The Chef From the Apocalypse Enters the Food Industry - Chapter 51

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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 51. Relentless Onslaught!
I unleashed a ceaseless barrage of dishes.
Tangy cold noodles to cut through the richness.
Beef brisket bibim noodles to deliver a heavy blow.
And to finish, a creamy chicken udon that soothed the palate—noodles nearly dissolved into the broth.
I didn’t serve individual portions.
‘I need to treat them like royalty!’
I literally piled the food into enormous bowls.
Or rather, I heaped them so generously it was more like loading than serving.
And between courses, I never stopped adding side dishes.
When the udon went out, tempura to match it.
When the noodles went out, kimbap.
When the bibim noodles went out, grilled meat.
It was a veritable symphony of culinary weapons.
Tangy, sweet, deliciously spicy, savory.
A flavor explosion spanning every range and method!
[The subjects’ gastric capacity has exceeded its limit.]
[Yet they cannot put down their spoons.]
I kept feeding them like dropping bombs.
“Ah….”
“I can’t take anymore….”
“But it just keeps going!”
Even as they cried out that they were full,
their hands still reached greedily for my dishes.
Slurrrp— slurp—
Lee Hyeon-seung was already mechanically inhaling noodles, eyes glazed over.
Sweat poured down Im Ha-yun’s forehead like rain, yet her eyes sparkled with vitality.
‘Is she the type who gains strength the more she eats?’
Im Ha-yun was truly showing what natural talent meant.
“Owner. Huff….”
Ha-yun called out to me, breathing heavily as she emptied the last plate.
She bent forward, her head drooping over the table.
“I lost….”
“Pardon?”
“I surrender. I surrender. I can’t… I can’t eat anymore.”
She raised both hands.
Sonny, sitting beside her.
She too had abandoned her competitive spirit.
Slumped in her chair, she silently gave a thumbs up.
“This is frustrating. Really… it’s so delicious it’s infuriating. I should be finding fault with it… ugh….”
A perfect victory!
Their stomachs had long since been filled with my cooking.
Their hearts had surrendered.
‘It’s done!’
* * *
An alarm chimed as if it had been waiting.
[Hidden Quest conditions have been met!]
[The targets’ satisfaction has broken through the threshold!]
[Lee Hyeon-seung’s trauma is healed.]
[Lee Hyeon-seung’s digestive ability is restored.]
‘Excellent.’
I had conquered Lee Hyeon-seung first—the very one who had orchestrated this siege.
I had pushed his appetite to its absolute limit.
And somehow, I had restored his digestive ability, which had mysteriously declined.
‘The medicinal dishes I wove throughout were the key.’
It was truly a flawless strategy.
[Im Ha-yun’s appetite loss is completely resolved.]
Ha-yun was no different.
She, who could eat twenty servings despite having no appetite, had consumed even more than that. I heard this was something that hadn’t happened in a long time.
‘A perfect appetite recovery!’
That was enough for her.
Looking at it, she had a natural constitution for mukbang. Once her appetite returned like this, the remaining issues would resolve themselves.
The surprising one was Sonny.
‘When I first heard about her, I thought she was someone who rose through sheer talk. But surprisingly, she eats well?’
Unlike her sophisticated appearance, the more I watched her, the more charming she became.
At first, she was a fact-bomber, striking with sharp observations.
But as her stomach filled, a rustic dialect subtly mixed into her speech.
‘Wow. It’s all an act, isn’t it? But that’s impressive in its own way.’
She was more remarkable than I’d thought.
These remarkable people had become defeated soldiers, crying out in happy moans and shrieks.
Shrieks of fullness.
Lee Hyeon-seung’s camera was broadcasting the entire process in real-time.
It was a live stream.
Dopamine was exploding throughout the entire broadcast.
* * *
“Huh…. He’s solving it like this?”
In the KBN Entertainment Department Meeting Room, PD Ga let out a hollow laugh.
On his smartphone screen, South Korea’s greatest mukbang YouTubers were clutching their stomachs and crying out in surrender.
Live viewership had surpassed 70,000.
‘70,000 during daytime? If this were the weekend, it could reach hundreds of thousands.’
The chat window erupted into absolute chaos.
-Wow, I’ve never seen Ha-yun surrender like that before
-Where is that place? My mouth’s watering!
-Look at the Owner’s cooking presence. Watch how he uses the flame. He was born for this. Born for it.
-Hyeon-seung said this guy doesn’t appear on TV much? But he’s so good?
-Right. He doesn’t do much. But he’s more entertaining than broadcast shows?
The assistant director Park Min-soo standing beside him had gone pale.
“PD, PD. The live viewer count is higher than our pilot episode…?”
“I know.”
“What do we do? If he goes independent like this, isn’t the recruitment over? This looks like a huge hit. Should I go apologize and try again…?”
“No. No, it’s fine.”
“We should act now—— Huh? It’s fine?”
“Yes. It’s fine.”
PD Ga raised his hand to silence him.
His gaze remained fixed on Kim Seon-woo on the screen.
The way he brushed back his sweat-dampened bangs with a grin.
That image struck PD Ga as remarkably captivating.
‘I can see exactly how to frame him with the camera. Mmm…’
In that moment, PD Ga finally understood.
“Min-soo. Now I see why you couldn’t bring him in.”
“Sir?”
“It must have been difficult. He’s in a different league. A different league. If you assign an assistant director to someone of that caliber… he might resent it.”
“…Ah, yes.”
“With that level of skill, his pride must be overflowing, right? So he wouldn’t even acknowledge you.”
“I, I see.”
“Right. That’s how it is. We just have to understand.”
PD Ga had deepened his misunderstanding.
In truth, Kim Seon-woo wasn’t that complicated a person.
He simply had clear preferences.
He liked what he liked. He didn’t like what he didn’t.
He’d simply rejected the broadcast itself.
But to PD Ga, freshly smitten after watching the live broadcast, it appeared as nothing but the rigid pride of a chef brimming with arrogance.
“I want him.”
“Sir? You want to recruit him?”
“Yes. I thought he was just a skilled technician who cooked well, but he’s not. It’s innate. He knows how to captivate people. He has showmanship, and he has nerve.”
“To, that extent?”
“Yes. With just this one person, I could produce ten more programs.”
“T, ten more….”
PD Ga licked his lips.
At first, he was merely the top recruitment target. Someone useful as a panel member for a while, then send back home once the novelty wore off.
‘He’s difficult, but he’s the owner of a delicious restaurant. That level of treatment was exactly right for him.’
But things are different now.
That person. He’s not just a simple chef.
He’s a genuine gem—someone who could control the entire broadcasting landscape if he set his mind to it.
Hurt pride from being rejected?
‘No. For a professional, rejection is part of the job. There’s no shame in being rejected by a decent person.’
If anything, being rejected makes me want him more.
Easy people aren’t fun.
There’s a thrill in conquering someone who pushes back like that.
“Looking at this now, a simple recruitment won’t cut it. I need to restructure the whole game.”
“Restructure the game?”
“Yeah. I need to create a game so massive and attractive that he can’t possibly refuse. That’s how I’ll hook him.”
PD Ga’s eyes gleamed.
It wasn’t hostility.
It was the gaze of a predator that had spotted prey, or the obsession of a child who had found a toy they wanted.
‘…Look at those eyes. The PD’s completely lost it.’
This was the moment when PD Ga’s obsession—famous throughout the broadcasting industry—became intertwined with misunderstanding.
“Just wait, Kim Seon-woo. I’ll make you walk up to me on your own two feet.”
“Ah, yes….”
He was raising his phone like a toast toward Kim Seon-woo on the screen.
He was completely intoxicated by his own image.
‘Still, it doesn’t seem like he’ll scold me anymore… So does that mean I’ve secured my position?’
The assistant director could only watch with eyes uncertain whether to cry or celebrate.
* * *
The next evening.
A thumbnail appeared on Hyeon-seung’s channel.
Eye-catching, provocative red text.
Behind that text were the faces of Im Ha-yun and Sonny, their noses buried in bowls as sweat dripped down their faces.
In contrast to them, my figure stood leisurely with arms crossed.
“Wow, that’s some serious clickbait.”
“Yeah, even I have to admit it.”
The title was even worse than the thumbnail.
[SHOCKING! Mukbang Empress Im Ha-yun Declares Filming Halt? Factory Canteen ‘Breaking the Seal’ Full Version]
The title alone was incredibly sensational.
‘He really does have talent.’
The content was even more over the top.
Hyeon-seung had clearly poured his soul into the editing.
Boom-boom-boom—
The video began with dramatic music.
Sonny stepping out of a flashy sports car, Im Ha-yun making an entrance with sunglasses on.
As if they had appeared simultaneously, the two of them created a contrasting composition.
“That’s not how they came in before.”
“But it looks better this way.”
“It definitely does. The tension is really palpable.”
The direction was excellent.
Their confident figures swept across the screen, and as the shot transitioned, I was captured in a close-up from inside the kitchen.
-The more demanding you are, the more welcome. Come on in.
My voice was calm. But my eyes gleamed like those of a predator.
The cooking scene that followed resembled a blockbuster movie trailer.
Whoooosh! Crash!
Massive pillars of flame filling the screen.
The wok work captured in slow motion was nearly an art form.
“Wow. That’s impressive, isn’t it?”
“Right?”
Ingredients flying through the air and falling, sharp knife blades glinting brightly.
And even my profile, beaded with sweat.
Whether it was the power of editing or simply how I naturally looked, it appeared quite convincing.
‘They really nailed the sound effects too.’
And the final result was astounding.
The brilliant crimson broth of [Hellfire Seafood Jjamppong] was captured in such high definition it seemed to burst through the screen.
“Wow, I’ve already eaten it before, but you made me want to eat it again?”
“Right? I ate it right away, so I didn’t bother checking the camera angles separately.”
“Exactly! Wow… I’m really craving a bite now… gulp… why isn’t tonight’s dinner jjamppong?”
“Hold on. Restrain yourself. We already have something else scheduled for tonight.”
“Ugh. Understood!”
Jin-woo, watching from beside me, was so impressed by how well the camera work turned out.
Then, the moment Ha-yun lifted the noodles with steam rising from them!

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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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