Chapter 185 Even the Almighty is New to Being a Dad Chapter 186
Absolute One Is Also New to Fatherhood Chapter 186
The night was deep.
"Honey."
Chae-ah's mother returned from her exhausting work and carefully opened the front door.
"Is Chae-ah asleep?"
Doo-hyun answered in a whisper.
"She just fell asleep."
As she nodded several times, Doo-hyun asked quietly, afraid their daughter might wake:
"Was today hard again?"
"What's hard about it?"
"Want me to massage your shoulders?"
"Ah, it's fine."
She waved him off but then furrowed her brows slightly and asked hesitantly:
"You're really going to keep wearing that firefighter's cap pulled low and mask even at home?"
Doo-hyun replied:
"You know Chae-ah's scared of me."
"But still..."
"She's still young. Can't be helped."
He continued in a deliberately casual tone:
"When she gets a little older, she'll understand."
"Isn't it hot and suffocating?"
"You know I can handle heat well, right?"
Doo-hyun lifted his chin slightly and added:
"I've endured raging flames before."
"......"
"This is nothing."
Would scolding and forcing their young daughter make her understand her father's scars?
Part of him wanted to make her understand even if he had to use corporal punishment.
When her husband first regained consciousness and saw his reflection, he collapsed immediately.
"What is this..."
Unable to accept his transformed appearance, he fainted on the spot.
Seeing him now pretending to be composed made her heart ache.
Their daughter calling her father a monster and turning away sometimes felt unbearably cruel.
"Really, I'm fine," Doo-hyun quickly changed the subject.
"You haven't eaten dinner yet?"
"No, not yet..."
"I'll prepare something quickly."
Just then—
"Huh?"
She noticed a neatly folded piece of paper in the corner of the room...
"It's nothing."
Doo-hyun hastily reached out and snatched the paper away.
"What is it?"
"Just..."
"I asked what it is."
Under repeated questioning, Doo-hyun mumbled as if confessing a grave sin:
"It's just Chae-ah's school newsletter."
"Then why hide it?"
"There's nothing important in it."
She swiftly grabbed the newsletter back:
"If there's nothing important, why hide it?"
"Thought it'd be better if you didn't see..."
"What on earth does it say?"
Her sharp questioning continued as she unfolded the newsletter and read its contents thoroughly...
"Huh...?"
Her trembling eyes turned to Doo-hyun.
"What is this?"
It was about tomorrow's field trip for all children at Snow White Kindergarten.
『Invitational Retirement Ceremony for Retired Firefighters』
The problem was the location.
"Did they say anything to you?"
At her question, Doo-hyun answered:
"Not yet."
Her voice shook as she asked again:
"It's tomorrow, isn't it?"
"Yeah..."
"How... how could they?"
Speechless, she clenched her fists and began pounding her own chest.
"How could they do this?"
"......"
"How could they really do this?"
She hated the nation.
"After what they did to you..."
Doo-hyun tried to comfort her:
"It's okay, it's okay."
Empty reassurances scattered between them.
"Who else would do what you did?!"
"You'll wake Chae-ah..."
"Why do we have to live like this?!"
"I'll handle it, just calm down..."
"What more can you possibly—?"
She broke down.
"It was all lies."
"What was...?"
"You were wrong."
She had always told him he made the right decisions.
That she'd do the same in his position.
"You were wrong."
"......"
"You shouldn't have."
Weak fists pounded against his chest.
"You fool... you idiot..."
She sobbed.
"Why were you so damn kind?"
Her insides felt rotten.
"Why couldn't you be just a little selfish?"
It felt like the nation had abandoned them.
"Why didn't you just look away?"
Her husband's plight was unbearable.
"Why couldn't you just close your eyes and pretend not to see?"
"Honey, don't cry..."
"How many more lives will you save?!"
Her voice rose to a scream.
"How many have you already saved?!"
"Really, calm down..."
"You should've just looked away!"
Her slender shoulders shook violently.
The tears wouldn't stop.
Because she knew what kind of man her husband was.
"You fool... you idiot..."
This man still has nightmares.
When he wakes drenched in cold sweat...
He often repeats the same question:
"Were they human?"
Even in this state, he's still haunted by that day.
Even knowing the nation would abandon him, if given another chance...
He'd rush into the flames without hesitation.
"You fool, why were you so kind...?"
Doo-hyun spoke:
"I'm sorry."
Then he pulled his wife into an embrace.
"You know..."
His voice began to grow damp too.
"When my mother passed away..."
"......"
"I should've refused cremation."
For the first time, he fully expressed the emotions he'd kept buried.
"I actually hate heat."
"Honey..."
"I've always been afraid of fire."
Tears he'd held back now fell as his voice trembled in confession.
"You know I can't handle hot food well. I hate heat and can't stand stuffiness."
Then he asked:
"Why did I become a firefighter?"
Her sobs intensified.
"Why was I thrown into that day?"
Facing her husband's long-suppressed "regret" shattered her composure instantly.
"I think I actually know."
"Please..."
"What I saw that day."
"Stop..."
"I think it was a person."
He too collapsed.
"Probably a child."
After years of reliving that day in dreams, this was his conclusion.
"A lovely child, I'm sure."
"Let's forget now..."
"They probably resent me deeply."
Doo-hyun also broke down.
"I suffered just as much."
"Honey, please..."
"How terrified that little one must have been."
He began crying uncontrollably.
"Why did I become a firefighter?"
"Please, let's forget..."
"If I hadn't been there that day."
Doo-hyun murmured again:
"If a more capable firefighter had been there instead."
Silence lingered briefly.
"That child might have been saved."
Doo-hyun's wife gently patted his broad back.
This wasn't a man who regretted becoming a firefighter.
Only one who regretted his inability to save the child.
What a fool.
If given a chance to relive his life...
'He'd become a firefighter again.'
He'd live each day more diligently.
Facing "that day" again...
Praying he could save them this time.
But what's the use?
In the end, he was discarded like this.
Holy sacrifices are forgotten.
Everyone else moves on happily.
"I feel so wronged..."
Even the nation that daily thrust her husband into hellfire forgot his sacrifices.
Would those he saved remember his holy sacrifice?
"I could die from the injustice..."
She muttered.
"They'll just live on smiling..."
While forgetting everything...
"Going about their daily lives..."
This man became a wreck.
Rejected by his own daughter.
Abandoned by the world.
"Eating well, living well..."
The couple held each other and wept for a long time.
The image reflected in the large magic mirror vanished instantly.
"See?"
Kang-jun looked down at the child.
The child...
Remained silent for a long while.
"Yeah."
The charred-black child finally spoke.
"I saw."
Kang-jun asked again:
"Can you forgive him?"
"Yes."
"Then perhaps I could give him..."
Kang-jun trailed off vaguely before asking hesitantly:
"A miracle as a gift?"
The child nodded.
Simultaneously...
Their form began scattering into nothingness.
"Thank you for understanding."
On a rooftop somewhere...
"Thank you."
Only Kang-jun remained.
The next day.
After sending his daughter off to kindergarten, Doo-hyun returned to their tiny apartment to tackle piled-up chores.
Knock knock knock!
Someone pounded on the door.
"Who is it?"
Initially fearing it might be the landlord about overdue rent, he felt a jolt of panic, but...
Creeeak—
He opened the door anyway.
"Are you Team Leader Lee Doo-hyun?"
The unexpected morning visitor was a goblin in a business suit.
"Who...?"
The goblin bowed politely.
"I am Kazan, Earth Branch Director of the Secret Society of Wealthy Benefactors, the sponsoring organization for today's Retired Firefighters Invitational Retirement Ceremony."
At those words, Doo-hyun's eyes widened in shock...
"Team Leader Lee Doo-hyun, the ceremony is just hours away and you haven't even prepared yet?"
"Ceremony?"
"As the representative for this Retired Firefighters Invitational Retirement Ceremony, shouldn't you be taking on this important responsibility?"
Though he had no recollection of this whatsoever, the goblin's shameless attitude left him speechless, his lips moving soundlessly like a fish out of water.
"First, let's get you into uniform."
His heart pounded.
"Uniform...?"
Kazan added firmly:
"Your dress uniform."
With that, the goblin busily threw open the wardrobe and pulled out the meticulously cleaned dress uniform that had been stored away.
"W-wait a minute..."
He struggled into the dress shirt, tightening the necktie until it felt like a noose.
He adjusted the collar of the uniform jacket and smoothed out his appearance.
Straightening the stubborn wrinkles, he brushed off invisible dust.
Finally, pressing the cap firmly onto his head, he regained the bearing of his active-duty days.
Clap clap clap.
Kazan applauded.
"Now, let's get going."
Parked outside the ramshackle tin-roofed house perched on the hillside was a luxury sedan that looked utterly out of place.
"Please, get in."
With trembling hands, he quickly texted his wife:
[Honey, we haven't been forgotten.]
Message after message followed:
[What did I tell you?]
Emotions surged within him.
[See? Someone remembers us after all.]
Tears threatened to spill over.
[The country would never abandon us.]
The next morning.
"Ms. Kwon Soo-bin?"
As always, Chae-ah's mother Kwon Soo-bin had come to the manpower agency at the crack of dawn.
"What should we do...?"
"Hmm?"
"There's no work available today..."
Seeing her lips tremble at this news, the agency employee asked in his usual perfunctory tone:
"Would you be willing to travel a bit further?"
"Pardon?"
"It's cleaning work at an event venue..."
She responded like a shot:
"Of course!"
Wasn't she living hand-to-mouth, worrying about tomorrow's rice?
Missing even a single day's work was devastating for someone in her position.
As long as the distance wasn't absurd, she'd take any job available.
"Please go to the main road in front of the office - a car is waiting to take you there."
Bowing repeatedly, she exclaimed "Thank you!" before hurrying out of the building.
"Huh?"
A luxury sedan was parked by the roadside.
Just then, a sharply dressed chauffeur stepped out.
"Ms. Kwon Soo-bin?"
"Yes..."
"We'll have you there shortly."
The chauffeur promptly opened the rear door...
Leaving her bewildered as she climbed in.
"Excuse me... I came for the event venue cleaning job... Is this the right car?"
Normally, workers like her were transported in what people called "bongo trucks" - those boxy work vans.
Though she'd been getting jobs through manpower agencies for years, this was her first time riding in a luxury sedan.
"Yes, absolutely."
The driver checked his watch and murmured:
"Time is tight."
"Pardon?"
"Let's make our first stop."
The sedan glided smoothly to a halt.
"This is..."
An upscale styling salon of impressive size.
"Madam, we've arrived."
"Eh?"
"Please go ahead."
The driver added:
"I'll wait here."
Suddenly, several salon staff rushed out to greet her...
"Wha-?"
Before she could even process being addressed as "Madam," she was gently ushered inside.
Everything happened in a daze.
Half a dozen attendants fussed over her hair and applied makeup.
From the form-fitting dress to the handbag, accessories, and pair of shoes...
"Madam, this suits you perfectly."
"No, I'm not..."
"You'll be the most radiant one there."
A staff member added:
"And congratulations!"
Congratulations for what?
"Oh dear, we're running late."
Before she knew it, she was being guided back to the waiting sedan...
"Let's be on our way."
The car accelerated smoothly down the road.
"What in the..."
What kind of bizarre dream was this?
Then.
The driver spoke again:
"We're nearly there."
In the distance, a massive banner came into view on the convention hall wall:
[Retired Firefighters Invitational Retirement Ceremony]
She whispered:
"Don't tell me—"
Just then.
Ding!
Multiple messages arrived in quick succession from her husband:
[Honey, we haven't been forgotten.]
[What did I tell you?]
[See? Someone remembers us after all.]
[The country would never abandon us.]
She covered her face with her hands.
"Ugh..."
All that carefully applied makeup would be ruined.
"Hic..."
The tears wouldn't stop.
All the children from Snow White Daycare had arrived at Kintex Convention Hall and were settling into their spacious seating area.
"Wow, it's so huge!"
The kids buzzed with excitement.
"Everyone, let's be on our best behavior!"
At the teacher's words, the children chorused "Yes!" in unison...
"The ceremony will start soon - no moving around or chatting until it's over, okay?"
"Yes, Teacher!"
"Firefighters work day and night at dangerous scenes to protect us!"
"Yeah!"
"Can we all watch respectfully to show our gratitude?"
As the teachers busied themselves keeping the children in line—
Thud.
As if signaling the ceremony's imminent start, all the lights suddenly dimmed...
[Now, before we formally begin today's Retired Firefighters Invitational Retirement Ceremony...]
[We'd like to introduce the hunters who've joined us to honor our retired firefighters.]
Then—
"Wow..."
A wave of murmurs swept through the hall.
Not just from the children...
Every attendee whispered excitedly.
"Seol-yah, Seol-yah."
Chae-ah tugged at Seol's sleeve and whispered:
"My favorite hunter..."
"So cool!"
"I wanna be like that when I grow up..."
Seol asked:
"Which uncle do you like best?"
"Not uncle - hunter!"
"But isn't it auntie and uncle?"
"I like the number one hunter best!"
Chae-ah's favorite was S-rank #1 hunter Jung Yoon-chan, the Time Reaper.
Truth be told...
Yoon-chan was universally beloved across all ages and genders.
"Is that so..."
As about a dozen S-rank hunters appeared on stage...
[Distinguished guests, hello. I'm Jung Yoon-chan, currently ranked Korea's #1 S-rank hunter, the Time Reaper.]
Yoon-chan spoke eloquently:
[While the world calls us hunters humanity's saviors, we're not the only ones sacrificing for public safety.]
[Today, my fellow S-rank hunters and I wish to express our deepest respect and gratitude to the firefighters who protected our communities even before the Gate incidents...]
Seol suddenly asked:
"Wow, so firefighters are stronger than hunters?"
"Huh?"
"The hunter aunties and uncles are bowing to the firefighter uncles."
Chae-ah blinked, then recited:
"My daddy was a firefighter."
"Really?!"
"Uh-huh, daddy was a firefighter."
All the children began murmuring "Wow..." in awe...
[Now, please welcome today's representative retiree - former Captain Lee Doo-hyun of Gangnam Fire Station.]
Finally.
Clomp clomp.
A man entered with shoulders squared, chest out, and back straight - walking with undeniable dignity.
It was Lee Doo-hyun.
Though his face bore grotesque burn scars...
His aura, presence, and bearing radiated the authority of someone who'd earned respect in his field.
Snap!
He saluted sharply...
"Senior!"
Every hunter on stage bowed deeply at ninety degrees.
"We honor you!"
At that moment—
[As scheduled, we'll now have a poetry reading by former Captain Lee Doo-hyun.]
Doo-hyun stepped up to the standing microphone.
[Oh Lord...]
His voice filled the hall.
[When I am called to duty... grant me the strength to save a life, whatever the cost.]
[Let me cradle a child before it's too late... comfort the elderly trembling in fear.]
[Grant me focus to hear the faintest cry... wisdom to fight fires efficiently.]
[Help me fulfill my duties faithfully... protect my neighbors with all my might.]
[And if according to Your will I must give my life... please bless and protect my beloved wife and children.]
As the poem concluded...
"Wow..."
The entire hall exhaled collectively, having unconsciously held their breaths during his powerful delivery...
"Daddy..."
Chae-ah whispered to her friends, words tumbling out:
"My daddy..."
And so the retirement ceremony began.