Thus, a buffet version of the holiday restaurant, born under the strangely skilled cooking of civil servant uncles who seemed never to have entered a kitchen in their lives and the minister.
No matter how the process went, the result was quite plausible.
A scene from the otherworldly Republic of Korea’s holiday with so many women, yet all the cooking done by men.
Magical girls, huddled together at their respective chargers without needing to transform.
From middle schoolers to high school students, and even adults.
People gathered in turn, without the need to transform, to get food from the large bowls and sat cozy at the table.
One thing was certain: among them, we were the youngest.
Maybe it was because a different crowd gathered than during the meetup, but conversation was hardly exchanged.
But with so many people gathered, there was at least one person to break the awkward atmosphere.
“Why did everyone else come here?”
“To escape the nagging during the holiday….”
“Because I didn’t want to prepare holiday food.”
Although their reasons were slightly different, the result was that they had escaped the notorious holiday nagging.
The nagging was equal for students and adults alike, regardless of gender.
“What school are you planning to go to? How are your studies going? Don’t you think about finding a decent man or woman to marry?”
They disliked that holiday nagging but still wanted to eat holiday food.
The place where only magical girls, who pursued this natural desire, gathered was right here.
“Well, this plan isn’t bad at all.”
“Who says it isn’t? What did we do last Seol?”
“Celebrated the holiday mood with bowing and receiving some money?”
Some recognized each other, and conversations opened up during the meal.
It seemed that attempts to save costs like this during the holiday weren’t uncommon, as conversations flowed from the magical girls who seemed to have extensive experience.
“Oh right, if that’s the case, just take the money….”
“While it was good to avoid the nagging, it was just awkward.”
“Mary, what’s this?”
During their conversation, Shiyeon, who was sitting right next to me, asked.
No matter what others were talking about, the innocent curiosity allowed her to ask a question.
Pointing with her finger was a crab marinated in soy sauce, it looked like it had been thoroughly soaked.
“Flower crab, crab marinated in soy sauce… why did you bring this? You’ve never even tried it.”
I commented, observing the crab which was adequately stained with soy sauce, with only the body and legs carelessly chopped in half.
It wasn’t easy for Shiyeon to pick it up with either a fork or chopsticks, let alone bring it to her mouth or even develop a taste for it.
“Why did you bring this?” I asked again, half curious.
“To see if it’s interesting!”
“You won’t even be able to eat it…”
Given that it had to be cracked and sucked out with teeth, it wasn’t suitable for either Shiyeon or me to eat.
Moreover, unless you already knew the taste, especially not for someone eating it for the first time….
“Then, can I have it, Older Sister?”
As I watched Shiyeon, who seemed troubled, someone took a crab leg from her bowl and gently squeezed it onto Shiyeon’s rice.
Shiyeon quickly scooped up the wet crab meat that was sliding down with a spoon and brought it to her mouth.
The expression on Shiyeon’s face as she began to chew was slightly distorted.
“Salty….”
“Just as I thought….”
The word ‘salty’ came out from her distorted face.
I was still unfamiliar with the taste of marinated crab. That was only natural.
Among the holiday foods, for kids, jeon and galbi are the best.
“Eat galbi-jjim, galbi-jjim.”
“Ugh.”
As I served the galbi-jjim from the bowl toward her, Shiyeon put the white rice and galbi-jjim in her mouth to wash down the strong soy sauce taste.
As our meal began to come to a decent end, the meal for the civil servant uncles started afterward.
With the sound of utensils clinking followed by the sounds of more spoons being picked up, the daily conversation of uncles who couldn’t be home during the holiday.
“Is there no soju?”
“Should I go buy some?”
“There are kids here, what soju, just eat.”
“Oh, my back….”
As a few burly uncles exchanged couple of words and occupied several tables, there was a certain intimidating presence.
The wall of seats stretched out like a meat restaurant.
Sitting quietly, I started to feel the drowsiness settling in.
Shiyeon was no exception; she blinked her half-closed eyes and rubbed her hand across her face.
Just a moment ago, she was emptying her bowl with sparkling eyes, but now, she began to whine.
“I’m sleepy….”
“You can’t lie down right after eating; just hold on for 20 minutes.”
Stealthily trying to lie down on the floor, I turned Shiyeon back to a sitting position.
I handed her my smartphone, the only means to keep her awake, and gave her a cute farming management game to play.
Twenty minutes later, when it was finally time she could lie down, the situation had flipped.
I, who had lost my means to stay awake, blinked my eyes and lay down on the floor while Shiyeon, consumed by her game, was wide awake.
“I can’t sleep now; I can’t sleep now….”
Even while thinking that, I felt too good to let my body succumb to the comfort of sleep.
“…”
Eventually, when I opened my eyes, it was to the darkness that had settled inside the building with no light.
As I sat up, the small blanket that had been covering me slid down and landed on the floor.
Wondering where Shiyeon was since she wasn’t right next to me, as my eyes adjusted to the dark, I began to see several shapes lying on the floor.
It seemed during the time I slept, Shiyeon had gotten close to other people.
She was sound asleep next to another female student who looked to be in middle school.
‘I’ve had all the sleep I need….’
A big yawn escaped me, but with my clear mind, I didn’t think I could fall back asleep.
Reluctantly, I got up and threw on the shoes that were scattered on the floor, walking with long strides to where the food was and opened the closed lid.
The food wasn’t warm, but it wasn’t completely cold either.
One fish pancake. I picked it up with my thumb and forefinger and stuffed it into my mouth.
Chewing, the tender white fish flesh, cool enough to be perfectly flaked apart, along with the savory and salty batter coated with egg.
Even if it weren’t a holiday, this was something you’d want to eat with rice every day.
That morning, filled with voices from the minister who had borrowed the restaurant in its entirety since early morning.
“Shake it all out and cook it all up!”
Only a day had passed, but it was the last day of the holiday plan conducted under the minister’s leadership.
Even though the civil servant uncles had cooked all day yesterday, today they were particularly busier.
Anyway, the promised duration of the plan was coming to an end.
If they left the remaining ingredients, they would turn into food waste, and everything had to be handled completely.
So, the appropriate countermeasure from the minister regarding the remaining ingredients was to cook everything up and then distribute it among the groups.
Of course, only the uncles doing the cooking were working hard, and the magical girls just had to sit and wait.
“Well, so you’re handling that?”
“Yeah, it’s really tough if I show up during class.”
“That sounds tough; shouldn’t you quit one of them?”
“If I quit being a teacher, I’d look like a freeloader on the surface, but if I quit this, then my income will drop by more than half….”
“Ugh, that’s a dead end.”
The depth of their conversation could not be seen as a typical chat between a student and a teacher outside of school.
It was a glimpse into how hard those connected by the common theme of being magical girls struggled.
“Let’s just go as far as we can; you guys should find jobs that allow you to work from home….”
“How about being a VTuber? That’s been hot lately.”
“That field is probably becoming a red ocean too; what would you do if a monster appeared during the broadcast?”
“Ah, that’s true….”
With the mention of home-based work, the student quickly blurted out the idea of being a VTuber.
While it’s somewhat a job that one can choose while sitting at home, considering that live broadcasts are mainstream, a single assumption of a monster appearing shatters that logic.
In a job you can’t disclose, there are so many constraints like this.
‘Side job, side job….’
While I was idly fiddling with my smartphone in the vicinity of their conversation, such thoughts sprang to mind.
Even if they were tired of being magical girls, what would they do if they quit?
It wasn’t a question fitting for an elementary student, but it was a topic that needed serious consideration at some point.
“Alright, everyone, enjoy your meal—!”
Before I could finish my thoughts, the sound of a frying pan being banged echoed.
Japchae, fish pancake, skewered beef, galbi-jjim that must be in every bowl.
We came back with various holiday foods and began to sit down and eat.
Opinions exchanged among the magical girls while eating with our utensils.
“Still, we’re having holiday food during the holidays.”
“I hope we do something like this again next year; this one’s been quite good.”
The number of affirmations pouring out centered around a couple of agreements.
It was nice to share updates in a space where magical girls could openly talk.
It had a different flavor from the meetup, which wasn’t bad at all.
Shiyeon and I were in a place where we could experience the smell of real people during the holidays, not just frozen products but proper holiday food.
Even though it was frustrating to throw away the day’s wages for the planned date, it seemed to be a good plan if it turned out well.
Moreover….
“Here you go. Take it and eat a lot.”
The civil servant uncles handed us ample bags filled with holiday food.
With the uncles telling her to eat a lot, Shiyeon confidently responded.
“Thank you—!”
“Thank you!”
I also bowed my head in gratitude, and with our arms full of leftover holiday food, Shiyeon and I walked away.
Japchae, fish pancake, skewered beef, dumpling patties, and galbi-jjim.
It felt like the leftover holiday food from a family visiting their parents up in the countryside.
I was glad that I wouldn’t have to worry about meals for the next few days.
As the civil servant uncles took us home, the smell of the leftover food wafting in the car was simply delightful.
