Daddy is too Strong-Chapter 155

Tonight’s dinner was banquet noodles. The broth, made from anchovies and dried kelp, was poured over cooked somen noodles topped with soy sauce seasoning and a variety of garnishes. After placing the carefully prepared bowls of noodles on the table, Yoon-Hee called out to the kids watching TV in the living room.

“Dinner’s ready!”

As always, Yong-Yong was the first to dash over. Upon seeing the stainless steel dog bowl adorned with paw prints filled generously with noodles, Yong-Yong tilted his head and examined the contents carefully. With ramen being the only kind of noodles he had tried, he sniffed at the dish with curiosity.

“What’s this?” he asked.

“Noodles,” answered Do-Jun, already seated at the table.

Karsiel and Byeol also eyed the noodles with similar curiosity from their seats. Having lived in the Core, the kids were unfamiliar with many foods, including noodles.

After Do-Jun took the first bite, the kids followed his lead and tasted the noodles themselves. The soy sauce seasoning added a savory, salty flavor that coated their tongues, leaving them craving more. Before long, Yong-Yong buried his snout in the bowl, eagerly devouring the noodles.

***

“Burp.” Yong-Yong rubbed his bulging stomach and let out a satisfied belch. The noodles had been so much to his liking that he had eaten three whole bowls by himself.

Normally, their post-dinner routine involved a trip to the store across the street for snacks, but the fullness pressing against his throat had completely erased any desire to go.

“Byeol, you’re full too, right?” Karsiel asked Byeol.

“Mm. No stowe today.”

Do-Jun was working on his laptop in the living room, catching up on his work. He glanced at his watch. The store would close in half an hour. Noodles tend to digest quickly—were they really going to be okay?

“Why don’t you run over there now, just in case?” he suggested.

Yong-Yong shook his head. Even though he could eat snacks, his full stomach made the thought unappealing.

“Alright.” Do-Jun shrugged, turning his attention back to his work.

***

At 2 AM, while everyone was asleep, the only sound in the quiet room was the ticking of the wall clock.

Byeol was nestled between Do-Jun and Yoon-Hee, the blanket pulled up to her chin. She opened her eyes wide and placed her hands on her stomach. Her stomach growled thunderously, loud enough to sound like a storm was brewing inside her. Fearing the noise might wake someone, Byeol clutched her belly, trying hard not to disturb anyone’s sleep. She willed herself to fall back asleep.

Growl!

However, the more she thought about it, the louder the hunger pangs seemed to grow.

“I’m not hungwy. I ate a lot,” she whispered to herself.

Hadn’t she eaten an entire bowl of noodles earlier? It was the first time she had eaten so much.

Growl! Growl!

There was no denying it now. “I’m... hungwy... What do I do?”

Byeol prayed she could fall asleep despite her hunger, but she soon realized that true hunger made sleep impossible. Turning her head from side to side, she checked on Do-Jun and Yoon-Hee. Both were sound asleep, Yoon-Hee breathing softly, while Do-Jun, as usual, slept silently without making a sound.

***

Byeol quietly slipped out of bed, opened the bedroom door, and stepped into the living room. There, in the darkness, a faint light spilled from one corner. It came from the refrigerator, where someone stood in front of it with the door ajar.

She was startled but soon realized it was none other than Yong-Yong. As Yong-Yong rummaged through the fridge, he heaved a sigh of relief upon noticing Byeol and gestured for her to come over.

“Why are you up at this time?” he asked Byeol.

Her stomach answered for her by making a loud rumbling sound, prompting Yong-Yong to smirk.

“I’m hungwy,” said Byeol.

“Hmm... Okay, just wait two seconds. I’m looking for food.”

“For me, too?”

“Of course.”

Yong-Yong was actually chuckling to himself at this stroke of luck. If he got caught raiding the fridge alone in the middle of the night, he would undoubtedly be scolded by Do-Jun or Yoon-Hee. However, with Byeol as an accomplice, the scolding might be less severe.

“Found anything yet?” Byeol asked him.

The refrigerator compressor hummed louder than usual, adding to the tension. Yong-Yong wiped the sweat from his forehead with a paw and began scanning the fridge from bottom to top. The vegetable drawer at the bottom contained zucchini, lettuce, carrots, and cabbage—not exactly appetizing raw.

“Tofu...” Yong-Yong pulled out a block of tofu from the drawer and carefully set it aside.

Moving up, he spotted some side dishes and condiments. Then, a container of stir-fried sausage and vegetables caught his eye.

“Oho, sausage!” With a grin, he pulled it out. “Let’s see, the next is... right, Koreans need kimchi.”

He retrieved a tub of kimchi and set it down.

“Are we eating this with wice?” Byeol asked.

“It’s kinda cold...” Yong-Yong said.

Glancing around, he spotted the frying pan in the dish drying rack. He quickly checked the bedroom door before jumping onto the counter. Carefully, he reached for the pan, but the pots stacked above it wobbled and clattered as they shifted.

Aaaaah! he screamed inwardly.

Though the sound was faint, to Yong-Yong, it felt as loud as a bomb going off. He froze in place, staring at the bedroom door for five full seconds. Thankfully, no one seemed to wake up.

“Phew.”

“Yong-Yong, what are you doing with that?” Byeol asked.

This was strange. The frying pan was a cooking tool. What did Yong-Yong plan to do with that? Byeol still remembered the disastrous kimchi jjigae from before, and looked up at Yong-Yong with growing dread.

“Just wait. I’ll make something tasty.”

“No!” Byeol shrieked, startling Yong-Yong, who hurriedly jumped down and covered her mouth.

“Calm down! I’m just gonna heat up the food, okay?”

“Weally...?”

Yong-Yong nodded. Although he had initially planned to prepare something new with tofu, kimchi, sausage, and spices, he decided against it. Byeol’s reaction made it clear that trying to cook now would only upset her and possibly wake the entire neighborhood.

The gas stove ignited. Yong-Yong placed the frying pan on top and casually tossed in the side dishes he had taken out earlier. He kept the flame low so that no sound would reach the bedroom.

While cooking, Yong-Yong once again reminded Byeol to stay quiet. Byeol covered her mouth with her hands and nodded. That’s when the bedroom door opened. Yong-Yong froze in place, unable to turn around.

“Siel is here too,” Byeol said.

“What?” Only then did Yong-Yong turn his head and see that it was Karsiel emerging from the room.

Clutching her stomach, she hung her head in embarrassment. “I’m hungry, Lord Izaas.”

“You too?”

Karsiel nodded vigorously.

“Ha. Looks like I’ve got two mouths to feed now.” Muttering to himself, Yong-Yong stirred the contents of the pan with a spatula.

Karsiel sat down next to Byeol, who was leaning against a kitchen drawer. Watching Yong-Yong diligently stir-fry the side dishes, Karsiel smiled and said, “This is kind of fun.”

“Fun?”

“Yes. It reminds me of the time we went on Young Master’s school trip.”

Karsiel recalled the time she and Yong-Yong had followed Yoon-Hee on her school trip, packed in a duffel bag. That night, they huddled in the hotel room, chatting and snacking on treats. Even though the lights were supposed to be out by 11 PM, Yoon-Hee had broken the rules and kept a flashlight on. The moment they were experiencing right now felt just like the cozy atmosphere of that night.

“Ah, you mean back then.” Yong-Yong chuckled at the memory.

“I dunno what you’re talking about,” Byeol said, blinking curiously.

Karsiel gently patted Byeol on the head with a smile. “Next year, you can come too. We’ll join Young Master on her trip again.”

“Yeah! I wanna go too!”

As they chatted, Karsiel suddenly had an idea. She opened a drawer and pulled out a pack of cup noodles that had been hidden in the corner.

“W-what’s that?!” Yong-Yong asked, eyes wide.

“It’s cup noodles.”

Yoon-Hee usually didn’t allow ramen for health reasons, and cup noodles were supposedly even worse. However, when Yong-Yong saw Karsiel holding one, tears of joy filled his eyes.

“Where did you get that?” he asked.

“Um...” Karsiel avoided eye contact. In truth, it was her emergency stash.

“I’ll boil some water,” she said, changing the subject.

She poured water into an electric kettle and turned it on. Soon, the water began to boil. Karsiel opened the lid of the cup noodles, tore open the seasoning packet, and emptied it into the container. Then, she filled it with hot water up to the fill line.

“You’re not cooking it?” Byeol asked, curious as to why Karsiel wasn’t using a pot.

“Byeol, you just have to pour hot water over this thing and wait three minutes.”

“But it’s wamen?”

“Yes.”

“Then I can make it too?” Byeol asked with wide eyes.

Karsiel smiled in response.

***

Instead of eating at the table, they sat on the kitchen floor. Their midnight snack included stir-fried tofu kimchi with sausages, multigrain rice from the rice cooker, and cup noodles with a steaming red broth.

“Ahh...” Yong-Yong shed tears of emotion.

At this moment, this simple meal felt more delicious than any other lavish feast in the world.

“The noodles we had earlier weren’t very filling,” Karsiel remarked.

“I think I understand why Master told me to go to the store,” Yong-Yong agreed.

The refrigerator door was open, casting a faint light. Turning on the living room lights felt too risky, so they ate in the dim glow of the fridge.

“Tasty!” Byeol exclaimed.

***

Meanwhile, in the bedroom, Yoon-Hee tossed and turned in bed. In truth, she had already woken up when she heard the clattering of the frying pan earlier. In fact, she had been semi-awake before that, but the real culprit for waking her up was her growling stomach.

She had eaten a hearty portion of noodles for dinner, but at her age, her metabolism worked quickly, leaving her hungry again without her realizing it. She turned over in bed, trying to ignore it.

Growl.

Maybe she should’ve eaten more. Regret washed over her, but there was nothing she could do now.

Just then, Do-Jun, who had been lying quietly beside her, muttered, “If you’re hungry, go eat with them.”

“Y-you’re awake...?”

It was harder to stay asleep with all that noise. Yoon-Hee sighed, climbed out of bed, and carefully opened the bedroom door just a crack to peek into the kitchen. The soft glow of the refrigerator light illuminated the scene. There, in front of the fridge, the kids were eating cup noodles with forks.

“Byeol, this is a secret from Master and Young Master,” Karsiel said.

“Yeah, it’s a secwet,” Byeol agreed.

Yong-Yong picked up a piece of sausage and popped it into Byeol’s mouth, who remarked, “I wove sausages,” with a bright smile.

“Now we’re partners in crime,” Yong-Yong said.

“Yeah, we’re cwime partners!”

Watching this scene, Yoon-Hee couldn’t help but stifle a laugh. She quietly closed the door and slipped back under her blanket, whispering, “I’ll let them keep their secret.”

Do-Jun chuckled softly and replied, “Good call.”

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