Father
Hwan's hand would naturally drift to her hair, fingers threading through strands smooth as silk. Yes, he knew. He knew she was draining his yang energy. His very life force was being siphoned away. Yet none of it troubled him. After all, when the promised time for revenge arrived—if that moment ever came—she would lend him her strength. This was the fate he had chosen for himself.
The ringing phone dragged Hwan from sleep. His body still felt heavy, drained of strength, and for a moment he considered ignoring it. But the sound refused to stop. Besides, he realized few people ever called him. He had to answer. Just in case.
He reached out, fumbling for the phone on the nightstand. The screen showed a familiar name, as expected.
"Hello."
"Ah... I'm sorry. Did I call too early? You were sleeping, weren't you?"
"Ah... yeah. It's fine."
Hwan sat up slowly as he spoke. Beside him, Miho yawned, her eyes still heavy with sleep as she watched him. She wore nothing at all. Her pure white skin lay completely exposed, but the sight had become so familiar that it no longer fazed him.
"Hmm, your voice sounds pretty hoarse. If it's too early, I can call back later. That would be all right..."
"No, it's okay. Go ahead."
At Hwan's reply, the line fell silent for a moment before the voice continued.
"Well... the reason I'm calling is that there's someone who needs your help. It's a bit too complicated to explain over the phone. If it's not too much trouble, could you come by the church today?"
"Right now?"
Hwan checked the time on his phone. It was still dawn. A call at this hour was so unusual that he suspected something serious must have happened. Of course, the priest had said it didn't need to be immediate, but Hwan had nothing else to do anyway. He answered without hesitation.
"I'll head over right away. Is this... about my mother, by any chance?"
He asked on the slim hope, but the reply that came back was not what he wanted to hear.
"I'm sorry... it's not really connected to that. I feel bad asking you for this, but as you know, these matters require your particular help."
"I see. All right."
His voice grew heavy.
"I'm sorry... for not being able to help with that."
"No, you don't need to apologize. The fact that you're helping me at all is something I'm grateful for. I'll see you today."
"Good. Thank you, Hwan. I'll be waiting."
The call ended. At that moment, Hwan saw Miho's face twisted with displeasure.
"That priest again, I take it? Hmm... I don't like it. Does he think we're the church's errand boys or something? He always dumps these pointless tasks on us."
"Haha... still, the priest is trying to help me too."
"Is he? I'm not so sure. In the last two years, what exactly have we gained by listening to that priest? Just like he said, we've gotten nothing out of it. He just keeps shoving annoying chores our way. I don't like that priest... No, I don't like the church itself."
Miho grumbled, her words thick with open hostility toward the priest—or rather, toward the church. It had been that way from the start. The very first time they met the priest, Miho had taken an immediate dislike to him. That was understandable. Their first encounter had been anything but pleasant. The priest had seen at a glance that Miho was no ordinary woman and had immediately tried to exorcise her. If Hwan hadn't stepped in to explain the situation, one of them might not be in this world anymore. It had been that tense. Naturally, the relationship between them had never warmed.
"So you're going now? It's still the middle of the night."
"It sounds like something urgent. I should go."
With those words, Hwan slipped out of bed. Miho let out a loud sigh and yawned hugely, clearly reluctant.
"Then stay here. I'll be back soon."
Hwan said it, but Miho snorted.
"I don't like that. You're mine, kid. You can't go anywhere without my permission."
It was an arrogant, domineering statement, but Hwan no longer minded. He had long since accepted it. He simply shrugged.
"Then you'll come with me?"
When he asked while getting ready, Miho finally relented and got out of bed as well. The blanket slid away, revealing her white, voluptuous figure in full. Her skin was so pale it almost hurt the eyes. Her full, heavy breasts were among the most striking features of her beauty, followed by her narrow waist and the perfectly curved swell of her hips. She paid no mind to her nakedness. Still grumbling, she headed for the closet.
She spent a long time choosing which underwear to wear. She owned dozens of pairs, every one from an expensive brand. Hwan could never understand why underwear mattered so much. In any case, it looked like it would take her quite a while to finish deliberating.
He smiled wryly. "Shall I make you some coffee?"
"That would be nice."
Hwan dressed in simple clothes and headed to the living room to brew coffee for her. Of course, it was never ordinary coffee. She insisted on hand-drip, made from beans he ground himself.
He entered the living room still yawning. The space was quiet and immaculately tidy. This was his old family home. He could not bring himself to abandon it and move elsewhere. How could he leave when this had always been their house? Besides, there was no telling whether whatever had ruined the village might return. That possibility alone kept him rooted here. Uninvited guests still showed up unannounced because of the mysterious old incident, making a nuisance of themselves, but even so, Hwan had no desire to leave.
It was truly ironic. Once, he had wanted nothing more than to escape this place. He had hated this countryside with all his heart.
Hwan wore a bitter expression as he gazed around the empty living room. At times like these, old memories would surface unbidden—memories of happier days. But those recollections always faded as quickly as they came. Two years had already passed. He had managed to shake off much of the trauma. For that, if nothing else, he could thank Miho.
He went to the kitchen and began the familiar ritual of brewing. Hwan himself was not much of a coffee drinker, but he enjoyed the coffee he made by hand. It was nothing like the franchise stuff. He ground the beans with a hand mill, prepared the water in the drip pot, adjusted the temperature, and finished his preparations. Just then, Miho emerged wearing only her underwear and asked him.
"How do I look?"
Hwan glanced at her. "Pretty."
Apparently the answer displeased her. She pulled a sullen face and retreated back into the bedroom. Hwan shook his head with a helpless smile. Choosing underwear and then an outfit would take her another age. Were all women like this? Sadly, he had little experience with women aside from his mother, so he couldn't say.
While the drip coffee finished brewing, she continued agonizing over her going-out clothes and then moved on to doing her makeup, which seemed to require even more time. Anyone watching would have thought she was preparing for a date. Hwan, long accustomed to this, didn't rush her. By the time he had finished his coffee, she still wasn't ready. In the end, more than an hour after he had risen, she finally completed her preparations.
Hwan took the wheel. He had gotten his driver's license a year earlier. He could no longer keep asking her to drive when she had neither a license nor any interest in getting one. Taking trains and buses every time was impractical, so he had prepared. The car had once belonged to his father. Miho disliked it, but he refused to keep using a vehicle obtained by charming and coercing someone.
The car carrying the two of them rumbled forward with a rough engine growl. The Silver Crucifix hanging from the rearview mirror swung wildly. They soon left the deserted village behind and headed toward the city, which already bustled with life despite the early hour.
They reached the familiar church in Seoul, a fairly large cathedral. Believers who had just finished morning mass were streaming out, laughing and chatting. Hwan waited in the parking lot until they had all gone, then walked toward the chapel. Inside, nuns were busy cleaning. On one side, he saw the priest seated in a pew. Hwan approached and sat down beside him.