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Chapter 121
5.
Kwon Sikdang, famous for its Korean fine dining.
Normally, it was a restaurant where getting a reservation even a month in advance was difficult, let alone the day before.
But there are exceptions to everything in the world.
Like being well-acquainted with the chef.
Or having invested when the restaurant was being set up.
If so, one could manage to secure a table, albeit with difficulty.
Yoo Gwangjin met both of those conditions.
“Wow.”
“How could you book a place like this just a day in advance?”
“Exactly.”
Unaware of this fact, the two looked around, seeming surprised.
As they were guided to a private room and sat down.
Both were surprised by the rather nice atmosphere, including the interior design.
Having heard it was a Korean restaurant, they had expected, at best, a traditional Hanok-style place.
They hadn't expected such a modern restaurant.
To think they'd actually come to a place famous on social media.
The kind that's often featured on TV, too.
While Seonghyun and Yoo Mina were looking around.
Their parents watched the two with amused smiles, looking perfectly at ease.
“Hoho, it seems quite fascinating for both of them~”
“Hmm, perhaps we should have come sooner.”
“That's what I was thinking~”
Judging by their reactions, it seemed the parents had visited quite often.
Now that they think about it.
‘They did ask us to come with them before……’
‘And we refused, didn't we?’
Because it's typical to refuse when parents suggest going somewhere together.
As Seonghyun and Yoo Mina were regretting their past selves.
The door to the room quietly slid open.
They thought food or perhaps menus were being brought in, but...
“Ah! Representative Yoo, you've arrived? Welcome, welcome!”
It was a distinguished-looking man in a smart chef's uniform, wearing a bright smile—clearly someone important.
As Seonghyun and Yoo Mina looked bewildered, wondering what was going on, they saw their father, Yoo Gwangjin, and their mother rise from their seats, and reflexively stood up as well.
“Haha, thank you for the warm welcome, Representative Kwon.”
“Oh, Representative Yoo, you are always welcome here.”
Seonghyun and Yoo Mina were slightly dumbfounded by the chef's unexpectedly warm greeting.
They knew their father, Yoo Gwangjin, ran a company, but…
Was he really on such friendly terms with the owner-chef of such a famous restaurant?
Then again, being able to book a restaurant like this a day in advance would require some level of connection.
They knew it logically, but...
It didn't quite register in their minds.
Seeing this different side of their father was unexpected.
He always lived frugally, and hadn't they lived in the same house for 20 years without moving?
That's why neither of them really knew.
‘I knew we lived comfortably enough, but……’
‘Is Dad doing even better than we thought?’
Seonghyun and Yoo Mina whispered to each other.
As they were doing so,
Yoo Gwangjin introduced the family members behind him.
“Ah, this is my wife, whom you’ve met before, as you know, and these two are our daughter and son.”
“Ah! So your children came with you today!”
“Hahaha, yes, we're here because there's something to celebrate for our son today.”
“Ah! The son you mentioned before...? Was his name Seonghyun?”
At Yoo Gwangjin's words, the middle-aged man called Representative Kwon looked at Seonghyun with a spark of interest in his eyes.
As he looked at Seonghyun,
Seonghyun answered awkwardly.
“Ah, yes.”
“Hahaha, congratulations. Well then, since you came to enjoy time as a family, I will take my leave now. I should pay special attention to the cooking today.”
“Hahaha, Representative Kwon, your cooking is amazing even without special attention. Just how delicious are you planning to make it?”
“Hahaha, oh no, not at all. It’s still lacking. Well then, I shall withdraw.”
After exchanging these pleasantries, the family sat down again.
As for what exactly was going on, both siblings were still bewildered, but their father, Yoo Gwangjin, acted as if it was nothing unusual.
When the two looked at him, as if demanding an explanation,
Father Yoo Gwangjin just chuckled and said,
“We got acquainted a long time ago.”
“That much is obvious, right?”
“……Isn’t that explanation a bit lacking?”
“No, Dad, what kind of business do you run to have connections like…?”
“Haha. I just run a small company.”
Seeing their father brush it off vaguely, both siblings looked puzzled, tilting their heads before shaking them.
Since he was trying to brush it off like that, it felt a bit awkward to deliberately press him.
Besides, neither of them was the type to do that.
It seemed best to just let it go, thinking, ‘Wow, Dad is more impressive than we thought~’.
And so, various dishes were served.
They had heard it was Korean cuisine and expected the kind of Korean food they'd eaten before, but it was completely different.
“Wow!? Is this really Kimbap? It’s so delicious!”
“This is so different from what I imagined!”
His older sister, Yoo Mina, and Seonghyun both had similar reactions.
It perfectly suited the tastes of Seonghyun, who liked Korean food, and also Yoo Mina, who preferred Western food.
They said it was fine dining that fused Korean and Western styles, and it truly was.
As both siblings ate happily, finding the food perfectly to their liking, their father, Yoo Gwangjin, who had brought them, watched with a pleased expression.
Of course, their mother, Lee Nahkyung, felt the same way.
“If you like it this much, why didn’t you just follow Mom and Dad around sooner?”
“Aish, we didn’t know you were going out to eat food this good!”
“Right?”
“Hohoho, honestly. I told you the kids would come if we said we were going out for delicious food, didn’t I?”
“Ahem.”
Perhaps mothers really do know their children best?
Father Yoo Gwangjin cleared his throat, looked away feigning indifference, and enjoyed the harmonious family time.
Amidst the truly delicious and splendid dishes being served,
Seonghyun felt nature's call, perhaps from drinking too many beverages, and rose from his seat.
“Where is the restroom here?”
“Ah, leave the room, go left, and turn the corner; you’ll see it.”
“I’ll be right back.”
Seonghyun stood up and left the room.
Finding the restroom wasn't difficult.
After finishing his business and washing his hands thoroughly, he came out.
A spacious hall came into view.
Seonghyun briefly took in the atmosphere, which was quite different from the private room.
The style itself seemed similar, though.
He thought it might be nice to eat in the hall next time.
Just as Seonghyun was thinking this and about to return to the room,
Clap clap clap clap!
Suddenly, the sound of applause rang out.
"What's that?"
Seonghyun turned his head towards the sound to check.
Some blonde foreigner was clapping after tasting a dish.
"A... Hanbok?"
Moreover, the blonde foreigner was wearing a modernized Hanbok.
She was an attractive woman with captivating green eyes.
But seeing someone with such obviously exotic features wearing a modernized Hanbok felt peculiar.
Seonghyun decided to just ignore her and walk away.
“Truly marvelous!!! It is clearly fusion, yet it embodies the Han and Eol of Joseon! A truly magnificent dish!!!”
"What kind of crazy nonsense is she spouting?"
‘Of course, I admit it's delicious, but… to suddenly jump up from her seat, clap, and exclaim like that... maybe it warrants it, but to actually do it.’
"She's something else."
"Definitely a strange person."
Thinking this, Seonghyun tried to subtly move away.
But a strange sense of déjà vu made him look at the woman again.
Her quite youthful appearance and distinctly foreign features.
A face he felt like he'd seen somewhere before.
On top of that.
“Ah, is this not the true soul of Joseon!? I, too, am filled with admiration and emotion!”
That crazy way of talking.
Besides, despite being a foreigner, her Korean was remarkably fluent.
It all felt strangely familiar somehow.
Then, suddenly, he recalled a memory—of a woman looking just like her, but wearing a sword.
‘Kim Chegeon?’
No, why would Kim Chegeon be here?
He was so startled for a moment that he almost blurted it out.
But Seonghyun, being naturally calm, managed to hold it in.
Anyway, just as Seonghyun recognized Kim Chegeon, wouldn't she recognize him too?
Since Seonghyun's real-life appearance was also similar to his game character, the probability of being recognized was high.
‘Better run away quickly.’
It wasn't that he particularly disliked or hated Kim Chegeon, but as he could see, she didn't seem like an easy person to get involved with in reality.
Running away was the best strategy.
As Seonghyun turned his head to re-enter the room, he noticed something turquoise-green and faint beside Kim Chegeon.
It was a familiar form, one Seonghyun had seen his entire life.
‘A ghost?’
However, it was different from the usual ghosts.
He might have seen hundreds, thousands, even tens of thousands of ghosts so far, but this was the first time seeing one like this.
"A foreign ghost?"
No. He occasionally saw them wandering the streets.
It wasn't because it was a Western ghost.
‘Why is it wearing medieval armor and a sword?’
The fact that it was equipped with medieval armor and a sword, just like in a game, was quite peculiar.
Anyway, that wasn't important right now.
Since neither the ghost nor Kim Chegeon had noticed Seonghyun yet, now was his chance.
With that thought, Seonghyun quickly went back into the room.
Fortunately, he hadn't been spotted.
"Phew."
“Huh? Seonghyun, what’s wrong?”
At his sister's rather affectionate question,
Seonghyun shook his head as if to say it was nothing.
“It's nothing.”
“Hmm? Okay?”
Yoo Mina reacted that way and let it go, figuring it was nothing serious.
Seonghyun, on the other hand, had brushed it off outwardly, but… he was incredibly curious.
‘What was that ghost attached to Kim Chegeon?’
Well, Kim Chegeon is a Joseon fanatic, so it's possible she'd come to a Korean fine dining restaurant.
Wearing a modernized Hanbok was a bit much, but well, that's also plausible.
But what about that ghost attached to her?
Ghosts sometimes attached themselves to people.
Should he call them the so-called guardian spirits?
Sometimes, in the head families of clans or families with deep histories, a distinguished ancestor might linger.
In other cases, a guardian spirit might attach itself simply because it admires the person's qualities.
He didn't know which case applied,
but one thing was certain.
‘It looked like a medieval knight, right?’
It seemed to be the spirit of a knight who had actually existed in reality.
Could it be because he was just in the Hall of Knights?
He felt curious about the ghost that seemed to be dressed as a knight.
But it wasn't like he could just go over and act like he knew Kim Chegeon.
If it was that kind of ghost, couldn't it perhaps provide some direction for the problem Seonghyun was currently grappling with?
Thinking about the game even while eating.
He seemed to have a serious addiction, but he was genuinely curious.
As time passed and the meal concluded, the chef came out personally to offer his thanks.
Seonghyun put his thoughts aside, expressed his gratitude as well, and just as they were about to part ways, a voice called out from the distance.
“Ms Yoo Mina???”
“Hm?”
At the voice recognizing his sister,
Seonghyun, his sister Yoo Mina, and their parents all turned their heads.
Standing there was the beautiful, green-eyed blonde woman from before, looking elegant in her modernized Hanbok.
Seeing her, Seonghyun looked at his sister quizzically.
She recognized Sis first, not me?
‘Do Kim Chegeon and Sis know each other?’
‘What is going on?’
Just then, his sister Yoo Mina was also looking at Kim Chegeon with an expression that suggested she was a headache.
As if she already knew how bothersome she was.
‘Well, she is bothersome.’
Anyway, while he didn't know the exact situation, one thing was certain.
‘Luckily, she didn't recognize me, at least.’
Just as Seonghyun inwardly sighed with relief,
Kim Chegeon, who had been looking at Yoo Mina, noticed Seonghyun beside her and jumped in surprise.
‘Surely she didn't recognize me?’
“E-eh!? A-are you not Seonghyun-nim!? H-here, n-no, more importantly, w-what is your relationship with Ms Yoo Mina...?!”
Just when you think it's safe...
She recognized me.
As Seonghyun looked on in dismay, Yoo Mina asked, sounding rather surprised,
“Huh? Seonghyun, you know Clara?”
“Ahem! In Joseon, please call this one Kim Chegeon.”
“Oh my? Seonghyun dear, who is this~? Do you know each other~?”
“Ahem, indeed.”
“No, she recognized Sis first!”
And now, with the sudden entry of his parents into the fray, amidst the utter chaos,
-Hallo?! Can you see me!? Then please stop my descendant!!!
Even the ghost decided to chime in.
"Haaaah."
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[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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