This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 4

The reason I called the little one over is simple.

After all, danger should be spread out for the real flavor, right?

Well, my mom said it was because the kids are hungry, and she wouldn’t normally get that angry about it… but you never know.

‘By the way…’

I stepped up, but what should I feed them?

Since I couldn’t use fire or a knife, naturally the menu became quite limited.

If I could use fire, I would’ve boiled up a delicious bowl of ramen to serve.

And even if making kimbap was a bit beyond me, if I could at least whip up some rice balls to go along, that would be perfect.

Wait a moment.

‘Rice balls?’

That could work.

I thought it was a pretty suitable menu, nodding to myself when I suddenly heard the sound of little footsteps pattering from behind.

After a long time of nothing, did they finally get up and follow me?

They did follow me as I said, but I had no idea why they called me over or what they wanted to do.

Savoring the hesitation coming from behind, I glanced up towards the sink.

And then, I gave up.

I might just barely be able to reach if I stood on my tiptoes, but they definitely couldn’t do that.

And pulling over a chair from the table next to me as a stepping stool was just too much of a hassle.

So—

“Hey, put these on.”

Instead of washing my hands at the sink, I took out a pair of plastic gloves from the drawer beside me and held them out towards the little one, no, Yoonseo.

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‘Weird.’

It’s strange, Yoonseo thought.

Every time she moved her hands, it made a rustling noise. It was odd how she accidentally ended up putting them on and the one who made her wear them was just as strange.

What on earth was she trying to do moving around like that?

Struggling, she dragged the chair all the way to the front of the fridge, and then used it as a stepping stool to sneak her body inside the fridge, which looked a lot like that ostrich I’d seen on TV once.

That ostrich, frightened by a fierce predator, had stuck its head into a hole like that.

‘What a fool.’

Hiding your head doesn’t hide everything.

While Yoonseo was thinking that to herself, Dogun, balancing on top of the chair, managed to pull something out from inside the fridge.

And it was only natural for Yoonseo to wrinkle her nose when she realized what he was holding in his hand.

What he pulled out from the fridge was a container of stir-fried anchovies, which she absolutely despised.

Anchovies were gross.

For such a tiny body, her large eyes felt disturbingly big compared to her size.

So she was slightly scrunching her face at the sight—

“What? Do you hate anchovies or something?”

Suddenly, Dogun’s voice rang in her ear.

She flinched, unable to hide her surprise.

How did he even know without looking this way?

What bothered her even more was the strange laughter lingering in Dogun’s voice.

Was he mocking her for being seven years old and not able to eat anchovies like an adult?

In reality, Dogun wasn’t really mocking Yoonseo. He just thought it was cute that she might dislike something at her age… But for Yoonseo, who was already feeling tangled up due to suddenly moving and saying goodbye to her old friends, everything just seemed bad.

“…Even without friends.”

So she mumbled quietly. But right after saying that, she couldn’t help but flinch.

“Huh? What did you say?”

And how could it be that Dogun was suddenly right in front of her!

Did he hear what I said?

Her heart raced quickly at that thought.

What if he got mad?

What if he tells me to get out?

Dad isn’t here yet, so do I have to wait outside until he comes?

Outside… It was scary.

It had already turned dark outside, and according to Mom and Dad, there were many bad adults out there.

Wouldn’t it be best if I apologized and said I’m sorry right now?

‘But…’

He teased me first.

While she was thinking that, Yoonseo hesitantly raised her head just enough to check Dogun’s expression as he was dropping the container of stir-fried anchovies onto the table where Yoonseo had been sitting.

In that instant, she felt any intention to apologize disappear completely.

Could he possibly be asking me to eat that?

Because of the earlier… gurgling sound?

If so, he must be an idiot.

Stir-fried anchovies were a side dish.

And side dishes are meant to be eaten with rice.

That’s how it is at kindergarten and home, right?

So how could he only bring the side dish?

‘Idiot…’

Judging by the look on his face, it was quite clear that he hadn’t heard her mumble earlier.

So maybe she didn’t have to apologize.

While Yoonseo was thinking this way, Dogun went back and forth between the table and the fridge several times.

From Yoonseo’s viewpoint, it looked like he was just randomly grabbing anything, but in reality, he was quite meticulously selecting things.

With Dogun’s efforts, when he finally gathered a bunch of things suitable for making rice balls from what was inside the fridge, he turned to the cabinet next to the sink, grabbing a shiny stainless steel bowl and a spatula from the sink. Then he scooped up a lot of rice from the rice cooker into the bowl.

Yoonseo had no idea that she was watching this with an expression of confusion.

Anyway, after successfully securing all the ingredients for rice balls, Dogun started sprinkling sesame oil and salt onto the rice he had in the bowl, and while watching him, Yoonseo thought once again.

This kid really is strange.

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‘Is this enough?’

As he stirred the bowl to mix the sesame oil and salt into the rice, it started to become heavy on his arm, and Dogun paused stirring.

Then he scooped a bit of the contents with the spatula to taste.

‘Mmm.’

Not bad.

To be honest?

It would have been fine just to eat it like this.

Even though he just tossed things in without thinking too much, it managed to be moderately salty and nutty, which was quite nice.

‘Oh, I want bibimbap…’

If he were to take out the dried fern he had avoided knowing the kid would dislike it and throw it in with a big scoop of gochujang, mixing it all up would be a delightful taste.

And if he made a fried egg to go along, it would be the perfect combo.

However, since it had to go into the mouth of a seven-year-old, it would be better to avoid spicy flavors for now, so he decided to save that satisfaction for later.

Maybe if he asked his mom for bibimbap, she would make it for him.

Anyway, since it seemed the base for the rice balls was well mixed, it was time to start the actual rice ball making.

‘But first…’

He carefully put on the plastic gloves and reached into the bowl to check the temperature.

After all, a child’s skin is, well, tender, and even a little warmth could be bad.

Since the entire point of doing this was to eat and live, there was no way he would risk it for a single meal.

When he checked, it was pleasantly warm to the touch.

It should be just right for him to hand over now, as the ingredients would mix in and cool off a bit.

‘Alright then…’

First is this.

Nodding to himself, he popped open the container of the stir-fried anchovies with a loud snap, and Yoonseo, who had been looking at him with wary eyes, crinkled her face slightly.

She’d done it again; she didn’t like stir-fried anchovies, did she?

Honestly, that wasn’t surprising.

It was rare to find a seven-year-old who didn’t have a picky palate.

Just as preferences exist for everyone, preferences exist in the world of seven-year-olds as well.

“I guess you really do hate stir-fried anchovies.”

He said this, but—

“Oh, no I don’t?!”

She’s not, apparently.

And she said it quite forcefully as if her pride had been hurt.

To the adults, she was just a seven-year-old, but maybe from her perspective, being thought to be a picky eater at her age bothered her.

Anyway… Since she said no, he figured it should be fine to add them.

‘A rice ball with stir-fried anchovies? I can’t resist that.’

Those who’ve tried it would know the sensation of the tiny, crispy anchovies being squished between the rice grains in your mouth.

But those larger than fingernail-sized ones wouldn’t work.

Only that tiny stir-fried anchovy can become one with the rice balls.

‘Gotta put in a lot.’

But he wasn’t just going to dump everything in blindly.

There were also chili peppers mixed in with the stir-fried anchovies, and if he poured them in all together, there could be an unintended spiciness.

If it were just for himself, he wouldn’t care, but… For the sake of the seven-year-old, he had to be careful.

So Dogun carefully picked out only the anchovies to add, then moved on to the next ingredient.

Next up was the pickled radish.

Of course, it wasn’t just any pickled radish.

It was made from dried radish!

If he added this?

The crunchy texture would be fantastic.

And then sprinkle some of that wickedly delicious furikake developed by many esteemed scholars for kids who don’t eat.

‘Finishing touch.’

On top of that, he would sprinkle sweet, salty, and even crispy seaweed flakes and mix it well?

Now that’s how you get the ultimate rice ball.

In front of the ultimate rice ball, was it possible that even a tsundere little one couldn’t resist?

Up until the moment he threw in the stir-fried anchovies, Yoonseo had been watching the contents of the bowl with a look similar to someone staring at a pizza topped with pineapple.

But now, her gaze was wildly shifting, unable to find steady ground.

It felt like she was stuck between ‘There’s no way a rice ball with stir-fried anchovies could taste good!’ and ‘But… it does look tasty?’

At least her eyes were like that, and her mouth seemed to open slightly as if she was ready to let some drool fall at any second.

Was that the reason?

After sending me one signal before, Yoonseo’s stomach rumbled again loudly.

Grrrrr—!

Did she feel so embarrassed by having heard that noise not just once, but twice?

I extended the ball towards her, seeing Yoonseo’s face turning beet red.

“Hey.”

Maintaining the most indifferent expression I could manage could only bring her head, which had been hanging low, to rise slowly.

“Do you know how to make rice balls?”

“…You.”

“What did you say?”

“…I don’t know.”

“Is that so? I learned it at kindergarten… Want me to teach you?”

Although I was speaking bluntly, perhaps my body couldn’t help but be honest.

Just as she felt like she would lose if she nodded her head, with her face blushing, she stammered for a moment, but couldn’t resist the delicious smell wafting over, and slowly nodded her head.