With the owner and Li Na both explaining at once, the chef finally realized the people he'd been threatening weren't criminals who'd snuck in while the shop was empty.
He slid the blade that had been leveled at Faust and Zhou Zhuang back into its sheath, then bowed with genuine solemnity.
"Um… I'm truly sorry, you two. I must have frightened you. You came with the people in the dining area to eat here, right? In that case—I'll use everything I've learned in my life to prepare you a perfect meal."
After that, he handed Mei Zhen—still slumped unconscious on his back—over to Li Na to support, pushed open the kitchen door, and strode inside.
The owner pinched the bridge of his nose and muttered, exasperated, "Seriously… how did I end up hiring such a stubborn, single-track chef?"
Zhou Zhuang stepped out from behind Faust, pointed at the owner in astonishment, and blurted out, "Wait—you're the owner?! I saw you delivering food this morning and thought you were a waiter!"
"Huh?" The owner blinked. "Didn't I tell you?"
"We've met exactly once. This morning," Zhou Zhuang replied with the dead-eyed stare of someone whose patience had been carefully folded and put away.
"Is that so? Ahaha…" The owner scratched his head and laughed dumbly, filling the space between them with awkward chuckles.
Watching him, Zhou Zhuang felt his image of the man crumble in real time. This morning he'd seemed like a calm, reliable adult. Ten minutes of exposure later, that first impression imploded—downgrading him from "mature professional" to "unreliable grown-up, same species as me."
After a beat of forced laughter, the owner straightened his face and switched back into "competent adult mode."
"Then, honored guest, please reunite with this lady beside you and your subordinates. A lot happened today—so we will provide you with a perfect banquet."
Ah. The reliable vibe is back.
Feeling that competence return, Zhou Zhuang nodded, accepted the suggestion, and headed toward Angela's table with Faust behind him.
Once the two of them had left, the owner turned back to Li Na, who was carefully cleaning up Mei Zhen—her good friend—nearby.
Li Na hurried to the owner, anxiety written all over her face.
"Boss… what happened to Mei Zhen?"
The owner sighed.
"Li Na… Mei Zhen is fine. She was just frightened too badly. Let her rest a bit and she'll come around. And we really should thank that customer's warning this morning—because it's why we got to her in time."
Hearing it wasn't anything serious, Li Na finally breathed out, shoulders loosening.
Then she straightened up, forcing energy into her voice.
"Then I need to pull myself together too. We scared our honored guest just now—we should properly make it up to him."
The owner smiled. "Exactly. He helped us so much; we must repay him well. If you're that motivated, come with me and we'll bring them pre-meal drinks. We'll use my treasured bottle of wine—the one I've been saving for years! The key should still be with you."
Li Na's eyes widened. "Whoa! Boss, you're really going all-in this time. You never even let us get close to that bottle—you were terrified Mei Zhen and I would break it."
"It's not you I'm worried about," the owner sighed. "It's Mei Zhen. Clumsy as she is, if she touches it, it'll probably disappear in the next second. But good wine—when it's time, it's time. Keeping it stored won't make it have babies."
"…Boss, I'm really going to get it?" Li Na asked again, still suspicious.
"Go, go. I said it—I'm not taking it back," the owner said, amused.
"Okay!" Li Na dashed toward the front—then paused to drape her jacket over Mei Zhen on the sofa before leaving.
…
"Wow." Zhou Zhuang stretched and sighed. "Everything that just happened… one thing after another… it's hard to believe it was only ten minutes."
Beside him, Faust looked thoughtful, as if replaying something in her mind.
"What is it, Faust?" Zhou Zhuang asked. "Something bothering you?"
"Faust is reviewing the chef's movements," she answered.
"The chef? What about him?" Zhou Zhuang tried to recall the moment. "He was just… a little faster than you, right?"
He remembered it clearly: after seeing Li Na's condition, the chef had crossed the distance in a blink and was suddenly right in front of them, blade drawn from his waist and leveled at him.
He hadn't attacked—because Faust had dragged Zhou Zhuang behind her and shielded him.
"Manager," Faust corrected him, "it was not 'just' a little faster."
"When we realized he was already in front of us, he had countless opportunities to cut us into pieces. He chose not to. I don't know where he is from, but he is most likely from Backstreet Alley 23… though confirmation will depend on the food he makes."
"Alley 23?" The codename stabbed Zhou Zhuang's brain and brought up everything he'd heard about that place. His face tightened.
"Then doesn't that mean what we're eating might be made from—"
He didn't finish the sentence, but Faust understood the word he swallowed.
"Manager—not all chefs from Alley 23 use the 'materials' you're imagining," she said calmly. "From what Faust observed in the kitchen just now, Faust can confirm he did not use that kind of ingredient."
"…Really?" Zhou Zhuang exhaled, relief easing the tension in his shoulders.
Talking as they walked, the two returned to the dining area and rejoined the team. Then they split—one to the employee table, one to the management table.
As Faust sat down, Anna leaned in to ask what had happened during their absence, and Faust began carefully explaining everything to Anna and the others.
Meanwhile, Zhou Zhuang stared at the seating arrangement at the management table and went blank.
On the table in front of him, Angela, Malkuth, and Hod had each left an empty seat beside themselves.
Malkuth lifted a hand and enthusiastically waved him over to sit by her.
Hod, more subtle, gestured with her eyes: You can sit next to me too.
Zhou Zhuang looked to Angela.
Angela sat with eyes closed, resting, giving no signal at all.
Uh… is this a death-match?
But I'm a romance idiot—there's no way I could "clear routes" between three people in three days… right?
Angela's favorability might be slightly higher than Malkuth and Hod… but still…
No, no. I'm overthinking it. Didn't my seniors always say that when you see something like this, it's definitely an illusion?
Yes. An illusion.
Ignoring all three "options," Zhou Zhuang chose the Square Formation.
He dragged a chair from the side and planted himself right in the middle—across from Angela, wedged between Malkuth and Hod, turning the table into a perfectly awkward standoff.
....
My Patreon : patreon/RuneA
If you want to read the novel in advance, you can subscribe for early access. I also have many more novels in my collection that you might be interested in
I upload ten novels a day, with 3 to 4 chapters per title depending on the length. If you're following a particular series, please wait your turn a little
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it