#139: Stalls (2) — The Archmage's Restaurant

She showed no signs of being afraid of the gangsters.

Nor did she appear angry.

Her face, which had been lively when talking to the young man, was now utterly expressionless as she looked at the gangsters.

The sight of her continuing to eat udon in that state was so out of place that Marko fell into confusion.

Usually, when such thugs come in, people would show fear or some reaction, but she showed none.

No, it was a kind of extreme indifference, like asking if it was okay to kill those bugs.

And the continuous sound of noodles being slurped.

Slurp-

“Hehe, this tastes good.”

And an exclamation.

The woman, slurping her noodles, looked at the young man as if demanding an answer to her question.

Of course, Marko had no way of knowing.

Recently, such gangsters and assassins had been sent north to be dealt with or killed, which is why she was asking about the method.

All Marko could see was the young man shaking his head quietly in response to the woman’s words.

“Just keep sitting and eating that.”

When the young man answered, the woman nodded and lost interest in the gangsters, focusing on her udon again.

Seeing this, Marko wondered what they were planning to do.

The young man seemed to be about to do something as he moved from the kitchen toward the table.

At that moment, another group approached the pojangmacha.

“Oh, I’m tired. This is the factory area, right?”

“Yes, there’s no need for you to personally patrol, Boss… What a hassle this is.”

“Hey, you! I need to see it with my own eyes to be sure. Are you kidding me! By the way, what’s that? It wasn’t there before. It doesn’t seem to be licensed. Let’s go. Guys.”

“Yes, Boss!”

The approaching group was wearing military uniforms.

They were from the Greek City’s security force.

Marko, who couldn’t understand their conversation, felt relieved seeing them.

In the old days, the military might have colluded with these gangsters and caused more trouble, but the current security force was very strict.

At the center of this was Captain Gind of the security force.

After his fight with El, he was appointed as the captain of the security force, and he was always working tirelessly to repay that favor.

“Security force?”

Normally, Marko would have stayed quiet, but today he liked the atmosphere of this place, so he took a deep breath and stood up, pointing at the gangsters and shouting.

“Here, here, these guys are causing trouble. Please help!”

“Trouble?”

Hearing that, Gind frowned and approached the gangsters.

“They’re demanding protection money… The shop owner is in trouble, and you came just in time!”

“What? You bastard, who are you to talk nonsense! I’ll kill you, you jerk!”

The gangsters glared and cursed, and Marko, startled, sat back down and cowered.

Right.

‘What was I thinking?’

Marko began to tremble, thinking he must have gone crazy for standing up.

“Thank you. You are brave.”

But when the young man bowed and thanked him, an unexpected sense of pride surged in Marko.

Even though he might get into trouble, and despite the security force being nearby, it wasn’t easy for an ordinary citizen to stand up in such a situation.

Despite that, Marko just wanted to protect this moment.

He had been feeling lonely, but he found a place with a good atmosphere and delicious drinks.

“Who’s dying? You die, you bastard. Where did these guys come from?”

Gind hit one of the gangsters hard on the back of the head.

“The former lord, you know, went through so much trouble to root out bastards like you… Even now, it brings tears to my eyes. How dare you cause trouble?”

“You’re kidding, the lord’s dogs, who do you think you are!”

The gangsters, unaware, resisted the security force, even spitting at Gind.

In non-border areas, military discipline was often poor, and security forces would avoid fights with gangsters, and indeed, the combat capability of such forces was substandard.

But the recently unified old Dedran City and Greek City were different.

Moreover, Gind was incredibly persistent.

“Hahaha. Deal with these crazy bastards immediately!”

“Yes, Boss!”

And soon a fight broke out.

As the security force appeared, the young man, who had been keeping his head down, quietly spoke to Marko.

“They will soon be taken away. Don’t worry.”

“Oh, yes…”

Marko watched the fight, hoping it would end soon.

After the security force chased the fleeing gangsters outside, the gangsters were eventually seen tied up in the distance.

El had set up this food stall here to ensure the factory was running smoothly for the last time.

Since it was something he started, he wanted to personally check the workers’ conditions to ensure no one was suddenly being mistreated or overworked, and finally to let go completely.

Then he could just sit back and collect the royalties.

Paint the lair with gold.

And enjoy what Rurin liked.

So he set up the food stall right in front of the factory and watched for a few days.

Now that the unwelcome guests were gone, he spoke to Marko.

“By the way, how’s work at the factory? Is it tough?”

“Pardon?”

Marko asked back, surprised by the sudden question. But perhaps due to the alcohol, he soon began talking about his recent life.

“It’s good. It’s so nice to have a place to work.”

“Is that so.”

“Yes, but…you see.”

Marko, taking another shot of soju, began to share thoughts he never would have expressed with a clear head.

“In this old Dedran City, which was in a recession, I couldn’t even get married, just barely surviving alone, and now that things are finally settling down, everything else has improved, but I’m still alone…even on my birthday, I have no one to share a drink with…”

Marko muttered, not sure if he was talking to El or himself, and lowered his head.

“Is that so…”

“I did my best for my colleagues…”

“Did you do your best expecting a reward?”

“No, it’s not that. They treated me well too, so it just came naturally…”

“Then isn’t that enough? Life has its ups and downs.”

El smiled and filled Marko’s glass with soju.

He said nothing more. No consolation was needed.

He just filled his drink and spoke a simple truth.

And added one more thing at the end.

“This way, you’re not drinking alone.”

“Is that so. Thank you.”

Marko smiled and drank the soju El poured for him. He felt at ease. That’s what Marko thought.

Just then, Captain Gind and his men returned. Marko was so surprised he started hiccuping.

“Sorry for the commotion. But was there always a place like this at the factory entrance? A food stall…owner, I’m sorry, but do you have a permit…?”

Marko was relieved that the captain returned, but he spit out some udon broth.

Could it really be unlicensed?

He thought it might be, and that would be unfortunate.

It’s a bar run by a hardworking couple. And he liked this young man too.

He wasn’t in a position to worry about someone else, but still…

As he was thinking that, Captain Gind suddenly froze.

“Buh-buh-buh…”

He couldn’t even speak properly, just opening his mouth and starting to tremble.

The young stall owner sighed and approached the stunned Gind.

The soldiers were all surprised and stomped their feet at their captain’s sudden change.

“Captain!”

“Hmm, let’s go over there and talk for a bit…”

And El took Gind to the back and disappeared.

It looked like a scene where a bully takes another student into an alley to extort them.

Seeing this change in the situation, Marko widened his eyes.

He felt more like drinking because of his concern.

Looking at his empty soju glass, Marko spoke to the woman.

“Excuse me, could I get another bottle of soju?”

The woman, who had been dozing off with her empty udon bowl, frowned at the request.

If he had known she was sleeping, he wouldn’t have called her.

“What is it? Huh? You’re gone.”

When Marko’s eyes met the woman’s, he immediately lowered his head again. It’s still the same.

He still felt a strange fear whenever he met her gaze.

The woman looked around and then moved to go outside.

But at that moment, the stall owner returned.

The young man returned unscathed, and the security force was nowhere to be seen.

Marko didn’t know what had happened, but the young man was still smiling.

So Marko, perhaps because he was too drunk to think clearly, ordered more drinks, thinking everything must have turned out fine.

“You! Where did you go?”

“Oh, I was just talking to someone I know.”

“Is that so. Then it’s fine. Hehe.”

Rurin laughed.

And so the night grew deeper.

Drunk on the atmosphere and the soju, Marko finally felt he had enough and stood up.

It was time to sleep.

“Well, thank you.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Marko got up from the food stall.

His once gloomy mood had lifted. He felt he could go home with a light heart.

“Oh, and…”

“Yes?”

“Be sure to stay alert on your way home. It would be a big deal if you fell. And be sure to watch your surroundings carefully when you get to your house.”

“Huh? Oh, right. Thank you.”

Marko nodded and walked outside.

El watched.

The people gathering in front of Marko’s house as they came down from the factory.

Since it seemed like they were waiting for the night shift to join, El tried to stall a bit more so Marko could meet them.

Thanks to that, he got more drunk than expected, but as long as he doesn’t black out, it should be fine.

“Rurin, let’s go back too. The factory is running well, so there’s no need to worry anymore. Gind is also working hard, so it should be peaceful for a while.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. More than that, I’m sleepy.”

Rurin squinted and spoke.

“Hehehe.”

Then she threw herself into El’s arms and started rubbing her cheeks against him. El had already experienced several times that Rurin never approached him first when she was sober.

She always hoped for hugs or kisses, but she could never initiate them first.

But today, why?

As he was thinking that, El noticed a soju bottle rolling at Rurin’s feet.

Since soju is essential at the food stall, he started to think they had been negligent in managing the soju bottles.

Maybe they should have sold only beer.

So the conclusion is…

The Rurin who is now clinging and rubbing her cheeks while giggling is a drunk Rurin.

“Dear!”

Rurin began kissing El’s neck as she clung to him.

“Me too, you have to do it to me too. Here!”

Then she pushed her neck towards him with teary eyes.

Oh my god.