The Chef From the Apocalypse Enters the Food Industry - Chapter 62

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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 62. Visitors (3)
[Your reputation has increased significantly.]
[You have acquired the title 【Guardian of Hygiene】.]
[People’s trust in the restaurant has greatly increased!]
The food wasn’t the only thing delicious here. Even these notifications tasted delicious.
‘Because I’m satisfied.’
My lips curved upward on their own without any effort.
I’d turned a crisis into an opportunity.
‘Actually, it wasn’t even a crisis to begin with.’
For me, cleanliness was survival itself.
I had no idea who sent them, but this wasn’t even a Quest.
‘From the start, they were never even at my level.’
Either way, it was good.
Thanks to them, I’d gotten proper publicity for the store without spending a single won.
“Boss! This is huge!”
“Huge? That’s right.”
Jin-woo seized a brief moment to grab his smartphone and came rushing over with exaggerated excitement.
His face was beaming with smiles.
The tension from the hygiene inspection had completely vanished.
“Wow, you really had a plan for everything, didn’t you? I could tell from when you were training me!”
“Training is something you do regardless of that situation, man.”
“Ha ha. Anyway. I could tell from the moment you confidently opened the kitchen door in front of those scary people.”
The admiration in his eyes was somewhat burdensome.
It was like looking at some legendary strategist.
Still, I didn’t feel bad about it.
Business was booming today.
The hygiene inspection was a huge success too.
Over the past few days, this must have given Jin-woo reason to reconsider hygiene.
‘Everything fell perfectly into place.’
* * *
And finally, the sweet break time had arrived.
I sank deep into my chair and let out a heavy sigh.
“Phew… now I can breathe.”
I’d closed the lunch service early due to running out of ingredients.
I’d sent Jin-woo and Haran up to the 2nd Floor Cafe.
They needed to rest, even if just for a moment.
The quiet store.
I sank deep into my chair.
‘This is good. So good.’
Lazy afternoon sunlight streamed through the large windows and warmed the hall.
I leaned back against the wall, and the taut string of tension snapped loose.
The feeling was peculiar.
‘A sanitation inspection.’
An unexpected stone cast my way.
That stone.
Someone had thrown it to undermine me.
But who knew that stone would turn to gold.
A kitchen without a speck of dust.
That obsessive habit I’d honed for survival in the Apocalypse—it had saved me.
The cheers of people, eyes brimming with trust.
And the ceaseless ringing of order bells.
My past life in the Apocalypse.
‘It’s different now.’
Whenever I closed my eyes to sleep, there was always the biting cold and the hunger that clung to my ribs.
And the terror of not knowing when my throat might be cut.
Sleep was not rest but another struggle for survival.
It was always a grueling ordeal.
But now it’s different.
A subtle, savory aroma of broth lingers at the tip of my nose, my back is warm, and my belly is full.
Most of all, people who find happiness in my cooking fill my space.
Safe. And abundant.
‘…This is good. So very good.’
A smile bloomed naturally at the corners of my mouth.
This peace, this languor—it was achingly sweet to me.
The greatest reward of all.
My eyelids grew heavy and closed.
A brief but honeyed sleep, sweeter than any rest, enveloped me.
How long had I slept?
Ding.
“Mm…?”
A cheerful chime awakened me from my honeyed slumber.
* * *
“I apologize. We’ve run out of ingredients and closed for lunch….”
Before I could finish speaking, a familiar face peeked through the gap in the door.
Though she’d pulled her hat down low, those round eyes were unmistakable.
It was Im Ha-yun.
“Oh? Ha-yun? What brings you here?”
“Ah, Owner. I’m sorry for disturbing your rest.”
She shuffled in hesitantly.
It was unlike her usual confident demeanor.
She was watching me nervously, like a child who’d done something wrong.
And behind her, an unfamiliar man followed inside.
‘Ah, so that’s what this is about?’
A loose jacket and wrinkled sneakers. Yet his eyes burned with sharp intelligence.
I instinctively knew who he was.
“I’m KBN PD.”
“So you’re the PD.””Yes.”
He bowed respectfully.
The bigwig from the entertainment division who’d sent an assistant director to cause a scene before.
But contrary to my expectation of arrogance, his demeanor was quite cautious.
“What brings you here?”
“I wanted to apologize in person. I heard our assistant director was rude last time. My team’s training was lacking.”
“Ah, that’s fine. I don’t dwell on past matters.”
“Still, my conscience won’t let it rest. And….”
PD Ga paused for a moment, then looked at Ha-yun beside him.
Ha-yun hesitated before speaking.
“Um, Owner. I asked him to come with me.”
“Ha-yun?”
“Yes. The PD had a proposal, and when I heard about it, it seemed pretty good.”
“Is that so?”
Ha-yun wasn’t someone to make unreasonable demands.
The Ha-yun I knew was at least trustworthy.
“Actually, to be honest, I got a bit greedy….”
“Ha-yun? Aren’t you the one overflowing with confidence that you can buy anything you want?”
“That’s just something I say on the show!”
“But in reality, you can buy most things, can’t you?”
“…There are things I can’t buy. That’s why I’m greedy for them.”
“What things?”
“Look at this.”
There she goes. She’s laying bare her desires so honestly.
But for Ha-yun to come with PD Ga, it must be something worth wanting.
‘It’s probably about broadcasting? What kind of show would make Ha-yun want it?’
At this point, I was getting curious myself.
PD Ga pulled out a proposal and placed it on the table.
Working Title: 【Salvation of Cuisine】
That was the title of the program he’d sent assistant directors for multiple times.
“So it’s about broadcasting after all?”
“I know you dislike appearing on air. So I won’t push you to film.”
“Then how should I interpret this?”
“We’re not filming you. We’re filming Ha-yun eating.”
“Aw, you’re quite the wordsmith.”
“Please understand how desperate we are.”
PD Ga continued his explanation calmly.
Like someone who had anticipated my refusal and prepared thoroughly for it.
“Ha-yun, you don’t eat well unless it’s the Owner’s cooking, do you?”
How did he even know that?
‘Is his intuition insane?’
Before my thoughts could continue, his explanation pressed on.
“So I thought, what if we sourced the finest ingredients from across the nation—no, the entire world for you?”
“Ingredients?”
“Yes. Not just premium beef like Toplus, but top-grade Korean beef, wild matsutake mushrooms, Dokdo flower shrimp, freshly caught grouper….”
The very names of those ingredients struck my chest like hammer blows.
If classics existed, this was a masterpiece.
“Whatever ingredients you need? Just say the word. We’ll cover everything with our production budget.”
PD Ga’s voice carried conviction.
‘This is… tempting, isn’t it?’
In that moment, my eyebrows twitched.
These were ingredients I couldn’t even glimpse during the Apocalypse.
Even now, with money, they’re difficult to procure—the finest ingredients available.
As a chef, I couldn’t help but feel a tingle in my fingertips just hearing those names.
‘So he’s using Ha-yun to tempt me, and using ingredients to tempt me?’
This PD Ga before me.
His instincts were exceptional, but his execution was equally remarkable.
I could see why he’d succeeded.
“You just need to cook for Ha-yun as you normally would with those ingredients. Broadcast ratings? Viewership? We’ll handle all that. You just….”
He paused for a moment, then looked at me with earnest eyes.
“Make people happy through your cooking. It starts with Ha-yun, and if it goes well, we’ll include others too. In the end, isn’t happiness salvation?”
Happiness is salvation, then.
It’s not wrong, I suppose.
The title of the proposal caught my eye again.
Ha-yun looked at me with desperate eyes.
“Owner, I really want to try your cooking made with truly delicious ingredients. I know you hate broadcasting. But still….”
Her gaze was honest.
Pure appetite shone through.
And a hint of faith in my cooking was visible too.
‘Anyway, she’s genuinely sincere when it comes to food.’
I crossed my arms and fell into thought for a moment.
Not simply broadcasting for ratings.
Unlimited ingredient support to cook freely, with someone who would savor it most deliciously.
As a chef, it wasn’t a bad proposition.
‘Honestly, it’s tempting.’
At least my interest was far greater than when the assistant director visited every single day.
But just that much?
“…I’ll give it some thought.”
For now, I’m putting it on hold. I still don’t know much about broadcasting.
Even though I didn’t give him a definitive answer, PD Ga’s expression brightened.
“That’s more than enough. Please consider it positively.”
“I said I haven’t decided yet?”
“Haha. Since you didn’t outright refuse, this is progress for me!”
He didn’t press further and stood up from his seat.
He was indeed experienced.
He clearly understood that pushing any harder would backfire.
As he was leaving, he glanced toward the kitchen and added a remark.
“I watched your video a few days ago.”
“Oh, that one?”
He was referring to the sanitation inspection video.
“I try not to miss trends, so I watch just about everything.”
He was certainly a professional.
“It was truly impressive. With cooking coming from a kitchen like that, anyone would trust and eat it.”
Perhaps it was because this recognition came from a true professional.
‘That feels good.’
I found myself feeling a fresh sense of pride.
He bowed respectfully and left the store.
Ha-yun, who had been quietly observing the situation beside me.
“I’m sorry, and thank you!”
She called out before hurrying after him.
Ding—
Soon, both of them had left, and only the bell’s chime remained.
* * *
“Wow. That went by like a whirlwind.”
Perhaps my sleep had fully worn off.
With the remaining time, I thought I’d sweep the dust outside the restaurant, so I picked up the broom and stood up.
I told Jin-woo, who insisted he should do such things, to go chop some radish instead, and headed outside.
“Let me just sweep here…”
Right as I was about to start sweeping.
Something glimmering caught my eye as it passed by.
‘…Huh? What’s that?’
If I was seeing correctly, it was something that didn’t belong in a restaurant.
‘Perfect timing.’
I thought I should clean that up while I was at it, and I was just about to set the broom aside and move when—

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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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