The Heartwarming Story That Went Viral
The editor seemed determined to keep screaming forever. He should have stopped after the first time, but he just kept spitting curses and throwing a fit without end. Yeonggil, who had been watching the whole spectacle, suddenly dropped his smile and turned dead serious.
“Wh-what the hell…! What are you gonna do, staring at me with that face? Huh?!”
The editor flinched at the unexpected reaction, but he wasn’t the type to lose his nerve over something so small. To Yeonggil, however, none of that mattered anymore. Because…
This company no longer matches the vision I want.
“What…? What the hell is this crazy bastard talking about…?”
“I’m resigning.”
“What? What did you just say?”
He was quitting. He had made up his mind completely. No one had ever announced their resignation quite like this before, so the editor could only stare in a daze. Whether the man was shocked or not didn’t matter to Yeonggil. He simply walked to his desk and began packing his belongings.
“Hey, hey, you crazy bastard! Have you actually lost your mind?!”
The editor finally snapped out of it and started yelling, but it was useless.
“From this moment on, I am no longer an employee of this company. If you continue to curse at me, I will pursue civil charges.”
“What…?!”
“Enough with the noise. Anyway, this article was shot using my personal equipment outside of work hours, so I’ll be taking it with me.”
Once he had finished packing, Yeonggil turned around with a refreshed expression. Yes. This place had never been right for him. He had finally found a chance to write the kind of story he had always dreamed of, and he refused to give that up just because of this company.
“Hey, Kim Yeonggil! If you walk out now, we’re never taking you back, you know that?! Huh?!”
“Do whatever you want. I don’t care about a company like this.”
Even if it meant starving and struggling with bills, he would chase his dream. That was the kind of person Kim Yeonggil had always been. Once he found something he truly wanted to do, he would throw away money, time—anything—to focus on it completely.
“What’s with all that luggage?”
Of course, his parents never looked favorably on that side of him. To them, a thirty-three-year-old man still chasing dreams just looked immature and irresponsible.
“Don’t tell me you quit your job again?”
“What? You quit again? You said you were going to make your dreams come true at that company! You swore this time was for real!”
Yeonggil knew his parents were frustrated. He understood.
“Mom, Dad. That place really wasn’t it. I wasn’t in my right mind working there.”
“The one who’s not in his right mind is you, you idiot!”
Yeonggil nimbly dodged his father’s signature back-smack and darted into his room, locking the door behind him. He had been running around all day and felt grimy, but a shower would have to wait. If he stepped out now, that fierce back-smack would come flying again.
“Sigh… Still, I have to write this article.”
Even if no one else cared, he had to do it. After all, he had become a reporter to shine a light on good deeds like this. He was exhausted and could have rested, but Yeonggil felt that even rest was a waste of time. He turned on his computer immediately and began writing.
“I hope this article sees the light of day soon.”
He didn’t even change his clothes. Hours later, the article was finally complete. After agonizing over photo placement and overall structure for a long time, he heard a knock at the door.
“Yeonggil, your father only acts that way because he wants you to settle down and do well. Come out, take a shower, eat something, and do whatever you need to do.”
His mother had knocked several times while he was focused on writing, but he hadn’t answered. Thinking her son was angry, she spoke in a soothing tone. Only then did Yeonggil realize what he had done and quickly unlocked the door.
“No, I wasn’t angry. I was just focused on something. I’m sorry.”
“That’s a relief. Hurry up and wash, then eat.”
“I’ll finish what I was doing first, then shower.”
“Don’t stay up too late. Eat properly and get some sleep.”
Only after his mother returned to the living room did he sit back down at his desk to finish the article. The desk was quite messy, but he didn’t even notice.
“Good. Let’s post it like this.”
After finalizing the photo arrangement, he uploaded the article to a board open to freelance journalists. It was really just a public forum anyone could post on, but he had no regrets. With a satisfied smile, Yeonggil went to take his shower. He had no idea what kind of impact his article was about to create.
I had taken a day off after receiving the Brave Citizen Award, but today was a regular workday. There were endless Gates, and not enough Hunters to clear them, so even independent raid parties like ours received a constant stream of requests. On top of that, the party led by Shin Jiyu was famous for handling things quickly, cleanly, and without any messy aftermath.
“I’m here.”
I arrived at the usual early hour, expecting the place to be empty, but—
“Junho! What the hell is this? This is insane!”
The party members, who usually trickled in an hour later, were already there. They crowded around me all at once.
“Oh… you’re all here early.”
Judging by their intense reactions, they must have seen the news about the Brave Citizen Award.
“You didn’t even tell us about something like this!”
Well, I had taken the day off yesterday without explaining, so I could understand why they might feel upset. Still, we had grown pretty close by now.
“Ah, I received the Brave Citizen Award by chance, so I didn’t really have time to mention it.”
“No, no. Not that! We already saw that on the news!”
Huh? Not that? Was there something bigger than the Brave Citizen Award that would get them this excited? As I puzzled over it, something suddenly clicked in my mind. No way… Had a reporter who recognized me been at the award ceremony? Had my past as vice-master of the Onhwa Guild been revealed?
It wasn’t an impossible thought. I had never shown my face publicly as vice-master of the Onhwa Guild, but I had met with outside reporters often enough to hand over articles and sources. If one of them remembered my face and decided to expose that I used to be the Onhwa Guild’s vice-master…
“…Ah, that. I’ll explain everything…”
My expression darkened. Honestly, it wasn’t a past I particularly wanted to reveal. It wasn’t exactly something to brag about.
“They’re saying you gave the entire one-million-won injury compensation to a random grandmother!”
“Yes, well, actually I gave it to the grandmother… Wait, what? Sorry?”
“The story about how you handed over the million-won department store gift certificate you received as injury compensation to an old lady collecting scrap paper—it’s blowing up everywhere online!”
I had assumed that if anything blew up, it would be something related to the Onhwa Guild. This sudden topic left my head spinning. I had indeed given the grandmother the gift certificate, but that was after I shook off all the reporters on my way home. How on earth had that turned into an article? While I stood there dumbfounded, Jia handed me her phone.
The man identified as A, who captured the criminal Min Jiyeon from the former Onhwa Guild and received the Brave Citizen Award, was caught performing a secret act of kindness. After receiving a one-million-won department store gift certificate as compensation for his injuries, he handed the entire thing to an elderly woman he had never met before. “She reminded me of my own grandmother,” was the only warm remark he left behind before disappearing.
The article had been posted on some tiny website I had never heard of. It looked like something written by an aspiring reporter or freelancer, but it had spread through online communities and somehow made it all the way to the Naver homepage. Once it hit the main page, it naturally gathered even more attention and.
“On top of that, now that everyone knows Junho is part of our raid party, we’re getting flooded with people saying they want to sponsor us…”
The party leader looked exhausted from all the calls and texts since morning, yet her face was filled with pride rather than fatigue.
“We’re not a guild so we don’t accept formal sponsorships, but thanks to working with someone like you, Junho, I get to experience things like this.”
“Wow, this is seriously amazing.”
“This is the first time something like this has ever happened.”
“Hah, what’s the big deal? It’s just an article.”
Of course, even while everyone else was feeling proud, Kim Pilseok’s snide remark came right on schedule. I was wondering when he’d start.
“Oh! So does that mean you’ve done good deeds like this before too, Pilseok? Then why hasn’t it ever become a topic until now…?”
As always, it was the party leader who responded to Kim Pilseok. These days it almost felt like watching a comedy duo.
“Ah! Maybe the articles just never got written?”
“Uh, well… of course I do good deeds… sometimes…!”
“Pfft. Kim Pilseok doing good deeds? That doesn’t match at all.”
Jia, who had been listening quietly, burst out laughing first. Then everyone except the party leader and Kim Pilseok started chuckling along. They all seemed to agree. Yeah, well. A guy who only ever sowed jealousy and bad vibes inside the party suddenly doing good deeds outside? Please.
“What kind of good deeds have you done, Pilseok? Come on, tell us!”
In the middle of it all, the party leader kept asking with genuine curiosity. It was such a ridiculous scene that I almost wanted to grab some popcorn and just watch. Right then—
Knock, knock.
The sound of someone knocking on the door interrupted us.
“Huh? Who could that be? We weren’t expecting anyone.”
Everyone’s eyes turned toward the door. Sadly, it looked like the roasting of Kim Pilseok was over.
“I’ll get it.”
Since I was closest to the door, I quickly moved to open it. Outside stood a man with a kind face I had never seen before.
“How can I help you?”
We weren’t supposed to have any visitors, but unexpected guests could always show up. I put on my best professional smile and asked why he was here.
“I’m truly, truly sorry…!”
The next moment, the man bent forward in a perfect ninety-degree bow. I could only stare at him in utter confusion.