Chapter 10 : The Immortal Hero (4)

We returned to the Manmul-sang after holding our excrement, and had a late lunch with Shin Ramyeon.

Yi Sun-sin and Anwi, both of whom were incredibly hungry, ate a whopping 8 packets of noodles and even poured rice into the broth.

“Ugh, this rice is incredible. What kind of rice is this?”

“This is called Hetban.”

“Hetban?”

“It’s rice made by mixing various types of rice.”

“Oh. Mixing different types of rice, that’s amazing.”

Actually, I don’t even know where Hetban rice comes from. I only know that it’s domestic.

“So, what’s that tool used to cook the rice?”

Anwi seemed curious about how the rice was cooked in just 2 minutes in the microwave, so he asked many questions.

Each time, I kindly answered without hiding anything.

“It’s a microwave, which uses electromagnetic waves called microwaves to heat up food.”

“Ma, ma? That’s difficult. Truly, the methods of ancient masters are mysterious.”

Since he wouldn’t have understood even if I explained it properly, I had nothing to hide.

“This ramen is also going to be the last one today.”

Yi Sun-sin gazed at the empty ramen bowl with regretful eyes.

Interestingly, Yi Sun-sin wasn’t wearing the traditional white armor, but a red military uniform from the Joseon Dynasty.

Even while participating in the White Robe Campaign, he always carried his weapon with him in case he had to return to battle.

His outfit reminded me of the general’s image I had seen in history books.

Except for the fact that he was holding a Coca-Cola can.

“Other food will probably taste bland now.”

“You’re right. To think I can’t have these delicious things anymore… I almost want to settle down here. Haha.”

Anwi also expressed deep regret about having to leave Manmul-sang.

Having tasted modern foods rich in MSG, neither of them could easily leave.

But since we had received an order from the king, they had no choice but to get up and leave.

“Choi Jeosun, I owe you a lot.”

“Please wait a moment.”

I stopped Yi Sun-sin from saying goodbye, went outside with a gas burner, and lit it.

Then, I took out a 1,000-won bill from my wallet and burned it in the flame.

“Oh, so you’re practicing some kind of magic?”

“The shape of the talisman seems different from the ones used by shamans.”

Yi Sun-sin and Anwi, who mistook the banknote for a talisman, quietly watched what I was doing.

In Joseon, where possession by spirits and shamans was prevalent, seeing such actions wasn’t unusual.

Soon, after the 1,000-won bill had burned halfway, I stood up from my seat.

“So, you’re asking us to go with you?”

“With you?”

“Yes. That’s what you said.”

I had made up that excuse, as there was no real reason for us to go together.

• Help Yi Sun-sin and win the Battle of Myeongnyang!
  Reward: Legendary Artifact
  ‘If we part here, everything will fail. I can’t let that happen.’

I had to stay by Yi Sun-sin’s side until the Battle of Myeongnyang happened.

That was the task assigned to me by the status screen.So, I acted a bit crazy and tried to mimic a Taoist. I honestly didn’t know if it would work.

In reality, if I did something like that, I’d be treated as a weirdo.

As I was doubtful about it…

“You can read the will of heaven?”

“Choi Jeosun, let’s go together.”

Surprisingly, it was easy.

‘Good thing I stuck with the immortal concept.’

No matter what I did, they gave it their own meaning.

Cults don’t form for no reason.

The place where Manmul-sang was summoned was deep in the mountains, where there were no houses nearby, so the first night was spent camping in the wilderness.

Chirp chirp.

The sound of insects chirping and the distant cries of wild animals made the mountain night very cold.

Crack crack.

We sat side by side by the campfire, warming our frozen bodies.

“To have dinner, we need to hunt before the sun sets.”

“I’ll go.”

“There’s no need for that.”

I stopped Anwi, who was about to stand up with a bow to go hunting.

“You’re saying we have food?”

Yi Sun-sin and Anwi looked at me curiously.

All I had was a small backpack from Manmul-sang.

“Yes, I brought some food.”

I took out a mat from the backpack, laid it out, and set up a gas burner and a grill on top of it.

“Seems like a great convenience for cooking.”

“It’s small but seems to hold a lot.”

They watched me with wide eyes as I kept pulling out things from the small backpack.

And they were right to be amazed, because the bag I brought wasn’t just a regular bag.

It was a spatial backpack.

A magical tool with much more space inside than it appears from the outside.

Since it allowed carrying all kinds of items, it was a popular product among hunters, known as the ‘inventory.’

Its size is 500 liters. It’s roughly the space of five military backpacks, so that’s easy to imagine.

I took out some pork belly, lettuce, water parsley, and matsutake mushrooms from the backpack.

“Choi Jeosun, what is this meat?”

“It’s pork belly.”

“Oh, the cuts are very well done.”

Anwi marveled at the uniform cuts made by the butcher’s machine.

“Then I’ll cook it.”

Once I confirmed that the grill was hot, I placed the pork belly on it.

Sizzle—

The moment the pork belly hit the grill, it started sizzling and releasing a delicious aroma.

“Glug.”

“Mm.”

Yi Sun-sin and Anwi swallowed their saliva.

I waited for the meat to cook to the right level and flipped the pork belly over.

Sizzle—

The golden brown side appeared.

“Ah.”

This is it.

The appearance was perfect.

Once I had cooked the other side, I used scissors to cut the pork belly into bite-sized pieces.

Then, I placed some matsutake mushrooms and water parsley onto the lettuce and offered it to Yi Sun-sin.

“General, please try this.”

“Thank you.”

Yi Sun-sin maintained a dignified expression but couldn’t resist his hunger. He quickly wrapped the ingredients in the lettuce and ate it.

“Mm…?!”

Yi Sun-sin’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Wow, this flavor is amazing!”

“Let me have some too. Is this how you eat it?”

Unable to hold back from Yi Sun-sin’s praise, Anwi also wrapped a bite and ate it, bursting into admiration.

‘Who was that scholar who didn’t like pork in the Joseon Dynasty?’

They’re eating it just fine.

As I watched them enjoy their meal, I wrapped some meat in the lettuce and brought it to my mouth.

“Mm.”

I couldn’t help but hum a tune.

The rich, oily meat paired with the fragrant water parsley danced in my mouth.

The cool breeze, the full moon overhead, and the wide-open mountain scenery. Plus, a delicious meal.

My first camping trip in Joseon was a success.

The one thing I was worried about as we headed to Jangheung was that I wouldn’t be able to use the ‘Manmul-sang.’

Since I couldn’t return to the mountain with the Manmul-sang while traveling with Yi Sun-sin.

‘Not having a place to rest is a bit of a big deal.’

Back in Napoleon’s time, staying in one place for too long didn’t feel like an inconvenience.

But my worries faded the very next day after camping.

“Let’s stay at that abandoned house tonight.”

The next day, unable to find any nearby villages, we discovered a deserted house and decided to spend the night there.

When I opened the door to the abandoned house first, the scene that appeared was surprisingly a familiar space.

‘Huh? Why is the Manmul-sang…?’

Beyond the door of the abandoned house, my shop was spread out.

“Choi Jeosun, you even know how to perform such magic.”

“Truly remarkable!”

Yi Sun-sin and Anwi marveled, and I awkwardly scratched my cheek.

▶ Dimensional Connector
You can install a door leading to the Manmul-sang.

• Power consumption: 1000
• Usable count: 3/3
• Caution: After the usable count is depleted, a 3-day wait occurs.

‘I didn’t know this function existed.’

Although I was surprised, it made enough sense.

After all, the location where the Manmul-sang appeared had never made sense before.

Back in Napoleon’s time, the shop was accessed through an alleyway entrance, and now, the door to the Manmul-sang had appeared in an empty mountain cabin.

So, there was no reason to find it strange that the entrance kept changing.

‘It’s convenient, so it’s fine.’

Meanwhile, General Yi Sun-sin began recruiting soldiers to fight alongside him as he moved towards Jangheung.

And I had to realize just how popular Yi Sun-sin was.

I also realized how many ordinary people were willing to fight for their country.

“If I can fight alongside the general, I will gladly give up my life!”

“General! Though I am old and have never held a sword, if I can fight the Japanese, I will join you!”

Everywhere we went, the common people’s sentiments towards Yi Sun-sin were extremely favorable, and the volunteer soldiers eagerly followed him.

“I, Chief Jo Bangjang Bae Heung-rip, will join the general!”

“Here, Song Yeo-jeong has come!”

Starting with 60 soldiers in Jinju, the force had grown to 120 by the time we arrived in Gure. By the time we reached Suncheon, it had increased to 200.

The next day, it became 300, then 500, and by the next day, it reached 700…

The number of soldiers joining Yi Sun-sin continued to grow day by day.

When we finally arrived in Jangheung, Yi Sun-sin was accompanied by over 2,000 soldiers.

I felt awe and admiration as I witnessed this.

The admiral, who had been left alone by King Seonjo with not a single soldier to command, had now become a general leading thousands of soldiers.

This was the result of Yi Sun-sin’s ‘invincible myth’ built during the Imjin War.

For six long years, Yi Sun-sin had never been defeated in battle.

‘Well, with a general like this, even patriotism that didn’t exist before would arise.’

Watching the volunteer soldiers join Yi Sun-sin, I realized how powerful the presence of a hero can be.

If someone like Yi Sun-sin were in 21st-century Korea, Seoul would never have easily fallen to the monsters.

But even such a great general had to remain silent when he saw the strength he had been given.

“General! We only have 12 Panokseon ships.”

“General! We have only 21 Chotamseon ships.”

12 Panokseon ships and 21 reconnaissance ships.

That was all the naval power given to Yi Sun-sin.

It was the last remaining military force of Joseon.

All the ships Yi Sun-sin had gathered during the Imjin War, including the 300 warships and four turtle ships, had been sunk during his service under King Seonjo.

“General, at this rate…”

“We will repair the Panokseon and move to Ijinpo!”

Anwi cautiously tried to express his opinion, but Yi Sun-sin silently organized the fleet and moved towards a larger harbor.

He then recruited one more Panokseon ship and 12 Chotamseon ships.

However, despite Yi Sun-sin’s efforts, a disturbing rumor spread among the returning sailors who had gone on reconnaissance.

“The enemy fleet has covered the entire sea!”

“The Japanese have already entered Haenam!”

It was news that the Japanese fleet was approaching.

The fear of hundreds of Japanese warships arriving at any moment pressed down on the soldiers.

Late in the evening, when I went to see Yi Sun-sin, he was reading a royal letter sent by King Seonjo.

“The king says we should disband the navy and go to Hanseong to prepare for the future.”

Yi Sun-sin, who had been reflecting on his transparent sword, asked me,

“Choi Jeosun, what do you think?”

“Please do as you wish, General.”

“Do you know what my wish is?”

“No matter what I say, will you not fight?”

“Then fight.”

Instead of answering me, Yi Sun-sin ground ink with his inkstone.

He dipped his brush in ink and began writing on the paper.

I read the content.

I still have 12 ships remaining. As long as I live, the enemy dares not…

Looking at Yi Sun-sin, who was writing the reply by candlelight, I quietly left the room.

Fifteen days later, a massive Japanese fleet, numbering in the hundreds, appeared and filled the seas of Myeongnyang.

On September 16th, the fateful day had arrived.