Chapter 18
Chapter 18
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: The Wind Blows (3)
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Dad brought home an Oggol Chicken.
A chicken as a New Year's gift—what wholesome, pure-hearted neighbors.
'It looks seriously scary.'
This Oggol Chicken was ferocious by nature, turning into a tyrant the moment it entered the coop. Though smaller than the other roosters, it excelled in strength, speed, and stamina. With one flap of its wings, the other chickens scattered.
Not content with pecking open the hens' eggs and devouring the yolks, it even caught and ate a rat that had snuck in to steal feed.
A chicken eating a rat? Unbelievable.
The grotesque sight of it gulping the rodent down whole made the Son father and son cling to each other, trembling in horror. They couldn't shake the thought that one peck could kill.
'Oh, what a beast.'
Jin-hyuk's eyes sparkled.
Those glossy feathers resembled the king of the skies, a crow. And those sturdy legs—they evoked Ben Johnson, the sprinter.
'From now on, your name is Chicken Johnson.'
Jin-hyuk cracked open the coop door.
True to its thirst for freedom, Chicken Johnson sauntered out. It scanned the surroundings with fierce eyes. Understanding that longing all too well, Jin-hyuk felt a surge of camaraderie. Just days ago, hadn't he himself dashed for freedom in desperation?
Camaraderie was camaraderie, but...
He prodded the Oggol Chicken's head lightly with a stick.
Peck-.
Cluck-cluck-flap! Chicken Johnson reacted in a fraction of a second. A true sprinter.
As it charged, Jin-hyuk kicked off the ground.
And bolted!
"Aaack-!"
It pecked his butt. He was losing at the start.
Time to create some distance, then.
He tossed a small pebble from afar to taunt it.
Flap-flap-flap!
Chicken Johnson charged with perfect form and balance—befitting its name.
Jin-hyuk dodged swiftly.
'Perfect! This'll sharpen my starts.'
The day he'd beat General in a sprint was near.
But Chicken Johnson was no pushover.
Coco-peck-. A three-hit combo straight to the butt.
"Ow! That hurts, you jerk!"
Chicken Johnson had been hiding its true power.
A chicken that hides its strength—what a concept.
Jin-hyuk's eyes gleamed. Geniuses were destined to live amid envy and jealousy. Perhaps Chicken Johnson hid its power for the same reason.
'Chicken Johnson... I respect you.'
Jin-hyuk clasped his left fist with his right hand and extended it—a salute to Chicken Johnson, honoring it as both master and worthy rival.
Dad, watching, doubled over laughing.
From the wooden doghouse shrine, General shot a pitiful glare.
Ignoring General's stare, Jin-hyuk dove into serious study.
'If I'd met Chicken Johnson sooner, my explosiveness would've improved by now.'
He wouldn't have suffered that humiliating loss to General in their short sprint.
Even now, his thirteen-year-old physique and speed were impressive, but Jin-hyuk was never satisfied.
Talent shone brighter the earlier it was discovered and honed—like a gem.
So he resolved.
"Dad, can we buy a few more Oggol roosters?"
"Sure."
Dad, hammering away at a sled in the yard, agreed readily.
He'd been amused watching Jin-hyuk "train" with the Oggol Chicken daily, so he'd planned this anyway. He'd bought his son a computer and gaming console, yet the kid just played with his sister or read indoors. Odd tastes, but if chickens made him happy, Dad would buy more.
'Roosters waste all their energy on mating.'
Son Gwang-yeon chuckled, recalling the hens with their rear feathers plucked bald by Chicken Johnson. Roosters pecked hens' heads during mating. Was the back of a hen's head an erogenous zone?
Anyway.
After about ten training rounds, Chicken Johnson would tire and retreat to the coop on its own. True to its name, Jin-hyuk mixed drugs into its feed or fed it red pepper paste per folk remedies. But as harem lord to countless hens and Jin-hyuk's training partner, its limits were clear. Harem chicken—sounds like a game title.
Son Gwang-yeon's face lit up amid his musings.
"All done-."
"We have a sled already—why make another?"
"Su-jeong needs one too."
"Ah......"
Halfway through break—time for guests from Seoul.
At eight, Su-jeong could ride alone. How many times had Jin-hyuk carried her on his lap, only for thin ice to crack and dunk them both? The paddies were shallow, so no real danger. Still, breaking ice—their sole support—struck terror regardless of depth.
'She laughs even when her butt gets wet.'
Alone, she'd be safe.
Jin-hyuk rubbed the new sled vigorously against sand and dirt. To forget the inexplicable pang of her riding solo, he gripped harder.
Polishing the wire runners against the tree base. It made sleds glide better on ice—essential prep for girls too weak to scrape ice.
In rural rice-farming villages, water is held in harvested fall paddies through winter. Drained before spring plowing. "Rotary plowing" with a cultivator clumps soil large. Farmers then broke it manually with shovels or rakes—winter-hardened clods demanded huge effort.
Flooding paddies all winter softened the soil. That's winter fallow flooding—enabling even drying, seedling beds, and spring transplanting.
Tractors changed that; few fields flooded anymore. Powerful and versatile, they finely tilled without long soaking. Labor and time slashed—tractor owners soared in popularity. Some farmed little, driving tractors for wages.
During season, Dad's fields got first dibs—not just cash, but his character. With vast holdings, he tilled neighbors' adjacent plots too. No one minded. Du-naeri's farming started and ended on Son Gwang-yeon's land.
"Rotary too early—turns soil to mush before transplanting. A month prior, or seedlings won't root and float away."
"Then shouldn't you skip flooding too, Dad?"
"A few for your sledding."
Groan, Father.
Jin-hyuk followed silently as Dad explained.
They carried red rubber baskets and custom shovels—blades trimmed sharp with a grinder, like mud-flat diggers for clams.
"Think there are loaches, Jin-hyuk?"
"Some hibernating."
Pesticide-light summer paddies teemed with loaches, catfish, crucian carp. Jin-hyuk planned to snag winter sleepers per Kang Jin-su's tips—for loach soup to nourish parents, bonding time, and distracting Dad from his sparrow obsession.
The father-son duo entered an unflooded paddy.
Boots just in case, but ground firm—no sinking.
"See these pencil-thin holes, Dad?"
"Yeah. Like octopus vents."
Just like those from clam hunts with Choi Jang-hwan and Yuk Yeong-gu. Dad caught few that sweltering day but learned visually.
"Don't dig deep at once—they might snap."
"Oof—ouch."
Dad emoted like toddler Yu-jin. Already empathizing with the loach.
Swallowing a laugh, Jin-hyuk scooped lightly—like ice cream. Small amounts: two adult fists' worth. Three scoops in.
"Whoa—loach! Frozen dead?"
Golden-bellied loach curled tight in winter air.
"Hibernating. Wiggles when grabbed."
Lifted, it thrashed lively.
"Winter loaches are nutritious. Soup'll be tasty."
"Loach soup......"
Jin-hyuk ignored Dad's drool. Hand-foot-mouth disease confirmed.
Class dismissed.
Dad's eyes blazed like a hero facing the demon king—Jin-hyuk sought new holes.
"Haha—fun! Love doing this with my boy."
Me too. Jin-hyuk muttered.
Seeing Dad shovel like a kid filled his happiness meter. 'If reborn'—how often pondered, how desperately dreamed. Living that dream daily bred no greed.
Far off, other uncles dug loaches. Unfamiliar builds—outsiders.
They hunt loaches here? That's Dad's paddy.'
Crops belong to the landowner.
Common sense, sans law. No intent to quibble, but half-century capitalist Jin-hyuk bristled at 'village spirit' excuses for poaching.
Not personal grudge.
"Side gig on leased land. Let 'em enjoy life."
"Yeah."
Dad was uncanny.
Read his mind from a glance. Past life's scars shut him from outsiders—yet Dad's benevolence shamed him.
"If it doesn't hurt me, sharing's fine. Called a sucker? Net gain's profit."
Didn't get it, but okay.
Mulling cut short by Dad's cheer.
"Yes! One's One! Two's Two! Three's ThreEEE-!"
"......"
"Named 'em, Jin-hyuk."
"......What?"
"Meccander."
Casual, mid-scoop.
Jin-hyuk meant to ask why—polite curiosity. But Dad outpaced him.
"Ah, Meccander First! Ah, Second! Ah, Baby Meccander—. United Three Meccander Heroes—."
Why this from such a dignified man? Show ended years ago. Easy loaches excited him. Jin-hyuk glanced—clear.
"—Fight bravely—. Meccander—foooour-!"
Mercy, posing too. Hand on hip, V-sign thrust.
Jin-hyuk stared blankly at a hole.
Maybe they're hiding from shame.
'My friends didn't act like that at his age.'
Jin-hyuk's eyes saddened.
Hormones bloomed sensitivity—and shame mastery.
'But he looks happy. That's good.'
So why crave Mom suddenly?