The contestants climbed onto the transport with heavy, defeated steps.
Unlike the others, Roy’s expression was bright.
It was all thanks to meeting Aqua.
‘I really missed you, Aqua.’
“Puru…” (Me too…)
During the battle, the situation hadn’t allowed them to properly reunite, so even after seeing Aqua for the first time in ages, Roy had to keep moving.
Aqua’s large eyes shimmered with sudden tears.
“Biiik!” (Don’t forget about me, Contractor!)
Unable to stand the strange atmosphere between the two, Ber butted in between Roy and Aqua.
Just a moment ago, Aqua’s eyes had been round and gentle, but now they sharpened immediately.
Ber, who was ruining her touching reunion with Roy, was a thorn in Aqua’s side.
Aqua clenched her tiny fist and smacked Ber right on the head.
Ber’s gaze sharpened in a flash as well.
Just as Ber raised his beak to peck at Aqua’s face, Roy grabbed both of them—one in each hand—and separated them.
‘No matter how much their forms change, their nature stays the same.’
If those two fought in their true forms, it would be like a natural disaster had struck.
‘Aqua, I’ll show you around this place. I even got some time off.’
Even with the heavy schedule of the upcoming second ranking announcement, the chance to rest was precious.
Especially since this shoot had been even more relentless than usual, even Roy, who was seasoned by war, found himself exhausted.
“Porruru!” (A whole new world! I can’t wait!)
Aqua quickly shook off her annoyance caused by Ber and snuggled up to Roy’s cheek with a cute gesture.
Not to be outdone, Ber moved to the other side and started pecking Roy’s cheek with his beak.
The real ordeal for Roy had begun.
***
“Broadcast?”
“You don’t need to think of it as anything grand. Word’s getting around that you summoned a new spirit, Roy. Even though the production team got the fans to sign NDAs, nothing’s ever 100% effective.”
At Manager Seo Hyojin’s words, Roy made a reluctant face.
He was still tense from doing live broadcasts.
“There are a lot of people curious about Aqua. The staff said as long as it’s not leaking show spoilers, you’re allowed to do personal streams. So, we should do one too.”
“Is it just me?”
“No, Chan and Doha are planning to stream with different concepts.”
Roy had returned to the Bada Entertainment Dormitory yesterday.
Even Lee Doha, who had the best stamina, collapsed onto his bed and fell asleep instantly, only waking up late in the afternoon.
Roy was no different.
The people at Bada Entertainment knew how tired the kids were, so they didn’t wake them on purpose.
As Roy came out with his hair a complete bird’s nest, Seo Hyojin, who had been waiting for the trainees, pulled him aside first to plan the broadcast.
“Do you think the fans will really enjoy it? Us doing a stream together?”
Roy pointed with sleepy eyes at Ber and Aqua, who were running around like maniacs.
“Biiik-!” (You wicked spirit!)
“Porrung.” (Why even have wings if you’re this slow?)
The reason Roy woke up before Kim Chan and Lee Doha was because of the noisy pair.
The two spirits fought all over the dorm, making it impossible to sleep.
“I heard from Chan that spirits can eat human food too, right?”
“Yes.”
Seo Hyojin clapped her hands, pleased.
“I want to try ASMR. What do you think, Roy? You’re good at mukbang.”
“Me?”
Roy wasn’t aware of how happy his expression became when he ate something delicious.
Seo Hyojin’s satisfied gaze swept over Roy and the adorable spirits.
“This is a guaranteed hit. Trust me.”
Faced with Seo Hyojin’s confident smile, Roy couldn’t help but nod in agreement.
***
“Hello, I’m Hwang Roy.”
Roy bowed his head to the camera.
His softly whispered greeting was as sweet as honey.
“Biiihii!” (I am the Spirit King of Fire, Mulkiber.)
“Porr.” (I’m Aqua.)
Ber and Aqua, sitting at the table piled high with food, raised their right wing and hand.
— [My wall just broke]
— [OMG why are they so cute ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
— [Are that bird and the mermaid spirits?]
— [OO]
Roy glanced at the monitor next to the camera, quickly scanning the live chat.
This was a live stream on the official Bada Entertainment YouTube account.
Hwang Guman had suggested the event, boasting that the channel’s subscribers had increased by 100,000.
Maybe because the usual Bada Entertainment subscribers were tuning in, the chat was mostly friendly.
“Today, we’re doing an ASMR broadcast.”
Roy had watched several famous Hunter Idol ASMR streams in preparation.
He turned his head toward the mic clipped to his shirt collar so even his soft voice would be heard clearly.
“The food prepared for today is…”
Roy was momentarily at a loss for words as he looked at the spread.
The table was so loaded it could be called a small buffet.
“There’s a lot.”
It would’ve taken ages to introduce every menu item, so Roy kept it short.
— [Isn’t that enough for 20 people?]
— [They’ve got Western, Korean, Japanese, Chinese food lol]
— [There’s even pad thai]
“The main dish is Frozen Pork Belly.”
Roy’s throat bobbed as he swallowed.
It was his first time seeing this food, but he had no doubt it would bring his taste buds pure joy.
“Ber, fire.”
Ber puffed out his chest dramatically, then shot out a dazzling burst of flame from his tiny beak.
He was a spirit-powered portable stove.
“Ber’s fire is perfect for grilling meat.”
— [I never thought I’d see someone grill meat with a spirit]
— [Ber is so ㅋㅋ]
The grill heated up quickly.
Roy picked up the tongs and placed a strip of Frozen Pork Belly on the grill.
Sizzle—
The white and pink-striped meat quickly turned gray, releasing a mouthwatering sound.
Roy brought the mic, set up beside the camera, close to the grill to capture the sound.
He continued filling the grill with more pork belly.
— [Where’s the veggies?]
Responding to a pointed chat, Roy added the neatly prepared onions and garlic to the edge of the grill.
“Aqua, salt and pepper.”
Aqua grabbed seasoning containers as big as her own body, filled with coarse salt and whole peppercorns, and flew up over the grill.
Holding the bottom with her tail and twisting the top with both arms, she sprinkled seasoning over the browning meat.
— [I want to eat meat grilled by spirits ㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
‘Meat grilled by spirits.’ If you put a price on it, it’d be worth dozens of times more than the meat itself.
“It looks delicious. I’ll try a piece first.”
***
After bowing to the camera, Roy picked out the five best-cooked pieces and grabbed them with chopsticks.
Though he’d been clumsy at first, Roy had become quite skilled with chopsticks.
— [Okay, Frozen Pork Belly is thin but FIVE at once? lol]
— [Is this ASMR or just a mukbang? Roy’s just here to eat lol]
— [Do they starve their idols at Bada?]
“There’s Samjang and Sesame Oil Sauce, but I always go with Samjang.”
If it were beef, he’d dip it in Sesame Oil Sauce, but Roy thought pork belly went best with Samjang.
Without hesitation, he slathered the pork in Samjang and brought it to his mouth.
“Bii?” (Hey, Contractor! I’m the one who grilled all this!)
Ber let out a pitiful cry at that moment.
He’d thought Roy would feed him first, but Roy had popped it straight into his own mouth.
“Mia.”
With his mouth full of meat, Roy placed a well-cooked piece on the small plate in front of Ber.
“Aado meo.”
He also put a piece on Aqua’s plate. Ber quickly forgot his disappointment and dove into the mukbang.
Hwang Guman slyly brought a tiny mic next to Ber just for him.
Ber, tilting his head with a piece of meat in his beak, recalled the ASMR videos he’d watched with Roy and brought his beak close to the mic.
Chomp chomp chomp—
People were in a frenzy hearing a bird eat meat in real-time.
— [So that’s what a bird eating meat sounds like lol]
— [He’s basically just a person]
Unlike Ber, who ate without hesitation, Aqua just tapped her tail on the table, staring blankly at the meat.
“Here.”
Finally, after swallowing his bite, Roy handed Aqua a fork and knife, specially made to fit her tiny hands—the size of Roy’s pinky finger.
— [What is that ㅠㅠㅠㅠ so cute ㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
Aqua gripped the utensils firmly and began cutting the meat.
Her graceful movements made the food-laden table look like a gourmet restaurant for a moment.
“Aqua, is it good?”
“Porr…” (What kind of meat is this, Contractor?)
Aqua’s tail started wagging.
There was pork on the As Continent, but it was usually boiled.
Roy thought people in Korea must have a natural talent for making delicious food.
How did someone even come up with the idea to slice pork thin, freeze it, and grill it for a totally different flavor? The more he thought about it, the more amazed he was.
“Frozen Pork Belly. Try this with it too.”
Roy added a bit of seasoned chives to Aqua’s plate.
“Ber, careful.”
Next, Roy caught Ber, who was about to fly onto the grill, and set him back on the table, quickly refilling his empty plate with more meat.
— [This is totally a mukbang]
— [I’m having Frozen Pork Belly for dinner tonight]
— [I just ordered some. Look at Ber’s face—if you don’t want to eat after seeing that, you must be a robot]
With every bite, Ber’s belly bulged out.
It was fascinating how his stomach filled up just like a human’s, even though he never needed to use the bathroom.
“I’ll try the other dishes too.”
Though Frozen Pork Belly was the main, there were still plenty of other foods on the table.
Roy, cheeks flushed, tasted each one.
He never forgot to share the tastiest bites with Ber and Aqua.
— [Shouldn’t Aqua just start her own mukbang channel at this point?]
Surprisingly, Aqua ate the most out of the three.
She started with Frozen Pork Belly and only set down her utensils after eating three times as much as Roy.
While Ber’s belly swelled up like Namsan Mountain and he eventually sprawled out on the table, Aqua looked exactly the same as when she started.
“Good job, Roy.”
Hwang signaled the end of the broadcast.
They’d spent nearly two hours eating nonstop.
After the first thirty minutes, Roy had focused more on tasting each dish than reading the chat.