During the time when governments around the world were thrown into chaos due to the selection of the Hero and the Demon King, the first customers finally visited Kyu-seong’s restaurant.
It was a gathering for Seon-ah and her friends before she left for China.
“Wow, what is this made of?”
“They said it’s carrot… but is this really carrot?”
“It’s so delicious!”
Seon-ah was delighted to see her friends’ eyes widen with amazement.
And when cute little rabbits took on the serving duties, their adorable charm caused an extra commotion.
“I must’ve had an incredible dream just now.”
“When can we eat this again?”
After finishing the meal successfully, Seon-ah, having seen her friends off, turned to her two brothers and expressed her gratitude after a long time.
“Thank you.”
“If you’re grateful, study hard in China. My plan is for you to come back and take care of our kids.”
Jae-seong just smiled warmly and cleaned up the kitchen as he listened to their conversation.
“By the way, when are you leaving? Any updates?”
“Probably after Chuseok. I think China has a holiday similar to Chuseok too.”
While chatting, they realized that Chuseok was just around the corner.
Until now, Chuseok had passed without much significance, just exchanging greetings, but now they had settled down to some extent.
Moreover, the family was gathered together in Kyu-seong’s dungeon.
“Brother, should we make some songpyeon with the kids this Chuseok?”
“Oh, that sounds great. We should also teach them about Chuseok and dress up those who want in hanbok.”
“Jegichagi! Kite flying! I think I used to do those when I was little, but I haven’t seen kids doing them these days.”
“You did that? What year were you born?”
Laughing as they reminisced about childhood Chuseok memories, Kyu-seong and his siblings returned to the Gluttony Dungeon to find their parents.
“Chuseok?”
“Yes. We’re planning to teach the kids about Chuseok this time.”
“That sounds fun!”
Seeing his mother pleased, Kyu-seong grinned.
After some thought, he left the kids with his siblings and went outside alone.
Ring ring ring.
“Hello? Yes, this is Lee Kyu-seong. I have a favor to ask—could you help me with something?”
Hearing a positive response right away, Kyu-seong thought for a moment and said,
“Could you get a few hundred children’s hanbok? And about ten adult ones too, please. Hmm, I’ll send the exact quantity via text.”
Afterward, he also placed a bulk order for kites, jegichagi, and traditional games like paengi (spinning tops) and yutnori, as Seon-ah had mentioned.
“Jae-seong, do you think we can make rice cakes with the ingredients we have?”
“Of course. It’s made with non-glutinous rice, and we have rice.”
“Is non-glutinous rice just regular rice?”
“Yeah. I can make rice flour from it.”
Come to think of it, although they had harvested rice, they had never made rice cakes before.
Jae-seong mentioned that if the trial went well, he planned to add it to the dessert menu, so they decided to try making it before Chuseok.
“Should we fill the songpyeon with chestnuts for now? Sesame and sugar are usually the best, but we don’t have those crops.”
“Can’t we replace sugar with honey at least?”
“Sure, but we can’t just use honey alone, right?”
“Hmm, isn’t there something similar to sesame?”
The gosogoso seeds were too large.
They were slightly bigger than rice grains, and since even rice grains felt large, it was out of the question.
They considered grinding them, but suddenly, something occurred to Kyu-seong.
“Lapipi!”
“Lapipi? Oh! That feed?”
The massive roots and fruits of the Lapipi.
But Kyu-seong knew something.
The seeds inside the fruit were similar in size to sesame seeds.
The taste was somewhat similar too.
Of course, it wasn’t an exact match—it was much sweeter.
“It’s a bit tricky, but let’s give it a try.”
The two of them headed straight to the Lapipi farm.
There, they saw the little slimes busily crawling around.
“Hey there, little guys.”
They happened to catch the slimes pulling out roots diligently.
The gnolls were clinging to the roots, digging the soil with enthusiasm.
Then, Ras appeared from behind.
-Hmm? The overlord has arrived.
“Hi, Ras! You were working, huh?”
-Taking care of Gwaa’s meals is my duty.
With a bit of effort, Ras easily pulled out a Lapipi root.
Kyu-seong asked Ras,
“Are the fruits stored separately?”
-Yes. You’ll find them in the storage.
-Kaeng!
One of the gnolls cried out as if volunteering to guide them.
After saying goodbye to Ras, they followed the Nol and found Lapipi fruits neatly stored in one corner of the warehouse.
“There’s so little harvest that I never even considered adding this to the menu.”
“Yeah, true.”
While chatting, they gently split open a Lapipi fruit.
It opened like a fig, revealing numerous seeds inside, just as Kyu-seong had expected.
A surprisingly large quantity for such a small fruit.
And the seeds were similar in size to sesame seeds.
Together with Jae-seong, they brought a few Lapipi fruits back to the kitchen and extracted the seeds, keeping the pulp separately just in case.
“Just by the looks of it, you could pass this off as sesame.”
“But the taste is so sweet. I’m not sure how it’ll go. It might work, though.”
Jae-seong tilted his head thoughtfully.
They decided to make a trial batch of songpyeon, finely grinding the rice into flour.
“Chef Ashu, can you toast these seeds for us?”
-Sure, Chef Jae-seong!
When did he start calling him chef again?
Kyu-seong couldn’t help but chuckle at Ashu’s title.
It seemed Ashu really liked being called chef.
While Ashu lightly toasted the Lapipi seeds, Jae-seong prepared boiling water and set it aside to cool.
Using the cooled water, they lightly prepared the dough for the songpyeon.
They say if it looks easy, that’s the mark of a true professional.
Jae-seong worked effortlessly, as if the recipe was already embedded in his mind.
“For the filling, I’ll use Lapipi seeds, honey, and the chestnuts we brought last time.”
“Oh, sounds good.”
They decided to make just a small batch to test it out.
Enough for Kyu-seong, Jae-seong, and Ashu to have three pieces each.
They placed the filling on the dough and carefully shaped them.
Of course, Jae-seong handled all the work.
After steaming them for about 10-15 minutes, the songpyeon was ready.
“If we add pine needles to the steamer, it would give a nice pine scent.”
“Hmm, should we try something else instead? How about World Tree leaves?”
“Oh, that’s a great idea.”
They each took a piece from the different varieties to taste.
Starting with the classic chestnut filling.
“Mmm!!”
Chewy and tender.
The texture of the freshly steamed rice cake was amazing.
Unlike the rice cakes they’d had before, the flavor was incredibly rich. Maybe it was because of the different type of rice.
The nutty aroma of the rice was intense.
Combined with the savory and sweet taste of the chestnuts, it created an exceptional combination.
“This is a hit!”
The songpyeon melted in their mouths almost instantly.
While it boasted an incredible chewy texture, it disappeared with just a few bites.
“…With a bit more refinement, this could be added to the dessert menu.”
Jae-seong gave his assessment with a serious expression.
Ashu, on the other hand, happily munched away.
– Ashu thinks this rice cake is the most delicious thing she’s ever eaten!
“Typical rabbit. It’s well-known that rabbits love rice cakes. The tale of the moon rabbit making rice cakes on the moon is famous.”
Ignoring Kyu-seong’s nonsense, they moved on to the second songpyeon—honey-filled this time.
This one only had honey inside, but after tasting, they considered adding roasted Lapipi seeds as well.
Chomp—
As they bit into the chewy rice cake, the golden sweetness of the honey burst out, its rich flavor lingering in their mouths.
“Wow.”
It was a taste that naturally evoked admiration.
It had a charm different from the chestnut-filled one.
It was hard to decide which was better.
The chestnut songpyeon felt slightly dense, while the honey songpyeon lacked a bit of texture to chew on.
“Hmm, maybe the chestnut one has a slight edge?”
But what if they added Lapipi seeds to the honey songpyeon?
Beside them, Jae-seong was jotting down notes with a serious face. Ashu also seemed deeply inspired, savoring each bite thoughtfully.
Finally, they tasted the last songpyeon—this one filled with roasted Lapipi seeds.
Since the seeds were much sweeter than sesame, they had some concerns…
Crunch, crunch.
“Huh?!”
Kyu-seong looked surprised as he glanced at Jae-seong and Ashu.
They, too, nodded in amazement after tasting it.
“This is an amazing combination! Did Ashu roast the seeds really well?”
– Ashu just roasted them normally! I think they just pair well together!
While it lacked the nutty flavor of sesame, the combination was surprisingly good.
Since rice cakes pair well with sweet fillings like honey, the roasted Lapipi seeds not only added sweetness but also enhanced the texture.
“Hmm, should we try mixing in some honey too? Hold on a sec.”
Jae-seong quickly caramelized Lapipi seeds with honey, creating a sticky, syrup-like mixture.
He stuffed this into the remaining dough and steamed them again.
While waiting, Kyu-seong asked Ashu for his thoughts.
“Which one did you like the most?”
– Ashu loved them all! But if I had to choose, the seed-filled songpyeon was the best!
“Yeah, me too. What about you, Jae-seong?”
“Same here.”
Still, it felt like something would be missing without the chestnut or honey-filled ones. Honestly, it came down to personal preference, as the other fillings were just as delightful.
“Alright, let’s try this one too.”
The final batch of songpyeon was ready—filled with caramelized honey and Lapipi seeds.
“Oh, didn’t we have some beans too?”
“Ah, forgot about those. Let’s try them next time.”
Realizing they had beans, they decided to experiment with them later.
For now, they focused on tasting the freshly made songpyeon.
Chew—
“Hmm…”
It felt a bit underwhelming.
While the combination was good, the mixed sweetness made the flavors feel somewhat muddled.
It seemed like each ingredient’s distinct character was slightly lost.
“I’ll need to tweak this recipe a bit more. Maybe I over-caramelized it.”
“I kind of want to try this as a candy-like snack instead.”
“Honey? I’ll make some for a snack later.”
Afterward, they discussed whether to try sweet potato-flavored songpyeon or use other crops, narrowing down the options.
They decided to prepare the fillings in advance and make the dough and shape the songpyeon together before Chuseok.
– Ashu doesn’t know what Chuseok is.
“It’s a holiday. Specifically, it’s a day to thank our ancestors for a good harvest and make wishes for the future.”
– A day to make wishes! Ashu is really good at making wishes!
Ashu adorably clasped her tiny paws together, practicing how to make a wish.
Seeing her cute and innocent gesture, Kyu-seong and Jae-seong burst into laughter.
“Chuseok’s just around the corner. We’ll finish preparing soon, but how’s everything else, Brother?”
“Oh, I’ve ordered everything. Having a guild really makes things convenient.”
“You can even make errands like that?!”
“Of course.”
Jae-seong looked at Kyu-seong with admiration, leaving Kyu-seong dumbfounded and chuckling.
“Of all the impressive things I’ve done, why are you admiring me for something like this?”
“Well, it just feels impressive!”
Suddenly, something came rushing towards them from afar.
Squinting to see what it was, Ashu shouted,
– Ara’s coming! This is bad, really bad!!
“…Looks like we need to make more songpyeon.”
It seemed they’d have to pay the price for daring to enjoy delicious treats without including Ara.
TRIVIA
-Chuseok (추석), also known as Hangawi (한가위), is a major mid-autumn harvest festival and a three-day holiday in South Korea. It’s celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar, coinciding with the full moon – typically falling in September or early October in the Gregorian calendar.
-Songpyeon (송편) is a type of tteok, or Korean rice cake, traditionally eaten during the Chuseok festival.
-Hanbok (한복) is the traditional clothing of Korea.
-Jegichagi (제기차기) is a traditional Korean outdoor folk game that’s somewhat similar to hacky sack or footbag. It involves kicking a small, shuttlecock-like object called a jegi (제기) into the air and trying to keep it aloft for as long as possible. The name literally translates to “kicking jegi”
-Yutnori (윷놀이), also known as Yut or Nyout, is a traditional Korean board game.
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