TCBMF 09

Chapter 9

Se-hee checked the blue window floating before her once again.

“……This.”

Only then did she realize it.

It was exactly the same format as the annoying and dangerous notification she had received yesterday.

“Don’t tell me this is some kind of mission or quest?”

A strange chill ran down her spine.

Don’t tell me this is going to pop up every day.

Se-hee unconsciously looked at the pot, then at the fog beyond it, going back and forth.

Then she muttered inwardly.

Does this thing seriously have no intention of letting me rest?

At that moment, the ominous footsteps coming from beyond the fog finally filled the area in front of Se-hee’s tent.

Just as Cassian had feared.

The men surrounded Se-hee’s small tent, each carrying a greatsword or axe over his shoulder.

Se-hee’s shoulders stiffened slightly.

……Wait. Do I need to run?

Just then, Vargas, the leader of the mercenary group, stepped forward and slammed a great axe as tall as himself into the ground.

“Hey, woman.”

Vargas raised his chin and took another step closer.

“You’ve got some nerve, running such a strange business in the middle of this forest.”

The corners of his mouth curled up mockingly.

“Do you know who we are? There are few people in the northern part of the Empire who can hear our name and remain unfazed.”

Vargas thrust his scar-covered face forward and gave her a threatening grin.

The mercenaries behind him raised their weapons or banged on their shields.

The area quickly filled with the sounds of metal and rough laughter.

Se-hee immediately raised her head and looked them over.

If I run now, my business is over, right?

Se-hee’s gaze fell not on Vargas, but on the ground he was standing on.

Seriously, couldn’t they at least wipe their shoes? I just cleaned the yard this morning, and now they’re ruining everything.

Se-hee actually frowned.

In an instant, these men stopped being objects of fear in her eyes.

They were nothing more than a group of rude customers.

“You people have no sense of business etiquette. When a store is open, you’re supposed to line up first.”

Vargas’s eyebrow twitched.

But a mocking laugh came first.

“Ha! Line up? You want Vargas to stand in line?”

The mercenaries burst into laughter and swung their weapons.

It was an obvious show of force, as if they were about to stomp her tent flat.

“Could you please move aside while I’m asking nicely? I’m busy right now.”

“What kind of trick are you trying to pull?!”

The moment Vargas raised his axe and took a step forward—

Se-hee’s hand moved like lightning.

She grabbed the thick, bright-red liquid sauce left over from the Fire Chicken Stir-Fried Noodles.

And threw it straight into the mercenary leader’s face.

“Ugh! I told you, no interfering with business!”

Sizzle—!

A vivid, blood-red stream of sauce cut through the air and splattered directly across Vargas and the mercenaries in the front row.

“……Urgh? What is this? Is it blood?”

Vargas snorted and tried to wipe the liquid from his face with his hand.

But one second later, his face turned purple.

“Aaaaaagh! It’s hot! My face is burning! It’s the flames of hell!”

The capsaicin was attacking their skin.

[Environmental Effect Occurred: Hell’s Red Mist]

• Reaction: Extreme pain, involuntary tears

• Status Change: Loss of fighting spirit, sharp decrease in will to fight

Se-hee glanced at the words floating before her and set the sauce packet down.

This is surprisingly effective.

Unlike the calm Se-hee, the mercenaries could barely remain standing.

“Cough! Cough! What…… is this? Magic? Or poison?!”

The mercenaries stumbled backward, tears and mucus streaming down their faces.

Se-hee looked down at them for a moment, then tilted her head.

“Ah, is this not enough?”

Then she casually sprayed them with more sauce.

“Aaaaaagh!”

“What is this one?!”

The mercenaries who had already collapsed began rolling around on the ground.

Some covered their noses, while others could barely breathe.

The area around the tent, covered in Fire Chicken sauce, instantly became a complete madhouse.

Vargas, the mercenary leader, lowered his sword with trembling hands and dropped to his knees.

There seemed to be a few tears gathered in his eyes.

Even the slightest touch of Fire Chicken sauce on his fingertips made him scream as he looked up at Se-hee in terror.

Se-hee clicked her tongue as she put the noodles into the pot.

“They’re making such a fuss. They barged in here without permission, and now they’re complaining. Seriously.”

She casually washed the sauce from her fingers with water and added,

“So, feeling a little more clear-headed now?”

Se-hee tilted her head.

“Our store is pretty strict about property damage and interfering with business.”

She paused and held up the sauce packet once more.

“If you don’t want this to happen again, you can purchase the products from our store.”

Her gaze slowly shifted toward the mercenary group.

“I have to charge you for barging in here without permission.”

Vargas gritted his teeth and asked,

“……What product are you talking about?”

Se-hee nodded and gave him a short smile.

“You just tasted it, didn’t you? I’ll specially charge you one gold coin per packet for this ‘fire of hell,’ or whatever you want to call it.”

Then she added,

“So everyone here has to buy one packet.”

“One…… gold coin?”

“If you don’t like it, I can spray you with another round. This time, I’ll aim for your eyes.”

When Se-hee shook the remaining sauce packets, the entire mercenary group shrieked and hurriedly pulled out their money pouches.

“We’ll buy it! We said we’ll buy it! Please, just put that thing away!”

Se-hee collected the money they hastily held out.

The sack made a heavy jingling sound, packed full of coins.

She sneakily looked inside.

……Huh?

There was barely any gold.

Most of the coins were silver or bronze.

“But.”

Se-hee asked carefully,

“Don’t you have any gold coins?”

The area around the tent suddenly became strangely quiet.

“Gold coins? Who carries around something that valuable? We’re not nobles.”

Vargas let out a hollow laugh.

Se-hee’s eyes widened slightly.

“Then what do you normally use to pay?”

“Silver coins.”

Vargas answered as if it were obvious.

“Daily wages, drinks, equipment repairs. Everything is paid in silver coins. Bronze coins are for small change.”

Se-hee unconsciously swallowed.

Then those gold coins Cassian gave me…… just how much were they worth?

Only now did she realize that the price she had just named was absurdly high by their standards.

Wow. I really……

She felt the slightest twinge of guilt.

Barely the size of a fingernail.

But these were thugs who had barged into her tent without permission and waved their swords around.

At this point, I’m practically giving them a discount.

Se-hee shook her head and handed out the packets one by one.

“Here. One packet of Fire Chicken Stir-Fried Noodles each.”

Se-hee looked over their faces once and tilted her head.

“Actually, now that I think about it, you guys look so miserable that I’ll give you a little discount.”

The mercenaries looked hopeful.

“One silver coin and three bronze coins per packet. How about it?”

Vargas’s eyes widened.

It was about the same price as a hearty meat stew and a few beers at a village tavern.

But Vargas knew that refusing this offer would only leave him worse off.

“Oh……! Of course. That sounds good.”

Vargas quickly agreed, afraid Se-hee might change her mind.

At least it’s cheaper than a gold coin. There shouldn’t be any trouble later.

Se-hee seemed satisfied and pointed ahead with her chin.

“Everyone, go over there and find a place to sit.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the familiar system window appeared.

[Exchange Notification]

• Detected: 6 Imperial Silver Coins × 18 Bronze Coins

• Converted Value: 780P

• Fee (20%): -156P

• Final Amount Acquired: 624P

It feels completely different from when I received gold coins.

Se-hee looked over the numbers once again.

Can the difference in points really be this huge?

She wanted to calculate it properly.

But seeing the mercenaries standing blankly in front of her with their ramen, she cut off her train of thought and added,

“I’ll demonstrate how to cook it from now on.”

Vargas and his men accepted the ramen packets with bewildered expressions.

The fact that the weapon they had thought was the fire of hell was actually a product worth one silver coin left their minds in confusion.

But they were too intimidated by Se-hee’s attitude to complain.

“I’m giving you a cheap price for trespassing without permission.”

Se-hee looked down at the pot.

Then she swallowed a sigh and opened the System Shop.

• [Pot] … 700P

I’ll probably be using these more from now on, right? Then I can think of it as an initial investment.

She made the decision quickly and moved her hand toward the purchase button.

[Purchase History]

• Pot ×3

Total Cost: 2,100P

The new pots dropped onto the ground one after another.

The mercenary group flinched at the sight of the suddenly appearing pots.

“There are three pots, so split into groups of two and cook.”

Vargas rolled his eyes for a moment as he counted.

“Two people per pot?”

“Yes. Two packets per pot is fine.”

Se-hee nodded and continued,

“Oh, and get the water from over there.”

She pointed toward the faucet beside the tent.

“Light your own fires, too. This is self-service.”

The tear-streaked mercenaries looked at one another, then put down their weapons and settled into their places.

The sight of their rough hands carefully fiddling with the ramen packets was strangely comical.

They handle swords so well. Why are they being so careful with the packets?

Se-hee cleared her throat.

“All right. If everyone’s seated, pay attention.”

Only after confirming that everyone’s eyes were naturally focused on her did she continue.

“I’m going to explain how to cook delicious Fire Chicken Stir-Fried Noodles.”

Se-hee opened the pot lid and began her group customer training in earnest.