I don’t hate mint chocolate.
No, I actually fall more on the side of liking it.
In the modern society I lived in, mint chocolate held a pretty significant status.
Of course, like Hawaiian pizza, it was known as a divisive food — people either loved it or hated it — but where there are fans, there are always haters.
Even in the popularity rankings of brand B, a famous ice cream franchise, mint chocolate always ranked near the top.
In other words, everyone pretended to hate mint chocolate outwardly, but in truth, they liked it…
Anyway.
Sigh.
So the reason I was shocked wasn’t because of the taste.
“A mint chocolate flavored burger, huh…”
It was simply because I was expecting the usual taste of a hamburger.
No one would be unfazed if a cheeseburger patty suddenly had a sweet, refreshing flavor.
Even if someone loves chocolate, they wouldn’t expect it when eating warm white rice.
The shock I felt — when I was anticipating a juicy meat patty — is beyond words.
“…Hmph. But the more I eat, the more it kind of grows on me.”
Even so, the taste of something from the human world after such a long time… was honestly really good.
Truly.
006. Mint Chocolate Cheeseburger
The food in a medieval fantasy world is all pretty much the same.
There are no appliances like refrigerators to store food for long periods, so most cooking methods involve pickling, smoking, or drying.
The same goes for food eaten by nobles.
It’s a world where basic transport technology hasn’t developed.
Just imagine how many bandits or monsters are out there blocking ships or carriages.
Unless someone is wealthy enough to hire a wizard, very few people can avoid the stink of meat or the fishy smell of seafood.
And obviously, food made from those ingredients isn’t going to taste good.
At first, I thought I was eating literal garbage.
“Are they being racist because my character is a barbarian?”
That’s honestly what I thought.
But, unfortunately, everyone in this world lived eating that kind of garbage-tasting food.
Too salty, too spicy, too bitter.
Or bland to the point of tastelessness.
Maybe it’s because I’ve been eating that kind of medieval food for years.
“Thanks for the meal.”
For the first time in a while, the word “satisfaction” came to mind as I finished a meal.
Mint chocolate cheeseburger.
It might actually be pretty decent.
If I ever get back to my original world, maybe I’ll consider turning it into a real product.
“Did you enjoy the cheeseburger flavor?”
Before I knew it, Nev was standing in front of me.
The surroundings were still covered in darkness, but Nev looked as if she was standing in a bright light.
“It’s been so long since I’ve recreated taste — even I’m getting excited. This feeling in my chest… this must be what it means for your heart to race.”
Nev looked at me with a curious, eager expression, tilting her head as if waiting for my review.
I could still feel the unique aftertaste of mint chocolate lingering in my mouth, but I couldn’t lie.
“Yeah.”
I was satisfied.
“…It was good.”
“Hehehe.”
As Nev smiled joyfully, I added one more thing:
“It wasn’t exactly the taste I expected, though.”
“?”
That was a strange sound.
Nev looked a little flustered.
“That can’t be… hmm.”
After thinking for a moment, Nev pressed her fingers to her forehead.
She closed her eyes, as if focusing on something.
“…This goddess made a small mistake.”
“Huh?”
So the successful combination of mint chocolate and cheeseburger was actually the result of a mistake?
I wasn’t sure if “god” and “mistake” were even compatible words, but the taste had been decent.
‘I thought it was intentional.’
I looked at Nev in confusion.
A moment later, she flicked her fingers lightly.
In the air, a cheeseburger appeared — identical in packaging to the one I’d seen earlier.
“This time, there should be no mistake.”
At her words, I reached for the cheeseburger again.
Same weight, same warmth.
My barbarian senses picked up the slight artificiality of it, but it wasn’t a big deal.
I took a bite.
Half the burger disappeared instantly.
This time, it tasted like a real cheeseburger.
The very typical flavor of a cheeseburger from chain M.
Maybe it felt a little bland after the sweet, refreshing mint chocolate, but even that plainness was something I had missed.
I marveled once again.
It was a satisfying meal.
“Tasty.”
“This goddess agrees with you,” Nev replied, chewing the cheeseburger with her small mouth.
“It’s nothing more than grilled or steamed meat, and yet, how can it have such a soft, delicate flavor? Even in the ancient times when this goddess was awake, I never tasted food this delicious.”
It was just a regular mass-produced franchise item.
Of course, maybe I wasn’t the one to say that — considering how much I’d just enjoyed it.
I was about to reach for another burger, but my hand froze at Nev’s next words.
“Indeed, food from another world.”
“…!”
She was right.
This food came from my world.
In the moment, I’d been too distracted by the burger to consider that fact.
Nev, unaware of my thoughts, continued with a naive expression:
“Is there anything else you want to eat?”
Each time she flicked her fingers, new food appeared out of thin air.
A forgotten can of cola from the back of a fridge.
Kimchi in a familiar airtight container.
Steaming hot chicken. Pizza.
The overwhelming sight left me speechless, and Nev, clearly excited, kept trying to draw a reaction from me.
“What else do you want to try?”
A computer tower, a game console, a stack of manga.
All sorts of things began to appear.
I couldn’t fully comprehend the situation.
I just stared at it all, like I was caught in the middle of a crashing wave.
“Or perhaps…”
Nev snapped her fingers again.
This time, what appeared was much larger.
A familiar shadow rose from beyond the darkness.
Faces I hadn’t even seen in dreams.
People I hadn’t laid eyes on in years — but I recognized them instantly.
Ordinary people.
Just someone’s parents.
Nev, oblivious to the shift in mood, tried to keep talking.
“People you wanted to see—”
“…Stop!!”
In that moment—
An uncontrollable shout burst from my mouth.
When I came to, we were back in the forest where we had originally been.
The only thing different was that Nev was now on the ground, looking up at me with wide, surprised eyes.
My stomach was empty again, the hunger gnawed at me like I hadn’t eaten anything.
I realized then — all of it might as well have been a dream.
My chest burned like a volcano had erupted inside me.
I tasted blood — maybe I’d bitten my tongue or split my gums.
“…Never again.”
I looked down at Nev and opened my mouth.
“Don’t show me fake versions of my parents ever again.”
I didn’t have the energy to keep up my barbarian speech style.
I didn’t even know exactly why the anger welled up so strongly.
I knew Nev had only wanted to make me happy.
But the moment I reached for that second burger, I understood —
Everything was fake.
Constructed.
The same kind of doubt I’d felt when I fell into this game world.
And I couldn’t hold it back.
“Got it?”
At my question—
“…Y-yeah.”
Nev answered, hiccuping as if she’d bitten her own tongue.
The birds chirped, and the flowers bloomed.
The forest was quiet.
Only the sound of rustling leaves filled the air as the wind passed through.
Nev kept her mouth shut, sneaking glances at me, and I stayed silent too — weighed down by guilt.
‘…I’m not a kid anymore.’
I blamed myself for a moment.
Maybe it was because I’d lived in this primitive medieval fantasy world for so long — even my mind had turned barbarian.
I let out a quiet breath.
Sitting on a large rock, I looked at Nev.
“…So, you’re saying you’re a god?”
I picked the broken roleplay back up again.
When I asked in my usual barbarian tone, Nev glanced at me and replied:
“Y-yes, I am.”
Her voice was slightly shaky, but still clear.
Maybe she had calmed down a bit with time.
I pretended not to see the small teardrops at the corners of her eyes.
‘A god, huh.’
The kind of being I once swore to split in two with my axe, should one ever appear before me.
But the girl in front of me had a frail body, no different from someone of this medieval age.
Of course, the abilities she had just shown were impressive — and it did seem like she knew I was from another world.
I sighed deeply, thinking it all through.
The timing had gone a bit sideways after I got angry.
And honestly, getting all happy just from seeing a hamburger in the first place hadn’t helped either.
Sniff.
The biggest problem was… the woman in front of me didn’t look like a “god” at all.
‘…What kind of god sniffs like that?’
She certainly wasn’t the kind of deity you’d imagine in a medieval fantasy world.
If I went around talking about her, I’d probably get tied to a campfire as firewood.
Then our eyes met.
Nev tried to act like nothing had happened and spoke in a louder voice.
“It seems that a body made of flesh and blood is far too vulnerable to emotion and shock.”
She tried to explain quickly.
“Th-this isn’t my original form, of course…”
“Original?”
Nev nodded.
“My divine powers are currently sealed — it’s as if they don’t exist…”
Maybe she was embarrassed to admit it; her face turned slightly red.
Sealed powers…
…Did she do something bad or something?
Well, she didn’t look like it.
Not that I was super curious either.
I figured it was time to stop getting swept up by the mood.
So I got straight to the point.
“Are you the one who brought me to this world?”
Depending on her answer, the anger I’d barely cooled might flare up again.
Thankfully, Nev shook her head quickly.
“I swear with all my goddesshood, it wasn’t my doing. Truly — the goddess had nothing to do with it. T-trust me, I speak from my heart!”
I wondered what kind of meaning a name I’d never heard of even held… but I decided to let it slide.
Getting angry wouldn’t help as much as focusing on the future.
So I asked my second question.
“…Can you send me back to my world?”
Nev nodded, then raised three fingers.
“Of course. There are three ways to do so.”
…Three, huh?
Just in case, I warned her:
“If one of them is something dumb like ‘just accept this world as your new home’ or whatever—”
“…Then there are two ways.”
I lowered the strength I was putting into my axe hand.
Thankfully, it sounded like not all three options were trash.