NOVEL NEXT Chapter 6 - Who exactly is this person?
Who exactly is this person?
Skallog scrutinized the man who offered the food with skeptical eyes.
This man… only granted us the food, and did not lay a finger on it himself.
‘There’s no suspicion of tampering with the food.’
Skallog observed the true character of the man.
Also, the dishes laid before them seemed untouched and gave off a mythical scent that tirelessly tickled their senses at every moment.
‘Ugh… mustn’t eat it..!’
It was clear that the food was tainted.
How could they give us such delicious food without it being compromised?
Such thoughts circulated while we gazed at the food for some time.
The man brought the food to his side.
‘What is it? Are you trying to force-feed me?’
Scarlett observed the man, focusing all her energy on not missing a single movement.
The man stuffed the food awkwardly into his mouth with two chopsticks.
Without a single grimace, he stuffed the food into his mouth.
After chewing a few times, he swallowed the food absentmindedly.
‘Is it poison-free?’
Scarlett was taken aback by the sudden turn of events.
The man seemed to suggest that as long as the food was safe, we could eat it, and I watched him.
‘So bland..’
All sorts of food were scattered around.
Even though that man just ate, does he feel unsatisfied?
‘Should I try just one bite…’
Scarlett reached a severe internal conflict.
The man almost forcefully pushed the food towards us as if conducting a checkmate.
Turning the dog away, I watched Rita gulp while staring half-mindedly at the food.
‘Not happening.. at least we can’t let Rita eat weird food.’
Resolving Scarlett grabbed the food the man held and shoved it into her mouth.
“No way!!”
As I shoved the food into my mouth, the man blocked me with a seemingly uncomprehending expression.
‘What, why there.. ㄱ’
A meal cooked hurriedly.
However, that meal was still in a state of not being fully cooked and it was very hot.
‘Hot.. hot..!’
An unimaginable pain surged in my throat.
The feeling of quickly reaching out and clinging with my hands to my throat.
A sudden neck pain made my body shiver.
Only after I held my stomach with my hands did I manage to take the food to the restroom.
‘Whew.. finally cooked..’
It felt like I had barely survived the disaster for a moment.
1..2..3…
From the moment the scalding food entered my stomach, I began counting anew.
In case this was a poisoning incident. After a few seconds, a faint signal might arrive.
However, even though several tens of seconds passed, there was no effect.
To be precise, there was nothing after the initial discomfort.
[Gulp…]
“Because it’s a meal just made now.. If you eat too fast, it won’t be good.”
The man said this while looking at both of us.
Truly, he was a man who did not understand.
How about giving us such a dish.
“Try this once. It will truly be delicious.”
The man handed Rira an unidentified substance and said.
Seeing the large chunk of meat interrupted by interspersed vegetables, it didn’t seem to be a simple dish.
Rira looked at the strange substance she received from the man and decided to eat it with her hands.
“Just a bite!!”
Before Rira could grab the substance, the man shouted loudly.
At the same time, the man firmly grabbed Rira’s hand.
“Hiccup…!”
Rira, startled, looked at me.
I tried to direct my anger at the man.
‘Offering my dear sister this…’
Although giving food was a kind gesture, it wasn’t an action excusable enough for what the man did.
Just before Rira swallowed, the man, holding the object, spoke with intention.
“When eating Western food, use this.”
A man showing the object to us.
‘Isn’t that just a small plant? It looks like a plant, though, doesn’t it?’
Utilizing the small plant-like object to indicate using it to eat the meal the man prepared.
Rira, observing the shape of the small plant-like object, stared at it for a while.
‘What is this… is it fortuneteller’s ingredient.’
I saw an exotic parakeet in front of my eyes.
A poem appeared, tangled in various ways.
The appearance was almost like watching a masked person.
Rita and I observed the novel thing for the first time, very closely.
While I was looking at the object like that.
The man took a breath and focused on our eyebrows, and the man showed us directly how to use this distinctive object.
What Rita was holding was called a spoon. He said it was used vigorously when eating sticky food.
Soon he described the object I was holding.
What I was holding was called a fork, which he explained was easy and simple to leverage to eat pasta compared to chopsticks.
The man, who pretended to explain to us, handed us a new fork and a new spoon, and told us to try using them.
‘Crackle..’
Skalbit looked at the various food in front of him and swallowed his saliva.
I stabbed the fork into the food in front of me with trembling anticipation.
[Swoosh.]
Carefully taking it out with the fork and fixing it, Scalbit.
I watched that act closely and gathered the bite into the mouth.
Slowly tasting the food with the fork, Scalbit.
Tears of relief rolled down when Scalbit ate the food.
The texture of the food was softer than the bread we ate every day and tasted much better.
[Krattle..Krattle..]
Even though Rita was next to me, the tears didn’t dry up easily.
The taste of the food was something I had never experienced before.
Scarlett tried to hold back the welling tears with all her might.
Seeing Scarlett in such a state, Rita also took a piece of meat into her mouth, following Scarlett.
“………..”
Rita and I began eating together while shedding tears.
Afterwards, there are no clear memories.
All I can recall is that we ate like crazy people…
Having such delicious food, we madly devoured it with such a relentless force.
‘Insatiable…’
For the first time while living today, it was the most delicious meal I had ever had.
‘Even so, if it’s this much, there will be no regrets if I die.’
Thinking that even if I were to pass away, it would be alright because I had eaten this much, I continued eating tirelessly.
That’s how we stuffed ourselves with food.
While sitting at the table and chatting, the man with a gentle smile tried to captivate us.
I wondered if it was possible, and it really was.
‘As expected… it has to be done.’
The man, with a smile hardened by long practice, waited for us somewhere.
‘Fearsome…’
Scarlett, although she tried to act nonchalant, was trembling inside.
As if facing a destiny already set, both Scarlett and Rita appeared thoroughly melancholic.
Ine, Rita and Skallit ended up going into a room where the man was staying.
The whole room was spacious and pleasant. It was never cramped for just the two of them to sleep.
The man spoke to us while surveying the room.
“So, shall we start getting ready now?”
The man began to speak in a serious tone, and Ine responded with a low voice.
“Don’t worry, the pain will only last a moment.”
The man grabbed the shawl draped around my neck as he spoke, and I was so frightened that I couldn’t say anything.
The man’s hand was so coarse… it was unbearably rough.
The man inspects the condition of the shawl here and there.
Now, holding on freely to the power of the air, Ine was able to easily undo her necktie.
Clearly, I could overhear the conversation between the men who were judging me. They claimed that using protective magic would never solve the problem. Even the man’s face who was saying so was vividly alive.
Although I thought things forward couldn’t be solved, someone slipped away.
The man firmly shook Rita’s shawl with one hand, and afterwards gave Rita freedom too.
The moment the shawl following us disappeared, my mood felt like it was going to soar into the sky.
The move felt liberating.
The mysteriously excited man said.
“This won’t happen twice. Don’t worry.”
The man untied the shawl in front of us.
Rita and I began to doubt the man’s attitude.
The self-conscious fact that pulling away first is a win didn’t come to us.
If you were trying to take the liberty, why not just gather it?
The man took out a gun from his pocket and said.
“And as for the old certificate, I would hold onto it. It’s not that I don’t trust you… but I think I still need to keep it with me.”
The man spoke as if stating the obvious.
Ultimately, the chain of events that we anticipated was broken, but the confusion persisted.
As the night fell with the passing time, the man asked.
“There is one more room available that we don’t use now. What are we going to do?”
The man said it didn’t matter whether he gave the non-used room to us or not, implying we should feel free to do as we like.
I disliked parting with Lita, so I expressed my intention to stay with her until the end.
At this, the man left, listening to Skallat’s words to the end.
Thus, Skallat became a room like Lita’s.
They were hiding in a frame called a bed that Joonwoo brought.
A mysterious frame that felt hollow and made the body tremble.
As I buried myself in the bed, I saw the ceiling above without distraction.
Lita approached and began to speak to me.