Chapter 264: Leaving the Fish with the Cat (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 264: Leaving the Fish with the Cat (1)
Shin Hyo-seop returned home for the first time in a long while.
It took him only two days to realize it.
His newly youthful wife was not the same person she used to be.
“Honey, can I get something to eat…?”
“All the side dishes are out, so just heat up the stew and help yourself. I have to go work out.”
His wife, who had always made sure he was fed no matter what, was now using exercise as an excuse to not prepare his meals.
The figure she maintained was, admittedly, alluring.
However.
Damn it, I want to touch her.
The problem was that she was forbidden fruit, a feast for the eyes that he couldn’t lay a single finger on.
Just looking at her sent waves of lust through him.
He wanted to reignite the passion of his twenties, when he had loved her so fiercely, to set his whole body ablaze.
“Honey… it’s been a while.”
“Sorry, I’m too tired.”
“R-Right.”
He was flatly rejected.
Disappointed, he tried to at least fall asleep while freely caressing her breasts and buttocks.
Smack!
Rejected.
And quite coldly at that.
“……”
He ended up sleeping on the edge of the bed, clutching the back of his hand, which was stinging from her sharp slap.
She must be tired after a long day…
He tried to rationalize it.
There was still plenty of time.
A whole week of vacation.
Surely, he’d get a chance at some point.
But it didn’t take long for him to realize something was wrong.
“Something’s strange.”
By the fifth day, he belatedly began to suspect his wife.
Nothing else had changed.
The way she cared for their daughter, her lifestyle when they were together—all of it was the same.
The only thing that had changed was her attitude toward him.
The woman who had been so beautiful and virtuous for a forty-year-old had become even younger.
“Don’t tell me she’s found another man…?”
The moment that suspicion entered his mind…
“What kind of son of a bitch…!”
Rage flared in his head, completely oblivious to his own past actions.
If he had his way, he’d follow her around and watch her every move, but he couldn’t.
He only had two days of vacation left.
Besides, as long as he was here, she wouldn’t make any rash moves.
I need help.
He needed someone to help him.
Someone who could watch his wife while he was away and report back to him.
The first person who came to mind was his daughter.
No, not this.
He immediately dismissed the thought.
Your mom might have another man, so I need you to watch her and tell me what she does.
What would happen the moment he said that?
She’d throw a fit.
She would undoubtedly erupt in anger, demanding to know how he could suspect her mother.
So, family was out.
He needed someone close by who could help him.
“…There is someone.”
One person came to mind.
Just one.
*
“That’s all for today’s class.”
It was a boring lecture.
If there was one class that held my interest, it was Curse Magic.
Interfering with another’s body to impair their physical functions or cause various problems.
It was a type of magic that could be incredibly useful if learned properly, yet it was looked down upon by other mages.
“This is pretty interesting, isn’t it…?”
All the magic I’d learned so far was about causing significant harm, but this was different.
Of course, curse magic could also lead to death, but with the right control, you could torment someone in various ways without endangering their life. It had its uses.
Naturally, the indiscriminate use of magic, especially curse magic, was strictly punished by law.
The ordeal one would face if caught harming another with a curse was beyond words.
So, what did that mean?
“It just means I shouldn’t get caught.”
Of course, not getting caught was easier said than done.
Technology had advanced so much, and the residual traces of mana required to manifest a curse were so potent that nowadays, it could be detected with a simple hospital check-up.
But that was only for ordinary curse magic.
“I feel like I could hide it somehow…”
With my abilities, I felt I could erase even that drawback completely.
But for that, I needed a test subject…
“It’s not like I can just curse anyone. Damn.”
It would be great if a test subject just fell out of the sky, but that was unlikely.
“Shin Yu-jeong, aren’t you going home?”
“I can’t. I have to make up for the training I missed last time.”
“Ah, I see.”
Such a training addict.
I headed to my car in the outdoor parking lot, but I spotted a familiar face on the rooftop.
A man, shaking his leg nervously as he puffed hard on a cigarette.
“…Ajeossi?”
What was that guy doing here?
“Oh, Do-jin, you’re here!”
The Ajeossi greeted me enthusiastically.
I didn’t have a good feeling about this.
It looked like he wanted something from me.
“You have a minute? Let’s talk.”
“Talk?”
“Yeah. There’s something I need to ask you, and it’s important.”
Something important… I wonder what it could be.
My curiosity piqued, I sat down a little ways from where he was and asked, “What did you want to talk about?”
“Well, you see.”
As if it were a difficult topic to broach, he trailed off and lit a new cigarette.
“Hoo… Do-jin.”
“Yes.”
“It’s about… Yu-jeong’s mom.”
“…What about the Ajumma?”
“Have you, uh… noticed anything different about her lately?”
“Different in what way…?”
“You know, like going out more often, or strangers visiting the house… things like that.”
Oh.
Look at this.
The questions he was asking were classic symptoms of a pathologically jealous husband.
“Um… I don’t think so? I don’t think anyone has visited, and she seems to go out occasionally…”
“Do you happen to know where she goes?”
“I know she usually goes to work out or grocery shopping, but other than that, I’m not sure…”
“Hmm, is that so.”
The Ajeossi nodded with a heavy expression.
It was certain.
This man was suspicious of Jeong-hee.
“Why are you suddenly asking about this?”
“Well… the thing is.”
To summarize his pained explanation: Jeong-hee’s attitude toward him had changed noticeably, and he suspected it was because she had found another man.
This guy… he’s sharper than I thought.
Hiding my slight surprise, I replied in a nonchalant tone.
“Maybe you just did something to upset the Ajumma?”
“Did something? Kid, I’ve been treating her so well.”
“Ah… is that so?”
Right, he wouldn’t know.
He wouldn’t know that Jeong-hee had also heard him tell me to marry as late as possible.
And he certainly wouldn’t know how much bolder those words had made her.
“So, Do-jin.”
“Go on.”
The Ajeossi sidled closer as he spoke.
I’m not a fan of sitting this close to another man…
He even put a hand on my shoulder and started trying to coax me.
“You know how well I took care of you when I was home, right? Huh? I even bought you jjajangmyeon sometimes.”
“You… did?”
I racked my brain. It was exactly once.
And it wasn’t because he wanted to treat me; it was because the minimum order for delivery was two bowls, so he had no choice. And now he was taking all the credit.
“So, I need you to do me a favor.”
I had a feeling I knew what he was going to ask.
“What is it?”
“It’s nothing difficult… Just let me know what Yu-jeong’s mom is up to every now and then, okay? I mean… you can skip the normal stuff, just the special things.”
In other words, he wanted me to spy on her and report back.
“Hmm… that sounds a bit like spying on the Ajumma, so…”
As I spoke with a reluctant expression, the Ajeossi clung to me even more, whining.
“Do-jin, please! You’re the only one I can ask. As you know, I have to go back down to Haenam soon, and I’m too anxious to function.”
Then, his demeanor suddenly shifted, and he began to scold me with a stern face.
“And strictly speaking, this is partly your fault, Do-jin.”
“Me? Why?”
“If you, huh? If you hadn’t fed Yu-jeong’s mom all that expensive stuff, this never would have happened, you punk!”
“……”
Unfortunately, you’re wrong about that, Ajeossi.
I found Jeong-hee plenty attractive even before she became young again.
“You don’t have to invest a lot of time. Just check in on her whenever you have a spare moment, okay?”
I decided to stop teasing him.
At this rate, the smell of this old man was going to rub off on me.
“Alright. I get it, so please back off a little.”
“You—you just said it! Huh? A man’s word is worth a thousand pieces of gold, you know that, right?”
“Yes, yes. I get it. Like you said, I’ll check in on the Ajumma when I have time.”
Will I just check in on her?
I’ll touch her, fuck her, and do everything I possibly can with the time I have.
“Phew, that’s a relief. I’m so glad I have you, Do-jin.”
“I’m glad I could be of help, Ajeossi.”
The Ajeossi and I looked at each other, smiling.
Looking at him, I couldn’t stop laughing inside.
He was entrusting the cat with the fish… no, with the entire fish market, and he had no idea.
And another thing.
Now that I thought about it, this was kind of infuriating.
To not even consider his own actions, and instead suspect his wife and put a tail on her after just a few days.
Perhaps a little punishment was in order.