126 – Dating is Forbidden in Our Party – 1

Since he had already staged a rather fateful reunion with his former party members before, Gi-jun thought that rather than setting a solemn mood for no reason this time, it would be best to welcome them with a table full of hearty food, so he decided to rent the accommodation’s kitchen and make several dishes he was confident in.

First was a soup dish that Tilla would be noticeably disappointed by if it were missing from the table.

The stew, made by stir-frying beef, potatoes, carrots, and onions in butter and then simmering them with tomatoes and sauce, was delicious enough that Tilla, who had followed him to help with the cooking, emptied a whole bowl claiming she was just tasting it.

Of course, for Eun-shin who liked curry, he had also prepared curry boiled with his own handmade curry powder instead of tomatoes, keeping the other ingredients the same.

“This stew is the best… I only need this, Jun.”

“You will regret that. Today is a chicken party.”

If today’s party had been aimed at ordinary people of Gratia, he might have grilled steaks, made meunière, or at least used various tapas to feast their eyes.

But the main guests of today’s party were Koreans.

For Koreans, if there was something to celebrate, feeding them chicken first was the way to go.

As long as the other party was not a vegan, there was no failure.

“First, I will make the sauce.”

“A-are you making this much?”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about. All cooking is decided by the sauce.”

“But… do these become sauce too?”

Laura, who participated as an assistant like Tilla, frowned unconsciously as she saw the onions and garlic piled high on one side and spoke.

Since she was not a vampire, she would not be weakened by eating garlic or onions, but because her five senses had become incomparably sharper than before after being bitten by Carmilla, she harbored a slight aversion to ingredients with excessively strong aromas like garlic and onions.

“A strong-smelling sauce meets the chicken grease and gets neutralized. I will peel the onion skins, so you stir-fry the other seasonings, Lora.”

“Y-yes, I understand…!”

Fortunately, in Cor, the center of the kingdom, all the ingredients and spices for the sauce Gi-jun wanted were available.

No, actually, there was no soybean paste or soy sauce, but he ultimately succeeded in purchasing them remotely through the fairy merchant Viv.

Gi-jun made a total of five types of sauces: sweet seasoning, spicy seasoning, soy sauce, garlic, and onion cream.

With a total of six menus including the fried chicken, anyone would be satisfied!

“Alright, then let’s fry the chickens in earnest.”

The members participating in today’s party were nine people: the five from the Lumen party led by Gi-jun, Viv, and the three from Ye-min’s party.

In addition, if Nabinya, who was treated as Gi-jun’s possession, and the spirits were counted, it would easily exceed ten people, so he boldly decided to fry fifteen chickens.

Shouldn’t a warrior rolling around the Leta Continent naturally finish one chicken per person?

Frying the extra chicken was because they could just fry them all at once anyway and put the leftovers in the inventory, and also because he was certain there would definitely be someone who ate more than one chicken.

―The contractor is coolest when frying chicken…!

“It is not a very pleasing compliment, but thank you, Lucy.”

After completing the chicken, Gi-jun made a salad containing just enough green leaves to protect the conscience of the party participants, and only after baking two chocolate cakes to eat as dessert did he finish cooking.

Just because Tilla had cooked under Gi-jun’s directions in the kitchen he commanded, her cooking skill grew, and Laura, who originally did not have the cooking skill, went as far as to acquire a new cooking skill.

“Now, we just have to wait for the kids to arrive.”

At Gi-jun’s words as he tidied up his apron, Laura, who had been marveling at obtaining the cooking skill, suddenly looked at his face and spoke.

“You seem very happy, Jun-nim. You keep smiling.”

“Ah—really? I suppose so. Actually, I originally had no intention of joining up until this quest was over.”

“I see…”

It might have been different if he did not know the location of Ye-min’s party, but there were several reasons why he had not joined them until now despite having already reunited.

First was the fact that the two parties were settled in different places, making it difficult to travel easily.

To tolerate such a drawback and call them to Cor, the teleport gate usage fee was too expensive for a party that had just established itself, which weighed on his mind.

And finally, the party Gi-jun led had to do very dangerous work in future quests, and he did not want to drag Ye-min’s party into that.

Lastly… although it was an inner thought he could not tell anyone, another big reason was that he wanted to show Ye-min that the party he himself organized and operated could achieve splendid results.

‘It was a sense of inferiority. It was also a lingering attachment.’

―The fact that you can be purely happy about her coming means you have shaken off those foolish thoughts by now, right?

‘Honestly, I made a lot of mistakes… but I still achieved quite a bit, and since all my current party members are smiling, I think it’s fine.’

Compared to Ye-min, who had been the center of a million Earthlings in the tutorial, Gi-jun would indeed still be far lacking.

Since he could not even perfectly lead a party of just five members.

But even so, if there was one thing he could be confident in, it was the fact that everyone in his party trusted and relied on him.

Their recent performance was also quite good, so shouldn’t he be able to hold his head high as a party leader by now?

―No, well, the contractor might not be a competent leader, but at least you are a reliable guardian…

Yet for some reason, Lucy’s reaction was lukewarm.

Could it be that the party members were talking behind his back without him knowing?

For a moment, the timidity of the past that he had not yet thrown away reared its head, but that was not the reason Lucy was unenthusiastic.

―Contractor, I also think the relationship between you and each individual party member is very good. But putting aside the relationship issues between the party members, I think you need to make your stance clear if you want to avoid big trouble in the future…

‘My stance…?’

―Yes, actually, I feel like the kids coming today might trigger that problem.

However, the conversation between the two could not continue any further.

This was because there were guests who had arrived, making a ruckus that rang loudly through the lodging.

“C-Crown Prince!”

“It is Lord Lectus! Those dragon eyes… it’s definitely him!”

Lectus, who had thoroughly worn a helmet and acted as ‘Smith’ when active as a knight due to his status, had for some reason thrown off his armor and visited their lodging dressed in splendid ceremonial uniform.

He had even put a helmet on Patum, the Hero of Light, completely hiding his identity and disguising him as if he were Lectus’s guard knight.

Naturally, many people were astonished, and eyes were so focused on Lectus that a procession leading to the lodging was formed.

Even so, he wondered if it was fine for a man who was the Crown Prince of a nation to have such a lack of security awareness, but then again, thinking of Patum who was reliably protecting him from behind, it seemed like it might be fine… no, Patum was actually playing along with this act!

“Wait, has she not arrived yet?”

Lectus, who had staged his own splendid entrance even mobilizing Patum, grasped the situation as soon as he saw Gi-jun coming out of the lodging’s kitchen and spoke in annoyance.

But the one who was truly annoyed was Gi-jun.

“Let’s go up to the room and talk first.”

“No, I will wait for her here…”

“Come up.”

Lectus could not resist the pressure Gi-jun radiated and had to follow behind him meekly.

Clearly, if one only considered species rank, Lectus was higher than Gi-jun—but since Gi-jun had already overwhelmed the Seven Sages, who had reached the legendary realm, with his momentum alone, it was not surprising.

Arriving at the suite room where Gi-jun was staying, they sat on the sofa and began to talk while Gin was in the middle of diligently decorating the party venue.

“Listen, Jun. It is not something to be so worked up about. This was also something Patum proposed.”

“But it must have been your choice to stage it like this at this exact timing.”

“Sharp…”

Lectus fell silent at Gi-jun’s remark that hit the mark.

He was usually quite decent, so why was he breaking down this much over Ye-min, whom he had only seen once?

Realizing anew the power Ye-min’s beauty had possessed during the tutorial days that now felt so distantly far away, Gi-jun shook his head.

“Exposing Lectus’s location at this point was because we wanted to see the vampires’ reaction.”

Patum continued the explanation instead of Lectus, who was intimidated by Gi-jun.

“Whether the vampire bastards come to launch a direct raid themselves or those under their orders come to lure Lectus out, as long as they take action in some way, we can respond accordingly. We thought it was not good to just be swept away by the flow like this.”

“You mean the expedition in three days.”

“Indeed. Of course, assassination is also a good method—but before that, I wanted to provoke the other side in a different way.”

“It could be a bad move. Especially when public opinion is boiling for the Gratia royal family to participate in the expedition, seeing the Crown Prince wandering around just to meet a woman.”

“I will keep a proper leash on that part, so do not worry.”

At Patum’s calmly tossed words, Lectus’s head snapped around.

To Lectus, who wore an expression as if looking at a betrayer, Patum raised his middle finger with an expressionless face.

It seemed even the Hero was quite displeased that Lectus had used him as a guard knight.

Gi-jun shrugged his shoulders and spoke.

“I thought you were just tactlessly trying to crash the party’s reunion, but if you had such intentions, it cannot be helped. I prepared a lot, so eat before you go.”

“Jun, you have become quite comfortable speaking informally to the Crown Prince of this country.”

“If you want to be treated as such, act like a Crown Prince.”

“Jun will soon become the Hero of Light, and his status will be higher than that of a Crown Prince of a minor nation like Gratia. The one who needs to be careful is you, Lectus.”

“A minor nation?!”

Patum seemed to have resolved to give full support to Gi-jun, whom he had earmarked as his hero successor.

Or maybe he just wanted to insult Lectus.

Gi-jun left the troublemaker to the reliable senior and left the room.

It was around then that Ye-min’s party arrived.

Fortunately, unlike Lectus, Ye-min seemed to have no intention of drawing people’s attention, as she appeared with her face thoroughly concealed, but it was still unavoidable that eyes were drawn to her due to the unique atmosphere she radiated.

“Oppa!”

“Yeah, Min-ah—Ugh!”

Gi-jun blinked his eyes as he easily caught Ye-min, who threw herself into his arms as soon as she saw him.

He thought their emotional hug for their reunion after ten years was already finished last time.

He did not expect her to act like this even now, when not even a month had passed since then.

The rest of the party members who saw him wearing a puzzled expression—namely, Mok-su and Eun-shin—shook their heads, thinking he still had a long way to go.

Gi-jun made eye contact with Mok-su and Eun-shin, struggling to somehow detach Ye-min, who refused to leave his arms.

“Welcome, everyone. I originally wanted to resolve this with just my own abilities, so I’m sorry for calling you like this.”

“Actually, I’m glad, Oppa. That you need us. Because I thought we wouldn’t be of help anymore.”

“Why do you say that? Where else could you find people as capable as our party members?”

“You still call us ‘our party.’ I’m glad.”

While Ye-min spoke words that felt strangely emotional, she still persistently clung to Gi-jun’s chest, but fortunately, Tilla and Laura, who had come out behind Gi-jun to welcome the group, resolved the situation.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Scintilla. If you were Jun’s companion, then you’re like my companion too. Please look after me.”

“I am Lora. I act as both a priest and a swordsman.”

Although they greeted her politely in words, the movements of the two, who were busy separating Ye-min from Gi-jun with their hands, were as skillful as if they had agreed in advance.

As Ye-min, who was pushed away in the blink of an eye, blinked and looked back and forth between the two women—Eun-shin stepped forward to ask, partly to break the unsettling atmosphere that had begun to hang in the air.

“Where is Hye Nuna, Hyung?”

“Oh, come to think of it, she hasn’t been seen for a while.”

“Ji-hye said she was running away.”

Tilla answered in a cheerful voice while still keeping her eyes on Ye-min.

“She said someone was going to kill her.”

“Ah, Hye-ji.”

“That girl, she must have run away because she’s scared of Min-i… Anyway, then.”

Shaking his head, Mok-su clapped his hands to clear up the messy atmosphere.

“Everyone must have a lot to talk about, including introductions, so instead of staying outside like this, why don’t we go up to the room? Jun, is the room somewhat spacious?”

“It is spacious. But before that—just so you all know, there are two guests.”

“Guests? Don’t tell me they’re women?”

Ye-min asked in a voice that seemed to have turned slightly sour for some reason.

Gi-jun answered as he led the group up the stairs.

“There are two, and they’re men. One is the Crown Prince of this kingdom, and the other is the Hero of Light who represents the continent.”

At that moment, the atmosphere froze to the point where one might wonder if someone had activated a unique territory.

Mok-su grumbled on behalf of Ye-min, who had shut her mouth.

“Stop it, Jun. How can you intimidate us just by introducing your guests?”

“Fufu, for your information, Jun was chosen by that Hero to be the next Hero.”

Tilla did not miss the opportunity to brag about Gi-jun, stepping forward as if she did not care at all about the dispirited Ye-min party.

Gi-jun smiled awkwardly under the astonished gazes pouring from the three people.

“It just happened to turn out that way.”

Although the reason he could be recognized as a hero was not because his own abilities were outstanding, but simply because the master who had sacrificed everything to raise him was great…

Since he knew it was inappropriate to speak of his connection with Biche here, he merely remained silent for now.

The group entered the suite room in such a strangely tense atmosphere.

Patum pressed down hard on the shoulder of Lectus, who was about to stand up with a bright face the moment he saw Ye-min coming inside, with a hand as large as a pot lid to keep him seated.

“I heard you are Jun’s companions. Let me introduce myself, I am the Hero Patum.”

“I, I am Lectus, the Crown Prince of Gratia, indeed.”

“Indeed?”

All eyes in the room turned to Lectus.

He endured everyone’s gaze firmly and spoke.

“I am in a very close relationship with Jun and have helped him a lot. I wish to get close with you… all as well.”

“You can ignore this man.”

Patum, unable to bear it any longer, spoke.

Gi-jun nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, ignore him.”

“Honestly, he hasn’t been of much help so far.”

“Unlike our Jun-nim, you couldn’t even respond properly to the Sage.”

While Tilla and Lora added their own words, Gin poked his head out from the living room, twitching the two ears on his head as he spoke.

“Jun-nim, the table is all set! I think we can set the food out now!”

“A werewolf?!”

Come to think of it, he had forgotten to introduce Gin.

He introduced Gin to the astonished members, smiled broadly, and spoke.

“I’m sure we have a lot to talk about, but let’s eat while we talk. Today’s menu is chicken.”

“Chicken!”

“There is curry too.”

“I love you, Hyung!”

No more talk was needed.

For the record, Ji-hye showed up sneakily about twenty minutes later, but fortunately, she was able to survive because Ye-min was too distracted by the chicken.