Reader Mage-Stubbing August 10! Chapter 86: 86-Kimchi Is A Delicate Meal

Read chapter 86 of Reader Mage-Stubbing August 10! by A_Random_Turtle on NovelPedia.

According to Hakyun, the basic recipe for a perfectly made kimchi called for napa cabbage, salt, sugar, ginger, garlic (Merlin was not a big fan of garlic, but he decided not to let his taste buds ruin a perfectly good meal), Korean red pepper flakes, also known as gochugaru, scallions, and fish sauce. If any of these was missed, then the chef should be hanged. Chima didn’t care about all that, he was just glad that Hakyun was finally keeping to his bargain after more than a week since their bet had passed. It had taken a lot of bickering too. Merlin had been unable to sleep the previous night until midnight because of the fact that Chima and Hakyun had been arguing. But he was glad that it had happened, and finally he would get to taste kimchi. Maybe I should have added it to the list of things I should have eaten with Janeth… That thought bombarded him with emotions he wanted to forget. He sighed and shook them away from his mind, focusing on the present. “Hey, both of you, take off your uniforms and come help!” Hakyun roared as he put down the bag of foodstuffs from their shopping at the Square, rolling up his sleeves to get the preliminary stages of the cooking set. Chima sneered at him. “What’s the use of the bet if you don’t cook it alone?” Hakyun blinked. “Don’t be wicked now, brute. You can’t truly be expecting me to do all this alone? I’ll faint. Do you want to have to rush me to the ward? You don’t want to, do you?” Chima’s nose twitched. He scoffed. “Hmph… You’re not getting me with that shoddy manipulation tactic. I’m wiser than that.” “Really?” Hakyun tilted his head, looking absolutely taken aback. Merlin knew where this was headed and instantly turned towards his room. “I thought you were dumber,” Hakyun spilled the beans. Merlin shut the door behind himself just before Chima’s roars could assault his ears. He took off his uniform, headed into the bathroom, washed his face, and changed into something more comfortable. And, sure enough, when he got back to the living room, those two were still at each other’s throats. “I’ll help, okay? So just stop. Goodness. You both will kill me before you kill each other at this rate. Ugh…” Merlin strolled to the kitchen area, releasing all his pent up frustration. It did very well to silence them, though, which he was quite glad for. “So? What should I do?” Hakyun forced his eyes away from Chima with every ounce of his strength, and Chima stomped into his room. Those guys. Merlin sighed and turned his attention back to the task at hand. Hakyun, even through his argument, had made sure he remained diligent. On the table were the equipment needed to cook neatly rinsed and arranged. Merlin applauded the boy in his mind because of that. The lad was already quite smug, if he did it openly, things would only get worse. “So, have you handled a knife before?” Hakyun asked. “Well, it depends on where…” Merlin replied. “This is not a game, Merlin,” Hakyun snorted. “Kimchi is a delicate meal that should be prepared with the same grace as bosoms being caressed.” That was an uncalled for comparison. “So your experience with a knife counts. Can you do it?” He slammed his palm on the cabbage he’d brought out, angling his body. “Can you slice this round boy without ruining his curves?” His eyes narrowed beneath the lenses of his glasses. Merlin frowned. Why was Hakyun looking at him like that? How hard could it be to cut a cabbage? …A minute later, Merlin bit his lower lip so hard it was a wonder it wasn’t bleeding. Hakyun was standing on the other side of the table, freshened up, and a mix of horror and annoyance on his face. Chima, on the other hand, simply shook his head, disappointed. “You didn’t, Mel,” he said. “This can’t be the same cabbage we bought.” “I’m sorry,” Merlin apologized. “I have no excuses.” Hakyun stared at the cabbage so intensely it was a surprise it wasn’t burnt to ashes yet. “I even removed the outer leaves, rinsed it, patted it dry, and placed it on the cutting boar