episode_0082

“The verification process is complete. You can take it now.”

“The child is sleeping, so please wait a little longer as I will wake him up soon.”

The police officer on duty inside went back behind the information desk with his deputy. The people who had been there were rushing out, probably because it was evening patrol time, and only silence filled the once bustling room.

“… … .”

“… … .”

Neither of the two people left in the room spoke a word. A subtle, heavy air hung in the air.

It wasn’t just Park Gwang-deok who was embarrassed by the unexpected reunion. Si-hyuk was the same.

A lukewarm feeling, something boiling over but cooling down. A feeling of hesitation that is refreshing yet uneasy.

His thoughts were complicated and he must have been wasting time, so he decided to change his mind and wait for the next opportunity. He gave up on entering the building and turned his back on [Chakgapsa], promising to wait until tomorrow. That was an hour ago.

I didn’t really have any particular thoughts. I just stopped by the police station on my way back to check on my child.

But I never thought I would encounter a scammer again in this form.

In a relationship where one is deceived and is deceived, in a relationship where one is given and received in return. Human affairs are truly difficult to grasp.

Looking at the man with his head bowed, who was pale, Shihyuk let out a sigh so small that no one else could hear.

“Sorry, no. Thank you, thank you very much. Thank you very much, sir… .”

Park Gwang-deok, who had been silent, stammered words of gratitude through his teeth.

The voice, struggling with embarrassment, contained gratitude, regret, shame, and even a tiny bit of misery.

The father, who had done such a terrible thing to the benefactor who had looked after his daughter, could not bear to raise his face toward him.

“… It’s okay. It was something I had to do, so don’t worry about it.”

Looking at him, Shihyuk felt bitter. It would have been better if he had remained shameless until the end. He felt uncomfortable. It was a complicated feeling.

“Appa?”

The still air was broken by the innocent and clear voice like a drop of water.

The child who appeared, led by the hand of a police officer, had a red and swollen face because he had been crying and sleeping all day.

My eyes, still half-asleep and groggy, brightened up at the sight of my father.

“Mister?”

The child smiled brightly, closing his reddened eyes as if he had just received another candy, and was even happier when he saw Si-hyuk next to him.

The gap in the front tooth that was visible through the corner of the child’s smiling mouth was cute.

“Hanbyeol… !”

Park Gwang-deok approached with brisk strides and carefully held his young daughter in his arms.

The musty smell might make you frown, but you laugh heartily, saying that it’s okay.

The father was finally able to let go of his worries, which had weighed heavily on him, as he watched his child pressing his cheek against the shoulder armor, feeling the cold metal against his skin that had become numb from crying.

“Superman is too late!”

“Sorry, I’m sorry. Were you scared? I’m sorry, Dad.”

He held the whining child tightly and muttered an apology.

The child, who had suppressed his whining at the low, trembling voice, patted the neck he was holding with his jelly-like hands.

“It’s okay! You came anyway!”

Then, the child who met Sihyuk’s eyes smiled bashfully.

Did you see that? Shihyuk smiled faintly at her proud smile.

A faint sense of relief and warmth spread through his chest as he watched his father and daughter embracing each other.

“Thank goodness.”

Yeah, that’s good.

Regardless of the circumstances, Sihyuk truly thought so at this moment.

=====

“The old man bought me ice cream! And he bought me a huge piece of cotton candy!”

“Was it so?”

On the way back from the police station together.

“Yeah! Hanbyeol was scary, but she wasn’t scared anymore because Ajujiji carried her on his shoulders! Ajujiji is so big!”

“I see.”

The child held his father’s hand and told him in detail about the adventure he had gone on that day.

On a quiet evening, the voices of children chatting filled the void.

Park Gwang-deok glanced sideways at his daughter as he responded to her words. There was a large man with his left hand holding onto the hem of his daughter’s other arm.

It was a revolution.

“… … .”

He silently accompanied the child who asked him to go together.

He didn’t bother to meddle in the child’s chattering. He had something to say about the child and the [Rare Grade Amulet], but he didn’t say anything.

It may be that Shihyuk is not very sociable, but he also had a strong desire not to break the bond between father and daughter.

Although he couldn’t figure out what the intention was, Park Gwang-deok was grateful for the silence.

If you look closely, you can see that he is walking very slowly, matching the small strides of a child. His heavy mouth and his hard, expressionless face seem indifferent at first glance, but his actions reveal his kindness and consideration.

He is a good person. And that kind of person, I… .

“Dad?”

“Ah, yeah. Sorry, Hanbyeol. How far did we go?”

“Oh my gosh, seriously!”

It was as if my conscience had been pricked. Bitter water rose up inside me and my face grew hot.

Park Gwang-deok hurriedly laughed and replied to his daughter.

Shihyuk watched that bitter smile silently and then opened his mouth.

“… I think I should go now.”

Before I knew it, I had reached the end of the road, the entrance to Donggureung.

However, since our destinations could not be the same, it was truly time for us to part ways.

The boy who had been holding onto the hem of his trousers sniffed and looked up, his eyes watering.

“Hey, are you going?”

“Okay. It’s getting late and we have different paths to take, so we should part ways now.”

“Heeelp… .”

Shihyuk bent down and placed his hand on the child’s limp head.

A huge hand completely engulfed the small acorn-like head, covering the back of the head. He rubbed the child’s head carefully, making sure not to hurt it, with his rough palms from his craftsmanship.

“Don’t be like that. If we get closer, we’ll see each other again.”

“What is it that touches you?”

“… There is something like that.”

Then, Si-hyuk met Park Kwang-deok’s eyes and nodded his head. Then, without any hesitation, he got up and was about to leave.

“Over there…, I, teacher.”

A feeble, hesitant voice stopped him. When he turned his head, he saw Park Gwang-deok with a face as faint as if he had swallowed horseradish.

“There will be a lot of people at this time, so it will be difficult to take the bus. So…. How about staying at my house nearby for a while? It’s only 10 minutes away.”

Certainly, it was. The stop that Sihyuk was about to get on, visible in the distance, was already crowded inside and out with people who had gathered early to go home.

There weren’t many buses coming and going from Donggureung, and they weren’t very frequent. It would be quite difficult to get home, squeezing in among the crowds that were even larger than the ones at the Awakening Entrance.

“… … .”

It wasn’t just people who were hit. Vehicles were hit too.

Bam, baaaang! The sound of a car horn rang in my ears. Yielding on the roads of Korea is nothing but a sweet illusion. No matter how much the traffic director blew his whistle, it seemed difficult to prevent cut-ins and traffic jams.

From taxis trying to catch passengers to people driving their own cars, buses were delayed and the roads were jam-packed as they tried to get out of the way.

On the other side, police officers were seen conducting breathalyzer tests for traffic control and crackdown.

It would probably take hours for this chaos to end. It certainly seemed like a good idea to take a break somewhere and wait for people to leave.

“… No. It would be uncomfortable to rest comfortably if a stranger came into the house.”

But Sihyuk shook his head. It was awkward to stop by someone else’s house out of the blue.

“It’s okay. I’m so grateful that you found my daughter, but… . I’m sorry, there’s nothing I can do to repay you. … It’s late for dinner, so please eat before you go.”

“No-”

“Hey, you’re coming to my house?!”

The cheers, like firecrackers, once again stopped Shihyuk from declining his words.

The child’s pale face brightened up and he smiled brightly as if nothing had happened, and he held onto the hem of his trousers and hung on.

“Hehehe! It’s Hanbyeol’s first time having a friend over at her house! Let’s eat together, uncle!”

“… … .”

“After you finish eating, Hanbyeol will show you the treasure chest! It’s so pretty! I won’t show it to anyone else, but I’ll show it to you specially!”

Indeed, there was no sign of refusal in the innocent voices that were chattering excitedly.

Shihyuk kept his mouth shut at the innocent child’s kindness, who, rather than being shy, tried to get closer to his new friend.

He wasn’t cruel enough to coldly push away the child who was clinging to his calf like a koala hanging from a tree and looking up at him with sparkling eyes.

The words of rejection that Shihyuk was about to utter were lost in the back of his throat due to the child’s strong support.

“Hanbyeol likes it that much too, so I really need you to do something for her. Teacher. Please give me a chance to treat her. … I also want to say something.”

Park Gwang-deok’s earnest tone was decisive.

“… Then, excuse me.”

-Today, nothing really went as I wanted.

Wow! Thanks to the laughter of the child cheering, Si-hyuk’s face, which was smiling bitterly, did not look so bad, unlike his sighing feelings.

“Fish cake skewers for 3,000 won! 6 honey buns for 5,000 won!”

“If you order a set menu, you will receive one side dish for free!”

Unlike the inside of Donggureung, the outside was actually in a boom period.

As expected from a place that had become a tourist attraction early on, the alleys were lined with food stalls, bars, and restaurants. People who had given up on going home early were bustling about drinking.

In what was originally a residential complex but had become a motel village with the construction of lodging facilities, blue and red lights were twinkling.

The smell of grilling meat, alcohol, and cosmetics was overwhelming everywhere.

After walking for about 15 minutes through the noisy street, we arrived in front of a shabby villa.

“Here you go. When you come in, watch your head.”

No, can this be called a villa?

The red brick building, which looked to be at least 50 years old, looked like a house in a remote village from the outside.

Even though it was in the same area and same neighborhood, it looked completely different from the fancy bar buildings adjacent to it.

The glass door at the entrance to the villa, which I had reached without thinking, was creaking from the hinges. The view of the house through the cracked and cracked stairs and low door frame was shabby and simple.

A kitchen/living room, a bedroom, and a bathroom. All together, it was probably about 10 pyeong. At this rate, it was closer to a boarding house than a villa.

The living room looked even more cramped because of the clothes piled up in the corner. There were no appliances in sight, except for the refrigerator and the fan.

“It’s a little narrow, right?”

Park Gwang-deok, who had led Shi-hyeok into the bedroom, smiled slightly as if he were being a man. In his hand was a cushion that had been covered in dust because it had not been used for so long. It seemed like he had just gone out and shaken it off.

Receiving it, Shihyuk was humble.

“No, it’s cozy and just right.”

“I’ll prepare the meal right away, so please wait a moment. Hanbyeol! Teacher, would you please get me some water?”

“Yeah!”

The boy who had been stamping his feet opened the refrigerator door, made a clicking sound, and soon filled a sky blue plastic cup with water and handed it to me.

“Thank you.”

“Hehehe!”

The water he took a sip of smelled like disinfectant. He put the cup down, sat down at the table, and looked around the room carefully.

I felt sad for the empty bottles of anti-inflammatory painkillers and cheap potions lined up in one corner.

In the picture frame placed on the shabby wardrobe there, a young Park Gwang-deok with both hands intact was smiling and linking arms with a bride in a wedding dress.

One wall was covered with crooked scribbles that looked like they had been drawn by a child with colored pencils, taped together and fluttering in the breeze from the fan.

Shihyuk picked up a piece of graffiti that had fallen on the floor.

A man in colorful gear bravely stood against a dragon spitting out bright red flames. In the corner, a princess in a flowing blue one-piece dress smiled and clasped her hands together.

[Superman].

That was the title of the graffiti.