A Home for Family
"Ugh... my head."
Kim Chul-jung groaned and clutched at his skull. Bright sunlight leaked through a gap in the curtains and stabbed at his eyes.
"Huh?"
As if he had suddenly remembered something, he shot upright.
"Ghk."
He grabbed his head again and winced.
"Just how much did I drink? Damn it, damn it. Honey. Mi-sun."
Calling for his wife, he shuffled out of the room.
"You're up?"
Yoon Mi-sun was sitting there. On her lap sat their beloved daughter, Kim Hyo-yeon, pointing accusingly at the father with the bedhead.
"Tell Daddy."
Kim Chul-jung awkwardly scratched his head and checked the clock.
"Huh? Honey. Hyo-yeon didn't go to daycare?"
It was 10 a.m. By now, Kim Hyo-yeon should have been at daycare. Worried that something had happened, he searched Yoon Mi-sun's face. He had expected anger, but to his surprise, she was smiling.
"Hyo-yeon doesn't have to go to daycare today."
"Oh, really? But why didn't you wake me up by this hour? I've got work."
"And you're the one saying that, after stumbling home drunk at dawn?"
"Uh... I was carried home?"
"Yes. You were humming like you were having the time of your life, too. Just how much did you drink?"
"I remember counting five bottles of soju, but after that I don't really... "
"What a fine thing to say."
Yoon Mi-sun set Kim Hyo-yeon on her feet and patted her on the bottom.
"Go punish Daddy for me."
"Punish Daddy?"
"Mm-hm. Hyo-yeon, remember? On your birthday, Daddy promised not to drink too much?"
"Mm-hm. That's right. Daddy promised Hyo-yeon he wouldn't drink too much."
"He broke his promise, so go punish Daddy right now."
"Okay."
Kim Hyo-yeon slapped Kim Chul-jung's backside with both hands.
"Daddy, did you do wrong or not?"
With her hands on her hips, she looked so adorable that Kim Chul-jung swept her up in a hug.
"Daddy did wrong. I'm sorry. Next time, I'll never break a promise to our princess again. So forgive Daddy, okay?"
Yoon Mi-sun clicked her tongue and headed into the kitchen.
"I made bean sprout soup. Eat it and clear your head."
"Heh. That's my wife for you."
Kim Chul-jung sat down at the little low table and ate the bean sprout soup Yoon Mi-sun had ladled out for him.
"Still, this is bad. I really had to get out today."
"I don't know. You were the one who insisted on all of it."
"Sure, but... what are those boxes?"
Several not-very-large boxes were stacked nearby.
"What, are you throwing things out again?"
After they moved, Yoon Mi-sun had complained that the house was too small and had been sorting through unnecessary things to toss them.
But she didn't answer his question. Instead, she said something else.
"Eat faster."
"Why? Do you have something to do? Is that why you didn't wake me?"
"We have somewhere to go."
"Where?"
"You'll see when we get there."
"Do you know you're acting weird today?"
Kim Chul-jung frowned. But Yoon Mi-sun seemed in no mood to satisfy his curiosity; she just wandered around the house, busying herself here and there.
After finishing his meal, Kim Chul-jung went back into the room. He picked up his phone and hesitated for a moment. He wanted to know if Yoon Sang-hyuk had gotten home safely, and he also wanted to thank him for driving them back, but he couldn't quite bring himself to make the call.
"Honey."
"Yeah?"
"Go take a shower."
"Oh, okay."
Still none the wiser, he washed up and came back out, only to be told to carry the boxes outside. Kim Chul-jung had lived by one iron rule: if you wanted peace in the house, you listened to your wife. So even though he thought the whole thing was strange, he did exactly as Yoon Mi-sun said.
Once the boxes were moved outside, Yoon Mi-sun came out holding Kim Hyo-yeon's hand.
"Where are we going?"
"You'll see when we get there."
A little while later, a taxi pulled up and stopped.
"Who called a taxi?"
"I did."
"Huh? You?"
This was the same woman who usually thought even a taxi fare was a waste and walked long distances instead.
"You really are acting strange today, you know that?"
"Must be. Sir, could you open the trunk? What are you waiting for? Hurry up and load it."
They loaded the boxes into the taxi trunk. By then, Yoon Mi-sun and Kim Hyo-yeon were already in the back seat. When Kim Chul-jung got in beside the driver, the taxi set off at once.
Since it was well past rush hour, the roads weren't crowded. The taxi tore through downtown Seoul and crossed the Dongjak Bridge. On the far side of the Han River stood an old castle that looked utterly out of place in Seoul.
"Honey. That's the Masked Castle over there. You know it, right? The castle where the strongest player in our country, no, in the entire world, lives."
"I know. The Masked Lord, wasn't it?"
"Yeah. I saw on the news that even the president can't do a thing in front of the Masked Lord. When he goes on overseas raids, the president of that country comes to the airport to greet him personally and everything."
"Does the Masked Lord make a lot of money?"
At Yoon Mi-sun's question, Kim Chul-jung scratched his cheek. Money talk always made him shrink.
"He'd have to, right? There was news about an auction for a monster corpse, some Black Knight thing or whatever, and the price was insane."
He had once been drinking water while watching the news and nearly choked to death when he heard the price of a monster corpse.
The taxi, having passed Dongjak Bridge, was heading in a suspicious direction.
"Driver. Where are we going?"
"Hm?"
Kim Chul-jung checked the destination on the navigation screen in front of him and nearly jumped out of his skin. The destination was the Masked Castle, the very place he and his wife had just been talking about.
"Honey. Where are we going?"
"I think we're almost there."
Just as Yoon Mi-sun finished speaking, the taxi stopped.
"We're here."
Yoon Mi-sun paid the fare and got out. As Kim Chul-jung got out and began taking the boxes from the trunk, someone approached the family.
"Are you Mr. Kim Chul-jung?"
"Yes. And you are...?"
It was a man with an indescribably strange aura. There was even something faintly seductive about him. The man didn't answer Kim Chul-jung's question. Instead, he took the boxes into one arm and turned away.
"Follow me."
"Hey. Who are you, anyway? Put that box down right now!"
As he spoke, Kim Chul-jung tilted his head. There were four boxes, each fairly heavy. He himself couldn't have carried more than two at once. Yet the man was holding four of them in one hand as if they were pebbles.
Player.
Only Players possessed that kind of absurd strength. While he was still staring at the man's back, Yoon Mi-sun nudged him.
"What are you doing? He said to follow him."
"Honey. One last question. Why are we here?"
"Haa, Oppa. Let's just go first."
Yoon Mi-sun took Kim Hyo-yeon's hand and followed after the man. Kim Chul-jung had no choice but to move after them.
He looked around.
This was a place he'd seen on the news more times than he could count. The new district being built by the owner of the Masked Castle, the Masked Lord. Apparently, even major conglomerates with names everyone knew had tried to get their brands into this place, and all of them had failed.
Walking along streets paved with stone instead of asphalt, he crossed a town that looked like a piece of Europe had been lifted and dropped into Seoul. The closer they got to the Masked Castle, the more imposing it became. Only after reaching the point within the district nearest to the castle did the man stop.
He came to a stop in front of a beautiful two-story house that looked as though it had stepped out of a fairy tale, and spoke to Kim Chul-jung's family.
"This is the house. Please, go inside."
It didn't look like asking questions would get him any answers, so Kim Chul-jung followed the man inside first.
"Wow. Daddy, this is amazing."
Kim Hyo-yeon looked around the space inside the front door and bounced with excitement. Yoon Mi-sun, too, stared in astonishment and kept saying, "My goodness."
The house was exactly the kind of home someone would dream of. Kim Chul-jung could only stand there and stare blankly inside.
"What are you doing standing there?"
At the voice from behind him, Kim Chul-jung spun around in a hurry.
"Sang-hyuk."
"Come in already."
Now he understood what was going on. Kim Chul-jung's face stiffened.
"You..."
"Hyo-yeon is here. Are you really going to start shouting in front of the girl you love most in the world?"
He could hear Kim Chul-jung grinding his teeth, but Yoon Sang-hyuk simply ignored it.
"Let's talk later. For now, come inside."
He pushed Kim Chul-jung gently forward.
"Sister-in-law. What do you think? Do you like it?"
"Th-this is..."
"I hurried to get everything ready, so there are plenty of things missing. Fill them in at your own pace. Sister-in-law. Sorry, but would you take Hyo-yeon upstairs and have a look around? The second floor is Hyo-yeon's room."
"Yes. Oppa."
"Oh, and there's a small garden behind the house too. Take a look at that as well."
Yoon Mi-sun gauged Kim Chul-jung's mood for a moment, then took Kim Hyo-yeon's hand and went upstairs.
"Hey, Yoon Sang-hyuk!"
No sooner had his wife and daughter disappeared from view than Kim Chul-jung shouted at the top of his lungs.
"I don't need to yell, so can we talk quietly? Sit down. Ah, right. Brighton, put those boxes over there and head out."
Brighton, the high-rank incubus, set down the boxes, bowed respectfully, and left the house.
"Chul-jung."
"What, you bastard."
He looked furious.
"Let me ask you one thing. Is this you pitying me?"
"..."
"If the roles were reversed, would you do this for me?"
"..."
"I'm not doing this because I think you're pathetic."
Yoon Sang-hyuk glanced up at the second floor.
"I'm doing all this for my beloved niece. A present from an uncle to his niece. You get it?"
"Even so, this is too much."
"Too much how? I just had a house sitting empty, so I told you to come live in it. For the record, the house next door is ours. Sang-min lives there too. Since we're on the subject, how about we all get together tonight and have a samgyeopsal party? To celebrate the move."
"That's not the point."
Yoon Sang-hyuk shrugged.
"Then what's the point?"
"Obviously... "
Kim Chul-jung couldn't finish. Yoon Sang-hyuk sat down beside him and draped an arm over his shoulder.
"Just think about one thing. You and I are friends. You're the only person I can call a friend. Can't I do this much for the one friend I've got? Do you have any idea how much you've done for me? So take it well. I know better than anyone how stubborn you are. But this time, you need to let me win. All right? You can do that, can't you?"
"You crazy bastard. Damn bastard."
Yoon Sang-hyuk smiled brightly. Even if he wasn't completely over it, some of Kim Chul-jung's anger had clearly eased.
"I'm not giving this to you for free. Work hard and pay me back."
"Don't worry. I'll pay it all back."
"You know how expensive houses are here? I saw on the news that this district has the most expensive real estate in South Korea. You'll have to work your ass off to pay it all back."
"I said I would."
"So I've prepared something for our debtor."
"Debtor?"
"You said you'd pay me back, didn't you? That makes you a debtor. Anyway, the house is expensive, so it'll be hard to pay it back with your current job, right? So let's move your workplace first."
Kim Chul-jung looked at him as if to say, What are you talking about?
"You've heard of Hwanghon Workshop, right?"
"Of course. It's insanely famous."
"Right. I'll get our debtor hired there. Go learn some skills and all that. For the record, Hwanghon Workshop pays ridiculously well. The starting salary is in the hundred-millions of won."
"Why would they hire me there?"
"Can't you tell at a glance? That's just how the story has to go. So just know that. There's a daycare here too. The facilities are naturally the best in South Korea. You can send our beloved niece there. And I've already secured a storefront in the center of the district. I heard sister-in-law wanted to try running a clothing shop."
Kim Chul-jung was about to say something, but Yoon Sang-hyuk shook his head.
"Keep listening. We'll bring your father and mother here too. It might be awkward living with your in-laws, so I'll arrange another house nearby. Same goes for your wife's family. Your father-in-law and mother-in-law are your parents too, right? I know your father isn't well. I'll handle his treatment. The world's changed. There are plenty of illnesses even hospitals can't cure that can be fixed now. And..."
When Kim Chul-jung clenched his hand tightly, Yoon Sang-hyuk stopped speaking. Kim Chul-jung was crying. Yesterday, too, he'd cried until his clothes were soaked after borrowing Yoon Sang-hyuk's shoulder, and now he was crying again.
He didn't even try to wipe the tears away. Instead, in a choked voice, he said,
"You idiot. Damn it, if you keep doing this, then I'll..."
He lowered his head.
"I'll feel too damn sorry."