Chapter 9
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Midas Corporation
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<Midas Corporation>
Once the Guardian Angels gathering wrapped up, the triplets headed straight home. Park Jeong-a had some business at the company, so the car only held the triplets and Driver Jang Deokcheol.
Kuul—
"Mm, nya."
The triplets, worn out from all the studying, had collapsed into their seats and were fast asleep, snoring away.
"Young Master, we'll head straight home."
"Sure."
Jang Deokcheol kept sneaking glances at Kangyul through the rearview mirror, like a puppy desperate to go out.
"Is there something you want to say?"
"...No, nothing. Haha."
Jang Deokcheol turned his head to peer out the window as if nothing was up, then casually broached the subject.
"Say, how is it that the eldest Young Master is so smart? I saw you breezing through that workbook earlier. Do you do any extra studying on the side or something?"
Kangyul stared at Jang Deokcheol. The driver flashed a broad, open grin and said,
"No, it's just that my kid hardly studies at all. Sigh, if he were even half as good as you, I wouldn't have to worry."
"You mean Seongtae, the one you mentioned before?"
"Ahh! Yes, that's right. You remember."
'Must be tough for that kid, getting compared to an old guy like me.'
"Hmm, if you're okay with it, Uncle Jang, how about bringing Seongtae to the Guardian Angels meetings?"
"R-Really?"
Jang Deokcheol was so shocked he turned around mid-drive to stare at Kangyul. Studying aside, just participating in these gatherings built invaluable connections.
After a moment's thought, Jang Deokcheol let out a sigh and shook his head.
"...No, can't do that. A caterpillar needs mulberry leaves. Even if you're fine with it, the other madams wouldn't like it."
It was a perfectly pragmatic response.
"That's for caterpillars. We're people. People are omnivores—we eat grass, meat, everything."
Kangyul was determined to invite Seongtae over somehow. And once he did, he'd push the kid hard in studies or whatever else. That way, Uncle Jang would truly become his man.
"If the Guardian Angels thing doesn't work, we can study together here at the house. I'll talk to your parents about it."
Jang Deokcheol fell silent after Kangyul insisted that far. He just gazed at the boy with a face full of emotion, touched that Kangyul cared so much.
Back home, Kangyul made a beeline for the nanny. He vaguely recalled her mentioning a grandson around his age.
'Might as well invite him too while we're gathering everyone.'
The nanny was in the middle of preparing dinner. It seemed nearly done—the savory aroma of meat wafted from the kitchen.
"Big Young Master must be hungry. It's almost ready, so hang in there just a bit longer."
"Yeah. Ribs today? Your ribs are the best in the world."
The nanny smiled, clearly pleased by the praise.
"Of course. It's my secret recipe."
Kangyul watched her for a moment before casually asking,
"You mentioned having a grandson my age, right? Does he live nearby?"
His sudden question startled her, and she nodded hesitantly.
"...Yes. He's in second grade, but unlike you, Young Master, he never listens."
"That's normal at that age."
'...Says the seven-year-old acting way beyond his years.'
The nanny had grown used to Kangyul's mature responses and just smiled it off.
"If it's okay with you, Nanny, how about we all get together here sometimes? He's older than me, so I could learn from him."
"...He couldn't teach you anything. You'd be the one teaching him."
'She doesn't have much faith in her own grandson.'
"Nah. I'll be starting elementary school next year anyway. And forget that—we're all family, so we should get along."
"All... family."
The nanny's expression turned awkward at his words.
"...Alright. I'll ask him. Time for dinner now."
"Okay! I'll go call Deokyul and Jiyul!"
Kangyul fetched his brothers from their room, where they were playing with toys.
"Waaah! Meat!"
"Looks yummy."
True to form, the nanny's ribs were so good that even the brothers polished off two full bowls of rice.
She watched them proudly.
The moment their mother got home, Kangyul asked if he could study together with the nanny's grandson and Uncle Jang's son. Park Jeong-a, whom he'd expected to hesitate, surprisingly agreed right away.
'She did grow up in an ordinary family.'
With no elitist mindset or prejudices, Park Jeong-a supported whatever Kangyul wanted.
She did warn that any fights or trouble would earn them a serious scolding.
"Got it. We'll get along great!"
Generously, Park Jeong-a even offered to cover all the workbook costs for the studying kids. Uncle Jang and the nanny were overjoyed.
And so, the eagerly awaited first day arrived.
Uncle Jang's son, Seongtae, looked terribly shy at first glance.
'Feels kinda like Jiyul, vibe-wise.'
"H-Hi. I'm Jang Seongtae."
His face was pale, and his greeting was so soft it was barely audible.
"Hey, nice to meet you. I'm Kangyul. These are my brothers, Deokyul and Jiyul. We're triplets. Cool, right?"
"...Y-Yeah."
"No formal talk between kids our age. Use casual speech. Like snacks?"
Kangyul made a point of being friendly to Seongtae. The table set up for studying was loaded with all sorts of snacks.
"Let's munch on these while we wait for Nanny's older brother."
Deokyul and Jiyul had already plopped down and were devouring the snacks.
'Their appetites are seriously impressive.'
"Deokyul, Jiyul. Say hi. This is Uncle Jang's son."
"H-Hi."
"Here, have this."
Jiyul offered a banana snack he'd been eating. It was soaked with his saliva, its signature crunch turned soggy.
"Uh... Th-Thanks."
Seongtae took it but couldn't bring himself to eat it.
Jiyul shot Kangyul a look that said, 'See? I did good.'
'Sigh, I know he's not trying to bully him, so I can't even say anything...'
A bit later, the nanny entered the room looking troubled.
"Eldest Young Master. Sigh, the little rascal flat-out refuses. What now?"
"Eh, nothing we can do."
Truth be told, Kangyul mainly wanted Uncle Jang's son, so the nanny's grandson was incidental. He just made some perfunctory comment about meeting someday if the chance came up.
Seongtae was quiet at first, but once he opened up, he chatted lively with the triplets. Especially about his favorite topics, which he knew inside out.
'Classic specialist type.'
And that wasn't all.
Every time Kangyul looked at Jang Seongtae, he got this nagging sense of déjà vu, like he'd seen him somewhere before. It couldn't be from this life, so it had to be pre-regression.
'Hmm... where was it?'
"So, there's this gun called the M16, right? Its recoil is way worse than the K2. Not as good at all."
"Oh yeah?"
When asked about his hobbies, he'd said games, then launched into gun trivia.
"Let's play Sudden Attack together sometime. I'll teach you everything!"
"Sounds good. We'll do a match later."
'Yeah, back then FPS was all about Sudden Attack.'
It dominated until PUBG came out, right up to 2017.
In his past life, Kangyul's army leave ritual had been a drink followed by Sudden Attack at a PC bang.
'I was pretty decent myself.'
"Seongtae, what's your dream?"
"My dream?"
Seongtae deflated again.
"...Pro gamer. But Dad hates it."
'Pro gamer Jang Seongtae!'
That's when Kangyul remembered. Jang Seongtae was the pro gamer who'd topped Sudden Attack and PUBG world rankings.
He hadn't recognized the name at first because he was famous as "K2's Demon."
Not just his skill, but the Demon Clan he'd founded swept every tournament.
'Yearly salary around 3 billion, right? Haha, always wanted to meet him. And here we are.'
The Jang Seongtae who'd one day roar Korea's name at world championships. Though right now, he was just a timid kindergarten kid.
"Don't know. That's boring!"
"...Boring."
Deokyul sulked, annoyed that his brother and Seongtae were having all the fun. Even usually quiet Jiyul pouted.
"Alright, alright. Enough chatting—time to study. You know what happens if we don't finish the workbooks. Scary teacher gets called. Hurry up."
"I'll finish first!"
"...Hyung Deokyul's always slowest."
Kangyul watched Seongtae diligently working through the problems.
'Hmm, a future top pro gamer. If I back him now, could he go even bigger?'
Ideas snowballed.
Athletes who'd make it big, streamers, BJ's. Talented folks forced to abandon dreams for money woes.
Kangyul felt his heart race.
'What if I start an investment firm for them?'
For the first time since regressing, Kangyul found something he genuinely wanted to do. With overflowing cash and his half-baked future knowledge, it was feasible.
'Company name: Midas Corporation!'
The mythical hand that turned everything to gold. But Kangyul wanted to forge people who shone like gold.