This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 43

“Then, we need to go grocery shopping now…”

No sooner had I opened my mouth than two brand new carts were shoved in front of me.

“Put one of them back first.”

“Why!”

“Do you have a complaint? If so, pay more.”

“Tch…”

Even though I had six mouths to feed, it was just a two-night, three-day trip.

But two carts?

Were we planning to just eat all day?

Hmm… I guess that is camping…

The romance of camping?

There is some romance to it.

Setting up tents, roasting marshmallows, all cozy in a blanket with a mug of hot cocoa in hand—it’d be perfect.

But honestly, how long would that last?

Especially on a day like today, with a biting cold wind blowing, there was hardly a moment to enjoy the romance.

If we didn’t get inside soon, we’d freeze to death—who had time to think about romance?

So that feeling wouldn’t last long, and if even the romance fizzled out?

In the rural campsite, where the odds of finding anything nearby were low, all that would be left would be the joy of eating.

Looking at it that way, now that we’re at the supermarket, it might be best to buy as much food as we can, like we’re raiding the place… but just in case, I decided to buy a reasonable amount.

We hadn’t even started camping yet, so it felt a bit wrong to blow the budget on groceries.

“So what’s on the menu?!”

“You’re just asking that now?”

“Hey… You must have a vibe from your experience. You should already know.”

“Um… we’re definitely doing BBQ at least once, right?”

As I casually asked, the kids gathered around the cart nodded their heads in unison, as if they had made a promise beforehand.

And not just any nod—they had an expression that said they wouldn’t budge on that one thing at all, almost like a protest… It seemed BBQ was non-negotiable.

“So, BBQ for dinner?”

“Right.”

“Agreed.”

“But won’t we need to buy a grill or something for the BBQ?”

“Nope. They’ll probably lend us the equipment that they mentioned.”

“Are you sure? What if we just assumed and then ended up camping, only to cook our meat in a frying pan?”

“What’s wrong with a frying pan?”

Well, frying pan-roasted meat isn’t bad, but since it’s a camping trip, we gotta go charcoal and grill combo all the way.

“In that sense, let’s call that auntie and confirm.”

“Yeah, and while we’re at it, we can figure out the pickup location, too.”

“Ugh… so bothersome…”

“No more chatter, just do it.”

So, after checking by phone, fortunately, it seemed like we wouldn’t need to buy a grill.

“What about charcoal?”

“They said there’s some leftover that we can use.”

So, we just needed to buy the meat.

“Alright, BBQ for dinner—what are we doing for lunch?”

“Lunch?”

“Yeah, are we going to eat inside? Or should we stop by some snack bar before going in?”

To be honest, for me, it’d be better to grab a meal outside… but the others didn’t seem to think so.

They resisted fiercely against the idea of hitting a snack bar on a camping trip, and in the end, I had to concede.

“Or did you not think of a menu…?”

“Hey… no way, right?”

Those guys?

“Today’s lunch is dakbokkeumtang.”

“Can we do anything else?”

“Nope, we can’t. If you’re so upset, why don’t you make it yourself?”

“Well, what about breakfast tomorrow?”

Thinking already about tomorrow’s breakfast?

What a detail-oriented guy.

“Tomorrow’s breakfast is curry.”

“Are you planning to skimp and just use instant stuff?”

“Up to the washing, Jinho’s covering for me, so that’s a bit…”

“Using instant meals resets the purpose of camping—you’re just indulging without responsibility.”

“What’s wrong with instant? Those things were created by brilliant minds, you know?”

“Not my problem.”

“If we’re doing curry, it better be something sold in a shop or it better have some serious love put into it.”

“Agreed.”

Sold in a shop? What a joke… Everyone’s so hyped about camping that they’re getting all delusional…

Well, to be honest, I could make it if I wanted.

I’ve made curry often enough in the past, so I could replicate a shop-like taste at home without too much trouble.

‘That means the shopping list is getting longer…’

Butter was a necessity.

Coffee mixes? There’s no way a campsite wouldn’t have those.

The problem was that buying butter just to make curry seemed like a waste…

“Okay. Then let’s just do one meal as ramen.”

“One meal should be fine…”

“Ramen outdoors? That’s a delicacy you can’t resist.”

“Ramen while camping? I can’t hold back!”

If we made one meal ramen, it would save us quite a bit of money, so that seemed like a steal.

As for leftover butter… I could just buy some sweet corn to make corn cheese.

And so, while I was figuring out three days’ worth of menus like some kind of nutritionist…

“Um… can I try too?”

Out of nowhere, Yoonseo, who had been silent while the others were excitedly chatting, suddenly spoke up.

“Huh? What do you mean?”

What did she want to try?

Out of curiosity, I automatically responded, and Yoonseo added in a cautious voice.

“Um, I mean… cooking. I want to try it once…”

To be honest, I was curious about why she suddenly wanted to do this.

No wonder, Yoonseo had always just eaten the meals I made; she’d shown zero interest in cooking until now.

But now she was suddenly saying this… Maybe she watched some cooking show before going to bed last night?

Or perhaps she wanted to try something new now that we were camping?

Of course, from my perspective, it was an offer I had no reason to refuse.

With six meals to prepare—two for today, three for tomorrow, and one final breakfast—it felt overwhelming already.

But taking one meal off was better than nothing.

The only problem was… this was kind of a tricky proposal to accept outright.

I didn’t fully trust Yoonseo’s cooking skills.

I mean, did she have any cooking skills at all?

We’d known each other for nearly ten years, and I’d never seen her cook even once.

‘If she’s confidently stepping up like that…’

She must have pre-planned the menu and maybe even looked up recipes or videos… so it was awkward to just decline.

‘What to do…’

If I left it to her, who knew what bizarre dish might end up on the table. But refusing seemed just as awkward.

And while I hesitated, the others made a decision in my place.

“Ooh… Oh Yoonseo…”

“Do we get to expect something good? Right, Yoonseo?”

Well, the situation turned out that Yoonseo would take charge of one meal.

‘Right…’

Trying wouldn’t hurt.

Experiencing something new might even lead to a fresh perspective.

It sure looked like camping had excited her.

Saying she’d try her hand at cooking—there was no doubt about it.

While Dogun thought the timing of her behavior was impulsive due to the camping mood, in reality, her actions were quite thoroughly planned.

*

‘Can I really do this…?’

I stepped forward as planned, but honestly, a lot of anxiety lingered.

It was my first time seriously attempting to cook other than boiling ramen.

Of course, during my time with Dogun, I had picked up bits and pieces along the way and had learned a lot indirectly, but I was merely in charge of the miscellaneous tasks.

‘I wish I had thought of this earlier…’

If I had, I could have practiced with my mom or dad beforehand.

The first time the thought of cooking for Dogun popped into my head was just last night, making it impossible to practice in advance.

‘Still… I studied hard…’

I should be okay.

Plus, since I wasn’t doing it right away, I had time to review videos and memorize the method during the remaining time.

If I had known it would come to this, I would have made something, anything, on my own regularly.

‘Wait…’

Because I never did it, it would actually feel fresh to Dogun.

If that fresh feeling led to him seeing me differently than just as a friend, I wouldn’t ask for anything more.

In that way, while I was lost in my thoughts…

“Yoonseo! Oh Yoonseo!”

“Huh, yes?”

A voice pulled me out of my reverie, and I lifted my head to see Dogun looking at me with a curious expression.

“Are you not buying ingredients?”

“Ah… I should buy them.”

“What do you need?”

“Um, first is pork…”

“Pork? Which part?”

“Front leg or neck meat. Oh! Belly meat could work too.”

I remembered reading somewhere that the flavor might change depending on which part you use, but belly meat was the tastiest of the three, so it didn’t matter too much, right?

“Then just buy a bit more for BBQ, and ask them to wrap it separately. And?”

“Um, and… green onion, onion, sesame, and soy sauce… oh… something else…”

“Green onion and onion are already on the list, and I brought sesame and soy sauce, but… I’m not sure if there’s enough for two uses. Is soy sauce needed a lot?”

The amount of our supplies looked a bit excessive because it wasn’t just clothes but basic ingredients for cooking.

And we can’t run out of soy sauce…

“A bit?”

“Hmm, maybe it’s better to buy a small one just in case… Anyway, and? Is that it?”

“Ah! Pepper too!”

“The pepper I packed should be fine since we already brought it.”

While I was deciding what to buy with Dogun…

“Wait, are you both a couple or something? Anyone would think you’re a newlywed couple shopping together!”

A voice flooded in with a playful tone, and I could practically see a smirk forming on their face as they mocked us.

‘A-couple…?’