Chuseok, the grand national holiday, has arrived.
Since we had been busily preparing for it, I changed clothes with the excited children.
A hanbok with multicolored striped jeogori.
Wearing hanbok, the vibrant colors pleased my eyes.
“This… this is a lot of work.”
“Cheer up!”
Don’t just stand there filming, help out a little.
I shook my head as I looked at Seon-ah filming on the side and helped the children get dressed.
With so many kids, dressing each one felt like a massive ordeal.
Thankfully, the goblins, fairies, and the breeding tribe dressed themselves well, but I still had to check on some who wore their outfits strangely, keeping me busy.
‘As long as I only have to dress Kkumuris and the slimes myself…? Even if it’s tiring, let’s hold on a little longer.’
As I worked hard to get everyone dressed, I eventually managed to dress all the children.
“Wow!! It’s so sparkly!”
“It’s so fancy! I love it!”
Ara, now in her hanbok, flitted around excitedly, while Frey flew around her.
The other children compared each other’s outfits and laughed gleefully.
“What’s the first event on the schedule?”
“Making songpyeon.”
Seon-ah, who planned today’s schedule, answered while still holding the camera.
Hearing her mechanical response, I could tell my sister had completely merged with her camera.
“Lord Overlord, Lord Overlord! Look at this!”
Frey proudly held up a cute carving she had made.
Soon after, the Alfheims began displaying their own intricate carvings all around the village.
Each one was related to Korean traditions.
I had shown them folk tale books, various drawings, and pictures the day before, and it seemed they had created these pieces themselves.
“We made something too! Hahaha!”
Mammon laughed proudly as he brought something over.
To be precise, the goblins carried it over.
“That’s a jangseung!”
“How do you like it?”
No, they had actually made the General Under Heaven and General Under Earth.
And at an enormous scale.
“I made one too.”
“Ras too? This is the first time I’ve seen you make something.”
Ras and the Gnolls had made a sotdae.
The crude bird-shaped carvings dangled adorably from it.
As we decorated the village with all the carvings and ornaments the children brought, the Chuseok atmosphere became even more vivid.
Ara, Cheong, and Ashu ran around the village, admiring the other children’s creations.
“Oh my, how did they make these so well?”
“They’ve really improved their skills.”
My parents, taking a leisurely stroll through the now-decorated village, couldn’t hide their smiles.
Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Jae-seong and the other cooks were hard at work preparing dishes.
Ashu and the rabbits, who were bustling around the kitchen in their hanboks, looked a bit exhausted, but since they insisted on wearing them, I couldn’t stop them.
“Alright, everyone, gather around.”
At my call, the scattered children gathered.
Along with my parents, Seon-ah, and even Kyler and his daughter.
Just then, as if they had been waiting, Ashu and the rabbits appeared, carrying a large mortar and pestle.
“From now on, we will all make songpyeon together. Watch carefully and follow along.”
“Songpyeon!!”
Having made songpyeon before, Ara clenched her tiny fists confidently.
Like event organizers, the rabbits spread out a large cloth and set the songpyeon dough on it.
“Everyone, find a spot on the cloth where you feel comfortable.”
“Yes!”
“Understood!”
Hearing Cheong’s adorable response and Mammon’s loyal tone, I began the songpyeon-making lesson.
“First, take a portion of dough about this size.”
After demonstrating, the children eagerly followed along.
Seeing them proudly holding up their dough pieces was too adorable.
“Next, flatten the dough into a circle and place the filling of your choice inside. Don’t put too much—just about half a spoonful.”
I added a chestnut filling mixed with nuts.
Previously, I had used plain chestnuts, but Jae-seong had come up with this idea.
“Is everyone done?”
“Yes! I put it in!”
“Yes!”
“I shall make a songpyeon as big as my fist!”
“I’m making a crown-shaped one!”
Wait, they’re already improvising…?
As expected, they have talent!
The other children were busy kneading as well, and I noticed that the goblins, in particular, had impressive craftsmanship.
The Gnolls, on the other hand, were making some oddly shaped songpyeon—some of them quite bizarre.
‘And the fairies…?’
Determined to follow my instructions exactly, they worked together to make songpyeon the exact size I had demonstrated.
Their sincerity was so endearing that I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Frey, the fairies can make theirs in whatever size suits them.”
“We can?!”
“Of course.”
“Then can we finish this one as is first?!”
“Of course, go ahead.”
Once we finished placing the fillings, we moved on to folding the songpyeon.
Shaping them properly, like dumplings, was actually the most challenging part.
I demonstrated the process, but I wasn’t sure if the kids could follow along.
“Now, gently pinch the edges so the filling doesn’t spill out.”
“Ugh…”
Ara’s hands trembled as she tried her best to carefully shape her songpyeon.
Next to her, Cheong was imitating her every move with an admiring gaze.
After finishing my own, I looked around the group.
Since shaping was the final step, I was curious to see how the children were doing.
“This is my royal songpyeon!”
“Ohh.”
Ras’s songpyeon.
Though it seemed a bit small for something called “royal,” it was still about twice the size of a regular one.
More importantly, it was well-shaped.
I wasn’t worried about Mammon or Frey, since they were naturally skilled, but Ras had shown unexpected talent.
“You did a great job.”
“Can I decorate it?”
“Sure, but keep in mind that once it’s steamed, it might not look the way you imagine.”
“Hm! I’ll try anyway.”
The chatterbox Ras squatted down again and carefully crafted decorations for his songpyeon.
Seeing him like that, Seon-ah let out an excited squeal and hurriedly took pictures.
“As expected, there’s no need to worry about Mammon and Frey.”
“Hah! My songpyeon-making skills are surely the best here!”
Frey boasted, full of confidence.
But honestly, that kind of attitude only made her more charming.
– What are you talking about! I can shape them better than you, so why are you claiming first place?
– Oh my, are you saying you’re better than me? Don’t be ridiculous, hoho.
Watching the two resume their match, I became curious about what kind of results they would produce.
Meanwhile, the other children were also doing their best.
Sometimes I helped, sometimes my mother stepped in, and gradually, the songpyeon took shape.
“I made three already!”
“Oh, Emily, you have quite the skillful hands.”
“Can I eat the ones I made myself?”
“Of course. But since they might mix with the others, it’d be a good idea to mark yours somehow.”
“Mark them! I’ll write my name on them!”
I smiled warmly as I watched the children making their songpyeon.
Before long, all the children proudly held up the songpyeon they had made.
“Is everyone finished?”
– Kyaak!
– Kirik.
– (><)/
Kkumuris and the slimes…
Hmm, they seemed to have worked hard on something, but I had no idea what it was.
I had some expectations for Kkumuris, but it seemed they had been struck by an odd sense of artistic expression.
‘That is… songpyeon, right?’
Well, let’s steam them first.
We placed the completed songpyeon into a large steamer and waited.
Steaming time was about 25 to 30 minutes.
In the meantime, we decided to watch a rice cake pounding show.
“Whoa! Ashu, that looks amazing!”
– They’re pounding the rice cake! What are they doing?”
The expert rabbits demonstrated the traditional rice cake-making process using a mortar and pestle.
We could make injeolmi or garaetteok with this.
Since we had honey on hand, we had to dip the garaetteok in it.
‘And we’re ready to make tteokbokki too.’
When it came to rice cakes, we couldn’t leave out tteokbokki.
Jae-seong had already developed a special tteokbokki sauce.
Chop chop!
– Oh, it’s getting chewier.
– Will it taste good?
After pounding the steamed rice dough thoroughly, we stretched it out into long garaetteok.
Of course, it wasn’t the perfectly uniform shape we usually saw.
Without the proper tools or machines, it was impossible to make them evenly shaped.
But the taste and texture were similar, so it didn’t matter.
In fact, when it came to flavor, this was on a whole different level compared to ordinary garaetteok.
“Shall we all have a taste?”
“I shall taste it!”
I handed out small portions of the garaetteok.
One by one, the children and others took a bite.
I had to try it too.
Chew chew.
The chewy texture and the warm, freshly made softness—
The taste and aroma were rich.
Honestly, I could fill my stomach with just this garaetteok.
‘I don’t even need honey, do I?’
Unlike regular garaetteok, this one was already full of flavor and aroma, so it wasn’t bland at all.
Just as we finished our tasting session and warmed up our appetites, the songpyeon was finally ready.
“Wow!”
“I made this!”
– Did my royal songpyeon always look like this?
As the songpyeon came out, everyone picked up the ones they had made.
Fortunately, they had all marked theirs in some way, so after a bit of sorting, everyone got their own.
– The shape got all weird after steaming…
Frey, who had gotten greedy with decorations while competing with Mammon, ended up with a bizarrely shaped songpyeon.
But Mammon’s wasn’t much better, so both of them looked disappointed.
“Now you see? Songpyeon changes shape when it’s steamed.”
– I won’t be greedy next time!
Most of the goblins’ songpyeon had turned out quite… peculiar.
At first, the songpyeon looked normal, but their artistic passion couldn’t be contained, and they ended up sticking on all sorts of things, making them look bizarre.
The Gnolls’ songpyeon had many that burst open from the start.
Still, they seemed satisfied as they eagerly ate the ones they made.
The fairies made the prettiest songpyeon.
However, since they had misjudged the size at the beginning, they could only make a few and were now struggling to eat them, which was a little funny to watch.
Surprisingly, Kkumuris’ songpyeon turned out quite decent.
At first, I thought they looked strange, but once they were steamed, they actually looked presentable.
Perhaps this was what Frey and Mammon had wanted to create.
– Hehehe.
‘These guys are so unpredictable.’
I wondered if they were secretly tricking us with those blank expressions.
How terrifying.
Soon, the rabbits brought out the rice cakes they had made.
A mountain of rice cakes.
But with the number of people here, it seemed like we could finish them all.
Munch munch!
As expected, the rice cakes disappeared in an instant.
It was almost scary to see them vanish in real time.
“This rice cake is delicious!”
“It tastes amazing, hehe.”
After filling our bellies, we started playing in earnest.
Kite flying.
Jegichagi.
Even Yutnori.
Since we had prepared plenty in advance, there were no issues.
Only, I got a little busier.
“Kyaahaha!”
“Ara’s kite disappeared! Did it fly away?”
“Dad! My jegi…!”
“…As expected of the Seven Deadly Sins’ jegi. It’s been a full minute, and it still hasn’t come down.”
– “I threw the yut sticks! Victory is mine!”
(><)`-
Seeing everyone have so much fun made me feel strangely proud.
My parents moved among the children, teaching them and playing along, which was a heartwarming sight.
“Alright, everyone, the meal is ready! If you’d like to eat, please come over!”
“Waaah! I was starving!!”
Ara and the slimes rushed over in a swarm.
A stark contrast to the other children, who still looked full from the rice cakes.
The food prepared was all holiday dishes.
Grilled meat skewers, tteokguk, LA galbi, japchae, bindaetteok, assorted jeon, vegetable bibimbap, and fresh kimchi.
Eventually, even the children who had claimed to be full couldn’t resist the enticing aroma and started eating enthusiastically.
“Festivals are truly wonderful!”
“Haha, they sure are.”
“I wish every day could be a holiday!!”
Hearing Ara’s adorable opinion, I broke into a cold sweat.
I forced a smile, but the thought of preparing all this every day made the corners of my mouth twitch.
Ah, Ara…
Holidays are special because they only come once in a while. Haha.
Cliche Novel 