Chapter 5 : The Saint Adapts

“Oh, no! It’s no problem at all! I’ll show you.”

Seriously, what did someone like her have to be shy about?

“The booths are 5,000 won per hour, and the rooms are 10,000 won… but I recommend a room.”

Seoyeon stepped out from behind the counter, holding up the price list as she explained.

“…A room?”
“Yes… Rooms aren’t eligible for discounts, but… they’re clean. The booths are over there.”

She gestured reluctantly, and the customer tilted her head, looking past the partition.

“…Hmm.”

A slight furrow in her brow. She didn’t seem pleased. It wasn’t that there weren’t any female customers, but they were rare. In fact, about half of the customers didn’t even use the capsules.

And with her beauty…
Even if she used a capsule, she’d be surrounded by onlookers…

“I’ll take a room.”

As Seoyeon predicted, Hayun chose a room.

‘Sweet and delicious.’

I munched on a chocolate bar as I followed the employee.

Soon, she stopped in front of a room with a number plate. She swiped a key card, as if to demonstrate.

With a beep, the door opened. I had imagined something like a karaoke room, but this was practically a small hotel.

Even with the more than double price difference, the booths, unlike the rooms, really did resemble the PC rooms I remembered. They looked comfortable and had partitions, but anyone could peek inside if they wanted to.

Apparently, there had been cases of sexual harassment, so she recommended using the rooms instead.

‘It seems to have everything you need.’

And the air conditioning was great.

Even this little bit of information told me how popular VR was.

I followed the employee to a capsule.

‘So it wasn’t a massage chair after all.’

It looked very similar to the one at home.

“You can lie down here.”

The employee took out a sheet, placed it on the chair, and patted it. Accepting her gesture, I lay down comfortably.

The one at home looked a bit more high-end.

“If you need anything, feel free to ring. You can press this bell, or call from inside the capsule.”

She was truly dedicated to her job.

“Thank you. Oh, can I order food?”

It was as comfortable as my home, almost. Perhaps that was why I was feeling a little hungry.

“Of course. You know how to use the kiosk, right? You can order food and drinks using this, and you can also order from inside the capsule.”

She answered immediately, as if anticipating my question. Leaning forward, she touched the black panel next to my right hand. After a few swipes, a menu appeared.

“Oh…”

I couldn’t help but gasp. Spaghetti, pizza, chicken, hamburgers, even Chinese food. They had everything. And it all appeared three-dimensionally, as if the food were right in front of me.

“Ah, but…”

The employee, leaving a faint scent of perfume, hesitated.

“What is it?”
“My shift is about to end. If you order now, I can bring it to you myself…”

“Hmm?”

It seemed her shift was already over. Shouldn’t she be happy about that? Why did she look a little disappointed?

“I-It’s… I’m not forcing you or anything. It’s just…”

I saw a glimpse of the young nun who wanted to befriend me in her expression.

“Don’t worry about it. Then… can I get this, and this, and… hmm, this too, please?”

I selected about four items from the menu on the panel and swiped my card.

I had probably spent over 30,000 won in the Capsule Room already.

“Th-This much?”
“Is it too much? I thought this would be enough for two.”

I wanted to try various dishes.

“…Two?”

I pointed at myself and then at her.

“Yes. You.”
“I’m Seoyeon. Joo Seoyeon.”

“Nice to meet you, Seoyeon. Oh, if you had a prior engagement…”

I regretted my words as soon as I said them. We had just met. All the good things happening had made me lower my guard.

“I don’t!”

The answer came immediately.

“Huh?”
“I don’t have a prior engagement!”
“Ah. Okay.”

Feeling slightly awkward, I wondered what to say. Just then, she turned and dashed out.

“I’ll be right back!”

Her long, high ponytail swayed from side to side, reminding me of a rabbit.

“Whoa!”

What was this?

When that usually expressionless face broke into a small smile, it was like a flower blooming.

‘How can someone be so pretty?!’

She wasn’t a lesbian. As proof, when she saw pretty female celebrities, her thoughts were usually the same.

I’m about as pretty as her.

Well, she is pretty.

That kind of thing.

It wasn’t jealousy. It was just an acknowledgement of someone’s beauty. What more was there to think about?

Still, this was the first time she had felt such a strong desire to befriend another woman.

Some people said women got jealous when they saw other beautiful women.

She didn’t know about other women, but she wasn’t like that.

–Ding.

Lost in thought, she was startled by the instant cooker’s timer.

It was a revolutionary cooking tool that could quickly cook food in a few moments.

To illustrate its practicality, one only needed to mention that it was a Hanjin Group product, and anyone who knew, knew.

Yes, the leading Korean conglomerate that ushered in the era of virtual reality.

Of course, it was ridiculously expensive.

“La♪—la♬”

Even ordering food, a chore she usually found tedious, felt enjoyable.

She should probably get a drink too, right?

What would be good?

Hesitating between coffee and cola, she chose both.

Her rent was tight this month, but sometimes you had to treat yourself.

She skillfully arranged the items on a tray, but it was quite heavy.

Ding-a-ling.

“S-Seoyeon! Sorry I’m late!”

A man entered with the chime of the bell.

Tall, with scruffy clothes.

His alarm hadn’t gone off. He rambled on with lame excuses about how he tried to come early, and her excitement faded. What was the right word?

It felt like her fairytale moment had crashed back to reality.

Looking at the time, he was 32 minutes late.

That was more than half his hourly wage gone.

She was about to give him a piece of her mind, but…

“It’s okay.”

Seoyeon smiled gently and lifted the tray.

“…Seoyeon, let me carry that. Which room is it?”
“It’s okay. I’m off work now.”

“Huh?”

Hocheol stared blankly at Seoyeon’s retreating figure.

‘What…?’

He didn’t know why, but she was much nicer than usual.

That should be a good thing, but it felt different.

She usually gave him an earful if he was even 10 minutes late, but today, nothing.

He had expected a lecture, along with half his pay docked.

Although, on his way here, that thought had morphed into a hopeful fantasy of asking her out to dinner this weekend instead of taking her share of the pay. He’d pay, of course.

“Hmm.”

Ding-a-ling.

“Welcome!”

Back to work.

Lee Hocheol, 32 years old. A lifelong single man who didn’t understand women at all.

The meal with Seoyeon went smoothly.

The food was surprisingly delicious.

But there was too much.

My recent increase in appetite had made me careless.

I had always been a light eater.

During my childhood, the staple food was literally grass, and after that, it was herbal concoctions.

During my travels, I had even less of an appetite.

Was it because the cook was bad?

Well, I myself was the cook.

If I had been reincarnated as a wealthy noble lady, things might have been different.

But I was an orphaned girl. The Saint of Oracles, yes, but still an orphan. As for the political machinations surrounding me…

Just thinking about it made me feel sick.

In short, the temple, despite its image, was a corrupt place.

The nobles were nothing but greedy pigs, and adventures were far from the romantic fantasies I had imagined.

Meals consisted of watery oatmeal and tough jerky.

Well, I still mostly ate herbs and oatmeal, so it wasn’t much different.

Actually, mealtimes were somewhat enjoyable because the other party members (the Hero and Mage) always made long faces.

I felt pleased when Elin complimented my herbal soup.

Hunt for food?

After adventuring all day, who would want to hunt when it was time to eat?

Besides, hunting wasn’t the issue.

Hunting, then bleeding and preparing the game?

If anyone asked why I, as the Saint, worried about such things, I wanted to tell them to try a hardcore wilderness survival with pampered noble children as party members.

Monster attacks were a bonus, of course.

So, who would be in charge of cooking?

Who would manage the finances with those young masters and ladies who had no concept of money?

Who would prepare the ingredients?

At least they didn’t complain, probably because I ate only grass and gave them the jerky.

If they complained, I’d tell them to cook themselves.

Once, seemingly unable to stand it any longer, the Hero brought me a whole deer.

Yes, a whole deer. As if asking me to skin it, bleed it, and cook it.

Even though I disliked the people of that world, I could cook store-bought beef or chicken decently. Especially for my party members.

But this was too much.

Besides, I had no intention of eating it. Deer could carry the eggs of parasitic monsters, and the meat, while called venison, was different from the venison of her world.

Back then, I had to resort to lies and had spouted some nonsense about “life is precious.”

The Hero, flustered, reached out a hand, then hesitated and apologized, lowering his head.

‘Easy.’

I smiled inwardly, but the Mage wouldn’t stay quiet.

‘You have to try everything. Why don’t you give it a try?’

It was still early in their journey, and the Mage spoke with a condescending, aristocratic tone that made me want to punch her.

Even that was a good memory now…

A memory?

‘I’m pissed.’

I shoved a handful of fries into my mouth in frustration.