On The Honeymoon (6)

So I took the half-eaten mushroom and popped the remaining piece into Rurin’s mouth. It looked kind of like a button mushroom—if you sliced it in half and looked straight at it, it resembled the kind that Super OOO would eat.

“Mmm?”

Rurin opened wide and chomped on it, her expression turning weird. Thankfully, she didn’t spit it out.

It didn’t taste like anything—but at least it wasn’t rubber. Not exactly delicious, but at least edible.

“Kun! Rabon! Kukuku-kun-kun! Kun-kun-kun!”

“Hm?”

I figured we could at least fill our stomachs, so I started placing the remaining mushrooms on the hot stone—but suddenly, the Kuns rushed over and started hopping excitedly.

They stared with sparkling eyes at the mushrooms I was grilling, sniffing the air like they were completely mesmerized by the scent.

“Rurin, what are they saying?”

I asked Rurin what that barrage of ‘kuns’ meant.

“They said this mushroom is called Rabon, but it smells completely different from what they’re used to. They’re asking what you did to it.”

“Rabon, huh? Weird name.”

What a strange name.

I could feel their eyes on me—all of them. A hundred pairs of googly little Kun-eyes fixed on me like I was a grill god.

For a race whose culinary world was ruled by rubbery flavor, this smell was probably revolutionary.

They let go of the pile, and I looked at the mountain of Rabons in front of me. There was plenty.

“Rurin, tell them to wait. Actually—tell them to line up. I’ll show them how it’s done.”

“Oh? Oh—got it.”

“Of course, your portion comes first, my dear Rurin.”

I shrugged and got to work, grilling fast.

Once I had Rurin’s share ready, she munched away despite the flavor, grumbling that it wasn’t good but she had no choice.

Her face was the picture of tragedy.

A perfect “Why must I, of all people, eat this?” expression.

Meanwhile, the Kuns lining up and tasting the grilled mushrooms looked like they’d just witnessed a miracle.

Their faces screamed “I’ve discovered an entirely new world.”

They were surprisingly orderly—jumping for joy, then rushing back to get in line again with desperate eagerness.

The contrast with Rurin’s deadpan suffering face was hilarious.

It made me wonder if they were even eating the same thing.

The real problem? They wouldn’t stop lining up. I was gonna be grilling forever.

I couldn’t keep this up nonstop, so I looked at Rurin—still chewing flavorless food with a dead expression like she was one with the dusty ground—and asked her to translate.

I’d teach them how to grill it themselves.

So the Kun-to-Rurin back-and-forth resumed—and they were thrilled.

Finally free from Kun duty, I stretched out my sore shoulders.

Honestly, I was already kind of full.

Normally, grilling for Rurin and over a hundred Kuns wouldn’t leave me a single bite—but Rurin kept feeding me mid-bite like “Here, ah!” so yeah… I was fed.

Funny thing is, the Kuns started treating us like gods.

They already revered Rurin for obliterating monsters—but now they were looking at me like I’d changed the world by teaching them to grill.

Anyway, once my stomach settled, I suddenly remembered—there was that other kind of mushroom. The sour one.

For some reason, the Kuns had only brought us Rabon mushrooms—the button-shaped ones—and they only ever ate those too.

If you’re curious, you ask. I couldn’t talk to them directly, so yeah—it was a little annoying.

I looked at Rurin, who was dozing off with her head leaning against my shoulder.

“Yaaawn!”

She rubbed her sleepy eyes, caught my gaze, and looked at me.

“Aren’t we going to bed? Feels way past our bedtime.”

“Yeah, yeah—we will. Just ask one more thing first.”

“Kuuuul…”

“Don’t you dare pretend to be asleep!”

She literally just responded a second ago and now she’s snoring? And not even cute snoring—she went full Kuun.

Looking seriously annoyed, Rurin slowly stood up and dragged herself over to interrogate a Kun.

She returned pretty quickly and started explaining.

“They do have it, but they prefer Rabon, so they don’t eat the other one. Apparently, the big monsters love it. But like… Both of them taste gross. Freakin’ weirdos. Idiots.”

“Oh, yeah? Can you ask them to bring some if they’ve got any left? Maybe throw in some tough-guy talk—tell them you’ll handle the big monsters or whatever.”

“Roger that. That part I like!”

She nodded and darted over, yelling Kun-words like a boss.

I had no idea what she said—but they all dropped to the ground like she was a warlord.

Soon, a pile of those sour reishi-shaped mushrooms started forming in front of us.

“They call this one Sekun.”

“First Rabon, now Sekun? These names make no sense. But whatever—names aren’t the point. Let’s grill and see if it tastes different.”

“Ughhh. I’m getting really sleepy now…”

She shrugged like “you do you”, her face screaming zero expectation.

As I sat down to start grilling, she sneakily laid her head across my thigh.

But maybe the fire was too close—she got up and just leaned on my shoulder instead.

It was definitely That Time™—when sleepy Rurin’s energy tank hits zero. Early morning always wipes her out.

By morning, she’s basically a zombie.

So I let her be and started grilling.

Again, the moment the mushroom hit the fire—sizzle, followed by smoke.

Last time, it smelled like roasted meat—this time, completely different.

A smell I never expected.

It was oddly nostalgic. The kind of smell that lured elementary school kids after class.

This was dalgona.

That thick, melting sugar scent.

Why that came from grilling mushrooms? I have no idea. These mushrooms are wild.

Sniff sniff?

Rurin, who had been snoozing on my shoulder, suddenly perked up.

Of course she did—this was her kryptonite: sweet smells. Even if this one was weirdly synthetic, after all the nasty-tasting food, it was paradise.

She rubbed her eyes and shuffled over to the grill like a sleepy zombie chasing a snack.

I tried to hold her back by the waist—but her hand had already reached the mushroom.

It had to be hot—but she didn’t care. She was half-conscious and fully entranced.

She tossed the piping hot mushroom into her mouth like she was possessed.

“Wasn’t that hot?! I was gonna cool it down first—what’s the rush?”

“When did I even—ghuuuuhhh… it is hot!!”

“Did you seriously eat that in your sleep?”

Rurin twisted like she was melting—but her titanium-grade tongue held strong, and soon her face melted into bliss.

Her writhing switched from “ouch” to “ohhh yes”.

“Ooooohhh?”

Rurin’s reactions are basically the ultimate taste detector.

So I grabbed another grilled mushroom, blew on it gently, and popped it into my mouth.

And yep—it was sweet.

Each bite felt like the sugary filling of a hotteok bursting in my mouth.

It felt like the first real flavor we’d found in this bland, tasteless ruin.

Sure, we’d probably get sick of it fast, but not right now. No idea how sour evolved into sweet—this place makes no sense.

These mushrooms seem to drastically change flavor when cooked.

Fascinating—and also totally unpredictable. You can’t tell anything until it hits the fire.

“This is so good! I’m not sleepy anymore!”

“Yeah? I’ll grill more for you. You’ve earned it.”

“Hehehe. Yay!”

Rurin smiled happily.

And of course, the Kuns perked up too. Same grilling method, after all.

They hadn’t even looked at these before—but now their eyes were sparkling with interest.

Seeing those cotton candy fluffballs light up was kinda adorable. Their eyes were begging.

A species discovering taste for the first time… That curiosity hits hard.

I gestured how to grill them the same way, and the Kuns started buzzing with excitement.

They brought over a mountain of Sekun mushrooms and started grilling. Soon, the sweet caramel smell filled the air. Cotton candy creatures eating sugar… A match made in weird heaven?

As I was caught in that random thought, the Kun leader—the one who always spoke first—took a bite of the grilled Sekun.

His expression lit up instantly. He must’ve tasted that sweetness. This had to be a culinary revelation for the Kuns.

But then—trouble.

The Kun leader’s leg began to turn to stone—then it spread upward. Soon his entire body started petrifying.

Full-on petrification.

“Kuuuu…!”

He tried to say something just before his head turned—but turned to stone mid-sentence.

From foot to crown—completely petrified.

Like a statue.

The Kuns were in a panic, running around before collapsing in fear at our feet.

“Kuuuuun! Kuuu-kuuun!”

Rurin quickly translated.

“They’re begging for mercy.”

“What? We didn’t even do anything?”

“We did tell them to grill it.”

“Yeah but… We didn’t say eat it.”

“Didn’t you expect they would?”

“…Fair.”

I sighed and asked Rurin to explain everything to the Kuns.

That this wasn’t a trap, just a coincidence—we were testing the flavor, not turning them to stone on purpose.

Thankfully, the Kuns seemed to understand her explanation and started to calm down.

Rurin nodded and added one final note.

“I told them he’ll turn back in five minutes, so not to worry.”

“Good job. Wait—why are you just casually grilling again?”

“Because it tastes good.”

Rurin just kept eating Sekun with a totally straight face.

A deadly trap for others…but just a snack for a dragon.