Let's Get Hit for Now
The message appeared before Gaeul's eyes, identical to the one she'd seen a year ago. The content, however, seemed slightly different this time.
Possibility Memory usage has been completed!
…Back then it also mentioned something about being selected as an appropriate target, didn’t it?
Lost in thought, Gaeul heard a familiar voice.
“...Are you ignoring me too, just like Gahyeon?”
“...Excuse me?”
Startled, she looked around. An unforgettable scene unfolded before her eyes.
Her father staring with bloodshot eyes. Gahyeon gazing at him with resentment while struggling to breathe through her pain.
It was the moment right before the worst tragedy of her life would unfold.
…Have I gone back to the past?
Her common sense still refused to accept this miraculous situation. From Gaeul’s perspective, it felt like time travel without any context whatsoever.
But her father had no intention of waiting for her to process it.
Just as before, he suddenly rose and began stalking toward her with heavy steps.
Her trauma replaying in real time, Gaeul was swallowed by terror. She screamed reflexively and hurled whatever objects were nearby.
The item struck the window with a sharp crash, but that was all. It did nothing to halt her father’s advance.
She resisted desperately as his trembling hands reached for her throat, yet Gaeul’s strength was powerless to stop him.
“How much have I sacrificed! …If it weren’t for you two. If it weren’t for you two!”
Through her constricted breath, she saw Gahyeon clutching her aching stomach and rising to grab the dining table.
Forcing the words out between gasps, she pleaded, “Gahyeon… don’t… do it.”
But Gahyeon showed no sign of stopping. It was exactly the same. Even after returning to the past, nothing had changed. The nightmare simply repeated itself.
Whoever had granted this miracle clearly harbored a deep resentment toward Gaeul. Otherwise, they would never have made her endure this agony twice.
Gaeul fell into despair.
“Kids shouldn’t be touching something that dangerous.”
That was the moment.
With fluid grace, a man broke the choking grip around her neck and executed a perfect shoulder throw.
“Ugh!”
“I tossed him onto the pile of bedding, so he shouldn’t be badly hurt. Let’s not overdo the dramatics.”
It was Seon Taeyang.
Clicking his tongue once at Yu Daecheol, who lay groaning in pain, Taeyang turned to Gaeul with a face full of concern.
“Are you okay, Gaeul? …No, even I know that’s a stupid question. Of course you’re not. I’ve called an ambulance, so just hang in there a little longer.”
“Taeyang oppa…”
“Yeah, it’s me, Gaeul. Team Leader Seon. Do you have something you want to say?”
Gaeul had countless things she wanted to tell him. But the instant she saw her father lifting the table behind Taeyang, every word vanished from her mind. What emerged instead was nearly a scream.
“...Behind! Behind you!”
Taeyang saw the table swinging toward him yet made no attempt to dodge. Instead, he spread one arm and pulled Gaeul close, shielding her with his body.
Only then did Gaeul understand why he hadn’t avoided it.
It was because of her.
Even while protecting her, Taeyang kept one hand guarding his head and angled his body to deflect the blow. The table slammed into him with a heavy thud.
It was a scene she had witnessed once before. She already knew the outcome.
Gaeul’s heart seemed to stop. Her limbs went numb. Her breathing grew dangerously rapid.
“…Haa… Haak.”
Hyperventilation.
Seeing her like that, Taeyang offered a gentle smile meant to reassure her. Like magic, her breathing began to normalize.
He stood up as though nothing had happened and spoke to Yu Daecheol.
“That table is a deadly weapon. Hit someone wrong and you could kill them.”
A trickle of blood ran down Taeyang’s forehead. He casually wiped it away with his suit sleeve.
“Good thing I learned self-defense techniques. What would I have done if I hadn’t?”
Yu Daecheol, eyes glazed from heavy drinking, glared at him.
“…Are you ignoring me too, Team Leader Seon?”
Seon Taeyang answered firmly.
“I’m not ignoring you.”
As if he hadn’t heard the reply, Yu Daecheol shouted on his own.
“Just because I lost a little money, everyone… You don’t even know what kind of life I’ve lived!”
He lifted the table once more.
Watching him, Taeyang said, “I’m not interested in what kind of life Gaeul’s father has lived. The only thing I care about is what kind of influence you have on Gaeul and Gahyeon.”
He kicked the toy hammer lying on the floor, flipping it up with a light, practiced motion, and declared.
“So for now, let’s get hit a bit.”
Sense of the Sword Saint Acquired
🎁 Reward: High-tier system skill — Sense of the Sword Saint
So this is how I obtain it.
I reflected as I checked the Sense of the Sword Saint that had arrived in my reward window.
The fight had been chaotic. The moment I closed the distance and forced him into infighting so he couldn’t swing the table, Gaeul’s father abandoned the table entirely and began pinching, scratching, and biting me.
Honestly, it was less like beating him cleanly and more like restraining him until the hangover finally knocked him out. Though I did make sure to hit him with the toy hammer as much as possible to complete the quest.
As a result, Gaeul’s father looked outwardly fine while my clothes were torn and my body covered in scratches. Anyone seeing me now would immediately declare me the loser.
It was a little pathetic that a healthy man in his twenties had been pushed around by an uncle who looked to be in his forties or fifties.
Yeah, whatever. I’ll throw my pride away. I’ll take the practical benefits.
Other than the shoulder throw, I hadn’t inflicted any serious harm. There shouldn’t be any lawsuits or police trouble.
Yet I had prevented the worst possible outcome while still securing the reward for that difficult quest. Could there be a more perfect ending?
“Team Leader Seon! What on earth happened to you?!”
Apparently Cheon A-ram and Seo Suyeon didn’t see it that way.
Cheon A-ram was fussing loudly while frantically searching for first-aid supplies. Seo Suyeon was meticulously photographing every wound, insisting they needed to preserve evidence. Both were reliable in their own distinct ways.
I felt genuine gratitude toward my colleagues who had rushed here straight from their commute the moment they heard about the incident, so I tried to play it off lightly.
“It’s nothing serious. No major injuries.”
“Nothing serious?! Blood is streaming down your forehead!”
Cheon A-ram, disinfecting the wound with an emergency kit she’d produced from somewhere, spoke as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
When did she learn to do this so skillfully?
Seo Suyeon gently intervened.
“CEO, the paramedics are right here. Shouldn’t we leave it to them?”
“You’re right. Look at me, jumping in without thinking. It reminded me of my military days.”
Military? Did I mishear that?
When Cheon A-ram stepped back, the paramedics—who had finished treating Gaeul, Gahyeon, and their father—came over and began simple first aid on me.
One of them, examining my wounds, spoke with admiration.
“…This treatment is exceptionally well done. You should head straight to the hospital, but the person who treated you—was that a medical professional?”
“No, she’s the CEO of an entertainment company?”
“…? Yet the treatment is this proficient?”
“…I’m not sure either?”
The paramedic gave me a look that seemed to ask how I could possibly not know. Well, it’s understandable. Even I get confused sometimes. In truth, it hadn’t even been two weeks since I joined Toobear and met Cheon A-ram and Seo Suyeon.
…Though it certainly felt like I had experienced far too many incidents for such a short time.
Once the paramedics finished their rough treatment, the police took over.
They asked me and Gaeul for statements about the situation, then separated Gaeul’s father—who was presumed to be the perpetrator—from us.
Only then was I finally able to speak with her. After the takedown, both the police and paramedics had swarmed in immediately, leaving no chance for conversation.
“Gaeul, can we talk for a moment?”
When I called her name, she forced her weakened legs to move and crawled over without letting anyone stop her. The sight was desperate to the point of being heartbreaking.
…I hadn’t wanted her to push herself that far.
She carefully touched my face, avoiding the wounds, and whispered.
“…What happened to your face?”
She seemed to be carrying an enormous burden. I answered as cheerfully as I could so she wouldn’t worry too much.
“Gaeul. I may look like this, but I won. You saw it too, right? How I swung the toy hammer three times per second?”
After saying it, I realized that from a daughter’s perspective, claiming victory against her own father probably didn’t sound very good.
“Uh… now that I think about it, it feels more like a loss by decision. …He was strong, your father. His movements made his age seem irrelevant. I’ll admit I was outmatched in pure technique.”
I’d said it half-jokingly, hoping for even a small smile, but Gaeul’s tears only grew heavier.
Considering the similar reaction I’d gotten from Gyeoul, it seemed highly likely that my sense of humor was broken. I would need to restrain myself in the future.
“Sorry for the silly talk.”
Having admitted my mistake, I apologized quickly.
“The truth is, that’s not what I wanted to say. I just wanted to ask you one thing.”
“…I’ll tell you anything. Anything at all.”
“Gaeul, are you okay?”
“….”
Instead of answering, Gaeul only shed more tears. It was nearly a full sob.
What is this? Did I say the wrong thing again? …Or is something physically wrong?
“I’m… I’m okay. So…”
Ah, thank goodness.
Hearing Gaeul say she was okay, I felt relieved and collapsed on the spot.
“…Taeyang oppa?”
Honestly, it felt like I had a concussion; my head kept spinning. I thought I had blocked it well, but apparently a full-power table swing couldn’t have all its damage negated just by defending properly.
“Taeyang oppa! No…. No!”
My dazed mind made it feel like I would fall asleep the moment I closed my eyes. I wanted to let everything go and simply lie down.
But I held on. I needed to see that Gaeul was completely fine before I could rest easy.
“Paramedics! Please look over here! Please! I’m begging you!”
And now, it seemed like I could finally sleep a little.