Sorry, soy sauce gang, but Seo-jun’s choice Was tteokbokki sauce

He stabbed a piece of fried food with his fork and dunked it into the tteokbokki dish, swirling it around vigorously.

Once the sauce coated it well, the fried piece went straight into his mouth!

Crunch—!

The moment he bit down, the rich aroma of oil burst forth.

Chewy glass noodles followed suit, slipping out along with the bite.

The more he chewed, the more pronounced the rich oiliness became, and the bouncy texture of the noodles only intensified.

All while the sweet and spicy flavor of the tteokbokki sauce lingered!

“They say the best food is the one made by someone else…”

Somehow, he understood that saying now.

Even if he fried these himself, they wouldn’t taste the same.

After finishing off both the fried food and the tteokbokki, Seo-jun gave a slight bow.

“Thank you for the meal.”

“Come again next time.”

As Seo-jun left the market, satisfied from his meal, something suddenly caught his eye—a peculiar-looking cabbage.

It was displayed on a stall, unlike anything he had seen in supermarkets.

“Joseon cabbage.”

Seo-jun muttered softly.

It was a native Korean cabbage, commonly called Joseon cabbage or Gyeongjong cabbage.

Much smaller than ordinary cabbage, with scraggly leaves and stems, but its taste was vastly superior.

Kimchi made from this had a sharp yet sweet tang, rather than the simple sweetness of regular cabbage.

A unique delicacy.

“Young man, you know your Joseon cabbage. Did you come from the countryside?”

An old woman with white hair spoke up.

“My grandmother used to make kimchi with it often.”

“Oh… Your grandmother knew her stuff. Once you taste kimchi made from this, you won’t go back to the modern hybrid cabbages. They just don’t taste as good.”

She wasn’t wrong.

After eating Gyeongjong cabbage kimchi, even Seo-jun had stuck to it exclusively for a while.

“Since you recognize it, if you buy some, I’ll give you the whole batch at a discount.”

“How many heads do you have?”

“Just under thirty.”

That seemed like a reasonable amount.

Though he had some enhanced-cultivation cabbage kimchi, the aged taste of Gyeongjong cabbage kimchi was another level of delicious.

Especially when paired with ramen—modern hybrid cabbage kimchi couldn’t compete.

“I’ll take them all.”

“Let’s see… One, two, three, four, five… Twenty-seven in total. Normally, I charge 60,000 won per head, so that would be 1.62 million won, but I’ll let you have them for 1.4 million.”

It felt like a good deal.

Regular cabbage cost about 30,000 won per head.

In comparison, this was certainly expensive—twice the price. But considering how few farmers grew Gyeongjong cabbage, even at triple the price, it would still be a bargain.

“Thank you.”

“Do you know how to make kimchi?”

“Yes.”

“Good, good. Then enjoy.”

The old woman chuckled as she saw him off.

But there was something Seo-jun didn’t know.

Despite its high price due to rarity, Gyeongjong cabbage could actually be found in abundance… inside open-field dungeons with no monsters.

“Uncle!”

As soon as he returned to the store, Seo-woo ran up and hugged him.

Children’s innocence was truly pure.

To Seo-woo, his uncle had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, yet he accepted him wholeheartedly without a hint of awkwardness.

Yeon-jun always said he was grateful to him, but in truth, it was Seo-jun who was grateful.

Seo-jun had spent thousands of years in the barren Demon Realm. No matter how much he tried to hold onto his humanity, parts of it had inevitably eroded.

Things like kindness and childlike innocence.

Now, he was rediscovering those things through Yeon-jun and Seo-woo.

“Did Seo-woo wake up?”

“Yes!”

“It wasn’t Uncle Park Yeon who woke you up again, was it?”

“I didn’t wake him up!”

Park Yeon shouted from the bathroom.

“Hehe. No, Hye-jin asked me to play, so I got up.”

Ah, the pure energy he sensed earlier must have been Hye-jin’s.

When he glanced over, Hye-jin peeked out in a dress, beaming brightly.

“Hello!”

“Hello, Hye-jin. You came to play with Seo-woo again today?”

“Yes! I came to play with Seo-woo and Yeoksam! But what’s that?”

She pointed at the bag holding the Gyeongjong cabbage.

“Gyeongjong cabbage.”

“Gyeongjong cabbage? What’s that?”

“It’s delicious. Like cabbage kimchi.”

“Oh! Right! Can I play with Yeoksam?”

Woof woof woof!

Please, Master!

“Of course.”

Woof woof! Woof! Woof woof woof!

This is animal abuse!

“Huh? Why is Yeoksam barking all of a sudden?”

Hye-jin tilted her head in confusion, and Seo-woo explained.

“He’s excited because he gets to play with us. Yeoksam barks when he’s happy.”

“Really?”

“Yeah! I know Yeoksam the best. Right, Uncle?”

Seo-jun felt a little bad for Yeoksam, but there was no way he could contradict Seo-woo’s innocent gaze.

Yeoksam would understand. Despite being a Hellhound, he was remarkably patient.

“That’s right.”

“Hehe.”

“Let’s go, Yeoksam! Hye-jin, what should we play today?”

“How about hide-and-seek?”

“We’ve played that too much. How about ‘Red Light, Green Light’ instead?”

“But there are only three of us…”

Wait, was Yeoksam being counted as a player? Well… considering his intelligence, it wasn’t entirely unreasonable.

Seo-jun chuckled and headed into the kitchen.

He had unexpectedly found a rare ingredient at the market—Gyeongjong cabbage.

He decided to make a batch of its special kimchi.

Karanto… no, Park Doo-shik, who adored kimchi, would surely love it.

“Come to think of it, we’re about due for a new batch.”

Seo-jun figured he should call him over soon and started preparing.

Then, he suddenly froze.

He had told the old lady he knew how to make kimchi.

But now that he thought about it, he only knew how to make modern hybrid cabbage kimchi.

“…I forgot.”

Forgetting something in the Demon Realm had been unthinkable. Even a minor lapse could cost one’s life.

It seemed he was truly adapting to life on Earth.

Seo-jun turned on his phone and opened the search engine. Seo-woo always recommended Entube, but he preferred this method.

He typed in “how to make Gyeongjong cabbage kimchi” and found a few scattered articles.

But they were all old.

“The most recent one is from 2020…”

These days, there aren’t many households that still make their own kimchi, let alone ones that use native cabbage for it.

At least it’s a relief that some old blog posts still exist.

Seo-jun followed the steps from a blog post as he prepared everything in order.

The beginning was similar to using hybrid cabbage.

First, he soaked the cabbage in salt water to wilt it.

As he waited for the cabbage to soften, he prepared the seasoning.

Unlike hybrid cabbage, Gyeongjong cabbage didn’t require many ingredients in the kimchi filling.

According to the blog post, too many ingredients would make the flavors feel disjointed.

Following the instructions, Seo-jun made a flour paste first, then mixed the seasonings.

He combined red pepper powder, fish sauce, plum extract, salted shrimp, sugar, and ginger powder, stirring everything well.

※ Warning: Since Gyeongjong cabbage is different from regular cabbage, it’s best not to add ingredients like carrots, onions, or chives. If absolutely necessary, you may roughly chop some chives and add them.

Seo-jun, who had been about to take onions and carrots out of the fridge, stopped mid-action and put them back.

That was close—he almost made a big mistake.

Now, all that was left was to mix the well-salted and softened cabbage with the seasoning.

However—

※ Warning: If you mix it too roughly, a raw green taste might emerge, so be sure to mix it gently.

What a thoughtful blogger.

Nodding, Seo-jun put on plastic gloves and gently mixed the Gyeongjong cabbage.

Even so, he thought he could detect a slight hint of rawness, but it wasn’t enough to be bothersome.

“Alright then.”

Unlike regular napa cabbage kimchi, there was no need to tear it apart to eat. Since it was small, he could simply pop it into his mouth in one bite.

Crunch!

The texture was crisp, just like hybrid cabbage.

But the taste was completely different.

First, the nutty flavor of the Gyeongjong cabbage hit his palate.

Just as that flavor faded, the sharp aroma of ginger spread in his mouth, followed by the deep, aged savoriness of the salted shrimp.

He thought that was the end, but then another burst of flavor hit from behind.

Should he describe it as a nutty kick? Or a refreshing zing?

It was hard to put into words, but the taste was undeniably good.

Eating delicious food releases dopamine in the brain.

Even though Seo-jun had transcended the human body, his foundation was still human, so he wasn’t an exception.

A smile naturally formed on his face from happiness. White rice suddenly came to mind.

He imagined scooping up a big spoonful of steaming white rice, topping it with Gyeongjong cabbage kimchi, and taking a bite.

Just picturing it sent shivers down his spine.

“On Earth, don’t they call this kind of reaction over-the-top?”

Flinch.

“Ahem.”

“Go ahead and keep being dramatic. I’m heading out for a bit.”

“Where are you going? It’s almost time for PengPeng TV.”

PengPeng TV was one of Park Yeon’s favorite shows. The primary audience was children, but Park Yeon never missed an episode.

“…I know. But PengPeng TV has reruns.”

“Where exactly are you going?”

“You keep asking… Are you worried about me?”

“You wish.”

“I’d rather not be the subject of the Demon King’s concern. I’m just going for a walk. And maybe checking out the city while I’m at it.”

He could at least try to make it sound believable.

Seo-jun thought to himself.

After all, Park Yeon was holding a newly released pack of instant noodles in his hand.

He was probably going to see Doo-shik.

Pretending not to notice, Seo-jun scooped some Gyeongjong cabbage kimchi into a shopping bag.

It was perfect. Doo-shik loved kimchi, especially with ramen.

“What… is this?”

“Gyeongjong cabbage kimchi.”

“I see. But why are you giving it to me? I’m not going to meet anyone, you know.”

“You never know who you might run into on the way.”

“…Hmph. For once, you’re making sense. Alright, I’ll pass it along if I happen to see someone.”

Seo-jun smirked.

Then Park Yeon, realizing his slip of the tongue, waved his hands frantically.

“Ah! I misspoke. I meant—if, by some chance, a very small chance, I happen to run into someone, I’ll pass it along.”

“Did I say anything? Got it.”

Seo-jun smirked again.

Glaring at him, Park Yeon hurriedly left the shop.

‘I didn’t get caught, did I?’

Lost in thought, Park Yeon hesitated.

He felt like he might have been caught. Or maybe not.

‘What if I was caught?’

Then, he abruptly changed his attitude.

“Wait, so what if I was caught? It’s not like I’m committing a crime. Park Yeon… No, Veltebray. You’re just going because you’re craving boiled Arutus eggs, right?”

He nodded at his own question.

“That’s right!”

Yeah. He was absolutely not going to the poultry farm because of Karanto. He just suddenly wanted to eat boiled Arutus eggs.

That was all.

Thus, he arrived at the poultry farm.

A massive barrier surrounded it.

“Hmm.”

Looking at the enormous barrier, Park Yeon once again fell into thought.

His eagerness to check out the poultry farm had made him overlook the barrier.

He tapped the surface lightly.

Skilled individuals could gauge the outcome of a fight just by locking eyes.

The same applied to this barrier.

‘This looks easy.’

Which made it all the more suspicious.

Was this really all the Demon King’s barrier amounted to?

At best, it was on par with something one of the Demon King’s subordinates would set up.

‘Did he deliberately weaken it?’

That seemed like the most plausible explanation. For a barrier set up by the Demon King, it felt oddly flimsy.

Sure enough, when Park Yeon infused his hand with ether and touched the barrier, the surface rippled, revealing the space beyond.

He slipped through the gap.

‘Hah. Too easy.’

Of course, this was merely his misconception.

Seo-jun had already predicted that Park Yeon would head to the poultry farm. That’s why he had made arrangements before Park Yeon left the shop.

He had set things up so the barrier would recognize Park Yeon as its master.

That was the only reason he could enter so easily—otherwise, there was no way he would have gotten in.

Inside the barrier, the space was vast.

Everything here was a fabrication of the Demon King, but there were rolling meadows, forests, and even a sky. A stream flowed nearby.

“Ahem!”

Park Yeon deliberately cleared his throat.

When there was no response, he tried again.

“Ahem! Ahem!”

“……”

“Ahem! Now, where were the Arutus again—?!”