Escape from an Ancient Civilization Ch 185

Chapter 185 Side Story 7

 

Given that all the luggage had been loaded onto the flatbed truck, there was no avoiding a stop at a restaurant if they wanted to eat.

“Mm.”

Without even asking what kind of place it was, Medeus immediately agreed to the idea. Narrowing his eyes, Nataek asked,

“And how do you know what kind of restaurant I’m thinking of?”

“Wherever you want to go is fine with me.”

And this was the issue for Medeus in modern life. Since coming here, he hadn’t been candid about matters where consideration from Nataek was warranted—his own preferences, or his unsettled feelings. It weighed on Nataek’s mind. After thinking it over for a while, Nataek took Medeus’s hand and led him toward the wall side of the alley.

“Cars might pass through. Come over here.”

Nataek lifted his phone.

[Gion-dong foreign restaurants]

Medeus stared fixedly at the screen in Nataek’s hand. As if trying to read the small letters together, his pale hair edged closer to Nataek’s forehead.

“Vietnamese… Thai restaurants… pasta…”

Most of the food they’d ordered at home so far followed simple cooking methods from ancient times—grilled meats, fruit, sometimes stews Medeus had made. But no matter how much he searched, he couldn’t find anything quite like that. Among the dishes Medeus ate best, meat was the easiest to find, but no barbecue place would be open this early.

After deliberating for a while, Nataek searched a different term.

[Gion-dong steak]

As he skimmed the map in the results, a shadow of hair fluttered lightly across the front of the phone. Glancing sideways, he saw Medeus with a serious expression, pressed right up close to him. The sight of two very tall men knocking heads together to look at a palm-sized screen made him laugh.

“What’s funny?”

“Just that the two of us are doing this.”

After a moment’s thought, Nataek decided to give the choice to Medeus.

“What should we eat? Pick for us.”

He flipped through the food photos he had saved, one by one.

“This is steak—you’ve had it a few times, right? The walk’s a bit long, and… hmm, the reviews aren’t that great…”

He kept swiping when Medeus pointed at one photo.

“What’s this?”

What he chose was a chicken leg with pale meat showing above a milky broth. Below the image was the word “restorative.” Placing his finger on that word, Medeus said,

“This sounds good.”

With a low murmur, Nataek checked again.

“Really… this is okay?”

“Welcome! How many?”

“Two.”

At opening time, the samgyetang place was quiet. It was fortunate there weren’t many people, but Medeus choosing this spot was unexpected. He had only added it to the list to include something a bit different. Never would he have imagined Medeus picking samgyetang out of so many options.

More naturally than expected, Medeus went to the table the staff indicated and sat. Looking at the slightly shabby shop and its menu, Nataek felt needlessly apologetic. If he’d known, he would have found a better spot in advance. They wouldn’t be coming into the city for a while; he should have taken him somewhere nicer for a great meal.

Chiding himself, Nataek wore a bitter expression. Noticing the change, Medeus fixed his light-colored irises on him.

“Is this place no good? Is the food bad?”

Quickly arranging his features, Nataek replied,

“No. That’s not it.”

He tilted the acrylic menu board that stood like a sign and held it out to Medeus.

“What do you want to eat? This one’s well-cooked chicken, and scorched-rice… this one will be nuttier. Oh? They have duck, too. If you prefer duck over chicken, that could work as well.”

Medeus stared holes into the menu. His gaze locked on the special samgyetang labeled as a restorative.

“I’ll have this. You should have the same as me.”

He recommended it to Nataek. Having no idea what standard guided Medeus’s choice, Nataek agreed without suspicion.

On the way to the restroom, he placed their order. During the brief time of his absence, Medeus was left alone at the table. Folding his arms, he surveyed the surroundings. The only other customer was a middle-aged man seated in a corner. The man poured water from a bottle and took a drink.

Medeus immediately looked at his own table. There were no water glasses or jug; only a wooden box and some strange containers for seasonings. Just then, a staff member arrived with a tray. Medeus watched quietly as the staff set things down: a jar of kimchi and a water bottle. The most necessary items—the spoon and the water cups—were missing. His eyes went to the name tag on the staff member.

[Kim Seon-ae]

A passing remark from a time they had visited a restaurant together floated up in his memory.

“In this place, people usually call even first-time acquaintances by their names. Sure, some are called by rank or job, like High Priest or General, but fundamentally you exchange names and use them. It’s a bit complicated… I’ll explain it properly later.”

Medeus addressed the staff member just as she was about to leave.

“Kim Seon-ae.”

Startled at being addressed by name, she froze where she stood.

“Y-yes?”

“There are no water cups.”

“Ah… yes. I’ll bring them right away.”

“And with people you’re meeting for the first time, it’s normal to use polite speech. This is a society that prioritizes age over status. It can vary by situation, but for now, it’s easier to remember it that way.”

As she picked up the tray, Medeus said,

“There are no spoons, either.”

“The spoons are in that wooden holder.”

Medeus immediately lifted the wooden lid. Seeing the neatly arranged spoons, he gave a small nod. The staff cast him a curious look and walked back toward the kitchen. Medeus picked up the water bottle and stared intently at the kitchen. Under that persistent gaze, the staff hurried over and set down the water cups.

“Here are your water cups.”

“Since there are no slaves or attendants here, if someone shows kindness or helps, it’s normal to say thank you.”

“Thank you.”

Medeus expressed his gratitude. Even so, the staff’s expression didn’t brighten much. A foreigner switching between plain and polite forms; yet with more precise pronunciation than most Koreans—it seemed to throw her off.

“Does he speak Korean or not…”

Muttering under her breath, she headed back toward the kitchen. Around then, Nataek returned from the restroom. Medeus poured water and set it before him—the very thing Nataek always did for Medeus.

“Thanks.”

Nataek drank naturally and smiled.

Whether because there weren’t many people, or because the shabby interior resembled an ancient tavern, Medeus blended into the scene far more naturally than he had at other restaurants. That only made Nataek more tenderly concerned.

“There are so many delicious places. I should’ve scouted somewhere nice in advance.”

Medeus slowly cupped Nataek’s cheek, from which disappointment seemed to drip.

“I like it here. It’s nice.”

From behind Nataek, who accepted Medeus’s touch naturally, startled looks flew their way. The middle-aged man tilting a clay pot to sip broth and the staff member whose name had been called kept sneaking glances at their table. Though he felt those eyes from behind, Nataek tried to act as if it didn’t bother him. The look in Medeus’s eyes across from him was so serene and content.

Medeus took to the samgyetang better than expected. He blew on the steam and tore into the meat, and spooned out the rice stuffed inside the chicken’s belly with firm efficiency. Just watching him made Nataek feel full. Unintentionally, perhaps because they’d had a restorative dish, he felt more energized than the day before.

After finishing their meal, they took a taxi straight away. A car was the one mode of transport in the modern world that Medeus had managed to get somewhat used to. He still wasn’t familiar with the concept of money here, though. Partly because every time Nataek made a purchase, he paid with a single card instead of cash.

Medeus stared intently at the card Nataek handed over to pay the taxi fare, then stepped out of the cab after him.

They arrived at a rural village on the outskirts of Gyeonggi Province. Stepping into the yard of a quiet house, Nataek murmured softly,

“Wow. It’s been so long.”

There was no sense of anyone being home. Matching Nataek’s slow pace across the yard, Medeus walked in step beside him.

“Is this your house too?”

“Strictly speaking, it’s my grandparents’ house, but it’s basically mine.”

After his parents died in an accident, Nataek had been taken in by his grandparents. Despite losing his parents early, he lacked for nothing. He hadn’t suffered financially thanks to their inheritance, and he received strict yet warm care from grandparents who had spent their lives as educators. Even after becoming an adult and losing them as well, the environment in which he’d grown up had had a major influence on his ability to live independently.

Footnotes:

1. Samgyetang: A Korean “restorative” dish of whole young chicken stuffed with glutinous rice, ginseng, jujube, and garlic, simmered in broth; often associated with replenishing energy.