A Week In Korea (6)

The enticing smell accentuated by the black chunjang (black bean sauce), the steam rising. Peas are perfectly sprinkled on top, and there’s danmuji (pickled radish) on the side.

I picked my chopsticks up. The best part of eating jajangmyeon is mixing the noodles. That’s why I prefer regular jajangmyeon over the pre-mixed jjambbong. Personally, that is.

“El, why is this black?”

“It’s one of the tasty black foods. I’m not sure if you’ll like it, but it’s one of my favorites. Try it.”

“Oh! Really? If you like it, then even if it doesn’t taste good, it’s fine with me.”

Leaving a heartwarming remark, Rurin followed my lead and stabbed her chopsticks into the jajangmyeon. It was quite bold.

“You’re supposed to…”

As I was about to explain while watching the steaming jajangmyeon, people burst into the restaurant.

“Please cooperate for a moment!”

Bang!

Suddenly, the police rushed in. At the same time, some people in the restaurant began to flee hurriedly, including some of the customers.

Seeing the police IDs and reacting like that means they have something to hide and are involved in some crime.

“Catch them!”

The group started resisting and attacking the police, turning the restaurant into chaos. The police also created a mess trying to catch them.

One of the fugitives started wrestling with a police officer, and the commotion spilled over to our table.

As a result, the table was a mess. Even without the mess, the atmosphere was no longer suitable for eating.

Of all places…

“Sorry, please cooperate for a moment!”

Whether or not this restaurant was involved in a crime, the police began checking IDs and interviewing each customer.

This is troublesome. Not being able to eat is annoying, but Rurin and I are stateless.

I’ve been reported missing and haven’t recovered. Since I’m leaving anyway, it doesn’t matter.

And Rurin shouldn’t even exist in this world.

So cooperation is out of the question. In that case, it’s better to flee. If necessary, we could use Rurin’s mental magic, but since this commotion happened, eating here is impossible.

In that case, just leaving is the best option.

“Rurin, do you have enough mana to teleport?”

“I have some left.”

“Then let’s go back to the hotel.”

“Is that necessary? Those guys dropped my food on the floor. I’m so annoyed. I’ll…”

“Calm down, calm down. This isn’t our home. No need to cause a scene.”

“Hmm, okay!”

Rurin nodded and hugged me. At the same time, my vision went dark.

Escaping was no problem. But failing to eat jajangmyeon twice was a big issue.

It felt like I was cursed not to eat jajangmyeon. Strange events happened at every restaurant we went to.

I was a bit taken aback, so I lay down on the bed. The bed here was incomparably softer than the one in the other world.

Rurin followed and jumped onto the bed. Recently, her routine was to jump into bed and fall asleep.

“El, can we take this bed with us when we go back? It seems better than the one the dwarves made.”

“Hmm, there might be even beds better than this.”

“Oh! Really? Then let’s take that!”

“Hmm, we’ll buy one later.”

“Agreed!”

That’s a promise I can easily make. I too, think using a bed from this world is better.

It wasn’t something I could summon before, but taking it directly from this world is a different story.

Moreover, the amount of mana I can hold has greatly increased, so the size of items I can summon has also increased.

Rurin, feeling good, started rolling around on the bed. But I was still hungry. It was getting close to sunset.

“Let’s go out again.”

We couldn’t order jajangmyeon in the hotel, so I thought of a different method. This time, I decided to try delivery and headed to Hangang Citizen Park with Rurin.

It was sunset, and the western sky was red. People were bustling around. Amid the city’s weekday scenery, I enjoyed a leisurely walk into the park with Rurin.

There were many Chinese restaurant flyers in front of the Citizen Park station. I picked one, entered the park, and sat down. First, I went to the convenience store to buy a mat, drinks, and use the phone.

I asked the convenience store to receive the delivery, paid them, and even gave them a tip. The clerk was kind, and there were no issues until now.

If I were really cursed, something else would happen, so I stayed alert. I found a spot, spread the mat, and sat down to wait for the delivery.

Rurin soon started dozing off on the mat while I waited for the jajangmyeon.

The delivery arrived quickly. I placed Rurin’s head on the mat and headed to the convenience store.

With the help of the convenience store clerk, I got the jajangmyeon and tangsuyuk and returned to the mat. If I had a cellphone, I wouldn’t have needed to go through the convenience store, but without one, it’s hard to order food in an unspecified location.

That’s why I had to give a tip. But that’s minor. The important thing is that I finally have jajangmyeon and tangsuyuk in my hands.

The jajangmyeon I failed to eat all day, I can finally eat now.

There are no variables this time.

Unless a monster suddenly appears in the Han River.

Even if a monster appears, I’ll burn it with magic and then eat.

“Rurin, wake up. The food is here.”

“Mm, finally food? My stomach is growling. But El, isn’t that what we saw earlier?”

“Right? Jajangmyeon always looks like this.”

“You’re a strange one.”

“It must seem that way to you.”

I replied absentmindedly, focusing on the jajangmyeon. Having failed to eat it twice, it felt like a rare delicacy.

Unwrapping the package, steam rose up. The delivery system is impressive. I took out the wooden chopsticks and carefully split them in two, almost reverently.

“You use wooden chopsticks like this, by splitting them into two. You’ve used chopsticks before, right?”

“Is that what this is? I didn’t know because they were stuck together.”

“Yes.”

It was Rurin’s first time encountering wooden chopsticks that needed to be split. She immediately applied force to split them.

Of course, there was no delicacy. She applied all her strength, causing the chopsticks to break pitifully, with only the front part snapping off.

A dismal failure.

“Why are you like this, you fool?”

“Why are you like this!”

The jajangmyeon is cooling down. It’s going to get soggy. I can’t let her eat it with her hands. So I had no choice but to run to the convenience store to buy wooden chopsticks. I’m exhausted.

“Huff huff.”

“Hahaha. El, you look cute with your tongue sticking out.”

A while later, as I returned, panting heavily, Rurin started laughing, treating me like a dog. Is she kidding? Whose fault is this?

“Enough, I’ll split the chopsticks. I’m starving.”

“I’m really hungry too. That’s why I was eating this.”

Rurin had already started eating the tangsuyuk. With her hands.

“Well, aren’t you the ultimate traitor. That’s really too much. I went to get your chopsticks…”

“I don’t care! Eat this. It’s good. A bit bland, though.”

Rurin stuffed tangsuyuk into my babbling mouth. Is she telling me to shut up?

I can’t live like this. But the tangsuyuk in my mouth was delicious. This was my first meal of the day.

“Alright, let’s stop talking. Anyway, you mix the jajangmyeon like this. When it’s evenly mixed, it turns into a shiny, nice color. Oh, what a good smell!”

As I admired the smell of the jajangmyeon, Rurin nodded and mimicked my actions. Good, no problem. The sunset was at its peak. I lifted the noodles with my chopsticks.

I looked around briefly. Nothing is happening. The worst-case scenario now would be sudden rain, soaking the jajangmyeon and tangsuyuk.

Surely, that worst-case scenario…

I glanced at the sky. But it was clear.

“Slurp.”

Relieved, I chewed the noodles that entered my mouth.

The slightly swollen jajangmyeon filled my mouth. Even though it was swollen, it was delicious. The unique umami of chunjang and the slight greasiness characteristic of Chinese cuisine.

How long has it been since I last ate jajangmyeon?

Chomp chomp.

The jajangmyeon kept entering my mouth automatically. I glanced at Rurin, and she was slurping it up without any issues.

“El, this is good… I like it…”

“Yeah, at times like this, eat it with that yellow thing, the yellow thing in front. This is meant to be eaten with that.”

The greasiness is perfectly balanced by the danmuji, enhancing the flavor.

The unique taste of chunjang, salty yet sweet, spreads in my mouth, and the crispy danmuji elevates the taste to another level.

“Oh!”

With a skeptical look, Rurin picked up the danmuji, hesitated briefly, then started chewing. She looked very satisfied.

I left some jajangmyeon and picked up the separately ordered fried egg. This is the best when it starts getting a bit greasy.

Then I poured some of the remaining jajang sauce on the tangsuyuk. Jajang sauce tangsuyuk. Tangsuyuk with its sauce. And tangsuyuk dipped in salt bought from the convenience store. Three types in total.

Each has its unique flavor.

First, dipping it in salt brings out the tangsuyuk’s natural flavor the best. The more crispy the outside and tender the inside, the closer it gets to this taste. But the place I ordered from didn’t seem to make tangsuyuk with that much care.

But tangsuyuk is basically delicious.

No matter what, it gets the basics right.

A slight dip in salt, and the mild saltiness harmonizes with the tangsuyuk’s subtle flavor, making it naturally chewable.

Of course, the tangsuyuk sauce, with its thick, tangy taste, has its own harmony. And the jajang sauce, when eaten with danmuji like jajangmyeon, is equally delicious.

After eating voraciously, I felt it was worth the two failures. Rurin also looked satisfied. With a content expression, she slammed the jajangmyeon bowl down and shouted at me.

“It’s not as good as what you make, but I was hungry, so I ate well!”

“Is that so?”

Ultimately, she praised my cooking. I appreciate it. Thirsty, I rustled through the bag and took out drinks. Two PET bottles. Drinks I’ve never seen before. I don’t know the taste. I opened the lid and took a sip. The cool lemon scent spreading into my jajang-filled stomach felt refreshing.

After quenching my thirst, I lay down on the mat. I handed the drink to Rurin.

Rurin took the PET bottle and gulped it down. But soon, she took it from her mouth and tilted her head in surprise. She expected water but got a different taste. However, she resumed drinking as if it didn’t matter because it was good.

“Hey, it’s spilling.”

The drink was spilling from her lips down to her chin, so I wiped it.

“If it spills, you can wipe it.”

She naturally leaned her face closer.

I had nothing to say. I was diligently wiping her with my sleeve.

Anyway, after quenching my thirst, I lay down on the mat. Rurin immediately lay down next to me, staring at me.

Then she pointed across the Han River, her eyes sparkling. She looked amazed.

“El, even at night, there are so many things sparkling. Lights are everywhere. What are those?”