The Grandfather Tree (1)
"I'll be heading out now!"
Ko Sung-yoon bowed deeply at the waist. The bulging bundle on his back lurched up in place of his face with a soft heave. Another ounce of force and the whole thing would have toppled straight over his head.
Chief Kim Jaesang of the Dongdae offered a broad, friendly smile—the kind that grew out of thoroughly sly intentions.
Choi Yeon saw straight through the Chief's scheme and shook his head from side to side.
"Leaving already? Shame. I wanted to talk a little more."
"I'd like that too, but—"
"Then just stay."
"I promised to play with Chae-eun! I have to stop by the café first, and if I don't leave now I might keep her waiting."
"Ahh, so that's how it is. If you've got a promise, can't be helped…"
Kim Jaesang clicked his tongue and swallowed the disappointment.
"Have fun with Chae-eun. And give some serious thought to what I told you."
"Yes, sir!"
Ko Sung-yoon answered brightly and left the office.
You make sure you think it over!
The Chief's voice chased him all the way until the elevator doors closed.
Only once the three of them were alone again, as usual, did Kim Jaesang turn to Choi Yeon. His voice dropped low, as if he were sharing a secret.
"Yeon. That message you sent—was it for real? Truly, when he put on the mascot head, his abilities changed?"
"It's real. The moment he put the head on, the whole atmosphere flipped. If I'd seen him in a dungeon I would've thought he was a monster."
"Hoo…"
"If I had to guess, the level probably shifts depending on the grade of the mascot costume he's wearing."
"Depending on the costume… What a bizarre skill. Who ever heard of something like that?"
"Right?"
Choi Yeon nodded and pulled out a health juice. Kim Jaesang did the same. Soft slurping sounds of health juice filled the office in companionable rhythm.
When they had each drunk about half, Kim Jaesang spoke again. His slow voice carried a note of unease.
"Tsk. Never thought I'd be the one saying this, but… doesn't it feel like there's been a lot of work lately? Stuff we never saw coming, one after another."
"Oh. Funny coincidence. I've been thinking the exact same thing."
"Coincidence, my foot. You always think that."
Choi Yeon only smiled at the Chief's scolding.
This is why I can't stand sharp-eyed Chiefs…
He kept the thought to himself.
Kim Jaesang, on the other hand, spoke his mind out loud.
"Still, well… after a stretch this busy, things ought to quiet down for a while."
"……"
"What? You clamp your mouth shut and stare at me like that and I get nervous, you brat!"
"I'm the one who's more nervous? How can you say something like that? It's not like you're performing a ritual to summon more work."
"Ritual, nothing. You think talking about it makes it happen? Huh?"
"Ugh, if anything does happen, it's entirely because of the Chief's big mouth."
"Hey, hey. Nothing's going to happen. Nope. Absolutely not."
Kim Jaesang nodded to himself. The near-whisper sounded like a prayer that his wish would come true.
"…Enough of that nonsense. Yeon."
"Yes."
"Where's Chae-eun right now?"
"Chae-eun? At Seo-Daejeon Park like always… Wait. You're not thinking of following her starting now, are you?"
"You crazy? Follow? We're just going to run into her by chance. Pure coincidence."
Wow. This is a bit much…
Choi Yeon shuddered as if he were thoroughly put off. Even Choi Heeseok, who had stayed silent the whole time, let out a sigh.
At the two Chois' reactions, a vein bulged on Kim Jaesang's forehead.
"Hey! You gotta run around on your own two feet like this or the guilds snatch everything out from under us!"
"Hmm… I feel like the direction of that logic is wildly off."
"This guy, really… Fine. Choi Yeon, you come with me. Watch how it's done."
"No."
"That so?"
At Choi Yeon's blunt refusal, the corners of Kim Jaesang's mouth curved up.
A confident voice followed.
"Shame. I was going to clock you out right there once we were done."
"…Is that true?"
"Of course it's true. Have you ever seen me lie about clocking out?"
"I've seen you dangle it like a carrot plenty of times."
"S-so you're not coming?"
"Tsk…"
Choi Yeon smacked his lips and rose from his seat. Resisting the lure of an early finish was simply too hard.
He didn't like the smile blooming on Kim Jaesang's face, but he would endure it.
For the sake of going home on time, I can overlook that ugly smile with an open heart…!
The Guardian Tree of Seo-Daejeon Park stood in its place.
For decades it had been alone, but not anymore—thanks to Park Chae-eun, who leaned her small body against the fence and chattered away.
The child's eyes shone bright as she gazed up at the fifteen-meter willow. Sunlight filtered through the leaves and settled on her head as if the tree itself were stroking her hair.
"Grandpa, I get to play with Sung-yoon oppa again today!"
Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
Park Chae-eun nodded. The sprout headband on her hair bobbed lightly in turn, so lively it looked as if real sprouts had been set there.
"I know that already! Mom asked me to. But if we hang out together long enough, maybe oppa will end up talking to you too, Grandpa!"
The hope faded from the child's face, as though she had just heard something negative—something like That will never happen.
Her body sagged against the fence like a blanket left hanging there.
And then…
"Look at that."
A short distance away, three men were watching the child. The veins in every one of their necks stood out red and swollen.
The man with the dark crimson blotch on his eyelid pointed at Park Chae-eun with his index finger.
"She's really talking to the tree?"
"Well, look at that. Is the kid out of her mind?"
"…Spots. You sure she's alone at this hour? Sounded like she mentioned an oppa."
"I'm sure, Boss! I've been watching for two days. She always went home alone!"
"Good. Get to work."
The team leader at the front swung his left arm. At once the man called Spots and the short-haired man moved.
The child draped over the fence sensed the malice in their footsteps.
"Don't come any closer."
She snapped her upper body upright in a flash and fixed the men with a sharp glare.
The startled men went wide-eyed.
How did this little brat know?
"I heard everything! You bad uncles!"
Park Chae-eun's voice crushed their questions with force. It was still a child's voice, hardly fierce, yet it was enough to draw the eyes of several people in the park.
Those gazes, however, did not linger long. Their eyes grew unfocused and drifted back to whatever they had been looking at before.
The team leader asked a question.
"…You said you heard everything?"
A faint tremor ran through his voice—the unconscious leak of genuine surprise.
"That blotchy uncle has been watching me for days, right?"
"……!"
"You were going to do something bad!"
"…No way. We just saw a little girl playing alone and thought we'd keep her company."
"I'm not alone, though? I'm with Grandpa."
"Grandpa, you say…"
The men's eyes turned toward the tree. Having caught a little of her earlier monologue, they already knew what the child meant by "Grandpa."
A kid who plays with a tree.
Once that thought settled in their heads, the men sighed.
What was the point of talking with a child who wasn't right in the head? Better to stop chatting and just do the job. Their feet started moving again.
At the same moment, Park Chae-eun hopped nimbly over the fence and pressed herself close to the Guardian Tree.
Perhaps because of the word "Grandpa," she looked exactly like a child clinging tight to her grandfather's legs.
The men closed in from three directions with long strides, surrounding her so she could not escape. The silent coordination spoke of practice repeated many times.
Just as one leg crossed the low fence—
"What do you think you're doing?"
A fierce voice cut into the men's ears. It was Ko Sung-yoon. The usual bright expression was nowhere to be seen.
The team leader stepped forward to block him.
"Who the hell are you? How'd you get in here?"
"I'm her oppa. I just walked in."
"Oppa?"
"Yeah."
"…You a hunter, by any chance?"
"What if I am?"
"Tch…"
The team leader clicked his tongue and glared daggers at Spots.
You little shit, you said you were sure!
Spots heard the accusation in those bulging eyes and scrambled to explain.
"I-it's not like that! She was alone every time! Really…"
"Shut it, Spots, you bastard. Her oppa's a hunter."
"S-sorry…"
"Boss. What do we do?"
The question came. The team leader's answer was not aimed at his retreating colleagues, but at Ko Sung-yoon.
"Never seen your face before. Rookie? What rank? E-class? D-class?"
"……"
What rank should I say?
Instead of answering, Ko Sung-yoon simply shrugged one shoulder. Whatever reply he gave would be less useful than silence.
It must have been the right move, because the team leader closed his mouth. Watching the man sink into thought, Ko Sung-yoon began to move slowly.
As he brushed past on the right, the team leader tossed out a line in a completely flat tone.
"We're Jeokryeohui."
"……?"
A look of pure confusion rose on Ko Sung-yoon's face.
What am I supposed to do with that? Introduce ourselves all friendly in a situation like this? Is he crazy?
Seeing the flood of questions on the younger man's face, the team leader smirked. That reaction told him everything he needed to know.
"You're not a hunter, are you?"
"…What?"
"Any hunter in Chungcheong-do gets briefed on us. Same if you're from somewhere else. But if you don't know who we are—"
"Ghk…!"
Ko Sung-yoon exploded into a powerful sprint.
The instant his foot drove off the ground, the team leader's left hand swept through the air as if a button had been pressed. Hook-like fingers clawed empty space.
Perhaps because he had moved first—
Ko Sung-yoon was not caught. Luck had been on his side as well. If the right hand in the pocket had swung instead of the left, the distance would have made all the difference.
"If you're not a hunter, then there's nothing to hold back for."
The team leader's voice dropped low.
Footsteps followed at once. Sounds rose from three directions, slowly tightening around the Guardian Tree at the center.
While the encirclement shrank, Ko Sung-yoon reached the tree. He scooped Park Chae-eun up into his arms without hesitation.
With a soft thump he set his back against the Guardian Tree and swept his gaze over the Jeokryeohui members.
They approached at a leisurely pace—the unhurried confidence of men who already knew how this would end. For Ko Sung-yoon, that was a small mercy.
"…Chae-eun. You remember the dungeon, right? We're going to run, just like then."
"No! We can't run!"
"Huh? But—"
"No! Don't go far from Grandpa!"
"Grandpa…?"
A bewildered sound slipped from his mouth. The being the child called Grandpa was not a person—it was the Guardian Tree.
This was a situation where running should have been the only priority, and she was telling him not to leave the tree? Was anxiety sending her into a panic?
Ko Sung-yoon shook his head.
Even in the instant dungeon she had been frightened, yet she had never cried. Simple panic was unlikely. Which meant…
"……!"
As the question formed, his eyes landed on Park Chae-eun's headband. The moment he saw the lively little sprout, he roughly understood what the child was thinking.
She clearly intended to raise a barrier right here.
They were supposed to keep the artifact secret, but there was no need to cling to that rule in a situation like this.
If they got hurt trying to hide it, wouldn't that be putting the cart before the horse?
While stray thoughts kept mixing in, Park Chae-eun called out in a bright voice. The words were completely unexpected.
"Grandpa says he'll help us!"
"Huh? You're not putting up a barrier…?"
"Nope!"
"……?"
Wait—help us how, exactly?
Ko Sung-yoon's mind spun into total confusion.