Chapter 161

Lee Taewoon’s cooking wasn’t extraordinary. It was just adding a bit more seasoning or cooking slightly longer than usual for the meat and side dishes from the JS convenience store. He lightly stir-fried the bulgogi, adjusted the seasoning, then served it with eggs bought at the JS convenience store. The stronger seasoning enhanced the taste, so he broke open the egg over a bowl to dip the meat in. For the sausage and galbi, he coated them with an egg batter before frying. Lastly, using garlic and green onions purchased from the JS convenience store, he made fried rice. Additionally, he cooked eggs and grilled pork belly from the same store, filling the table with JS-branded dishes.

“Let’s eat.”

Kim Sohee glanced at Lee Taewoon’s words and noticed two separate tables set up due to her refusal to share meals with others. As she observed the spread, Lee Taewoon and Kang Jin took seats across from each other at the adjacent table.

Suddenly, Kim Sohee turned towards Kang Jin while still looking at the food.

“Move next to Taewon.”

“Huh?”

As Kim Sohee’s gaze indicated Lee Taewoon’s side, Kang Jin got up and sat beside him. In turn, Kim Sohee occupied the spot where Kang Jin had been sitting earlier.

Lee Taewoon looked surprised as he watched Kim Sohee take a seat opposite him.

“Miss Kim?”

“There’s no need for ghostly etiquette here. I’ll eat with you.”

“Miss Kim…?”

As Lee Taewoon looked at her with surprise, Kang Jin smiled and stood up to fetch some rice and soup from the table set for her.

“Of course. Food always tastes better when shared.”

Kim Sohee nodded at Kang Jin’s words and picked up her chopsticks. Since they were disposable utensils bought from JS Convenience Store, she could eat normally just like when she was alive. She scooped up some bulgogi, dipped it in the runny egg yolk, and savored it before nodding approvingly.

“It’s delicious.”

Hearing this, Lee Taewoon chuckled and raised his own chopsticks.

“I never thought I’d share a meal with you, Miss Kim… It seems even death has its perks.”

Kim Sohee squinted at Lee Taewoon’s comment.

“Let’s eat.”

“All right.”

Smiling, Lee Taewoon scooped up some kimchi bean sprout soup with his spoon and chopsticks, then grinned after taking a bite.

“It tastes fantastic, even though I made it myself.”

With that, Kim Sohee stopped talking and started eating her meal. Kang Jin observed them before smiling and picking up her own chopsticks.

Take things slowly. As you do, new joys will reveal themselves.

As she watched Kim Sohee comfortably enjoying her food, Kang Jin suddenly noticed something peculiar. Upon closer inspection, she realized that Sohee was avoiding areas where others’ chopsticks had touched. It seemed as if Sohee still felt uncomfortable using utensils previously handled by someone else.

One spoonful won’t fill your stomach. This is already quite an improvement.

With that thought, Kang Jin made sure to only use utensils on dishes he had touched before. Lee Taewoon did likewise, having noticed Kim Sohee’s actions due to his extensive experience dealing with customers in the food business.

Thanks to their consideration, Kim Sohee was able to finish her difficult meal somewhat comfortably. After enjoying her dinner, she led Lee Taewoon and Hwanggu northward as planned. As Lee Taewoon mentioned earlier, they were headed for Mount Kumgang for sightseeing. Following closely behind Kim Sohee, Lee Taewoon couldn’t contain his joy, resembling a groom eagerly anticipating his wedding night. Of course, if he truly expected anything akin to a honeymoon… well, let’s just say it would likely end painfully for him.

Lee Taewoon couldn’t hide his excitement; he looked like a groom on his wedding night. Of course, if this truly were his first night with Kim Sohee, he might end up dying and being revived a hundred times… Nonetheless, Lee Taewoon walked with the expression of someone who felt like they had conquered the world.

Krrr-krrr.

After seeing off Kim Sohee, Kang Jin allowed Sung Yongsoo and the imp-like spirits to enter the kitchen. As soon as Sung Yongsoo stepped inside, Kang Jin placed plastic bags containing grouper and sea bream near the sink. Bae Yongsoo inspected the fish through the transparent plastic and nodded approvingly.

“Nice catch!”

As Yongsoo mentioned, the fish appeared lively and impressively large. Kang Jin glanced at Sung Yongsoo while observing the seafood.

“Hey, I brought you a gift.”

“A gift? What kind of gift between two guys?”

Despite his words, anticipation was evident on Bae Yongsoo’s face. Kang Jin noticed this and tossed him a bag from across the room.

Fwip!

As Kang Jin suddenly threw the bag, Bae Yongsoo reflexively caught it.

Grab!

Bae Yongsoo looked at Kang Jin with surprise as he held the bag in his hand.

“Is it something related to JS?”

“As expected, only you can handle it.”

Following Kang Jin’s words, Bae Yongsoo opened the bag. Inside, there were rubber gloves.

“Rubber gloves?”

“For cleaning up in ‘Feces Hell’.”

“Feces Hell?”

Seeing that Sung Yongsoo seemed unfamiliar with the term, Kang Jin explained:

“In Boiling Feces Hell, they…they fry people in fecal matter.”

“Fry people in fecal matter? Ugh…gross.”

Seeing Sung Yongsoo’s disgust, Kang Jin explained further.

“They get fried for six days, which is equivalent to Sunday here. On that day, they must clean the pots used to fry them.”

“Why? Can’t they just keep frying people?”

Kang Jin nodded at Bae Yongsoo’s question. He had asked a similar question to the convenience store employee before. After all, why would those being punished with such severity be given a break to do cleaning?

However, the explanation provided by the employee seemed quite plausible, and Kang Jin relayed it to Bae Yongsoo.

“If you live in filth every day, one becomes accustomed to it. Humans can adapt and make even hell livable. It is like cleaning up feces water, then flooding the area with more of it again. Then repeating this process over and over.”

It was more painful to experience cleanliness for a single day before returning to a life filled with filth and hardship.

“That’s cruel.”

“Yes, indeed. Moreover, it would also be mentally agonizing.”

“It must be because they have to flood the area with shit-water once again.”

“That’s true, but let me give another example. Imagine working hard to clean a room…then being forced to defile it once again. How would that feel?”

Bae Yongsoo grimaced at Kang Jin’s words.

“It wouldn’t feel good.”

“I once saw an AI robot diligently build a tower using blocks. However, its next command was to topple that very same tower. The robot’s response at the time was ‘I worked hard on this, and you want me to destroy it?’ It seems even artificial intelligence dislikes destroying something they’ve created with effort. How would humans feel about such a task?”

“Not good,” Bae Yongsoo agreed, nodding his head.

“So imagine cleaning up only for someone to pour sewage back inside again. It’s both frustrating and insulting.”

“That’s pretty messed up.”

“Welcome to hell.”

“You’re trying to provoke my anger with this…?”

“Are you asking us to clean the toilet?”

Kang Jin shook his head with a smile as Sung Yongsoo showed him rubber gloves.

“Dude, these cost two million won each.”

“These?” Sung Yongsoo looked at the rubber gloves with surprise.

Kang Jin nodded affirmatively.

“People use them when cleaning up shit hell. They claim it keeps their hands clean from feces.”

Sung Yongsoo raised an eyebrow at Kang Jin’s explanation.

“You mean those who were submerged in fecal water?”

“Yes.”

“But if they’re covered in shit…why bother wearing these gloves? Wouldn’t their hands be dirty anyway since their whole body is already covered?”

The question on his mind was why someone already covered in excrement would wear gloves while handling it.

“Maybe because even if their bodies are drenched in shit, they still don’t want to touch it directly with their hands?”

It was strange, yet it made sense… In any case, his reasoning seemed somewhat odd.

“I see.” Kang Jin shook his head as he watched Bae Yongsoo fidgeting with the rubber gloves. “I didn’t bring these for you to clean the toilets anyway. It wouldn’t be right to assign such work to someone as important as you.”

Bae Yongsoo’s eyes twinkled at Kang Jin’s words.

“So then? For washing dishes maybe?”

“For that and…”

Kang Jin smiled while looking at Bae Yongsoo.

“…also cooking.”

“What kind of food do I need rubber gloves for?”

“Just put them on first.”

Bae Yongsoo looked at Kang Jin before tearing open the plastic wrapping and putting on the rubber gloves. As soon as he did, Kang Jin retrieved an onion from the refrigerator.

“You need to wear rubber gloves…”

Kang Jin swiftly tossed him an onion.

Whish! Thud!

As Bae Yongsoo caught it, Kang Jin laughed.

“Here’s some food from this world.”

“Huh? This is Lee Seung’s?”

“Yes. Congratulations. You’ve been promoted from assistant to official chef.”

While selecting cooking utensils for Lee Taewoon at the JS Convenience Store, Kang Jin had a sudden thought. If ghosts could use JS kitchenware to cook, couldn’t Sung Yongsoo also utilize them? He theorized that even if not using JS ingredients, by wearing gloves sold at the JS Convenience Store, Yongsoo might be able to handle Lee Seung’s ingredients and tools without issue.

Thus, Kang Jin bought rubber gloves and disposable gloves. With these gloves, Bae Yongsoo could directly handle ingredients and cook. As expected, Bae Yongsoo was able to touch food from this world. In that case…

If Yongsoo helps with kitchen work, would it solve my part-time job issue?

This thought brought a sense of satisfaction to Kang Jin’s mind. Just as he pondered this, Choi Hun approached him.

“Um…”

Kang Jin looked at Choi Hun.

“I think I can help with washing dishes.”

“Washing dishes?”

“Yongsoo mentioned needing money even in the afterlife, so I’d like to contribute by working here too.”

While spending time with Bae Yongsoo, Choi Hun had picked up some information about the afterlife through various conversations.

Kang Jin glanced at Sung Yongsoo after hearing Choi Hun’s words.

Sung Yongsoo responded to her gaze, “As you know, you also need part-time work.”

After pondering Sung Yongsoo’s words for a moment, Kang Jin looked back at Choi Hun.

“You should be aware that customers won’t visit if there are ghosts in the establishment.”

“But Yongsoo is working here…”

“There’s a difference between one ghost and two. Customers may still come with just Yongsoo around, but having two ghosts…would deter them.”

“Oh…”

Seeing Choi Hun’s disappointment, Kang Jin asked, “Do you really want to work?”

Choi Hun hesitated briefly before responding.

“According to Bae Yongsoo, there’s much expense even in the afterlife… However, we don’t have any money.”

Kang Jin glanced at Sung Yongsoo upon hearing Choi Hun’s words. It seemed Choi Hun was more concerned about Sung Yongsoo’s financial situation than his own.

After observing him, Kang Jin had an idea and suggested:

“How about you help with cleaning up and tidying the store after business hours?”

“I’ll do it.”

“It might not be much compensation since it’s just occasional work.”

Kang Jin wasn’t exactly sure how much Sung Yongsoo spent according to the afterlife’s standards. However, based on its principles, payment should reflect the amount of work done.

Thus, Kang Jin had no complaints about Bae Yongsoo’s pay. It was only fair to receive compensation for work done. However, Choi Hun would be doing occasional odd jobs, so he wouldn’t earn much. This concerned Kang Jin somewhat.

In response to Kang Jin’s concern, Choi Hun laughed.

“It’s better to make some money than just lazing around. Whatever you assign me, I’ll do my best -no, I’ll perform well.”

Kang Jin nodded at his words and extended his hand.

“Well then, let’s make it work.”

Choi Hun brightly smiled as he firmly shook Kang Jin’s hand.

“Thank you, sir!”