Ch.165Moment 2

The entrance of Moment Bar.

The sign on the entrance has changed to ‘open’.

The soft lo-fi music playing in the background.

And a neatly organized establishment.

‘It’ll probably be bustling from the first day of opening, right?’

It was crowded with customers until I was kidnapped.

Since we’re reopening after a long time, maybe it’ll be even more packed than usual.

I checked the cocktail bar with expectant eyes.

Well-polished glasses.

Smooth tables.

Ingredients fully stocked with Jeksa’s retirement money!

The environment is perfect.

Now, next is-

Jeksa smoking an e-cigarette at the counter.

Anna leaning against the wall wearing an apron.

And my sister smiling brightly at the entrance.

The faces of our establishment.

Could anyone possibly resist becoming a regular after seeing them?

I placed my hands on my hips with a proud expression.

And waited for the first honored customer who would have the glory of seeing these beauties.

But….

“―――.”

‘Seoul Famous Bar Music 1 Hour PLAYLIST.’

I’ve repeated that video twice.

But there’s not even a hint of customers, let alone any actual patrons.

What in the world….

I stare at Jeksa with a dazed expression.

She smirks and brings me a can of sparkling water.

“What’s wrong, too few customers?”

“Yeah… it wasn’t like this before…”

Jeksa strokes the top of my head.

“Ah, stop it. I just combed my hair…”

“You even comb your hair yourself now? You’ve improved a lot.”

When she smiles mischievously, I burst out:

“I-I’m the manager of this place! Whether man or woman, I need to look neat!”

“Ah… is that so?”

“Yes, it’s only natural…”

I crush the empty can while grumbling.

And while pressing it down, I look at Anna leaning against the wall.

“But customers used to flood in just to see Anna before.”

“People these days are sensitive to trends. When was Anna ever hot-?”

Jeksa shrugs her shoulders.

And she snickers while looking at her.

“Now she’s just a has-been-.”

Anna becomes serious at those words.

She raises a ladle like a dagger and asks:

“Want me to make myself hot again?”

“Sure.”

The two growl at each other.

I barely manage to separate the two rankers by squeezing between them.

“Guys… are you going to wreck the shop again on the first day?”

My head throbs.

Was it too much to try opening a shop with these people from the start?

I sigh deeply and look toward my sister, who’s at least somewhat normal.

She was busy searching for something on her phone.

Soon she approached us as if she’d realized something.

Then she shows us a shop she searched for on her phone.

“I figured it out. The reason our shop isn’t popular.”

Sister Jisoo pointed to a YouTube video.

A scene starts playing.

A familiar background unfolds in that scene.

“Sindorim…? That’s near our shop, isn’t it?”

It’s only a 10-minute walk away.

But that place was originally gloomy and unpopular, so why show it…?

“Hello, subscribers. Today I visited ‘Brother’s Izakaya,’ the hottest pub in Sindorim!”

“These days, as the image of the original gangster group, Ilshim, has improved, the image of thugs has also gotten better. That’s probably why restaurants with this thug concept are increasing.”

A very calm voice.

A typical food review shorts video.

The door of the shop opens.

Chubby men with tattoos on their arms glance at the customers.

“Brother’s here? Sit over there.”

A gruff and rough voice.

With arrogant eyes, I thought customers would be intimidated.

However, far from being scared, they chuckled at the concept and sat down.

“What is this… does this kind of concept really work?”

When I muttered in disbelief, Jeksa glanced at the video.

Soon she frowns as if annoyed.

“Since when did our Ilshim have this thug image…?”

Terrible food quality.

Cheap alcohol and interior.

But the shop was incredibly crowded with customers.

Seeing that, I muttered gloomily:

“It’s a typical one-hit wonder concept.”

“With terrible food and service, customers will probably only visit once.”

“And they’ll never come to eat in this area again.”

I grabbed my head with a panicked face.

My neatly combed hair became disheveled like an animal’s.

“In the end, they’ll kill our entire commercial district!!”

As I became depressed, Anna approached me.

She asks me while holding a kitchen knife and ladle in both hands:

“Should I eliminate them?”

“Eliminate what? We just got pardoned by the Association, do you want to be wanted again?”

I grabbed Anna’s shoulders.

And shook her back and forth while making crying sounds.

“No, I actually agree with Anna this time. Cutting out such a cancer will minimize damage.”

Jeksa looks at the chubby thug chef in the shop.

And places her hand on her chin as if analyzing something.

“He’s got plenty of fat, perfect as dummy material. Tempting, isn’t it?”

“Absolutely not, we promised not to kill people!”

Ugh…

These psychopaths…

I laid my face on the table.

And stretched my body as if about to melt away.

“We’re going to fail now…”

With my messy hair, I closed my eyes tightly.

And just as I was thinking about taking a nap…

My hair stood up like fox ears on my head.

I instinctively stared at the entrance door.

“―――.”

Because I heard the doorbell ring.

“G-guys… a customer is here!”

I hurriedly got up from the table.

The rankers also moved to their positions accordingly.

But…

“Huh, what? Still no customers?”

A deep voice.

Tall with curly hair.

It’s Senior Jiwook.

“Tch…”

Seeing it wasn’t a customer, Jeksa clicked her tongue.

Anna also looked at the senior with turbid eyes.

“W-what… why is everyone looking so scary…?”

The senior, who hasn’t yet become friendly with the rankers.

He looks at the women with his shoulders completely hunched.

“It’s nothing… please come in.”

I sighed deeply and helped carry the senior’s luggage with my sister.

Jiwook seemed to have read the situation and forced a smile.

“It’s okay- it’s only the first day of reopening, right? People probably just don’t know we’re open yet.”

The senior confidently asserted while putting on his apron.

“Besides, our customers usually come late at night.”

“I guess that’s true, right?”

He has the most experience working at Moment Bar.

He might be the weakest in the hunter world, but in this aspect, he might be the true ranker.

Thinking that way, the senior seemed much more reliable than the beasts beside me.

“Alright. I’ll really only trust you, senior-.”

I looked up at the senior with my hands clasped together.

Jiwook then laughs casually and pats my shoulder.

Then…

Jiwook suddenly felt a chilling killing intent.

The moment he touched me.

Because all three rankers simultaneously looked at him.

Soon Anna approached him.

And with her turbid white eyes flashing, she says:

“Senior. You need to teach me cooking.”

“Ah, y-yes. Let’s go in.”

He followed Anna into the kitchen as if being dragged.

Only then did the shop become quiet again.

“Haah-. Should we also adopt some kind of concept?”

“What kind of concept?”

Jeksa asked while wiping glasses with a cloth.

“I don’t know right now. Should we pretend to be thugs like those people…”

She pointed at my face with the bottom of a glass.

And after blowing on it, she wiped off the dust.

“Well- I think there might be an easier way.”

I blinked my eyes at her meaningful words.

“Really? What is it?”

Jeksa approached me from behind.

And pinched my disheveled hair with both hands.

“W-what are you doing?”

“Just stay still.”

Soon Jeksa pulled up both sides of my hair to make them look like fox ears.

And showed it to Jisoo proudly.

“Remember when we infiltrated the folk village?”

“Ah, that gumiho costume?”

My sister responded immediately as if she couldn’t forget.

“You were totally hot on Instagram then. As the folk village gumiho girl.”

I folded my arms with a blank expression.

“I think you’d get a good response if you served while dressed like that again.”

Her red eyes gaze down at me intently.

Soon Jeksa muttered in a lewd voice:

“With a tail too, like back then.”

Tail?

My face turned red at those words.

I desperately shook my head to lower my hair.

And moved far away from Jeksa.

“Ah, that tail? The one that stuck out from under the skirt was kind of cute.”

Jisoo chuckled as if recalling the folk village pub.

However, the tail Jeksa was thinking of seemed different from Jisoo’s.

“But I’m not sure how it was attached. Was it taped on?”

My sister tilted her head with her hand on her chin.

Jeksa grinned and said to her:

“I’ll tell you later. There’s a way.”

“Really…!”

I was angry at the bartender’s mischievous words.

I loosened the tie tightly fastened around my neck and walked out to the corridor.

“Where are you going-?”

I didn’t answer Jeksa’s question.

I’m just leaving quickly because I feel like my face might explode if I stay here any longer.

Just as I grabbed the entrance door.

I had to stop in my tracks.

The translucent glass door.

Because I could see a person’s silhouette beyond it.

The door opened.

And through the open door, I saw female students about my height.

“Uh…”

They made a sour face seeing my angry expression.

“Um… are you not open today? Should we come back later…?”

Four female students.

They make gestures to leave while watching my reaction.

I hurriedly shook my head.

“No, no! Please come in, students-.”

I forced a bright smile.

And kindly guided them into the shop.

‘Sister, customers! Customers!’

I signaled to Jisoo with my lips.

She welcomed them with a bright smile.

“Welcome-, welcome to Moment.”

She led the students with her characteristically bright atmosphere.

Thanks to her, the girls blushed and carefully sat at a table.

‘Nice, that’s my sister!’

I peek out from the corridor, watching her service.

“Is this the place? The one recommended by the student council president?”

“That’s what they said, but the atmosphere seems a bit quiet…”

“Right? The shop feels too adult-like for a birthday party?”

The kids whispered while examining the shop’s atmosphere.

My sister smiled brightly and reassured them.

“It’s okay, our shop operates like a family restaurant during the day.”

“Is that so? Then what’s the most delicious thing here?”

When a student with black hime-cut hair asked, Jisoo confidently recommended a menu item.

“The egg pilaf with shrimp is our most popular dish.”

Pilaf…?

Is she talking about Anna’s fried rice with eggs?

My sister made what could seem like a humble dish sound impressive.

I couldn’t help but smile at the sight.

Indeed, Jisoo looks cool when fighting…

But this feminine, everyday appearance suits her naturally.

I watched her with satisfaction.

Then suddenly I noticed the bartender puffing away at her e-cigarette.

And Anna’s figure, savagely slicing ingredients with a dagger.

“Sigh…”

It seems they’ll need more time to adapt to normal life.