Ch.148Chapter 148. I Have Received Your Daughter (1)

“Damn it…”

In the dark office, a single desk lamp was lit.

Darry grumbled as he laboriously typed with just two index fingers.

“These kids these days… They don’t want to work overtime but they want more money…”

The next project was gradually starting to take shape.

The prototype design had been approved by upper management, and a schedule for conformity assessment had been set.

“Heheh. Jinsoo Kim, you bastard. You won’t be here then.”

Darry entered Jinsoo’s name on the screen with an evil grin.

When the new engine development was in full swing, that guy Jinsoo wouldn’t be here.

He’d be sent far, far away.

Above where Jinsoo’s name was entered, it read:

-Ares Tactum Chief Maintenance Team Leader

In a few months, Jinsoo would have to lead the maintenance team with veteran engineers, not the research and development team.

They would be working on the engine of a spacecraft that had returned after more than 10 years of travel.

The value of the data they could extract would be difficult to calculate in monetary terms.

But NASA had given Tactum’s maintenance team only two days.

They had appointed Jinsoo, who had over a year of maintenance experience in space, as the leader of this elite team that needed to examine everything thoroughly in a short time.

Of course, no employee or executive could object.

When it came to maintenance skills, Jinsoo far surpassed the veteran engineers.

If any unexpected situations arose, no one came to mind who could improvise better than Jinsoo.

Ding!

“Huh?”

Just then, a notification popped up at the bottom of the screen.

Darry’s eyes widened as he clicked and opened the email.

-Subject: This is US Senator Snyder Prime.

A senator sending an email…?

Wondering if he’d done something that could be criticized, Darry rewound his memories as he read the main text.

The content was roughly this:

Do you know an employee named Jinsoo Kim at your company?

It seems that guy has forged his identity to get hired.

I’m attaching Jinsoo Kim’s criminal record from the US Federal Court.

Please take note.

“What is this idiot saying?”

Being tired, Darry let an unfiltered curse slip out.

What? Our company hired someone with a forged identity without noticing?

That was ridiculous.

Darry himself had been the HR manager at the time.

He had collected and reviewed every possible official document a person could obtain, including criminal records, so what nonsense was this?

“You’ve barked up the wrong tree, Mr. Senator.”

Had Jinsoo annoyed him somehow?

How petty to send such an email to someone’s workplace.

Darry smirked and began composing a reply.

-Thank you for your email, Senator Snyder Prime. I think there’s been a misunderstanding. Tactum verified all of Jinsoo Kim’s criminal records before hiring him, and this is something all employees working with Jinsoo Kim are aware of…

“Ugh, damn it.”

After glaring at the keyboard and then looking up at the screen, Darry pressed the backspace key in frustration.

His fingers were already aching, and now trying to write an email was causing typos because his joints were stiffening.

Darry gritted his teeth and typed four letters on the screen.

-Nuts!

Finally, a satisfied smile appeared on Darry’s face.

He was about to delete it and write a proper reply when—

Ding!

“Huh?”

With a notification sound, the screen changed and a “Message Sent” window appeared.

Looking down at the keyboard, Darry realized his index finger had been on the enter key, not the backspace key.

His face instantly turned pale.

***

“Sigh…”

Late at night.

After confirming his son was asleep, the supervisor sighed and took out a beer from the refrigerator.

Opening the can with a gentle hiss so as not to wake his son, he gulped it down with some peanuts.

“Ahh…”

This was truly the driving force that helped him finish the day and prepare for tomorrow.

He often said that just seeing his son’s face relieved all his fatigue, but that was a blatant lie.

Nothing beat alcohol for relieving stress.

Ring ring ring…

“What now.”

Just then, a phone call came through.

It was his junior colleague, Juliane.

Thinking the call might get a bit loud, the supervisor took his beer can and went out to the balcony to answer.

“What’s going on at this hour?”

-Senior! Senior! Did you know? You didn’t, right? Heheh!

“Ugh…”

Sure enough, her voice was so loud it nearly burst his eardrums, so the supervisor immediately lowered the volume.

He’d forgotten.

When taking Juliane’s calls, he needed to set the volume to about half of what he used for other people.

Now that his ears were more comfortable, the supervisor leaned against the balcony with a displeased expression.

“What is this about?”

-I found out something amazing! Should I tell you or not?

“…”

Her tone was incredibly annoying.

Was Juliane always like this?

It seemed this wasn’t work-related.

If she was discussing work with such a manner of speaking, he planned to smack the back of her head as soon as she came to work tomorrow.

“Tell me in three seconds. Three. Two. One…”

-Ah! I’ll tell you! Ahem! Your son’s name is Eugene Damon, right?

“Yeah.”

-And he’s in 7th grade at Saint Catalina School!

“Yeah.”

-And he’s in class 12!

“Yeah. That’s right.”

So she finally noticed.

Is she going to get angry about why I kept it a secret until now?

The supervisor had to suppress a laugh as he anticipated Juliane’s reaction.

-Hmph! Surprised, right? How did I know?

“Huh?”

-Because Cuss and your son are in the same class! You didn’t know?

“…”

-Look at you being silent. You must be really surprised? I just noticed it myself…

The supervisor smacked his forehead.

How could I not have known that?

He was starting to seriously doubt whether Juliane was being sincere or joking.

“Juliane.”

-Yes?

“You weren’t this clueless before…”

Where had the smart, sharp rookie elite Juliane Stadtfeld gone, leaving behind only a strong but foolish person?

Had the intensity of the work been too much, ruining a promising young person?

Various thoughts made the supervisor’s mind complicated.

“Anyway. Are you fully prepared?”

-Huh? Prepared for what?

“The lead you’re following.”

-Ah…

As Juliane’s voice turned sly, the supervisor clicked his tongue.

-Are you worried? Afraid your junior might touch powerful people and get blown away by the backlash?

“Of course. If things go wrong, it’s not just you who gets hurt, we all do.”

-This is something I’m pursuing on my own, so why would everyone get hurt? Were you perhaps looking for an opportunity to get involved too? You should have told me earlier…

“I’m not getting involved. As I’ve said many times, you handle it alone. But there’s one thing you might have missed…”

The supervisor trailed off, taking out a storage device from his pocket and rolling it in his hand.

He’d been debating whether to give it to her.

He thought that someone as thorough as Juliane would have already obtained this information, but she was also somewhat scatterbrained, so she might have missed it.

It wasn’t really his business either way, so there was no need to take the risk…

But seeing his junior running around, he felt he couldn’t just stand by.

-What kind of information did you get?

“No. Nothing. It’s nothing.”

-What is it? If you’re going to be like this…

The call abruptly ended.

The supervisor, lowering his hand from his ear, leaned against the balcony wall and looked out at the station’s landscape.

Buildings glowing with various colors.

Trains passing chaotically on the ground and in the air.

In an era where people said the concept of darkness had disappeared, there was someone boldly declaring that darkness existed and trying to pull a man out from it.

The supervisor’s instinct told him it was both brave and reckless.

“Maybe I… should have been a bit braver too.”

But isn’t courage and recklessness the symbol of youth?

It was a night when he somewhat regretted not having been brave enough in his younger days.

***

“That outfit is fabulous!”

“Wow. So cute… Like an angel. I want to eat you up…”

A fashion show had been going on since morning.

Cuss had been repeatedly changing clothes, trying to decide what to wear.

I thought she’d get bored after trying on a few outfits as usual, but this was lasting quite a while.

“Kyaa! Isn’t this the outfit I bought last time? It’s really pretty!”

“Hmph.”

Maybe it was because of the positive reactions.

Indeed, the saying that even the neighbor’s puppy will dance when praised seemed to be true.

“Jinsoo, come help me choose. How’s this outfit?”

“It’s pretty.”

“I’ll go with this one.”

“Huh? But you still have more clothes to try?”

“Don’t need them. I’m going with this.”

The outfit was decided in an instant.

It was a loose-fitting, boxy sleeveless shirt with frills, paired with wide-legged shorts.

Those pants would be good for hiding tentacles too.

“Why do you look so much like a kid?”

“I am a kid, you know?”

“No, it’s just… Never mind.”

“…?”

As I adjusted Cuss’s outfit and looked her over, I kept getting a strange feeling.

When she used to cross the living room in those Dolce shorts with her slender legs, I felt like I was raising a grown daughter, but now dressed like this, she looked unmistakably like a child.

It was strange.

Just changing clothes could make such a difference in attraction.

I guess I wasn’t a pedophile after all.

Suddenly I felt relieved.

“What’s wrong, Jinsoo? Are you nervous?”

“No? Not at all?”

“You’re lying. I’ll help you relax.”

Cuss grinned and pulled me down by wrapping her hands around my neck.

As I let myself be pulled down, she lightly kissed my lips.

Then a bit longer, smooch.

And then she tilted her head, pressed her lips against mine, and licked my lips.

‘Hmm. I take it back.’

I had to admit it.

I guess I am a pedophile after all.

My hands, which were holding Cuss’s shoulders, were automatically moving downward when—

“Excuse me?! What are you doing while I wasn’t looking?”

“Pfft… It’s just a wholesome kiss, Juliane.”

“You used your tongue!”

“I didn’t. I just licked around the lips.”

“Oh… Really? Then I guess that’s okay?”

I couldn’t help but admire Cuss’s boldness as she made excuses without even wiping the saliva from her mouth.

I wonder who she takes after to be so nonchalant.

I stroked Cuss’s soft hair and stood up.

“Let’s go now.”

“Yes. Hehe.”

With a laugh that made even the listener feel good, Ms. Juliane linked arms with me and came close.

Her flowing hair occasionally brushed against my shoulder and cheek, feeling slightly rough.

It seemed Ms. Juliane’s hair had grown a bit longer too.

“Ah. She said she’d prepare something delicious. I’m looking forward to it. It’s your first time eating my mom’s food, right Jinsoo?”

“That’s right.”

“Cuss, you can look forward to it too. It’s as delicious as Jinsoo’s cooking.”

“But why is Juliane such a bad cook?”

“Uh…”

Right. Today was the day to meet my father-in-law and mother-in-law.

It was also the day to inform them after arbitrarily registering our marriage.

In other words, we were going to announce “I’ve taken your daughter” rather than “Please give me your daughter.”

A chill ran down my spine.