The Chef From the Apocalypse Enters the Food Industry - Chapter 44

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Chapter 44. If You Land a Blow, You Finish It
In the apocalypse, I was never a defender.
Survival there demanded more than mere defense.
When my opponent caught their breath, I had to strike where they least expected it.
That was my way of surviving.
I had never abandoned the hunt.
“Who’s willing to work overtime tonight?”
“Pardon? Overtime?”
“But we closed the store, didn’t we?”
“The store is closed. But business? That’s another story.”
“What do you mean?”
“We’re taking the trucks out. Triple overtime pay, plus a bonus. Who’s in?”
“Me!”
I was recruiting party members for a new hunt.
Everyone, including Jin-woo, joined the party.
“I’ll go get ready too.”
“I’ll be right back.”
The two owners joined us as well.
In no time, we had assembled a party of over ten.
“Listen up, everyone. Gather your ingredients.”
“But where are we going with all this? We’ve already closed up.”
“We’re relocating.”
“Relocating?”
“That’s right.”
Jin-woo’s eyes widened at the word “relocating.”
‘He won’t understand just yet.’
Showing was better than explaining.
I smiled and started the truck’s engine.
“Being cooped up while doing business isn’t my style. Let’s stretch our legs.”
Vroom! Three food trucks roared to life and began moving.
* * *
“This is quite far from the festival, isn’t it?”
“It is.”
We took a wide detour around the New City District.
We passed by Jang On-gyu’s Main Street, where brilliant lights and loud music echoed.
Beyond it lay the outer edges, shrouded in thick darkness.
This was the area originally designated for the night market during the festival.
It was a space familiar to me.
“Oh, this is….”
“Where our food truck used to be.”
This was the space where I once ran my business.
“I heard they were going to renovate it and build a park, but it’s still not done?”
“Renovate? They were probably just trying to drive us out.”
“Really? They went that far?”
“That’s just how the world works.”
The world didn’t always turn beautifully.
This place was no exception.
They call it renovation, but it would take years before any real work was actually completed.
So the city probably just opened it up as a night market space instead.
‘Not that it would make any difference.’
Because Jang On-gyu had set up his own establishments in the heart of the New City District, this place had become nothing more than abandoned land.
“Wow… this place is really depressing.”
“Yeah. It’s depressing.”
Jin-woo clicked his tongue as he looked out the car window.
Sparse streetlights. Tents with nothing but flies buzzing around them.
We’d pushed ourselves to come here because the night market was opening, but the empty street had lost all its vitality.
Not a single customer in sight—not even an ant.
It was the shadow hidden behind the festival’s glamour.
Screeeech.
We parked the food truck right in the middle of that empty street, in the darkest spot.
“This looks perfect, doesn’t it?”
“Exactly. Since it’s so dark, when we turn on the food truck’s lights, it’ll look even brighter.”
“Right! That’s what we’re going for!”
The Jang Owner stepped out of the vehicle and surveyed the surroundings.
His eyes gleamed.
He could tell at a glance.
Where business would thrive, where the foot traffic was good, what more we could do.
The man’s business acumen was truly exceptional.
“Alright, let me turn on the lighting first.”
“Sounds good. I’ll turn mine on while I prepare to open the shop.”
I swung open the side panel of the truck wide.
The lights inside the truck, which had been shrouded in darkness, blazed on with a brilliant flash.
The dazzling light illuminated the drab night market street with radiance.
* * *
“I’m showing them that a business isn’t built with money—it’s built with skill.”
If Jang On-gyu had drawn people into his territory,
then I intended to cut off that flow right here.
This place that he had deliberately ignored and abandoned.
From here, where we had claimed our ground first, we would ignite the most brilliant fireworks!
Could there be any sweeter revenge than that?
“Jang Owner, Older Brother. Are you ready?”
“Of course! Let’s give this night market some CPR, shall we!”
“This should be fun. If we pull this off here, Jang On-gyu’s going to have a headache.”
Both men wore mischievous yet resolute smiles on their faces.
I stood in the kitchen.
And I summoned the system.
[Activating Skill 【Trap】.]
[Stacking Skill 【Trap】 for enhanced effect.]
[Trap Type: Sustained Olfactory Lure]
[Trap Type: Impulse Stimulation]
[Trap Type: Footstep Delay]
It wasn’t just about our success.
‘We are the bait.’
The powerless merchants who had come here full of hope to open a night market.
I had constructed a massive game board that would encompass all of them.
[Skill effect is maximized.]
[Pedestrians’ appetite is intensely stimulated.]
[Pedestrians’ impulses are intensely stimulated.]
[Pedestrians’ footsteps linger longer in this area.]
This was my game board.
If they couldn’t sell well on it, that would be strange indeed.
“Jin-woo, turn on the music too. We need to match the festival atmosphere.”
“Yes!”
Into the silent night market, resonant music erupted alongside an explosion of delicious aromas spreading outward.
The defensive phase was over.
Now began the siege.
* * *
Blood began flowing through the dead street.
The night market, isolated from the main festival street and shrouded in darkness.
A massive tide of people surged into it.
‘With the festival already here, preparation was essentially done. I merely lit the spark.’
I welcomed the rushing customers.
“What? Why are there so many people here?”
“The smell is incredible. Hey, there’s a seat over there! Sit down!”
The tents that had only seen flies moments before were instantly packed to capacity.
The merchants who had been dusting off their stalls wore bewildered expressions.
Some even pinched their cheeks, wondering if it was a dream.
But it wasn’t a dream.
The flood of orders and the relentless chime of payment notifications proved it was real.
“Owner! Five skewers here!”
“Over here too! No, Owner! Everything’s burned!”
At that moment, I heard a scream from the Skewer Shop Owner near our truck.
Unable to handle the sudden rush of customers, the skewers on the grill were turning pitch black.
Smoke billowed out, customers were in an uproar. The situation was on the verge of mental collapse.
‘Now I understand why.’
Customers coming is good. But you need to be prepared to receive them. Panicking in unexpected situations was something that inevitably happened.
‘This is why experience matters.’
The problem is the time it takes to build that experience.
Once a customer leaves, they don’t come back.
“I’m so sorry! Truly, I apologize! I’ll make fresh ones right away!”
The Owner was sweating profusely, moving about frantically.
I set down my wok and gave Haran a meaningful look.
“Haran, can you watch things here for a moment?”
“Yes!”
I jumped down from the truck and headed toward the skewer shop.
If I’m going to help, I help thoroughly. That’s my way.
Some might call me foolish for it.
‘What can I do? I can’t ignore what I see.’
I’ve never been able to turn away from something like this.
What else can I do? I have to act.
“Owner, step aside for a moment.”
“Huh? Oh, Boss Kim?”
“At this rate, you’ll lose all your customers. Let me help.”
I took the tongs from the Owner’s hands.
The grill was a mess. Flames danced wildly across it.
It was a familiar sight to me.
‘During the apocalypse, grilling was what I did first and most often.’
During those apocalypse days, all basic cooking was grilling.
Without proper preparation, what use were seasonings?
So naturally, I had become a master of direct flame cooking.
“This is how you use fire.”
Sizzle!
I tossed the burned skewers into the trash and spread fresh ones across the grill.
‘Simply grilling makes it tasteless. You need to char it.’
I had to create what they called the flavor of fire.
[Using skill 【Ingredient Enhancement】.]
[The target’s flavor is enhanced.]
Whoosh!
Oil dripped onto the charcoal, and a massive column of flame shot up.
“Whoa…! That’s dangerous!”
“No. We need to use this too.”
The Owner flinched and stepped back.
I didn’t bat an eye.
Instead, I stirred the flames with tongs, searing the skewers with char.
“Wow! Look over there! It’s a fire show!”
“This is insane.”
People’s gazes converged on me.
I flipped the skewers with dazzling hand movements.
Crispy outside, juicy inside.
‘That’s what they call perfectly balanced texture.’
I instinctively knew the timing to seal in the meat juices.
Tap, tap.
I dipped the skewers in the sauce, then placed them back over the flames.
Sizzle.
The acrid, sweet aroma of caramelizing sauce merged with the 【Trap】 skill, creating an explosive synergy.
[Trap is enhanced.]
‘This is an unexpected effect. Ha.’
Pleasantly surprised by the unforeseen outcome, I plated the prepared dishes.
“Here come the perfectly grilled skewers!”
In an instant, twenty skewers were cooked to perfection.
The golden-brown glaze glistened with sauce.
And finally, that appetizing smoky char!
“Please try them. Since you’ve waited so long, I’m giving you each one on the house. Right, Owner?”
“Yes, yes! That’s right! It’s on us! On the house!”
I handed the freshly grilled skewers to the customers standing in stunned silence.
The eyes of those who took a bite widened like saucers.
“What… what is this flavor?”
“Owner! Ten more skewers! No, twenty!”
“Bring beer! Bring beer!”
“Where are we supposed to get that!”
“Then go buy some! This is the perfect side dish!”
The reaction was explosive.
The Skewer Shop Owner stood speechless.
“W… who are you, really? What’s your identity?”
“Identity? I’m just someone who cooks.”
I smiled slyly and handed back the tongs.
“You’re getting the hang of it now, right?”
“Y… yes, somewhat.”
“Don’t be afraid. Think of it as playing with fire. If you get scared, step back. That’s better than burning it.”
“You’re explaining it like you’re hunting the food…”
“Haha. Maybe a little bit.”
I could see how she grasped things immediately after watching once.
‘Her eyes were the kind that learned by observing.’
She was simply surprised because it was her first time experiencing it.
She appeared to be someone with natural talent and good instincts.
“Well then, you’ll need to row when the water comes in. By the way, I’ve prepared extra for service purposes, so feel free to experiment with this one.”
“Ah, I understand.”
“Don’t worry about waste. If you’re really concerned, just think of it as an educational fee. Now, let’s do this!”
“Ah, yes! Thank you so much! Really, thank you!”
“Let’s go!”
Life returned to the Owner’s eyes.
The dying Night Market was breathing again, thrashing about like a living fish fresh from the water.
* * *
At the same moment, Jang On-gyu sat in the sedan.
He clutched at his throbbing temples, lost in thought.
‘The momentum is getting too fierce.’

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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