Chapter 11: Pork Cutlet Kimbap

Beelzebub had discovered a new, fun game.

-Vzzzt.-

“Hyaa!! Whewe should I go today? Should I go back to the wake we went to befowe?”

It was the game of traveling here and there via portals!

For a five-year-old’s life, which could be seen as long or short, this new game of leaving the Old Castle through a portal was a huge shock to Beelzebub, who had only ever gone back and forth between the castle and the secret base.

Wasn’t it only natural?
With a single gesture, she could come and go between a world completely different from the one she knew.

Of course! If the Demon King knew about this, he would cough up blood, have a fit, and absolutely! forbid her from doing it…
But since he didn’t know Beelzebub was a portal user yet, she was safe by a hair’s breadth!

“Hmph… but it’s not fun going back and fowth by myself anymowe…”

However! Even such thrilling escapades become boring when done alone!
Beelzebub, who had already visited all the places she wanted to go by herself, was starting to get tired of it, having no one to share this secret with.

Just then! A certain person popped into Beelzebub’s head.

“Aha! Uncle Teo! Uncle Teo isn’t a castle servant and only stays at the secwet base,
so if I tell him to keep it a secwet fwom Daddy, he can pway with me, wight?”

Her first friend, whom she had met by chance at the beach three months ago! The multi-talented chef! Teo had come to mind.

“Hehe! That’s wight! Daddy told Uncle Teo not to go outside the secwet base, so he must be supew-dupew bowed!
I should go and pway with him! And I should ask him to make yummy food fow us to eat when we go pway~”

While Beelzebub, having changed her destination, headed for the secret base, what was Teo doing so late at night?

“Haaah… Ugh… I’m thirsty…”

About two months ago, after being caught sleeping on a mat on the living room floor by the Demon King, Teo had been gifted a bed by the pitying monarch.
Perhaps his throat had gotten very dry while sleeping, as he was now in the kitchen having a glass of water.

“Haaah… Hmm… Come to think of it… I need to prepare this morning’s menu a bit faster than usual…
Should I just prepare it now?”

Though his words asked the question, his hands were already washing the rice.
My… he lives a busy life.

-Swish!-

“Okay. The rice is set, now shall I cook the egg garnish?”

Just then! Another voice was heard from behind Teo.

“Wet’s cook da egg gaw-nish~!”

“Akdjslfj!!”

Startled by a voice that shouldn’t have been there in the dark, empty cottage at dawn, Teo let out a strange sound effect and turned around to find Beelzebub standing behind him, her bright eyes twinkling.

“Y-You scared me… Phew… It was just Beelzebub… Huh? Beelzebub?”

“Yep! Uncle Teo!”

Teo was quite flustered to see Beelzebub looking at him with a fresh smile at an hour when a child should not be awake.
Of course! What time was it? It was a time when good children should have been sucking on candy in dreamland long ago!

“Wait… what time is it for you to be here? Aren’t you sleeping, Beelzebub?”

“I! I! I was going to go pway, but I thought of you, Uncle Teo, so I came to pway togethew!
Make me somethin’ yummy! Wet’s go pway and eat somethin’ yummy togethew!”

That’s right! Beelzebub had come to pick up her friend, baggage carrier, and chef, Teo, before going out to play!
A clear motive to get some delicious food on the side… and Teo’s reaction, having seen through it?

“No.”

“Yep! Whewe should we go… huh…?”

“No!! Do you know what time it is?? It’s a time when good children should be in dreamland sucking on candy!!
And did you get the Demon King’s permission? Beelzebub?”

Oh, dear! A heavy blow from Teo, based on pure facts!
Beelzebub, who had naturally assumed Teo would go play with her, was left dazed by his unexpected resistance.

“H-Huh? Uncle Teo… you don’t want to pway with me…?”

“No, that’s not it, but what time is it? You should be sleeping at this late hour, right?
And looking at you, I bet you didn’t get the Demon King’s permission…”

“…Sniffle… sniffle…”

Every word was right! As Teo’s harsh words continued, tears began to well up in the eyes of Beelzebub, who had just been lectured by the Teo she had trusted.

“Uh… Beelzebub…?”

Teo called out to the pouting, sniffling Beelzebub, but…

“Waaah… Uncle Teo… I hate you!!! Waaaaah!!!”

Oh, no… the dam had burst.
If this continued, Beelzebub’s eyes would be swollen like a goldfish tomorrow morning, and Teo’s eyes, after getting an earful from the Demon King who saw it, would be swollen too. He had to stop it!

“Beelzebub! O-Okay! Let’s go play together! But! Since it’s dawn, we won’t go too far!”

“Weally?”

As soon as she heard Teo’s permission, Beelzebub’s crying stopped on a dime.
Wait a minute… that was too fast…?

“Hehe…! You pwomised, Uncle Teo!”

“??’

Oh, no! Teo! You’ve been had by Beelzebub!

“Ahhh~ Beelzebub wants to go pway with Uncle Teo and eat somethin’ yummy… Uncle? Pwease make somethin’ yummy!”

Beelzebub’s charming request was aimed at Teo, who was still dazed after being tricked by her acting!
Ah~ Teo is already out of it! Will he grant Beelzebub’s request?

“Haah… I’ve been had.”

Teo looked at the brightly smiling Beelzebub in front of him, clutching his head.
In Teo’s mind, he was already entering the final stage of the five stages of accepting death.

‘No! Was I really tricked by a five-year-old Beelzebub?? No, no!!’

Stage 2: Anger
‘Kim Teo, you damn idiot!! How could you let your guard down so much that you fell for a five-year-old’s scheme!!’

Stage 3: Fear
‘Gasp! Come to think of it… if the Demon King finds out about this… Ugh… I’m going to lose my mind…’

Stage 4: Bargaining
‘R-Right!! It’s fine as long as I don’t get caught! In the army, they say if you get caught slacking off, you’re screwed, but if you don’t get caught, you’re just following the book!’

Stage 5: Acceptance
‘Haah… I already said I’d go… Right. It’s good to make a memory like this once…’

After passing through all five stages, only a sense of peace remained on Teo’s face.
How’d he do that… so fast?

“Alright. Beelzebub… let’s go play… let’s go play!! Yay!!!!”

Teo, who finally seemed to have lost his mind… started to grin while making Beelzebub’s signature sound!
Was being tricked by Beelzebub that much of a shock…? I wouldn’t know~

“Yay!! Uncle Teo is the best!!”

And Beelzebub, joyfully making the same signature sound as Teo!
Boisterous voices unfitting for the quiet dawn! Ah! This is chaos, pure chaos!

-Bubble bubble… Beep! Beep! Beep!-

Amidst it all, the sound of the rice being cooked came from the new pot the Demon King had provided!
Teo’s wandering mind snapped back into his head.

“Ah! The rice! First… first the rice!”

-Slice! Mix mix!-

“Hyaa! The savory smell of wice! Uncle Teo! Are you making food fow us to eat togethew?”

Meanwhile, Beelzebub, sticking close to Teo who was seasoning and mixing the rice like a ghost, was certain that the food was for her…
Well… it was for Beelzebub, but…

“Sigh… Yes, Beelzebub. It’s a dish that fits the concept of an outing perfectly.
How did this turn out like this? It’s strange… truly.”

That’s right! The dish for tomorrow… no! For this morning was Kimbap!
Of course, due to Beelzebub’s intervention, it had turned from breakfast into a late-night snack… but what does it matter now!
(TL note: Kimbap are Korean seaweed rice rolls, a popular picnic food.)

“Kimbap? What’s that, Uncle Teo?”

“Umm… how should I explain it…?
Ah! A dish where we wrap all of Beelzebub’s favorite foods in rice? You can think of it like that.”

“Hyaa!! Gweat! It sounds delicious! I! I! The tonkassu fwom last time! I want tonkassu!”
(TL note: Tonkatsu is a Japanese deep-fried pork cutlet.)

Beelzebub jumped up and down, extremely excited at the mention of her favorite foods.

“Alright, alright. Beelzebub eats a lot, so… I’ll make three rolls for you.”

-Gurgle gurgle gurgle~-

Although Beelzebub was famous among the castle servants for not eating much, Teo, who had only been with her at the secret base, considered her a rice thief.
He began to pour a generous amount of oil into a moderately deep pot to make the tonkatsu for the kimbap.

“First… set the oil temperature to 165~170 degrees.”

-Beep!-

“Okay! As soon as the oil temperature rises, immediately! Put the fresh tonkatsu I made last time into the oil.”

-Sizzzzzzzle!!!-

The beautiful sound of moisture rapidly evaporating echoed as soon as the tonkatsu was put in.
Ah! Drool began to drip from the mouth of Beelzebub, who was standing blankly beside him!

“Bleeh… tonkassu… tonkassu looks yummy…”

“Just wait a little, Beelzebub. I’ll make it for you soon.”

“Yay!!! I love you, Uncle Teo!!”

After prying off Beelzebub, who was clinging to his leg and rubbing her cheeks against it, Teo focused on the tonkatsu again. Can’t look away for a second and end up with charcoal!

“Now… it’s been three minutes, so flip the tonkatsu! And set up a rack to drain the oil!”

-Sizzzle!! Chwaaaaaa!!!-

“And… place the seasoned rice on the prepared seaweed! Then add the filling ingredients.”

-Plop! Plop! Plop!-

“Ehh… Beelzebub doesn’t wike buwdock… Hmph…”

“You have to eat everything to grow up big and strong! The burdock I put in this time is thin, so you won’t taste it much.
Here! Eat this! It’s ham, your favorite!”

“Yay!! Ham!!”

After giving a stern word to the picky Beelzebub, Teo handed her a piece of homemade kimbap ham.
He then lifted the tonkatsu that was floating on the oil and placed it on the rack he had set up earlier.

-Crisp!-

“Alright. Let’s let it drain for 30 seconds… no, since it’s going inside the kimbap, let’s drain it for about a minute.”

“Om nom nom… om nom nom…”

In the quiet dawn where even the oil was silent, the painstaking time passed.
The cottage was filled only with the sound of Beelzebub’s “om nom nom” as she nibbled on the kimbap ham like a hamster, with the savory smell of tonkatsu as her side dish…

“Done!! Now, slice the drained tonkatsu into long strips.”

-Crisp!! Crisp!-

“Put it in the prepared kimbap and gently~ gently~ roll it up…?”

-Rustle! Press! Press!-

“Done! Tonkatsu Kimbap!!”

“Done! Tonkassu Kimbap!!”

Finally, five rolls of Tonkatsu Kimbap were complete!
Huh? Why five rolls instead of three, you ask? Teo is human too!! He needs to eat two rolls!
You half-breed discriminator! I shouldn’t say that, right~?

“Now! Beelzebub? You don’t need dessert, right?”

“Huh? No! I want to eat dessewt!”

(Tsk! Not easy, is she…)

Teo’s desperate attempt to take the easy way out! And Beelzebub, who blocked it with ease!

“Umm… then for something simple… how about fried Goguma Mallaengi jerky sprinkled with sugar?”
(TL Note: Goguma Mallaengi is dried sweet potato, which Teo is now frying.)

“Gweat!! The name is cute and it sounds yummy! Goguma Mallaengi!”

“Okay! Now~ into the oil you go, Mallaengi~”

Having decided on sweet potato jerky for dessert, Teo brought the jerky that had been drying in the garden, immediately put it in the oil, and then added sugar to a bowl.
He then began to slice the five rolls of Tonkatsu Kimbap and place them in a lunchbox.

“Here! Beelzebub, here’s the end piece of the kimbap. Try it! It’s really~ delicious, I bet~?”

“Feed me, Uncle Teo!
Ahhh~”

“Jeez… still such a baby…”

Teo popped the end piece of the kimbap into Beelzebub’s mouth, which she had opened adorably like a baby bird.
Ooh? Something’s up with Beelzebub?

-Chew… chew… Gulp!-

“Hyaaa!!! It’s sooooo delicious!! Uncle Teo! How do you think of such delicious dishes??”

“Hah! That’s a secwet~!”

At Teo’s mention of a secret, Beelzebub’s cheeks puffed out!

“Pout…! Mean! I’m not gonna pway with you!”

Just then! The sweet potato jerky floated to the top of the oil!
Any more delay and they’d turn into pencil lead!

-Sizzzzzzle!!-

“Whoops! Almost burned them…
Just like the tonkatsu, drain these on a rack…”

Just then! Beelzebub once again briefed Teo on her current mood.

“Pout…! I’m mad… om nom nom…”

“How is it? Delicious, right?”

Teo popped a small piece of sweet potato into Beelzebub’s open mouth.
Damn, Teo, your crisis management skill is top-notch!

“Hyaa!! Delicious!! Quick, put it in the wunchbox and let’s go!!”

Seeing the previously pouting Beelzebub smile, the sweet potato fries were a success!
Urged on by Beelzebub, Teo quickly tossed them in sugar and put them in the lunchbox. Picnic prep complete!

-Vzzzt.-

“Hehe! Going on an outing is gonna be so~ fun! Let’s go! Uncle Teo!”

“Alright, alright, let’s go, Beelzebub.”

The lightly dressed Beelzebub and the baggage carrier Teo, with a five… no, six-tiered lunchbox slung over his shoulder, slowly walked into the red portal… huh? You’re going to lose her, Teo! Run!