Chapter 55: What I can’t do

The Saintess was incredibly clingy.

Since she was still young, she said this was her first time out in the world.

To be honest, she seemed to know less about navigating the world than he did, a complete stranger.

She was disguised to avoid causing a commotion if she went around openly as the Saintess, but if it weren’t for him, she would have been scammed countless times already.

She must have been raised like a princess, sheltered from such things.

She wasn’t stupid, though, as she memorized everything he taught her.

“What did you say I should do here?”

“This is…”

Not only did he have to guide her, but if he left her alone and she got scammed, and the Church found out, this entire area might be purged.

‘I’m saving you guys, you know.’

The people who had initially looked at her like easy prey had their expressions sour as he intervened.

He planned to reveal the truth later and receive their gratitude.

“I think we’re ready to head to the dungeon.”

He’d purchased all the necessary supplies for a typical dungeon, and since this one contained a divine relic, he made sure they were prepared for anything.

Dungeons with divine relics were much more difficult than ordinary dungeons, and you never knew what you might encounter.

Still, dealing with those dangers was the Church’s responsibility.

‘I’m just here to guide them.’

He’d already learned the dungeon’s location from Alexander, and considering their group size, it would take three days to reach it. He could run back at full speed, so a round trip would take about four days.

Looking at the group, there were over ten paladins above Graduate rank and more than ten high priests, just below bishop level. With this much firepower, he wouldn’t need to intervene.

Especially since the Saintess, who possessed similar… no, perhaps slightly greater power than him after completing her training, would buff everyone.

There shouldn’t be any problems. He would just guide them for four days and be done with it.

‘Please let nothing happen…’

“Thank you, Yu-won. I came in a hurry and didn’t pack properly, so I had a lot to buy. Thanks to you, I learned a lot and got everything we needed.”

“It was an honor to be of assistance, Saintess.”

He uttered the polite words without meaning them.

“Hmm… your expression says otherwise.”

He forced a smile and spoke again.

‘Was it that obvious…?’

“I’m sorry if it seemed that way.”

He couldn’t tell the Saintess she was wrong, so this was the best he could do.

But he didn’t understand why she kept approaching him when he was clearly acting like he wanted to be left alone.

Yu-won, Yu-won, Yu-won, how many times had she called his name today…? He was trying to keep his distance, worried about what might happen if he got too close to the Saintess, but she kept approaching him.

“Are we leaving now? Or are we staying here tonight and leaving tomorrow morning?”

He asked about their schedule as they walked.

It was around 5 pm. Assuming they had an early dinner, they would have to travel for about six hours before setting up camp.

While leaving now would allow them to arrive a bit earlier, it would also tire the group out more.

Leaving tomorrow morning would delay their arrival but allow them to rest.

“What do you think we should do, Yu-won?”

Honestly, he wanted to leave as soon as possible and get this over with.

But the priests and paladins, exhausted from the journey to this town, were looking at him with pleading eyes.

The journey here had been tiring, and leaving now would mean an incredibly strenuous march. While earning their favor might be helpful someday… he was also human.

‘I understand how they feel, having been in the military…’

Remembering his time in the military, he sympathized with them and decided to grant their wish.

“I think it would be better to leave tomorrow morning.”

The paladins and priests looked at him with gratitude, while the Saintess looked slightly surprised. She quickly regained her composure and spoke.

“Alright. We’ll do as you say, Yu-won. Then… could you recommend us a place to stay?”

“Yes. There’s a decent place.”

Even though it was a rural town, there was a relatively upscale inn.

Since Alexander, the former Mercenary King, lived here, important people sometimes visited to see him.

It was only open when they had guests, but it was cleaned daily, so the owner would likely come running if they called.

‘Especially with a large group like this.’

No one in this town would miss the opportunity to make a large sum of money.

So, while walking with the Church group, he found Clara, the innkeeper.

“Hey, lady!”

“Didn’t I tell you to call me ‘noona’? Anyway… who are these people?”

Even in disguise, their noble aura was hard to conceal.

“Um… is it okay to tell you?”

“Yes. I didn’t think we could hide it from everyone, so it’s fine.”

She nodded.

“Then… lady, this is the Saintess. And behind her are the paladins and priests.”

“The Saintess, paladins, and priests… wait, the Saintess?!”

She covered her mouth, worried about the news spreading.

“It… it’s an honor to meet you, Saintess… I’m Clara, I run an inn…”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Estelle, the Saintess.”

She bowed deeply, practically touching her head to the ground.

“Anyway, we’re planning to stay at your inn. It’s clean, right?”

“The… Saintess… at my inn..?”

“Yours is the best inn in town, lady. We’ll be back after dinner, so have it ready. Got it?”

“Y… yes! I understand. Then, Saintess… I’ll see you later..!”

“Yes. See you later, Clara.”

Looking completely smitten by the Saintess’ smile, Clara hurried back to the inn.

“It’s a bit early, but… would it be alright to have dinner now?”

If not, he would have to stall for time somehow.

“We haven’t eaten much since arriving, so it should be fine. Is everyone alright with that?”

“”Yes!””

Their resounding voices showed how hungry they were. He was relieved he didn’t have to stall.

“Does the Saintess have any favorite dishes?”

It was always best to choose something the higher-ups preferred.

“Hmm… I’m not picky.”

‘That’s because you only eat the finest dishes…’

As the Saintess, she would only be served the best food, so of course, everything would taste delicious. But this town didn’t have chefs of that caliber.

‘Except for me…’

He had 31 years of cooking experience: ten years living alone after leaving the orphanage, eleven years as Ha-yeon’s husband and personal chef, and the past ten years in this world.

And since he was always experimenting to improve his cooking, he honestly didn’t think his skills were that far behind the chefs in the imperial capital.

“Then would meat dishes be alright?”

He’d never met anyone who disliked meat. He was even willing to bet that monks secretly loved meat. Vegans were just forcing themselves not to eat it.

“Yes, that sounds good.”

He led everyone to the restaurant he usually used. It wasn’t his, but since business was so slow, he just paid the owner to use it whenever he needed.

“Hey, Alex! I’m using the restaurant and the ingredients!”

“Are you running the place today?”

He sometimes ran the restaurant in Alexander’s stead, and it would always be packed, so he only did it occasionally.

“No. Some important guests are here, and I need to feed them properly. I’ll pay you well.”

“Important guests? Alright. You know you have to clean up afterwards, right?”

“Yeah.”

Ever since the incident with the nobles, Alexander would avoid any involvement with “important guests.” He’d grown tired of dealing with such people.

“You seem to be very close with the villagers, Yu-won.”

“Ah, I’ve lived in this village since I was five. The old man… I mean, the Guildmaster, raised me, and everyone treated me like their son or younger brother. This is my way of repaying them.”

They were all good people. Sure, they tried to scam outsiders, but that was common in any town.

“That’s wonderful. By the way… you can cook too?”

“There aren’t any professional chefs in this village, so most people know how to cook. And I’m the best among them.”

When it came to cooking, he was unmatched.

“Can I… look forward to it?”

While he wanted to tell her not to get her hopes up, that would be an insult to his cooking.

“Of course.”

Rolling up his sleeves and putting on an apron, he entered the kitchen. The ingredients available in this rural town were all low-quality.

Satisfying the palates of those accustomed to fine dining with these ingredients would be nearly impossible.

‘But there’s a way to make low-quality ingredients taste like high-quality ones.’

Shaliapin steak. A dish that used onions to tenderize even the toughest cuts of meat, making them as soft as premium beef.

And if you sautéed the leftover onions in red wine and made a sauce, it added a delicious savory flavor.

He had all the necessary substitute ingredients, so he began cooking.

He scored the meat, stuffed it with chopped onions, and grilled it to a perfect medium-rare. After letting it rest, he prepared the sauce.

After plating the steaks and adding the sauce, he somehow managed to finish all 21 steaks in record time.

Using Telekinesis, he carried the plates to the dining area and placed them before everyone.

He decided against using Telekinesis for the Saintess’s plate and served it to her personally.

“Please… enjoy.”

He almost slipped into his habit of mimicking lines from cooking manga.

“It smells delicious… Let’s see.”

The steak sliced effortlessly. The Saintess took a bite, and the meat melted in her mouth.

“Delicious..!”

With a surprised expression, she devoured the entire steak in an instant. The others also had similar reactions, finishing their meals quickly.

As a cook, it was incredibly satisfying to see people enjoy his food.

“You know so much, you’re popular, you’re a great cook… Is there anything you can’t do, Yu-won?”

‘Wait a minute.’

While he was glad they enjoyed his cooking, he wondered if he’d drawn too much attention from the Saintess.

He would have been in trouble if he’d recommended a random restaurant and she’d disliked the food, and he couldn’t slack off on the cooking either, but the situation was starting to get complicated.

“Ahem… I’m not good at other things.”

“Like what?”

‘What am I bad at…?’

He couldn’t think of anything. He needed to say something, but he really couldn’t think of anything he was bad at. He couldn’t tell the Saintess he was good at everything, because that would be a lie.

Something he hadn’t done in this life… He racked his brain and finally came up with something.

“I’ve… never been in a relationship.”

The one thing he hadn’t done in this life. A brief silence followed, and then the Saintess burst out laughing.

“Haha! Really?!”

She looked amused, as if she’d heard a funny joke.

He decided he needed to guide her quickly and be done with it before he attracted any more of her attention.