Chapter 72: I Expected It All (1) There were five main places where Jinseo's food truck sold bunsik.
Near Falstead Castle, where he had first started doing business, he operated about five days a week. Of the remaining two days, he would spend one day closing up after relocating to either the Doren Mage Tower or Kaysus Cathedral, while also spreading bunsik in two other villages far away.
As Jinseo gradually expanded his sales locations, Marquis Horus's interference was an inevitable hardship—one that could arrive sooner or later.
When business went well, there were always people who grew jealous, or who tried to meddle by demanding a share of the profits.
To prepare countermeasures for the difficulties he expected ahead, Jinseo stopped by the Doren Mage Tower.
"I'll finish my business as quickly as possible and come right back."
"Hey, trust me and take your time chatting."
"Understood."
Leaving the food truck to Jason, Jinseo entered the mage tower.
"You're here to see the new Acting Headmaster. He should be in the headmaster's office right now."
"Jinseo! Do you really only sell steamed buns in winter? Waiting until next winter is way too long…"
"GuXcon came in today, right? It's in? Thanks for telling me!"
"Isn't what you're carrying pretty heavy? What? It's light?"
"Hang in there!"
The mages, who had all become regular customers by now, recognized him and greeted him as they passed.
Carrying items in both hands, Jinseo bowed in reply and climbed the spiral staircase.
Reaching the headmaster's office on the tenth floor using only the stairs would have been taxing for an ordinary person, but Jinseo now possessed a strong body—at least by the standards of the Francia Continent. He ascended easily, without breaking a sweat.
"It's Jinseo. May I come in?"
"…Come in."
A drained reply came from beyond the door, and the door opened on its own.
Unlike the neatly maintained corridor outside, the interior was cluttered with miscellaneous items scattered everywhere, clearly reflecting the Acting Headmaster's state of mind.
"It's been a while."
"Hoo… you're here."
Julien, who had been seated at the desk handling paperwork, set down his feather pen and pressed his fingers firmly between his eyes.
Since taking on the role of Acting Headmaster, the dark circles under his eyes had never faded—if anything, they had only grown worse.
"This is what you needed, right?"
When Jinseo shook the black plastic bag he brought, Julien's face brightened immediately.
He plunged a hand into the bag, quickly unwrapped the SeX Ice Joo packaging—decorated with wavy green and white patterns—and took a large bite.
"Yes… this taste. This is the kind of soft, milky flavor you can't get from other ice creams."
"I should have brought it sooner. As you know, I've had a lot more to worry about lately."
Jinseo had assumed Julien would come find the food truck on his own as usual, but he had forgotten that Julien was now Acting Headmaster. Only now did he finally have time to visit.
"I use magic so much that eating ice cream up to my daily limit has become routine. Still, it's much better when I'm eating something that suits my tastes."
"But that alone won't be enough, will it?"
To congratulate him on becoming Acting Headmaster, Jinseo placed a yellow box on the desk.
It was instant coffee—MacX MoX Gold.
"There are four hundred sticks. It should be enough to share with others. I also brought a mug, so you can mix it in here."
"Wow! Thank you so much!"
After finishing the ice cream in no time, Julien lifted a large glass of water from the desk. Using fire magic, he boiled the water directly inside the glass.
While he did so, Jinseo tore open the coffee sticks and poured them into the mug. Once the boiling water was added and stirred, two cups of coffee were ready in an instant.
A gentle coffee aroma spread through the headmaster's office, which had previously felt gloomy.
"Coffee really is MacX."
"I swore I'd never touch it again after finishing my military service because I drank so much of it, but somehow… I ended up craving it again."
"Ah… this is so good."
With each sip, Julien's fatigue eased little by little, and his smile returned.
Holding the mug with both hands, he felt its warmth and enjoyed the brief breathing room a single cup of coffee gave him.
"I'm suffering because I'm doing work that doesn't suit me."
"What do you mean? It suits you."
"Either way, I'm trying my best with what I've been assigned."
Julien dropped his left hand heavily onto the stack of documents he still hadn't processed.
Only then did Jinseo notice that the lute Julien always carried was no longer with him, left abandoned in the corner of the room.
"Still, the others have helped me a lot, so it's manageable. Thanks to that, I was able to finish the investigation you asked for faster than planned."
Julien opened a drawer, took out a written report, and handed it to Jinseo.
But as soon as Jinseo saw the first page, he shook his head with a bitter smile.
"I can't read the writing here…"
"Ah. Right. I forgot."
Julien put the report away and explained verbally instead.
Jinseo's request had been to determine whether Marco's tteokbokki set used magic, and whether consuming it posed any danger to the human body.
Jinseo had been impressed by Marco's skill, but he couldn't shake the suspicion that Marquis Horus might have pulled something behind the scenes.
If the food manipulated taste itself, or carried addictive properties that slowly damaged the body, Jinseo could never overlook it.
Marquis Horus would absolutely use the existing reputation of bunsik to sell his own version—and if something went wrong, the blame would inevitably fall on Jinseo.
"As you suspected, we confirmed traces of materials used for magic. They aren't cheap, but they were used without hesitation."
"Is it harmless to the body?"
"Yes."
"No hallucinations? Nothing addictive?"
"None. It seems the magic was used to speed up processing or extract specific flavors."
"I see. That's a relief."
One of the possibilities Jinseo had hoped would be wrong turned out to be wrong, and he leaned back against the sofa in relief.
In a world like this, borrowing magic to recreate ramen seasoning was only natural.
From the beginning, Jinseo had never intended to criticize the use of magic itself. From the perspective of the Francia Continent, the seasonings and tools developed through modern technology that Jinseo used were practically magic anyway.
If anything, Marco's obsession—going so far as to use magic just to recreate bunsik—made Jinseo nod in understanding.
"To recreate ramen seasoning in such a short time… he really is someone who's crazy about cooking."
"You mean Chef Marco?"
"Yes. If he had been born in Korea, he would have built an incredible reputation as a culinary researcher."
After sharing his honest impression, Jinseo drained the last of his coffee in one go.
"Then I'll be going now. I still need to stop by Kaysus Cathedral."
"Oh, right. This happened while we were on the Ashred Continent…"
Just as Jinseo stood, Julien brought up a new topic, prompting him to sit back down.
"There was an attempt to recruit a large number of mages from the Doren Mage Tower to another mage tower. We found out it was secretly sponsored by Marquis Horus."
"So how many left?"
"None. Not a single one."
"None? That must've been a hard offer to refuse."
"Well… the mage tower was so far away that buying ice cream would be inconvenient. They also said it would be a hassle to travel just to eat bunsik."
"…"
"After learning it was Marquis Horus's scheme, they were furious. That's why so many mages helped with your request."
So that's why someone told me to hang in there.
Jinseo smiled faintly.
"I don't have anything to say except thank you."
"Not just me. Everyone at the mage tower is cheering you on. If you need help, tell us anytime."
After visiting Kaysus Cathedral for the first time in a while, Jinseo greeted the clergy who recognized him and entered the residence area beside the cathedral.
Once again, he left the food truck to Jason.
With Priest Leira guiding him, he visited Cardinal Fedora's residence.
Unlike the cluttered headmaster's office, her residence was clean and neatly arranged.
"It's more modest than I expected."
Like the other clergy quarters, it consisted of a single room. The only decoration was the crest of the Heirem Order.
"For me, it's enough as long as I have money to enjoy bunsik every day."
Smiling gently, Fedora took a bite of the special tteokbokki Jinseo brought.
"But we should talk first. There were quite a few troublesome points."
Her expression turned serious the moment she shifted to the main topic.
"Even aside from the offerings he regularly donates… he has been careful to avoid offending the Order."
According to Fedora, Marquis Horus had contacted high-ranking clergy in advance to consult about the food truck.
In short, he asked whether borrowing the concept of a traveling kitchen could be considered desecration of a sacred relic.
The Order concluded that while the food truck itself was a sacred relic, the bunsik made within it was not—and permitted the imitation carriage.
They also subtly questioned why the food truck had been designated a sacred relic in the first place.
While this was happening, Marquis Horus failed to gain cooperation from Kaysus Cathedral, but clergy in other regions willingly assisted him—some resenting Fedora for being "too young" to be Cardinal.
"If I had stayed longer in the Holy Land, the designation might have been revoked."
"Then it would have been much harder to deal with."
One of the paths Marquis Horus had been forced to abandon was direct violence against Jinseo or the food truck.
That had only been possible before the relic designation.
"If I had been here, I could have delayed or blocked the imitation carriage. But this happened while I was away."
Fedora tapped the tteokbokki sauce lightly with her fork.
"The help I received from you was immense. It pains me that I couldn't help you in return."
"No."
"Yes?"
"If my expectations are correct, there will come a time when I'll need Your Eminence's help."
Fedora blinked and met his gaze.
"And when that time comes, I'll be counting on you—and everyone at this cathedral."
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