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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Team Dinner (2)
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"Mutt… No, Jin Yu-ha."
"Hm?"
Kang Do-hee, who had been wearing a serious expression, called out to me.
"How about we order delivery? With five people eating together, we'll run out of ingredients, and it will take too long."
"Ah, that's what you were worried about?"
"Yes."
"Don't worry. I'm a good cook. And I'm fast, too."
"…"
"Plus, these days, 24-hour supermarkets deliver all the ingredients, so there's no need to go grocery shopping."
Kang Do-hee, who had been staring at me intently, nodded as if she found my words reasonable.
'She used to be grumpy by default, but now that we've gotten a little closer, she's even worrying about all sorts of things. That's nice.'
Indeed, feeding them Sol-ui Nun and Diges was a good idea.
I should buy them a box of each next time.
On the way to the dorm, leading my party members.
I opened the supermarket delivery app on my phone and browsed the list.
'Hmm, alright, I need to decide what to cook this time. I should make something that feels like a homemade meal.'
In this gender-reversed world, it was only natural for men to cook, so they probably always ordered delivery or ate out.
The first dish that came to mind was a soup or stew. And among those, for a homemade meal, a stew was a must!
'Definitely, kimchi jjigae would be better than doenjang jjigae, right?'
What I usually made was Sundubu Kimchi Jjigae, made with soft tofu instead of regular tofu for easier eating.
However, kimchi sold in supermarkets often lacked the sourness needed to create the deep flavor of homemade kimchi.
So, for kimchi that lacked sourness, people usually added vinegar.
But I had a personal recipe I'd discovered.
'I invited them all the way to my place; I can't just serve them ordinary kimchi jjigae.'
At the very least, I should prepare something that felt a little special, so it would leave a lasting impression, wouldn't it?
Tap. Tap.
I manipulated my phone, adding the ingredients I had in mind to my shopping cart.
'Hmm, and since there'll be leftover kimchi… Ah, I'll make tofu kimchi with the ingredients for the kimchi jjigae too.'
And I bought instant rice along with various side dishes.
Finally, eggs too.
"Alright. Done."
As soon as I finished grocery shopping, we had already arrived in front of my dorm.
"Welcome. This is my dorm."
I looked back at my party members and said proudly.
*
'This is Jin Yu-ha's room.'
Kang Do-hee couldn't help but be a little taken aback by how stark the room was.
Of course, as it was provided by Velvet Academy, the room itself was clean and spacious.
However, aside from a large moving box in the corner and a few shabby clothes hanging on the wall, there was nothing that could be called Jin Yu-ha's personal belongings.
It hardly looked like a man's room at all.
'…There's nothing here.'
Even she, who had no interest in decorating, wasn't this bare.
'Is that so? Well, to achieve such skill in a man's body, he probably didn't have time for things like grooming or hobbies.'
Kang Do-hee gazed at Jin Yu-ha.
Come to think of it, Jin Yu-ha didn't seem to have any particular hobbies and appeared to invest nothing in himself.
He always tried to yield and share even what he was entitled to with his party members.
Even in the recent demon subjugation incident, despite having averted a major catastrophe,
he didn't ask for any financial support but rather sought the chairman's help for the safety of his party members.
'Perhaps, his bizarre food preferences are also the result of not caring about taste and just eating whatever fills him with nutrients.'
Indeed, Jin Yu-ha, though a man, had admirable qualities.
Whatever he was going to cook this time, she could probably just endure it and eat it.
As Kang Do-hee was thinking this and looking at the others,
"Th-the room is spacious!"
Lee Yu-ri said with a slightly flustered face.
"…Uh-huh! Y-yes, really! Wow—this is my first time in a man's room, and it's so neat! J-just! It's definitely a man's room! That kind of feeling!"
Shin Se-hee, usually skilled at maintaining a poker face, stammered, unable to hide her flustered expression.
Fortunately, Jin Yu-ha didn't seem to notice their embarrassment.
He turned his head and said proudly,
"Right? Before coming here, I lived in a tiny three-pyeong room, so seeing a room this spacious makes me feel like I've really made it."
Jin Yu-ha introduced his room with a genuinely proud expression.
At his words, the atmosphere became even heavier.
"Come on, come on. Is everyone awkward because it's your first time in a man's room? Don't worry about it. Just come in!"
"…Excuse me."
"Okay. I'll come in?"
"P-please excuse me."
"A three-pyeong room…? Why did my junior give me a magic stone…?"
Thus, the group stepped into Jin Yu-ha's dorm.
There was nowhere to sit, so they simply had to sit on the floor.
And after a short wait,
the doorbell rang from outside.
*Ding-dong—♬*
"Ah, the food ingredients must be here."
Jin Yu-ha rose from his spot.
Lee Yu-ri tried to stand up too, but Jin Yu-ha pressed down on her shoulder, forcing her to sit.
"Hey, just stay put. Guests are supposed to relax."
Jin Yu-ha opened the door, went out, and returned carrying a box full of ingredients.
"…Is there anything I can help you with?"
Lee Yu-ri looked at him and asked.
"No, no, nothing at all. Just wait a bit, and I'll cook and bring it out quickly. There are still people who haven't had a chance to talk to each other, right? You've only talked in the group chat; aren't you and Do-hee meeting for the first time?"
"…Uh, yeah, that's right."
"So, take some time to get to know each other."
With that, Jin Yu-ha took the box by himself and went into the kitchen.
* * *
A heavy silence settled among the women sitting in a circle in the living room.
'Where am I? Who am I…?'
Im Ga-eul was flustered.
She hadn't even said a word about becoming a party member yet,
but at some point, she found herself with a top-grade magic stone, involved in demon subjugation, possessing a spatial tattoo, and now, she was in Jin Yu-ha's room with other juniors.
And all of this happened overnight!
At times like these, she resented her own personality, unable to flat-out refuse requests or suggestions that came from goodwill.
'But why, exactly, did that junior give me a magic stone…?'
Im Ga-eul's mind became complicated.
Clearly, judging by the fact that he lived in a three-pyeong room before coming here, he didn't seem to be well-off.
At the very least, the appearance of this room and the shabby clothes hanging on the wall were not those of someone who hoarded magic stones.
'Ah, no, first of all… More importantly, why isn't anyone saying anything…?'
Im Ga-eul looked around, her face stiff.
Cheon-hwa was biting her nails, deep in thought.
The Pit Bull stared intently at Jin Yu-ha's back as he cooked.
Lee Yu-ri looked around the room with a strangely choked-up expression.
"…"
"…"
"…"
To Im Ga-eul, the time Jin Yu-ha was gone felt incredibly long.
Even if she tried to count the patterns on the ceiling to pass the time, the ceiling was just plain white wallpaper.
Then.
Jin Yu-ha returned, carrying a large pot.
"The food's ready! Hmm, no table. Can't be helped. Lee Yu-ri, can you pull that moving box over here?"
"…A, a moving box?"
"Yeah, the contents are important, but the box itself isn't that important. Let's put it on top of that and eat."
"…Ah, no!"
Lee Yu-ri stood up and pulled out a shield from her spatial tattoo on her wrist.
Then she laid the shield on the floor.
*Thud.*
"H-here! Put it here!"
"…Uh-huh? O-okay, I got it."
Lee Yu-ri spoke as if she couldn't yield, and Jin Yu-ha awkwardly placed the pot on the shield.
Then, bowls of plain white rice were placed in front of each of them.
'Huh? It looks more decent than I thought…?'
Im Ga-eul thought as she looked at the kimchi jjigae in the pot.
She hadn't expected much because the Pit Bull and Lee Yu-ri had stiff expressions, but now that she saw it, wasn't it quite a good-looking kimchi jjigae?
Of course, the fact that the tofu was soft tofu was a bit odd, but still within acceptable limits.
'Huh? But what's that…?'
Suddenly, Im Ga-eul's eyes narrowed.
"Excuse me."
She called out to Jin Yu-ha, half-doubting whether what she saw was real.
"Yes, Senior?"
"What is this…?"
Jin Yu-ha replied as if she were asking the obvious.
"It's pineapple?"
"…"
Im Ga-eul, Shin Se-hee, Kang Do-hee, Lee Yu-ri.
Their gazes turned to Jin Yu-ha.
"Ah, it's because it's unfamiliar, isn't it?"
Jin Yu-ha nodded and began to explain.
"Usually, kimchi sold in supermarkets lacks sourness, so people add vinegar, right?"
"…Th-then?"
"And you know how much sugar goes into commercially sold kimchi jjigae, right?"
"…"
"But instead of that, if you add pineapple, you can add a natural sweetness along with sourness. Kimchi jjigae originally has a subtle sweet and sour taste, so the flavors are similar and go well together."
As everyone stared at him as if questioning his sanity,
Jin Yu-ha said, feeling wronged,
"It tastes better than you'd think! If you look it up online, 'Pineapple Kimchi Jjigae' is a real recipe that exists!"
…
When even pineapple on pizza was divisive,
Hawaiian Kimchi Jjigae…?
At the unheard-of dish, everyone's faces turned sickly pale.
"Then, what is this?"
Kang Do-hee pointed at something white mixed with kimchi next to the pot.
"It's Tofu Kimchi? I made it with soft tofu, so it's easy to swallow."
"…"
"Why do you all look like that! This is a delicacy too! A delicacy!"
"…You crazy delicacy… You mutt."
It was a sudden outburst from Kang Do-hee, almost without her realizing it.
But no one could deny her words.