Have a Meal Before You Go - Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Editor: Stomatopoda

Tangerine quickly hurried into the room, before carefully peeking out the door . Cheol-ho stood up and opened the door . The old woman was standing there .

“Oh, hello,” Cheol-ho said, greeting her with pleasure . “I’m so glad you’re here . ”

The grandmother didn’t look the same as before . This time her eyes sparkled, mischievous and lively like a child’s . Her handcart also appeared empty .

“Give me a bowl of black bean noodles, please . ”

“Hmm, black bean noodles . ”

“How long will it take?”

“Come on in, it’ll take a while . ”

“Oh, I’m in a hurry . ”

The old woman came in, her stomach grumbling, and sat down at the table . Cheol-ho surreptitiously observed her with his detect eye skill .

Tendency: —
Class: —
Class Achievement: —
Learning ability: —

She is 100 percent civilian . However, he still felt a distinctly different atmosphere from her words and actions . The detector eye continued to evaluate her, and eventually came to a conclusion .

Status: Dementia

‘She has dementia . ’

Cheol-ho looked at her with pity . Mental damage wasn’t healable . Even the world’s most advanced healing magic couldn’t reverse mental disease or damage .

There are many generations  of people who lost people precious to them . So, there are a lot of people who haven’t remained sane . Yeah . It was the same reason Cheol-ho had his nightmares .

“Hmm? Why do you have a dog?”

Dog?

Cheol-ho turned to look in the same direction as her . Tangerine, who had been peeking around the door, suddenly crawled out on all fours, wearing the T-shirt Cheol-ho had given to her . Tangerine crawled towards the old woman, and raised her head .

“Oh, how pretty . She looks like a white ball of fluff . What’s your name, now?”

“Tangerine . ”

“What a wonder, you talk!”

The old woman smiled merrily .

“…”

Khan sped into the room and was immediately startled . He shook his head while he spoke to Cheol-ho .

‘Will they be all right?’

Cheol-ho nodded .

‘It’s all right . ’

Cheol-ho watched Tangerine for a while, before entering the kitchen with a smile . It’s better not to let the guests know that she’s a dragon, but maybe it’s alright for this guest .

Black-bean noodles .

In the past it was a popular food that could be eaten anywhere and was pretty cheap . But, nothing’s the same as it used to be anymore . It has become a food that requires a rather cumbersome preparation process .

The first thing Cheol-ho picked up was black soybean paste . Black bean paste is a type of soybean paste made with traditional Chinese or Japanese methods . It used to be used to make black bean noodles .

Black soybean paste, soybean paste, and red pepper paste were harder to make than I thought, so I used to buy them from the store .

The next problem is the side dish .

I was thinking about using fried noodles for ramen, or making my own noodles for the first time in a while, but I chose fried noodles instead as the customer said they didn’t have much time to wait .

Firstly, Cheol-ho chopped up the onion . Then the meat of the kingpin was cut into pieces . He gathered the pleasantly sliced pork chops and stacked them neatly, before taking out ground garlic .

Here we go .

Now, oil the frying pan .

I’m going to stir-fry the black bean paste .

The black soybean paste was dropped onto the oiled surface, and began to fry . The black soybean paste was stir-fried to remove the salty and extraneous ingredients, and to bring out the underlying savory taste .

Cheol-ho went through the process of frying the black soybean paste . If the finished black soybean paste tastes like charcoal powder in water and is glossy, it is well fried .

Take out another frying pan and fry the meat, onions, and garlic together in there . Boil the fried noodles in a pot at the same time .

sizzle~

The combination of the sound of the stir-frying ingredients and the savory smell began to slowly spread throughout the restaurant . It was tantalizing . Cheol-ho poured the stir-fried black soybean paste over the well-fried ingredients, with a smile .

Here we go .

Let’s fry it again .

When the black soybean paste is mixed with the ingredients and spread evenly, pour some hot water in . You’re not finished yet, though . Cheol-ho added some starch powder and let it boil . The sauce is done .

It is a sauce that combines a moderately thick texture, a filling, greasy feel, and a salty and savory taste . It would have been better if it was made in a Chinese pot, but it still turned out well as the stove elements were strong enough to get it up to a good heat .

Cheol-ho took out the well-boiled noodles, drained them thoroughly, and slid them into a bowl . He poured the black bean sauce over them and placed peas on top to garnish .

Finished! It’s black bean noodles!

Cheol-ho walked out to the table carrying the bowl of completed jajangmyeon .

“Peekaboo!”

Tangerine was jumping around the old woman, and they were both laughing . They must be having fun .

“Here’s your black bean noodles . ”

“Ah!”

The old woman stood up while she stroked Tangerine’s head .

“Oh, look at the time . I’m afraid I’ll have to take it with me . My grandson is waiting . ”

“Oh, I see . ”

Cheol-ho carefully wrapped the bowl with plastic to prevent it from spilling . He delicately slid it into a plastic bag, and held it out to the old woman .

“You can carry it like this . Please return the bowl later . ”

The old woman bowed at the waist to thank him . Cheol-ho scratched his head awkwardly . Then she rummaged through her pocket and took out three bills, giving them to Cheol-ho .

“Good-bye . ”

Cheol-ho watched the old woman walk out the door before looking at the banknotes .

“Oh?”

The banknotes were not modern dollars, but old Hanwha . It was 1,000 won in three notes . They were old and crumpled, indicating they had been carried around for a long time .

Cheol-ho was amazed by the money, and inspected curiously . It had been a long time since he’d seen a 1,000 won bill . These days it was a currency that couldn’t be used anymore .

Also, the old lady said she had a grandson? I don’t remember hearing about the old woman having a grandson .

I hope the noodles don’t get too soggy . ’

The rainy season continued, and after that the old woman visited the restaurant every couple of days . Every time she came by, she ordered black bean noodles . But the person she wanted to give it to seemed to change each time . The number of missing bowls he had given the old woman kept piling up .

‘Well…’

It was quite a concern for Cheol-ho .

‘I need to buy disposable bowls . ’

There were no more bowls that he could serve black bean noodles in, and Cheol-ho didn’t have any disposable bowls . Unfortunately, the bowls he had given to the old lady weren’t returned . Knowing that she didn’t do it on purpose, Cheol-ho simply laughed about it and ordered more bowls .

* * *

The Sacred Tomb

Cheol-ho stopped by the Sacred Tomb one morning on his way to the market . The Sacred Tomb was a large cemetery . It was located in the northern part of Seodaemun, and recently there had been repair works going on there .

The tombstones stand in attention in an orderly manner on a large well-organized lawn . Cheol-ho’s parents weren’t buried there . Cheol-ho’s hometown had already disappeared long ago . He felt a faint wistfulness just by thinking about it . He stood there thinking for some time .

“Oh, you’re here too?”

The old woman was standing on the other side of the cemetery .

“I have to give my grandson some food . ”

“Hmm . ”

He glanced at her and saw a graveyard caretaker standing next to her .

[Wang Jin Kyu]

[Kim Yun Ho]

It was a tombstone with two names on it . In front of it, there were many bowls .

“…”

Cheol-ho couldn’t help but look at all the bowls of black bean noodles piled in front of the tombstone . Due to how much time that had passed, there were worms and insects in the bowls and the noodles had rotted .

“This is a graveyard, old woman . This is a graveyard . No food is allowed here, and no, you can’t sleep here . The weather is quite cold nowadays . ”

The caretaker was trying to clear the bowls in disgust but the old woman wouldn’t let him .

“If it isn’t cleaned up by today, I’ll clean it up . I’m telling you!”

The caretaker turned away with a long sigh . Beside the tombstone there was a framed picture of two people .

“…”

Cheol-ho looked at the pictures . It was a picture of a boy who was similar to Tangerine’s age, and an old man, who he assumed to be his grandfather . The picture’s color had faded to the point that it was almost black and white . But it was clear the old woman still cherished the picture .

Wasn’t it too hard?

Didn’t she get tired?

The old woman still had a smile on her face . The smile was stuck in Cheol-ho’s memory and somehow he couldn’t get it out of his mind . It was a look of sadness, sorrow, remembrance, and longing .

The smile contained too many complex emotions . The old woman, as she walked by, released the picture from her arms . She gazed at the picture for a while and then enveloped it in an embrace again .

Cheol-ho laughed .

He knew .

People don’t only laugh when they’re happy .

People don’t only cry when they’re in pain .

When things were tough, he laughed . Cheol-ho used to laugh a lot, but now it’s a habit for him to laugh .

* * *

The drumming of the rain echoed, signalling the end of the rainy season . The rain kept pouring down as if a hole in the sky had opened up . The rain even spilled into the restaurant .

While stuck inside, Tangerine has succeeded in perfecting her polymorphing . She could transform herself to look like a five year old who was about a meter tall .

She couldn’t walk properly but she still loved to walk and would happily wander around the restaurant on her own . She was a child with eyes the colour of sapphire and lustrous silver hair .

Cheol-ho wanted to buy her some human clothes right away, but since it had been raining so much the market hadn’t opened . Cheol-ho dressed Tangerine in the t-shirt he had given her .

Tangerine liked rainy days . Now that her dragon form was concealed there was no need to hesitate to go outside .

“…”

Cheol-ho sighed unhappily . Tangerine grinned at the rainy sky and joyfully shook her hands . Her advanced water spirit appeared and also enjoyed the rain, happily spreading its two arms out to welcome the rain .

Cheol-ho stared blankly at the spirit . Rainy days are the best days for water spirits . There were days that all water monsters liked . For example, the Kelp . The Kelp was born in water . It appeared wherever there was a lot of water without warning or reason . So in the Esfan continent, people would be banned from going outside on days of heavy rain .

The kelp was born in water, and disappeared when the water was gone .

The old woman had not come to the restaurant…

For days .

.

.

.

And now it’s raining .

‘Kelp alert!’

A calm voice was playing on the radio .

‘Watch out for the appearance of Kelp due to heavy rain! When you run into Kelp, please evacuate to a dry place and report the location to the Temple Mercenaries or Awakening Association as soon as possible . I repeat, Kelp alert!’

“……”

Cheol-ho stood up from his seat .

.

.

.

.

.

.

Chuu Chuu~

It was a train station .

The train bellowed out smoke . The old lady suddenly raised her head .

“Let’s go . ”

In front of her stood a middle aged man . He was dressed beautifully in a suit and held a cane in one hand . His hair was also neatly combed but somehow he couldn’t hide the smell of a farmer .

She chuckled .

“Let’s go . ”

It was her husband . Her husband was reaching out to her, and her grandson stood next to him as well . She could see them clearly, as they were from within her heart .

“Ah… . !”

Her heart was overflowing . What happened? Why did she think of them now?

At some point, her memory blurred . People’s faces became blurry . Only her husband’s voice rang in her ears .

‘Let’s go . ’

The world blurred like a faded picture . The sky was gloomy, just like a black and white picture . Ah, everything looks blurred .

pitter patter~

It felt as if the whole world was raining .

The Sacred Tomb graveyard was filled with water .

Strange creatures rose from the water, and the rain poured down as if there were holes in the sky . The creatures had the form of a horse . Their body was translucent, the eyes glowing red . They were Kelp . Kelp were usually treated as a class 10 monster, but under rain this heavy, they were class 7 . Ordinary unawakened people wouldn’t be able to survive their attack .

The group of Kelp crept up slowly . Their red eyes twinkled .

Prey .

They gathered in front of a tombstone with bowls in front of it .

chomp~

Soon one of them began to chew on the bowl . The bowl broke into small pieces, disappearing . The food and pieces of broken dishes could be seen within the translucent Kelp’s body .

Sniff Sniff~

And there are human beings . The Kelp’s eyes glistened red, and it stalked towards a human lying down under a vinyl shroud next to the tomb . The Kelp rose behind them, opening its mouth .

Bang!~

At that moment, the Kelp disappeared . In less than a second all the Kelp in the place disappeared, as if they had never existed at all .

thud~

Cheol-ho’s silhouette was revealed . He stretched out one hand and a curtain of invisible wind appeared, covering the old woman on the ground .

“Excuse me! Quickly!”

The caretaker was shouting from the other side of the graveyard . The sound of the Awakened running quickly followed . Cheol-ho smiled quietly .

poof~

In the blink of an eye, Cheol-ho was nowhere to be seen .

“Hurry up! There’s an old woman in there! Quickly!”

Five awakened men led by Kim Man-ho rushed into the cemetery . But there were no Kelp there .

“Huh? I clearly saw them a few moments ago . ”

“Hmm . ”

Kim Man-ho breathed out a sigh of relief .

“I’m glad they’re gone . We need to move her to somewhere warm and safe . It’s raining too much out here . ”

“Oh, yes!”

The Awakened men lifted the old woman onto their backs and disappeared .

* * *

It was a clear midsummer night when the rainy season finally drew to an end .

Tok Tok~

The door opened with a knock .

“Hello . ”

“Welcome . ”

The old woman greeted Cheol-ho in a calm tone . She looked different from before . She held a plastic bag of bowls and an umbrella in her hand . The old woman gave the two to Cheol-ho .

“I’ve been very rude . I’m sorry . ”

“No, no, come on in . ”

The old woman carefully stepped into the shop . Cheol-ho was slightly surprised to see the appearance of the old lady . She was no longer wearing the usual shabby old clothes, but instead a beautiful traditional dress . Her hair was also brushed and done in a neat updo .

“…”

Cheol-ho looked at her .

“You’re going somewhere?”, he asked .

She smiled faintly .

“Yes . ”

Cheol-ho knew about the sort of clothes she was wearing .
They were the type of clothes that were wrapped in plastic and kept in a safe . The old woman carefully sat at a chair at the table . Cheol-ho didn’t say anything for a while .

“Would you like a bowl of black bean noodles?”, Cheol-ho murmured .

“Yes please . ”

Cheol-ho silently entered the kitchen . He was now familiar with making jajang sauce . He fried the black bean paste, stir-fried the ingredients, took out the fried noodles, and then stopped for a while . Cheol-ho approached the old lady again .

“Are you busy?”

The old woman laughed quietly .

“No, I’m not busy . ”

“Then please wait a little longer . ”

Back in the kitchen, he reached for the flour . He was going to make noodles today . Usually it would take a long time to make a proper bowl of noodles, but he couldn’t do that today . Cheol-ho kneaded the dough before flattening it and rolling it into thin pieces . It looks like knife-cut noodles, but at least it will give more texture than normal fried noodles . He placed the already made black bean sauce on the table . He then carried the finished meal out . Although the bowl of black bean noodles was in front of her, the old lady did not pick up the chopsticks . She just stared at it for a long time . Cheol-ho waited patiently without saying anything .

She eventually spoke .

“In the past . ”

“Yes?”

“I did farm work . I was very busy . It was hard but rewarding . ”

“Hmm . ”

“Our old man was blunt, but he was a good man . He used Seoul dialect, so I learned it, too . After a while I became more familiar with the Seoul dialect than with my own dialect . ”

Cheol-ho listened to her story quietly .

“I used to take my grandson to the market once every week . He used to eat black bean noodles whenever we visited the town market . ”

“I see . ”

The old woman laughed quietly .

“Yes . We used to just watch him eat it . ”

She stared blankly into the air .

“He was a good kid . Not at all naughty, and very lovely . But now I can’t remember what his face looked like . It feels like a curse . ” she reminisced quietly .

She drew out two pictures . They were the pictures of her grandson and her husband . She looked at the two pictures for a long time .

“I don’t want to forget, but I keep forgetting . I’m afraid . ”

“…”

She finally picked up her chopsticks . Suddenly the door opened, revealing a sleepy Tangerine rubbing her eyes .

“Papa!”

Tangerine had recently become more comfortable staying in her polymorphic state, her human form . She grabbed Cheol-ho’s leg, and looked at the old woman, mumbling . And after thinking hard about something, she opened her mouth and said it clearly .

“Food . ”

Tangerine stretched out her arms towards Cheol-ho . Cheol-ho picked her up and placed her on his lap .

“…Ah . ”

The old woman hesitated for a moment, looking at Tangerine .

“May I give this to this child?”, she asked .

“I’ll make one more,” Cheol-ho replied with a bitter smile .

* * *

Tangerine sat next to the old woman, observing her closely . When her share of black bean noodles arrived, her eyes shone . She grabbed her chopsticks eagerly, but she wasn’t good at using them yet . Tangerine groaned and held chopsticks in both hands, and began to eat the noodles with difficulty . The old woman smiled .

“Oh, pretty, pretty . ”

Tangerine looked up at the old woman, as if she was proud to be eating the noodles with chopsticks . The old woman laughed .

“Need some help?”

“Yes, yes . ”

The old woman picked up some noodles, but before she lifted them to Tangerine’s mouth, she stopped and just stared blankly .

“What’s wrong?”, Tangerine tilted her head and asked . The old woman came back to herself .

“Aigo, what a cute child . ”

The old woman continued to slowly eat the black bean noodles . They both eventually finished their bowls .

“I’ll wash the dishes . . ”

Cheol-ho stood up .

“You’re welcome to go . ”

“Oh, okay . ”

The old woman suddenly looked out the window, and muttered blankly .

“It’s almost time for the train . Bill, please . ”

Cheol-ho knew that the time a person had to live is limited . One can’t prolong their life . When it ends, it ends . Sometimes life was harsh . Cheol-ho nodded his head .

“Your meal is free . ”

“What do you mean?”

“Our store serves free meals for those who are going on a trip . ”

The old woman stopped for a moment, and lowered her head .

“…thank you . Goodbye . ”

The alleyway was empty today . Many people usually cut through the alley . But today, the way was clear for the old woman to go on her trip .

chuu chuu~

The train could be heard .

“Bye bye!”

Tangerine used one hand to clasp Cheol-ho’s hand tightly, the other waving goodbye to see off the old woman .

“Goodbye . ”

.
.
.
.
.

The more she walked, the clearer the sound of the train became . In very little time, she reached the train parked at the peaceful train station . Her pace grew faster and faster . Soon, she took off her shoes and ran .

“Ah! Ahhhhh”

The woman wept loudly . White smoke billowed from the engine, and she looked at a middle-aged man sitting in one of the train carriages .

“Old man!”

The man smiled kindly, and reached out his hand .

“Let’s go . ”

She could see his face clearly . The people on the train caught her eye . His first daughter, his second son, his third daughter . She felt like nails were being driven deep into her chest .

“Ahhh…” her tears welled up .

Even her cute grandchild was there . The middle-aged man spoke again, with a slightly melancholy look .

“It was hard . ”

“No . ”

“Let’s go now . ”

She looked at the outstretched hand of her husband, and nodded slowly . She took it gently, and stepped onboard the train .

“Alright . ”

chuu chuu~

The train began to slowly pull away from the station . The whole world was clear and sunny .

It was a perfect day to go on a trip .

.
.
.

The Sacred Tomb graveyard caretaker was on a dawn patrol when he found the old woman sprawled in front of a tomb . He ran over quickly .

“Aigo, wake up wake up!”

But her body was cold . .

“Oh, my God!”

The caretaker breathed a long, solemn sigh . Suddenly, he realized that the woman was smiling . She was dressed up in pretty clothes too .

“…”

He lowered his head, and paid her a silent tribute .

“Who left her like this?”

Suddenly, when he turned his head, a steaming bowl of jajangmyeon appeared in front of the old woman’s grave . The caretaker tilted his head in confusion and looked at the bowl . There was some money under the bowl . It was a well-organized, neatly bound bundle of bills . They were 1,000 won bills, not the type of money that was common these days .

“…Goodbye,” the caretaker muttered .

.
.
.

.
.
.

Kim Sang-hu was sitting at his desk working .

[Mandragora]

[Belto]

[Magic stone mine]

He continued to draw out the three categories with a pencil, then repeatedly wrote something down .

‘There must be something connecting these events . ’

Strange things were happening in Seoul, and there was someone or something working in the background . Their existence was quiet, secret, and largely harmless .

‘Who is it?

No way .

Surely it wasn’t the first-class man ‘Yaeger’, who went missing during the monster invasion ten years ago? Was he back again? No . He threw himself into a dimension rift while combating a boss-class monster about to self-destruct in its final battle . His sacrifice was so valuable that he saved the lives of countless people . It was strictly confidential to the public .

Machangsa looked at the increasingly chaotic events and shuddered .

‘Oh, I don’t know . ’

However, the big problem recently was very different .

‘Hmm…… . ’

Machangsa thought again with his arms crossed .

Tok Tok~

Kim Man-ho’s voice could be heard at the door .

“Captain, you have a meeting . ”

“Oh, yes . ”

The biggest problem right now was that high-rated monsters were beginning to pop out of the dungeon . The abnormalities that had been occurring since the huge fight in the magic stone mine were enough to create fear among the citizens . Machangsa rose from his seat with a long sigh .

“I’m coming now . ”