After returning to the hotel, I started preparing kimchi stew. In fact, this was basically my last night in Seoul. I had more or less finished everything I needed to do here, so I was planning to start my journey again.
I took out the remaining Alpha Red Wolf carcass from my subspace bag.
Since I had already butchered it once before, it was convenient to just take out the meat.
After handling the meat, I used my Magic Detox skill on it once more and added it to the kimchi stew.
At this point, I’ve made kimchi stew so many times that I could probably do it with my eyes closed.
To be honest, as long as the kimchi tastes good, that’s all that matters.
When I was living alone before, I remembered making kimchi stew whenever the landlord’s kimchi started piling up.
Back then, I’d just throw in water and kimchi and let it boil, eating it for an entire month.
‘Meat was a luxury, so I only used the meat the landlord gave me at first, and once that ran out, I saved up my part-time wages and added canned tuna.’
Even if you just add the oil and tuna from a can and boil it for a long time, it tastes about as good as any meat kimchi stew.
But things are different now, so I stir-fried the Alpha Red Wolf meat until all the fat was rendered out. Then I added water, kimchi, minced garlic, and other ingredients, and let it simmer thoroughly.
(Anonymous 1): I want to eat it already.
(God of Rain and Sunlight): You said you’d offer it as tribute for free, but there’s so much meat. As expected of Jinwoo.
(Father of Crops): Jinwoo, did you put golden garlic in the kimchi stew?
‘Of course I did.’
I hate to admit it, but… at this point, I can’t live without the Father of Crops’ produce.
There’s a special depth of flavor unique to his crops that’s irresistible.
(Last Blacksmith): Jinwoo, might I have some kimchi stew as well? It’s been a while since I craved your cooking so much.
(Chungha’s Water God): My descendant will give me some.
(Liberated Swordsman): I’m looking forward to it.
(Endless Waiting): Me too.
(Returnee from the Demon Realm): Hehehe, I can’t wait.
“I can’t wait, I can’t wait!”
― Me too!
― Beep, beeeep!
As the kimchi stew was finishing up, I summoned Eric. With all the meat and kimchi I’d put in, it looked like I’d have enough for tomorrow, too. After all, kimchi stew is at its best when you let it sit for a day or two.
That’s why I was already looking forward to the next day.
“Lord, you called for me?”
“Yes, I called you to eat dinner together.”
“Understood, Lord. Thank you.”
“Yeah.”
I ladled out a big portion of kimchi stew. I had already prepared side dishes and two bowls of rice and put them in my subspace bag, along with a big bowl of kimchi stew.
With this, I set up a meal and sent it out as tribute to the constellations, one by one.
“Lord, have you received enough coins?”
(Anonymous 1): That lun*ic’s doing it again, what happened to make him so obsessed with money?
(God of Rain and Sunlight): Hey, was he always like this?
(Anonymous 1): No, he wasn’t like this at all. He used to live as far from money as possible. When he got money, he’d donate it to war orphans.
(God of Rain and Sunlight): Then why is he so corrupted now…?
“Anonymous, aren’t you the same? You also lived far from money, so why are you so obsessed with coins? If that’s how it is, just hand over your remaining coins to the Lord and live in peace.”
(Anonymous 1): That lun*ic….
(Father of Crops): Hohoho….
(Endless Waiting): I’ll make sure not to live like that.
(Liberated Swordsman): Eric is a scary person.
(Chungha’s Water God): He is scary, but I think that shows how much he cares for Jinwoo. A trustworthy summoned being.
[Heroic-grade Constellation, Chungha’s Water God, has sponsored 500 coins.]
“…!!”
As expected of Habaek!
I grinned widely.
There really must be some kind of understanding between people of the same nation.
Returnee from the Demon Realm, Kang Minseok, and Chungha’s Water God, Habaek.
Just from the coins they sponsored today, it’s more than I’d gotten in a whole week. No wonder I can serve the constellations with such heartfelt food.
(Anonymous 1): Huu, Eric, you brute, I didn’t sponsor even a single coin today.
“Anonymous, you’d better sponsor while I’m speaking nicely.”
(Anonymous 1): I don’t wanna, I don’t wanna! What are you gonna do if you don’t like it, lol.
(God of Rain and Sunlight): How childish.
“…Hoo.”
“Eric, don’t worry. I got a lot of coins today.”
“You’re offering this as tribute without taking coins from the constellations, aren’t you?”
“That’s true, but the Returnee from the Demon Realm gave me a lot of coins today.”
I explained to Eric what happened earlier today. When he heard, Eric smiled brightly.
“Returnee from the Demon Realm, Kang Minseok, I’ll remember that.”
Thanks to Minseok’s sponsorship, dinner went peacefully.
“Byul, eat a lot.”
“Yeah, Uncle, you eat a lot too! Dad, you too!”
“Haha, okay. Byul, and Baekgu, and Sol, you all eat up too. Got it?”
“Yeah!”
― Yep!
― Beep!
Byul was the first to taste the kimchi stew. People say you should wait for adults to eat first when you’re outside, but when it’s just family, I prefer to let the kids eat first.
“Wow… Wowww….”
For a while, Byul was speechless.
“How is it? Is it good?”
“It’s really… really good! It’s so delicious!!!”
“Haha, yeah? Is it that good?”
“Yeah! It’s super good! Uncle and Dad, you have to try it! Sol and Baekgu too!”
At her words, everyone except Byul nodded.
(Anonymous 1): Byul, we’ll eat too!
(Chungha’s Water God): Hee, it must be delicious.
(God of Rain and Sunlight): I was hungry, really hungry!
(Last Blacksmith): Whew, teaching a disciple isn’t easy. I didn’t know it when I was the student, but trying to teach is tough. Takes a lot of stamina.
(Anonymous 1): Hey, here’s your chance, have a drink~ Returnee from the Demon Realm and Chungha’s Water God hit the golden bell~
(God of Rain and Sunlight): Hehe, thanks, you two.
(Endless Waiting): I’ll enjoy it.
(Liberated Swordsman): Thanks, everyone, I’ll eat well. I hope you all enjoy it too.
(Returnee from the Demon Realm): …Finally, finally, I get to eat kimchi stew. Finally!!
Kang Minseok is a man who takes kimchi stew seriously.
How seriously…?
(Returnee from the Demon Realm): I gathered hundreds, thousands of demons in the Demon Realm to farm so I could eat kimchi stew.
(Anonymous 1): He’s not normal either.
(God of Rain and Sunlight): It’s delicious. At this level, I’d make people farm too.
(Anonymous 1): But that’s also because Jinwoo’s cooking skills, Alpha Red Wolf, and—I hate to admit it—the Father of Crops’ produce are all included. That’s why it’s so good.
(Returnee from the Demon Realm): Yeah, the kimchi stew project in the Demon Realm was a failure.
Knowing the pain of that failure, Minseok finally scooped up a steaming mouthful of kimchi stew.
This isn’t just any kimchi stew.
It’s loaded with the tastiest, most expensive ingredients.
For a moment, he worried whether all these fancy ingredients might make it taste different from the homestyle flavor he used to have.
(Returnee from the Demon Realm): Just try it already, you idiot.
Minseok nodded.
He took a sip of the broth.
“…That was a pointless worry.”
After all, the better the ingredients, the tastier the result.
Minseok’s jaw dropped.
How long had he been waiting and longing for this taste?!
The uniquely sour tang of kimchi and the savory flavor that comes from simmering for a long time.
The rich taste of meat, the flavor of golden garlic.
Spiciness combined with nuttiness that made him crave more.
Then he ate a piece of the kimchi, so tender it fell apart.
Crunch—! The sound as he bit in was followed by the kimchi melting gently in his mouth.
His mind cleared instantly.
That’s how delicious and tangy it was, making him crave more with every bite.
The meat too—the thoroughly simmered Alpha Red Wolf was a work of art.
The stew’s flavor soaked into the meat, making it tender all the way through.
As soon as it entered his mouth, the meat melted apart, releasing the broth inside in a gentle burst.
And if you take a bite of rice soaked in the stew…
“Huff… huff….”
It was the best taste ever.
To be honest, after thinking about kimchi stew for over a hundred years, I remembered it was good but couldn’t recall the details.
Now, eating this kimchi stew, the hazy memories became crystal clear.
Back when he was just a student before becoming a Hunter.
On weekends, sleeping in till noon, then being lured out of bed by the delicious smell.
The kitchen of their small-town apartment would overflow with warmth, just like the steam rising from the kimchi stew.
When Minseok became an adult, his family passed away in an accident.
Those family members, smiling, would tell him to try a bite of kimchi stew and put a spoonful straight into his mouth.
People say food holds special power, and eating this kimchi stew brought all those blurry memories back to life.
He remembered how, with a dry mouth just after waking up, kimchi stew would bring back his appetite.
His mother’s bright smile, and his father scooping rice from the cooker, telling him to go get some water.
After all those years fighting in the Demon Realm, their faces had faded from his memory. But now, the faces of his most beloved were coming back clearly.
Jinwoo had even sent a fried egg with the meal, and when Minseok mixed it into the rice soaked in stew, his memories became even stronger.
Recalling the faces of his loved ones after so long, Minseok couldn’t help but cry.
Everything was vivid.
With every bite of Jinwoo’s side dishes, he rediscovered forgotten memories.
Kimchi stew, soaked with tears, was the most delicious food he’d ever had.
It was like eating precious memories—of course it was delicious.
Minseok checked his coins.
Even now, stories of Demon King Kang Minseok still circulate as legends in the Demon Realm.
He had plenty of coins.
Other constellations kept telling him to build income streams because coins would disappear with time, but…
‘I already have one.’
By using magic, he creates “Magic Herb” and sells it to demon and Demon King constellations.
Minseok’s magic is special, so the herb business is booming.
In short—
‘I can spend a little freely.’
He wanted to repay Jinwoo for bringing back his treasured memories and giving him such a delicious meal.
[Legendary-grade Constellation, Returnee from the Demon Realm, has sponsored 10,000 coins!]
The biggest sponsorship in history had begun.
*****
‘….’
I just sat there, blankly staring at the system window.
I couldn’t believe what I was seeing was real, so I just kept looking.
[Legendary-grade Constellation, Returnee from the Demon Realm, has sponsored 10,000 coins!]
(Anonymous 1): …That’s crazy, absolutely insane.
(God of Rain and Sunlight): I mean, I’ll admit this is the best kimchi stew in all dimensions, but… just dropping ten thousand coins like that?
(Father of Crops): Returnee from the Demon Realm, Kang Minseok. No, Minseok hyung! Please, just buy a little more of my produce!!
‘10,000 coins? Really?’
Usually, constellations sponsor about 100 coins.
Even 100 coins is quite a bit if you convert it to won, and it’s enough to buy food ingredients or items from another dimension.
But 10,000 coins.
Just today, Minseok hyung has sponsored almost 15,000 coins. Watching this, I thought:
‘So this is what it means to be an older brother.’
Is this what it means to be a hyung, to be an elder?
To give so much for someone younger like me!
Ah, I may not have a mother, but if I ever meet her, I’ll say:
‘My dream is to be like Minseok hyung!’