“Heh-heh.”
In a place where dozens of earthenware jars lined up, fermenting under starlight instead of sunlight,
rested soy sauce, soybean paste, and gochujang (Chili paste).
As always, the Kkumuris were managing it.
“Three today, huh.”
Usually, only one or two manage the place, but today, there were three.
The three Kkumuris noticed us, stood frozen in place, letting out their characteristic cries.
“Gochujang it is!”
“Yeah, let’s check on the gochujang today.”
Following the Kkumuris’ lead, we headed toward the jar containing the gochujang.
It seemed they were in the middle of opening the lids; the distinct pungent smell of the paste spread all around.
“Heh-heh.”
“Thanks, Kkumuris.”
One of the jars was already open. Peering inside, the gochujang was so dark it appeared nearly black.
“Is it supposed to be this color?”
“Let’s scoop some out, Oppa.”
Seon-ah chimed in with a voice full of curiosity. I pulled out a clean spoon and scraped just half a spoonful of gochujang. Its texture was the dense, thick texture we know gochujang to have. I brought it to my nose—its scent was musty and strong.
“Hmm.”
To taste or not to taste. While I hesitated, Ara raised her hand high.
“Can I eat it?”
“Huh? You think you’ll be okay?”
Ara could eat poison. No, not just poison—she could eat practically anything. I figured it might not be a bad idea to have Ara try it first and share her thoughts.
“Oppa, you’re not seriously planning to use Ara to test if the gochujang has fermented properly, are you?”
“Huh? W-what? No way I’d think of something so awful!”
Feigning innocence, I held the spoon out to Ara. She eagerly grabbed it and popped the gochujang into her mouth.
Slurp!
“Nom, nom.”
Making an adorable sound as she tasted the gochujang, Ara licked her lips.
“It’s spicy!”
“Oh? How does it taste?”
“Salty and spicy!”
…Looks like I’ll have to taste it myself.
I grabbed a new spoon and scooped up a fingernail-sized portion of the gochujang.
“Fuuu.”
Here goes.
Under Seon-ah and Ara’s watchful gazes, I put the gochujang in my mouth. Instantly, its bold presence made itself known on my tongue.
‘Is this how it’s supposed to taste?’
First of all, it was salty. I immediately understood why Ara described it as salty and spicy. The distinct taste and aroma of gochujang followed, layered with its unique flavor and fragrance. And rounding it all off was the spiciness.
“Smack.”
Rather than delicious, the flavor was overwhelmingly stimulating. Yet hidden within was a subtle umami and depth of flavor that couldn’t be ignored.
“Hmm…”
This is tricky. Has it finished fermenting or not?
To be honest, for an average person, it’s tough to determine if fermented paste is fully matured by taste alone. It seemed fine, but still…
“Oppa, let me try a bite too.”
“Okay.”
I handed some to Seon-ah as well. She tasted it, her expression shifting from a grimace to a relaxed look, before she stuck out her tongue.
“Yuck.”
“How was it?”
“I don’t know.”
In the end, there’s only one solution. Cook something with it.
“Let’s make soybean paste stew.”
“With this?”
“Yeah.”
When turned into a dish, the results could be entirely different.
That’s the nature of fermented pastes—you need to incorporate them into a recipe to truly appreciate their value.
I wanted to call my mother and ask for her opinion, but that would take too long. I needed to confirm this right away.
I scooped out enough gochujang to add to a soybean paste stew and placed it in a bowl. Then, I stopped by the storage to grab some soybean paste as well.
All the ingredients for soybean paste stew were already prepared. Since it’s a dish I often make, I always keep the ingredients on hand.
The ingredients included garlic, potatoes, onions, chili peppers, and tofu—all grown by me. For the broth, I had dried anchovies (?) and kelp (?) harvested from the sea.
The only items bought from outside were green onions and zucchini. Aside from these two, all the ingredients were dungeon-grown.
Once I finished prepping the ingredients, I jumped right into making the stew. Having made soybean paste stew countless times, I completed it in no time.
“Mm!”
The aroma was amazing. Even with the addition of gochujang, there was no sense of it being out of place. On the contrary, the stew’s scent was even more mouthwatering than usual.
Ara and Seon-ah, who were already sniffing the air with interest, couldn’t hide their curiosity.
“Should we taste it?”
“Me too!”
“I want to taste it too!”
The bubbling soybean paste stew awaited us. We each took a spoonful and tasted it.
“!!”
I was speechless, stunned by the incredible flavor of the stew. I had always thought my previous soybean paste stew was perfect, but I was wrong.
It was like the missing piece of a puzzle had finally clicked into place—the gochujang’s unique umami elevated the flavors, creating an explosion of taste.
“This… this is… how is this even possible?”
“How can it taste even better? Oh, I need to have Mom, Dad, and Jae-seong oppa try this right away!”
Ara, typically expressive with her reactions, was savoring the taste in complete silence with her eyes closed. I couldn’t recall the last time Ara stayed quiet while eating something.
I couldn’t hold back and took another spoonful. Seon-ah complained about my greediness, but I paid her no mind.
“Hah!”
The second taste was just as mind-blowing as the first. This was insanity.
After letting the stew simmer a bit longer, it was finally ready. And no stew is complete without rice. The white rice I had set cooking earlier was finished at just the right time.
“Gulp.“
Ara had been swallowing her saliva silently for a while now.
It seemed I’d need to make more stew soon.
“Let’s eat!”
“Thank you for the meal!”
“Thank you for the food!”
We surrounded the outdoor round table made from the World Tree, ladled generous portions of stew and white rice into our bowls, and dug in.
Sluurp!
None of us wasted a second, sipping the broth immediately.
Ahhh…
The spicy, savory broth refreshed my insides, filling my mouth with bold, vibrant flavors. The salty richness of the soybean paste melded perfectly with the gochujang’s umami, creating an unparalleled taste.
“Wow, just by adding gochujang, all the flavors we’ve tasted so far feel more pronounced,” Seon-ah marveled.
She was right. The hidden depths of flavor from the kelp, anchovies, garlic, potatoes, and more were brought to the forefront, intensified to their fullest. This must be the magic of perfect harmony.
I knew most soybean paste stew recipes don’t call for gochujang. I only added it because Hanul hyung had suggested it.
Who knew his suggestion would turn out to be such a brilliant stroke of genius? If I hadn’t added it, it would’ve been a huge missed opportunity.
“I want another bowl!” Ara exclaimed.
“Sure, sure,” I said.
Although I’d barely eaten one spoonful, Ara had already cleaned her bowl, down to the last grain of rice and drop of stew.
I quickly ladled more rice and stew for her, then finally started eating properly myself.
Soybean paste stew goes best with rice—especially white rice. I scooped up a big spoonful of rice, dipped it into the stew to soak up the broth, added a piece of potato on top, and took a bite.
“Mmm!!”
Nom nom nom.
My mouth couldn’t stop moving. I chewed the rice, already broken down into tiny grains, even more finely, trying to savor every lingering taste.
But all good things must come to an end. Soon, the thoroughly chewed rice dissolved and slid down my throat, leaving behind a fleeting farewell.
I scooped another large spoonful of rice, dipped it into the stew, and ate it. This addictive act showed no signs of stopping.
Glancing at Ara and Seon-ah, I saw that they had started mixing rice directly into their bowls of stew and eating it that way.
Slurp, slurp.
-Heh-heh.
As we were eating, the Kkumuris began gathering around.
Covered in dirt as if they had been playing far off, even Gomgom and Soo came running over.
“We can’t keep this delicious meal to ourselves.”
Regretfully, I quickly finished my bowl and began cooking again. This time, I decided to make a large batch using a giant pot. It was tricky to measure everything out in such large quantities, but who was I? I was Lee Kyu-seong, the man who regularly cooked meals for hundreds.
I immediately started preparing the stew in three giant pots. Though handling all the ingredients was a bit of a challenge, the Kkumuris’ help had made things a bit easier recently. Thanks to their deft hands, even if a bit clumsy, they were able to assist with the prep work, saving me a lot of time.
Soon, the three giant pots of stew were ready. I also cooked a large batch of white rice for the little ones.
“You know, Oppa,” Seon-ah said as she watched me work,
“I really feel like you go above and beyond for the kids without a single complaint.”
“Hm? Really? Isn’t that just natural?”
They’re my kids—I’m the one who has to take care of them. Who else would?
While I cooked, Ara and Soo wandered around the village, gathering all the slimes and Kkumuris. Once the kids were gathered, Seon-ah started serving them.
“Eat up,” she said, smiling.
The kids wiggled with joy at her words and soon began eating their rice mixed with stew.
Kkumu?!
Gulp, gulp!
The explosive reactions came from everywhere. Seeing them enjoy the food brought a satisfied smile to my face.
-Kwah-ang!!
Even Gomgom, who normally couldn’t handle spicy food, licked his lips while eating. Though the spiciness was tough for him, his determination to keep eating was impressive.
I made a mental note to prepare a milder version for Gomgom next time.
“Kyu-seong! Look at Soo!”
“Soo?”
I turned my gaze toward Soo…
There he was, dunking not just his spoon but his foot—or was it his root?—into the stew pot, absorbing it directly. While he usually ate just fine with his mouth, today he decided to pull this bizarre stunt.
“Is this his way of expressing how much he loves it?” I wondered.
Watching Soo’s strange performance, I turned to Seon-ah.
“Hey, Seon-ah.”
“Yeah?”
“This soybean paste stew—do you think it’s perfect?”
“Perfect? It’s beyond perfect! How can you even ask that after tasting it yourself?!”
“I was just curious—how do others feel about it?”
Yeah, this stew was the best I could make. It was time to let Hanul hyung know that the stew he had requested was finally complete.
Hyung, who always adored my cooking no matter what I made, had made his first heartfelt request: soybean paste stew. It didn’t feel like he asked just because he wanted to eat it. I had a strong feeling there was more to it.
“I hope he likes it.”
Feeling a sudden urgency, I stood up.
“Where are you going?” Seon-ah asked.
“To make a call. Keep an eye on the kids for me—I’ll be right back.”
“So sudden?”
Dodging Seon-ah’s questioning eyes, I stepped outside and checked my messages. There was a report on the people who had attacked me earlier.
I then called Hanul hyung. Despite my concern that he might be busy, he answered almost immediately.
-“Oh! Kyu-seong! What’s up? Did something happen again?!”
“Ahaha, no, hyung. I’m calling to share good news.”
-“Good news? Ah! Don’t tell me…”
As soon as I mentioned good news, he reacted as if he already knew. Had he really been waiting for the soybean paste stew? It had been a while since he’d asked for it, so I wouldn’t have blamed him if he’d forgotten.
“What do you think it is?”
-“You finished the soybean paste stew, didn’t you?”
“Wow, you were really waiting for it!”
-“Of course I was! I’ve been dying to serve my mother the soybean paste stew you made!”
“So you asked me to make it for your mom! I should’ve made it sooner!”
Of course, the fermentation process meant it couldn’t have been rushed. No matter how much I might have wanted to, some things just take time.
-“Huh? Didn’t I tell you that?”
“Nope, you just asked me to make it.”
-Ahem. I-I see.”
Hanul hyung suddenly sounded shy, a reaction so out of character that I couldn’t help but laugh.
“When would be a good time for you?”
-“Any time that works for you, Kyu-seong! Haha!”
“Then, how about tomorrow?”
-“Perfect! See you tomorrow!”
We set the meeting for after work and ended the call.
Come to think of it, I’d never really thought about the families of our guild members before.
‘I’d love to treat all of them.’
The Ara Hongryeon Guild members were people I was deeply grateful for. Sharing joy with their families felt like the right thing to do.
‘There will probably be a lot of people, so I’ll definitely need more hands.’
By “hands,” I meant help with the cooking. And I’d already heard of someone perfect for the job from Ara and the kids.
A cooking rabbit!
Though a Seven Sins entity, in my mind, I was already picturing an adorable bunny. After seeing Ras, Mammon, and Ara, how could I not?
‘I’ll make it mine and turn it into a chef.’
***
Meanwhile, in the Dungeon of Lust…
A rabbit, busy stirring a pot of strange, bubbling porridge, suddenly flinched. It felt a chill run down its spine.
Looking around warily, it saw nothing out of the ordinary and went back to stirring its concoction.
Cliche Novel 