NOVEL NEXT 4
Lee In-cheol nodded to himself, muttering under his breath.
“Yes, that kid reminds me of myself when I was young. Indeed. Full of spirit and boldness, just like I was!”
He said something that would have shocked Song Woo-yeon if she had heard it, then looked up at the newly hung sign with misty eyes.
The sight of the old, musty sign being replaced with a new one felt like looking at his own worn-out self.
“Ah, how sentimental. You get more teary-eyed with age, you know.”
Lee In-cheol grumbled to hide his embarrassment, wiping his eyes with his sleeve.
He couldn’t just stand back and watch like a bystander when that young one was trying her best to revive the shop.
He hurriedly followed after Song Woo-yeon.
“Woo-yeon. Why are you going alone? I’ll come with… Huh?”
As soon as he opened the shop door, Lee In-cheol froze in his tracks.
“Oh, you’re here?”
Song Woo-yeon greeted him casually, but Lee In-cheol was too distracted to pay attention.
Instead, he pointed at the dramatically changed shop interior with a trembling voice.
“W-what… What on earth happened here…?”
One side of the shop had been completely cleared out.
The posters Lee In-cheol had carefully selected, the lucky ceramic figurines said to bring financial fortune—all of it was gone!
“This?”
Song Woo-yeon pointed to a box, responding nonchalantly.
“I removed them because they were unsightly. The building itself is quite old, so it’s difficult to make major changes. I thought it might be better to go for a retro concept. Ah, by retro, I don’t mean using genuinely old-fashioned items. That would be unhygienic. It’s more about creating the appearance…”
“What? Old-fashioned?”
Lee In-cheol slammed his fist on the table, his hand shaking with anger.
“Those are all my treasures! You can’t remove any of them!”
“Oh dear. Here we go again.”
Song Woo-yeon shrugged, as if used to this reaction.
And so, with its fair share of conflicts, the first steps of ‘Hapjae Soup 0212’ had begun.
⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱
“Ha~am.”
The man yawned widely.
The time was now 11:45 AM.
The lunch hour he had been eagerly awaiting since 11 o’clock was just around the corner. Around him, people were discreetly preparing to leave at 11:50 or 11:55, eyeing each other warily.
There was no point in starting anything new when the flow would be interrupted soon anyway. The man idly fiddled with his mouse, pretending to work.
“Assistant Manager Choi. What are you having for lunch today?”
“Oh, Team Leader Min.”
Damn. Busted.
Assistant Manager Choi inwardly cursed as he saw Team Leader Min approach him with a friendly demeanor.
“I haven’t really decided on anything yet.”
His plans to eat a quick lunch alone and enjoy some personal time had been completely derailed.
Team Leader Min often had meals with team members on a rotating basis, and unfortunately, today was Assistant Manager Choi’s turn.
“Is that so? Well, I’m fine with anything~ Let’s just eat whatever. Whatever you like.”
He casually passed the burden of choosing onto Assistant Manager Choi. Though he said “whatever,” if he didn’t like it, he’d complain throughout the meal.
Previously, when they had gone to his favorite tonkatsu place, he had spent the entire meal griping about the sauce being too sweet and the pork cutlet tasting like a frozen product.
‘I was in the mood for tonkatsu today too….’
Regrettably, that seemed to be off the table for today.
If there was one silver lining, it was that Team Leader Min had a somewhat predictable “correct answer.”
“How about some soup? Something hot and hearty.”
“Soup sounds good~!”
A hearty bowl of soup was always a safe choice that Team Leader Min enjoyed without complaint.
They could just go to their usual place and have a decent meal. He’d probably have to listen to some advice about work and life during the meal, but that was manageable.
Steeling himself, Assistant Manager Choi headed towards their regular soup place near the office, but…
“The chef cut his hand and had to go to the emergency room. We’re closed for today. We apologize for the inconvenience.”
“…….”
“…….”
Faced with the unexpected closure notice on the door, Assistant Manager Choi could only stand there blankly.
“Aish. This place is a no-go. Is there anywhere else good around here?”
“Well, there’s a place that serves pork wraps nearby. How about that?”
“I had that yesterday.”
This was bad. Assistant Manager Choi felt cold sweat running down his spine. He could clearly see Team Leader Min’s patience wearing thin.
They were wasting precious lunch time standing on the street, so naturally, he wasn’t in a good mood. If this continued, Assistant Manager Choi might be labeled as an employee lacking social skills and face disapproving looks all afternoon.
“I was really in the mood for soup today. Sigh.”
Team Leader Min’s muttering seemed especially loud today.
‘What should I do? This was the only soup place nearby….’
Just as he was starting to panic,
“Oh?”
Assistant Manager Choi frantically looked around and suddenly spotted a restaurant.
‘Was there a place like this before…?’
He thought it used to be called something with “sincerity” in the name. It seemed the old place had closed down and a new one had opened.
‘Given that “soup” is in the name, it must be a soup specialty restaurant, right?’
There was no time to hesitate. Assistant Manager Choi hurriedly spoke to the visibly displeased Team Leader Min.
“Team Leader, how about that soup place?”
“Hmm?
Team Leader Min scrutinized the exterior of the soup restaurant. It had an old-fashioned charm, but the sign was clean and quite nice.
“Shall we give it a try?”
One of the few small pleasures in the monotonous daily grind was eating delicious food during lunch break.
If there was a new soup restaurant near the office, it would be courteous to at least give it a try.
As they climbed the stairs and opened the door,
“Welcome. How many in your party?”
A young woman with her hair neatly tied back greeted them. The name tag on her apron read ‘Song Woo-yeon’.
“Two, please.”
When Assistant Manager Choi responded, Song Woo-yeon guided them to a window seat.
After providing a water bottle, glasses, and hand towels as standard, Song Woo-yeon handed them menus and said,
“We only have a single menu item, our ‘Hapjae Soup’. Would you like two orders of that?”
A single menu item?
Usually, restaurants try to cater to various tastes by offering at least a hangover soup or a bulgogi hot pot alongside their main dish.
This bold choice somehow raised their expectations.
“Then we’ll have two Hapjae Soups, please.”
“Certainly. I’ll have that ready for you shortly.”
As the server walked away, Team Leader Min smiled slightly.
“I like this place already.”
“Pardon?”
Even before the food had arrived?
Seeing Assistant Manager Choi’s puzzled expression, Team Leader Min excitedly began to explain.
“It’s clean everywhere, isn’t it? For such an old building, it’s rare to find a place this tidy. And look, they have an open kitchen.”
“Ah~”
Now that he mentioned it, the kitchen was clearly visible from where they sat.
The rich, fragrant aroma wafting from the massive pots of boiling broth stimulated their appetites.
“How many pots are there? One, two, three… five!”
“Oh? You’re right. Why so many pots for a single menu item?”
“This is a proper soup restaurant.”
Team Leader Min clicked his tongue, saying there weren’t many places that did this anymore.
“They’re making separate broths with bones and meat, then mixing them in the right ratio before serving.”
“Oh… Why do they do that? Wouldn’t it be better to boil everything together if they’re going to mix it anyway?”
“The cooking times are different! Bone broth needs to simmer for days to extract the full flavor.”
Ah, I see. As Assistant Manager Choi looked at the kitchen with interest, he could see the chef moving inside.
He wore a cap and a transparent mask to prevent droplets from spreading. It was clear they paid a lot of attention to hygiene.
The chef ladled some broth, tasted it, and smiled with satisfaction.
With swift movements, he placed meat in the bowl, quickly blanched it, then poured a large ladle of broth over it.
It truly deserved to be called K-fast food. In no time, two bowls of soup were ready.
“Table 3!”
“Coming~”
Song Woo-yeon picked up the completed soups and served them. Perfectly fermented cubed radish kimchi, sour kimchi, and fresh vegetable salad were provided as sides.
The sight of the bright red seasoning made their mouths water.
“Wow. This looks delicious. Let’s eat!”
“Yes, enjoy your meal!”
Assistant Manager Choi quickly picked up his spoon. Before mixing in the rice, he wanted to taste the broth that Team Leader Min had praised as “proper.”
Slurp.
As he took a spoonful into his mouth…
‘Wow!’
Assistant Manager Choi barely suppressed the exclamation that threatened to burst out. It was delicious. Really delicious!
He wasn’t particularly picky about food, so it was hard to explain exactly what made it so good, but one thing was clear—this soup was incredibly tasty.
Not stopping there, Assistant Manager Choi took a big spoonful after mixing in the rice. Then he tried it with the cubed radish kimchi, the sour kimchi, and the fresh vegetable salad.
The meat was tender and went down smoothly.
‘It’s delicious, so delicious!’
Usually, when eating alone, he couldn’t bear the boredom without looking at his phone. But now, his hands were busy chewing thoroughly and preparing the next spoonful.
He couldn’t remember the last time he had been so completely absorbed in eating something.
When he came to his senses, he was holding the now cooler stone bowl with both hands, gulping down the remaining broth.
“Ahh~”
He had finished it completely, not leaving a single drop.
Literally, clean bowl.
‘I’m full.’
The forgotten sensation of satiety belatedly washed over him.
“You ate well, Assistant Manager Choi.”
“Ah, yes. This place is really delicious. I’ll have to come here often.”
Perhaps it was the lingering satisfaction of a good meal, but Assistant Manager Choi responded with unusual enthusiasm.
“I finished mine in no time too. About 10 minutes? I don’t think it took much longer than that.”
Team Leader Min’s bowl was also spotlessly empty.
“Whew, I’m full. Shall we head back?”
“Yes!”
As Assistant Manager Choi gathered his things to leave, he suddenly realized something different from usual.
‘Come to think of it.’
Throughout the meal, Team Leader Min hadn’t said a word either.
Normally, he would have rambled on about all sorts of things. Thanks to that, they were able to finish the meal pleasantly without any uncomfortable small talk.
‘…Next time Team Leader asks to have lunch together, I should come here again.’
Vowing to protect his peaceful lunch breaks,
Assistant Manager Choi closed the door behind him as they left.