Here's an Opportunity-Chapter 196: Start (2)

Knives thudded against cutting boards, a wok sizzled as flames licked its sides, whisks spun through batter, and a blender roared to life. The Hunters nearby could hear it all, and they couldn't help but exclaim.

"Wo... woah..."

"It's like we're watching a cooking show..."

With a beep, Kim Ki-Rok pressed the timer and grabbed the frying basket from the fryer. After shaking off the excess oil with a flick of his wrist, he placed the food on a plate and called out, "Who ordered the boneless chicken?"

At his shout, several Hunters quickly ran to the cooking table.

"Please share the food among yourselves," he said.

"Yes!" the Hunters who chose the boneless chicken responded loudly.

They put some of the finished chicken on their plates.

Kim Ki-Rok glanced at them and spoke in a loud voice. "You can't eat it now. You have to eat it right before the operation starts!"

"Yes, sir!" they replied.

"Sauces are prepared at cooking table number three!"

"Yes!"

The Hunters who received the chicken ran to table number three, where the sauce and side dishes were set out.

***

After the meeting, Guildmaster Ji Seok-Hyun stepped out of the container barracks, looked up at the sky, and sighed.

Kim Ki-Rok shouldn't have had access to any of the information from the meeting just now. But somehow, he had known the details of the operation as if he could read people's minds.

"He was right. How did he know...?"

The plan was to divide the Hunters into three teams: an elite team of S-Class Hunters, a second team with a mix of S-Class and A-Class, and a third team focused on defense, responsible for holding back the mechanical monsters outside the fortress, everything except the First. It was exactly what Kim Ki-Rok had predicted, long before anyone had seen the situation.

Ji Seok-Hyun shook his head and started walking. A Phoenix Guild member waiting nearby quietly fell in step behind him.

"Where is Guildmaster Kim Ki-Rok?"

"Ah, he's cooking," replied the guild member.

"Huh?"

Ji Seok-Hyun stopped in his tracks and looked back at the guild member. The member's awkward smile seemed to confirm he was telling the truth. Ji Seok-Hyun rolled up his sleeve to check the time.

"It's been two hours already?"

"He has to provide buff food for tens, no, hundreds of thousands of people."

"True. But he's not preparing all the food by himself, is he?"

"No. He's working with chefs recruited from outside the Gate, as well as Hunters who have cooking as a hobby or specialty."

"What's the grade of the food?"

"All of it's A-Class."

"Not a single B-Class?" Ji Seok-Hyun asked in disbelief.

"Nope."

"Huh..."

Having tasted the food firsthand, Ji Seok-Hyun knew he was an excellent cook. The food had been so good that Ji Seok-Hyun had seriously considered regularly subscribing to his cooking services. However, he had never seen Kim Ki-Rok in action, which piqued his curiosity.

"What is it like?" he asked.

"Pardon?"

"You know, Kim Ki-Rok, while he's cooking."

The guild member hesitated. "It's... like a cartoon."

"A cartoon?"

"He cooks like a chef from a cartoon."

That only made Ji Seok-Hyun more curious.

"Is he in the cafeteria now?"

The guild member nodded.

"Let's go."

He had to see for himself what kind of cooking made people sound like they were describing animation.

"Oh," Ji Seok-Hyun said. "What kind of food is he making?"

"Everything."

"Everything?"

"Yes. He's making everything."

It sounded absurd, but the guild member didn't seem to be joking. Ji Seok-Hyun swallowed, his curiosity stirred by memories of Kim Ki-Rok's cooking.

As they approached the cafeteria, a knocking sound could be heard drifting from the wide-open window. He noticed Hunters leaving with bright smiles, while others lined up outside waiting their turn. Ji Seok-Hyun joined the end of the line.

"Chicken?" he murmured. The smell made his mouth water.

"Jjambbong?" he added, catching the spicy scent.

"Pizza?"

"Ah... I don't know what that's called, but I've had it before."

"Isn't it teriyaki?" the guild member behind him offered.

Ji Seok-Hyun nodded. "That's right. Teriyaki."

They stepped forward, still playing "Guess That Food," and entered the cafeteria.

In the center stood Kim Ki-Rok. The tables had been cleared out, chairs pushed aside, and all attention was on him. As he scurried around the long table, arranging dish after dish, others in the kitchen were busy chopping vegetables.

"Only those with the Cooking Skill can infuse food with effects," the guild member reminded him. "That's why the pros, hobbyists, and anyone halfway decent at cooking are just handling the prep."

Ji Seok-Hyun nodded understandingly. This wasn't a group effort; Kim Ki-Rok was the main act.

He studied him again. To those unaware of that skill, cooking such luxurious meals during a war would've seemed ridiculous. But even the skeptical support Hunters had changed their tune after "appraising" the food.

"Tae-Shik," Ji Seok-Hyun said.

"Yes, Guildmaster?"

"So, do we have to order?"

"We don't. Guildmaster Kim Ki-Rok calls out the name of his dish once it's finished. Those who want it share the food among themselves."

"Like a buffet?"

"Yes, you can think of it as a kind of buffet."

"Are there any restrictions?" Ji Seok-Hyun asked.

"One plate per person."

"What?"

"Apparently, he wants to cook for everyone participating in the final battle, so we're limited to one dish each."

***

After thanking the Hunters and cooks who had helped, Kim Ki-Rok walked out of the cafeteria, rubbing his shoulder.

"Oh my... this is tough..." he mumbled.

Though there was a reserve of A-Class dishes in his subspace pocket, it wasn't enough for all the Hunters and soldiers, so he had no choice but to cook more. Kim Ki-Rok also had to limit each dish to five servings to keep the grade of the finished food from dropping.

As he moved around, exchanging greetings with resting Hunters and those out for the final check, Kim Ki-Rok spotted people gathered in front of the container barracks for the Korean Gate clear team and approached.

"Hm?"

He saw Kim Ji-Hee sitting at a desk, busily tapping on a laptop keyboard.

"Ji-Hee?"

She didn't even look at him. Her eyes stayed glued to the screen as she kept typing. "You're here, Mister?"

Kim Ki-Rok, puzzled by her response, moved behind her. "Ji-Hee?"

"Yes?" she replied.

"What are you doing?"

"Writing a report."

"Huh?" Kim Ki-Rok said, not understanding.

Kim Ji-Hee nodded. "Yes."

"A field trip report," someone told him.

"Ahhh," he replied, almost forgetting that she was enrolled in the academy.

Although she had permission from both her professor and the principal, she still had makeup assignments for missed classes.

As Kim Ji-Hee wrote her report, Kim Ki-Rok looked over her shoulder at the monitor. It was filled with information related to Gate clears. More precisely, it was about the tasks Kim Ji-Hee had taken on, as well as some photos.

Kim Ki-Rok turned to the Hunters around her. "So, what are you all doing here?"

"We are helping Ji-Hee write her report," answered Daniel Jackson, the only foreigner among the Koreans here.

"Ah, I see." Kim Ki-Rok chuckled, pulled out a chair, and sat next to Kim Ji-Hee. When she stopped writing to look at him, he smiled and asked, "Wouldn't it finish faster if Mister helped too?"

"Ooh," Kim Ji-Hee said, intrigued.

"Isn't your Mister the best?"

Kim Ji-Hee gave him a thumbs up. "Yes. He's the best."

Kim Ki-Rok laughed at her response and happily helped her write the report.

***

—This is the final battle. Even in the worst-case scenario, we will continue our efforts to clear the Gate.

Some people swallowed nervously as they listened to the conversation through their earpieces.

—There is a very high possibility that radio signals will be completely blocked when we enter the final city. Leaders, as soon as your unit enters, take out and activate your communication orbs, and report every ten seconds.

Several Hunters took out their communication orbs, checked them quickly, and put them back in their subspace pockets.

—We're planning to launch drones. Assault squads three, four, five, and six, please take control of the air immediately.

Hunters from Korea, the United States, Russia, and India nodded.

—Destroy everything in sight. An ordinary-looking building could be a mechanical monster, so destroy everything you see.

This time, all the Hunters participating in the operation nodded.

—And, um... This is a message from Lieutenant General Akabe. 'Let's meet again alive.'

The Hunters smiled.

—Then, let's start the final battle. Good luck.

As soon as the operator finished, Japan's S-Class Hunter shouted, "Charge!"

The Hunters let out their battle cries. Some sprinted toward the last city, others vanished with the help of teleporters. Only the reconnaissance teams moved on foot, tasked with scouting the terrain and spotting ambushes. The air units were handled by the teleporters, while the rest traveled in transport vehicles reinforced with Pastera.

Kim Ki-Rok sat in one of them, checking the time, activating his Record Skill, and reviewing data from his previous Attempt.

"We can move quietly for about five minutes," Kim Ki-Rok said.

The Korean Hunters turned to look at him in silence.

Gauging their response, he continued, "Shall we discuss the Gate clear reward?"

"Excuse me?" one of them asked.

"After the Gate clear, our DG Guild plans to bring down two groups."

"Two... groups?"

The Hunters already had an idea of whom. There was that Japanese Awakened criminal group that had taken heavy damage from Kim Ki-Rok and the corrupt officials who had backed them.

"The Awakened criminals and their backers. What's the other group?" Ji Seok-Hyun asked.

Kim Ki-Rok turned and looked straight at Ji Seok-Hyun as he whispered. "It's...[1]."

"Is... is that possible?" Ji Seok-Hyun stammered. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Kim Ki-Rok nodded. "Yes. It is possible. That's why I'm making this proposal to you."

"Wow..."

"Our DG Guild will rest in Japan for a week after the Gate is cleared," Kim Ki-Rok said. "More accurately, we'll be taking that time to finish off the Awakened criminals and officials still clinging to revenge. After that, we'll return to Korea, and a week later, take care of the other group."

He looked around and concluded, "So here's my offer. Want to earn the same reward as us?"

1. He said the name of the group, but this information has been intentionally left out. ☜