A Special Kimbap Sandwich
Seoa's special homemade kimbap.
Or rather, something entirely new wearing the disguise of kimbap.
It was certainly packed with ingredients inside, but even so, the balance was completely off.
“Instead, you have to eat everything evenly.”
Jungwoo removed some of the excess fillings Seoa had added and replaced them with more vegetables.
The contents had changed a little, but the sheer size remained the same.
Following Seoa’s instructions, he prepared another sheet of seaweed spread with rice and placed it over the towering pile of ingredients.
“…This looks more like a sandwich.”
Seaweed with rice spread on it instead of bread.
Kimbap fillings instead of salad.
And above all, its massive size—nearly the dimensions of an A4 sheet—made it look downright majestic just to behold.
“Hehe. Kimbap sandweech.”
“But if we take it like this, it’ll be hard to eat. So we need to roll it up.”
“Seoa wants to try!”
“You saw how Daddy did it earlier, right? Let’s give it a go.”
It far exceeded the standard size of kimbap Jungwoo had demonstrated.
With her tiny hands like delicate fern fronds, Seoa began enthusiastically kneading the seaweed.
Whether she was trying to roll it or simply squishing it for fun was unclear, but even after some time, there wasn’t much visible change.
“Kiiimbap–”
Still, she looked so delighted. What could he do?
Little by little, the once-flat seaweed began to curve and wrap around the filling. Eventually, even this sandwich-like creation would probably turn into proper kimbap.
Leaving that to Seoa, Jungwoo finished rolling the rest of the kimbap and packed them into the lunchbox.
He hadn’t prepared the insulated container specifically for this, but in moments like these, it proved remarkably useful.
While Jungwoo wrapped the remaining rolls, Seoa somehow managed to shape hers into something vaguely resembling kimbap.
“Oh, not bad at all.”
“Hehe. Seoa did good, right?”
“Yeah. Now Daddy will help you finish it.”
Once Jungwoo’s hands took over, the sandwich-like cousin of kimbap was swiftly rolled into a massive cylinder.
It was so enormous that even if sliced into thick pieces, each one might still be too big for a single bite.
The fillings were packed to bursting. Honestly, this felt less like food and more like a performance piece.
If the lunchbox hadn’t been so spacious, they wouldn’t have been able to take it all.
Even though he had cooked plenty of rice, he only managed to make four ordinary kimbap rolls.
There had been enough ingredients to make at least ten.
“Today, we need to make Seoa even prettier before we go.”
“Seoa gets even prettier?”
“Haha, yes. Daddy’s going to do your hair himself.”
“Waaah–!”
He often styled her hair, but today he planned to put in extra effort.
He had considered several options, but honestly, everything seemed to suit Seoa perfectly.
He usually avoided using a curling iron.
A simple braid was usually enough.
So today, he decided to add some gentle waves to her hair with the curler.
Back when his wife was still with them, he had occasionally done this for her.
Thanks to that experience, he managed to style Seoa’s hair without much difficulty.
Her hair was naturally thick and voluminous. After carefully curling it, the result was a soft yet neat look.
“Whew, what do you think?”
“Pretty!”
Seoa stared into the mirror, touching her hair with a fascinated expression.
Since it was probably her first time seeing a curling iron, it must have seemed quite magical.
“Alright, let’s get going.”
The drive to the amusement park would take about two hours.
Seoa had never been on such a long trip before.
This was Jungwoo’s first time taking such a journey with her, too.
It reminded him of the school field trip he’d taken in high school.
Come to think of it, was it a blessing that he had dropped out right after that trip?
At least he had this small memory to hold onto.
“It’s going to be a bit of a drive, so you can sleep if you want, okay?”
Seoa, already settled comfortably in her car seat, looked more relaxed than anyone in the world.
The seat seemed perfectly molded to her body, offering a plush ride.
“Okaaay…”
Her expression had already melted into pure contentment. She looked like she would fall asleep even if told not to.
Her half-lidded eyes were heavy with drowsiness.
Having woken up early today, those roughly two hours in the car felt sweeter than ever.
He had considered stopping at a rest area, but he didn’t want to wake Seoa from her deep sleep, so he drove straight past.
It was a highway, so unfortunately he couldn’t open the windows, but the beautiful weather was evident even without feeling the breeze.
Since rush hour had passed, traffic was light. What should have taken two hours only took an hour and a half.
After parking, he glanced at Seoa. She was fast asleep, clutching the white rabbit plushie they had brought from home.
He dressed her in one of the new outfits she had received as a gift for today.
Although Seoa loved brown, she couldn’t wear only that color forever.
Canvas sneakers, light blue jeans.
A white layered t-shirt underneath, finished with a pastel pink hoodie.
That was today’s outfit for Seoa.
Jungwoo didn’t think he was bad at choosing clothes, but the world of little girls’ fashion was no simple domain.
She looks absolutely adorable.
Still, he was very satisfied with today’s coordination.
Her thick, slightly wavy black hair actually became the focal point of the look.
“Alright, my daughter–”
Unable to resist her cuteness, he planted a gentle kiss on her cheek. Like a princess waking from a fairy tale, Seoa’s eyes slowly fluttered open.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Mmm…”
Her gaze was still half-dreamy.
For Seoa, figuring out where they were mattered far less than whether Daddy was beside her.
“Hehe. Yep.”
Smiling as if to say she had slept well, Seoa wrapped her arms tightly around her father’s face.
“We’re here now. Shall we go in?”
Only then did Seoa grow curious about their location.
The view outside the window looked like a massive castle, so she couldn’t quite tell where they were.
When she stepped out of the car following her father, the area was filled with an incredible number of vehicles, each occupying its own spot.
“Where are we…?”
“See that over there?”
Jungwoo pointed to a towering pillar rising high into the sky.
“What’s that?”
“That’s the Gyro Drop.”
“Gy… Gyro?”
“It means amusement park.”
“Amu… amusement parrk?!”
The sleepiness vanished completely from Seoa’s eyes.
Curiosity, excitement, and a powerful desire for fun shone brightly in her gaze.
“We’ll eat cotton candy, churros, and ride all the attractions.”
“D-Daddy…”
Seoa looked at her father with eyes full of awe.
“Haha. You like it that much?”
“Daddy is the best!!”
Seoa hugged him tightly, then began peppering his cheeks with kiss after kiss.
Seoa’s kisses were more precious than one might think.
They weren’t something she gave out easily.
“Haha, we should hurry, right? So we can ride as many things as possible.”
“Yes! Let’s go quickly!”
After getting out of the car and looking around, Jungwoo noticed that even though it was a Monday, there were quite a few people.
Looks like a lot of people had the same idea as me.
It was the typical thought—there wouldn’t be many people on a Monday.
Still, it was true that the crowds were much smaller than on weekends.
He had heard that in the past, there used to be far more visitors.
Back when there were no Hunters at all.
Compared to then, the numbers had dropped dramatically, but it still wasn’t empty.
“There are so many of Seoa’s friends here too, right?”
“Are they really all five years old?”
“Hmm, probably around that age.”
Children holding their parents’ hands.
Not a single one of those little hands was empty.
“……”
Seoa’s other hand would probably never be filled.
But that was okay.
Because the things she held in one hand would overflow and fill the other as well.
Fortunately, Seoa didn’t seem to pay much attention to that.
Right now, her little head was filled with only one thing: delicious snacks and fun rides.
Unfortunately, many attractions were off-limits due to her small height, but having Daddy with her opened up many more possibilities.
Jungwoo had already thoroughly researched everything in advance.
Even the exact route they would take.
Hehe…
He didn’t think he had gone this far even when he used to go on dates with his wife.
With a soft chuckle, father and daughter headed toward the ticket booth together.
Reserving tickets in advance was convenient, but waiting in line and buying them on the spot also created its own memories.
“Wooow… Daddy. There are sooo many people!”
There were far more people than Seoa usually saw.
Moreover, she could see many children around her own age.
“Right? Your friends came to ride the fun attractions too.”
“Hehe… That looks fun!”
As Seoa’s excitement grew even deeper, their turn finally arrived.
“Welcome~ to the Land of Fantasy!”
“F-Fantasy Land!”
The staff member greeted them with a bright smile.
“Oh my, is that a little princess? One child and one adult?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
The moment they purchased their tickets and entered,
Entering the Land of Fantasy!
a cheerful voice announced.
And before their eyes unfolded a truly fantastical sight.
Seoa wasn’t sure where to go first, but there was one thing she was certain of.
She had to visit every single place.
People holding balloons.
People wearing adorable headbands.
Others carrying delicious-looking snacks in their hands, and staff in mascot costumes warmly greeting visitors.
There were so many things to look at and so many places to go.
For Seoa, the only compass was Jungwoo, and he had already decided exactly where they would head first.
“…Seoa.”
At the unusually solemn tone in her father’s voice, Seoa—who had been smiling while looking around—grew a little more serious too.
“Yes…?”
“There’s somewhere we must go.”
“Somewhere… we must go?”
“That’s right.”
Holding tightly to her father’s hand, Seoa put on her most determined expression.
The place the father and daughter headed toward was none other than the land of dinosaurs.
Dino Ranger.
It was a themed escape game where you had to flee from dinosaurs.
Because it operated on a first-come, first-served reservation system for the day, it used to be difficult to get in. But that was old news.
These days, with overall visitor numbers lower, arriving just a little early was enough to secure a spot.
Dinosaur mascots greeted everyone right from the entrance.
There were massive dinosaur models and staff wearing costumes that moved around like real dinosaurs.
“U-uhh…”
Seoa, looking thoroughly nervous, stuck close to her father’s side.
“We have to escape while avoiding the dinosaurs.”
“Dino…saurs…!”
The dinosaurs looked terrifying at first glance.
Seoa firmly believed that they wouldn’t come near because her daddy was there.
“Daddy! Dinosaurs!”
“Eww, they’re so creepy!”
Children around Seoa’s age were also watching the dinosaurs, eagerly waiting for the escape game to begin.
“Okay, Seoa.”
“Y-Yes!”
“You can’t leave Daddy’s side, alright?”
Seoa nodded vigorously.
Perhaps because of that, even though the game hadn’t started yet, she was already glued tightly to her father.
“Alright, we’re about to begin–”
At that moment, staff dressed as soldiers and researchers announced the start of the escape.