Chapter: 5
“Isn’t this kimchi way too salty and spicy?”
Gulp!!!
“You, you’re not that kind of character, right?!”
When it comes to preserving the spirit of the Korean people, what does character matter? Seizing my chance, I loudly yelled Gulp!!
Even if the Magic Tower Master had a medieval fantasy palate, shouldn’t the soul contained in the dish be respected, even if they don’t grasp the deep flavors of Korean cuisine?
“Then, shouldn’t we respect the 100-year history of the Purple Magic Tower…?”
When compared to the 5,000-year history of the Korean people, it’s a gap as big as paper and logs.
I was the type that generally didn’t listen to commands from those weaker than me.
“It’s twice as weird as usual… Ah, but this is delicious.”
“Ah, do you not know? That’s called ‘Doenjang-guk’ (Soybean Paste Soup).”
“…There’s nothing weird in here, right?”
It seems they’re worried that some hallucinogen might be in the food considering my continuous character breakdown.
But how could there possibly be a hallucinogen in food created with illusion magic?
Hmm.
It felt like I had returned to Earth, and I couldn’t help but feel good about it.
Even if all of this was merely an illusion created by magic.
That’s why I had such high tension.
Since my sudden reincarnation in this other world, nearly 20 years had passed.
After smelling only the stench of medieval cow dung for 20 years, I had wandered through a properly represented South Korea.
If one isn’t moved by this, they’re not human.
There was one more reason for my heightened emotions. Korean DNA has a mechanism that allows one to feel satisfaction when eating food heartily.
Not only that, but being a foreigner on top of that grants a booster of national pride, tripling the satisfaction.
Even though the Purple Magic Tower Master was older than me, if you looked only at her face, she resembled a student.
As the refreshing rain of national pride poured down on the soul that had dried up for 20 years, an unspeakable sense of fulfillment surged in my chest.
“This is oddly delicious…”
The Purple Magic Tower Master picked at the spare ribs with a fork and knife, her mouth working enthusiastically.
Seeing her carefully savoring the flavors made me realize she was indeed a noble.
Aren’t nobles generally gourmands?
Even in her unbalanced appearance while carving spare ribs, one could sense an elegant nobility.
As she grasped the knife with delicate fingers, a subtle softness radiated from her.
Just as admiration arises when witnessing an actor’s passionate performance on stage, there’s a certain grace in the manners of the nobility that captivates observers. It was pleasant to watch her eat.
So, I controlled the nearby guests (NPCs) to offer some praise.
“Wooaaah, look at that foreigner… eating so elegantly!”
“Is that what grace looks like? Ugh! We commoners can’t reach that realm…!!”
“It’s cute like a hamster! Could it be that she’s a celebrity—someone who has gained much popularity among the people and is sometimes an object of admiration?”
As whispers of praise poured in from the surroundings, the Purple Magic Tower Master’s ears warmed to a proper temperature.
In this world, there are those who dance when praised and those who squeak; the Magic Tower Master was the latter.
Maybe feeling a little self-conscious, she was over-exaggerating to appear more noble, yet the blonde foreigner, who was clearly a noble just a minute ago, had vanished, leaving only the girl fumbling with the knife.
“Wooaaah, look at that foreigner… she’s really fumbling around!”
“I think I can hear something creaking from her joints, ugh! We commoners can’t reach that realm…!!”
“It’s cute like a hamster! Could she be a hamster—a mammal belonging to the family Cricetidae and subfamily Cricetinae?”
The Magic Tower Master jabbed the table with her fork.
“…H-Hey, don’t! You did that, didn’t you?”
“I didn’t!”
“If it wasn’t on purpose, there’s no way someone dining next to you would suddenly give such a casual explanation of a word like ‘celebrity’ they’d never heard before!”
It was so characteristic of the Magic Tower Master to only take issue with me after I poked fun while she stayed quiet amidst the compliments. The Purple Magic Tower Master, Yuna, was still in a phase where she craved flattery.
As a TRPG Master, one must strike a balance between one’s desires and the player’s requests. My original plan was to show the Magic Tower Master the landmarks of South Korea.
If she craved compliments, perhaps it would be wise to raise the proportion of kudos in future developments.
So, while the Purple Magic Tower Master was gulping down some kimchi and slurping water, I asked her.
(She seemed to have grown fond of it after eating.)
“If you’d like, shall we make the next scene ‘Due to my pheromone ability granted to me when I accidentally fell into this other world, I get confessed to by handsome guys for no reason?!'”
The Magic Tower Master spat water through her nose.
For the sake of her honor, I shall refrain from further description.
Prrhkk, Waaagh…!
Choking on the kimchi-like spicy food caused devastating harm to her nasal mucosa.
The Magic Tower Master screamed close to a kyah! as she held her nose, perhaps having a bit of a stuffy nose.
Thinking she was startled due to not having a prior explanation, I provided some context.
“The original theme of this experience was set around Yuna’s excitement and anxiety about falling into a foreign world. She realizes there are many differences as she explores completely separate civilizations, yet she also comes to understand that some things remain unchanged. While reflecting on the inherent value of being human, she returns to her original world.”
Cough, cough…
“But I thought you’d find it more satisfying to just be in a one-sided romantic relationship with handsome men.”
“What do you think of me?! That kind of thing can wait until later, but for now… do what you want. You want to show me something, right?”
This person didn’t deny the part about getting confessed to by handsome guys but asked for that to be saved for later.
Wasn’t that a rather refined request? It was a most pleasing thing.
This world has many areas that are still lacking. There would need to be many tests, and if the Magic Tower Master could join in, that would be even better.
Even excluding practicality, it was just plain fun to hang out with the Magic Tower Master.
I answered with a smile.
“What I want to show you, I’ve already shown. The brilliant city lights, a table filled with all sorts of seasonings, a day marred by pollution. What happens on top of that doesn’t matter.”
I merely needed a friend with whom I could share similar sentiments.
Aren’t games like that as well?
When recommending a game, how your friend enjoys it isn’t a crucial point.
Whether they play in a romantic style or push for maximum efficiency, it doesn’t matter.
The important thing is just the fact that you’re playing the same game.
I actually hoped that the Magic Tower Master would enjoy herself a bit more.
“On the contrary, don’t you have any curiosities? Is there something else you want to see in this world?”
“…I’d like to go to a clothing store once.”
“That’s unexpected. I mean, you usually only wear a hooded robe. I used to bet with the seniors about how many of the same outfit you had.”
For the record, I guessed five outfits. She gave off the impression that she’d wear the same clothing from Monday to Friday and then wash it all at once on the weekend.
I wondered if this remark was taken as a challenge to her femininity because the Magic Tower Master seemed indignant.
“I do have normal clothes, you know?!”
“Then why haven’t you worn them?”
“Because I’m embarrassed…!”
It seemed there were plenty of things to feel embarrassed about.
“Alright, let’s go together.”
===============================================================
“Hey… are you all allowed to wear such scandalous things in your world…?”
“Umm…”
The resources of the illusionary South Korea devised by magic come from my head.
In other words, I can’t conjure up anything I don’t know or haven’t seen before.
Since I honed my insight through torturous hours of shopping wait with my ex-girlfriend, I have a basic understanding of what normal women’s clothing looks like.
However, I wasn’t well-versed enough to stuff a gigantic department store full of clothing. So, I had to make a choice.
Do I fill the space with repeated outfits?
Or do I fill the empty space with… other knowledge?
I chose the latter. Even if I don’t end up using it later, it’s always better to have something than to have nothing.
I had a rather calculated motive. The department store is known to induce dizziness and chaos among those with a low “female power.” A person whose mind is disoriented would then be likely to think, “Let’s stop looking at clothes and see something else,” and escape the department store.
Considering the Magic Tower Master’s “female power,” which included tossing her usual socks around heedlessly, I figured she would be subdued by two stalls.
“I guess it’s like this in another world, huh…?”
I expected her to suggest we go eat some chicken afterward.
The Magic Tower Master surpassed six stores, and that was the entirety of what I remembered as “normal women’s clothing.” From the seventh store, it was all “not-so-normal women’s clothing.”
Clothes that would tug at a man’s heartstrings.
You know, like reverse bunny suits, band-aids, slingshots, bikinis, and feathered fluff.
“These aren’t your typical clothes. They’re more for the bed…”
“Sleepwear? Some of those seem like they’d be uncomfortable to wear?”
“When moving as a pair on a bed…”
“….”
The Magic Tower Master hung back up the Santa costume she was holding.
It seemed like she had finally grasped why there were slits in the underwear.
“I’ll wait in front of the shop.”
I made a hasty exit, as this situation could easily turn into harassment with even the slightest misstep.
I came out, and about three minutes later, the Magic Tower Master also exited the shop.
Though it was ‘me’ who emerged, this world was an illusion I conjured with magic. This meant the entire world was literally in my palm, and if things happened within, I could discern them as if looking in.
I pretended not to see the Magic Tower Master eagerly examining some terribly risque underwear.
===============================================================
From then on, we tried various things. I had her play a traditional Korean game embedded with the spirit of the Korean people.
(She claimed to have learned military strategy before being exiled from her clan, so maybe that’s why her skill was no joke.)
We also enjoyed some seafood pancakes and a drink of makgeolli.
(I still couldn’t get drunk because intoxication wasn’t implemented.)
Then, we got into a conversation about how such tall buildings could be built in a world without magic, and I lightly conducted a science lecture.
“So, matter is assembled from very tiny particles, and this world called Earth is but a minuscule speck in a ridiculously vast cosmos?”
“Yes.”
The Magic Tower Master was struck head-on by modern science and fell into a groggy state.
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