Chapter 38
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: The Demon World Cook-Off
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A campsite in the Demon World, full of stars.
When the choice is difficult, there's only one answer.
“Try both.”
“Huh...?”
“I said, do both.”
“That's right. Let's try both.”
“How many people do we have here, and you want us to pick just one? Just make them. We'll each eat what we want.”
Cheon Doun and the siblings said one after another.
“Hear, hear!”
Kim Nari chimed in, and the decision was unanimous. Nam Giseok broke into a cold sweat at the unexpected answer.
He was a novice cook who had just learned how to use a knife on a cutting board. He didn't think he could possibly cook two dishes at the same time.
*I can't. I'll definitely ruin one of them.*
Wouldn't his focus be so split that both would turn out mediocre?
*Maybe I can make the curry first, then the ramen... No. That's not what they want.*
They said they'd each eat what they wanted. In other words, they wanted to try a bite of each before deciding.
To do that, the food had to be served at the same time.
If anyone else were watching, they would have said to just make the curry and ramen separately and then serve them together.
But under the focused gazes of these disaster-class beings, Nam Giseok couldn't think so rationally.
*Work, brain! Think of a way!*
His eyes scanned the table. It took him 0.5 seconds to come up with a solution.
“To make both dishes, I'll need an assistant chef, sir!”
“An assistant chef?”
“Yes! Look at this. There's only one gas burner.”
“You're right. There is only one.”
“To cook two dishes, I'll have to do this!”
Nam Giseok created a flame in his left hand. He placed a pot on it and shook it for effect.
“I'll have to become a human gas burner! If I do this, I can only use one hand, so I need someone to handle the other dish according to my instructions.”
*Couldn't he just make them one at a time?* Cheon Doun thought. The Yu siblings also had their doubts but didn't ask.
These were the words of a man with a cooking certificate. There had to be some profound meaning behind his method that they didn't understand.
“So who's going to be the assistant chef?”
“Cheon Doun, sir, you'd be perfect!”
Nam Giseok answered immediately.
“Your rock-cutting at the waterfall valley. That skill is perfectly suited for chopping curry ingredients. Sir, you are a prodigy, destined to be a master of curry prep!”
*Is that so? Am I a prodigy of curry prep?* Cheon Doun stood up. The time had come to unleash the power of the Silk Thread Caterpillar.
As he stepped forward, Kim Nari clapped. Swept up in the mood, the siblings clapped along.
As the atmosphere heated up, Nam Giseok got excited too.
“Then let's begin. I've already washed all the ingredients at home, so we'll start chopping right away.”
Nam Giseok placed a scallion on the clean cutting board.
He was confident in his knife skills. Hadn't he been praised at his cooking class?
He gripped the kitchen knife and let out a spirited cry.
“Hiyahhh!”
Chop, chop, chop. Chop, chop, chop. Chop, chop, chop.
The scallion was cut into perfectly even pieces.
“Phew.”
Having finished chopping, Nam Giseok wiped the sweat from his brow. With that, the scallions for the ramen were ready.
He poured water into a pot and placed it on his palm. Activating his ability to create fire, the ramen preparations were complete.
“I'll boil the water, so you can peel the potatoes, sir.”
Cheon Doun tossed the potatoes he was handed into the air.
With every flick of his fingers, threads shot out and peeled the potatoes.
“Next, dicing! Please cut them into small, perfect squares!”
“Alright.”
Another flick of his hand, and the potatoes were cut into uniform pieces, falling into a bowl.
“Ooooh!”
Kim Nari applauded. Seeing this, Yu Jia clapped as well.
Yu Beom gave a thumbs-down and jeered.
“Booo! It's missing something! You don't have the right attitude for cooking!”
“The right attitude for cooking?”
“You're missing a battle cry. A shout filled with the will to peel those potatoes perfectly! Roar or something.”
Cheon Doun smiled at Yu Beom's words.
He remembered how the siblings had grilled seafood on the island, making all sorts of noise.
It was certainly an effective way to liven things up.
“A battle cry, huh? Sure, that's not a bad idea.”
Cheon Doun tossed the remaining potatoes into the air again. A solemn face, a serious voice, a sharp gaze calculating the potatoes' angles.
“Be peeled, potato-potato.”
His impassive voice sounded like he was reading from a book, but he made the attempt.
Kim Nari loved it, saying it sounded more like a magic spell. The siblings also nodded, satisfied.
Only one person's pupils were shaking: Nam Giseok. *Was this what he was really like?*
“S-sir, this time, these carrots...”
“Be sliced, carrot.”
“This beef too, sir...!”
“Beef, beef.”
Nam Giseok felt a mixture of confusion and amusement.
Cheon Doun had never been one to act all high and mighty. He knew that, but still, the subconscious distance he felt between them closed in an instant.
*'This is fun.'*
Cheon Doun was also quite enjoying the situation.
He even thought that this might be a memory he wouldn't forget even after ten years.
“Please sprinkle this special salt and pepper on the meat.”
At the new order, Cheon Doun held the salt and pepper shakers in each hand and shook them.
*Shk-shk-shk, shk-shk-shk.* A few quick shakes of the small containers, and the seasoned meat was coated in salt and pepper.
All that was left was to stir-fry the ingredients.
“Sir, drizzle this olive oil into the pot and add the ingredients! Onions first. The key is to fry them in the order I say.”
“The order. Right. I'll be careful.”
“Alright, now fry, fry!”
While giving instructions, Nam Giseok was holding pots of water in both hands.
Flames rising from his palms boiled the water.
One pot was for heating instant rice, the other for boiling the ramen.
“Ooh, that's perfectly fried. Now you need to pour in the water and add the curry powder. Keep pouring the water until I say stop. After that, give it a good stir.”
“Got it. How much curry powder should I add?”
“Just a third of that packet will do. Don't worry. I'll be watching with a hawk's eye and yell 'stop' at the right moment.”
“Alright. I'm counting on you, Nam Giseok.”
They were perfectly in sync. While Cheon Doun handled the curry, Nam Giseok cooked the ramen.
“My side is almost done. Now to add the scallions... and the minced garlic I prepared...!”
He sprinkled the chopped scallions over the pot. He also added a little minced garlic and stirred it in.
“And for the finale, crack an egg! With a bonus slice of cheese!”
With an exaggerated motion, Nam Giseok cracked an egg into the pot. He also unwrapped a slice of cheese and placed it on top.
He extinguished the flame ability that had been active across his palm, and it was done. The scallion-and-egg ramen was complete.
“This side is finished. And your side is... Ooh! It's perfect. Not too watery, not too thick. This is the ultimate curry, sir!”
*Clap, clap, clap.* Applause erupted from the table.
“The mister was cool. The uncle was cool too.”
Kim Nari gave a standing ovation. Seeing her, Yu Jia also stood up and clapped.
Yu Beom, who his sister had described as gloomy, laughed the most cheerfully and gave a big thumbs-up.
Nam Giseok set two bowls in front of each person and served the curry and ramen.
“Please, eat. I'm sure they'll both be delicious. Nam Giseok guarantees it.”
Finishing with a dramatic flourish, as expected. The gazes of the three spectators were fixed on the table.
“I'm going to try this first. It smells good.”
Kim Nari dipped her spoon into the curry. All eyes were on the first taster.
After blowing on the steaming spoonful, Kim Nari took a big bite.
*Nom, nom.* Her eyes widened with every chew. After finally swallowing, Kim Nari stared at the curry in front of her.
“The potato... the potato is melting in my mouth. The meat is melting too. Everything is melting.”
Kim Nari lifted her bowl high.
“It's melting!”
Spurred by her peculiar praise, Cheon Doun and the siblings also tried the curry first.
The moment they put it in their mouths, the aroma of curry overwhelmed their senses. A sweet and savory flavor conquered their taste buds.
Each ingredient offered a different texture with every bite.
*Clatter.* Yu Beom put down his spoon, his face full of admiration.
“I have to admit it. This is just as good as our grilled clam skewers.”
Yu Beom acknowledged Nam Giseok's skill. Yu Jia also nodded quietly. After that, the only sound was the clattering of spoons.
“Try the ramen, too. It's got a nice kick to it; I made it perfectly.”
At Nam Giseok's recommendation, chopsticks began to move this time.
They closed their eyes as the chewy noodles burst with flavor in their mouths.
*Was this it? Was this what I've been living for?*
The siblings' seventy-odd years of life flashed before their eyes like a panorama.
After that, there was no conversation. Only the clatter of utensils could be heard.
On a moonlit night in the Demon World, in front of a small cabin, they tasted the flavors of human civilization.
* * *
“I'm full now. I ate two bowls. I can't eat anymore.”
Kim Nari mumbled as she lay sprawled out in front of the vegetable garden. Just as she had at the beach, she patted her bulging belly before falling asleep.
Cheon Doun and the Yu siblings sat at the table, looking as if they'd just tasted a revolution.
Nam Giseok felt a sense of pride watching them. His gaze soon turned to Yu Jia.
A question that had been on his mind for a while. The bone helmet that covered half her face.
“By the way, Miss Jia. You didn't take that thing off your head even when you were eating. Is it special for some reason?”
“Now that you mention it, that's true. Your mana hole has stabilized, so you don't need to wear it anymore, do you?”
Yu Beom asked as well. As all eyes focused on her, Yu Jia took off her bone helmet.
A sharp, shoulder-length bob cut swayed.
Her sharp eyes and the golden irises unique to birds gave her a fierce impression.
This, combined with the light freckles on her face, created a strange and captivating aura.
Yu Jia touched her face for a moment before putting the bone helmet back on.
“It still feels awkward. Maybe because I've worn it for so long. This is more comfortable now.”
“You siblings are just alike. Yu Beom said he's more comfortable in his current form too.”
The siblings laughed at Cheon Doun's words. The only one not laughing was Nam Giseok.
He stared at Yu Jia, his mouth half-open. He could see an illusion of flowers blooming in full behind her.
*Is this what they call love at first sight?*
A feeling so powerful it made him forget she wasn't even human pierced Nam Giseok's heart.
“Ah, you're beautiful! Do you happen to have a boyfriend?”
The words blurted out without passing through his brain. He wanted to hide from his own stupidity and rudeness, but Yu Jia was unfazed.
“I don't.”
His heart pounded at how she answered without a hint of anger.
“Then, may I ask... what's your type, miss?”
He wanted to smack his own mouth. *What in the world am I asking in front of everyone?*
This was rude to her, too. His face turned red enough to explode from the embarrassment.
Nam Giseok, who'd never been in a relationship. His hair loss, which began in his late teens, had made him a man who shrank in front of women.
He had never even imagined liking someone.
And now, faced with this feeling for the first time in his life, he couldn't think straight.
*'This is interesting.'*
*'Oh, this is interesting.'*
Yu Beom and Cheon Doun watched him with great interest.
They looked ready to watch the show with popcorn if someone brought it. With one mind, they awaited Yu Jia's answer.
*'Yu Jia won't dodge the question. It's in her nature to answer whatever she's asked.'*
Yu Beom thought as he looked at his sister. The problem was that the answer wouldn't be simple.
Monsters were fundamentally a species that lived alone, without pairing up.
For the siblings who had received those cells, love was as good as a removed emotion.
“My type... If I had to say... hmm...”
*What sort of features catch my eye?* Yu Jia was lost in thought.
Yu Jia was an avian-type monster. Like the Parrot-Poison Bird, she was drawn to things with abundant feathers.
If she translated that to human terms, the answer was clear.
“They have to have a lot of hair.”
“Pfft. Ah. Oops.”
Yu Beom cleared his throat and turned his head away. Cheon Doun quietly looked at a distant mountain.
“The color should be vibrant. And long is better, if possible. They'd also have to be good at shaking their... hair.”
A bird's tail feathers are more beautiful the longer and more colorful they are.
The sight of them shaking their tail feathers to lure prey was certainly eye-catching.
Hearing the sum of her preferences, Nam Giseok's eyes wavered.
A heavy metal rock star with long, dyed hair. And a man who could headbang well.
Nam Giseok touched his bald head. He could learn to headbang. That was something he could work on.
But, however, nevertheless.
*'I... can't do it.'*
Nam Giseok looked up at the sky. Love. Something that can be here one moment and gone the next.
Hair, too, is something that can be here one moment and gone the next.
*Is there no hope for me?* Nam Giseok's eyes grew moist.
Unable to hold it in any longer, Yu Beom ducked under the table, covering his mouth.
Next to him, Cheon Doun was squatting down as well. Their shoulders were shaking faintly.