Chapter 19: Doing the Same Kind of Work with a Blade (1)
Chapter 19: Doing the Same Kind of Work with a Blade (1)
Traveling alongside Oswald’s escort, Jinseo’s journey toward Colses, the capital of the Doren Kingdom, had already entered its second week.
They moved with elite troops as a precaution, but no unexpected incidents occurred.
One of the food truck’s functions—the ability to detect monsters within a certain range—proved invaluable.
Thanks to that, they avoided areas where monsters lurked and roads where bandits lay in ambush, traveling safely without incident.
As a result, except during periods of bad weather, their travel time was drastically reduced.
With the schedule now more relaxed, Jinseo decided to try something new.
He began publicly testing various bunsik dishes—things he had never had the chance to attempt while running the truck normally due to the constant rush of customers.
“By my standards, it could be spicier, but for most people, this level of heat seems just right.”
“It wasn’t great when eaten as-is, but cooked like this, it’s quite decent.”
After tasting the kimchi fried rice, Fedora and Oswald rubbed their stomachs with satisfied expressions.
“What about the rest of you?”
Jinseo casually asked the knights and soldiers who had participated in the tasting.
“I liked it again this time. Though I think the spice level could be lowered a bit—or maybe let people choose how spicy they want it when ordering.”
“I’d prefer more ham in it.”
“How about bundling it with a drink that pairs well with kimchi fried rice? Something less sweet than CoolX, perhaps.”
The opinions varied, but they all led to the same conclusion: the kimchi fried rice itself was good.
The empty plates—not a single grain of rice left—were proof enough.
Jinseo nodded and recorded their honest feedback on his smartphone.
By now, it was the sixth time he had conducted off-menu tastings during dinner, once every three days.
Even without being asked, Oswald and Fedora always joined in, while the remaining three spots rotated among the knights and soldiers.
Finally, I’m getting usable feedback from people other than those two.
At first, perhaps because they were eating so close to two influential figures, the other three had done nothing but praise the food.
But as the tastings continued, they stopped holding back and began sharing their real thoughts.
{Normal Quest: ‘Receive honest evaluations from a certain number of customers’ has been completed.
Rewards: 3,000 Mileage and 3,000 Mana have been granted.}
Finishing a quest on top of everything else made it an all-around win for Jinseo.
“The bunsik you make always satisfies us. I really love it.”
“Most of it, yes—but that curry you served last time… the aroma was too strong for my taste.”
“I thought it was fine?”
Fedora and Oswald locked eyes, clearly at odds.
Sensing the tension, the soldiers quietly edged away.
Jinseo scratched the back of his head, recalling how that curry—one he had presented with confidence—had been rejected by everyone except Fedora.
He hadn’t expected curry of all things to be unpopular here.
That one really surprised me.
Curry turned out to be sharply divisive, with more people disliking it than not, and was ultimately cut from the list of potential additions.
There was one other thing he had tried bringing over directly from Korea without modification—and it had also failed.
He had brought several kinds of domestic beer, but most people felt they were lacking something.
Maybe I should’ve brought fried chicken with it? No, that would mean making chicken too—too much work. Besides, I’m not really planning to sell alcohol anyway.
Many of Jinseo’s dishes blurred the line between bunsik and regular cuisine.
But fried chicken was far removed from bunsik.
He wanted to introduce many foods to the Francia Continent, but he didn’t want to recklessly step outside his own domain.
“Jinseo, don’t be discouraged just because that dish didn’t suit my taste. Everyone’s palate is different.”
Oswald comforted him while taking a swig from a canned drink.
At that, Fedora—uncharacteristically—visibly frowned and shifted farther away from Oswald.
“Ugh… I can’t believe you can drink that.”
“This?” Oswald asked, shaking a white can decorated with pine needles, genuinely confused.
It was a drink that had received more criticism than praise, but Jinseo had expected that, so he felt little about it.
A drink even Jinseo himself couldn’t bring himself to consume.
“What’s wrong with SolX Snow? Having prejudice against food isn’t right.”
“Ah—yes, yes…” Fedora replied halfheartedly and took a sip of her chocolate milk. “By the way, Jinseo—what was that thing you served three days ago… jjor… noodles?”
“Jjolmyeon?”
“When are you adding that to the regular menu?”
“Jjolmyeon? I want it added immediately!”
Fedora and Oswald, who had been facing opposite directions, turned toward Jinseo at the same time.
It was a rare moment of complete agreement.
“It reminded me of the first time I ate tteokbokki! I thought sweetness and spice were enough, but then you added sourness too!”
“Just thinking about it makes my mouth water. The chewy texture was completely different from ramen noodles.”
Jjolmyeon was one of Jinseo’s personal favorites.
He had put extra care into making it, and with nothing but praise coming in, his mood lifted as well.
“I’ll try to add it as soon as possible, depending on the situation. Speaking of which—how was the gimbap I served last week at lunch?”
“Please add that immediately as well.”
“I agree!”
Their reaction was even more enthusiastic than it had been for jjolmyeon, and the soldiers who had tasted it nodded vigorously from afar.
As expected—gimbap works everywhere. What a relief.
Tteok-twi-gim-soon was already a great set, but adding ramen and gimbap completed the ultimate bunsik lineup.
Tteok-twi-gim-soon-ram-gim.
The only problem was the sheer volume—hard to eat all at once—but almost no one could fault it for taste.
Jinseo wanted to add them to the menu as quickly as the two staring at him with burning eyes did.
“That said, it would help to have someone assist with prep for gimbap. I’m planning to add it along with ramen, but only if there’s enough manpower.”
“So all you need is extra hands? Say the word! I’ll send one of my most skilled and reliable personal cooks!”
“That won’t be necessary. As long as they can competently handle a kitchen knife, that’s enough. With an assistant, I could even expand the varieties—vegetable gimbap, tuna gimbap, maybe even cheese gimbap, which people here might like more.”
“Really? It doesn’t have to be a professional chef?”
“That’s right.”
As he finished speaking, Jinseo glanced around.
Several soldiers shot him hopeful side glances, silently wishing to be chosen as assistants.
Smiling it off, Jinseo’s eyes met those of Aston, the central figure of this procession.
Unlike Jinseo, Aston gave a bitter smile and looked away.
“Aston, by any chance—”
Before Jinseo could continue, rustling sounds came from beyond the bushes as the patrolling soldiers returned.
“Damn it—of all things, I had to fall into a mud swamp…”
“At least you made it back alive. That could’ve been bad.”
“Let’s eat first. When you’re feeling this down, bunsik hits the spot.”
They brushed mud off themselves, but with everything below the waist caked in it, there was only so much they could do.
“Jinseo, I’ve been meaning to ask…” Fedora scanned him from head to toe. “You’re always so clean.”
“Oh—well, I shower every day. Since I make food everyone eats, cleanliness is essential.”
“Every day? How?”
Jinseo gestured toward the additional trailer.
“I’ve been washing there every day. Come to think of it, that means I’m the only one who’s been able to.”
Since they couldn’t stop at villages every time, bathing—let alone washing up—was difficult on nights spent outdoors unless they happened upon a lake or river.
The mages could clean themselves using water magic, but they couldn’t afford to waste mana in case of emergencies, so washing everyone was out of the question.
I was too focused on cooking. I should’ve realized sooner.
What Jinseo saw as a given—basic hygiene—was practically a luxury for the escort group.
“Since we’re talking about it, how about everyone takes a shower?”
Jinseo headed to the additional trailer and opened the rear door.
The soldiers who had fallen into the mud swamp went first, followed by Oswald.
Then Cardinal Fedora and the three mages washed up, and after that, the knights and remaining soldiers took their turns.
The large washing machine installed in the additional trailer ran nonstop, laundering their clothes.
Those waiting wore T-shirts and sweatpants Jinseo provided, sitting comfortably at the tables to rest.
“Ahhh… drinking this after a hot shower is incredible.”
Oswald said blissfully, sipping SolX Snow.
Fresh from their showers, Dan and Austin silently downed cola behind him.
“Were there always this many drinks in the food truck?”
“I’ll go with cola. You?”
“I’ll take this brown pack… brown milk, I guess.”
A variety of drinks lined the counter, and those who had finished showering agonized happily over what to choose.
“But… this is strange. Why do I smell so good?”
“You too? Same here.”
“No—it’s this weird outfit. It smells nice.”
The soldiers sniffed the front of their shirts.
With no trace of sweat and an unfamiliar fragrance lingering, they looked genuinely confused.
The fabric softener Jinseo had used when washing the clothes—before storing them in subspace—had worked wonders.
“Wow, my skin feels so soft!”
“Yours too? Mine—oh? Same here!”
“That stuff Jinseo gave us earlier… it must be because of that.”
The three female mages fussed over each other, amazed at how different their skin felt.
The body wash and shampoo Jinseo had provided were as shocking to them as bunsik itself.
“I didn’t expect such a strong reaction. Should I have brought out conditioner and treatment too?”
To Jinseo, they were just everyday items he used regularly.
But at the mention of more, the women’s eyes sparkled.
“What happens if you use those two?”
“Your hair gets better. Even better than it is now.”
“Better than this? Really?”
“Has Jinseo ever lied to us?”
“Jinseo, if there’s any left—could you sell us the shampoo, body wash, and those other two?”
Faced with their pleading looks, Jinseo scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
“They’re all in subspace storage. I’ll give you whatever’s left after this trip. I’ll bring out the conditioner and treatment starting tomorrow.”
“You’ll… just give them to us?”
“I’ll take something else instead of money. I’ll ask for help when I need it later.”
Since they couldn’t be exchanged for money anyway and weren’t food, he figured he might as well treat them as a service for loyal customers.
He’d bought them in bulk at a discount and had plenty stored.
“Thank you so much! Call us anytime you need help!”
“When we get back to the mage tower, I’m telling everyone!”
The women walked back toward the tents, beaming.
As Jinseo smiled after them, someone approached cautiously.
“Jinseo… if possible, could I also—” It was Fedora, wearing a black T-shirt with a bear peeking out and a pair of sweatpants.
“Of course, Cardinal. I’ll give you some as well.”