Chapter: 09
“Whaaat?!”
Yeonwoo was horrified.
Then he became furious.
“How… how could this happen?!”
How…? Just how…?!
“How could you grill meat and forget to bring the salt?!!”
It was truly a bolt from the blue.
Meat without salt!
Now that Yeonwoo had already tasted properly salted meat, his tongue could never go back to bland, unsalted meat. He nearly collapsed to the ground in despair.
“I’m sorry. I’ve been so absentminded. Shall we just eat it as it is?”
“Don’t say something so ridiculous!”
Meat without salt. Meat without salt.
“If only the salt could soak into that juicy meat… It would taste incredible when you bit into it…”
Ugh… Ughhh…!
“If we start a fire now, it’ll be too late…”
Aaaah! Aaaah!!
“What should we do…?”
“I’ll go!”
Yeonwoo sprang to his feet as if he had made up his mind.
The child’s face was filled with determination.
“I’ll just go get it!”
“Will you really be alright? This is…”
They were on the mountain peak.
Whoooooosh—
A sharp wind whipped past, making both Unhyun’s and Yeonwoo’s clothes flutter.
Unhyun had brought Yeonwoo here to see the wild boar caught in a trap.
It was the summit of a steep, towering mountain that had taken them half a sijin to climb.
Ordinarily, it would have taken him two sijin to reach this place.
Was it because he had spent so much time climbing mountains while gathering medicinal herbs?
Yeonwoo had managed to keep up with Unhyun all the way here without falling behind.
Unhyun had even increased his pace to gauge the boy’s stamina, yet Yeonwoo had reached the summit without difficulty.
“Isn’t it too far to go back? If we let the meat sit overnight in this wind, the flavor would improve if we had salt, but for you to go all the way back…”
“I’m going! I’ll bring it back! We’re eating this properly!”
Without another word, Yeonwoo turned around and raced down the mountain.
“Go ahead and start the fire! Don’t eat without me!!”
Moving at a speed no ordinary child should have been capable of, Yeonwoo disappeared from Unhyun’s sight in an instant.
“Be careful on your way!”
…your way… way… way…
Watching the child dash away with all his might, Unhyun sensed his presence growing more distant before casually flexing his hand.
“Well then…”
Shall I see just how quickly he comes back?
Tap.
The instant Unhyun pushed off the ground, his figure vanished.
It took Yeonwoo exactly one sijin to run down the mountain, grab the salt, and climb back up.
As promised, it took only one sikgyeong to grill and eat the meat.
While cleaning up after the meal, Unhyun suddenly looked at the remaining meat and spoke thoughtfully.
“Come to think of it, this reminds me of a delicacy I once had in the Central Plains.”
“A delicacy?”
“Yes. It was made from pork like this.”
“Was it good?”
“It was unbelievably delicious.”
“What was it? Tell me!”
“You slice the meat thinly and leave it to dry for a long time somewhere with a good breeze like this. The drying concentrates the aroma of the meat, making its flavor even richer.”
When he glanced over after saying that much, Yeonwoo was already drooling.
Slurp.
Wiping his mouth, Yeonwoo shouted,
“Let’s do it too! Let’s make some!”
“If we’re going to do that, we’ll need…”
Unhyun glanced at the excited, sparkling-eyed boy before shaking his head.
“No. I can’t ask you to go all the way back home again. Let’s just leave the leftover meat for the birds.”
“Why would we give it to the biiirds?! We should eat it!!”
“You want to try it that badly?”
“Yeah! I’m curious!”
“Then will you fetch what I ask for?”
Yeonwoo nodded vigorously.
Looking down at him, Unhyun smiled faintly.
That day, Yeonwoo ended up making three trips up and down the mountain to help Unhyun.
His legs trembled, and small cuts covered his body, but Yeonwoo was happy.
Dried meat!
As he came back down after hanging the meat out to dry, a grin so wide that his cheeks dimpled spread across his face.
But that smile did not last long.
“What… is this…?”
While the two of them had been away, the evening meal left behind by the local officials consisted of only three rice balls, each about the size of Yeonwoo’s fist.
They really took my request to reduce the meals a bit too literally.
Unhyun glanced at Yeonwoo.
Perhaps the shock was too great.
The boy stood frozen, staring blankly at the rice balls.
At last, he slowly turned his head toward Unhyun.
“Gra… Grandpa… the meat…”
“We left all of it behind. Weren’t you the one who insisted on drying every last piece?”
That was true.
The moment Yeonwoo heard dried meat was delicious, he had insisted on hanging every remaining piece on the mountaintop before they came home.
“Not… even… a… little…?”
None…?
His pitiful gaze pleaded with Unhyun, but the old man firmly shook his head.
“It can’t be helped. It’s too late to hunt again tonight, so let’s just share these.”
He was hungrier than ever before.
But he was also more exhausted than he had ever been.
With no other choice, Yeonwoo nodded.
Three small rice balls wrapped in lotus leaves.
The two sat facing each other with the plate between them, each picking up one.
With gloomy expressions, they peeled back the lotus leaves and took a bite.
“…!”
Yeonwoo’s eyes lit up.
“It’s delicious!”
It’s good! So good!
Without even swallowing the food already in his mouth, he immediately took another huge bite.
Watching him chew away happily, Unhyun nodded.
Did they put more effort into the taste since they reduced the portions?
The seasoning of the rice was perfect.
There was also the fragrant nuttiness of ground perilla seeds.
Mixed into the rice were vegetables and minced meat, making it exceptionally flavorful.
The fist-sized rice balls disappeared into their stomachs in no time.
Then came the problem.
“…!”
With both fists resting on his knees, Yeonwoo glared fiercely at the last remaining rice ball.
Two people.
One rice ball.
I want it.
I want it.
I want it.
I want it.
I want it.
I want it.
I want it.
Even without saying a word, his expression practically shouted it aloud.
After staring at the rice ball for a long while, Yeonwoo finally moved.
He still had a conscience.
“Grandpa and I can split it—”
Let’s share it.
He forced those words out despite desperately not wanting to.
But he never got to finish.
Just as he reached for the rice ball—
Clink.
Unhyun pressed one side of the plate.
The rice ball rolled away to the opposite side from Yeonwoo’s outstretched hand.
Yeonwoo’s brow twitched sharply.
Then he reached again.
“I said we can split it exactly in ha—”
Roll…
The rice ball rolled away again.
Yeonwoo looked up at Unhyun with a scowl.
“What are you doing?!”
“What do you mean?”
“I said I’d share it! It’s mine, but I’ll share it!”
“The rice ball? Ah, I don’t want any. You can eat it all.”
“Really…?”
“Yes. It was quite delicious.”
Yeonwoo grinned from ear to ear.
This really is amazing!
Delighted at the thought of eating the whole thing himself, he reached out once more.
Rumble… Slide… Slip…
“Then why does it keep moving?!”
“I honestly have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Grrr…!
Yeonwoo’s face turned bright red.
He lunged for the rice ball.
He intended to grab it before Unhyun could move the plate again.
Roll—Whoosh—Spin—Whirl, whirl, whirl!
The rice ball escaped his grasp, always just a little faster than his hand.
Not too much.
Not too little.
Always just before his fingertips touched it.
Tap! Tap-tap-tap!
Yeonwoo even used both hands.
Yet the rice ball kept rolling around the tiny plate, slipping away every time.
At one point, it practically flew around inside the dish.
Tap! Tap-tap!
Yeonwoo’s eyes darted left and right, tracking the rice ball.
His obsession with food pushed his concentration to extraordinary heights.
Tap! Tap-tap! Tap!
Watching the tug-of-war, Unhyun narrowed his eyes.
He’s adapting.
Yeonwoo’s movements were getting faster.
No—not just faster.
He was beginning to predict Unhyun’s movements and reach ahead of time.
Their speeds had become so great that an ordinary child’s eyes would no longer have been able to keep up.
Yet Yeonwoo never once lost sight of the rice ball.
I knew he was unusually obsessed with food…
But to this extent…
This, too, must be thanks to the constitution he was born with.
This child…
…was destined to live as a martial artist.
Grab!
At that moment, Yeonwoo’s left hand suddenly seized Unhyun’s wrist.
His eyes, however, remained fixed on the plate.
A smile spread across Unhyun’s lips.
Until now, the child had focused solely on chasing the rice ball.
But in order to achieve his goal, he had broadened his perspective just enough to identify the true culprit moving the plate—and stopped that hand instead.
Removing the source of a problem instead of merely chasing its result was a simple, obvious principle.
Yet when people became deeply absorbed in something, their vision naturally narrowed.
Especially a child.
At an age when it was normal to fixate only on what was directly in front of him, Yeonwoo had learned to look beyond it.
That alone was an impressive achievement.
This is enough for today.
Unhyun released the plate.
At the same instant, Yeonwoo’s free hand shot out and snatched the rice ball.
Yeonwoo looked up at him.
“Enjoy your meal.”
His face immediately lit up with joy.
He promptly turned his back to Unhyun and happily devoured the rice ball.
It was the sweetest, most delicious rice ball he had ever eaten.
