5.
Gwon Restaurant, famous for its fine dining Korean cuisine.
Normally, it would be impossible to get a reservation even a month in advance, let alone just a day before.
But there are always exceptions in life.
Perhaps if you were close with the chef.
Or if you were an investor when the restaurant was first established.
In either case, it was possible to secure at least one seat.
Yоо Gwang-jin fit both of these criteria.
"Wow."
"How is it possible to book a place like this just a day in advance?"
"I know, right?"
The two of them, unaware of the situation, looked around in surprise.
They were guided into a private room and sat down.
Both were astonished by the interior, which was quite modern and stylish.
They had expected a traditional Korean restaurant, maybe one in a hanok-style building, but this was nothing like that.
It was a modern dining space.
They never imagined they’d actually be dining at a place famous on social dia, often featured on TV.
As Seong and Yu Mina looked around, their parents smiled and watched them with amusent.
"Hehe, you two are surprised, aren't you?"
"Hmm, I guess we should have co here sooner."
"Yeah, right?"
From their reaction, it seed like they had been here quite often.
Thinking back...
‘We should’ve gone together...’
‘But we said we didn’t want to, right?’
It’s common for kids to refuse when parents suggest going sowhere.
As Seong and Yu Mina regretted their past decision, the door to the room quietly opened.
They thought it might be the nu or so food being brought in.
"Ah! Mr. Yu, you’ve arrived! Welco!"
A well-dressed chef wearing a neat uniform and beaming with a bright smile greeted them.
Seong and Yu Mina were taken aback, wondering what was going on.
Seeing their father, Yоо Gwang-jin, and mother, Lee Na-gyeong, stand up in response, they automatically got up as well.
"Hehe, thank you for the warm welco, Mr. Kwon."
"Ah, Mr. Yu, you’re always welco anyti!"
The chef, whom they hadn’t expected to greet them so warmly, left them feeling slightly disoriented.
They knew that their father, Yоо Gwang-jin, ran a company, but did he really have such a close relationship with a famous restaurant owner-chef?
To be able to book a place a day in advance, they must have so kind of connection.
It was sothing they’d heard of, but couldn’t quite process in their minds.
They were surprised by another side of their father.
He had always lived simply and hadn’t moved houses in over 20 years, yet here he was, casually greeting a high-profile chef.
‘I thought we were just living okay...’
‘Maybe Dad’s doing better than we thought?’
Seong and Yu Mina whispered to each other.
As they were doing so, Yоо Gwang-jin introduced the rest of the family.
"Ah, as you probably rember, this is my wife, and these two are our daughter and son."
"Oh! So your children are with you today!"
"Hehe, yes, my son is here to celebrate sothing today."
"Ah! Is this the son you ntioned before? His na is Seong, right?"
Upon hearing Yоо Gwang-jin’s words, the middle-aged man called Mr. Kwon looked at Seong with a surprised expression.
Looking directly at Seong, he smiled warmly.
"Ha ha ha, congratulations! Since you’re here with family to celebrate, I’ll leave you to enjoy the al. I’ll make sure to pay extra attention to your dishes."
"Ha ha, Mr. Kwon, your cooking doesn’t need any special attention to be great. I’m sure it’ll be delicious!"
"Ha ha, oh no, not at all. There’s still room for improvent. I’ll take my leave now."
After so pleasantries, the family sat back down.
Both Seong and Yu Mina were confused, but Yоо Gwang-jin just seed to take it in stride.
When they looked at him as if asking for an explanation, Yоо Gwang-jin chuckled and said,
"Oh, I t him a while ago."
"Seems like it, huh?"
"...Wasn’t that a bit vague?"
"No, Dad, what kind of business do you do that gives you such connections?"
"Hehe. I just run a small company."
Seeing their father brush it off, both Seong and Yu Mina tilted their heads, confused.
Neither of them was the type to press for answers.
They decided to just let it go and think that their father was doing better than they realized.
Soon, several dishes were brought out, and they found the food to be completely different from what they had expected from Korean cuisine.
"Wow!? Is this gimbap? It’s so delicious!"
"This is so different from what I expected!"
Both Seong and Yu Mina had similar reactions.
The food suited both Seong’s taste for traditional Korean dishes and Yu Mina’s preference for Western cuisine.
It was indeed a fusion of Korean and Western fine dining.
The al was incredibly satisfying, and both of them ate happily.
Yоо Gwang-jin, who had brought them, smiled contentedly as he watched.
Of course, Lee Na-gyeong, their mother, was also equally pleased.
"Why didn’t you follow us here sooner if you like it so much?"
"Wow, I didn’t know we were eating sothing this good!"
"Yeah, right?"
"Hehe, see? You two would have joined us if we’d ntioned how good it was."
"Cough cough."
Was it that mothers just knew best about these things?
Yоо Gwang-jin cleared his throat and pretended to look away, enjoying the peaceful mont.
As delicious and extravagant dishes continued to be served, Seong, feeling the effects of too many drinks, excused himself to use the restroom.
"Where’s the bathroom?"
"Oh, just leave the room, turn left, and it’ll be there."
"I’ll be right back."
Seong stood up and left the room.
Finding the restroom wasn’t difficult.
Once he finished his business and washed his hands, he stepped out into a spacious hall.
The atmosphere was quite different from the room, so Seong took a quick glance around.
The layout seed similar, but the open hall had its own charm.
Maybe next ti we’ll eat out here...
As he thought about that and prepared to return to the room, a round of applause suddenly erupted.
What was that?
Turning his head to check, Seong saw a blonde foreigner clapping after having tasted a dish.
"Han... bok?"
She was wearing a modified hanbok, and her erald green eyes shone with a peculiar charm.
Her exotic appearance, combined with the hanbok, was quite an unusual sight.
Seong, unsure of what to make of it, decided to ignore her and move on.
"Truly amazing!!! This is definitely a fusion, but it carries the spirit of Joseon. Such an excellent dish!!!"
She was shouting so strange things.
Although the food was indeed delicious, for soone to suddenly jump up, clap, and speak like that...
It wasn’t sothing you saw every day.
It felt a bit odd.
Seong was about to move past her when a strange sense of déjà vu hit him.
Her youthful face and foreign features... he felt like he had seen her sowhere before.
"Ah, is this the true spirit of Joseon!? I must say, I am truly impressed!"
That damn tone.
And not only was she a foreigner, but her Korean was also quite remarkable.
There was sothing oddly familiar about her.
In an instant, Seong recalled a woman he had seen before, one wearing a sword.
‘Kim Che-geon?’
No, why would Kim Che-geon be here?
The surprise almost made him blurt sothing out, but Seong’s calm nature helped him keep quiet.
Still, if Seong recognized Kim Che-geon, wouldn't Kim Che-geon recognize him too?
Given that Seong’s appearance was almost identical to his in the ga, the chances of recognition were high.
‘Better get out of here quickly.’
Seong didn’t particularly dislike or hate Kim Che-geon, but he was not an easy person to deal with in real life.
It would be best to avoid him.
As Seong began to turn back toward the room, he noticed sothing bluish-green flickering beside Kim Che-geon.
It was a familiar shape to Seong, sothing he had seen countless tis before.
‘A ghost?’
However, this ghost was different from the others he had encountered.
He had seen hundreds, maybe thousands of ghosts in his life, but this was the first ti he had seen one like this.
A foreign ghost?
No, they weren’t exactly rare on the streets.
It wasn’t that the ghost was Western, but...
‘Why is it wearing dieval armor and carrying a sword?’
The ghost looked like sothing out of a ga, dressed in dieval armor and carrying a sword, which was rather unusual.
At this mont, however, that wasn’t what mattered.
The ghost and Kim Che-geon hadn’t noticed Seong yet.
It was his chance.
Seong quickly turned back and reentered the room.
Luckily, he hadn’t been spotted.
"Phew."
"Huh? Seong, what’s wrong?"
Yu Mina’s voice, filled with concern, made Seong shake his head, signaling that everything was fine.
"It’s nothing."
"Hmm? Okay?"
Yu Mina responded and seed to let it go.
But Seong was far from calm about it.
‘What’s up with the ghost following Kim Che-geon?’
Kim Che-geon was a Joseon history enthusiast, so it made sense that he could co to a fine-dining Korean restaurant.
Though it was a bit odd that he was wearing a modified hanbok, it was still understandable.
But the ghost attached to him—what was that?
There were often ghosts that attached themselves to people.
Perhaps it was a guardian spirit?
In so old families or prestigious clans, the spirits of great ancestors lingered on.
Sotis, a spirit would attach itself to a person it admired.
Which of these two cases was it? Seong wasn’t sure, but one thing was clear.
‘It looks like a dieval knight.’
It seed like the soul of a knight from the dieval era.
Maybe it was because they were in a place associated with knights?
Seong’s curiosity grew regarding the ghost dressed like a knight.
But he couldn’t go up and act like he knew Kim Che-geon.
Maybe this ghost could help Seong with so of his current concerns?
Thinking about the ga while eating—was that a sign of a serious obsession?
Regardless, he was genuinely curious.
Ti passed, and the al concluded.
The chef ca out to thank them personally.
Seong, pushing his curiosity aside, thanked him as well and was about to leave when a voice called out from a distance.
"Yu Mina, is that you??"
"Huh?"
The voice, which recognized his sister, made Seong and everyone else turn their heads.
A beautiful blonde woman, dressed in a modified hanbok and with erald eyes, stood there, looking elegant.
Seong glanced at his sister, wondering why she wasn’t the one who was recognized first.
‘Do they know each other, Kim Che-geon and her?’
What was going on?
Yu Mina seed just as puzzled, staring at Kim Che-geon with a look that said she found this situation troubleso.
She probably already knew this would be awkward.
"Ah, so you know her, Seong?"
"Ah, heh heh! Please call Kim Che-geon from Joseon."
"Oh my, Seong, who is this? Do you know her?"
"Heh, looks like it."
"No, you recognized my sister first."
As their parents suddenly joined the conversation, the whole scene beca chaotic.
Then, a ghost chid in:
-Hallo?! Kannst du mich sehen!? Dann bitte trocknen Sie ine Nachkomn aus!!! (Ho!? Can you see ? If so, please dry out my descendants!!!)
And then, there was the ghost interfering too.
"Haah."
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