Absolute One Is Also New to Fatherhood Episode 14

As soon as morning broke the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠next day, Kang-jun called his sister into his room.

"Here, take this."

He was handing over the money he'd earned yesterday as a porter.

"Huh? What's this?"

"It's not much."

"Wait, is this money?"

Lee Soo-bin immediately checked the stack of bills inside the envelope...

"Kang-jun. H-how much is this?"

"Five million won."

"Where did you suddenly get such a large amount—"

"Just..."

After a brief hesitation, Kang-jun lied smoothly.

"I checked my bank account just in case, and it was there."

"Bank account...?"

"Yeah. Must be money I'd saved up before I disappeared."

If he'd told her the truth—that he'd earned it working as a 'porter' in a Gate—Soo-bin would have freaked out. So he had no choice but to make up an excuse.

"Kang-jun..."

Soo-bin murmured softly, looking at her brother with unbearably affectionate eyes.

Five million won.

To some, it might not seem like much, but to Soo-bin, it was a fortune that could solve all her immediate problems.

'With this much, I can pay off all the overdue utility bills and rent, and still have some left over...'

Clutching the envelope tightly, she spoke up hesitantly.

"Actually... I didn't want to worry you, so I didn't say anything, but I've been really struggling with money lately. The bills, rent, groceries..."

"Really? I didn't know."

"Yeah. But thanks to you, I can finally breathe. I'll make something nice for dinner tonight. Anything you'd like?"

"Anything's fine."

Soo-bin muttered, "Honestly, you're so blunt," before nodding cheerfully.

"Then I'll surprise you. Oh, want to go to the supermarket together later?"

"Supermarket?"

"We can all go shopping, maybe eat out, and on the way back, take Seol to a kids' cafe or playground—"

Kang-jun cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Sorry, but can we do that another time?"

"Huh?"

"I kind of just want to rest at home today."

Then, gauging her reaction, he added casually,

"Though... I wouldn't mind if Crabsley went with you instead."

"Ah, the elder?" Soo-bin nodded. "Should I go with him then?"

She grabbed Kang-jun's hands tightly.

"Kang-jun, thank you. Really."

"Don't mention it."

"I'll work harder from now on."

"Yeah. Me too."

With that brief exchange, Soo-bin left the room, calling out, "Elder! Elder!" repeatedly.

Watching her retreating back, Kang-jun suddenly smirked.

"Perfect..."

His plan was falling into place. Once his family left for the supermarket...

'The comic bookstore.'

During his taxi ride the other day, Kang-jun had spotted a comic shop near Sillim Station. That was his destination.

"With 300 years having passed, even 'Hunter x Hunter' must have new volumes by now..."

"Hunter x Hunter," a popular Japanese shounen manga, had been Kang-jun's favorite back when he lived an ordinary life on Earth.

The only problem? The author was infamous for erratic, unreliable releases.

"The day has finally come."

The thought of binge-reading new volumes after 300 years made his chest tingle with excitement.

"Sir, there are no new 'Hunter x Hunter' volumes yet."

"W-what? That's... impossible—"

"You know how the author is with releases, right?"

The tragic news awaited Kang-jun as he entered the store with eager steps.

The part-time employee organizing the messy shelves of comics and novels sighed.

"Honestly, I enlisted three years ago thinking new volumes would be out by the time I finished my service. 'Any day now,' I kept telling myself... Who knew it'd still be radio silence?"

Kang-jun exploded.

"Three years?! I waited 300 damn years—!"

Of course, due to the time difference between Earth and the Anux continent, only three years had passed here. But to Kang-jun, the wait had undeniably been 300 years. The injustice!

The employee blinked. "Uh...?"

After an awkward pause, they offered,

"Sir, can I recommend a different novel? It's been really popular lately."

They handed Kang-jun a book from the counter.

"The World's Weakest Who Became an SSS-Rank Hunter?"

Kang-jun flipped through the pages skeptically.

"It's been trending, so I gave it a read. Pretty entertaining," the employee said.

Settling into a seat, Kang-jun began reading.

'Huh, this is totally Bong-gu's story.'

The protagonist, initially an F-rank Hunter, struggled to care for his terminally ill mother and younger sister. Through fortuitous encounters, he gradually grew into one of the world's strongest—a somewhat clichéd but engaging progression.

'Not bad.'

The writing flowed smoothly, keeping him hooked.

Before he knew it, he'd reached the final volume.

Then—

"What is this?!"

The climax had the now-powerful protagonist effortlessly defeating the final boss: a "9th-Circle Necromancer."

"A 9th-Circle Necromancer losing this pathetically?"

Shouldn't an author who made a living writing at least do minimal research? Even if the protagonist had grown stronger, defeating a 9th-Circle Necromancer so easily was absurd.

From the perspective of an actual 9th-Circle Necromancer (Kang-jun himself), the novel was pure garbage.

"Wasted my time on this trash. Should've just gone to the supermarket..."

Resolving never to read this author's works again, Kang-jun checked the name on the cover.

"Jay?"

He scoffed. "This guy has no business being a writer."

Leaning back into the plush sofa, he sighed.

"I'm exhausted."

Come to think of it, when was the last time he'd slept?

He couldn't pinpoint exactly, but...

"Must've ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠been years."

Long ago, Kang-jun had been cursed—every time he slept, he was tormented by horrific nightmares.

At first, I tried everything to break the curse.

From renowned shamans across dimensions to priests of divine orders, heretics wielding mysterious powers...

But.

None of them could find a way to lift this curse. In the end, the only solution Kang-jun devised was to minimize sleep as much as possible.

Once every few years.

And only when a high-ranking Dream Demon capable of manipulating dream content was by his side would he allow himself to sleep.

But now...

The increasing frequency of drowsiness suggested his body was reaching its limit.

In his current state, it wouldn't be strange if he suddenly collapsed like a narcoleptic at any moment, anywhere.

Considering he needed to head back into a Gate soon, it seemed wise to set aside a day to sleep beforehand.

'What a shame.'

If only he had the help of one of the Huang Kingdom's five Imperial Ministers, his loyal subordinate bound by a vassal contract—

The Succubus Queen 'Iriel'—she might have been able to lessen the intensity of his nightmares.

A sudden thought occurred to him.

If he continued raising the 'Level' stat he'd seen in his status window, would he eventually be able to bring his vassals to Earth?

'I hope they're all doing well...'

For a moment, Kang-jun was lost in longing before firmly closing his eyes.

'Let's just sleep.'

It had been a full decade since his last slumber.

"Lady Soo-bin! I've discovered another free food sample—!"

Crabsley's booming voice echoed loudly through the supermarket as he stood by the tasting booth in the distance.

Lee Soo-bin, who had been slowly pushing a shopping cart with Seol seated inside, flushed red.

"P-please, sir...!"

At first, he had embarrassed her by reverse-riding the escalator—something even children rarely did—turning her face scarlet.

He had gone on excitedly about how the magic engineers of the Anux Continent would be horrified, or how the escalator could double as a torture device if sped up...

Then, upon entering the supermarket's food section, he proceeded to shamelessly sweep up all the free samples.

"A place where one can enjoy gourmet food infinitely without payment? This 'sampling corner' is practically no different from paradise!"

He then began loudly humming a bizarre parody of a famous jingle.

"Enjoy endlessly, the supermarket sampling corner..."

As he popped one free dumpling into his mouth...

"The whole family together, at the sampling corner..."

Another one.

"Free gourmet delights, at the sampling corner..."

And another.

Thanks to Crabsley, Soo-bin's face gradually turned as red as a persimmon in autumn.

"Sigh..."

Finally bowing her head, she shot him a glare before turning to the glaring cashier.

"Ma'am, could I get a pack of these dumplings, please?"

And so, frozen foods she had never intended to buy began piling up in her cart.

WEEEEEEEE—!

WEEEEEEEE—!

Suddenly, a blaring siren tore through the spacious supermarket.

[Attention, customers. A large-scale Gate has appeared near Sillim Station Intersection.]

[All customers are urged to evacuate immediately to the underground shelter located within this supermarket...]

[Repeat: A large-scale Gate has appeared near Sillim Station Intersection. All customers currently in the supermarket must...]

The emergency disaster broadcast instantly threw the supermarket into chaos.

The distance between Sillim Station—the Gate's emergence point—and the supermarket was barely a few kilometers.

Terrified, everyone rushed toward the underground shelter.

"S-sir! We should evacuate too!"

Soo-bin quickly scooped Seol from the cart and hurried toward the escalator before suddenly freezing.

"W-what do we do...?"

"Huh?"

"K-Kang-jun...!"

Her face paled as she remembered her younger brother was home alone.

Crabsley shook his head reassuringly and spoke softly to calm her.

"Lady Soo-bin, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠though it may be presumptuous to say, there is no need to worry about His Lordship."

Soo-bin bit her lip anxiously. "Are you really sure...?"

Crabsley glanced around cautiously before lowering his voice further.

"In truth, Lady Soo-bin, His Lordship has long since reached a state akin to immortality. No weapon or illness could so much as scratch him..."

"Sir, really—!"

"Indeed. It is truly astonishing. The empire's finest scholars spent over a century researching ways for His Lordship to achieve eternal rest, yet they failed repeatedly..."

Crabsley trailed off, reminiscing.

"From today, you shall research how I may attain eternal rest."

His Lordship had grown weary of his endless life.

Homesick and tormented by the unchanging repetition of days...

The imperial lich scholars devoted themselves to the task after receiving his command.

'First was throwing himself from the summit, wasn't it?'

He leapt from the peak of the World Tree—often called "the edge of the world"—to no avail.

Then he spent a full month in Kalpa Fire, the hellflames said to incinerate all things, only to emerge unscathed and bored.

He consumed daily doses of a poison potent enough to kill a giant in a single drop, yet it had no effect whatsoever.

"When even the most learned minds of an entire dimension could find no solution, is that not true immortality?"

Crabsley burst into hearty laughter. "Kehahaha—!"

Soo-bin exhaled deeply and forced herself to stay composed.

"Right... nothing will happen. Sillim Station is still some distance from home..."

"Indeed. He will surely be unharmed."

"Yes, unless... unless Kang-jun went out alone, nothing should happen..."

At that, Crabsley stiffened and muttered, "O-out...?"

"I might sneak out to that comic book café later."

What had he said next?

"If Noona asks, tell her I'm home."

And after that?

"You'd better act natural. If you get me caught because of your bad acting..."

And then?

"I'll kill you for real."

Beads of cold sweat formed on Crabsley's forehead. He wiped them away hastily and replied in a strained whisper.

"Y-yes, my lady. His Lordship is... surely at home..."

Meanwhile, at that very moment.

"What the hell...?"

Kang-jun, freshly awakened, cursed as he blearily scanned his surroundings.

He had clearly fallen asleep on the plush sofa of a comic book café, yet—

"Where is this now?"

For some reason, he found himself standing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in the middle of a vast, blizzard-swept tundra.

The raging snowstorm made it impossible to see even a foot ahead, with thick layers of snow covering the dense trees and ground.

Dazed, he stared blankly for a moment before his gaze landed on the status window floating before him.

[You have entered the dimensional gate Sanctuary of the Jötunn. ]