They Told Me to Build Good Karma by Selling Side Dishes - Chapter 67

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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67. Fuki Leaf Banchan Group Lunch Box (1)

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The glow of sunset stretched long across the Side Dish Shop, announcing the arrival of early winter. The sun, grown noticeably shorter in its arc, had vacated its place.

“Ugh… Time to wrap up!”

I hauled my sluggish body upright and checked the display refrigerator. I set aside the side dishes whose expiration dates were fast approaching and would be difficult to sell.

‘Throw out what needs throwing out.’

Finally, I pressed the closing button on the register at the counter. A short confirmation beep sounded, and the day was reduced to numbers.

“Oh…?”

The sales figures had climbed far more steeply than expected, thanks to the recent kimchi-making season surge.

“Eight hundred thousand won…?”

I’d sold quite a lot.

‘…If this trend continues, daily sales of a million won won’t be far off.’

A satisfied smile spread across my lips as I stepped outside and grabbed the shutter handle, pulling it down. The shutter descended slowly, bringing today’s business to a close.

“Hey! Ji-gu! You worked hard today too!”

Just then, light flickered from across the street. Grandmother Myeong-ja poked her head out from Myeong-ja’s Bakery, which was just closing, and called out loudly.

“Yes, Grandmother! You worked hard too!”

I raised my voice in return, exchanging greetings. We shared a light laugh and waved to each other—the familiar, heartwarming farewell that always marked the end of the day in this neighborhood.

“Be careful on your way in! Get plenty of rest today! Ae-rim seemed troubled about something, so try to cheer her up!”
“Ae-rim?”
“Yes, that’s why! And Ji-gu, make sure you eat!”
“Yes! Grandmother, have a good night! Please eat well!”

I finished my farewells and turned back to lower the shutter all the way down, locking it securely.

“Let’s go.”

I prepared the apron, work gloves, and sun cap that I always wore when entering the Dimensional Space.

As I stepped into the back of the shop, the invisible Dimensional Space that no one else could perceive was already rotating in place.

“Hah!”

I took a short breath to steady myself and stepped forward. A thin, splitting sensation rose from my fingertips. The city’s noise faded a beat too late as the world quietly receded behind me.

The Dimensional Space had begun to step into the threshold of winter as well.

“…It’s cold?”

Fortunately, I was wearing a thin padded jacket, so it wasn’t cold enough to freeze. I pulled my work gloves tighter and looked around.

“Hae-tae!”
“You came, meow?”

Hae-tae was walking toward me from the distance. A scarf I’d never seen before was loosely wrapped around his neck.

“Where did you get that scarf?”
“When winter approaches, one wears a scarf, meow.”

It was quite an old scarf.

‘Is it precious to him?’

“Should I buy you some shoes later?”

Even cats can’t survive if their paw pads get too cold.

“Don’t bother me with such trivial things, meow.”
“But my paws are freezing.”

This is the Dimensional Space, so I can endure it, but human winters tend to linger much longer.

“Even so, I’m a Divine Being, meow.”
“Oh right, our cat was a Divine Being~?”

Hae-tae lifted his head and glared at me.

“Stop teasing and go harvest the butterbur leaves, meow.”
“Got it, got it. Because you’re so cute, right?”

Hae-tae and I walked side by side toward the butterbur leaves. They breathed quietly in the stillness.

“Butterbur is originally a seasonal vegetable used in spring and early summer.”
“That’s right, meow!”

Butterbur is a truly fascinating ingredient.

A perennial herb of the daisy family with two cotyledons, it grows primarily in shaded or wetland areas, and its flowers, leaves, and roots are all edible. It becomes food, and it becomes medicine. Depending on how you use butterbur, it transforms completely.

It’s far more than just a simple spring appetite herb….

“In the Donguibogam, butterbur was used for health promotion. It’s a natural health food.”

Saying so, I picked up a leaf and placed it directly in my mouth.

“Ugh!”

Bitter. So bitter.

“It’s bitter because it’s medicine, meow.”
“That’s true. But it’s delicious.”

Where else could you find an ingredient like this?

Young leaves and tender flower stems are delicious when lightly dressed, and the stems make an excellent pickle that can fill several bowls of rice—absolutely delicious. Despite its large, rough appearance, it’s a vegetable with profound depth of flavor.

“Why did you ask me to do this?”
“Wouldn’t the elders enjoy it?”
“That’s true.”

I’d heard that lately, more and more people were making kimchi with butterbur leaves. The slightly bitter taste awakened the palate, and the longer you chewed, the sweeter it became.

I gripped the knife and inspected the leaf’s condition once more. The veins had to be vibrant, and the edges unmarred.

“Perfect.”

Without hesitation, I cut the next leaf. I examined where the blade had entered, gently wrapped my hand around the stem, and harvested it.

“Your hand movements have become quite practiced.”
“I do this every time, so I’d better be skilled at it.”

Hae-tae pointed at a large butterbur leaf with his front paw.

“The ones too big get tough.”
“Right. So this size is just perfect?”

Palm-sized. This was exactly the right size. Once butterbur reached 60 to 80 centimeters, it became tough and lost its flavor, so we’d grind it into butterbur powder instead.

“Excellent!”
“I’ll make delicious side dishes for you.”
“Meow!”

I selected leaves without greed, choosing by size and color, and placed them in the basket.

[Butterbur with Distinctive Aroma (A)]
[Butterbur with Distinctive Aroma (A)]
[Butterbur with Distinctive Aroma (A)]

‘Only the distinctive aroma ones keep appearing.’

As soon as I harvested a bit more, it finally came into view.

[Butterbur Infused with Purifying Energy (S)]

Purifying energy!

‘Ding!’

Another window materialized before me.

[INGREDIENT TIP!]
Target Species: Human
Consumption Method: Any dish made with butterbur
Effect: Upon consumption, inflammation reduces by 90%

Inflammation! Reduced! Ninety percent.

“Insane!”

The curse slipped out unbidden. Hae-tae startled and looked up at me.

“What’s wrong?”
“This butterbur I’m holding reduces inflammation by ninety percent!”

In this age of spicy and salty foods, inflammation lurked throughout everyone’s bodies.

“That’s amazing!”
“Right?”

Lunch boxes, elderly customers, inflammation—this butterbur would be far more than just a delicious side dish.

I carefully separated the butterbur into its own container. Just in case.

“Should I make several varieties of butterbur side dishes for the lunch boxes?”
“Tossed, stir-fried, or pickled?”
“Yeah. Wouldn’t that be better?”

Hae-tae nodded enthusiastically, clearly pleased with the idea.

“That human will probably choose one of them.”
“And I can sell any leftover side dishes at the Side Dish Shop.”
“That’s a good plan.”

I lifted the basket and gauged its weight roughly. Sufficient. Today’s harvest was complete.

“But the winter in the Dimensional Space doesn’t seem to change anything?”
“It’s because we’re still at the beginning, meow. In a little while, snow will pile up and the Dimensional Space will feel the cold too, meow.”
“Oh, I want to see it. Do the earthworms come too?”

Hae-tae shook his head.

“The creatures in the Dimensional Space enter hibernation when winter comes, meow.”
“Hibernation? The earthworms and frogs and Squirrel too?”
“Only for a few days, meow.”
“A few days?”

Why is that? I tilted my head curiously.

“I have to organize this Dimensional Space—there’s no time for them to sleep, meow!”
“You sounded like a ruthless boss just then.”

Hae-tae snorted in displeasure.

“If I don’t work, the Dimensional Space can’t survive, meow!”
“Ah, I understand. I’m sorry.”

I hoisted Hae-tae onto my shoulder and picked up the basket again.

“Let’s go then.”
“You’re heading back? We didn’t harvest much, meow.”
“There’s still plenty of time, so I’ll work on some side dish recipes and rest a bit.”

We stepped out of the Dimensional Space. The familiar back of the shop unfolded before us. My ears, which had been blocked, suddenly opened to the rush of city noise.

***

As soon as I entered the shop, I set the basket on the counter.

“What should we start with, meow?”
“A seasoned vegetable dish first.”

I washed my hands first, then took out the butterbur leaves one by one and rinsed them under running water. I gently rubbed each leaf to shake off the soil, carefully checking between the dense veins for any hidden dirt, and rinsed them thoroughly.

‘Butterbur leaves will taste bitter if they’re not blanched properly.’

As the water in the large pot came to a boil, I dissolved just a pinch of salt into it. The timing of blanching fatsia shoots was everything.

‘Two minutes.’

Two minutes in boiling water would soften even the stiffest leaves. I checked the alarm clock I’d attached to the counter and retrieved the seasonings I’d need for the seasoned dish.

‘Red chili paste, soybean paste, minced garlic, oligosaccharide, anchovy sauce….’

Beep, beep, beep—

The moment the alarm sounded, I fished out the fatsia shoots. This was where the real work began.

“Peel the skin off?”
“Yeah. We have to.”

Fatsia shoots required surprisingly meticulous handling. But when prepared as a side dish, their presence was unmistakable.

I picked up a cooled shoot, grasped the stem end, and slowly peeled away the outer layer. The skin slipped off with a soft sound, revealing the tender flesh beneath.

“That’s why most people don’t bother making seasoned fatsia shoots—too much work.”
“But the flavor is worth it, isn’t it?”
“True enough.”

I squeezed the moisture from the peeled shoots with my hands, pressing gently without force, then cut them into bite-sized pieces.

“Let me just….”

I paused for a moment, looking down at the bowl of seasonings.

They’d asked for it to be seasoned boldly….

“Hae-tae, you taste it and adjust the seasoning.”
“Me?”
“You prefer a stronger flavor than I do anyway.”

I mixed the shoots with the seasonings in the proportions I normally preferred, then transferred a small portion to a plate and slid it toward Hae-tae.

“How is it?”
“…Hmm.”

Hae-tae chewed the fatsia shoots for quite a long time before shaking his head slowly.

“The seasoning isn’t strong enough, meow.”
“Then…?”

I raised the fish sauce just a touch higher. Only a touch more. I tossed the shoots lightly once more and offered them to Hae-tae.

“Try again.”
“Mm.”

This time, his head nodded slowly in approval.

“With rice, this is the kind of flavor that keeps you reaching for more, meow!”
“Really?”

I scooped rice from the cooker and fed it to Hae-tae alongside the shoots.

“How is it?”

Only then did Hae-tae open his eyes wide and shake his head vigorously up and down.

“Excellent, meow!”
“Excellent!”

I finally exhaled. With this level of seasoning, it would be perfect for the elders’ lunch.

“We’ll make the pickled version tomorrow. Let’s try a stir-fried dish instead.”

I trimmed the ends of the blanched fatsia stems and peeled away the skin from the cooled ones, one by one. Then I sliced them into bite-sized pieces.

I set the pan over heat and began toasting the perilla oil and minced garlic slowly, carefully. I kept the flame gentle, waiting for the aroma to rise before the garlic could burn, then dumped in all the fatsia stems at once.

“The garlic smells wonderful.”
“This is when it’s at its best, meow.”
“It is.”

I scraped the bottom of the pan with a wooden spatula, stirring slowly. As the moisture evaporated and the fatsia stems began to absorb the oil, I added a pinch of seasoned salt.

Just as the stir-frying was nearly complete.

I added the perilla seeds last—the crucial finishing touch.

A rich, nutty aroma bloomed through the kitchen, transforming the entire character of the stir-fry.

“Done!”

I turned off the heat and retrieved wooden chopsticks, plucking a piece of the butterbur from the pan.

‘The same vegetable, yet each piece plays its own part.’

“Here, Hae-tae—try this.”

I was extending the chopsticks toward her when it happened.

Knock, knock.

“…?”

The tapping on the door was hesitant, almost timid.

“A customer?”
“A customer, meow?”
“Who knows?”

The shutter was down, obscuring my view of whoever stood outside. I couldn’t imagine who would visit at this hour. I set down my chopsticks and moved toward the door.

“Ae-rim?”

The moment I called her name, certainty crystallized. Song Ae-rim stood with her head bowed, one shoulder strap of her bag slipping down as she gripped it tightly with trembling fingers.

“B-boss…”

Her voice fractured, unable to form complete words.

“Yeah, it’s me… What’s wrong?”

I quickly rolled the shutter up a bit. Only then did Song Ae-rim manage to lift her head slightly.

Her eyes were already swollen and red, tears streaming silently down her cheeks. The tension in her jaw betrayed her desperate attempt to hold back her sobs.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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