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chapter 1
### The Returned Genius
There is a saying: *“Early success in youth is often a misfortune.”*
It means that achieving overwhelming success at a young age can instead become a curse.
The excessive success I achieved when I was young had become poison to me.
The expectations people piled onto me grew heavier by the day, along with the pressure that came with them. And behind my back came the whispers of jealousy and envy.
As a child, I couldn’t bear any of it, so I shut myself away in my room.
Skipping school and going to psychiatric appointments instead became my daily routine, and I lived every day dependent on medication.
After turning twenty, I wanted to change this weak version of myself, so I hastily enlisted in the military.
But that too was the wrong choice.
I ended up under a senior who enjoyed tormenting his juniors, and my military life became a living hell. After being discharged, I distanced myself from people even more.
And so, I continued rotting away alone in my tiny room.
Time passed.
By the time my name had not only faded from the public’s memory but disappeared entirely—
I finally stepped outside.
I was twenty-six years old then.
“Son… are you really going to be okay?”
“Yes. It’s something I’ve always wanted to try.”
The very first thing I decided to do after leaving my room was a cross-country journey on foot.
For nearly fifteen out of my twenty-six years, I had lived shut inside a room. I wanted to walk roads with my own feet, sweat under the sun, and travel across the country myself.
“We’re already grateful enough that you’re living this bravely after everything you went through.”
“Sniff… If anything happens, make sure to call Mom and Dad.”
I was already twenty-six, yet to my parents I must still have looked like the same little eight-year-old child.
At their warm concern, I smiled softly and stepped out onto the road.
“Of course. I’ll contact you if anything happens. Then… I’ll be off.”
I had no set destination.
For now, I simply planned to head south and escape this suffocating city of Seoul.
On my back were only a small backpack and an acoustic guitar.
---
“Tsk tsk, young people these days are so frail. Do you know how shocked I was when I found you collapsed on the roadside?”
“I-I’m sorry for worrying you. And thank you, sir… for helping me.”
There was no way someone who had spent years shut inside a room could have good stamina.
I bowed my head to thank the elderly man who had rescued me after I collapsed from heatstroke.
“It’s nothing much. But what brings a young fellow like you to our village? Got relatives here?”
“Ah, no. I’m currently traveling across the country.”
“Well now, that’s mighty impressive for someone your age. Do you have a place to stay tonight? If not, sleep over at my house.”
“Huh? But I couldn’t possibly trouble you like that…”
People were still difficult for me.
Even while speaking with the old man, my voice trembled badly.
But…
“What trouble? You remind me of my grandson, that’s all.”
“……”
Faced with those warm words from an old man I had never met before, I couldn’t refuse.
Was this what they called countryside hospitality? Somehow, it felt like the wounds in my heart were healing.
“…Thank you. Then I’ll trouble you for just one night. I don’t know how I could ever repay this kindness…”
“Repay, my foot.”
The old man shook his head as if it were nothing, but I still wanted to help somehow.
“If there’s any farm work you’ve been putting off, I could help with that…”
“Farm work? With that skinny little body of yours?”
“…I guess that’d be impossible after all.”
When I let out a sigh, the old man clicked his tongue before speaking cautiously.
“Well then… there actually is one thing that’s been troubling me.”
“Something troubling? What is it? If it’s something I can do, I’ll help.”
“Can you draw, by any chance?”
“…Draw?”
I flinched at the question.
Drawing was one of the things I both loved and hated most.
Still, unable to lie, I nodded my head, and the old man led me deeper into the village.
“This here’s our village. Small, ain’t it?”
“It may be small, but it feels warm.”
Just looking at the scenery made my heart feel at ease.
The old man eventually brought me to a long wall that stretched across the village.
Several paint cans and brushes were piled in front of it, as if someone had planned to work on it.
“You see, our village wall looked too empty, so we hired some people. But those bastards—what’s the term these days? Eat and… run…”
“A scam? Like taking the money and disappearing?”
“That’s right! They ran off after taking the money! Damn punks! We even bought all the paint and brushes they told us to prepare!”
Looks like they’d fallen victim to some real crooks.
Not only had they taken the money, they’d also wasted the cost of the materials.
“So anyway, I was wondering if someone who studied art or knows how to paint could maybe help us out for a day.”
“Ah… well…”
Drawing had once been something I loved to the point of obsession.
At the same time, it was also what had driven me into isolation.
Back then, I had once thrown away my easel and sworn never to paint again.
But…
“Too difficult after all, huh?”
“……”
Ignoring someone in trouble despite having the ability to help gnawed at my conscience.
More than anything, this old man had saved me when I collapsed from heatstroke.
“No. Actually… I’m pretty good at drawing.”
“Really?!”
“Yes. I’ll paint you a mural far better than those scammers ever could.”
“Oh my! Thank you so much! Hahaha! I’ll have to prepare an incredible dinner tonight!”
Leaving behind the delighted old man as he headed home, I picked up a brush.
But…
‘What incredible masterpiece will he paint this time?’
“…Ah.”
The moment I grabbed the brush, the whispers from my past echoed in my ears.
‘That child Baek Hangyeol is supposedly a genius, right?’
‘I heard a famous artist from France saw his painting and was amazed.’
‘He’s incredible at such a young age. How old is he again? Seven? Eight?’
‘No matter what, he’s clearly the talent who’ll lead Korea’s art world in the future. Expectations are high.’
‘And apparently he isn’t only talented in art either…’
You’re a genius.
You have to be a genius.
You must always paint pictures that satisfy people.
The future of Korea’s art world rests on your shoulders.
Buried beneath that pressure, I gradually lost my place in the world.
And even now, it was the same.
I had boldly picked up the brush claiming I’d paint the mural, but…
Tremble.
The moment I stood before the wall, my hands began shaking again like they used to.
And then—
“Ah!”
As if he had suddenly remembered something, the old man who had been walking away turned back and shouted toward me.
“The people in our village don’t know the first thing about art! So just paint whatever you want on that wall!”
“……!”
…What *I* want to paint?
“Haha, feels like I might’ve burdened you for no reason! It’s fine even if it turns out bad, so just paint whatever your heart wants!”
“……”
“Well then, I’ll get going now. There’s plenty of time, so take it slow.”
After the old man left, I stood there blankly for a moment.
When I first held a brush as a child, I painted freely—whatever I wanted.
But after becoming famous, I had to paint what other people wanted.
Not my own paintings, but the paintings people expected from the genius Baek Hangyeol.
Yet now, barely anyone even remembered the name Baek Hangyeol anymore.
Which meant now…
I no longer had to paint for other people’s approval.
I could finally paint something that belonged only to me.
“Haa…”
The moment I realized that, it felt as though a massive stone had been lifted from my chest.
A grin slowly spread across my face as I sank into thought.
‘Then what should I paint now? What do I want to paint?’
The answer came quickly.
This small village I had wandered into by chance during a journey with no destination.
This tiny place with only a few dozen residents, all grandfathers and grandmothers.
I wanted to capture the warmth and kindness I felt here.
I wanted to paint it together with the traces of time etched into these old walls.
Hwaaa—
I wanted to paint this village not through my eyes alone, but through my heart.
Splatter.
I dipped the brush into the paint and slowly began to move my hand.
Swipe—, swish.
I didn’t even need a sketch.
My hands moved naturally on their own.
The more I painted, the more I felt the fear inside me fading away.
Swish—, swipe, swish.
As time passed, my hands moved even faster.
That still wasn’t enough.
So I picked up another brush.
Without caring about the paint staining my clothes—
I painted with a brush in each hand, moving as if I were dancing.
‘Ah.’
At that moment, an emotion I had forgotten resurfaced within me.
Joy.
‘Right… painting was supposed to be this enjoyable.’
I, who once couldn’t even place a single dot on paper because of people’s pressure, was now stretching my arms freely across a blank wall.
Having let go of everything, I painted like the eight-year-old child I once was.
And just like back then—
I was smiling brightly.
---
“Good grief. Have I finally gone senile? Asking such a difficult favor from a young man I just met…”
Several hours had already passed since Elder Kim entrusted the village mural to that frail young man.
Only now did he realize his mistake.
A mural that should’ve taken several professionals multiple days to finish—
and he had handed it to one weak-looking young man.
The young man had probably known it was impossible too, but couldn’t refuse because he was kind-hearted.
Feeling guilty, Elder Kim slaughtered one of his precious hens and carefully prepared dinner.
“Dear me, the sun’s already setting. Looks like he’s still over there struggling.”
With that thought, Elder Kim stepped outside his gate to find the young man who hadn’t returned yet.
‘Even if he ruined it, I should still praise him for trying. If it looks ugly, we can just cover it later with white paint.’
Not once did he expect the young man to have painted the mural well.
But then—
Creak.
“W-What in the world…?!”
The moment he stepped outside, Elder Kim’s jaw dropped at the completely transformed sight of the village.
Rub rub.
With his poor eyesight, he rubbed his eyes once before finally realizing what he was seeing wasn’t an illusion.
“…Is this really real? Feels like I’ve wandered into some heavenly paradise.”
Had some benevolent goblin visited while he wasn’t looking?
The small, ordinary village had transformed into an entirely different place in just half a day.