Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Family Boasting Battle
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"Hm??"
"Oh......"
As our eyes met, a middle-aged man floated dozens of question marks over his face. And our two high schoolers showed no intention of hiding their shock.
The middle-aged man asked, "...Hm? Isn't this the home of Mr. 'Lee Kang-san' by any chance?"
I had no idea why news traveled so slowly in our family. At the question from my now-familiar little uncle, Lee Kang-cheol, I let out a small sigh and swung the front door open even wider.
Then, from behind me came my father's voice, tinged with a hint of delight.
"Oh, you've arrived, little brother."
"Hm? Big brother?"
My little uncle, who had glanced over my shoulder for a moment, looked back at me with an even more confused expression. Before he could entertain any needless thoughts, I opened my mouth right away to preempt any misunderstandings.
"It's me, Noeul Lee."
"...Huh? Noeul?"
"I caught that illness."
"...Whoa, is that really Noeul hyung?"
"Whoa... this is insane."
The ones who reacted with such direct shock were the two high schoolers.
"So Noeul hyung really got that disease? Or... noona?"
"Noona's right."
Normally, people avoided bringing it up directly out of courtesy, but high schoolers were different. It was the 'Seo twins'—Lee Seowon and Lee Seohun—whom my father had praised endlessly yesterday.
I had no clue what was so shocking, but they kept tacking on 'awesome' like it was a passive skill. A headache was already brewing.
I flung the door open wider and nodded toward the twins.
"Just call me bro like always......"
"But......"
"Still......"
"It's cold. Let's get inside quick."
I had no idea what they found so regrettable, but at my urging, the twins shuffled hesitantly into the house.
"Bro, Noeul's gotten way too pretty."
"Hm."
It started with my little uncle. From his excited outburst, the high schoolers nodded vigorously in agreement, while my father let out one of his signature grunts with that stern expression of his.
"Looking at her again, Noeul takes after sis-in-law when she was young—exactly like her!"
"Hm."
"Oh my, young master. Anyone who hears that would think I've gotten old."
"...Ah, no, that's not it. Haha!"
As my little uncle broke out in a sweat at my mother's words, the doorbell rang again.
Ding-dong—
It was probably my youngest little uncle. Feeling my mother's gaze, I nodded toward one of the high schoolers this time.
"Seowon, mind getting the door?"
"Huh?"
"...I'll get it!"
I'd clearly addressed the nominal older twin, Lee Seowon, but the nominal younger one, Lee Seohun, jumped at the chance instead.
"No, let me!"
Seohun bolted forward, with Seowon hot on his heels. They used to ignore everything I said back in the day, but now that they were 19, maybe they'd finally grown up a bit.
"Yeah, slow as ever when you can't even study."
"Not accepted yet and you're already chugging kimchi soup?"
"But I was faster, right?"
Listening to their banter, it seemed they'd just grown bigger, not wiser.
Trailing behind the bickering high schoolers were a middle-aged man built like a bear and a woman lugging bags of stuff. My youngest little uncle and his wife.
"Big bro, we're he—... Hm?"
"Huh? Young master... sis-in-law?"
And the reactions were as predictable as ever.
"Whoa, pretty noona!"
Ah, an elementary schooler too.
My head throbbed at the thought of explaining all over again, but the high schoolers beat me to it.
"Youngest uncle, it's Noeul bro!"
"Hey, it's noona."
"...Yeah, Noeul noona."
The chaos was the same as always.
After a simple ancestral rite, we all gathered around the dinner table, where the entire family was engrossed in talking about me.
"Big bro, must be nice getting a late-blooming daughter."
"Hm."
"Noeul, see that? Bro's face is lit up like a Christmas tree."
Where?
At my little uncle's fussing, I tilted my head. Was I the only one missing it? The whole family insisted my father's expression had softened. I genuinely couldn't tell.
"How did you get so pretty?"
"She takes after me, obviously."
All the mothers chimed in with the same line. I'd been shocked the first time I saw myself in the mirror too, but was I really that praiseworthy?
Even if I'd grown used to my face, it wasn't something I had much experience with, so maybe I just lacked the self-awareness.
'My brothers all said I was pretty......'
Were other people seeing it too? For no reason, I checked my reflection in my smartphone screen.
The verdict: 'Hm, about that level......' Not fuss-worthy, though.
"For real?"
"Hup...!"
To confirm, I asked the high schoolers, and they gasped, faces turning red as they nodded frantically.
These were the same guys who always bragged about their grades—it felt awkward and unwelcome.
And that's when it began, with my little uncle.
"Bro, you heard my boy's heading to Seoul National Uni this time, right?"
I wondered when that would come up.
He sat his nominal eldest son beside him and kicked off the child-boasting session.
"Not final admission yet, is it? Besides, our eldest is going to Seoul National too."
"Of course, Dad. Seohun, you're not my junior yet? What major did you apply for?"
"Forestry and Environment..."
"Brat, you think a single department is the whole college? Ever heard of the Business School?"
"......"
My father sat my brother—Haneul Lee—beside him and fired back. He piled on his own boasting too.
"Plus, Haneul just got promoted to assistant manager. His salary's just shy of 100 million won."
"It'll cross over quick once vacation days stack up."
"...I see."
My father snorted proudly, as if backed by a thousand troops. As expected of my brother, the pride of the Lee family.
"Well, my boy'll be like Haneul soon enough anyway. Ah, Seohun, come here."
"D-Dad, come on..."
"Bro, you heard Seohun applied to the Korea Military Academy this time? His exam scores were great—just needs to nail the interview for acceptance."
"Hm."
Judging he had no edge in the firstborn battle, my little uncle pulled out his trump card.
The nominal second son, dragged over and wearing a distressed look, faded into the background. Meanwhile, a subtle shift appeared on my father's face.
Yeah, in our family lingo, he'd been 'scratched.'
"You wanted that so bad for yourself, bro, but our Seohun's beating you to it? Ah, Noeul, what've you been up to lately?"
"...Eh? Me?"
"Yeah, you still prepping for college entrance?"
"......"
Suddenly, Lee Kang-cheol was dragging me into it. As if I'd ever prepped for college entrance!
"Noeul, your brother wanted it so bad, and you're still holed up in your room gaming?"
"...Uh, um......"
"Jobs are tough these days—gotta at least graduate college, right? Earn your own keep and all? If nothing else, learn a trade or something."
Yeah, the easy target was always me.
Holiday child-boasting always circled back to me in the end.
He probably figured that was his path to victory. Very strategic.
As they put it, I was the Lee family's one and only 'high school grad' who sucked at studying.
My shoulders slumped dejectedly right then—
"Noeul, come here."
My father suddenly called me over.
At the abrupt summons, I slunk over and sat beside him. His thick arm draped around my shoulder without warning.
At that unfamiliar warmth, I looked up to find my father's face back to its usual serene calm.
"Look."
"...?"
"Isn't she pretty?"
"Ahem, ahem!"
A dry cough burst out at the sudden declaration.
'What does that have to do with anything?!'
My father after two years felt so unfamiliar. And though his expression was the same blank one, it now carried a hint of something else.
Yeah, he was triumphant.
"The Lee family's 'precious daughter.'"
"......"
"Who cares about college prep? Isn't she pretty?"
"Sigh......"
"Takes right after your sister-in-law."
Just yesterday—no, moments ago—he'd been rambling on about it, and now this sudden pivot had me sighing involuntarily.
And I had no idea why my little uncle looked like the defeated one.
Ah, I just wanted to hit the PC bang with the high schoolers like old times.
Late that evening, a private casino opened up at home.
Stakes were 100 won per point. Dismiss it as pocket change, and you'd regret it big time.
My now-mature brother naturally joined the gambling ring, leaving me as the sole opponent for the high schoolers and the kid.
"Noona, short snipe!"
"Hold on... Ah!"
"Noona, your skills are toast."
Having lost their spot at home, we'd ended up at the PC bang.
I'd taken them there often before, so it wasn't awkward, but my shrunken frame meant my old FPS skills weren't coming back.
'DEFEAT'
I stared blankly at the screen blaring our Red Team loss. I wasn't this bad before—it was all because I'd become a girl.
"Hey, Seohun, queue up another. Noona too."
"Noona, you in for more?"
"Just a sec, feeling dizzy—maybe rest a bit first?"
Stuck on third-person games lately, first-person ones were making me nauseous. That's what I was saying as I caught my breath...
"You guys, why keep calling me noona?"
"...What else do we call noona if not noona?"
"You are noona. Right, hyung?"
"Yeah!"
The high schoolers' words got a nod from the elementary kid beside me, who was busy mining blocks to build a house.
Ah, so dizzy.
"Just call me bro like before? This feels awkward."
"That's more awkward for us."
"Calling noona 'hyung' would look weirder to anyone else too. Right, hyung?"
"Yeah!"
These 'Seo twins' never listened anyway. The difference was they'd mellowed a lot, ditching that old obnoxious vibe.
Still, I didn't back down. Being called my father's 'precious daughter' was embarrassment enough.
"Think about it. I've heard 'hyung' for 22 years. Then overnight it's 'noona'..."
I was striking a pose to persuade them, laying out my logic...
Thud.
When a 'sausage-fishcake skewer' suddenly crossed in front of me. Looking up, there was the part-timer.
"Ah, this is on the house......"
"......"
"'Cause you're so pretty......"
And with that, he set down the food and left! Even tossing back, 'You're really pretty!' as he went.
"...Totally noona."
"Gonna tell big uncle everything."
The high schoolers looked dazed, while the kid just kept at his game.
Nothing wasn't dizzying.
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