LIGHTNOVELSTORY A little later, two well-dressed middle-aged uncles came to our house.
They were the precious means of transportation that would take us to Sokcho, and public officials under the Minister who knew we were magical girls.
“You two are Kim Mari and Lee Siyeon going to Sokcho, right?”
Uncertain about our identities, the two asked again while tilting their heads.
No matter how you look at it, we were just two elementary school students in single digits of age.
With school bags on our backs, we looked more like we were going out for fun rather than filling the vacancy left by the magical girl for a while.
“Yes!”
“Yes, that’s right. You’re the ones sent by the Minister, right?”
As soon as Siyeon heard we were going to Sokcho, she dashed to the front door to respond.
Her confident answer reassured the bewildered expressions of the two men.
Mentioning the two gentlemen’s sender calmly, they soon smiled brightly, seemingly convinced.
“Alright, we parked outside, so let’s go.”
“Ah, just a moment…”
Excusing myself for a moment, I hurried back inside to double-check that I hadn’t forgotten anything.
Checking the gate was lowered—check.
Checking if the door was open—check.
Confirming that our toiletries and Siyeon’s homework were packed—check.
Lastly, making sure we hadn’t forgotten our mascot—check.
Only after confirming everything did I finally step outside and close the front door.
“All set.”
As we stepped outside, we were greeted by a white sedan idling under the blazing sun.
As the two adults naturally headed for the driver and passenger seats, we squeezed into the back seat with our small bodies.
It had been ages since I rode in anything other than public transport.
Usually, it was just buses, taxis, or occasionally the subway.
Because magical girls are typically bound to one area, that’s the norm.
Thinking back, I never imagined going on a boat or a plane.
Perhaps that’s why Siyeon, who looked cheerful today, was shaking her legs excitedly.
We drove away from the apartment, with unfamiliar streets visible outside the window.
Leaning my elbow on the small space under the back door’s handle and resting my chin on it, I gazed out.
Beyond the window, now at a fairly high level, the view continued unchanged after we merged onto the highway.
“Do you think it’s good to live as a magical girl?”
Suddenly, perhaps out of boredom while just holding the steering wheel, a question flew in our direction.
It was a simple and direct query, adjusted to our eye level.
“Me!”
Siyeon, still innocent, answered without hesitation.
The diagonal safety belt she wore nearly reached her neck.
Unlike Siyeon, who answered straight away, I crossed my arms and pondered.
Was it good to live as a magical girl?
First off, being able to contribute to society as an elementary school student could be seen as a plus.
However, experiencing the tension of a 5-minute waiting team at this age could certainly be seen as a downside.
In conclusion, like many things, it wasn’t good or bad.
“Um… it’s alright.”
“Wow, I never thought I’d hear ‘alright’ from a kid’s mouth.”
“Doesn’t talking to our department’s new hire feel like this?”
“Right? It does feel a bit similar.”
I merely expressed an honest sentiment, but the way they conversed made it feel as if I was a subject of their discussion.
Should I have said I love it so much like Siyeon does?
Any attempt to use even slightly more sophisticated words would create an atypical atmosphere unsuitable for my age.
Before I knew it, the two uncles in the front seats casually moved on with their conversation, as if it was just the two of them.
“What’s good to eat in Sokcho?”
Their conversation began with the food of Sokcho.
Being middle-aged men, food was always their priority, wherever they went.
“Well… since it’s by the sea, seafood? There’s cold raw fish soup, and squid sundae.”
“I’ve never tried squid sundae before.”
As the uncle in the driver’s seat calmly continued to gaze straight ahead, his relaxed demeanor seemed strikingly comfortable and familiar.
That’s surprisingly not easy to achieve.
“It’s nothing special. It’s just squid instead of the sausage skin, filled and fried like donggeurangttaeng.”
“Oh right, isn’t chicken gangjeong famous too?”
“Ah, chicken gangjeong? I’ve never understood why people say it’s delicious. If you fry the chicken and toss it in sauce, if it’s not tasty, then that’s just their talent.”
“I hear mushroom soup is famous too?”
“What’s so good about eating mushrooms alone? The meat is the main thing.”
With the two in the front only talking about food, my stomach began to growl as well.
It seemed the two uncles at the front weren’t exceptions to this either.
Just in time, the rest area sign came into view through the front windshield.
The conversation began to shift to a different topic.
“I’m a bit hungry, let’s stop by a rest area.”
“Sounds good, what are you going to eat?”
“Walnut cake?”
The steering wheel turned naturally, guiding the car off the highway into the square-shaped parking lot of the rest area.
A rest area is a place you have to stop at when moving from one region to another.
As the car entered the parking lot, we naturally unbuckled our seat belts and prepared to step out into the sweltering sun.
But first, waking up Siyeon, who had fallen asleep, was the priority.
“Siyeon, Siyeon.”
“Hmm…?”
Gently shaking her tiny shoulders to wake her, Siyeon stirred, blinking sleepily.
“We’re at the rest area, let’s go to the restroom.”
“Umm….”
She rolled over with the same reluctance as when I first tried to wake her up in the morning, a groan slipping out.
No matter how much I asked if she didn’t want to go to the restroom, she continued to shake her head, refusing to open her eyes.
Thus, I had no choice but to pull both of us out into the burning sunshine alongside the uncles.
With her small stature, the sunlight bore down from above.
The heat radiating from the asphalt below quickly enveloped her.
It felt like a hot wind was blowing into my lungs, making it hard to breathe in the midday heat.
Following the adults with short strides, I hurried along, striving to reach the shade of a store even a second sooner.
“The weather is insane, really….”
“The high has reached 34 degrees.”
The food at the rest area is rarer to see elsewhere than expected.
Fried chicken skewers are nearly nonexistent, and deli buns appear only at certain subway stations.
I have hardly ever seen seasoned potatoes outside of rest areas; even walnut cakes and peanut snacks had started to dwindle, with only a few popular places remaining these days.
Thus, we bought as many near-exclusive foods at the rest area to feel satisfied.
Skipping over the dreaded sauced chicken skewers that would be a disaster if spilled in the car.
We each held loads of snacks including peanut snacks and walnut cakes, before returning to the car, where I gently shook the still sleepy Siyeon awake.
“Siyeon? We’ve got walnut cakes and peanut snacks, plus deli buns.”
“Ugh….”
Siyeon, who wouldn’t get up when I asked her to go to the restroom, instantly sat up and rubbed her eyes upon hearing snacks and deli buns.
I should have taken her to the restroom using the snacks as hostages.
“Buckle up properly.”
With a few warm words reminding about the seatbelt and the engine roaring to life, the car departed from the rest area.
Inside the car, Siyeon began to munch eagerly on walnut cakes, peanut snacks, and deli buns, her small mouth moving like a squirrel.
Was that really her, who had just been sleeping soundly a moment ago?
‘Where…’
Seeing her enjoy the food so blissfully, I couldn’t help but reach into the bag and pull one out too.
In that brief moment when my hand went into the bag, I felt a lingering moisture.
A clear sign that they had just been freshly made.
It had been years since I tasted a deli bun.
Beyond the fluffy and chewy bread texture, the moist cream oozed out.
The smell was a perfect 100% while the taste only scored 60.
This regret was a common trait of deli buns, yet I always wished for a sweeter cream every time I ate one.
Even knowing how it tastes, I still end up buying it solely from its fragrance.
At the point when the navigation in the front seat indicated about 40 minutes remaining, the walnut cake, peanut snacks, and deli bun wrappers were all empty.
I was starting to worry for Siyeon, who had been chugging water even without needing to visit the restroom.
Just as we had shifted from the highway to regular roads, the moment I had dreaded finally came.
“I need to pee….”
“Huh?”
“Hey, hey, hey, hold on a bit.”
The panicked groans came from the two public officials in the front seat.
Their urgency seemed to surpass even Siyeon’s, filling the car with their voices.
“This is a government vehicle; this is bad!?”
“Let’s see if there’s a restroom nearby… or a convenience store….”
“Oh! Over there, over there!”
Fortunately, being near a bustling beach, there were public restrooms scattered here and there.
Before parking the car, one of the gentlemen unlocked the doors and jumped out of the passenger seat, opening the back seat door for Siyeon and kindly unbuckling her belt.
In a flash, Siyeon turned to head outside, guided by the man as she headed toward the women’s restroom.
“Well, I said we should go when we could….”