His lips became infinitely more serious as he casually said,

“I want to become family with you, Senior.”

Baek Seol blinked.

Family?

What was he talking about all of a sudden?

“I won’t let you lift a finger.”

“No, wait. Junior.”

“I’ll do anything you want, Senior. So please, accept me.”

Under his intense gaze, Baek Seol racked her brain.

Surely “becoming family” didn’t actually mean he wanted to become family with her.

Then……

Baek Seol spoke cautiously.

“You mean…… you want to work part-time at the bakery……?”

“Yes.”

Phew.

Baek Seol exhaled.

“Why did you have to phrase wanting to work at a bakery like that……?”

Seo Doha grinned.

“I heard a part-timer and the owner are like family. I saw it on YouTube.”

What kind of YouTube videos have you been watching?

She would have to tell him to unsubscribe.

Baek Seol scratched her cheek with her index finger and rolled her eyes around.

It was bewildering, but Seo Doha had actually offered to work part-time first.

This was a stroke of incredible luck.

Baek Seol snapped out of her daze and quickly said,

“Okay, I understand. But before that, why don’t we discuss your hourly wage first?”

That was the most important thing to her right now.

Seo Doha answered immediately.

“You don’t have to pay me. There’s only one thing I want.”

Seo Doha leaned closer toward the table.

As a result, the distance between him and Baek Seol shrank in an instant.

“Just like I used to go see that girl, I’ll come to see you, Senior. Please let me do that.”

“……!”

“It’s a survival report. To let you know that I’m alive.”

A faintly pleasant scent drifted from Seo Doha as he moved closer.

“Then I’ll do anything. Anything you want, Senior. Even if it means putting my life on the line.”

“…….”

Baek Seol stared blankly at Seo Doha, her lips slightly parted.

His @-shaped glasses hid his eyes, but Baek Seol could still feel it.

He was staring intently at her.

Under that piercing gaze, Baek Seol murmured,

“What does working at a bakery even mean to you……?”

Why was Seo Doha suddenly acting like this?

Baek Seol cleared her throat, hiding her flustered thoughts.

Getting free labor is definitely lucky, though.

He just wanted to come see her?

Could Seo Doha possibly…… have feelings for me?

For a fleeting moment—about 0.01 seconds—the thought crossed Baek Seol’s mind that perhaps Seo Doha might actually like her.

No way. Have you lost your mind, Baek Seol?

The thought didn’t remain in her mind. It simply passed through.

There was absolutely no possibility of it.

Why would the number-one EX-rank Hunter like an ordinary person like her?

It was so ridiculous that she almost laughed.

“…….”

Seo Doha quietly watched her ever-changing expressions. Then he gave a bitter smile and spoke in a voice that sounded like he couldn’t help it.

“Well, I also have some things I need to investigate here personally. The Dungeon of Beginnings is right next to this place, after all. You know I like dungeon plants, right?”

“Ah.”

I knew it. So there was a reason.

For some reason, Baek Seol relaxed her shoulders, which she hadn’t realized had tensed up, and nodded as though she understood.

Seo Doha glanced at her shoulders before continuing.

“No one has ever entered the Dungeon of Beginnings, and we know nothing about the plants inside. I thought that if I stayed around here, I might eventually be able to find the entrance.”

Somehow, Seo Doha’s explanation seemed unnecessarily long.

Still, Baek Seol assumed that he must have some other primary reason for wanting to find the Dungeon of Beginnings and let it go.

So Seo Doha working part-time here would be mutually beneficial, then?

A lump of gold had practically rolled right up to her feet!

There was no way she could let this opportunity slip away.

Baek Seol quickly said,

“Okay. If that’s what you want as your part-time job compensation, then let’s do that. Works for me. I don’t have to spend any money, either…….”

“What should I do first?”

Seo Doha smiled brightly, as if he were genuinely happy.

Seeing that smile, Baek Seol was slightly dumbfounded.

Was working for free really that appealing?

Even if he had another motive.

Baek Seol let out a deep sigh before answering.

“There’s only one thing you need to do. Just operate the machine in the kitchen. You used it once before, remember? That one.”

“Ah. That machine?”

Seo Doha looked around.

“That’s all I have to do? What about the other things?”

“You just need to do that. Only that.”

“You need to clean, too. I’ll do it. I’ll handle the register as well. You can rest in the meantime, Senior.”

Why is he so eager to work?

At Seo Doha’s firm declaration, Baek Seol could only shrug.

Then a system window appeared.

<System: Part-time worker candidate Seo Doha wishes to ‘Meet the Dungeon Bakery Owner once on the same day.’ Would you like to negotiate the proposal? Y/N>

Baek Seol quickly tapped the Y button before Seo Doha could see it.

Another system window appeared.

<System: Seo Doha has been hired as a part-time worker.>

Baek Seol checked the Part-Time Worker tab and saw that something had changed.

[Part-Time Worker Information]
Name: Seo Doha
Class: ??? (EX-rank)
Title: ???
HP: ????/???? Stamina: ????/????
Strength: ??? Intelligence: ??? Agility: ??? Luck: ???
———————————————————————-
Hourly Wage: 0 won
Agreed Compensation: One meeting with the Dungeon Bakery Owner on the same day