When I Returned to Farming, National-level Big Juniors Flock - Chapter 6
Only Krnovel
6. Let’s eat
I, Oh Hyun-seong, am a man. It may be a little odd for me to say this myself, but there was a time when I was the best hunter in Korea.
But not everything in the world is proportional to one’s ability.
Among the survivors of that terrible era, no one would deny this.
This is an era where even the names of rookies who have only been to the field a few times are being touted as promising prospects in the news.
This Oh Hyeon-seong’s name could not be found anywhere.
This is because there is not even a bit of achievement or fame known to the outside world.
On the other hand, if you were to name the most famous hunters in South Korea, there are a few names that are sure to come up.
One of them is ‘Han Su-yeon’.
A 13th-rank hunter who can easily destroy a small country.
A powerful figure in the Blue House who enjoys the president’s full trust, and the deputy director of the Disaster Management Bureau, a special agency in charge of overseeing government Hunter and Gate issues.
Even though he is not a civilian hunter who is often exposed to the media, he has a name that is so well-known that any Korean would know him.
He is a truly successful hunter, unlike anyone else, whose past achievements are all highlighted and whose current position is commensurate with them.
He is a big shot among big shots who has no reason to set foot in a rural area like this.
Yeah, she was my junior.
***
The silence that continued in front of the main gate.
Oh Hyun-seong stared intently at Han Su-yeon.
She appeared unexpectedly and stood there looking no different than before.
My under-eye area felt a little puffy, but that was it.
“I didn’t know you’d come here. Why are you here?”
“It’s a little sad, senior. Why are you asking me instead of how?”
“No matter where you go in the country, it’s obvious that you’ll be in the palm of your hand. What’s not obvious is that your classmate came without a single escort.”
Oh Hyun-seong said while looking at the car parked in the corner.
There aren’t even any drivers, let alone people in suits.
He said that he drove all the way to this remote village by himself to find me.
As far as he could remember, Han Su-yeon was neither good at driving nor liked it.
“Because it’s an extremely personal schedule. More importantly, if you came here in a loud way, even by helicopter, it’s obvious that someone would be annoyed, right?”
“hmm…”
“I’m saying this just in case, but it has nothing to do with the government. It’s not so desperate that we need to call in retirees who just got out of the hospital.”
Han Soo-yeon said.
“I just… came to see your face.”
“Come in first.”
I couldn’t keep leaving it outside, so I brought it inside for now.
Han Su-yeon, who came into the yard, looked around with a small exclamation of admiration.
“Is this your new house? It’s huge.”
“Yeah, it just happened that way.”
“It would be nice if it was bigger. Just figure out how to clean it.”
“You’re a city person, too.”
“hmm?”
Han Soo-yeon blinked her large eyes.
Oh Hyun-seong let out a brief laugh at that sight.
“Why is it that five years have passed and it still feels the same?”
“I’ve been worried for so long. And I’m sorry. I should have visited the hospital more often.”
“No, I understand you must have been busy. I’ve been in that position before, so I know. Plus, you must have been busy cleaning up afterward.”
Oh Hyeon-seong did not have a wide network of friends.
Due to the nature of my job, I don’t have much time, but as I got older, I realized that taking care of my friends also requires time and effort.
Moreover, Han Su-yeon is a minister-level official in the government cabinet.
Basically, it is a position that is burdened with hard work, and it would have taken more than a year of manpower to recover after the queen fell.
In the first place, Oh Hyun-seong himself had refused all requests for visitation from others while he was undergoing rehabilitation, so he didn’t think much of it.
‘By the way, you’re not the type to come here without notice, so what’s going on?’
The Han Su-yeon he knows is a very systematic person.
The same goes for tendencies outside of missions.
But now her appearance seemed somewhat impulsive.
It felt like it came to me out of nowhere without me even knowing.
Boom boom!
“Huh? You guys…?”
At that moment, the hidden spirits began to crawl out from all directions.
I was secretly watching and noticed a familiar face appearing.
“Wow, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you. Senior’s little punks.”
Han Soo-yeon smiled brightly.
The spirits also came around to welcome her enthusiastically.
Since long ago, Han Su-yeon has been loved by spirits thanks to her innate sociability.
Han Soo-yeon herself basically liked little spirits and played with them a lot.
They were so close that I first gave them the nickname Bbibbim, despite them being useless in combat.
Whenever we had some free time while working together, we would always call these guys and hang out together.
Boom boom!
“Still cute.”
Han Su-yeon climbed onto his shoulders and placed the spirit of the earth on the ground.
Then he shook off the dust that had settled on his shoulders.
Oh Hyeon-seong placed the earth spirit on top of his head at the sight of the gloomy appearance.
“Did you really come here just to see my face?”
“I heard that he suddenly returned to farming right after being discharged from the hospital, and I was curious about how he was living. I also wanted to see for myself.”
“So, what are your thoughts?”
“Honestly, I thought it wouldn’t suit me at all, but it turned out better than I expected.”
“I didn’t leave the city without a plan. I was given some recommendations for places to visit.”
“Was it Kwon Kyung-min, from that person?”
“Did you do some background checks on your surroundings?”
“No, even if you say they’re my senior’s friends, it’s obvious. There aren’t many of them.”
Han Su-yeon sat down on the bed with a thud.
And then I stared at the setting sun.
“The view is really nice.”
Han Su-yeon has always liked sunsets painted on clouds.
But Oh Hyun-seong realized the identity of the strange feeling he had been feeling since those words just now.
‘Was it an illusion that nothing had changed?’
What she said just now was just mechanical words spoken without any particular emotion.
Although it looked good on the outside, she felt no emotion as she looked at the sunset.
The facial expressions and speech are all fake.
‘Well, I guess I’m not the only one who’s worn out on the battlefield.’
Moreover, Han Su-yeon would have continued to fight monsters and associate with high-ranking government officials in the changed society.
It might have been naive to think that people hadn’t changed while I was lying in bed for five years.
But at this point, it is not an area where you can interfere.
Oh Hyun-seong said, his mouth watering.
“You haven’t eaten dinner? Let’s eat some rice!”
***
“Uh…Senior?”
Han Su-yeon, sitting in front, stared blankly at the table.
On a single plate in the center, potatoes are piled up like a mountain.
Potatoes of various sizes and rough appearance.
It was clearly called dinner, but when I looked at Oh Hyeon-seong, who came over with a calm expression and sat down in front of me, it seemed like there was no other food.
‘What is this?’
Han Su-yeon looked quite embarrassed.
She always ate dishes made with the finest ingredients prepared by first-class chefs.
If the taste was good, I would gladly pay hundreds for a meal.
This is not because she is a gourmet, but because she has no choice unless she wants to eat horrible cheap food.
Nowadays, there is no one with money who does not spend a lot of money on food.
Politicians who boast of their humble origins in front of the camera, but behind the scenes, they pour enormous amounts of money into high-end synthetic meat.
But when faced with such a crude potato-filled diet, one cannot help but be even more prepared.
“Do you usually eat like this?”
“Hmm, is this too much of a feast?”
“Senior… Are you short on money? Did you invest your retirement money? Or maybe you’ve opened your eyes to gambling…”
Han Su-yeon asked in a very serious tone.
Even if you aim for a simple rural life, you can’t have such a sloppy diet without being frugal.
But Oh Hyun-seong was actually filled with great expectations.
‘Sigh, I’m drooling.’
She came before I had even finished eating, and to make matters worse, this time she ordered baked potatoes instead of boiled ones, a different recipe.
I was curious to see what it would taste like this time.
However, he didn’t immediately reach out.
“Since you’re a customer, I’ll give you the order. You eat first.”
“I know it’s a bit grandiose to say, but… thank you.”
Han Su-yeon swallowed a short sigh.
I wasn’t expecting anything special from a meal in the mountains like this.
But a table piled high with nothing but potatoes.
Since Han Su-yeon knows the taste of wild crops, she could already guess what it would taste like.
There’s no sauce to mask the flavor.
But that doesn’t mean I can’t show off my bad manners or not even touch him in front of my senior whom I haven’t seen in 5 years.
“Where did these potatoes come from?”
“I grew it myself in my garden.”
“What? How long have you been here? You grew your own potatoes? Have you taken any illegal drugs?”
“Stop talking and start eating.”
Oh Hyun-seong said, pushing the bowl in front of her.
Then, Han Su-yeon picked up a potato of an appropriate size with a disgusted expression.
The potatoes, lightly sprinkled with salt, were steaming and smelling quite delicious.
It was unexpected.
Because the wild potatoes she knew didn’t smell like this.
‘It’s been so long since I ate something like this that I forgot.’
Han Su-yeon tilted her head and took a big bite of the potato.
Inside the crispy skin, soft potato flesh filled my mouth.
Then Han Su-yeon’s eyes shook greatly.
The characteristic smell and texture of wild potatoes she had expected were nowhere to be found.
‘This taste…’
Han Su-yeon’s expression hardened.
The babbling mouth also stopped moving.
She remained expressionless and silent, and there was just silence.
‘What? Does it taste bad?’
Oh Hyun-seong was momentarily embarrassed.
I knew that she would react enthusiastically to this new taste after just one bite.
I thought you’d be amazed at how delicious it was after just one bite, but this is what you’re saying.
I was wondering if there was any change in the taste during the cooking process of baking rather than steaming.
However, the moment Oh Hyun-seong was about to open his mouth to say something, he heard her trembling voice.
“Uh… huh…?”
Tears flowed down from Han Su-yeon’s large eyes.
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