A Warm Brown Glow
Since it was her first time in the city, Seia's gaze wouldn't stay in one place for long.
Her round little head darted busily this way and that, as if determined to drink in every single thing she'd never seen before.
All while letting out constant little gasps of 'Wow!'.
“Daddy!”
“Hm?”
“What’s that place over there?”
Jeong Woo followed the direction of her pointing finger. The display window was overflowing with sparkling objects.
It was a shop that sold magic stones.
When hunters entered a gate and finished subjugating the monsters inside, they obtained magic stones from the magic beasts.
Hunters made their living by selling those magic stones and the byproducts of the beasts as loot.
Jeong Woo didn’t know the details, but he was certain that magic stones looked like jewels.
And at her age, it made perfect sense that she would love anything that sparkled.
They didn’t just reflect light—they glowed with a soft, gentle radiance all on their own.
“Those are called magic stones.”
“Magic stones?”
“That’s right. You can get them from scary monsters.”
“If I ask nicely, will they give me one?”
“Huh?”
If I ask nicely, will they give me one?
Jeong Woo had deliberately avoided telling her that he had to kill magic beasts for her sake, but it seemed Seia had come to a very different conclusion.
Maybe she thought you could simply buy them at the market like any other item, or that the monsters would hand them over if you asked politely?
Her pure, innocent way of seeing the world always felt like it purified even Jeong Woo’s own heart.
Thankfully, simply owning a magic stone didn’t cause any problems.
In fact, depending on their appearance and the strength of their glow, they were often used as ornaments or decorative pieces.
To hunters they were money, but to ordinary people they were simply a new kind of jewel.
“They’re precious to the monsters too, so they don’t just give them away.”
“Then… can Seia still have one?”
Seia rarely asked directly for things like this.
She was still a small child, so there were times when something caught her eye or she wanted a treat, but she almost never voiced the request herself.
Jeong Woo would notice and buy it for her, but she seldom asked outright.
“What would our Seia like to do with a magic stone?”
“It sparkles.”
It sparkles.
If someone asked whether that was a perfectly reasonable reason, he would have to shake his head.
But what Jeong Woo wanted wasn’t a perfectly reasonable answer—he simply wanted to hear Seia’s own thoughts on why she wanted it.
“Alright. Shall we go take a look?”
“Waaa!”
Magic stones.
One might assume they would be expensive since they came from defeating magic beasts, but that depended entirely on the stone.
In the danger ranking system that ran from F-class to S-class, magic stones obtained from E-class or F-class gates were often cheaper than ordinary gemstones.
Jeong Woo took Seia’s hand and stepped into the magic stone shop.
People who looked like hunters were browsing the stones.
Since magic stones had two main uses, one side of the store displayed stones meant for direct use by hunters, while the other showcased those used for decoration and ornamentation.
The two distinctly different atmospheres were neatly divided within a single shop.
It was a fascinating sight, even for Jeong Woo, who hadn’t seen it in a very long time.
On one side, people examined the stones’ performance with serious focus. On the other, customers cared only about how they looked.
They were cheap enough that even students could save up their part-time wages to buy one, making them perfect as gifts.
“Welcome. Are you looking for anything in particular?”
“Yes. I’d like to get one for my daughter.”
At the word “daughter,” the employee’s gaze shifted to Seia.
They looked quite surprised for a moment, then guided them toward a display case tucked in one corner.
“This section features the magic stones that children usually prefer.”
“Ah, thank you.”
The display case was set at a child’s eye level.
Inside were magic stones of every color imaginable—opaque, red, blue, emerald, and more.
The more expensive stones were placed at the top, while the cheaper, more common ones were arranged lower down, farther from view.
While Jeong Woo was talking with the employee, he didn’t notice that Seia’s eyes had already locked onto one particular stone.
The very bottom of the display case.
Tucked away in the farthest corner.
It was a brown magic stone.
“This one is a magic stone that can be obtained from a B-class gate. Its emerald color is quite striking, so both children and adults tend to love it.”
“Oh, is that so?”
Jeong Woo’s eyes moved to the price tag.
The emerald magic stone that glowed with such brilliance was one million won.
It wasn’t an impossible amount, but it certainly wasn’t something he could buy without thinking twice.
“Daddy.”
Just then, he heard Seia’s voice and felt a tug on his sleeve.
“Yes? What is it, sweetheart?”
“Seia likes this one.”
Once again, the magic stone Seia wanted was brown.
A brown magic stone the same color as her eyes—and Jeong Woo’s.
It couldn’t exactly be called brilliant, but its soft, quiet glow truly resembled the gentle shine in both their eyes.
“Ah, that one comes from an E-class gate.”
The employee crouched down to Seia’s height and continued the explanation kindly.
“Because it comes from E-class gates and has that plain brown color, not many people look for it. That’s why it’s quite affordable.”
Even to Jeong Woo’s eyes, the brown magic stone seemed far more ordinary than special.
“Seia likes this one.”
The same words she had said to him moments ago.
This time it carried the clear meaning that she wouldn’t even glance at anything else.
Her small lips were pressed into a firm line, and her large eyes somehow looked filled with determination.
It seemed almost too serious an expression for something like this.
“Then shall we go with this magic stone?”
The price tag on the display read 100,000 won.
It was still a significant amount, but compared to the million-won stone from earlier, it felt like nothing at all.
The market price for E-class magic stones was usually around that much, so it seemed fair.
“It happens to be on sale right now.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. I feel a little awkward saying this, but this one has been with us for quite a long time.”
The final price after the twenty percent discount came to 80,000 won.
“Would you like us to craft it into jewelry? For an additional fee we can turn it into a ring, bracelet, necklace, or any accessory you’d like.”
“Seia, what do you think? Would you like a ring or a bracelet?”
“Umm… no. Seia likes it just like this.”
After careful consideration, that was her decision.
Jeong Woo had no idea what she planned to do with the stone, but he thought watching the process might be quite fun.
“Just the magic stone itself, please.”
“Of course. I’ll ring that up for you.”
“Thank you so much!”
Even though it was just an ordinary purchase, Seia looked more deeply grateful than ever.
“Thank you. Have a good day.”
“You’re welcome. Please take care on your way home.”
As the father and daughter left the shop with their newly purchased brown magic stone, someone watched their backs for a long time.
It was the very employee who had helped them.
In truth, the person wasn’t just an employee—they were the store manager.
“Manager hyung, what’s going on?”
“What do you mean?”
“You never bother with customers who look like they don’t have money.”
“Becoming manager just changed my priorities, that’s all.”
“Still… something felt different this time…?”
The manager was the person who had overseen the shop’s operations for the longest time.
They had dealt with countless employees and customers over the years.
Having started from the very bottom, they had done every dirty job there was, but the hardest part had always been dealing with people.
Whether someone looked rich or poor, the manager had always served every customer with sincerity—and the results weren’t always good.
Some people took advantage of that kindness, while others complained that it wasn’t enough.
The moment the manager had seen the father and daughter enter the store earlier, the child’s expression had been something entirely new.
It was the kind of face you might see in a fairy tale—stepping into a magical world you had only ever heard about, or perhaps never even imagined.
They had wanted to give that child the very best memory possible.
After all, this shop never put magic stones on sale.
If a stone had no value as a jewel, it could simply be sold to hunters for its full price.
But they had simply wanted to do it.
When they were younger they hadn’t understood, but as they grew older they realized there weren’t many things you could do simply because your heart moved you to.
So wasn’t it better to do so whenever the chance came?
Besides, this was one of those rare moments when following their heart also happened to be an act of kindness.
Of course, Jeong Woo and Seia knew nothing of the shop’s circumstances. Once outside, they took the magic stone out of the shopping bag.
“Hehe. It’s pretty.”
“Does our Seia like it?”
“Yes! It sparkles so much and it’s really pretty!”
In his heart, he had wanted to buy her the emerald one.
But seeing how genuinely happy she was with this plain brown magic stone filled him with more pride than he could ever express.
“Daddy.”
“Yes?”
“The monster was really nice!”
“…Huh?”
What was she talking about all of a sudden?
Worried someone might overhear, Seia clung tightly to Jeong Woo and whispered very quietly, glancing back at the shop.
When he had explained earlier how magic stones were obtained.
He had said they came from monsters—perhaps she thought the situation right now was exactly that?
“It was a really, really nice monster.”
“Hehe. Seia, that person wasn’t a monster.”
“…Really?”
“Yes. The monsters are taken care of by other people, and this place just sells the magic stones those people bring back.”
“Phew…”
The deep sigh of relief told him she had been incredibly tense.
No wonder her eyes had looked so fiercely determined earlier—completely unlike her usual self.
It seemed she had mistaken the shop for a monster’s lair and the kind employee for a monster.
“Still, our Seia didn’t get scared, did she?”
“Hehe. Nope! Because Daddy was with me!”
“……”
Seia answered with pure, sunny innocence, but for some reason Jeong Woo couldn’t find any words to reply.
Because Daddy was with me.
She hadn’t been afraid because her dad was there.
Even though she had believed the other person was a monster, the simple fact that her father was beside her had been enough to keep fear away.
It moved him more deeply than he could say.
It felt as if he had heard directly from Seia’s own lips that her dad was everything to her.
Jeong Woo barely managed to hold back the sting in his nose, then forced a smile and held out his hand to her.
“Let’s go. With Daddy.”
“Okay!”
The day had already begun beautifully at the bus stop.
Perhaps that was why only good things seemed to keep happening afterward.
The next destination was one Jeong Woo had thought of in advance.
It wasn’t far away at all.