༺ People Who Are Stuck in the Past (2) ༻
1.
Coq au vin.
Befit its name, it was a dish of chicken stew that was made by boiling the chicken inside a wine for a long period of time.
Even Koreans who knew nothing about French dishes would be aware of its existence.
As she stir-fried the vegetables with butter, Eloa added the marinated chicken in.
She cooked it along with its fat and skin with high temperature, all while ignoring the oil splashing to the back of her hand.
When the chicken’s color resembled that of caramel, she moved it to the pot and heated it.
As the finishing touch, she added two bottles of Burgundy Wine and sprinkled some herbs on top.
She could smell the scent of the wine and hear the sizzling sound of the broth.
The wine was given to her by Sua as a gift, so there was no way that it’d be of a poor quality.
That was most likely the reason why the scent was so good.
Since the dish needed to be cooked for quite some time, she was supposed to use a rooster for it…
But, she could only find chicken in the store, so she had to make do with this.
Hardening her heart to compromise by using Korean’s rather smaller chicken, she put a lid on the pot and began to prepare her second dish, the bouillabaisse.
To put it simply, it was a French seafood soup.
Tomatoes, garlic, onions, peppers, and a bunch of other ingredients were added to various high-quality seafood. To add to the flavor, she added bay leaves and thymes into the soup.
Originally, she was supposed to make the broth out of boiled fish bones, but since she didn’t have the time to do so, she replaced it with seafood stock.
These two dishes were the dishes that Eloa was most confident in, and also the favorite dishes of Ravi.
It had been more than a century since she last made it, but her body still remembered how to do it.
Maybe, if a little more time passed.
She’d end up forgetting it.
Eloa stared blankly at the bubbling pot.
Then suddenly she burst out laughing.
Because she remembered the words she told Siwoo just now.
‘Those witches living in Lenomond Town are the conservatives among the conservatives. Their way of thinking is stuck in the distant past…’
‘Their way of thinking is stuck in the distant past…’
‘Stuck in the past…’
‘They don’t change even after time passes…’
‘Stagnates like the water deep in the ocean…’
As she mulled over the words again, she realized how much they fit herself.
Every night, she dreamt of the moment she lost Ravi.
Tormented by the past that she would never get back.
“Ugh!”
“Are you okay?”
For a moment, she was lost in thoughts.
The pot in front of her was boiling, its content overflowed.
Noticing this, she hurriedly turned down the fire.
Originally, coq au vin had to be boiled in a low-heat for a long time to remove the alcohol in the wine, but she forgot about that for a second there.
“D-Don’t worry, I’m okay.”
“I’ll help you.”
As Siwoo rummaged through her shelves, looking for a bowl, she only watched him from behind.
2.
The first dish that was finished was the bouillabaisse, followed by the coq au vin.
For the latter, after being submerged in the wine for a good while, every part of the chicken was successfully permeated by the wine.
After they finished preparing the meal, Eloa and Siwoo sat facing each other at the table.
“I wanted to cook more things for you, but it’s been a while since I’ve done this, so I’ve forgotten a lot.”
“It’s okay, you know, it’s been a while since I ate a handmade dish prepared by someone else.”
“You’re exaggerating, I didn’t prepare anything.”
Siwoo put some food on the plate in front of Eloa before taking his seat.
After that, they both started eating.
Bouillabaisse and coq au vin were both dishes he never tasted before, but it surprisingly fit his palate.
The chicken, soaked in wine and tomato sauce, melted in his mouth as soon as he put it in.
When the light saltiness went away, it was replaced by a fragrant and bitter aftertaste, which was a delicacy on its own.
‘This is probably what foreigners feel when they eat samgyetang for the first time.’
At first glance, bouillabaisse seemed like spicy seafood soup, but the taste was completely different than that.
‘It tastes like…uh…the ocean…?’
The moment he took a spoonful of it, the smell of butter and the rich flavor of various seafood tickled his nose and mouth.
“Woah, these are really good! It’s my first time tasting these dishes, I never expected them to be this good!”
“I made plenty, so don’t hold back. Would you like some drinks as well?”
“Yes, please!”
“Both of them go along well with wine, but I spent all of them making the coq au vin. Gin or whiskey? Which one do you prefer?”
“Whiskey, please!”
Eloa walked into the kitchen and mixed some whiskey with water in a one-to-one ratio.
It was a rather strong drink to accompany a meal, so she had to moderately adjust it before serving it.
She put some rocks inside a glass then poured the whiskey into it, making sure that it filled the glass completely.
Siwoo pondered whether he should drink it now or after he finished the meal, but as he did, Eloa already lifted her glass.
-Ting!
Then, she hit his glass lightly with hers.
“Do you like drinking?”
“I won’t say that, though I’m grateful that I can get drunk with them. What about you?”
“Me? I like it, it makes me feel better and the fact that I won’t need to deal with a hangover afterwards is a nice bonus.”
Maybe it was because they were facing tasty food and alcohol.
The conversation between them began to flow smoothly, as if someone put on some lubricant on it.
Instructor Tiphereth who’d always shout ‘Again!’ in a strict voice looked more relaxed than usual.
Thanks to this, Siwoo was able to relax and enjoy the atmosphere in ease.
“These are really good. This one especially, is perfect as a side dish…right, why don’t you open up a restaurant? If you were to open it around here, it’ll sell well, I guarantee it!”
“Stop it, you’re making me embarrassed.”
“I’m serious. It’s been a while since I’ve eaten such a good meal!”
Throughout the meal, Siwoo complimented her cooking, but she only responded to all his praises politely.
Even so, it was clear that the corners of her mouth were raised a little. She didn’t find his compliments unpleasant at all.
“This wasn’t the best thing I’ve ever cooked. I had to make up for the lacking ingredients by putting in a bunch of random things. Next time, I’ll treat you to a better one.”
“I’m already looking forward to it! Let me pour it for you.”
“Thank you.”
Siwoo quickly stood up and poured the half-filled bottle into Eloa’s glass, which had been emptied three times by now.
Contrary to his expectations, she gulped through all that alcohol rather quickly.
Even with a spirit body, Siwoo could still get drunk if he downed enough glasses. Seeing how Eloa didn’t even show the slightest hint of being tipsy, it was evident that she could handle alcohol well.
This was a completely unexpected side of the Duchess that he had never imagined to find out.
“I wanted to have a drink like this with Ravi too…”
As the atmosphere loosened up, those words slipped out of her mouth before she could realize it.
Siwoo never expected her to say those words, so he could only stare at her dumbfoundedly. Seeing his reaction, Eloa shook her head.
“Don’t mind me, I’m just rambling.”
“…”
Siwoo didn’t know what to say.
Time stopped for someone who had lost their loved one.
They could only trace their fleeting memories, drown in their regrets, shed their tears and suffer.
Of course, they could shrug all the pain away and move on.
But not everyone could do that, and those who couldn’t would drown in their never ending sorrow.
“Sorry, this was supposed to be a fun event, but I ruined it, didn’t I? I genuinely didn’t mean to…”
Duchess Tiphereth, no matter how strong she looked like, ultimately was just a person.
Someone who couldn’t forget the sorrow of losing her apprentice, someone who suffered from the emptiness of being unable to fulfill her revenge.
“…Do you need an ear?”
Siwoo asked carefully.
Perhaps because of the alcohol, she seemed to enter a nostalgic mood.
Her eyes shook, as if there was a haze in her gaze.
“What’s the point…?”
The relationship between Eloa and Siwoo was quite the peculiar one.
Siwoo was someone who inherited Ravi’s bowl, and at the same time, he was being taught by Eloa.
If Eloa said that she didn’t see Ravi in him unconsciously, she would be lying.
Maybe that was why…
She had this strange urge to tell him about the memories of the happy days with her dear apprentice that she refused to remember.
Perhaps…
The scent of these nostalgic dishes on the table, the feeling of having a meal with someone after a long time would be able to start her stopped time, even if it was only for a moment.
While Siwoo was hesitating whether to apologize for his thoughtless words or not, Eloa opened her mouth first.
“Ravi…was a bright and cheerful child…”
She said that in a faint voice, as if she was tracing a distant past.
“That girl was more talkative than a small bird. She’d talk endlessly, saying more things than I could say in a year in a mere day…and she has a nice heart, even brighter than any gems in this world…”
Eloa moistened her dry lips with alcohol.
“I loved her. Really, she was too good of an apprentice for me. No one in Gehenna hated her, even the most untameable beasts would lick her hand obediently…”
“…”
“That wasn’t all. She was a genius in both magic and martial arts. Unlike me, who could only pose as one, she was a real genius…”
Flash of memories were being replayed in Eloa’s hazy mind.
A gentle smile appeared on her lips.
The kind of smile that naturally came to her mind, a happy smile as she reminisced about her now long lost joyful past…
But, that smile disappeared as she delved more into her memories.
“And as you know…I lost her…because of my complacency. Maybe this is how the heavens showed me how undeserved I was of her…”
“That’s…”
“If I had only been a little more careful…if I had only been less complacent…maybe I wouldn’t have lost her in vain like that…”
She didn’t shed any tears.
There was also no trace of sadness in her voice.
Yet, she cried. Without any tears, without any sadness in her voice…
“Do you know the most horrible thing out of everything? It’s the fact that I don’t have the right to even mourn her.”
That was when Siwoo found out the first time.
Of how deep someone’s sadness and self-loathe could be.
“Sorry, I said something unnecessary…”
Eloa couldn’t speak anything anymore.
She knew that Siwoo was a strong man.
Because he always showed her his unwavering figure.
She never expected that even though she decided to dedicate her life for revenge, to end up festering her worries to such a man.
To bring up the dried wound deep inside her heart and laid it bare for the man to see.
Eloa looked at her glass, now empty, before picking up a bottle of whiskey with more than half of it remaining.
“Please drink a little more slowly…”
“Just because you have Ravi’s bowl, doesn’t mean I hate or resent you, so you don’t need to worry.”
“I never worried about that, I know you’re a kind person, Duchess.”
“…Is that so?”
Her vent was something that she had probably repeated a hundred thousand times already.
So, it didn’t take long for her to regain her composure.
She tidied up her disheveled clothes and wiped the trace of whiskey that flowed down her chin,
“I drank too much, sorry for showing you such disgraceful behavior.”
“No, it was me who should be sorry. I shouldn’t have asked you that question…”
Eloa reached out without saying anything.
Her hand, warm from the alcohol, touched Siwoo’s eyepatch.
The brand engraved on his golden eyes contained Ravi’s bowl.
“You’re holding her bowl.”
For a witch, their brand meant more than their life.
“I never thought that I’d see it again…”
A hundred years. It took that long for her to see what remained of her apprentice.
She stroked his eyepatch carefully, as if she was handling a fragile object.
Her eyelids slowly closed as her hand moved to caress Siwoo’s cheek.
When she was still chugging her alcohol, it made her numb to the state of her body, but now that she stopped, the drowsiness finally hit her.
And her body fell down gently on the table, asleep, prompting a deep sigh from Siwoo.
His heart felt heavy.
“Ravi…ra…vi…”
Because even when she was sleeping, it was clear that she was suffering.
