Have a Meal Before You Go - Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Editor: Stomatopoda, Nets,

Khan was startled at Cheol-ho’s words .

“Seriously, Cheol-ho, is it that important?”

“Well… you could say so . ”

“Hmm…” 

Khan pondered for a long time, and then composed himself .

“I like this part . So, my true nature is revealed . What does that mean?”

“…”

Cheol-ho looked at him for a moment and shrugged his shoulders .

“It was a joke . ”

What an interesting friend .

Let’s see .

Usually he ate the chicken legs first . He didn’t know why, but he just felt the two legs were symbolic for a chicken . There were only two legs for one chicken .

Cheol-ho turned back to the basket .

Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!~

Tangerine had already eaten more than half of the chicken in the basket . She chewed the chicken roughly and swallowed it whole, bones and all .

“…”

Perhaps feeling Cheol-ho’s gaze, Tangerine turned towards him, smiling broadly with fried chicken shreds poking out of her full mouth .

Cheol-ho looked back at her and smiled .

“Yes . Eat a lot . ”

Cheol-ho patted her head, and plucked a napkin from the counter to wipe Tangerine’s mouth .

“Eat a lot and grow big . ”

He grabbed a leg .

The deep-fried, golden-colored fried skin gave off a warm waft of steam . And so he bit the end of the leg first .

When eating chicken legs, the cartilage at the end of the legs was always eaten first . He savoured the crunch, and the cartilage tore out very neatly . It was time to get to the main part .

Cheol-ho took a big bite of the plump flesh from the top of the chicken leg, his fingers pinching the bone in the gap the cartilage left .

It was crunchy!

The crunch of the chewing of the batter was vividly audible . If you gently rip off the chicken skin, the batter came off too . He chewed the chicken skin well first .

The savory and greasy taste spread throughout his mouth . Cheol-ho chewed the skin well and swallowed it . Now what would be seen after was white flesh . Oh god . Seeing the glossy chicken flesh, Cheol-ho began to drool .

Then he began to gnaw on a handful of the hot flesh . The chicken flesh was very soft and chewy . Steam rose from his mouth as he chewed blissfully .

The flesh tasted wonderful .

Cheol-ho ate every single piece of the flesh attached to the chicken leg . All that was left was the thin bone, scraped dry . Steam was still rising from the bone .

The chicken legs had returned to how they were before .

He suddenly thought about it . Was there anything in the world that tasted better than freshly fried chicken?

Hmm… 

“Something’s missing . ”

He paused to think for a moment . Something was missing . What was causing this feeling of emptiness?

“Ah . ”

Cheol-ho stood up from his seat and headed for the refrigerator, retrieving two bottles of chilled beer .

“Would you like a drink?”

“Oh . ”

Khan’s eyes glistened . Cheol-ho smiled and decanted the beer into the glass .

Originally, Cheol-ho preferred soju . Chicken was no exception . However, he wanted to drink a cold beer today . But since it was morning, he would make it a quick drink .

The golden liquid spilled into the glass, forming a foamy white head . Khan and Cheol-ho bumped the two glasses in shared anticipation . Cheol-ho gulped down the cool beer excitedly, and turned to the chicken again .

Now, what was next?

It was a wing .

The wings were held at the tip of the thick and thin parts, then bent backwards . Once the two parts were divided, Cheol-ho was the type to chew the thin part first .

He enjoyed the crunchy chewy taste, and put the thicker part in his mouth . The flesh was removed in one bite .

The only thing that came out from his mouth were the thin bones .

Then he took a big sip of beer .

It was cheap, and it tasted good . He liked the beer, it has a carbonated feel and a savory yet subtle taste . It may have been a generic commercial product, but it was enough .

The next target was the chicken sticks .

The way to eat chicken sticks was similar to eating chicken legs . It was to take a bite off of the thin end, and remove the flesh in one movement so you’re left holding only the bone in your hands .

Cheol-ho was going to eat the chicken breast now .

The breast meat was peculiar for its unique dryness, but that’s why it was attractive . Also, one can’t miss the  fun of ripping off and eating deep-fried skin .

“…”

Cheol-ho felt Khan staring at him .

“That was great, Cheol-ho . ”

“What?” 

Khan was nodded admiringly at him, with a serious look on his face .

“How can you remove the bones so easily? 

Khan was wrestling with the neck of the chicken he held .

At Khan’s words Cheol-ho laughed . “Ummm… . that’s a very bony part . ”

“Hahahaha!”

Tangerine, who was eating chicken recklessly, laughed along with Cheol-ho without knowing what he was talking about .

Eventually the three pieces of chicken were neatly finished, and all that remained were the bones . Cheol-ho looked at a very swollen Tangerine .

“Was it delicious?”

Tangerine smiled and nodded .

“It’s de-uhm . ”

She meant it was delicious .

“I’m glad . ”

“Papa, it’s uhm . . ” 

“Yes, yes . Go play . ”

Tangerine was ready to play even more excitedly, as if she had become energized .

Cheol-ho could easily assume it would be a noisy morning .

“When will her powers manifest?”

“Well, since she realized her class I think it’ll be sooner or later . ”

“She’s going to be able to breath out fire, isn’t she?”

“Yes . ”

Cheol-ho and Khan sat at the table, watching Tangerine sweep the floor .

“I’m looking forward to it . ”

Cheol-ho liked the way she laughed . He enjoyed seeing her grow up day by day . He closed his eyes slightly . The sun was warm, and Cheol-ho leaned back in his chair . A pleasant feeling of satiety enveloped him, and a light aroma of alcohol lingered in the air . He felt like he could get some sleep .

* * *

Summer nights were always similar .

The sound of grass bugs crying in the sweltering heat . The subtle breeze blowing, but somehow there was still a sense of calm .

It was usually a quiet street, but it was noisy tonight .

Pop! Pop!~

Paang!~

Come to think of it, it felt like a festival . Cheol-ho stepped out of the restaurant and looked up at the sky . A fireworks display was in full swing . Tangerine also poked her head out of the store .

She waddled over like a baby to stand beside him, and tried to look up at the sky over the fence . She was still little, so she couldn’t see the fireworks clearly . Cheol-ho picked her up and cradled her .

Whoo!~

Tangerine’s eyes opened wide in surprise as she cheered . Cheol-ho held her carefully in his arms . She was warm, nestled against his chest . Cheol-ho wanted to stay like that forever .

Cheol-ho soared into the air, before stopping abruptly to point into the distance .

“Look . ”

Pang! Pang!~

Five colorful fireworks carved cascades of light into the sky .

“That’s what fireworks are . It’s your first time seeing them, isn’t it?”

“Yes!”

Tangerine was mesmerized . She stared up avidly at the countless fireworks decorating the sky, her mouth lolling open in awe . He’d never taken her out for a stroll with him before .

Tangerine always stayed in the dining room . Didn’t it get frustrating?

Cheol-ho felt sorry for her, because she wasn’t experiencing a fun childhood like other children her age did . He wished he could give her a tour of the whole world .

He wanted to buy her good clothes . But it might be dangerous to have a baby dragon in town .

Yeah .

He would buy her shoes, too . She’d need shoes to walk around . He would give her a tie for her hair, and buy her a necklace or a ring .

Cheol-ho gazed out at the erupting fireworks, thinking deeply .

.

.

.

.

.

.

Chik!~

A heavy golem’s head opened, and a young man wearing glasses climbed out of it . His hair was light brown, glinting in the light . Cheol-ho was impressed by the glasses he was wearing, made from thick horn-rimmed lenses fastened with a special material .

The researcher flapped his arms, huffing .

“It’s awfully hot . ”

The surrounding was filled with researchers in industrial vests .

Weeeeeeeeing-!~

The machine spun loudly, lights blaring and the piercing whine of a drill cutting through the noise .

The outer building of the Awakening Society .

It was the landscape of the so-called ‘industrial complex’ .

“The outer body is too heavy . I think we need to readjust it, the efficiency of the structure isn’t as good as I thought . I also think there’s an issue with the matter of materials for augers . I need a metal that dissipates shock better . ”

The man spoke to the researchers in a friendly manner . He was Kim Hoon, Gearwalk, the only Golem Master in Korea .

Gearwalk’s entire body was dripping with sweat . After discussing his requirements for the golem, he trudged into the waiting room .

“Ah . ”

Shadow Cat sat primly with her legs crossed, and smiled brightly at him .

“Good job!”

“This is the men’s changing room . ”

“Oh, well, I’m trying to see if the pepper has grown . ”

“That’s sexual harassment…”

“What ?”

Shadow Cat and Gearwalk exchanged banter, before Gearwalk shook his head wearily .

“I need to wash up and eat something . What a bloody demonstration! I only drank water all day . ”

Shadow Cat stood up from her seat .

“I knew you would be hungry . I know of a restaurant we could visit . Would you like to go?”

“Whereabouts are you talking about if it’s a restaurant?”

“It’s by West Gate . ”

“In Sang-hoo’s neighborhood?”

“Yes . Let’s go there after you finish washing up . By the way, is the new magic stone better than you thought?”

Gearwalk nodded .

“It’s okay . The mana in the magic stone is moderately higher than I expected . ”

“Hmm? But it’s not pure magic . Is this from the new dungeon you just saw?”

Shadow Cat nodded .

“Yes, I’ve put it in the first-class category, but it’s suspicious . ”

It was an odd dungeon .

It had appeared in Incheon’s downtown area, and was without monsters . Inside the cave there were magic stones . It was like a magic stone mine .

However, the ceiling of the dungeon had a strange glow .

The excavated magic stones were generally between class 5 and 4 . They were first class magic stones, making the discovery very significant . They were among the best of first-class products .

“It’s strange . Hmm… oh, did you hear that Captain Cheon Tae-joong has retired?”

“Yeah, I heard . ”

“You’ll be lonely, I heard he went back to his hometown . ”

“Yes, he went home . ”

“Sad . He was a good man . ”

“It’s time for him to rest . ”

“Yes, it is . ”

Gearwalk laughed, having been lost in thought for a while .

“I wish I had a hometown to go back to . ”

Gearwalk pulled off his top, and stared bluntly at Shadow Cat . She looked at him with a playful smile .

“Get out lady, I have to wash up . ”