Chapter 42
Translator: uly
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: The Black-Haired Duo of Chilgok County - 1
How many people remember the food preferences of a character they like?
I too, back when I was deep into fandom, used to remember at least the character's birthday. When a character's birthday came around, high-quality fanart would flood social media. But how many people remember even the food preferences of a character they like?
Of course, if a character you like consistently expresses their food preferences within the story, you'd know. Like a pilot who detests carrots, or a troublemaker who hates bell peppers.
If it's to that extent, anyone who likes the character would know it as common sense. But what if it's not?
A single line in the character setting sheet about favorite foods. How many people remember that far?
Of course, I know there's no end to fandom. There are people who, for a character's birthday, prepare their favorite foods and set up a birthday feast almost on par with a ancestral rite table.
While there are people who engage in fandom that way, not many would remember the food preferences of a villain they have little interest in within the story.
Naturally, I'm the same.
I might skim the settings for characters I like, and if a line about favorite foods comes up, I'd think, 'Oh, they like/dislike this food,' and let it pass. I wouldn't commit it to memory.
But, funnily enough, I remembered all too clearly the favorite food of The Heavenly Killing Star, who isn't even a heroine.
Why?
Because I was so annoyed seeing it that I wrote it in the feedback.
The Heavenly Killing Star's favorite food.
A food that doesn't exist in martial arts novels.
That is...
"Here's your rose tteokbokki!"
It's rose tteokbokki.
"Eat it while it's warm. It's delicious!"
The server placed the steaming rose tteokbokki on the table in front of us.
It really came out. Rose tteokbokki.
Looking at this absurd dish, I had to be careful not to lose my sanity. I really did write it in the feedback, but I couldn't help thinking, 'Did it have to be this?'
There are plenty of delicious foods in martial arts novels. Why did you have to pick that one? There's Braised Pork, Fish-Flavored Shredded Pork, Kung Pao Chicken—lots of good food.
If those are too common, there are dishes like Nanjian Jitui, which supposedly lets you enter a core lineage just by eating it.
If you don't like that either, you could have included Korean dishes like pajeon or gukbap.
But rose tteokbokki?
The Heavenly Killing Star's favorite food being rose tteokbokki?
It was a dish I absolutely couldn't endure without writing in the feedback.
"So... I mean, Okbun, let's enjoy this."
"What is this?"
The Heavenly Killing Star threw a puzzled look at the rose tteokbokki and spoke to me.
"Huh? It's rose tteokbokki."
There's no way she doesn't know. It was clearly written that The Heavenly Killing Star's favorite food was rose tteokbokki.
"It's my first time trying it."
'First time trying it'? So, at this point in time, it's not a food The Heavenly Killing Star usually enjoys, but something she tastes somewhere and comes to like?
Food preferences can be things you've liked since childhood, but there are also foods you fall in love with after trying just once.
"That can't be right. It's a food you used to eat when you came to our house as a child."
Then I absolutely can't miss this opportunity.
"I ate this?"
"Yes. When you were little, you'd come over to play and sometimes stay for a meal. The first thing I served you back then was this rose tteokbokki. You liked it so much that whenever you came to play at our house afterward, you'd subtly show signs of wanting to eat it again. Of course, I liked seeing you happy while eating, so I'd always offer it before you left."
He wore an expression as if reminiscing about the nostalgic past.
Joseon's traditional food, rose tteokbokki. Tomato sauce, a spoonful of curry, a bit of cream, and tteokbokki. Where on earth do they get that stuff here?
"I don't remember."
"It'll come back to you. No need to rush. And, Okbun."
It'd be a real problem if she actually remembered.
"Hmm?"
"You haven't forgotten Joseon language, have you?"
Joseon language flowed from my mouth for the first time in a while.
"I haven't forgotten it."
Joseon language came naturally from The Heavenly Killing Star's mouth. That's a relief.
"Then, how about we converse in Joseon language from now on?"
"In Joseon language? Why?"
"I need to call you Okbun instead of So-hee, and I'm worried I might keep calling you So-hee by mistake. I almost slipped up just now, didn't I? If we talk in Joseon language, the people here won't understand, so we won't have to worry about making such mistakes."
As I spoke, I glanced at the other guests who had arrived since we ordered the rose tteokbokki.
With this many people around, I could make a mistake. I emphasized that point thoroughly. It should be a convincing reason for The Heavenly Killing Star.
However, the real reason was different.
The name 'Okbun' is a pseudonym The Heavenly Killing Star used when she joined the acrobatic troupe.
Even they must have sensed that the name 'Okbun' itself is an assassin's alias, but there's no need to cause trouble by calling that name around.
'It's not like there's no solution if trouble arises.'
That level of situation isn't unsolvable. I just need to keep the possibility of trouble in mind.
What's more important is that the name 'Okbun' is a fake name.
A pseudonym. A fake identity. Ultimately, a name used in a fake relationship forms a kind of psychological barrier. In my current situation, that's not a good thing.
The more I keep calling her So-hee, the more I can gradually melt the psychological barrier in The Heavenly Killing Star's heart. That will make her feel closer to me.
On top of that, we'll converse in Joseon language.
A hometown language that has no reason to be used here. Something only the two of us share.
A relationship where we keep sharing secrets while calling each other by name. The weight of the counterbalance—being The Heavenly Killing Star's childhood friend oppa—will feel increasingly heavy.
"Alright. Then."
"Let's use the Central Plains language only when we need to be mindful of others. So, So-hee. Let's eat."
"Okay."
Cheon So-hee picked up a piece of tteokbokki with her chopsticks but kept staring at it without eating. She must be wondering if she can find a clue to the past in that tteokbokki.
"So-hee?"
Staring at it won't bring back your memory. How could a memory that doesn't exist come back?
"I'll eat."
Cheon So-hee put the tteokbokki in her mouth in one bite. The Heavenly Killing Star, chewing carefully. What, are you testing for poison? For that, you need litmus paper.
The moment Cheon So-hee swallowed the rose tteokbokki, her eyes widened slightly. The Heavenly Killing Star covered her lips with the tip of her palm and looked at the rose tteokbokki with wide eyes.
"So-hee. How is it? Does it taste like the old days?"
How is it? Surprised, right? Delicious, right? Totally the taste of home, right? Must be exactly your taste.
"The memory doesn't come back."
Of course it wouldn't. Still, emphasizing that she ate it in the past is important.
Cheon So-hee's hands started moving busily. She'd eat quickly, stare at the rose tteokbokki, eat again, stare again, repeating the pattern. Is she trying to find old memories while enjoying the taste?
"So-hee. Try the fen hao zi too, not just the rice cakes. They say they added more Central Plains ingredients to this, and it's delicious too."
I scooped some fen hao zi with my chopsticks and placed it on the plate in front of Cheon So-hee. Of course, with tteokbokki, you gotta have the trendy fen hao zi. They say high school girls love it.
"......"
Cheon So-hee alternated her gaze between the fen hao zi placed on the plate in front of her and me. What? I haven't touched the food yet. Not even a drop of saliva. Was I being too nosy, trying to act nice?
Cheon So-hee looked at me for a moment, then ate the fen hao zi and made a slightly surprised expression. The texture's unique, right? They say kids these days love it.
Seeming to like the fen hao zi, Cheon So-hee ate one piece and then started fishing out other fen hao zi from the tteokbokki to eat.
Wait. The rose tteokbokki in front of her was starting to disappear rapidly. Isn't she eating too much?
I haven't even taken a single bite yet.
"Shall I try a bite too, for old times' sake?"
I wonder what rose tteokbokki tastes like in a martial arts dating sim. I moved my chopsticks, looking at the rose tteokbokki disappearing in an instant before my eyes.
In the end, I couldn't eat much.
It must have been like Cheon So-hee meeting the food of her life. At first, she ate a few bites and pretended to search her memory, but later she just went into vacuum cleaner mode.
"So-hee. How was it, eating it after so long? Was it delicious?"
"It was delicious."
Yesterday, she denied everything I said, but now she agreed quickly. Indeed, people become honest in front of food. If she had said it wasn't delicious after eating like that, I would have had a few choice words for her, The Heavenly Killing Star or not.
Cheon So-hee even showed a hint of regret while looking at the empty rose tteokbokki bowl in front of her. Oh my, she's completely hooked.
Rose tteokbokki is definitely The Heavenly Killing Star's taste. Just knowing The Heavenly Killing Star's food preference is enough evidence that I'm her childhood friend oppa.
Originally, I planned to say that the rose tteokbokki she likes now was also a food she enjoyed in the past.
If I were a fraudster, I wouldn't know The Heavenly Killing Star's food preferences, so it would add credibility to my words. But now, the situation has actually become more favorable.
Oppa Kang Yun-ho, who knows the food she liked in the past. Moreover, it's a food she's tasting for the first time in her life. Yet, after just one taste, it became The Heavenly Killing Star's food of a lifetime.
The counterweight of 'oppa' in The Heavenly Killing Star's heavy heart will become even heavier.
Originally, it was a plan that might have ended at the level of forming empathy, but this is a complete jackpot.
"So-hee. Turn your head this way for a moment."
I gestured for The Heavenly Killing Star to bring her head closer to me.
"Hmm?"
The Heavenly Killing Star, though wondering what was going on, brought her head closer to me. Wow, she's even following my lead after eating something delicious. From now on, rose tteokbokki whenever there's something unpleasant.
"If you've eaten tteokbokki, you need to clean the corners of your mouth."
I casually wiped the corner of The Heavenly Killing Star's mouth with my white sleeve.
Fortunately, The Heavenly Killing Star didn't react in shock and slap my hand away, nor did she give me a look that said, 'Why is this trash touching my lips?' Maybe the prickliness has lessened because she's full after eating something delicious, or maybe it's time for nostalgic talk.
"When So-hee was little, I used to wipe her mouth like this too, then hold her happy face's hand and take her home. I miss those days."
Knowing the little girl next door was home alone, I'd take her in to eat together, watch cartoons, and such.
Even when playing house, I was always the husband and the childhood friend was the wife. Back before my features were ruined, I was someone's husband too. The more I think about it, the more I miss those memories.
I looked at The Heavenly Killing Star, imbuing my gaze with nostalgia for those times.
"Enough."
As if unable to bear my sentimental gaze, The Heavenly Killing Star slapped away my hand that was wiping her mouth.
Ouch.
"I'm sorry. I was too thoughtless. So-hee's all grown up now, so there's no need to wipe your mouth like when you were little."
I smiled with a bittersweet feeling, as if The Heavenly Killing Star had grown up and now rejected my touch.
I shook the hand she slapped away, pretending it didn't matter much but acting like it hurt a little. Then, I deliberately directed her gaze to my sleeve, stained with tteokbokki sauce, making The Heavenly Killing Star conscious of the sleeve.
Hey. Do you know how much this costs?
It's a hand-me-down I got for free from Mr. Wang.
Do you have any idea how hard it is to get rose tteokbokki sauce stains out?
You're not even going to do the laundry, yet you slap my hand away like that?
"Sorry."
Huh?
What did she say?
What did The Heavenly Killing Star just say to me?
"So-hee. What did you just...?"
Receiving an apology from The Heavenly Killing Star?
THUD!!
The moment I was about to ask in surprise, the inn door swung open violently.
"Here!! They're here!"
Entering through the door were a group of warriors and a bald, pot-bellied man who looked utterly unrelated to martial arts at first glance.
What's this? What's going on?
There are five warriors wearing swords, and one man who looks servile, scanning the inn.
"Are you sure it's here?"
The one who seemed like the leader among the martial artists spoke to the pot-bellied man.
"Absolutely sure. I saw it clearly with my own two eyes yesterday."
"For something like that, you reek of alcohol."
"Aish~ I wasn't even that drunk! If I were that drunk, would I have come here thinking the guy I saw last night was the same one written on the wanted poster?"
The situation feels like it's taking a cheap turn. It smells like a martial arts novel inn event.
"You might have been drunk and mistaken."
"No, sir! I'll point him out for sure."
The pot-bellied man entered the inn alone, looked around, spotted us in the corner, and jumped in surprise.
Oh, is this perhaps...?
The pot-bellied man pointed at us with his finger and shouted loudly.
"Here! The murderer of the Gap-su Merchant Group's Guild Leader is heeeeeere!"
Just as I thought.