Chapter 78: Even the Absolute Being Is a First-Time Dad
Even the Absolute One is New to Fatherhood - Chapter 78
Not a single person dared to speak recklessly.
A suffocating silence had fallen over the hall when—
"My, my, would you look at this child..."
Lee Mi-yeon, who had been cautiously observing the situation, forced an unnatural smile as she continued speaking.
"Honestly, what did I even say that was so terrible to make her burst into tears like this...?"
Her trailing gaze suddenly shifted toward a young man who had appeared out of nowhere—and the elite hunters standing protectively beside him.
'Huh...?'
For some reason, the child was calling these top-tier hunters "Uncle," "Auntie," and other affectionate terms.
'Don't tell me she's from a high-ranking family...?'
Realizing the situation was spiraling in an unexpected direction, cold sweat began trickling down Mi-yeon's back.
"Princess."
Kang-jun crouched in front of Seol and gently stroked her hair before asking softly.
"Did this lady make you cry?"
"Y-yes..."
"Alright, wipe your tears now."
Seol sniffled and tried to put on a brave face, but suddenly, as if overwhelmed, she burst into even louder sobs.
"Waaahhh...!"
Kang-jun immediately whispered comforting words into her ear while soothingly rubbing her back.
"Seol-ah."
Yoon Hee-soo spoke in an affectionate tone before crouching down in front of the little girl and meeting her eyes.
"Ugh...!"
A pained groan escaped her lips the moment she bent down—likely due to her cracked ribs.
"Auntie, does it huwt...?"
Seol, her tears subsiding, asked with concern.
"No, I'm fine."
Hee-soo forced a smile before showing Seol the phone charm dangling from her smartphone.
"Seol-ah, isn't this cute?"
It was a figurine modeled after the protagonist of a popular idol anime that had been a hit among little girls for years.
"Woww...!"
Hee-soo grinned warmly.
"Do you want it?"
"Seowi wants it..."
"Then should Auntie give it to you?"
"Mm! Pwease give it to Seowi..."
Hee-soo pretended to think for a moment before snapping her fingers with a "Tsk!"
"Okay, I'll give it to you if you stop crying."
"Seowi stopped cwying now..."
"Want to play with Auntie?"
"Mm! Seowi pway with it!"
With practiced ease, Hee-soo untied the charm and placed the figurine in Seol's tiny hands.
"Come on, let's go play over there."
Effortlessly scooping Seol into her arms, Hee-soo subtly shot Kang-jun a look before making her exit.
"Noona."
Kang-jun turned to his older sister, Lee Soo-bin, who stood beside him with a bewildered expression.
"What happened?"
Soo-bin hesitated before answering cautiously, as if afraid things might escalate.
"Well... it wasn't anything serious. She probably just got scared seeing adults arguing..."
Kang-jun muttered under his breath, "Arguing..." before suddenly whirling toward Mi-yeon.
"Are you out of your mind, lady?"
Soo-bin flinched and stepped forward. "Kang-jun!"
"Knowing you, you wouldn't have picked a fight first. This woman definitely started it."
Soo-bin protested urgently.
"Kang-jun, there's been a misunderstanding! It takes two to argue, and I definitely share some blame—"
But Kang-jun ignored her, his glare fixed on Mi-yeon as he pressed on.
"What's your problem?"
"I—"
"I asked what your problem is."
Mi-yeon fanned herself with her hand, muttering "Oops..." before scoffing in disbelief.
"I don't know if you're her father or what, but as a parent, I'm deeply concerned about the quality of this kindergarten—"
"Quality?"
"Yes. If children from welfare facilities end up sharing the same space as my son, it would be horrible, wouldn't it?"
She shrugged as if it were nothing.
"Though now that I know that's not the case, let's just forget this little misunderstanding—"
Kang-jun cut her off.
"What's wrong with welfare facilities?"
"Well, they're parentless—"
"Disgusting. I've heard enough."
His voice was eerily calm.
"Is poverty a crime?"
Then he added:
"Let me make this clear—poverty is never a sin."
"I was just—"
"No child is born deserving punishment."
The golden idolatry of this world, glimpsed through the screen of a smartphone, was horrifying.
Online news reported that children had started using the term "Huggeo"—short for "Humanxia beggars"—to mock kids living in government-subsidized apartments.
And that wasn't all.
They classified each other based on their parents' salaries—"Two-hundred bugs,""Three-hundred bugs,"—and labeled those in rented homes "Monthly beggars" or "Lease beggars."
A generation sick with greed.
But—
Children are blameless.
"Parents are their children's mirrors."
His tone was solemn.
"If even the next generation is poisoned by gold, the fault lies solely with ignorant adults like you."
His voice carried imperial weight.
"You have no right to mock another's poverty simply because you possess more."
This was the Emperor's etiquette.
"Noblesse oblige."
Though soft-spoken, his words were unshakable.
"If you fancy yourself this wretched world's nobility, then fulfill your duty instead of obsessing over hierarchy."
Then came the judgment.
"I'll keep this brief."
"Wh-what...?"
"Go home."
Mi-yeon scoffed, fanning herself furiously.
"Who the hell do you think—?!"
Just then, a goblin in an immaculate tuxedo approached with leisurely steps, and the hall fell deathly silent.
Tap. Tap.
The one who had invested astronomical sums to establish Snow White Kindergarten as the pinnacle of education.
"This is quite the disturbance."
Kazan, the head of The Gathering of Hidden Capital—a private bank dominating the Market's financial underworld.
"Director-nim!"
Mi-yeon brightened upon seeing him.
"How have you been?"
Her husband was a silver-tier member of the private bank, close enough to golf with the director regularly.
In fact, hadn't her husband's construction firm been commissioned to build this very kindergarten?
"My husband mentioned playing a round with you last weekend—"
"Yes."
"And the elixir I sent—was it to your taste...?"
Kazan's frosty gaze silenced her.
"My apologies, but please return home."
The words struck like lightning.
"D-director...?"
His next words were glacial.
"Out of respect for past relations, I won't have you dragged out. Leave on your own."
Then, Mi-yeon's husband arrived, bewildered.
"What's going on?"
Before she could answer, Kazan spoke.
"We'll be completing the remaining construction with another firm."
"Director!"
"Consider this the end of our contracts."
The man dropped to his knees, pleading.
"I—I don't know what happened, but if my wife made a mistake, I'll apologize in her place—please, just this once—!"
The Snow White Kindergarten project was a landmark opportunity that could multiply his company's value tenfold.
They had taken out massive loans and paid exorbitant bribes to secure it.
'If this falls through, we're finished...!'
The man's face reddened as he roared at his wife.
"What the hell did you do?!"
Mi-yeon, too, fell to her knees, kowtowing.
"P-please, Director...!"
Kazan shook his head.
"Regrettably, your wife has committed an unforgivable offense."
Murmurs spread like wildfire the moment he finished.
The private bank had always been criticized as a profit-hungry entity, seizing any lucrative venture by force.
"I heard they made fortunes selling arms in warzones... yet they care about the underprivileged?"
"I guess so..."
"Well, they wouldn't invest this much in a kindergarten otherwise."
Then Kazan leaned down and whispered so only the couple could hear:
"You dared make the Young Miss cry."
He added coldly:
"Were this my decision, collective punishment would ensure your entire family line was executed."
As the couple continued begging, Kazan issued his final order.
"Remove them."
The two were dragged out by goblin guards as the hall watched in stunned silence.
"Immortal-nim..."
Kazan's voice was hushed, but Kang-jun raised a finger to his lips.
"Shh."
"Uncle Gobwin!"
Seol, who had been playing with Hee-soo, suddenly spotted Kazan and came running.
"Uncle, wook! Pwi-pwara toy!"
"Young Miss..."
The crowd assumed she was some elite's child—until...
THUD!
Kazan dropped into a full prostration, bellowing:
"I beg forgiveness for failing you, Young Miss!"
"Oof! You bwoke it...!"
"Punish this lowly one with death!"
The spectators gaped in shock.
Seol, concerned, gently touched Kazan's reddened forehead.
"Uncle, does it huwt...?"
"Young Miss..."
"Seowi will bwow on it..."
Kazan's eyes widened.
"Young Miss..."
Goblins had always been scorned.
No amount of wealth changed that.
They were seen as greedy, their riches often stolen by force.
Thus, they united—forming The Gathering of Hidden Capital to protect what they had.
At 500 years old, the wizened goblin had never known such warmth.
"Young Miss, though this one is weak..."
His voice trembled with sincerity.
"I will serve you in my own way..."
If his past loyalty had been to Immortal's power and wealth...
"I will protect you..."
Now, it was different.
And this shocking spectacle—
"Just how high-ranking is that family?!"
"That prideful bank director actually—"
"With all these elite hunters gathered..."
—would soon become the talk of the city.