Chapter 27

At the restaurant Yu Seongun led him to, every employee was dressed in traditional Korean clothing.

“I have a reservation for two under Yu Seongun.”

“Mr. Yu Seongun, we have confirmed it. We will show you inside, so please take off your shoes.”

While Yu Seongun accepted the employee’s service without the slightest awkwardness, Jio stood one step away and looked over the restaurant.

The restaurant he had brought him to was a traditional Korean house with a strong air of old-fashioned elegance, as though it had been painted in ink. The pillars showed off curves that preserved the beauty of the natural wood, and the subtle, faintly bitter scent of cypress and the high, open ceiling put him at ease.

What he saw was not groups of noisy, crowded customers, but a quiet, refined wooden corridor. The individual rooms visible here and there along the corridor stood out with an especially private feel.

“...”

This was... a set-meal restaurant?

‘The definition of a set-meal restaurant as I know it must have changed over the last thirty-one years.’

Where had his noisy yet cozy set-meal restaurants gone, the ones where he sat cross-legged on a wooden platform and picked apart yellow corvina?

“Jio, let’s go in.”

“We are eating here?”

“Ah.”

Yu Seongun spoke as if making an excuse, though Jio had no idea what he was so concerned about.

“Please ignore the signs of other people. Still, this place has blocked out presences and sounds pretty well, all things considered.”

“...”

“If it’s too uncomfortable, should we move to another restaurant? There are places where we can have an entire building to ourselves.”

What was with this man?

‘Is he treating me like a walking nuclear power plant?’

Jio had no idea how sensitive an existence Yu Seongun thought he was.

“I am not uncomfortable.”

“Really? That’s a relief.”

“Is it divided into rooms?”

“Yeah. The rooms aren’t small, so we should be able to eat comfortably.”

“I see.”

Unless there was a very good reason, Jio was not the sort of person to refuse a free meal.

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

He felt complicated and strangely unsettled by how much the world seemed to have changed over the last thirty-one years, but with his starving stomach’s permission, Jio cast off his worries and followed Yu Seongun.

“When you have finished choosing your menu, please press the bell.”

“Yes.”

“We hope you enjoy your time.”

The employee, dressed in traditional Korean clothing with soft colors as though dyed with flower petals, quietly left the room. After waiting a moment and feeling the person’s presence recede, Jio asked,

“Is this place a set-meal restaurant?”

“... Ah, it is.”

It did not show much, but Yu Seongun reacted as if he had made a mistake.

Jio had only meant to ask, “Is this flashy place really a set-meal restaurant?” but Yu Seongun seemed to have taken it as, “So what exactly is a set meal?”

“A set meal is a table setting where you eat rice with soup and side dishes.”

“...”

Out of his pride as a teacher, Jio wanted to object for a moment, but it did not seem like a misunderstanding that could be cleared up even if he did, so he decided to just keep his mouth shut and listen to the explanation. He was proud to call it an adult decision.

“The rice is always the same, and the soup changes every day. Today... it looks like seaweed soup.”

After saying that much, Yu Seongun asked with a cautious expression.

“Do you eat seaweed?”

“There is no food I cannot eat or dislike.”

“That’s nice to hear.”

Yu Seongun opened the menu placed at the edge of the table.

“The basic side dishes are all the same, and what we choose is the main dish.”

“They’re mostly divided into meat and fish. Which one appeals to you more?”

“Right now, meat appeals to me more.”

Tenderhearted Jio had not been able to hunt the animals in the forest. To begin with, he did not know how to hunt, and those round, adorable painted animals would clearly have a poor yield even if he did hunt them.

Jio, who was happy eating anything, did not do something like pick and choose, but since he had come out anyway, he did want to eat meat.

‘I should eat it while I’m out.’

Yu Seongun nodded.

“Then let’s go with Gwangyang-style marinated grilled beef.”

He pressed the number pad at the edge of the table. It seemed to be a system where you entered the menu corresponding to the number here, and the kitchen received it immediately and cooked it.

After pressing the red bell button last, Yu Seongun looked back at Jio.

“Of all the set-meal restaurants I’ve been to, I think this place is the best. They don’t use monster meat, either.”

“Do restaurants usually use monster meat?”

“It is commonly eaten, yeah. But coming all the way to a restaurant just to eat monster is a little much, isn’t it?”

“...”

Somehow, he seemed to think more highly of a “restaurant” than Jio knew to. Jio, who was practically an ancestor who had slept through winter for thirty-one years, wondered how to ask about this without sounding strange.

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

“... Are restaurants differentiated from other facilities?”

“Hm? Aren’t most of them?”

As if it were an unexpected question, Yu Seongun rubbed the back of his neck.

“You’re deliberately not eating at home and having someone else serve you a meal. In my case, it’s not such a burdensome level, but from Grade 2 citizens downward, that part gets a little difficult.”

“Are all restaurants like that?”

“Generally. To begin with, a restaurant is a place for eating meals, but more than that, it’s largely for receiving service. There are many people like me who go to restaurants to eat, but even more people come specifically to be treated well.”

It felt a little different from the definition of a restaurant Jio knew.

‘Compared to what I knew, it seems closer to fine dining or omakase. Does that mean all eating establishments have become more upscale...?’

No, wait, then what about delivery?

“Do people not use delivery?”

Yu Seongun looked as though he had not expected the word “delivery” to come out of Jio’s mouth. Jio started to suspect just how much of an ancestor Yu Seongun took him for, but since explaining would be annoying, he kept his mouth shut.

“Delivery is... also a commonly used method. Though it’s even more expensive.”

“Is that so?”

“If they run into a monster on the way, that’s a major accident. Avoiding them is a hassle, too.”

What, were monsters treated like stray cats? The damage they caused absolutely did not seem to be on the level of stray cats, which made it all the more absurd.

“So most people don’t really order delivery unless they’re throwing a party. I’m the same.”

“...”

Jio had the suspicious thought that if it was delivery on a scale big enough to throw a party, wasn’t that just catering?

“... Then do most people make their own meals at home?”

“Usually, yes. Buying ingredients costs a lot as it is, so who has the money to receive service on top of that? Going to restaurants itself isn’t that common, either.”

What, had the world ended once and been rebuilt?

“But we have come to a restaurant, haven’t we?”

“Well, that’s because I said I would take you sightseeing...”

“Aha.”

Apparently, it had meant he was going to treat Jio extremely well. Jio seriously thought about the fact that even simple communication was causing errors.

‘... Do I need to take social skills education again? It would be hard to receive compulsory education at my age, though. Should I reenroll in university even now?’

The world had changed too much after only thirty-one years. At this rate, Jio would be treated like an alien from Sirius every time he had a conversation with someone else.

‘Or like a shut-in recluse living cut off from society.’

Damn you, gods of heaven and earth, the latter did not seem entirely wrong, which made it even more chilling.

‘Is this the feeling of elders who can’t keep up with a changing society...?’

Grandmother, I have finally come to understand how you felt. Living in step with an era developing so quickly truly was a difficult thing.

Feeling it deeply, Jio watched the meal the employee set out.

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

After saying that, the employee dropped a single ember into the middle of the table.

Then flame blazed up and formed a shape similar to a gas stove, and the employee placed a grill plate over the circular fire. Then they placed a few pieces of marinated grilled beef on it and left the room.

“...”

There was nothing there, but a fire lit.

‘It’s a wooden table, but it isn’t burning.’

Correction. Jio did not need to reenroll in university, but in kindergarten.

Judging by Yu Seongun’s reaction, this seemed to be perfectly natural, but to Jio, who had been exactly thirty-one years removed from society, it was simply astonishing.

“Hmm, it looks like beef.”

“... If not cow, what meat would it be?”

“As I said earlier, it would most likely be monster meat, right? The unit price is cheaper than beef or lamb.”

“Does it taste bad?”

“That’s not it, but...”

SIZZLE.

Stirring the meat around, Yu Seongun continued.

“That’s just the general social atmosphere. As long as it’s not a special part with toxins, there’s plenty of meat people have no reason to avoid, but monsters are still things that attack people... and most of them look disgusting, don’t they? I suppose you could say it’s only natural that meat from monsters that eat people is hard to welcome.”

“When you put it that way, I understand.”

“But in general, it’s also a meat people like using at home. There’s no way a cheap, abundant lump of protein wouldn’t be popular. I was just saying that eating monster even at a restaurant like this, where you come to be served, feels a little much.”

“Is it not dangerous?”

“Not every monster has poison in its body, you know?”

Yu Seongun gave a small laugh.

“Well, apparently until about twenty years ago, the mood was that no one could understand how you could eat something so dangerous. I was young back then too, so I don’t really know now.”

“If it was twenty years ago, that is not such a distant past, and yet people’s perceptions seem to have changed quickly.”

“I guess the government and the Association did a lot of work in various ways...”

A government competent enough to change Koreans’ perception of the meat going into their mouths in just twenty years?

‘Why has so much changed just because thirty-one years passed?’

It was more astonishing than the fact that Jio himself had evolved into a portrait inside a blaze. Yu Seongun’s opinion might be a little different, but that was how Jio himself felt for now.

“The government must be competent.”

“Well, if they don’t want their heads cut off, they have to be competent.”

“...”

“They’ve already had their heads cut off a few times, so only competent people remain.”

Jio got scared. Hyung, why would you talk about that before we eat meat?

‘... Then again, they say Hunters are living weapons of war, so I guess there’s no reason politicians would be untouchable.’

Jio quickly accepted it and stirred the meat with him.

“May I eat it?”

“Yeah, it looks cooked.”

“Thank you for the meal.”

“I hope it suits your taste.”

“I think it will.”

Korean marinated grilled beef is largely divided into three representative types.

First, Seoul-style. Second, Gwangyang-style. Third, Eonyang-style. Among them, the one Jio liked best was this very Gwangyang-style marinated grilled beef.

The commonly known marinated grilled beef soaked in broth and sauce is Seoul-style, but unlike Seoul-style, which is eaten like a hot pot, Gwangyang-style is grilled dry on a gridiron. It differs a little from house to house, but most do not marinate it in seasoning for very long.

‘That’s why the flavor of the meat comes through much better.’

Beef pounded several times and spread thin to tenderize the meat. Once you grill it hard over a gridiron, Gwangyang-style marinated grilled beef is complete, crisp on the outside and moist inside, with juices that feel alive.

“...”

One piece of marinated grilled beef taken off the gridiron.

Without sauce or rice, Jio put one full piece of the beef into his mouth.

“...”

“How is it? Good?”

“It is extremely delicious.”

Since they were in a private room as it was, if he had been alone, the flavor was excellent enough that he would have given it a standing ovation.

“I think they use good meat. The aroma of the meat is rich without being gamy, and the texture is quite good too. It seems to have been pounded a lot for the tenderizing process, but the fact that it doesn’t tear even at this thickness must mean the chef’s skill is excellent as well.”

“You... get more talkative when you eat something delicious.”

“Forgive me.”

It was just so delicious that he slipped.

“But it truly is delicious.”

“It looks that way.”

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

The surface, grilled hard as though fried over charcoal, briefly carried the bitter taste unique to charred meat, but it added variation to the sweetness of the properly seared beef.

The moderate fat nestled throughout the meat had a rich flavor like stock, to the point that this alone was enough to tell the quality of the meat.

“The seasoning is well balanced, too.”

The mellow sweetness mixed deep into the meat was probably pear. Had they grated pear into the meat to tenderize it? On top of that, whatever alcohol they had added carried a polite bitterness as well, doubling the luxuriousness of the flavor.

“It goes well with the garlic, too. The aroma is appropriately good without being excessive.”

The sharp scent of garlic, embedded deep in the meat, pricked the back of his tongue, yet after being grilled once over charcoal, its harshness had melted away softly. They seemed to be using good sesame oil too, because a fresh fragrance lingered.

“...”

“Hm? What is it?”

“I think they make the soy sauce themselves as well.”

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

“Am I right?”

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

Jio nodded.

“The chili pepper aroma was unusually strong, so I wondered.”

“You don’t just like eating for no reason. Your tongue is sensitive.”

“The dipping sauce is also... delicious.”

The ingredients themselves were probably similar to the seasoning for the marinated grilled beef, but this subtle sweet-and-sour taste. The deep aroma of plum soaked into the sauce without feeling awkward and added to the flavor.

‘It isn’t plum syrup...’

It was probably vinegar made from plums.

“...”

If he lightly dabbed the meat in the brown sauce where a little garlic showed through, not too much, and ate it together with steaming, fluffy white rice...

“...”

“You like it?”

“Yes.”

“I see.”

As expected, rice was best when you stuffed your mouth full of it.