Chapter 57: Christmas in Another World (1) (57/225)
When Lee Jinseo first set foot on the Francia Continent in his food truck, it was around spring.
What began as a bunsik business after being unintentionally transported to another world became a turning point in his life.
Praise from people he had never encountered in Korea.
Unusual experiences and adventures gained while traveling to many places.
Countless human connections that had never existed before.
Jinseo lived a fulfilling life in this other world, and as the food truck's rank steadily rose, he was slowly drawing closer to his wish.
And so, as he devoted himself day after day to running the food truck, he reached December, the very end of the season.
Whooosh.
A biting cold wind whipped around Falstead Castle.
The guards stationed at the front gate fought off the chill by sipping fish cake broth poured into 500-milliliter plastic bottles.
While waiting for their shift change, they cast casual glances toward the food truck in the distance.
Despite the severe cold wave—the harshest in ten years—the steady stream of regulars visiting the food truck showed no sign of stopping.
Thanks to the climate-control device, customers could enjoy bunsik comfortably without worrying about the cold, and many came specifically for the limited-time menu that had been selling briskly for the past week.
"Three vegetable hot buns and one pizza hot bun, please!"
"I'll take one vegetable, one pizza, and one chocolate hot bun!"
A snack that could never be left out in winter.
The moment the transparent steamer lid was lifted, the rising steam alone was enough to make anyone desperate to take a big bite.
Hot buns.
Unlike other bunsik items, the hot buns sold at the food truck could be purchased without taking a numbered ticket.
This was thanks to the addition of Foltan, a colleague of Jason and one of the food truck's very first regulars.
"Here you go. Enjoy."
"When will the pizza hot buns be added again?"
"Pizza hot buns take time to finish steaming, so please order other hot buns first."
Unlike the passionate Jason, Foltan dealt with customers calmly and steadily.
"Huh? Isn't that Foltan? Did you quit being a guard?"
"I'm temporarily helping out at the food truck. Three vegetable hot buns, correct?"
Foltan placed the piping-hot buns into a paper bag and handed them to the customer who had recognized him.
Watching customers bite into freshly made hot buns as they left, a smile bloomed on Jinseo's lips.
Now I just need to focus on business until it's time to head to the dwarf nation.
Under the pretext of fostering friendship between humans and dwarves, the nightly drinking sessions at the food truck finally came to an end when Geshtain's beer supply ran out.
Oswald apologized to Jinseo for having to extend business hours every night and offered a large sum of money, but Jinseo repeatedly declined.
No matter how much he earned, any amount exceeding the sales total would disappear during the currency exchange anyway, making it meaningless.
Instead, he asked whether he could join the delegation that would accompany Geshtain back to his homeland.
He wanted to set up a branch—temporarily installed before but now dismantled—in the dwarf nation, to introduce bunsik and various foods not only to humans but also to dwarves.
More importantly—
{Rare Quest: Achieve sales exceeding a specified amount on a continent inhabited by another race.}
{Rare Quest: Discover food affected by another race's racial preferences.}
{Hero Quest: Serve food cooked using mobile cooking equipment to the leader of another race and satisfy them.}
To complete the quests that had appeared after Geshtain's arrival, joining the delegation was essential.
"A delegation? I was actually hoping you'd ask. Geshtain said from the start that he intended to include you, but I was worried you might refuse."
Fortunately, Oswald welcomed Jinseo's proposal with open arms.
He then pressed Jinseo—half encouragement, half insistence—to tell him everything he needed.
In the end, they agreed that Jinseo would be assigned one additional helper to assist with sales during the winter.
As a result, Foltan—one of the people Jinseo trusted—was put in charge of selling hot buns and milk, as well as cleaning the steamer.
On top of that, he also took responsibility for selling fish cakes.
"Please put the fish cake broth in a plastic bottle! And give me some fish cakes too!"
Perhaps because winter had truly begun, fish cake sales increased compared to before, even if they didn't rival the explosive popularity of hot buns.
Ice cream sales dropped accordingly, but overall, the food truck's revenue continued to rise.
As a bonus, it became routine for guards to stop by the food truck before shift changes to fill plastic bottles with fish cake broth.
"Ten cheese hot buns, please!"
At the shout of a regular who still loved cheese, Jinseo stirred the tteokbokki with a knowing expression.
One reason hot buns became so popular was that, unlike other menu items, they were released in a wide variety from the start.
Vegetable hot buns that were closer to a full meal than a snack.
Pizza hot buns that were easy for Francia Continent residents—unfamiliar with pizza flavors—to accept.
Chocolate hot buns that won over many palates with sweetness alone.
"Five sets of red bean hot buns, please!"
But no discussion of hot buns would be complete without their classic form: red bean.
At first, customers weren't accustomed to red bean filling, and feedback was lukewarm.
However, once Jinseo began serving them as a set with white milk that paired well with the sweetness, opinions changed.
Although sales of each type fluctuated daily, red bean hot buns always maintained a steady share.
"Hey, why are you eating inside the climate-control zone? Come outside."
"It's cold. Why bother?"
"You don't know how to eat hot buns properly. Try eating them outside—you'll see. Trust me."
Hot buns tasted even better when eaten in the cold.
Even without Jinseo's guidance, customers who figured out the proper way to eat them began heading outside the climate-control zone in droves.
The hot bun craze sparked by Jinseo showed no signs of dying down—at least not before winter ended.
"That's awful… losing one's eyesight."
"Even a priest's blessing can't fix it, huh. Ah, right—you said Korea doesn't have the Heirem Order."
Meanwhile, a large TV played a drama suited to the cold season.
A romance drama from over twenty years ago, set in winter.
It was a love story that had gained far more popularity in neighboring countries than in Korea itself.
Some customers, holding a hot bun in one hand and a carton of milk in the other, became so absorbed in the drama that their eyes welled with tears.
"Dear customers, we'll resume business in one hour."
Hanging up the Break Time sign, Jinseo stepped out of the kitchen and stretched.
Jason darted ahead of him and snatched the last remaining vegetable hot bun from the steamer, stuffing it into his mouth.
To eat it properly, he deliberately stepped outside the climate-control zone—though he wrapped himself in the long padded coat Jinseo had given him, since it was still too cold.
"You haven't really eaten hot buns if you don't do it like this!"
In the blink of an eye, Jason finished the bun and even peeled off and ate the remaining bits stuck to the wrapper.
"Maybe because I sell them all day, I don't crave hot buns that much."
"Still, you're taking some for Peter and your sister-in-law later, right?"
"That's why I saved the chocolate ones. My wife prefers vegetable hot buns."
"Your sister-in-law really knows how to eat hot buns."
While the two friends chatted, Jinseo—who had hastily eaten an energy bar—walked over to Foltan.
"It's not too hard anymore, right?"
"Not at all. Compared to you and Jason, I barely do anything, so I feel bad."
"I'm planning to entrust you with two more new menu items soon."
"I'll look forward to it."
Roasted chestnuts and roasted sweet potatoes—bunsiks that couldn't be missed in winter.
Jinseo planned to put Foltan fully in charge of these additional limited-time items.
Although Foltan had no cooking experience, they were perfect choices since they didn't require much culinary skill.
"Ah, I should take that out."
Entering the additional trailer, Jinseo pulled out a fir tree as tall as himself and set it down to the left of the counter.
With his extraordinary strength—limited to the Francia Continent—he installed it with ease.
He then returned to the trailer and brought out bags filled with decorations and tree lights, placing them beside the fir tree.
"Boss! What's this?"
"This is a Christmas tree—a decoration used to celebrate Christmas."
"Christmas?"
"Is it a festival from Korea?"
"Something like that."
At the mention of a festival, Jason and Foltan quietly watched Jinseo decorate the tree with ornaments and lights.
Customers who had been waiting at the tables for business to resume grew curious and began gathering around him.
"All right, turning the lights on."
The moment he powered it up, the tree lights wrapped around the Christmas tree began to sparkle in vivid colors.
"It's daytime now, so it doesn't stand out as much, but it'll look pretty impressive at night."
After finishing the tree, Jinseo used the remaining decorations and lights to decorate the counter area.
He installed a wreath-shaped ornament and red stockings—an essential part of Christmas—then placed a small mini tree on each side of the counter.
Everyone can wear Santa outfits on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day…
With the decorations complete, Jinseo looked up at the food truck with a relieved expression.
Jason and Foltan, standing on either side of him, found the Christmas decorations strangely mesmerizing.
"Peter would love this."
"I'm not entirely sure, but it does feel festive."
"That's why I changed the food truck's color to red. Actually, Christmas is part of the religion my family believed in—ah!"
Realizing his mistake too late, Jinseo smacked his forehead.
The food truck was a sacred relic of the Heirem Order, yet he had covered it with decorations from another religion's festival—an invitation for trouble.
"We should take this down right away."
"Huh? It looks nice. Why not leave it?"
"Is there a problem?"
"Every December, I just act on habit… I forgot this isn't Korea. Christmas belongs to a different religion, not the Heirem Order. I'm worried this might be a serious offense."
"Probably not an issue. The Heirem Order is fairly tolerant toward other religions."
"Otherwise, they wouldn't have designated your food truck as a sacred relic, even though you're not a believer."
The two believers themselves brushed it off lightly.
The reactions of nearby customers weren't much different.
Even so, Jinseo couldn't shake his unease.
"That may be true, but still… this doesn't feel right."
"If it really bothers you, there's nothing we can do."
"Then how about asking the Cardinal directly?"
Taking Foltan's advice, Jinseo drove the food truck to Kaysus Cathedral.
Of course, he had first stored the Christmas tree and decorations back into subspace storage.
Still, since many people had seen the sacred relic covered in decorations from another religion, it wasn't something he could simply pretend hadn't happened.
It's been a while since I came here.
After getting out of the driver's seat, Jinseo stood in the open space before the cathedral and looked around.
The scenery had grown familiar through frequent visits, but he still couldn't forget the exotic feeling he'd had the first time.
While I'm here, I should carefully ask how the Cardinal has been doing. I haven't seen her since she secretly visited the food truck.
Thinking of the grandfather and granddaughter who had parted without exchanging a single word, Jinseo let out a short sigh.
Nearby believers stopped in front of the sacred food truck and made the sign of the cross.
As they stepped aside and quietly waited for business to begin, the cathedral doors opened and a familiar face walked toward Jinseo.
"Brother, welcome."
One of the food truck's earliest regulars and a cleric of Kaysus Cathedral, Leira, warmly greeted Jinseo.
Perhaps conscious of the believers gathered around, she addressed him more formally than usual.
Jason and Foltan, both believers of the Heirem Order, made the sign of the cross, while Jinseo nodded lightly in greeting.
"It's been a while. There seem to be more people visiting the cathedral than before?"
Not only were people crowding around the food truck, but there were clearly more visitors entering and leaving the cathedral than usual.
The number of street vendors near the entrance had nearly doubled.
"You might not know this, Jinseo. The holy festival is approaching."
"A holy festival?"
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