SSS-Grade Cafe in Front of The Dungeon
chapter-162

I opened the box Ash handed me and showed them what was inside.

“This is homemade mugwort powder.”

I boiled the medusa mugwort I bought at the market yesterday in a pot for eight hours, then ground it after it dried. I was worried that the mugwort wouldn’t be able to dry out due to the lack of time, but luckily it did.

……thanks to the power of Cthugha.

I added a generous amount of mugwort powder and stirred it with an electric whisk until it reached a thick consistency.

“Here, Ash, give it a try.”

“…… I got it.”

Wiiing!

But as soon as Ash held the electric whisk, mugwort powder started flying everywhere!

“Eeh, no. Ash, slow down, gently. You have to be gentle.”

“Gently … like this?”

Ash pressed the button on the electric whisk, but instead of slowing it down, he sped it up.

Weeeeiiing!

The whisk spun furiously inside the tiny glass…..

“Cough, cough!”

Mugwort powder flew towards Ki Yoohyun, who was standing exactly nearby. His shirt turned a dark green color from the mugwort attack.

Weeiing━

“….Cough!”

“Waeoong!”

“Kkyuuu!”

A shower of powder flew in the air, and the animals jumped up and down in delight. It was a disaster, to say the least.

“Stop! Stop!”

I quickly unplugged the electric cord of the whisk. Phew, the store was about to be covered in mugwort before I could finish my wormwood latte.

“Let’s not use this. Ash, take this. Slowly, okay? Slowly.”

“…Okay.”

I immediately put the electric whisk in the sink and put the manual whisk into his hand. It was a bit of a struggle, but this time we managed to mix the mugwort powder well without blowing it around.

The rest of the process was simple. We filled a glass with ice and milk, and slowly poured in the mugwort mixture. The light green color of the milk was pleasing to the eye.

“…… It’s done. There you go.”

Tiling! As soon as I finished the drink, a notification popped up.

[Item: Mugwort Latte (★★★★☆)

Status: Good (Time Remaining: 01:00:00)

Effect: Your body becomes harder than stone. Hitting you only hurts the person who hit you more.

(Reflects received attacks back to the attacker 3 times.]

Was it because it had “Medusa” in the name? Oddly, this one doesn’t heal, but instead reflects attacks. I wouldn’t use it normally, but it might come in handy in a dungeon.

I made another batch of mugwort lattes and served them to the guests. Then, we all decided to taste it together.

I took a sip of the mugwort latte. The first thing that hit me was the strong aroma of mugwort. The bitter mugwort flavour was neutralised by the sweetness of the sugar syrup, and the milk gave it a smooth finale. It was delicious and would be perfect for sale in the upcoming spring.

Would the strong smell of mugwort divide the customers’ opinion? With that concern in mind, I looked at my guests.

“Mmm! It’s fantastic, this particular flavour is not often found.”

So far, James, the main guest of the day, was very satisfied. Good. I could find a menu that matched his tastes, although not as much as the coffee mix.

“Heuk, huhu … this reminds me of the time I used to munch on mugwort in the maze dungeon because there was nothing else to eat.”

My uncle liked it too, but … it seemed to unintentionally bring back some painful memories.

“It’s delicious. Rieul-ssi, everything you make is delicious, but I like this one because it’s unique.”

Ki Yoohyun, who had barely survived the mugwort powder attack, also praised it. I leaned closer to him, noticing the unwiped mugwort powder on his cheek.

“Yoohyun-ssi, hold on a second.”

“Yes?”

I took a handkerchief out of my pocket and wiped his cheeks. I felt guilty for putting him through such an unnecessary ordeal.

“Ack, cough!”

Just then, after taking a sip of his mugwort latte, Ash coughed. He hurriedly tried to hide his expression, but everyone could see his furrowed brow. I walked over to him and asked, “Ash, does this not fit your taste? I’ll give you something else.”

“Hahaha! Part-timer boy, do you think this mugwort latte is bitter? When you grow up and learn the bitterness of life, it’ll taste sweet.”

Uncle, I think those words might backfire…….

As expected, Ash held onto his glass with a grimace and took another sip.

“No! It’s delicious. I want to drink this.”

But there’s nothing that could deceive my eyes. The satisfaction bar above his head stopped in the middle. The mugwort flavour didn’t seem to suit his liking.

“Really? Then swap with me. I actually have a different version.”

“Then …… okay.”

I made a mugwort latte with a drastically reduced amount of powdered mugwort and more syrup. I topped it with lots of milk foam for extra smoothness.

“……! It’s delicious.”

Ash drank the mugwort latte with a more relaxed expression than before. That was a relief.

The others generally enjoyed the mugwort latte as well. When all the glasses were empty, the invited guests gathered around to share their impressions.

“Yum, delicious!”

“Such an amazing drink produced from what we thought was a weed …. you’re genius.”

Hmm, that’s a heartwarming sight, and I’m sure the filming of the event will go smoothly. Maybe the video will have a soothing title like “A Mugwort Latte That Brings The Spring To Your Doorstep“.

“I wonder what the effect of reflecting attacks is like.”

“Shall we test it? Hey, hit me. With a weapon.”

Clatter!

I jumped out of my chair in a panic.

“Sir, you better stop that…….”

But I was one step too late.

Klaang! The Hunter who had drawn his weapon quickly attacked the Hunter in front of him. With an AoE attack¹, no less.

“Ouuch!”

The effect of the mugwort latte was applied without mercy, and although it seemed to take return the damage…….

Klaaaang!

……It was reflected back.

Now, think about it. Everyone here just drank a mugwort latte. In other words, everyone is reflecting attacks. But what happens when you attack someone else?

The reflected damage bounced between the customers like a ball in a pinball game, leaving scratches on the walls and floor of the store, and finally …… landed directly on the table.

Crack! The ‘Comfortable Cafe Table (★★☆☆☆)’, an item that I had previously acquired through a lot of hard work, was literally snapped in two. Not only that, but the store turned into a mess from all the reflected damage.

“…….”

I recalled my thoughts before making the mugwort latte.

‘Well, at least it won’t happen twice, and the shop will never be destroyed again…….’

It happened again, not because of a monster, but because of a mugwort latte.

“Ouch, Owner-nim, I’m so sorry!”

“I’m so sorry, Owner-nim.”

The two Hunters who’d made the accident bowed their heads toward me. I clenched my shaky fists and shouted at them.

“……Get out now!”

“Ye-yes!”

At my one word, the entire room rushed out, not just the Hunters who had caused the disaster. I followed them out of the store and slammed the door behind me.

“Uh? Why are you coming out with us, Owner-nim?”

Instead of answering, I taped a white piece of paper to the door and wrote words in black marker.

‘The cafe will be closed for the time being for repairs.

Duration: Undecided’

After writing this, I turned to go back inside, but the pale-faced Hunters stopped me.

“Owner-nim, please rethink your decision!”

“If this news becomes known, we might really …. we might die huhuhu!”

“Eh, aren’t you exaggerating too much?”

“I’m serious. We’ll restore it to its former state right away, by any means necessary! So please, just don’t close the store…….”

“…… I’ll think about it.”

Apparently, their desperation wasn’t a lie, and within a couple of hours, the Hunters managed to restore the cafe to its former glory. They travelled all the way to Cheonggyecheon and paid for an item restorer to come and take care of it. Thankfully, the ‘Comfortable Cafe Table (★★☆☆☆)‘ that I earned as a reward for my labour was brought back to life.

“What an extreme cafe experience! It was fun, haha!”

James was amused, but I’m worried that he might have gotten the wrong idea that my store is frequently damaged.

After the customers left, I took a break and accessed the Hunter Channel on my phone. The title of the top post caught my eye.

━ [Issue] Today’s chaotic situation.jpg (514)

The title didn’t sound the least bit comforting, so I immediately closed the window.

***

It was a disastrous day.

Ash thought with a sour expression. Everything had gone wrong today.

He wanted to be useful, at least helpful to her, but he hadn’t done a single thing right.

During the drink-making demonstration, he’d scattered the mugwort powder all over the place. He’d be lying if he claimed he didn’t enjoy the sight of ‘him‘ covered in green powder … but the whole situation was still upsetting.

“Ha….”

Rattle. Rieul set the glass down within reach of his slanted gaze. Inside was a pale green drink.

“What’s this……?”

“Try it. I changed the recipe again.”

“No, thanks.”

“Huh? This one’s perfect for your taste. You couldn’t drink it properly earlier with all the people.”

Rieul pulled her chair back and sat down across from Ash. She smiled and gently encouraged him, not looking the least bit upset with him.

Not even when Ash takes time off work to run out of the store on a whim, or when he keeps getting in her way to keep her away from ‘that man‘. She’s not angry with him. Not only that, she doesn’t tell him anything.

It was like that until a few days ago. She said this even though her face was a mess, obviously from crying, “Huh? Of course, I’m fine. Good night, then.”

Asking her what happened would only put her in more trouble, so he had no choice but to take her word for it.

What about the paparazzi article? Ash wasn’t upset just because of the content: why bother with an article that was obviously false and untrue? Yes, it could never be true. Instead, he was upset that she didn’t tell him anything about her relationship with ‘that man‘. He hoped she didn’t treat him like a child. He wished he could at least be someone she could talk to about anything.

Every time Ash looked at Rieul, he felt a tingling sensation in his chest, and when the tingling worsened, doubts suddenly rose in his mind.

‘Is it because I’m imperfect?‘

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Translator’s Corner:

1. AoE stands for “Area of Effect,” a term borrowed from military strategy, which refers to the area in which a weapon, attack, or ability has an impact. In gaming, this concept has been adapted to refer to the range or area within which a character, spell, or weapon can affect multiple targets. ↩︎

Be patient for a little bit, guys, also this part is perfect for you to read it while playing Simple Plan – Perfect