Yokai Come to the Countryside Café

Chapter 27: Café‑Style Ramen (4)

“But what were those people?”

“They were guests who frequently came to our café. They were shamans.”

“No, I know they were shamans, but why were they playing Path of Heroes?”

“I suggested it.”

“Why?”

“Because it was fun to play together.”

“Fun? It was just an old crappy game.”

“For something like that, they helped very kindly. They even gave lectures to Ria and Elder, didn’t they?”

“Well, because it was frustrating…”

“The game wasn’t hard, so if they played for a few days they’d get pretty good at it. Just help them a little, like you did for Ria and Elder. Besides, I won’t charge for the ramen and coffee.”

“Sigh, what a pain. I wonder if I still have the old guidebook I wrote. It would be convenient if I pushed them through to the mid‑level raid. By the way, if you don’t know the pattern after passing the Serpent’s Lair, would that be a dead zone?”

His words and actions were of very different nature—in a good way.

He said it was a pain, but Yongman looked out the window lost in thought, already brimming with motivation.

But that didn’t last long. Muttering some game terms to himself, Yongman soon sighed deeply.

“No, it’s all pointless. They’ll quit after a few days anyway—what’s the use?”

“Well, one person remained, didn’t he?”

“Who?”

Instead of answering I turned my head slightly and made eye contact with Yongman.

“Me?”

“Yes, since it was a game resurrected by the power of the Dragon Pearl, there was no risk the server would shut down. So if you helped the people who joined now, maybe someone else would stay too.”

“Ask someone who won’t live a hundred years for something like that?”

“Because I was desperate. That’s why you left that post on the bulletin board, wasn’t it? Hoping perhaps old guild members might see it.”

…

This time he couldn’t reply.

Yongman’s post on the free board had been a kind of flailing hope. If someone had thought to return and checked the board, seeing Yongman’s post that day might prompt them to log into the game.

But his attempt at courage was merely waiting—and that fact felt even more heartbreaking.

“Standing in one place changes nothing. I discovered that after living briefly.”

His presumptuous advice ended just as blandly.

There was no further conversation—even during the trip to the convenience store to buy a power strip and on the way back.

Only an outdated song, played a bit too loudly, erased the awkward silence.

Then we returned to the café and sat down again.

“Was anything unusual?”

“Unusual? What do you mean. Apart from you, who flounced out when I said ‘bring a cup of coffee’, nothing went wrong. Hmm? Why are you suddenly standing up now?”

‘Standing in one place changes nothing.’

Recalling Jinseong’s words, Yongman rose and approached the shamans who were gathered and engrossed in the game.

“Um, would you like to join that guild…?”

“Huh? A guild?”

“If you join, you earn more experience points, you can go to guild‑exclusive dungeons, and also… oh, never mind, you don’t have to join, you can skip it. Level‑ups were already fast though…”

Yongman, speaking in awkward polite language and rambling on, soon bowed his head and trailed off.

Haedong Sinyuh, who had tilted her head at the odd invitation, then realized why Yongman had approached them—because Jinseong, sitting in the distance, gave a faint smile and slightly nodded.

“In any case, there are benefits if we join the guild, right?”

“Oh? Ah! No, yes!”

“I’ll join too! Grandpa will join too!”

【Haedong Sinyuh joined the Emperor Guild.】

【Wongak Beomsa joined the Emperor Guild.】

【Ria joined the Emperor Guild.】

…

Before long, dozens of guild members filled the once‑deserted guild window.

The guild members who had returned after five years of waiting were not the long‑yearned people of old.

They weren’t the sturdy comrades of yesteryear with flashy items and one‑man armies—they were novices wielding shabby daggers.

Yet Yongman, his face thrilled, hardly left the side of the newly joined guild members until midnight when the café closed.

Late at night, after Yongman’s guild recruiting ended in success.

Tap.

I turned off the café lights and lowered the blinds.

It served as a kind of exorcism ritual made necessary by Elder Gumiho and Sanyi, who refused to get up until told to leave, even in safety.

But tonight it didn’t work.

Ria had already gone to bed long ago, yet Elder, after pushing aside a cup of cold coffee, was still engrossed in the phone game.

“It suits your taste, I suppose. I thought you’d quit soon.”

“There wasn’t much else to do, so I took it up to pass the time. Now at last it’s calm. Why they had to be so curious about everything, oh boy.”

“They followed the pace well—everyone kept in sync.”

“They say shamans are the kind who make their living off that sort of thing.”

“You’re doing it again. Still, you did say you’re an Imoogi, so if it wasn’t sincere, he would’ve noticed right away.”

He wasn’t someone lies could deceive.

That’s why I didn’t just casually say the game was fun.

The shamans gathered today were the same.

They were people who had grown fond of the game in their own way and reached out to Yongman.

Even if it was arranged by me, thanks to that, the usually quiet café had become lively for the first time in a while.

Sometimes, days like this were nice too.

Because not all the customers at the café were awkward or unpleasant, and since the amount of food to serve wasn’t a big hassle either, I actually welcomed the busyness for a day.

Call it job satisfaction?

Aside from the annoying dishwashing, it wasn’t much different from having friends over at home.

Of course, that didn’t mean extending business hours was acceptable.

“But don’t tell me you’re thinking of staying the night?”

“You don’t need to give me the look. I was just about to leave, brat.”

Only when the Spirit Repelling Talisman appeared did the Elder rise from his seat.

“But after dragging all these people in, you’re not even playing yourself.”

“I am playing. Out of everyone who started today, I probably have the highest level.”

“I didn’t see you holding your phone though, what are you talking about?”

“There are ways. It’s a bit of a shortcut, though.”

Of course I had to play.

Just as the Elder said, I was the one who pulled in the shamans and even the innocent NIS employees.

This wasn’t just a case of being that annoying friend who quits first after getting everyone to play during school days, right?

Even if not as an example, I needed to level up the character enough that no one would talk behind my back, just for my own peace of mind.

“And there’s one more thing I need to do.”

“Huh? What now?”

“When you say it like that, it makes me sound like the bad guy.”

“Pfft, only now realizing that? I bet to Mahyeon and his lot, you’re a mortal enemy.”

This time, I couldn’t argue back—he wasn’t wrong.

The remaining plan was something that might cause them some guilt, too.

【Unauthorized Personnel Prohibited】

The warning posted in the NIS conference room stirred curiosity among passing employees.

In an agency where security was everything, it was only natural that different teams didn’t know what others were doing.

But it had been ages since such a massive project was launched with the NIS director, deputy director, and an entire direct department all involved.

A national crisis—or a historic event that could change the world—must surely be what they were discussing in that room.

But reality often defied expectations.

“He’s definitely leveling up somewhere.”

“So did you find out where he’s doing it?”

“We’re searching with everything we have. But the high-level hunting grounds are still inaccessible to our staff since their levels are too low.”

“Have Director Baek contact him. That should solve it easily.”

“The shamans in the game are about the same level as us. There’s a high chance he hasn’t shared the leveling method with them either. If it gets released under the name of fairness, the gap could widen even more.”

‘If that happens, it won’t end with just overtime!’

-Gulp.

The staff, listening to Director Baek’s report, swallowed dryly.

“Seriously, doesn’t it seem off? We’ve been glued to the game from morning till night, even pulling all-nighters, but the café owner—who works during the day and has a side gig at night—has a higher level than us? If this goes on, the entire operation is going to be a bust.”

-Tap tap.

The NIS director lightly tapped the table with a half-rolled-up thick report.

The cover read ‘Party Member Recruitment and Raid Strategy.’ Not exactly a title that belonged in a high-level NIS meeting.

“At the current leveling pace of the café owner, we have about a week until party play becomes necessary. It’s too early to cancel the operation.”

“Can we catch up within that week?”

“Realistically, it’s difficult.”

Difficult was an understatement.

Even after funneling items to specific people during hunts, their levels still didn’t come close to the ‘Dangsari Café’ account listed on the ranking system.

From all indications, it was definitely Jinseong’s.

And his level? A whopping 53.

While others who started the same day were just hitting level 20, he was growing at a staggering pace.

And this kind of growth—beyond all logic—was like a disaster for them.

It hadn’t even been a full day since they decided on the plan to naturally gather intel by joining Jinseong and the Imoogi’s party.

The operation’s outline and the expected benefits were solid.

Even just playing the game diligently—a game the Imoogi had gone so far as to protect using a Dragon Pearl—was enough to leave a good impression on him.

If they became party members, there was even a chance of forging a bond on par with the one with the Gumiho.

According to research, in “Path of Heroes,” three-person or larger party hunting was strongly recommended starting at level 60.

If the Imoogi and Jinseong, the highest-level players, joined a party, only one spot remained.

But the real problem was securing that single spot.

And bad news didn’t stop there—it wasn’t just about Jinseong’s level.

“This is bad!”

“What now?”

“The Divine Tree and the shamans have all joined the Imoogi’s guild at once!”

“What? Why all of a sudden?”

“There must’ve been some sort of deal at the café.”

Just when things couldn’t get worse.

In particular, NIS Director Oh Tae-soo, who had already had a verbal scuffle with the shamans in-game, was even more sensitive about losing.

“Do whatever it takes to catch up. Join that guild or whatever it is! What, you want to slave away just for someone else to enjoy the spoils?”

‘If I pull this off, I could even aim for the Director position!’

There was already a precedent—Director Baek Mahyeon.

His rapid promotions without any connections were all thanks to the two Divine Beasts backing him.

Just for leveling up in a game, the rewards were insanely high.

But in this old game without even an auto-hunt button, the only way to catch up was simple—kill one more monster than others while they slept.

Ironically, it had become the fairest promotion test ever held.

This elite group, proud of being the hardest place to get into, had now been reduced to the same level as workers at illegal gold-farming operations.

All because of a single phone call from the café owner.

And they had no idea that the man behind it all was already planning another unmanageable scheme.