Chapter 7: Living Together

It had been about three days since I started living with No-Rani.

During those three days, my daily routine had changed.

“Ugh, it’s chilly.”

It was still before dawn—3:40 a.m.

I got up earlier than others and moved around busily.

Making tea for the Hyeon siblings in the early morning had now become part of my daily life.

They had told me I didn’t need to, but since I enjoyed doing it, I didn’t feel burdened.

Besides, I tended to sleep late, so I didn’t get much sleep at night anyway.

The only thing that bothered me was—

“Ahjussi…”

“No-Rani, huh?”

“Mm.”

No-Rani, who had been sleeping in bed, groped around for a bit before finally getting up.

Though No-Rani had her own room, whenever I woke up, I’d find her lying next to me.

And whenever I got up, she’d get up too.

No-Rani climbed off the bed and immediately clung to my leg.

It was cute and a little pitiful to see her like that, unable even to open her eyes fully.

“Go back to sleep.”

“No, I don’t wanna. Are you going out, Ahjussi?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m coming too.”

Before I could say no, No-Rani had already started changing into her usual yellow dress.

Ever since she first came to the house, this scene had repeated itself.

For two days, I tried to persuade her to rest, but she just wouldn’t listen.

As the saying goes, a parent can’t win against their child.

In the end, I raised my hands in surrender to No-Rani’s stubbornness.

“Hurray.”

“Hurray!”

As I helped No-Rani get dressed, I couldn’t help but smile.

Fine, do whatever you want. As long as you don’t cause trouble for others.

Dressed in her yellow dress, No-Rani even grabbed a brush and ran it through her hair.

Finishing off her preparations with neat brushing, she was ready to go.

“All done! Ahjussi, let’s go already!”

“Alright.”

Holding No-Rani’s hand, I walked down Sunny Road.

The streetlights were sparse, so the road was still quite dark.

It had the kind of gloomy atmosphere that might scare adults, but No-Rani seemed just excited.

She swung my hand playfully and chatted about things she knew, mainly about her friends.

“Shinbi sparkles. So it hurts my eyes.”

“Really? Where does that friend live?”

“Yeah. I dunno! Comes, goes far away, then comes back.”

“I see?”

“After Grandfather left on his trip, I haven’t seen Shinbi much. Will Shinbi come this year? I hope so. It’s fun to play with Shinbi.”

Shinbi…

That name was one I’d seen in the Recipe Book.

Maybe one day Shinbi will visit Sunny House.

Who knows when that will be.

***

While I was listening to No-Rani talk, we arrived at Yangjibareun Tea House before I realized it.

I turned on the lights, and as I started preparing Red Peppermint Tea for the Hyeon siblings, No-Rani sat at the Bar Table, nodding off.

She said she was fine before we left, but she couldn’t really be okay.

As No-Rani drifted off to sleep, I covered her with a blanket and finished preparing the tea.

While I was making Cookie Dough, the door quietly opened.

“Morning.”

“Good morning.”

“So tired. I’m exhausted.”

The Hyeon siblings came in and greeted me in very quiet voices.

In just three days, they’d gotten used to seeing No-Rani sleeping here.

Hyeonseo walked up to No-Rani, sleeping at the Bar Table, and poked her cheek.

“Aww, she’s so cute. Honey, why is our No-Rani this adorable?”

“There’s no ‘honey’ here, you know?”

“Honey, how could you say that…”

“You never get tired of it, huh? You keep saying that for three days straight.”

“Shut up and zip it, will you?”

“Both of you, quiet. You’ll wake No-Rani.”

When No-Rani was mentioned, they fell silent and just glared at each other.

Honestly, these two are like twins—mortal enemies.

When I brought out the tray with Red Peppermint Tea, Hyeon Ung took it and handed me a few ten-thousand won bills.

“What’s this? Real money?”

“No matter what, we can’t just keep drinking for free. Take it.”

“It’s fine. It’s still Open Beta, and I’ll come get the watermelon later.”

“That watermelon’s worth way more, idiot!”

With a scowl, Hyeon Ung forced the money into my hand.

He gripped it so I couldn’t possibly let go.

“And the watermelon’s a gift. This is for the tea! Since we’re friends, we need to be clear about this stuff. Don’t want us fighting later, right?”

“Yeah, got it.”

“But from today, pay properly for the watermelon too when you take it.”

“Ugh. Take it back. Take it, you jerk.”

Hyeon Ung chuckled as he picked up his tray.

Hyeonseo, who’d been watching No-Rani the whole time, took some Cookies and got up.

Having fun is great, but it was time for them to head off to work.

“We’re off.”

“Okay. See you this evening.”

“Oh, right, we got some good liquor today, let’s have a drink later. We’re off work tomorrow.”

“Drinking sounds good.”

After making drinking plans, the two left.

Now that the tea house was quiet, I looked through the Recipe Book.

Over the past few days, I’d tried making various teas and gotten the hang of it.

Thanks to moving my hands diligently, I could now make more than half the teas in the Recipe Book.

“What kind of tea should I make?”

Looking through the Recipe Book, I went into the Warehouse.

Even after using quite a bit of the Tea Leaf stock in the Warehouse, it never seemed to decrease.

No matter how much I used, by the next day the jars were always refilled.

I gave up trying to figure out how that was possible.

Of course, it wasn’t all-powerful.

Ingredients related to tea were always restocked, but for dessert ingredients and Coffee Beans, I had to buy and store them myself.

Probably because Grandfather didn’t include them in the settings.

That’s just my little guess.

“Still, having this much is nice.”

After picking out the ingredients for the teas I wanted to make today—Snow Shine and Ruby—I got to work.

For teas, those were pretty unique names, so I had no idea how they’d taste.

But I had plenty of time, so I could take my time.

“Refreshing, and finishes sweet. Hmm… This one’s a bit different. Oh, our times are a little off. But this one’s not bad either.”

Grandfather’s Recipe Book was like a basic textbook for fundamentals.

It was good as it was, perfect, even.

But with my experience in product development in my previous life, I thought I could tweak it a bit more.

As I adjusted the recipes and brewed several cups, the sky began to brighten.

No-Rani, who had been sleeping at the Bar Table, slowly opened her eyes.

“Uugh, it’s morning…”

“Did you sleep well?”

“Mm… Huaaah. Ahjussi…”

“Hungry?”

“Yeah.”

I stroked No-Rani’s hair as she whimpered, then turned on the gas stove.

I decided to make omelette rice today.

I’d cooked a variety of dishes over the past three days, and among them, one of No-Rani’s favorites was Omelette Rice.

“Here you go. Omelette rice.”

“Wow! Omelette rice! Ome! Ome! Omelette rice! Crack the egg! Ketchup, plop!”

Singing, No-Rani stuffed a bite of omelette rice into her mouth.

She must have really liked the taste, because she waved her arms excitedly.

Watching her, I ate my own serving.

I made it myself, but it tasted pretty good.

It would be just fine as a menu item to sell.

After we finished our meal, No-Rani ran to the door with little thumping steps.

“Ahjussi, I’m going out for a bit!”

“Alright, don’t be late coming back.”

After breakfast, No-Rani left the tea house and ran off to play.

She always returned only when it was almost evening.

I had no idea where or what No-Rani did out there.

One thing was for sure—no one in the Village had seen No-Rani after she left the shop.

Even though the Village wasn’t that big.

“As long as she doesn’t get hurt or cause trouble for others.”

She’s a good kid, so I’m sure she won’t be a bother to anyone.

While No-Rani was out, I quickly cleaned up.

And then, alone in the house, I decided to try something.

“Alright. I need a bookcase. It would be nice to have one over there. Make it one from \/sa, model number \40215. Fill it with the bestsellers in novels and essays.”

I spoke to the tea house as if brainwashing it, then stepped outside.

After locking the door, I counted to three and opened it again.

“Is it there?”

As if it had always been there, a Bookcase filled with books stood in that spot.

The books were exactly what I wanted—novel and essay bestsellers.

They were in pristine condition, as if just released. Even—

“These are hardcovers. And these are first editions.”

Books like this would have considerable collection value.

But I didn’t want to attract the attention of collectors, so I’d have to change them later.

I put the books back and looked around the tea house.

I wasn’t satisfied with just one try.

There was still so much of the tea house left unexplored.

“Let’s test a few more things.”

After a few more similar tests, I began to leave my own mark on the tea house.

After going through the process several times, I came to a conclusion.

This tea house was a Genie.

If I stated what I wanted, closed the door, and opened it again, the Genie would grant it.

Of course, there were limits.

For example, I couldn’t ask for living creatures or money directly.

“Well, that’s only natural.”

This was good enough.

Even with a Genie that could do anything, I didn’t wish for anything big.

If I’d wanted material happiness, I wouldn’t have come back to this Village.

After running my hand over the new Bookcase, I went back to the kitchen.

“Let’s get the tea ready…”

“Is anyone here?”

As I was looking through the teapots, an elderly gentleman entered.

When I saw his face, a smile spread across my lips.

“Sanghyun ajusshi.”

“Oh? Who is this! Changseong, isn’t it! When did you get back?”

It was Mr. Seo Sanghyun, father of the Hyeon siblings and the Village’s biggest landowner.

He strode up and hugged me tight.

“You brat. If you’re back, you should come see me!”

“I heard you were busy these days, so I thought I’d drop by later.”

“Nonsense. I’d always make time for you, no matter how busy. The kids are the busy ones, not me. By the way, have the kids seen you?”

“They dropped by at dawn. They said our tea gives them energy.”

“These kids, they’re working hard these days.”

It sounded like Mr. Sanghyun had seen how well the Red Peppermint Tea worked on his kids.

The effects of the tea really were noticeable.

Mr. Sanghyun laughed heartily and went to sit at the Bar Table.

“Give me a cup of that tea, too. I must be getting old—my body aches after just a little movement.”

“All your joints ache, and even a little activity makes you stiff, right?”

“That’s right, that’s right. You know your stuff?”

“Everyone’s the same as they get older.”

“You cheeky brat. Talking like you’re an old man.”

I do know.

When I was around your age, I was the same.

Swallowing my words, I set down, in front of Mr. Sanghyun, not Red Peppermint Tea, but a tea I’d been practicing with all morning.

Snow Shine.

It was as dark as coffee, but inside, white powder swirled around.

A tea that looked like white snow falling—perfect for ajusshi.

“Oh, is this that tea? How fascinating.”

“Not exactly, but I think this one suits you better. Take a look, smell it, and give it a taste.”

Mr. Sanghyun followed my instructions.

He looked at it, smelled it, and sipped.

Then his eyes widened.

“Oh, what is this? Fascinating.”

“Right?”

“I don’t even know tea, but this is delicious. I already feel energy running through my body.”

“It shouldn’t take effect that quickly, though.”

The leaves and flowers in Snow Shine were said to relieve chronic pain.

If used separately, they’d be toxic, according to the Recipe Book, but when blended, their effects appear.

Of course, just as ajusshi said, it wouldn’t work instantly.

His kindly exaggeration made me laugh.

“You kids just keep the good stuff for yourselves. My own kids are hopeless.”

“It’s still Open Beta. Once we’re fully open, I’ll make sure to treat you right.”

“So you’re going to live here for good? In this house?”

“Yes.”

“Your Grandfather would’ve been pleased to hear that.”

As I laid down some Cookies in front of him, Mr. Sanghyun’s expression softened.

“Your Grandfather was always saying he wanted to pass this shop down to you. Even when talk of redevelopment came up and people kept trying to buy it, he refused to sell, no matter what.”

“Ah…”

“It took some time, but it’s good that you inherited it in the end. Don’t you think?”

“Still… it would’ve been nice to know sooner.”

“He didn’t want to burden you, that’s why.”

Mr. Sanghyun mimicked Grandfather’s expression and way of speaking.

“No matter what, I can’t do anything that makes my grandchild suffer.”

“That really does sound like Grandfather.”

“Right? You should appreciate your Grandfather’s love.”

Hearing about Grandfather from ajusshi was refreshing in its own way.

As Mr. Sanghyun sipped his tea, he suddenly asked,

“So, Changseong, when will you be officially opening?”

“Probably sometime next week. Preparations are almost complete.”

By then, I’d be able to make most of the teas in the Recipe Book, and I’d practiced the desserts enough.

And I’d made the tea house reflect my own style.

By then, I’d be ready to serve customers without embarrassment.

“So, about five days left?”

“Around there.”

“Then, that’s perfect.”

“What is?”

Mr. Sanghyun grinned widely.

“Changseong, how about having a proper Open Beta launch?”