Living Dangerously with a 999-Year-Old Gumiho – Chapter 70

Hyun placed the last covered pot on the dining table, filling the kitchen with the warm aroma of the steaming doenjang jjigae.

Egg rolls and various side dishes were already set on the table.

Nomi and Yoonhwa quickly took their seats at the table, eagerly watching Hyun.

As Hyun brought the last bowl of rice and sat down, Yoonhwa’s eyes sparkled at the sight of it.

She stood up and said in a bright voice, “I’ll eat well~!!”

No sooner had Yoonhwa finished her sentence than Nomi and Yoonhwa hurriedly grabbed their chopsticks and stabbed the egg roll, quickly popping it into their mouths.

Hyun burst out laughing at the sight of the two little monsters.

“You can eat slowly~ It looks like everyone is really hungry.”

He lovingly served more side dishes to Yoonhwa and Nomi.

Nomi awkwardly held her chopsticks with both hands and immediately brought the egg roll to her mouth with shining eyes.

“This is really delicious!”

Nomi’s voice echoed over the table, as her admiration melted into the warm air of the kitchen.

Hyun nodded with a pleased smile at Nomi’s innocent reaction.

When Yoonhwa took a sip of the doenjang jjigae, her eyes widened in surprise.

“What is this? It’s savory and delicious!”

She looked at Hyun with a gaze full of curiosity.

Hyun smiled and replied, “It’s called doenjang jjigae. It’s one of Korea’s traditional dishes.”

Yoonhwa still found it fascinating after hearing that explanation and took more slurps of the broth.

After a little bit of time passed, everyone’s rice bowls were cleaned out.

Once the meal was over, Hyun started gathering the scattered bowls on the table.

At that moment, Yoonhwa stood up and said, “Hyun, you don’t have to do everything every time!”

“I’ll help today.”

Her voice was filled with sincerity.

Hyun hesitated for a moment but accepted Yoonhwa’s offer.

“Uh… really? Well, thanks.”

“If we do it together, it’ll be done in no time~.”

After finishing her meal, Nomi let out a yawn, perhaps due to the feeling of fullness, and stretched a bit before saying, “I need to go to the bathroom!”

She slowly got up from her seat and headed towards the bathroom.

Hyun and Yoonhwa headed to the kitchen to clean up the dishes.

Yoonhwa asked as she soaked a bowl in the water.

“Hyun, what happened with that human named Rose today?”

Hyun’s hand froze for a moment.

Yoonhwa didn’t miss the slight tremble in his gaze.

“Oh—it’s nothing. Just… had a meal.”

Yoonhwa noticed the hesitation in Hyun’s tone and the shadow of emotions flickering across his face.

She decided not to press him any further, but her worry hadn’t subsided.

“Um… Hyun, if you’re having a hard time, always talk to me!”

Hyun felt a little comforted by Yoonhwa’s warm words.

He nodded with a light smile.

Meanwhile, Nomi returned from the bathroom and felt a twinge of jealousy seeing the two chatting in the kitchen.

“What are you guys doing over there, unnie? Come play with me~!”

At Nomi’s voice, Yoonhwa and Hyun looked at each other and burst into laughter.

“Okay, okay. We have to play with Nomi, too.”

Yoonhwa responded and went over to Nomi’s side.

The laughter of Yoonhwa and Nomi filled the kitchen, and the atmosphere became cheerful.

As Yoonhwa began to play and joke around with Nomi, Hyun stepped back a little to watch them.

His mind wandered back to the sudden chaos that had arisen from his encounter with Yoonhwa.

He felt the fatigue and stress that he had buried in his heart for a long time.

“How about a coffee for the first time in a while…?”

As that thought crossed his mind, Hyun quietly headed to a small cupboard in the kitchen to grab some coffee.

He took out a packet of coffee mix from the cupboard. Holding the packet in his hand, he was filled with the delightful anticipation of coffee after a long time.

Hyun took out a kettle to boil water, filled it, and put it on the stove.

As the sound of boiling water began, the kitchen slowly grew warmer.

Listening to the sounds of Nomi and Yoonhwa laughing in the background, Hyun watched them enjoying their time.

When the water was sufficiently boiling, Hyun carefully held the kettle and poured the hot water into a cup.

Then, he added the coffee mix into the cup.

As the coffee powder met the hot water, a rich aroma soon filled the kitchen.

Stirring the coffee, Hyun momentarily indulged in the sweet feelings that the fragrant coffee brought him.

Holding the coffee cup in his hand, Hyun quietly took a sip.

The bitter taste of the coffee, accompanied by a growing sweetness and warmth, soothed his body and soul.

The taste of coffee after such a long time felt special, and at that moment, all his stress and fatigue seemed to disappear.

As the fragrant coffee aroma began to fill the kitchen, Nomi and Yoonhwa were drawn to it, stopping their playful antics to look in Hyun’s direction.

Yoonhwa spoke first.

“That smell is amazing!”

Following Yoonhwa, Nomi looked at Hyun with curious eyes.

“What are you eating all by yourself?!”

Nomi’s voice overflowed with pure curiosity.

Hyun burst into laughter at their reactions.

“This is called coffee~.”

Yoonhwa and Nomi looked at each other and shouted almost simultaneously.

“I want to try some too!”

Their eyes were filled with eagerness to experience something new.

But Hyun spoke with a slightly worried expression, “This coffee has caffeine in it. Is that okay…?”

He was concerned for their health, knowing some people might be sensitive to caffeine.

Yoonhwa and Nomi glanced at each other for a moment.

Yoonhwa cautiously said, “Caffeine…? What is that?”

Hyun, momentarily taken aback by their puzzled responses, decided to briefly explain caffeine to them.

“If you consume caffeine, you might not be able to sleep or feel anxious.”

Nomi looked at Hyun with curious eyes and said, “Is that so? But I still want to try just a little bit!”

“It smells delicious!”

Her voice was filled with courage to try something new.

Yoonhwa nodded in agreement. “I’m fine with it. I can just taste a bit~.”

Hyun respected their decision and cautiously poured coffee mix into two cups.

He gently poured hot water, advising them.

“Just share this one between the two of you…”

Yoonhwa and Nomi held their cups with expressions of anticipation.

Nomi was the first to carefully bring the coffee to her lips.

However, she was shocked by the bitterness and immediately spat it out.

“Yuck, it’s bitter!”

At Nomi’s reaction, Hyun and Yoonhwa burst into laughter.

Yoonhwa hesitated for a moment upon seeing Nomi’s reaction, but curiosity won over as she carefully took a sip of the coffee.

At first, a subtle grimace crossed her face because of the bitterness, but she soon took another sip.

“This is strange, at first it’s bitter, but it’s getting more and more delicious… it’s kinda addictive!”

Hyun smiled at Yoonhwa’s comment and went over to the fridge to grab a bottle of cold orange juice.

With Yoonhwa’s curious gaze and Nomi’s expectant eyes on him, Hyun carefully poured the juice into a cup.

“Nomi, if the coffee is too bitter, how about this?”

Hyun smiled as he handed the cup filled with orange juice to Nomi.

Nomi happily accepted the cup with joy.

She carefully took a sip of the juice, and her face lit up at the tangy and sweet taste of orange juice.

“Wow! This is so delicious!”

Nomi exclaimed with delight.

It was a flavor that suited her taste much better than the coffee.

Yoonhwa, smiling at Nomi’s newfound joy, gave Hyun a grateful look.

Hyun was pleased to see Yoonhwa and Nomi enjoying their juice and coffee, but soon glanced down at his pajamas.

He paused in thought but soon seemed to come to a decision, picking up the laundry basket and returning to them.

“Do you guys have any clothes to wash?”

“I’m thinking of doing laundry now…”

Hyun asked the two little monsters.

Yoonhwa looked puzzled at his question and asked, “Laundry…?”

She wasn’t familiar with the mundane chores of the human world.

Nomi was sipping her orange juice while eavesdropping on their conversation.

‘Laundry?’

Hyun smiled at Yoonhwa’s question and explained, “Laundry is when we wash the clothes we’ve worn.”

“It’s washing dirty clothes using water and detergent!”

He enjoyed gradually teaching Yoonhwa and Nomi about the everyday life of the human world.

Yoonhwa nodded, understanding what Hyun explained.

“Ah, so humans wash their clothes to wear them again? That’s fascinating…”

She was always curious about learning new things.

After a brief moment of contemplation, she brightened and said, “Can’t we just solve this with magic?!”

As she waved her hands, she cast a spell on her pajamas.

In an instant, her outfit began to shine and appeared clean right before their eyes.

Nomi and Hyun gasped in amazement at the sight.

“Wow, that’s really cool!” Nomi exclaimed, her eyes sparkling.

Hyun approached cautiously, unable to hide his surprise, and touched the hem of Yoonhwa’s pajamas.

The clothes looked completely clean and new, but curious Hyun brought his nose closer to the hem to sniff.

“There’s kind of a musty smell…”

Hyun wrinkled his nose slightly.

While the clothes appeared wholly clean on the outside, there remained a faint odd smell.

Yoonhwa confidently raised her cleansed pajamas for Hyun and Nomi to see.

“It doesn’t smell at all!!”

She proudly brought the hem of her clothes to her nose and took a deep breath.

Her eyes were filled with certainty about her action.

But the scent that touched her nose wasn’t sweet and refreshing, but rather slightly musty and weird.

Yoonhwa’s expression shifted instantly. Her brow furrowed slightly, and the confidence she had quickly faded.

“Ugh…”

She muttered quietly.

Believing her magic would be perfect, she was now flustered by the subtle weird smell coming from her pajamas.

For a moment, she was confused about how to react.

Hyun and Nomi watched Yoonhwa’s reaction.

Hyun smiled awkwardly, trying to comfort her.

“Things like this happen. Whether it’s magic or anything else, it can’t always be perfect.”

“Don’t worry, Yoonhwa. I’ll wash it for you~.”

In Hyun’s voice, there was a warmth meant to reassure Yoonhwa.

Nomi, though not fully understanding the situation, felt worried seeing Yoonhwa upset.

“Are you okay, Yoonhwa? Should I take a sniff too?”

Nomi cautiously suggested.

Yoonhwa reacted strongly to Nomi’s suggestion.

“No, I’m fine! Really, I’m fine…!!”

“You really shouldn’t smell it…”

Her voice mixed with embarrassment and confusion, she didn’t want Nomi to take a whiff of the strange scent.

After Yoonhwa’s strong reaction to Nomi’s suggestion, the atmosphere grew a bit awkward.

Hyun tried to salvage the situation by speaking up again.

“Wait a second, Yoonhwa. Since you only have this one pajama to wash, how can we solve this situation…?”

Thinking hard to find a resolution, Hyun suddenly had an idea.

He took his wallet out of his pocket and poured out all the cash. When he counted the bills, he found it was only ten thousand won.

“I only have ten thousand won… This isn’t enough…”

Hyun muttered with a troubled expression.

After a brief moment of contemplation, Yoonhwa said with a bright face, “Then let’s borrow from Seojin!”

“We can pay her back once we earn money tomorrow!”

Hyun paused for a moment, considering Yoonhwa’s suggestion.

He decided to go to Seojin’s house by himself.

“Alright…, I can just repay Seojin after I earn money at tomorrow’s performance.”

“I’ll be back in a bit!”

His pajamas were made of light fabric, and the wind brushed against him, causing a slight chill.

But Hyun didn’t care about such minor discomforts.

In his heart, he was only focused on the determination to help Yoonhwa and the thought of earning good results at tomorrow’s performance to repay Seojin.

Since Seojin’s house was right next to Hyun’s, he could reach it quickly.

Hyun quickened his pace.

He stood outside Seojin’s door for a moment, taking a breath and thinking about how to explain his circumstances.

Then, he carefully knocked on the door.

Seojin opened the door.

She also appeared to be in her pajamas.

Seojin’s pajamas were comfortable and loose-fitting, and she seemed a bit surprised to see Hyun visiting at this hour.

“What’s up, Hyun, at this late hour?”

“And what’s with that cute pajama? Haha!”

Hyun awkwardly chuckled at Seojin’s joke.

“Oh, this… something urgent came up…”

His voice seemed slightly shaky.

“Urgent matter… Come on in.”

“What’s the matter that you’re here so late?”

Seojin stepped aside to invite Hyun into her house.