The Debt Repaid and the Winds of the North

"Noona?" Jin Young-su approached the limousine with a dazed expression.

"Young-su, get in, hurry!" As the limousine door opened, Jin Hee-young immediately grabbed her younger brother’s hand, and the door and windows shut in an instant.

Jin Hee-young, a sixth-grader in elementary school, and Jin Young-su, a third-grader. Because Hee-young had already met Yoon-gi a few days prior, she spoke to her brother quickly.

"Young-su, do you know this oppa?"

"Huh? Oh? Ah? I know him!"

Yoon-gi was a figure known to almost anyone with even a passing interest in current events. As Young-su looked at him with a bit of curiosity, he quickly realized who Yoon-gi was.

"Hello!"

At Young-su’s greeting, Yoon-gi smiled and nodded. "Yes, hello."

Hee-young spoke up again. "Young-su, Yoon-gi oppa found our relatives!"

"Huh? Relatives?"

"Yes! Those relatives have decided to raise us! We’re going to have a mom and dad again!"

"I don't want to!"

Unexpectedly, as soon as he heard this, Young-su’s face turned sullen and he shook his head violently. It was natural, in a way. Young-su had been kidnapped by the Manse Welfare Center and had been missing ever since. To Young-su, who still believed his father was alive, the idea of suddenly becoming someone else’s son was a difficult pill to swallow.

"Young-su..."

At Hee-young’s pained voice, Young-su shook his head again. "Dad is still alive! He just hasn't come home yet! Dad promised me in my dream. He promised he’d come back!"

Seeing Young-su’s behavior, Jin Dong-gi, who was standing next to Yoon-gi, burst into tears. He tried to touch his son, but alas, Dong-gi’s arm only passed through the boy’s body. "Young-su... Dad has passed away..."

"Liar! You're a liar! Dad is alive! He's alive...! Waaaaaah!"

Following Young-su’s wailing, Hee-young also began to shed tears. No matter that she was three years older than Young-su, and no matter that she had spoken with Yoon-gi a few days earlier, the longing for their father was not something that could be diluted so easily.

Vroom-! Amidst the siblings' cries, the limousine engine roared to life and began to head toward the funeral home.

Finding Jin Dong-gi’s remains had been an incredibly difficult task. However, Yoon-gi had made a desperate effort to locate them. By squeezing the people at the Manse Welfare Center and the hospital staff, he had finally managed to find Dong-gi’s body, which had been secretly buried on a hillside. The body had already turned to bone, but since Dong-gi himself had shed tears while looking at his own remains, there was no doubt. Yoon-gi had collected the bones and, though late, begun the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠funeral. Today was the start date. The reason he hadn't been able to collect them immediately upon discovery was that there were still preparations to be made.

"Dad! Waaaaaah!"

Looking at the memorial portrait, which had been painstakingly created from the photo on his resident registration card, Young-su began to throw a tantrum and cry continuously.

"Dad..." Hee-young also shed tears.

'I can feel how much he loved his children,' Yoon-gi thought. At his internal sentiment, Jin Dong-gi, while still weeping, bowed his head toward Yoon-gi as if to express ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his gratitude.

How much time had passed? A man and a woman approached the wailing siblings and carefully hugged them. A couple in their mid-40s. Among the relatives Yoon-gi had struggled to find, they were the ones most capable of embracing the siblings. A few years ago, they had lost their late-born son, not yet ten years old, to pneumonia. Of course, at first, this couple had also been hesitant to take in Hee-young and Young-su. But Yoon-gi had persisted, using both words and his financial power to persuade them. Eventually, the couple accepted Yoon-gi’s proposal. The wife was physically unable to have more children due to complications during her last delivery. They hadn't been entirely against the idea of adoption, but they had been worried because their life wasn't affluent—which was exactly when Yoon-gi had made his offer.

But as Yoon-gi’s sincerity and financial support continued to persuade them, the couple finally agreed, thinking, 'Alright, let's build a happy family with that money.'

"There, there..." The wife hugged Young-su and patted his back, while the husband stroked Hee-young’s hair with a gentle expression. Although their crying grew louder for a moment, the siblings' sobs gradually began to subside.

For three days, no one else visited the funeral altar. Yoon-gi also had a schedule and couldn't stay the whole time. However, during those three days, the couple and the children grew closer.

"Mom!" Before long, Young-su was calling the wife 'Mom.'

"..." However, he still couldn't call the husband 'Dad.' It was natural, in a way. The husband gave a bitter smile, but seeing as he thought time would resolve it, he didn't show any other reaction.

"D-Dad..." Instead, Hee-young called the husband 'Dad.'

"You don't have to force yourself," the new father said with a kind smile. Hee-young nodded with teary eyes. When all the funeral procedures were finished, the husband carried the exhausted, sleeping Young-su, and the wife held the hand of Hee-young, who was still a bit hesitant but trying her best, as they headed home. To the new house Yoon-gi had provided.

Yoon-gi, watching them from afar, only closed the window when the newly formed family was no longer in sight.

"I think they'll be fine."

A few days ago, Yoon-gi had met Young-su. However, he hadn't explained why he had appeared. It was often better to gloss over things that could be glossed over. Yoon-gi had used that method for this matter.

'There’s no point in making up half-baked documents.' Yoon-gi had agonized over how to explain Jin Dong-gi to the children. If he told them about the atrocities at the Manse Welfare Center? It could cause the siblings immense trauma. After receiving advice from psychiatrists, he concluded it was better not to tell them, so he abandoned that plan. Next, he considered telling them that Jin Dong-gi had met with an accident while working for YK. But this was also rejected. YK might unnecessarily earn the siblings' resentment for something that didn't happen. Finally, he concocted a story that Jin Dong-gi had gone abroad to earn money and had left the siblings in someone’s care for a while. But this, too, was scrapped. Because as time passed, Young-su would keep looking for his father.

In the end, Yoon-gi had approached the older sister, Hee-young, and explained that he was the 'owner of the mountain.' He told her that Jin Dong-gi had entered his mountain to pick mushrooms and had an accident. He also mentioned that he had been discovered late. Hee-young had found it hard to believe at first, but perhaps because she was older, she believed Yoon-gi after seeing the documents. Of course, she had wailed for the first few days. But now, a family that seemed happy had been formed. Now, unless something special happened, the couple and the siblings would likely live peacefully as one family.

Choi Deok-bae chuckled and poked Jin Dong-gi in the side, causing Dong-gi to give an awkward smile and step aside. Perhaps because he possessed relatively more cognitive ability compared to Johnson and Ggeobeongi, Choi Deok-bae often played such pranks, even though Dong-gi couldn't answer back.

"Oh, right. I need to give them the card." Yoon-gi toyed with the diamond card in his pocket and gave a bitter smile.

"I'll have to pass it on next time. Anyway... thank you. This is all I can do for you, but at least I will ensure you don't become a vengeful spirit again."

Jin Dong-gi bowed deeply at Yoon-gi’s words. The diamond card. Dong-gi was a member of the Excellent Library. On the day Hee-young came of age, the two siblings would be more than just affluent; they would be truly wealthy.

The Olympics ended successfully. South Korea’s ranking was 4th, just like in original history. Japan, which had confidently declared it would boycott the Olympics, had only managed 14th place in original history as well. Of course, they couldn't run headlines like 'Korea! Beats Japan!', but they could console themselves with the fact that they had provided the world with a big laugh called the 'Wind of the Empire.'

In addition, the Pearl Harbor movie was still in production. As the work became somewhat specialized, half of MEV was shooting other films as usual, but the other half was still preoccupied with the Pearl Harbor movie. Thus, time flowed and it became 1989. As it was winter break, Yoon-gi was also enjoying a relaxed and happy vacation. Of course, he couldn't spend it as idly as other college students, but it meant he was much freer compared to his usual life.

Therefore, he spent a lot of time with Merrill. And he spent a lot of time with Merrill. Furthermore, he spent a lot of time with Merrill. It might seem repetitive, but whenever Yoon-gi felt he had some free time, he spent most of it with his family. That was why he sometimes thought:

'Having about a hundred billion won and spending time idly with my family without doing any work wouldn't be so bad.'

Of course, just because he had these thoughts didn't mean he actually implemented them. Yoon-gi was fundamentally the type who was extremely thirsty for his own abilities and achievements. Knowing what a great misfortune it was not to be able to use his talents, Yoon-gi spent his free time balancing rest and self-development.

And now, it was January 1st. Choi Ki-hyun had settled into Yoon-gi’s mansion, and the same went for Choi Cheol-ho and Park Yeon-ji. Therefore, the whole family had gathered at Yoon-gi’s mansion to eat rice cake soup in a harmonious atmosphere.

"The chef makes excellent rice cake soup," Choi Ki-hyun said with admiration, and everyone else nodded.

"Yoon-gi, don't the chefs celebrate the New Year?" at Park Yeon-ji’s words, Yoon-gi smiled and nodded.

"I’m having the chefs who don't have families or girlfriends work on duty."

A somewhat sad New Year’s shift. Since they didn't have girlfriends, perhaps it was better for them to take home a hefty bonus for their work. "One more bowl here!" at Choi Cheol-ho’s words, an employee politely took the bowl and headed back toward the kitchen, pulling the dish cart. Choi Cheol-ho, whose mouth and hands were momentarily ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠idle, spoke.

"Jung-ah."

"Yes?" Jung-ah looked at her father with rice cake soup in her mouth. Jung-ah, who had turned 12, had grown much taller compared to last year, and her personality had matured, albeit only slightly. Indeed, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the power of hormones was terrifying.

"Do you still want to marry your oppa?"

"Pfft!" Jung-ah sprayed the rice cake soup she had in her mouth.

"Why, until last year you said you’d marry your oppa when you grew up."

Whack! "Argh!"

Park Yeon-ji’s spike had landed on Choi Cheol-ho’s back. Whack! Whack! Whack! Whack! Whack! Whack!

"S-stop! Argh! Argh!" Park Yeon-ji shouted while continuing to land spikes.

"She is, in, puberty, how many times, do I have to say it!"

She hit him so fiercely that Jung-ah even started to stop her. "M-Mom, stop. It’s okay."

"No, your father needs to be hit more."

Only after the sound of whacking echoed for a while longer was Choi Cheol-ho able to escape the back-beating.

"Sob sob sob, is this why I got married, I feel so ashamed and miserable..."

However, as soon as the employee brought the rice cake soup, Choi Cheol-ho began to eat it excitedly, as if he hadn't been whining just a moment ago.

"Your father is that kind of person..." at Park Yeon-ji’s sigh, Jung-ah gave a bitter smile and nodded as if to say it was okay.

'Time really is passing.' Time had passed enough that Jung-ah, who seemed like she would be a child forever, had entered puberty. If more time passed, Jung-ah would marry like him too... 'No! I can't give Jung-ah to anyone!'

As Yoon-gi was having thoughts like a doting father, the announcer’s breaking news on the TV reached his ears.

The whole family looked at Yoon-gi.