Chapter 66
Chapter 66
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 66
Chapter Title: Manly Brother (5)
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Su-young finished her meal.
She undid the buckle on her skirt and patted her belly.
- Ugh... I'm so full. It felt like more than usual today.
"I loaded up your plate a bit. You mentioned it was exam season."
- What? I'm touched!
"You remember how Yoon-seul said it was delicious back in the day?"
- Of course I do. Thanks to Yoon-seul, I became a regular here.
"Hee hee hee..."
With few customers around, Yoon-seul sat next to Su-young and struck up a conversation. It brought back memories of the opening day, when Yoon-seul had enthusiastically promoted the fried chicken.
Su-young had been coming often ever since, making her a truly grateful customer for our restaurant.
- Ow, I'm too stuffed to move. Mind if I sit a bit longer?
"When have you ever asked before sitting? Stick around and hang out. Oh, and tteokbokki's simmering right now. We can share a few bites."
- Tteokbokki? You're killing me. I can't resist it during exam week.
"Huh? But Su-young Unniee said she's full."
Yoon-seul teased.
Even with her skirt buckle undone, her eyes lit up at the word tteokbokki, tempting me to say something.
- Yoon-seul, you'll get it when you're in high school. Snack belly and meal belly are separate.
"Hm?"
Yoon-seul scrunched her face like she couldn't comprehend, then poked Su-young's belly with her finger—poke, poke.
"Eek, your meal belly?"
- Yeah... that's right.
"Then if you stuff tteokbokki in there too...! It'll go boom—explode?"
- Unniee's not that fragile. I'll be fine.
She had some surprising food pride.
She drummed on her unbuckled belly with her palm.
Two customers eating at a back table glanced over at the sound.
Kwon Su-young didn't mind at all.
Catching their eye, she said what she wanted.
Su-young seemed in a good mood, probably from being so full.
"Next time, come with your brother, Su-an-ssi."
- Oh... With Oppa? Nah. He has his guide dog, and it might bother other customers if we bring it into a restaurant.
"Our place allows guide dogs. And Rui's not just any dog—he's Yoon-seul's friend, so it's fine."
"Yep! Boss, Yoon-seul and Rui were gonna be friends. So Rui can come in whenever."
Yoon-seul chimed in from the side.
- Still feels kinda iffy.
"Su-young."
The words she needed to hear, right as she hesitated.
I knew what they were.
I'd heard the whole story from Teacher Mi-jeong.
- Yeah? What's up all of a sudden.
"Whether it's me or Yoon-seul, we don't judge people for their flaws. Everyone has them. Like, I get sentimental sometimes—overthinking little things or getting emotional. That's my flaw."
"Um... Yoon-seul can't eat super spicy stuff. That's Yoon-seul's flaw."
"No matter what flaws you have, or Su-an-ssi has, you're both valued customers here. And I think of you as a friend. So please don't worry about that. Come anytime. Eat delicious food. Make nothing but good memories."
- Tch.
Su-young clicked her tongue softly, her eyes welling up as she rubbed them furiously.
- Joo-hyun Oppa saying stuff like that makes my eyes itch too!
"Really? I'll give you tteokbokki to cheer you up."
"Oppa says he'll give yummy tteokbokki. To cheer up Su-young Unniee. You know Oppa's cooking is the yummiest, right?"
- I do. Okay, that'll cheer me up. But you gotta give me lots.
"Fasten that skirt buckle first."
Su-young rushed to the bathroom, saying she'd wash her hands before tteokbokki.
I could guess why she was in such a hurry to wash them.
I headed back to the stove and checked the simmering tteokbokki.
Bright red broth bubbling up.
Rice cakes submerged in the sauce.
Next to it, another pot of tteokbokki—this one rosy pink with creamy white patches rising here and there.
I'd experimented with a rosé version using cream.
"One for Su-young, one for Yoon-seul."
The cream-toned one would be gentler on a 5-year-old's tongue.
"Miss, could you come here for a sec?"
"Um? Boss is calling."
The 5-year-old boss scurried over to the kitchen at my call. She stood by my waist, eyes closed, mouth open wide in an ahh. I hadn't even told her to try it yet—such an eager young lady.
Hoo—
Hoo—
I blew on it since it'd just been boiling.
Then popped it in her mouth.
"Um... nom nom."
"How's it? Spicy?"
She shook her head vigorously.
"Mmph..."
Yoon-seul clamped both hands over her mouth.
Then shook her head again.
"What kinda reaction is that?"
Shake.
Shake.
She was dead set on not speaking.
It didn't seem spicy or bad—her eyes crinkled like she was smiling.
Probably delicious.
"Oppa's dying of curiosity here? Gonna spill it?"
"Ah, Oppa won't get mad. I'll tell ya. But Yoon-seul can't open her mouth 'cause..."
"Why?"
"It's so yummy, words won't come out!!"
That was the reason.
It was so cute I fed her a few more in a row.
Nom nom nom.
She took them like a champ.
By now, Su-young stood behind Yoon-seul, mouth agape.
She covered her own mouth with her hand.
- Me too...
Imitating Yoon-seul.
"Customer, you can't come into the kitchen."
"Troublesome."
- Tch.
She gave up and went back to her seat.
I scooped out enough tteokbokki for Su-young into a bowl.
I didn't know what memory she'd see eating this, but it wouldn't be a bad one at least.
Tteokbokki was a nostalgic food for so many people.
While Su-young was in the bathroom, the remaining customers finished up and left after paying—I gave them some to go in paper cups.
None refused. Tteokbokki's that universally loved snack.
[Onui Tycoon!]
[J High School Sophomore Kwon Su-young]
[Trigger Food: Tteokbokki]
[Satisfaction: 82%]
I set the tteokbokki bowl in front of Su-young.
Regular and rosé.
Half and half.
Her mouth dropped open.
Chopped green onions, chunky fish cakes, rice cakes dotted with chili powder—the visual was perfection.
- Wow... Joo-hyun Oppa, how many dishes can you make?
"Anything with a recipe in the world, I can cook to a decent level. Not fine dining yet, maybe."
- Like the ultimate boss of the culinary world runs a neighborhood joint.
"Um? Yoon-seul talking about?"
Yoon-seul perked up at "ultimate boss."
She spun around in her outfit.
The word "ultimate boss" I'd dangled to coax her seemed to stick perfectly.
Soon, chopsticks were in Su-young's hand.
She went for the original first, as expected.
Eating that would probably replay a tteokbokki memory.
Vividly.
Like reality.
- Back then... Oppa and I ate tteokbokki a lot. So often.
She murmured softly to herself.
Hearing that, I could make one deduction.
The memory featured the two of them as kids.
Unlike before, though, it wasn't just Yoon-seul accessing it—I'd see the scene too.
[Synesthesia: Instantly understand what a face-to-face customer craves!]
[Use it wisely! Represented by Onui]
When my cooking level rose, I didn't just get [Chef's Intuition]. I also got [Synesthesia], but it's basically a weaker version of [Chef's Intuition].
Knowing the day's overall demand ahead is way more efficient than tuning into each customer's individually.
Onui suggested another use, though: accessing trigger food memories alongside Yoon-seul.
[Moon Lord: If we tweak the synesthesia skill right, Yoon-seul and Joo-hyun Hyung could share vision.]
[Me: So I'd see exactly what Yoon-seul sees?]
[Sun Lord: Yes, exactly. But you couldn't interact with the memory itself, Oppa. You'd just see the scene through Yoon-seul. If there's danger—worst case—you could only intervene for her.]
There were some limits.
Still, it perfectly achieved my original goal. Yoon-seul's safety came first, after all.
Food-related memories aren't likely dangerous anyway.
Just preparing for that one-in-a-million case, like Sun Lord said.
Su-young speared some tteokbokki with her chopsticks and popped it in.
She only took half a bite, wary of the heat.
Then closed her eyes tight.
"Here we go."
The sea of memories flooded our restaurant once more.
**
"Ah...?"
When was this?
The space was definitely a street food stall, but the viewpoint was much lower.
Hot steam rose gently; soy sauce for oden felt distant. A wrinkled lady stirred the tteokbokki silently.
Kwon Su-young watched from that low angle.
"8 years old?"
About that.
"Whew, Su-young. You spilled again. Mom's gonna scold you."
"Huh? I did?"
She dropped her gaze at her brother's words.
Red broth splattered near her turtleneck collar.
Tteokbokki broth.
But.
Oppa.
Oppa?
It wasn't just Kwon Su-young who'd shrunk.
Kwon Su-an beside her had too, by a lot.
A 7-year gap meant some height difference, but Su-young knew her brother hadn't been this short.
'What do you mean he wasn't this short? Oppa's 15, right?'
Memories were mixing.
Anyway, one thing was clear: she'd gone out for tteokbokki with Oppa right now.
"Finish this and let's go home. Oppa'll lick it off and sneak it dry. Won't get caught, right?"
"Wah... Thanks, Oppa."
"No prob. But you gotta help Oppa when I might get in trouble with Mom. Got it?"
"Yeah! I'll help Oppa too."
15-year-old Kwon Su-an and 8-year-old Kwon Su-young hooked pinkies.
Like always.
A little rule between the siblings.
They never broke promises like this. They had to rely on each other.
Parents both worked. Oppa cared for his little sister, who leaned on him even more.
That's why the Kwon siblings got along so well from young.
The 7-year gap meant few fights.
When sharing one item, Su-an always yielded, and Su-young loved and trusted that Oppa.
Back then, Su-an's eyes were perfectly fine.
No need for sunglasses, not even glasses.