Ch.40The Endless Refill Is a Lie

“Ah… yes, Mr. Heo Mu-ryo, enjoy your meal.”

Yu Hye-na handed me a tray with a dejected look and gestured for me to get in line.

Number 30… I scooped up today’s menu, pressing it down firmly with the rice paddle and ladle, then went to my seat and ate my free meal listlessly.

“Mmm, slurp! Mmm…!”

Eating delicious food, I thought there was no need to feel so empty.

Being able to fill 30 plates for a free meal—wasn’t this practically unlimited?

Maybe I should go back to being Han Mu-ryo instead of Heo Mu-ryo. While thinking this and eating, I watched the woman who was distributing trays and chatting with each resident of Zone 4.

“That’s great, congratulations!”

“Oh my, already 10 years old? You’ve grown so much!”

“The government should have support for that. Why don’t you visit the welfare center this time and…”

She wasn’t just a woman who handed out food.

When people shared their good news, she celebrated with them; when they mentioned problems, she worried alongside them.

Sometimes she would introduce new job opportunities to residents who had lost work, or when she noticed someone wearing tattered clothes, she’d have another volunteer give them clean, albeit secondhand, clothes.

In that brief time, residents who received various forms of help thanked her as they took their meals.

Was this woman like the boss of an employment office at this soup kitchen?

“Whoa…”

“He’s really eating all 30 plates…”

“Wow, impressive. And they say he used to eat several times more last week?”

After eating the promised 30 plates, I headed to the serving area amid much less cheering and applause than last week.

When I set down my plate with a clack, the woman greeted me with a curious expression.

“Did you enjoy your meal?”

“It was delicious, but I’m still hungry.”

“After eating 30 plates, I don’t know what to say if you’re still hungry… I was thinking of reducing it further.”

“Hmm.”

Still, my stomach was about half full.

Being able to fill half my stomach with a free meal was an incredible stroke of luck, but I was still hungry. As I looked at the serving counter and swallowed hard, the woman chuckled and pushed my back with both hands.

“Come on, if you’re done eating, hurry up and get back to work.”

“Today’s work is finished.”

“Well, if today’s work is done, you should go find your next job~Fighting!”

Next job… I was pushed toward the park exit by the woman.

Just then, some men passed by us and entered the park, heading straight to the serving area and cutting in line.

“Move, move, move!”

“What, what’s going on…? Hey, get in line.”

“Fuck off, you filthy Zone 4 beggars… get lost!”

“Sigh…”

Wearing suits stained with dust, dirt, and dried blood, the men seized the serving area with their dirty hands, grabbing food from the pots and stuffing it into their mouths, then trying to take the entire pot.

The woman who had been pushing my back let out a tired sigh and returned to the serving area. She clapped her hands to get their attention and spoke to the rowdy men.

“You can eat as much food as you want, but since others are eating too, please don’t grab with your hands. And please don’t take the entire pot.”

“What? Fuck, this bitch…?”

“Hey, do you know who I am?”

“I don’t know who you are, but please wash your hands over there, take a tray, and get your food.”

“You insolent bitch?”

“Wait a minute, this bitch is pretty cute.”

With a snap of his fingers, a flame the size of a human head appeared above one man’s hand.

Next to him, another man who had been shoveling food into his mouth flexed his muscles, enlarging his arm, and grabbed the woman’s waist with his oversized hand.

“Ugh…!”

“Kyaaah! Villains!”

“Director!”

“Ms. Hye-na!”

People screamed in terror at the men’s true identities and backed away from the serving area, while men standing beside the truck rushed forward, activating their abilities.

Crackle, crackle—one man surrounded his hands with lightning while another metallized his upper body.

The volunteers were superhumans of at least C-rank level, but there were far more villains of similar rank.

“What, what’s this? Why are there superhumans here! Are they heroes?”

“Director? Is this bitch some high-ranking official? Hehe, it’ll be fun to crush her…”

“Hye-na, huh? Pretty name too? Hehe, after I fill my stomach, let’s have some real fun with oppa. My superpower isn’t just about enlarging my hands, you know?”

“Hey! Let’s take care of these superhuman bastards first!”

The five villains who suddenly appeared trashed the serving area and rushed toward the two superhumans.

Meanwhile, the woman caught in the villain’s grasp moved her slender hand that had slipped out from under his massive grip and firmly grabbed something near her hip. I felt a strange wave spreading with a woong sound.

Was that a police call signal?

“Let’s bolt! Fuck! It’ll be troublesome if heroes show up!”

“What are you looking at! Get lost!”

“Wait, you! Come here! Hehe, fuck, why are there so many pretty bitches living in Zone 4?”

“Aaaah! Mom!”

“Don’t touch anyone else! If you’re going to take someone, just take me…!”

The villains who broke free from fighting the two superhumans tried to escape with the woman and the food.

As the soup kitchen descended into chaos with a crash-bang, I frowned slightly and stood at the park entrance in front of the escaping villains.

“What, what the hell? Look at this size!”

“Are you a superhuman too?!”

“Kill him!”

The villains raised their guard and fired their abilities at me.

A swollen arm like a chunk of meat, several fireballs, hardened rock bullets, compressed air shots, and a pot thrown with enhanced strength.

“Nooo!!”

“Kyaaaah!”

Amid the screams of the woman caught in the large hand and the residents, I raised one hand.

Boom! I deflected the incoming fireball with the back of my hand, sending it skyward. I took the rock bullets and air shots with my body, and caught the pot by hooking my fingertip through its handle.

With the spinning pot balanced on my hand and my elbow raised, I caught the incoming meaty fist.

With a splat, like pus bursting, the man’s hand exploded.

“Eh…?”

“What, what…?”

“Uwaaaah! What is this?!”

The woman’s surprised voice, the terrified cries of those who had launched their abilities from a distance, and the agonized screams of the one whose hand had shattered, revealing broken bones.

I approached the villain who had enlarged his hand in one step and sliced with the edge of my hand.

Slash! The woman fell from the villain’s hand as his fingers were severed.

“When did he…?!”

“Aaaah! My haaaand!”

“He-he’s a hero, he was lying in wait to catch us!”

I caught the falling woman and picked up the pot, smacking each villain on the head.

Oof! Keck! Ep! Ok! Ack! The villains collapsed to the ground, twitching after being knocked unconscious.

Holding the woman in my arms, I looked down at the writhing men and said:

“Get lost.”

“Eh, eh…?”

“I won’t say it twice.”

“Uwaaah!”

“Aaack! Aah!”

The villains staggered to their feet and fled chaotically out of the park.

I released the woman who had been quietly looking up at my face from within my arms.

“Ungoat…?”

She made a strange sound, hunched her shoulders, and stood blinking silently.

Just then, the residents who had backed away erupted in applause and cheers.

“Wooow! Han Mu-ryo! Han Mu-ryo! Han Mu-ryo!”

“Amazing! Wooow!”

“So you were a superhuman?! I thought there was something inhuman about how much you ate!”

Amid the cheers mixed with the clanging of trays, I held out the empty pot to the dazed woman.

She took it absentmindedly, blinking rapidly.

Then she swung the pot hard, hitting me on the head.

“If you’re a superhuman, why do you come to a soup kitchen?!”

“Ep.”

I was so surprised by this unexpected reaction—hitting me with a pot instead of thanking me for saving her—that I failed to dodge. The angry woman continued:

“Go get a job! Eat at the hero cafeteria! Go hunt monsters! Seriously! This place is for people who are struggling!”

“…I hunt monsters too.”

“Then why are you eating here! Hunt monsters! Earn money and buy your own food!”

“Even if I earn money, it’s not enough to eat until I’m full.”

That’s probably true. The angry woman briefly softened her expression, then frowned again and glared at me.

“Wooooo~! I saved her and she hits me with a pot!”

“But he’s right! Why would a superhuman come here for free food!”

“Wooooo~! Han Mu-ryo! Thanks for helping! Wooooo~!”

“I’m jealous you got to hold the Director! Wooooo~!”

“Wooooo~! The Director’s blushing face is cute!”

“Just eat your food quietly!”

Was this cheering or jeering? Amid the commotion, the red-faced woman grabbed my waist.

I stood still, quietly watching her as she pulled me with all her strength.

“What is it?”

“C-come wash your hands first, and, um, your body too, since it’s covered in blood.”

“Hmm.”

I clenched and unclenched my sticky hands covered in blood and flesh, and was about to lick what was stuck to them but stopped myself.

As I followed her to the washbasin, the residents whispered about us.

“My goodness, no matter how urgent, how could they… right here…”

“He was kind of cool though, suddenly swoosh, bang, crash, whoosh, saving her.”

“That’s true, but… wow, the Director is bold…”

“No! His hands got dirty! I’m telling him to wash them! That’s all!”

“Hahaha! Yes, wash up! Gotta wash before doing anything!”

“Excuse me!”

“Hold on, hey! Clean this up! People need to eat!”

“It’ll take some time for more food to come out because of those bastards.”

“Let’s clean up while we wait, everyone~”

The park was full of laughter despite the mess. The woman, her face flushed red and biting her lip, handed me a wet towel and checked on the injured superhumans.

“Are you two alright? Any injuries…?”

“Ms. Hye-na, we’re sorry. We never expected villains to appear suddenly…”

“I’m fine, ah…! I need to make a call, I triggered the alert earlier… just a moment?”

The woman took out her phone from her pocket and made a call.

“Ah, sis? Sorry to bother you while you’re resting, but you don’t need to come. I pressed it by mistake…”

There was a loud voice on the other end. I could have eavesdropped if I wanted to, but I wasn’t particularly interested. After wiping the blood from my body with the towel, I held out my dirty hands.

The woman handed me a rubber hose, letting water flow over my hands while continuing her call.

“I got it, I got it… hang up, just rest a lot when you have time.”

Click. After hanging up, she sighed and looked up at me with wide eyes.

At the same time, the rubber hose gradually moved downward… As I bent over to wash my hands, she glanced toward the residents and brought her face close to my ear.

“Um… I’m Yu Hye-na.”

“Hmm.”

Yu Hye-na. When I shifted my gaze to look at her after this sudden introduction, she blushed and stepped back, saying:

“Th-thank you for helping us. I really thought we were in trouble… Y-you can have a few more bowls of food. Please eat more before you go.”

“Really?”

“As payment for helping… you said you were still hungry.”

What wonderful words. I grabbed Yu Hye-na’s hand and raised it high for all the residents to see.

“I can eat more food!”

“Oh my, you startled me! What? What did he say?”

“I think she said he can eat more?”

“Woooo! Yu Hye-na! Yu Hye-na! Yu Hye-na!”

“Hahahahaha!”

Amid laughter and cheers, Yu Hye-na, her face red all the way to her ears, pulled her wrist from my hand and grabbed it herself.

“Y-you shouldn’t grab a woman’s wrist like that! Seriously!”

“Woooo! She’s embarrassed! Woooo!”

“Just eat quietly!”

Afterward, I returned to the crowd of laughing and chattering people and ate ten more bowls.

When I tried to eat more, Yu Hye-na stopped me, saying this was going too far.

“Didn’t you say I could eat more?”

“A little more! I said a LITTLE! Little means a small amount! This isn’t a little!”

“It is a little…”

“…You can have one more bowl, with just a little food… No! This is a lot! A whole lot!”

Indeed, unlimited refills don’t exist in this world…