We came back after having a blast at the beach.
And we brought back a pile of seafood as well.
“This is so convenient.”
Looking at the portal that was gently swaying, it couldn’t get any better than this.
Once installed, anyone could use it semi-permanently.
Unlike the Glutton’s dungeon access, there was no need for a medium like a door, nor did it require a magic stone.
I wasn’t sure if more portals would be added, but I wanted to install them all over the dungeons in the future.
“Now, should we start salting the cabbage?”
We couldn’t make kimchi right away.
First, we had to salt the cabbage in brine.
It was known to take quite some time, though the exact time was something my mother would know.
As I busied myself after returning, Seon-ah looked at me with a tired expression.
“Oppa, let’s take a break.”
“But we’ve been resting this whole time.”
“We were busy cooking and cleaning up.”
“Don’t worry, I can handle it by myself. Salting cabbage isn’t a big deal.”
“What I’m saying is that you should rest too. Aren’t you tired?”
“Huh? Not at all?”
This girl underestimates awakened people.
I’ll have you know I’m a ‘level 2’ awakened person!
I have much better stamina and physical abilities than normal people.
‘Salting cabbage is something I can easily do alone.’
There’s really nothing difficult about it.
You just need to measure the amount right.
We had bought quite a lot of cabbage, about 100 heads, if I remember correctly.
Usually, a regular household wouldn’t make kimchi with 100 heads, but we aren’t exactly ordinary.
Honestly, this might not even be enough.
While everyone enjoyed a peaceful nap, I stripped the outer leaves from the cabbage and cut them in half.
I had already prepared the brine, so I immediately soaked the cabbage and sprinkled salt on them.
It was simple repetitive work.
After salting all 100 heads, I began preparing the seasoning.
In fact, I had already done a rough prep of the ingredients for the seasoning.
I ground all the prepared ingredients and mixed in the red pepper powder.
The red color of the sauce made my mouth water.
Then I added fish sauce and other sauces, followed by mixing in green onions and other vegetables, completing the kimchi filling.
“Wow, that’s a lot.”
But with 100 heads of cabbage, it wasn’t an excessive amount of seasoning.
After organizing everything neatly, I stepped outside and saw everyone fast asleep.
We did have a lot of fun.
We splashed in the water, fished, and gathered seafood at the beach…
‘Maybe it’s time to build a house for my parents.’
Thanks to the gnolls moving in, securing materials wasn’t going to be a problem.
Since the Gnoll village was a long-term project anyway, using some materials and manpower to build one house wouldn’t cause any major issues.
I’ll secretly build it and surprise my parents with it.
***
“It’s good. Not bad at all.”
HBS’s Wednesday-Thursday drama, *Between Our Steps*.
With six episodes aired so far, the results weren’t bad.
The PD checked the ratings but showed a slightly disappointed expression despite his words.
“It’s not bad, but it’s a bit disappointing that it didn’t blow up.”
“This is still a decent hit. Considering how tough the industry is right now, it’s performing the best among all shows in this quarter.”
“That’s why I said it’s not bad. Still, I was hoping for a big hit, but maybe that’s asking too much.”
Director Jeon Young-joo just smiled and ate his meat at the PD’s words.
“Oh, come to think of it, tomorrow’s the seventh episode, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Ara’s going to appear, isn’t she?”
“Oh! That’s right. I told her guardian I would contact them, but I’ve been so busy I completely forgot.”
“Hold on a second. I should send a quick message to Iron Blood Entertainment first.”
The PD.
The PD immediately took out his phone and typed rapidly.
After sending the message, he put his phone away again.
“I heard Ye-eun and Ara filmed a commercial together, and it’s coming out soon.”
“Wasn’t it supposed to air on the drama’s premiere day?”
“They probably delayed it a bit. Well, that’s out of our control…”
While a small dinner gathering was taking place at a restaurant in Yeouido.
Ara’s personal YouTube channel and fan cafe were buzzing with the news that she would appear in the drama soon.
And this wasn’t just happening in Korea.
It was already widely known that Ryu Cheon from the Skyscraper Guild was a fan of Ara.
Because of this, many of the Skyscraper Guild’s fandom naturally became interested in Ara’s daily life as well.
A Chinese distribution company and a corporation, noticing this trend, had just reached out to Iron Blood Entertainment and HBS.
The drama, which was doing decently well, was about to expand overseas.
***
After taking a nap, visiting the forest of Pururuk, and touring Gnoll Village, the day passed quickly.
The next day, we all gathered around to officially start making kimchi.
“Is it like this, like this?”
With clumsy hands, Ara stuffed kimchi filling into the cabbage.
Her actions were so adorable, but Mammon was fixing the roughly made kimchi beside her.
As expected from the skillful Mammon, he was the best at making kimchi here.
“So cute…”
“Yeah, yeah, take lots of pictures. They say all that’s left are photos and videos.”
Seon-ah, after helping for a bit, soon grabbed a camera and started filming the kids, not us.
Watching her, I suddenly asked, “Seon-ah.”
“What?”
“When will Ara’s show and commercial air?”
“Today.”
“Huh?”
Today?
I hadn’t expected that at all.
“I figured. Don’t worry, I remembered it.”
“I’ve been so busy lately that I completely forgot.”
Along with that, I felt a bit guilty.
Even though Ara only has one scene, I hadn’t watched the drama until now.
“It’s *Between Our Steps*, right? The one she’s in?”
“Mom knows about it too?”
“Of course. Seon-ah and I watch it every Wednesday and Thursday. There’s nothing else good on these days.”
“What time does it air?”
“Around 9 PM.”
In that case, I should go home today.
I have to watch Ara’s appearance!
Ara, completely focused on making kimchi, didn’t seem to hear our conversation.
By then, we had almost finished preparing kimchi for all 100 cabbages.
“It’s done!”
“Wow, great job, Ara.”
After finishing the last cabbage, we packed everything neatly into containers.
Kimchi for 100 heads of cabbage. Honestly, we managed to finish quickly thanks to Mammon.
He even suggested bringing other goblins to help, but that seemed like too much, so we decided to do it ourselves, and we pulled it off.
“Shall we have a taste?”
I tore off a piece of freshly made kimchi.
First, I gave some to my parents.
“Mmm! It’s sweet, sweet.”
“Sweet? Did I put too much sugar?”
“No, it means it’s delicious!”
I said something silly without thinking. Hehe.
I also gave a bite to Ara, Mammon, and Ras, who had worked hard.
But Mammon, unable to handle spicy food, stuck out his tongue and fanned himself.
-This is quite spicy!
Is it really that spicy?
I took a bite as well.
Crunch!
‘Ahh.’
It was delicious. A perfect “rice thief.”
There were no special ingredients, just the red pepper powder I made myself.
Yet, the flavor and umami of the peppers stood out in a way I hadn’t noticed before.
‘It’s not just spicy and salty; it has a deep flavor like a real dish.’
I wanted to heap it onto a bowl of white rice and devour it immediately.
Eating just the kimchi felt like torture.
My mouth filled with saliva as I unconsciously glanced at the rice stored in the warehouse.
-I’m not affected by the spice.
-Then why is your tongue sticking out?
-It’s just hot from all the work.
-You’re totally feeling the spice!
Hearing Mammon and Ras’ comments made me laugh.
It seemed like kimchi might be a bit much for those not used to spicy food.
However, Mammon, despite claiming the kimchi was too spicy, was eyeing it as if he wanted another bite.
“Why? Do you want more? You said it was spicy.”
-Well, for some reason, it’s strangely addictive. So, this is the taste of kimchi.
“Hehe. You’re becoming an honorary Korean. If you eat it with rice, the spiciness is balanced, and it tastes even better.”
-R-rice with kimchi?!
No way.
I can’t resist that.
And it wasn’t just me thinking this; my mother was already preparing to cook some rice.
“I can’t hold back any longer,” Seon-ah mumbled, clearly thinking the same thing as me.
In the end, we cooked some rice and quickly finished three bowls each, eating it with kimchi.
There were no other side dishes, just rice and kimchi.
-Eating it with rice makes it so much better! Is this the bapsim (the power of rice) you were talking about?
“Exactly. How does it feel? Do you feel energized?”
-It feels solid and good!
Even Ras, who also couldn’t handle spicy food well, managed to eat the kimchi with rice.
Of course, he was still panting and drinking water like crazy, though.
After finishing the kimjang (kimchi-making), we started thinking about the next time we’d have to make more.
Considering how many people there were, 100 heads of cabbage wasn’t enough.
‘I have to feed everyone too!’
The reason I had originally decided to plant soybeans and peppers was thanks to Brother Hanul’s request.
He had asked to try doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), and I wanted to perfect it by making gochujang (red pepper paste) as well.
‘I need to make gochujang too.’
Luckily, there was an empty jar, so I decided to store some gochujang in it.
Busy, busy.
“Shall we head out now?”
“Ara, let’s go!”
“Where are we going?”
Ara tilted her head at me and Seon-ah.
“The drama you filmed airs today.”
To be precise, today was the day Ara’s scene would be broadcast.
Upon hearing that she would be on TV, Ara’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
“I’m going to be on TV?!”
“That’s right. Today’s the day. Let’s go to my parents’ house and watch it together.”
“That’s great!”
Ara quickly dashed off somewhere.
I waited curiously to see what she was up to, and soon enough, she came back wearing a tiger onesie—or rather, her full-body armor of the Ho-wang (Tiger King).
“I’ll sleep in this at your parents’ house.”
“You’re planning to sleep over?”
“Sleep over?”
Ara tilted her head again.
Now that I thought about it, the drama airs at 9 PM, which is usually her bedtime.
Considering we’d have to watch the drama and then come back, it would make more sense for Ara to sleep over at my parents’ house.
“Why don’t you stay the night?”
My father chimed in from the side.
My mother and Seon-ah, already assuming she would stay, were hugging and cuddling Ara.
“Ara, you’ll sleep with your sister, right?”
“I’ll sleep with grandma!”
Caught between the two, Ara’s eyes spun in confusion before she shouted,
“I-I’ll sleep with both of you!”
“Oh, really? Then let’s all watch TV together in the living room and sleep there tonight.”
“Yes! That sounds great!”
There wasn’t much to pack.
All that was left was to escort the kids to the village.
As we stepped outside, it was still bright out.
It was 2 PM, so there was plenty of time left.
I excused myself from the family and called the guild.
Specifically, I contacted the guild master.
-Yes, Kyu-seong.
The guild master answered immediately.
“Guild Master! Hello. Are you busy right now?”
-No, I’m free. Is this about the monster byproducts you mentioned last time?
“Yes, that’s right.”
-Bring them over, and I’ll check them right away.
Good.
I’ll visit the guild before the drama airs.
‘The byproducts are from a rank 9 dungeon monster, so there shouldn’t be any issues, right?’
They weren’t magic stones, just leather, bones, and teeth, so nothing major should happen.
Probably.
Cliche Novel 