Our class, having distinguished themselves in individual events by riding the flow, achieved a noticeable rise in rankings.
Even the teacher, who hadn’t expected much, was bewildered from the point we reached 4th place.
In that state, our class secured 3rd place without any major incidents, surpassing both ordinary and expected results.
The teacher seemed surprised by this outcome, approaching those who had performed unexpectedly well in the individual events, patting their shoulders and expressing immense pride.
“Oh my, you all worked hard.”
“Teacher, we got 3rd place! Don’t we get anything?”
Usually, in sports festivals or athletic meets with rankings, there are certain rewards given.
In competitions that distribute ranks, the rewards typically include gold, silver, and bronze medals.
So, it meant that there were usually some benefits for those who placed at least 3rd.
It seemed that the teacher recalled this late, bringing their finger to their chin and saying,
“Um, I think the school will give us some money for 3rd place? When should we order hamburgers or get delivery?”
“Hamburger!”
Apparently, there’s a reward distribution at the school level.
When the teacher mentioned hamburgers as a suitable food to order, the friends in our class erupted in cheer.
The teacher, flustered, tapped their raised index finger against their lips and told us to quiet down.
“Shh, be quiet….”
The cheer from our class felt as if we had won 1st place.
The sports festival, which seemed poised to end as dreary as usual, began to shine with the individuality of our classmates, turning out to be unexpectedly enjoyable.
Thus, the sports festival wrapped up several minutes earlier than scheduled.
Even though cafeteria meals were supposed to be provided for lunch at school, the teachers mostly just suggested we eat.
However, there were no other significant restrictions, so there weren’t many students willing to stay an hour longer at school just to eat.
Since we were dressed in casual clothes, some groups of close friends decided to head to the PC bang on a weekday afternoon.
Meanwhile, with lunch approaching, some students headed outside the school with the mindset of just not wanting cafeteria food.
Perhaps because I usually hung out with the PC bang regulars, I found myself receiving an offer from them.
“Mary, are you going to the PC bang today?”
“Pass, it’s been kind of boring lately.”
I lightly declined the offer, choosing instead to head home with Shiyeon.
Though I threw out that excuse, I honestly haven’t found games very fun these days.
Even when I play, it feels more like doing homework than anything enjoyable.
The characters aren’t particularly cute, nor do they have an efficient pay-to-win element.
I’ve just been playing for so long that now, if I try to pick another game, I can’t seem to get involved.
“That defender is nerfed, and he doesn’t even think of playing anymore.”
What Seonhyuk said contributed to the loss of enjoyment in the game.
I wonder if he’s been monitoring the play, but despite the excessive penalties, the character’s durability was so good that there was a relentless nerf due to them being deemed “overpowered.”
Considering how much affection I had for that character, I realized I hadn’t logged in to the game much since the nerf.
“If it gets buffed again, I’ll come back… Adios.”
With my index and middle fingers extended from my fist, I quickly waved goodbye to the group heading to the PC bang by placing the tips of my fingers next to the side of my head and quickly pulling them away.
Since school ended early and it was a weekday with plenty of time, I figured I’d head to the art academy in the afternoon, so I decided to take a slightly different route.
“Shall we go downtown?”
“Where to?”
“Um… how about Rodeo Street? It’s been a while.”
The mention of Rodeo Street came out reflexively.
Thinking about it, I’d hardly ever thought of going there on my own except for when hunting monsters.
While there are things to do, it also has street food stalls and various restaurants operating at lunchtime.
It seemed to be the most suitable place for filling our stomachs and having fun.
“Great!”
Whether she was satisfied with that choice or not, Shiyeon nodded in agreement.
With the destination set, I strolled towards it, casually asking,
“What should we eat for lunch?”
“Um, anything?”
“Anything” is a troublesome answer, both then and now.
I was hungry but didn’t particularly want anything specific, and being out to eat, anything would be fine.
If it had been a friend visiting, I might have given them a light punch, but I couldn’t do that to Shiyeon.
‘Anything….’
Maybe something like unicorn belly fried rice or sasquatch thigh BBQ.
Despite how much I disliked the answer “anything,” I ultimately didn’t mind if it was the same in return.
Still, thinking it would be okay if it was something Shiyeon wanted to eat over my own choice, I glanced over and casually said,
“If you see something you want while we walk, just let me know.”
“Sure!”
Rodeo Street, which at first mention conjures images of horse riding associated with the word “rodeo.”
I’m not particularly interested in why it’s named that, but generally, it refers to a bustling downtown area lined with large buildings.
The way the taller buildings were plastered with signs; from meat restaurants to mobile phone stores, beauty salons, skin clinics, Pilates studios, and cosmetics shops.
Among many others, it was overflowing with shops that could be cited endlessly, like PC bangs and billiard halls.
Even in the daytime on a weekday, several people can be seen actively wandering through the corners of the alleys.
It wasn’t a weekend, so the crowd wasn’t overwhelming, but we walked close enough that we almost stepped on each other’s shoes.
While I had said anything, Shiyeon, glancing everywhere at the high signs, seemed to be eagerly watching.
What does she want to eat that makes her eyes dart around so quickly?
Anyway, since I wasn’t deciding, the choice naturally fell to Shiyeon.
After wandering around for a while, Shiyeon suddenly let out an exclamation.
“Uh?”
“What’s wrong?”
Matching Shiyeon’s abrupt stop, I halted my steps as well.
With her finger pointed out, she spoke briefly.
“That one.”
“…Which one?”
There were so many signs in the direction her finger pointed that I couldn’t make out a single restaurant.
After blinking a few times, I realized I had to ask again.
Feeling that it might be hard to know what she was pointing at, Shiyeon thoughtfully repeated clearly, letter by letter, so I could understand.
“That one, revolving.”
‘Revolving… Ah, found it.’
Between the colorful signs, a picture of sushi and the clear four-letter word stood out.
Staring at the small sign that read “conveyor belt sushi,” I pondered for a while.
Conveyor belt sushi is an element that often appears when watching Japanese anime or cartoons.
I could easily imagine what the taste would be like, but nonetheless, it’s intriguing and something I’d like to experience at least once.
So, is today’s lunch sushi? In the summer, I might hesitate.
Still, since Shiyeon often watches Japanese anime, she might want to try it.
Thinking that, I pointed at the conveyor belt sushi restaurant and asked straightforwardly.
“Do you want to try conveyor belt sushi?”
“…Yeah!”
After a brief moment of hesitation, Shiyeon nodded, seemingly having changed her mind about going.
Even though I’ve eaten a lot of sushi from delivery or buffet places, this will be my first time at a conveyor belt sushi restaurant.
As we entered the store, we found ourselves in a place that instantly radiated a Japanese vibe amidst the streets of Korea.
“Welcome! Are you two?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll show you to your seats-”
Following the kind staff’s guidance, we sat down at a suitable table for four, immediately captivated by the dishes moving along the rails.
The price per dish was between 2000 and 3000 won.
Some plates held two pieces of sushi while others only had one.
Spending 3000 won in one bite for sushi felt a bit burdensome to choose.
On top of that, there were also non-sushi items on the plates.
One plate had just two pieces of shrimp tempura placed on it.
There was even a plate filled with small dessert-like bread.
Unfamiliar with the restaurant’s rules, Shiyeon hesitated to reach out towards the rail.
I boldly extended my hand and grabbed a few plates that were close enough, placing them on the table.
“Just go for it.”
“Oh, okay.”
As I took the lead, Shiyeon hesitantly reached out for the rail to grab some dishes.
Salmon, eel, crab roll, flounder, octopus, and pick whatever you prefer to eat.
Shiyeon also seemed to be observing what I was having, curious about my choices.
Shrimp sushi, inari sushi, egg sushi, shrimp tempura roll, cuttlefish, etc….
Although she was eating a variety, it didn’t seem like she was focusing on one type.
I couldn’t help but wonder if this was the same girl who hated wasabi a few years ago. Once she started, plates piled up continuously.
“Whoa.”
I was worried that we might end up spending 70,000 or 80,000 won because we ordered so much… but it didn’t seem that way.
Once we crossed the ten plates threshold, my body started signaling me not to take in more.
Shiyeon was also doing well eating one or two more plates, but it seemed she reached her limit as well.
The speed at which she was eating significantly slowed, and there was hesitance in her chopsticks.
However, isn’t it often said that there’s always room for dessert?
Finishing every plate of sushi, we each took one plate of the bread-like desserts and nibble on them for a wrap-up.
Lunch had filled us so much that we couldn’t possibly eat more.
“That’ll be 51,000 won.”
“We ate a lot.”
“Hehe.”
After finishing our satisfying lunch and moving to pay, I noted that the meal bill comfortably exceeded 50,000 won, and Shiyeon’s brief playful laugh tickled my ears.
In the brief moment while I handed over the card and the staff was processing the payment, I glanced at Shiyeon’s stomach.
It protruded slightly as if to reveal how much we’d eaten.
“What about that tummy?”
“Eek, stop it….”
As I playfully tapped it, she shyly withdrew, pushing her bottom back to hide her belly inside.
However, I couldn’t say anything, as I was also feeling a little gained after our meal.
“What should we do now?”
Seeking to take a walk and digest enough to justify our meal, I asked Shiyeon if there was a place she wanted to go next.
Shiyeon’s brief response was…
“Um, home?”
It was a transparent answer.
She was full, ready to head home and rest until her class time.
I wasn’t about to fall for that plan, so after a short silence, I opened my mouth.
“…How about we walk?”
“Ugh.”
“If you go home and lay down right after eating, that’s not great, is it? Let’s walk to help with digestion.”
“Ugh….”
Even while grumbling, Shiyeon obediently followed behind me.
Having eaten that much, taking a taxi or bus felt too extreme considering the excess calories we had consumed.
Let’s walk for our health.
