A little while later, two middle-aged uncles dressed in neat suits came to our house.
They are valuable means of transport that will take us to Sokcho, and civil servants who know we are magical girls under the minister’s authority.
“Are you Kim Mari and Lee Shiyeon going to Sokcho?”
Uncertain about it, the two who came tilted their heads and asked again.
No matter how you look at it, they seem like two elementary school students in single digits.
The sight of them carrying school bags looks much more like they are going for a trip rather than filling the void left by a magical girl who will be absent for a while.
“Yes!”
“Yes, that’s right. You are the ones sent by the minister, right?”
Upon hearing that we were going to Sokcho, Shiyeon jumped up and ran to the entrance to answer.
Her confident response gave assurance to the perplexed expressions of the two.
Mentioning the person who sent them, the two quickly smiled brightly and spoke.
“Okay, the car is already parked outside, so let’s go.”
“Oh, wait a moment….”
After requesting a moment, I hurried inside to double-check if I hadn’t forgotten anything.
Checking if the circuit breaker is down, confirmed.
Checking if the door is not open.
Checking if the toiletries and Shiyeon’s homework are packed.
Lastly, confirming that I didn’t forget the mascot.
After confirming everything, I finally stepped out and closed the front door.
“All set.”
Heading outside, waiting for us was a white sedan with the engine running under the blazing sun.
As the two adults naturally headed towards the driver and passenger seats, we squeezed our small bodies into the back seat.
It had been a long time since I had ridden in a vehicle other than public transportation.
Normally, it’s just buses, taxis, or sometimes the subway.
Magical girls usually stick to one region, so that’s normal.
I can’t even imagine a boat or a plane.
Was that why? Today, Shiyeon’s lively legs were flapping, looking very cheerful.
Leaving the apartment, I saw streets I had never seen before through the window.
Resting my elbows on the small space beneath the back seat door handle, I propped my chin up.
Beyond the bottom part of the window, which was still at a rather high level, the scenery passing by after entering the highway looked the same.
“Do you like being a magical girl?”
Suddenly, perhaps feeling bored just holding the steering wheel, a question flew my way.
It was a simple question at eye level.
“Me!”
Shiyeon, being still pure, answered without a moment’s hesitation.
The diagonal seat belt she was wearing reached up to her neck.
Unlike Shiyeon, who could answer right away, I crossed my arms and pondered.
The question was whether I liked being a magical girl.
First of all, it could be said that it’s an advantage that even elementary school students can contribute to society.
However, it could certainly be regarded as a downside that elementary school students constantly feel the tension of the five-minute standby.
The conclusion, like many other things, is that it’s neither good nor bad.
“Um… it’s okay, I guess.”
“Wow, I didn’t expect to hear ‘okay’ from a kid.”
“Doesn’t it feel like we’re talking to a new employee in our department?”
“Right? It kind of feels similar?”
I was only expressing honest feelings, yet the impressions about me coming from the two’s conversation were quite clear.
Should I have said something like, “I absolutely love it!” like Shiyeon would?
If I used even slightly difficult words, it would create an inherently odd atmosphere not fitting for my age.
Before I knew it, the two uncles in the front seat had casually brushed aside such thoughts and began their own conversation.
“What was there to eat in Sokcho?”
A conversation starting with Sokcho’s food.
Since both uncles looked to be around middle age, eating seems to be a priority wherever they go.
“Well… it’s by the beach, so seafood? There’s mulhoe, and squid sundae.”
“I’ve never tried squid sundae.”
The uncle casually conversing in the driver’s seat while focusing straight ahead seemed very comfortable and familiar.
That’s not as easy as it sounds.
“It’s nothing special. It’s just squid instead of the sausage casing, and they mix and fry various things like donggeurangttaeng.”
“Oh right, isn’t that famous too? Chicken gangjeong?”
“Oh, chicken gangjeong? I don’t really think it’s good, it’s just fried chicken tossed in sauce, and if it doesn’t taste good, that’s talent.”
“They say mushrooms are famous too?”
“What flavor do you get from just mushrooms? Meat is the main course.”
As the two kept talking about food, I found myself getting hungry as well.
The two in the front seat seemed to be no exception.
Just in time, I saw a rest area sign visible through the windshield.
The conversation shifted to another topic.
“I’m getting a bit hungry. Let’s stop at the rest area.”
“Sounds good, what do you want to eat?”
“How about walnut cake?”
Naturally taking a turn, the car exited the highway and entered a rest area parking lot made up entirely of squares.
A rest area that we must stop at when moving between regions.
At the moment the car entered the parking lot.
We naturally took off our seat belts and prepared to go out into the sauna-like sunlight.
Before that, I had to wake Shiyeon, who had somehow fallen asleep.
“Shiyeon, Shiyeon.”
“Uhh…?”
Gently shaking her tiny shoulders to wake her up, Shiyeon stirred as her eyes fluttered awake.
“We’re at the rest area, let’s go to the bathroom.”
“Uhhh….”
Just like when I woke her up in the morning, she turned her body around abruptly, letting out a sound of discontent.
Even when I asked if she didn’t want to go to the bathroom, she shook her head repeatedly and didn’t want to open her eyes.
With no choice, I pulled myself out into the hot sunlight with the uncles.
Maybe because she was small, the sunlight beamed down from above.
The heat rising from the asphalt enveloped her body in an instant.
The scorching heat of midday made it feel like a hot wind was being blown into my lungs, making it hard to breathe.
Following behind the uncles with short strides, I hurriedly urged my steps toward a store near the shade.
“The weather is insane…”
“The highest temperature is supposed to be 34 degrees.”
The food at the rest area is surprisingly rare compared to other places.
The stalls selling fried chicken skewers have nearly disappeared, and deli manju can only be seen at specific subway stations.
I’ve hardly ever seen the small potatoes outside of rest areas, and while walnut cakes and peanut snacks could be seen sometimes in winter, it seems that now only a few famous places remain.
Therefore, we bought enough food, almost exclusively found at rest areas, to satisfy our small stomachs.
The chicken skewers with plenty of sauce that would become a disaster if spilled in the car.
We regrettably skipped that and grabbed the peanut snacks and walnut cakes.
Holding as many types of bread products like deli manju as I could, I returned to the car and gently shook Shiyeon awake, who seemed to be getting a bit hungry.
“Shiyeon? Let’s eat walnut cakes and peanut snacks, we also have deli manju.”
“Uhhh….”
Shiyeon didn’t get up at the mention of going to the bathroom.
But when I mentioned snacks and deli manju, she quickly got up and rubbed her eyes.
I should have taken her to the bathroom by using the snack as bait.
“Make sure to wear your seat belt.”
With warm reminders to fasten our seat belts and the sound of the engine roaring to life.
And the sedan began to leave the rest area.
Inside the car, Shiyeon began to munch on walnut cakes, peanut snacks, and deli manju, her small mouth moving like a squirrel.
Was that really her, who had been sound asleep just a moment ago?
‘Where….’
Seeing her enjoy the food so much, I reached into the bag and pulled one out myself.
The brief moment of putting my hand into the bag produced humidity on my fingers.
It was clear evidence that it had just been made.
The deli manju that I hadn’t tasted for years.
Beyond the soft and chewy texture of the bread, the moist, yellow cream dripped down.
The smell was a perfect score, but the taste was only a 60.
This disappointment is what characterizes deli manju, but I can’t help but wish the cream was a bit sweeter every time I eat it.
It’s a food that I know to be this delicious, yet I can’t resist buying it whenever I smell it.
At the point when the navigation in the front seat indicated about 40 minutes remaining,
The walnut cakes, peanut snacks, and deli manju bags were all empty.
I was just worried about Shiyeon gulping down water without even going to the bathroom.
Just after we had recently re-entered general roads from the highway, the dreaded situation finally occurred.
“I need to pee….”
“Huh?”
“Hey, hey, hey, just hold on a little longer.”
The panicked groans came from the two civil servants in the front seat.
Their voices sounded more urgent than Shiyeon’s, filling the car.
“This is a government vehicle; this is a big problem!?”
“Is there any bathroom nearby…? Or even a convenience store….”
“Oh! There, over there!”
Fortunately, since we were near a beach with a lot of people, public restrooms were scattered around.
Before the car could be parked, one of them unlocked the door and got out from the passenger seat, opening the back door for Shiyeon and kindly unbuckling her seat belt.
Desperately turning her body toward the outside, Shiyeon headed toward the women’s restroom, guided by the man.
“See, I told you we should go to the bathroom when we had the chance….”
