Chapter 27

At the restaurant Yu Seong-un led him to, all the employees were wearing hanbok.

“I have a reservation for two under Yu Seong-un.”

“Mr. Yu Seong-un, confirmed. I will show you inside, please take off your shoes.”

As Yu Seong-un smoothly accepted the employee's service, Jio stood a step back and looked at the restaurant.

The restaurant he had guided him to was a hanok with a strong, antique atmosphere, as if drawn with ink.

The pillars stood out with curves that utilized the natural beauty of the wood and the subtle, bittersweet scent of hinoki cypress and the high, open ceiling put one at ease.

What came into view was not a noisy crowd of customers, but a silent and elegantly arranged wooden hallway.

The individual rooms visible between the hallways had a particularly strong and distinct individualistic aspect.

“…….”

This… is a baekban restaurant?

‘The definition of a baekban restaurant that I know has clearly changed in the past 31 years.’

Where did my boisterous and cozy baekban restaurant go, where I used to sit cross-legged on a low table and pick at grilled yellow croaker?

“Jio, let's go in.”

“We are eating here?”

“Ah.”

Yu Seong-un, as if making an excuse for something, said.

“Please ignore the presence of other people. This place is pretty good at blocking out presences and sounds.”

“…….”

“If you're very uncomfortable, should we move to another restaurant? There are also places where we can have an entire building to ourselves.”

What is with this person?

‘Does he think I'm a walking nuclear power plant?’

I don't know just how sensitive a being he sees me as.

“I am not uncomfortable.”

“Really? That's a relief.”

“Is it divided into rooms?”

“Yes, the rooms aren't small, so we should be able to eat comfortably.”

“I see.”

Unless it was truly unbearable, Jio was not the type of person to refuse a free meal.

‘Anyway, it looks like it'll be delicious, so that's fine.’

The world seemed to have changed so much in 31 years, which gave him mixed feelings, but with the permission of his starving stomach, Jio cast aside his worries and followed Yu Seong-un.

“Please press the bell when you have decided on your menu.”

“Yes.”

“Please enjoy your time.”

The employee, dressed in a hanbok with a soft hue as if dyed with flower petals, quietly left the room.

Waiting for a moment as he felt the presence fade away, Jio asked.

“Is this place a baekban restaurant?”

“…Ah, that's right.”

It wasn't very obvious, but Yu Seong-un's reaction was one of realization.

Jio's question was simply intended as ‘is this flashy place really a baekban restaurant,’ but Yu Seong-un seemed to have understood it as ‘so what exactly is a baekban restaurant.’

“A meal setting where you eat rice with soup and side dishes is called baekban.”

“…….”

For a moment, Jio wanted to refute him for the sake of his pride as a teacher, but it didn't seem like a misunderstanding that could be cleared up by doing so, so he decided to just shut up and listen to the explanation.

I pride myself on it having been a mature decision.

“The rice is always the same, and the soup changes daily. Today… I think it's seaweed soup.”

Having said that, Yu Seong-un asked with a look of doubt.

“Do you eat seaweed?”

“There are no foods I cannot eat or dislike.”

“That's good to hear.”

Yu Seong-un opened the menu that was placed on the edge of the table.

“The basic side dishes are all the same, what we have to choose is the main menu. It's mainly divided into meat and fish, which are you more drawn to?”

“Right now, I am more drawn to meat.”

Jio, being soft-hearted, could not hunt the animals of the forest.

In the first place, he didn't even know how to hunt, and it was clear that hunting the round, cute-looking illustrated animals would yield a poor return anyway.

Jio, who was happy no matter what he ate, wasn't a picky eater, but since he was out, he did feel like eating meat.

‘I should eat it while I'm out.’

Yu Seong-un nodded his head.

“Then let's have the Gwangyang bulgogi.”

He pressed the number pad on the edge of the table.

It seemed to be a system where you input the menu corresponding to the number here, and the kitchen receives it directly to cook.

Finally, after pressing the red button, the bell, Yu Seong-un looked at Jio again.

“Out of all the baekban restaurants I've been to, I think this one is the most delicious. And they don't use monster meat.”

“Do they normally use monster meat?”

“It's commonly eaten, right? But it feels a bit wrong to eat monster meat even when you come to a restaurant.”

“…….”

For some reason, it seemed he held ‘restaurants’ in higher regard than Jio knew them to be.

Jio, the ancestor who had hibernated for 31 years, pondered how to ask about this without sounding strange.

“Why, is there something you want to ask?”

“…Are restaurants differentiated from other facilities?”

“Hmm? Isn't that the case for most of them?”

Yu Seong-un scratched the back of his neck as if it were an unexpected question.

“You're not eating at home and are borrowing someone else's hands to receive a meal. In my case, it's not that burdensome, but it's a bit of a struggle for Grade 2 citizens and below.”

“Are all restaurants like that?”

“Mostly. In the first place, the purpose of a restaurant is to have a meal, but more than that, it's for receiving service. There are many people like me who come to a restaurant to eat, but even more people come to be served.”

It was a slightly different feeling from the definition of a restaurant that Jio knew.

‘Compared to what I knew, it seems similar to fine dining or omakase. Does this mean all restaurants have become high-end….’

No, wait a minute, then what about delivery?

“Do you not use delivery?”

Yu Seong-un looked as if he hadn't expected the word ‘delivery’ to come out of Jio's mouth.

It made him suspicious of just how much of an ancestor he was being seen as, but Jio, finding it bothersome to explain, kept his mouth shut.

“Delivery… is a frequently used method, too. But that's more expensive.”

“Is that so?”

“It's a major accident if you run into a monster on the way. It's also troublesome to avoid them.”

What kind of monster is being treated like a stray cat?

The level of damage was definitely not on par with a stray cat, which made it all the more absurd.

“So people don't usually order delivery unless they're having a party. I'm the same.”

“…….”

If it was a delivery big enough for a party, he had his suspicions that it was just catering.

“…In that case, do most people cook and eat their meals at home?”

“Usually. Just buying groceries costs a lot of money, where would they find the means to receive service as well. The act of going to a restaurant itself isn't that common.”

Did the world get destroyed and rebuilt once or something?

“But we have come to a restaurant, have we not?”

“Well, I did say I'd give you a tour….”

“Aha.”

It must have meant he was going to give him a fantastic treat.

Jio seriously contemplated the errors that occurred even in simple communication.

‘…Do I need to retake social skills education? It'll be hard for me to receive compulsory education at my age, though? Should I re-enroll in university now?’

The world had changed too much in just 31 years.

At this rate, whenever Jio had a conversation with someone else, he would be treated like an alien from the star Sirius.

‘Either that, or a shut-in loser who lives isolated from society.’

Damn you, gods of heaven and earth, the latter didn't even seem to be wrong, which made it even more terrifying.

‘Is this the heart of the elderly who cannot keep up with a changing society…?’

Grandmother, I have finally understood your feelings.

It truly was a difficult thing to live in tune with a rapidly developing era.

Jio, feeling this deeply, watched the meal being set up by the employee.

“It's hot, so please step back a little.”

Saying so, the employee dropped an ember onto the center of the table.

Then, the fire flared up, forming a shape similar to a gas range, and the employee placed a grill on top of the circular flame.

After placing a few pieces of bulgogi on it, they left the room.

“…….”

There was nothing there, but a fire lit up.

‘It's a wooden table, but it's not burning.’

Correction. Jio didn't need to re-enroll in university, but kindergarten.

Judging by Yu Seong-un's expression, this seemed to be a completely normal occurrence, but for Jio, who had been separated from society for exactly 31 years, it was just astonishing.

“Hmm, it looks like beef.”

“…If it is not beef, what other meat is there?”

“Like I said before, there's a high chance it's monster meat, right? It's cheaper than beef or lamb.”

“Does it not taste good?”

“It's not that….”

Chiiik―.

Yu Seong-un, stirring the meat, continued.

“It's just the general social atmosphere. There's a lot of meat that there's no reason to avoid as long as it's not a special part with toxins, but still, monsters are creatures that attack people… and most of them are grotesque-looking. It's hard for the meat of a monster that eats people to be welcomed, I guess you could say.”

“That makes sense when you put it that way.”

“But it's also a meat that's commonly used in households. A cheap and plentiful lump of protein can't be unpopular. Still, my point was that it feels a bit wrong to eat monster meat in a restaurant like this where you come to be served.”

“Is it not dangerous?”

“Because not all monsters carry poison in their bodies?”

Yu Seong-un chuckled.

“Well, about 20 years ago, the atmosphere was more like, how could you eat something so dangerous. I was young back then, so I don't really know now.”

“20 years ago isn't that far in the past, yet people's perceptions seem to have changed quickly.”

“Well, the government and the Association did a lot of work in various ways….”

A government that works well enough to change Koreans' perception of the meat they put in their mouths in just 20 years?

‘Why have so many things changed in just 31 years?’

It was a more surprising story than Jio himself evolving into a portrait in the midst of flames.

Yu Seong-un's opinion might be different, but that's how Jio felt.

“The government must be competent.”

“Well, yeah. They have to be competent if they don't want to get their necks slit.”

“…….”

“Their necks were already slit a few times, so only the competent ones are left.”

Jio was intimidated.

Bro, why are you telling stories like that before we eat meat?

‘…Well, I heard Hunters are living war machines, so I guess there's nothing politicians can't touch.’

Jio was quickly convinced and stirred the meat together with him.

“May I eat?”

“Uh, it looks like it's all cooked.”

“I will eat well.”

“I hope you like it.”

“I think I will.”

Korean bulgogi is typically divided into 3 types.

First, Seoul-style. Second, Gwangyang-style. Third, Eonyang-style.

Among them, Jio's favorite was this Gwangyang-style bulgogi.

The commonly known bulgogi marinated in broth and sauce is Seoul-style bulgogi, but Gwangyang-style, unlike the Seoul-style which is eaten like a hot pot, is grilled dry on a grate.

It differs slightly from house to house, but most do not marinate it for very long.

‘That's why the flavor of the meat is much more alive.’

The beef, pounded several times to tenderize the meat and spread thin.

When you grill that quickly on a grate, the Gwangyang-style bulgogi is complete, crispy on the outside and moist on the inside, with living juices.

“…….”

A piece of bulgogi lifted from the grill.

Without sauce or rice, Jio put a whole piece of bulgogi in his mouth.

“…….”

“How is it, is it delicious?”

“It is very delicious.”

It was such an excellent taste that if he had been alone in this private room, he would have given it a standing ovation.

“It seems they use good quality meat. The meaty aroma is not gamey and is rich, and the texture is also excellent. It seems to have been pounded a lot for the tenderizing process, but the fact that it doesn't tear at this thickness means the chef's skill is also excellent.”

“You… you become more talkative when you eat something delicious.”

“My apologies.”

It was just so delicious.

“But it is true that it is delicious.”

“It seems so.”

“It is a taste I would like to try making.”

The surface, quickly grilled as if fried over charcoal, had a brief bitter taste characteristic of burnt meat, but it gave a variation to the subtle sweetness of the properly charred meat.

The moderate amount of fat embedded in the meat had a rich flavor like stock, to the point where you could tell the quality of the meat by that alone.

“The marinade is also seasoned just right.”

The mellow sweetness mixed deep into the meat seemed to be from pear.

Perhaps the meat was tenderized by adding grated pear.

There was also a polite bitterness, from some kind of alcohol added, which doubled the luxuriousness of the taste.

“It also goes well with garlic. The aroma is appropriately pleasant, not overpowering.”

The sharp scent of garlic, embedded deep in the meat, pricked the back of his tongue, yet its pungency had been gently melted away after being grilled once over charcoal.

It seemed they used good sesame oil as well, as a fresh aroma lingered.

“…….”

“Hm? Why?”

“It seems they make their own soy sauce as well.”

“Are you a gourmet? How did you know that?”

“Am I correct?”

“Uh… I did hear that from the owner here.”

Jio nodded his head.

“The scent of chili was unusually strong, so I wondered.”

“So you don't just like to eat for no reason. You have a sensitive palate.”

“The dipping sauce is also… delicious.”

The ingredients seemed similar to the bulgogi marinade, but this mysterious sweet and sour taste.

The deep scent of green plum was seamlessly infused into the sauce, adding to the flavor.

‘It's not green plum syrup….’

It was probably vinegar made from green plums.

“…….”

If you lightly dip the meat into the brown sauce with a slight hint of garlic, not too much, and eat it with fluffy, steaming white rice….

“…….”

“You like it.”

“Yes.”

“I see.”

As expected, rice was best enjoyed with a mouthful.

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