Ch.7Life as a Building Owner in Bundang

Above the Creator stands the building owner.

I had acquired that great title, but my life itself hadn’t changed much.

Since it was a commercial building, there was no need to move.

As expected, my father didn’t quit his job.

And my mother was immediately hospitalized for cancer treatment.

In an era when medical care wasn’t highly advanced yet,

it was truly fortunate that we could afford the astronomical medical expenses.

‘The hospital bills can be covered by the monthly rent we receive.’

Perhaps because my father didn’t have much business acumen or greed for money,

he seemed content just owning one building.

He didn’t seem interested in growing the money further.

Rather:

-Since it’s your building, I’ll manage it until you become an adult.

After that, you’re on your own.

He treated the building in Bundang as something he wanted to get rid of quickly.

‘The unusual quietness around us is probably thanks to dad’s reserved nature.’

Normally when people make good money, others tend to find out and come looking.

But perhaps because of my extremely taciturn father, not even cousins came around.

In an era with little privacy, making big money through Toto could have made my private life public.

But even that was forgotten in the excitement of the 2002 World Cup semifinal miracle.

I had become what people call “rich but unknown to anyone.”

‘Right, there’s no need to make more money here.’

I didn’t have the talent to grow money beyond this point anyway.

In my previous life, I was just an ordinary citizen.

My understanding of investments and economic trends was quite poor.

So what was I, who had become a building owner in Bundang, doing?

“Shall we do the growth exercise today?”

“Yes~!”

I was diligently following the teacher’s instructions and doing the growth exercise.

At that time, I was 124cm tall.

About 10cm taller than the average height.

“Donghu, you seem different somehow.”

“How so?”

“Hmm… you look neater.”

The only one who noticed the change after I became rich was my desk mate, Ryu Jaerin.

Perhaps because she was close to me, she seemed to notice that my appearance had definitely changed.

“But really, between me and Sujin, am I prettier?”

“Uh…”

That was her daily question.

After it became known that I appeared in “Hehe Doctor!”,

Ryu Jaerin persistently compared her looks with Kim Sujin’s.

Why is a six-year-old already so concerned about appearance-

‘Ah, she’s going to become a famous idol.’

But objectively speaking, Ryu Jaerin definitely had a radiant appearance.

It’s awkward to say more since she’s only 6 years old.

By adult standards, Ryu Jaerin definitely had idol visual center material.

Anyone could see she possessed a brilliantly shining appearance.

As far as I knew, her early childhood was quite poor.

Perhaps because of that, I treated Ryu Jaerin quite well.

For example:

“…But why do you always give me Pocket Monster bread?”

“You collect these, right? But you said you only buy one a month, when will you ever complete the collection?”

“W-well, that’s true.”

I would give her the wildly popular Pocket Monster bread.

“How do you always eat cup tteokbokki like this? Are you rich?”

“Yeah, kind of.”

Or buy her cup tteokbokki on the way home from kindergarten.

“…Donghu, are you really giving this to me?”

“Yeah, take it, my hand hurts.”

“How did you know I like grape flavor Kooo?”

“…All kids like grape flavor.”

I did everything I could for her, like packing snacks for field trips, and never forgot to encourage her.

“You’ll definitely become a famous idol someday.”

“An idol?”

“Yeah, you’re prettier than Kim Sujin.”

“Hehe… I see.”

But that was it.

Nothing more happened in kindergarten.

And so time passed quickly.

“Son, you need to get ready for school.”

“Yes~”

I entered middle school.

+++++

2010.

My life as a first-year middle school student hadn’t changed much.

No, there was one special addition.

“Would you be interested in becoming a celebrity?”

“Not really.”

“Ah, I’m not a strange person, just please take my business card, okay?”

“Sure.”

Entertainment agency representatives frequently approached me on my way to school to hand me their business cards.

The effect of the Special “Thousand Faces” was actually starting to show its power from middle school.

As my skeletal structure was forming and facial contours gradually appearing,

baby fat was slowly melting away.

My face was gradually revealing its power(?).

But during this period, it didn’t always work in my favor.

“Hey, aren’t you showing off too much?”

“Huh?”

The turbulent, romantic era.

In 2010 South Korea, school violence was as common as pebbles on the street.

A common story that could happen to anyone.

An era when going down a secluded alley meant getting your shoes stolen and money extorted.

I was picked on by a class delinquent simply because I was good-looking.

And that happened on the first day of school.

‘What is this…’

Glance.

When I looked down to check his name tag, he didn’t have one, as expected of a troublemaker.

‘But this is kind of funny.’

First year of middle school, 14 years old.

At a time when everyone was about the same size, I was 170cm tall.

As a result, though I was being confronted, the kids had to look up at me.

‘Cute.’

Perhaps because this was my second life, I couldn’t help but find it amusing to see 14-year-olds trying to act tough.

“Pfft.”

Laughing here was a real mistake.

I couldn’t help but laugh at their innocence.

“Is this guy crazy?!”

As soon as my laughter ended, a fist came flying at me.

There was only one thing I could do.

+++++

Energetic first-year middle schooler.

The reason Kim Minhyeok, the delinquent leader of Shinbit Middle School Class 1-6, targeted Kim Donghu was simple.

‘Because he’s good-looking.’

What is a school bully?

Someone who sits boldly at the back window seat, puts their feet on the desk, and occasionally spouts profanity to intimidate those around them and get attention.

A position that required one to be a kind of superstar or idol.

But.

Kim Donghu ruined all that from day one.

An arrogant guy who sat at the front, relying on his face alone, stealing everyone’s attention.

Originally, Minhyeok had planned to deal with him gradually, but he couldn’t stand it anymore.

So he decided to teach him a lesson before the morning assembly.

However, there were two variables Kim Minhyeok hadn’t anticipated:

‘…Why is he so tall?’

One was that Kim Donghu was quite tall, requiring him to look up.

“Pfft.”

The other was that instead of being scared, he laughed at him.

Laughing at him, a school bully?

This absolutely couldn’t be overlooked.

So Kim Minhyeok swung his fist, and.

Whack!

He immediately felt something hit his shin.

“Aaaaargh!”

A scream burst out as the rubber part of an indoor shoe struck his shin.

And to make matters worse.

Bam!

The fist he swung hit the innocent wall instead.

Perhaps because he had lashed out in anger, he couldn’t control his strength at all.

Crack!

His finger fractured.

At this point, Kim Minhyeok had only one option left:

“Waaaaaaaaah!”

To clutch his finger and roll around on the floor, crying miserably.

Experiencing such intense pain for the first time, he couldn’t help but shed tears and snot.

“What’s going on here!”

“Why is he like this…”

“Don’t just watch, call an ambulance! Call an ambulance first!”

Meanwhile, the teachers arrived.

Sensing the situation was serious, a student had rushed to the faculty office to get help.

“Hmm.”

Jang Boseok, who was assigned to be the homeroom teacher for Class 1-6, furrowed his brow as he assessed the situation.

An ambulance had been called, and the next step was to understand what had happened.

Kim Minhyeok, rolling on the floor with no name tag and improper uniform.

Kim Donghu, who looked perfectly fine despite appearing to have been cornered and lynched.

Looking at the situation alone, Kim Donghu seemed to be the perpetrator, but that was only if you looked at the result.

Considering everything, it was obvious that Kim Minhyeok had started the trouble.

‘Still, it looks like his bone might be broken.’

No matter who started it, this couldn’t be taken lightly.

Therefore, Jang Boseok’s decision was:

“Kim Donghu, bring your parents.”

He would first meet with the parents of the student who was unharmed.

+++++

First day of middle school.

Usually when parents are called to school, their reactions are predictable.

-Did my child do something wrong?

Either they become fearful, or:

-What kind of teacher are you, failing to manage the students properly!

They get angry.

One of these two responses was typical, and:

“…”

That’s why Jang Boseok was experiencing this for the first time.

“Sir, the children say that a student named Kim Minhyeok started the trouble first, and his bone was fractured because he hit the wall while swinging his fist. So only Kim Minhyeok will be disciplined, and Kim Donghu won’t face any consequences.”

“I see.”

He was just too quiet.

There’s a limit to being taciturn.

‘How can he be like this when his child was almost beaten?’

At a glance, it seemed like he didn’t love his child.

But that was just Jang Boseok’s subjective judgment.

In reality, Kim Donghu’s father, Kim Jangryeol, was thinking intensely.

His first thought was:

‘Thank goodness he didn’t hit back.’

After entering elementary school, the first thing Kim Donghu wanted to learn was martial arts.

Among them, he was most interested in MMA, mixed martial arts.

A 7-year-old suddenly became interested in fighting.

And he had been training for 7 years now.

The instructor kept insisting he should go professional.

If his talented son had actually used violence?

‘Taking down one kid would be nothing for him.’

But since that wasn’t the case, it was truly fortunate.

+++++

The day after Kim Minhyeok cried, wailed, and was taken away in an ambulance.

“…”

When I arrived at school, there was only one seat left.

The back window seat.

‘Why should I sit there?’

With that question in mind, I turned my head toward my original seat.

And there:

“…”

Kim Minhyeok, who lowered his eyes as soon as he saw me, was sitting quietly.