Currently, I’m at Hyeji’s house.
Right now, I was having an uncomfortable encounter with Hyeji’s father, Kim Baekhong (3 stars, not a rating).
Kim Baekhong was glaring at me with a look that said he wasn’t pleased.
‘He’s glaring at me like he wants to kill me.’
[Would you not be worried if your only daughter suddenly brought home a guy?]
‘No, I just came as a guest, why do I already have to worry about getting shot?’
In the midst of this uncomfortable silence, Kim Baekhong suddenly lowered his head to me.
“Thank you.”
“Uh????”
‘What did I do???’
[Did you lend him money or something????]
‘Who lends money to whom? I’d be the one needing to borrow!’
Even as Kim Baekhong lifted his head, I was still unable to say a word.
His sharp gaze remained unchanged.
But thanks to that earlier expression of gratitude, I sensed he had softened a bit compared to before.
“Thanks to you, I’m able to talk to my daughter again.”
“Oh.”
Hearing that made me remember how Hyeji had complained about not having a good relationship with her dad while she was in the hospital.
I probably told her to just say whatever.
‘So I guess things have improved since then?’
[Looks like you’ve done some good deeds without even realizing it.]
‘Why would I be the reason?‘
[He seems to think you’re like that wizard up north, just slashing through people without a second thought.]
I bristled at that.
‘Don’t slander our Falcon Punch! He has his reasons for doing that!’
[That guy seems to jump straight to action without thinking, though.]
Meanwhile, Kim Baekhong continued to speak.
With a strangely light tone.
“In the past, I made things really hard for my daughter, so it was tough for her to talk for a while.”
“And since I advised Hyeji, things have been better for you?”
“Yeah. To be honest, I never thought I’d see a day like this.”
“I’m glad. But I think it would be better if you thanked Hyeji instead.”
At that, a look of suspicion appeared in Kim Baekhong’s eyes.
As if to ask why I said that.
“…Why do you think that?”
“I just gave simple advice. It’s Hyeji who acted on it.”
“I see. Got it.”
In the end, father and daughter were the same.
Neither could properly express their feelings and kept it all inside.
[They both seem to be clumsy with each other.]
‘So what if they’re clumsy? They’re family, they should treasure each other.’
A warm atmosphere settled in.
At first, it was a bit awkward, but now it felt fine.
“So I have a few questions for you.”
“Yes, please go ahead.”
But before the next word came…
“Can you explain what your relationship with my daughter is?”
“……”
This was not okay.
The cozy vibe from earlier vanished like spring snow meeting warmth.
And now, the mood turned to winter.
A cold winter, arriving out of season like a sheet of ice.
Reflecting that atmosphere, Kim Baekhong’s eyes grew even colder than when I first saw him.
[……Didn’t we just have a family drama going on?]
‘Fck, this is seriously scary.’*
I tried to stay calm and answered Kim Baekhong.
“What do you mean?”
“What I mean is, what kind of relationship do you have with Hyeji right now?”
Clearly, he was wary of me being her boyfriend.
Since I was just friends with Hyeji, I thought I could ease the conversation a bit.
“We’re just friends. We met at the academy.”
“So your point is that Hyeji isn’t attractive at all?”
I’d eased the pressure a little, but suddenly the burden was back.
‘No, fck. Why are you suddenly on the attack?!’*
[Definitely a soldier, striking at the vital points.]
I desperately began listing Hyeji’s good points.
“Well, for one, Hyeji is quite cute.”
“Hmm, true.”
“And she’s also got a cool and strong side, too.”
“You know your stuff.”
That was honestly just stating facts.
[Isn’t she ranked among the strongest in the world?]
‘This is a nightmare. If the power balance is considered, my head might explode.’
It seemed like I was managing to navigate this okay.
At this point, my defense was somewhat successful.
“So what kind of femininity do you think she possesses?”
[This is a trap I can’t evade. Just let me die.]
‘Damn…’
I had barely defended myself, and now I was hit with a blindside.
I was in trouble.
“Well… first off, she’s small and delicate, which makes you want to protect her?”
“So, you find Hyeji attractive because you’re a pedophile?”
“No! Absolutely not! My type is fully-grown adults! Not child-like figures!”
“That means Hyeji doesn’t possess any feminine charm in your eyes?”
The pattern was madness.
I had no answer.
As I fell silent, Kim Baekhong began speaking calmly.
“Anyway, seeing you in person, you seem fine on the outside, but you don’t look like someone who fits with our Hyeji at all.”
“……Aha.”
I wanted to say something to Kim Baekhong, but…
“Honestly, Hyeji probably hasn’t even considered you her type, so I didn’t worry too much.”
“……”
I was left speechless.
“You’re not a bad person, but I really can’t see you fitting with Hyeji.”
“Um…”
Because…
“Don’t get me wrong. It doesn’t mean you’re unappealing. Just that you don’t match Hyeji.”
“Um…”
Behind Kim Baekhong…
“Don’t be too disheartened just because you aren’t Hyeji’s type. You’ll surely meet someone who’ll appreciate your charm someday.”
“Sir?…”
Hyeji was quietly listening to this conversation, smiling sweetly.
“Most importantly, compared to our Hyeji, someone like you doesn’t really stand out.”
“From behind…”
Hyeji’s expression was quite bizarre.
She was smiling, but it didn’t look like a smile at all.
The darkness in her gaze was deep, and her chilliness was like ice.
At the same time, veins were popping up in Hyeji’s hands.
So much so that the life of the can she was holding seemed to be hanging by a thread.
She must have been trying to bring a drink when she accidentally overheard this.
And Hyeji’s fierce glare was zeroing in on one target.
Directly on the back of Kim Baekhong’s head.
She wasn’t looking at me.
But my instincts screamed at me.
‘Never make eye contact! If you do, you’ll die!’
‘Help me help me help me.’
Kim Baekhong, completely unaware of the precarious situation, continued to talk.
This could be his last words.
“Still, you never know? Although it doesn’t seem suitable at all now, with some hard work, maybe you’ll fit in—”
Bang!!!!!
What interrupted Kim Baekhong was not a voice of a person.
It was the sound of something bursting.
The source was Hyeji’s hand.
Hyeji had completely crushed the beverage can with her grip, causing the sound.
The liquid inside exploded out and splattered onto the floor.
Of course, Hyeji was only glaring at Kim Baekhong, showing no intention of cleaning it up.
Only then did Kim Baekhong seem to realize Hyeji’s presence and turned around.
“Hmm? Oh, Hyeji! You’re here! I’m just informing Shinwoo about reality.”
“What are you doing?”
Hyeji’s single utterance wiped away the pressure Kim Baekhong had been putting on me.
At the same time, Kim Baekhong’s imposing aura crumpled in an instant.
Just like the can that had met its end in Hyeji’s hands moments ago.
“……Hyeji? Are you angry?”
“Dad, come with me for a second.”
Feeling the odd atmosphere, Kim Baekhong tried to escape.
“Uh, Hyeji! I think I need a moment to—”
“I said come with me.”
He failed.
Hyeji maintained her smile.
As if she was completely harmless.
But Hyeji’s pressure was anything but harmless.
Even I felt like my breathing was being obstructed.
[This is terrifying. Are we seriously going to die here?]
‘As long as I don’t, I’m fine.’
Hyeji began to tow the now quiet Kim Baekhong toward the room at the back.
While I couldn’t see the size of the room, its purpose was clearly marked.
It said “Training Room”.
What they were about to do could either be exercise or a beating disguised as training.
The forced silence Hyeji created.
The only sound escaping was the door of the training room opening and closing.
It seemed the interior was soundproof since no noise could be heard from within.
The only sounds I occasionally caught were muffled thuds and the sound of impacts.
And I could roughly hear Hyeji’s coarse insults.
“F*ck!! Why are you starting a fight like this!!!!”
“Hyeji! I’m sorry! I was just hoping to establish dominance—!”
“Shut up, you f*cker!! You ruined everything!!!”
I couldn’t listen.
Of course, I didn’t want to.
It was too scary.
[Is Hyeji really going to kill her own father?]
‘It’s not like she’ll stab him or something just because she’s not inheriting a throne, right?’
[Still, I feel uneasy. Don’t want to see anything like that happen.]
‘She’ll probably handle it. Let’s not get involved.’
The heated exchange between father and daughter continued nonstop for about 30 minutes.
Leaving a guest like me to sit and watch for 30 minutes was rather rude.
One might even consider it against etiquette.
But I had no intention of interrupting that heartfelt moment.
Family conversations are important after all.
Instead, I cleaned up the spilled drinks on the floor and took a swig from the dented can.
[How can you even drink that while cleaning up?!]
‘Oh, it’s Pepsi Zero. Hyeji has good taste.’
Before long, the faint sounds coming from the training room began to change.
The bursts and thuds began to gradually fade away.
It was like a spinning top losing its power, slowly slowing down until it came to a standstill.
Finally, the loud door of the training room swung open.
While it had started with two people going in, only one emerged this time.
That was Hyeji.
Still exuding a rage all over her body.
It seemed she hadn’t satisfied her anger yet.
‘I should be careful here. I might genuinely get killed.’
[……Is there really no option to avoid this?]
At last, Hyeji’s gaze fell on me.
“Shinwoo.”
“…Yes, what is it?”
“Don’t pay any mind to what Dad said.”
“Well, since it was said with good intentions—”
But Hyeji’s deadly tone cut me off.
My opinions didn’t seem to matter at all.
“I told you not to think about it.”
“Yes ma’am.”
Once she finished speaking, Hyeji returned to her room.
As soon as she disappeared from view, I quietly checked the state inside the training room.
Kim Baekhong was in the center.
However, he was half-conscious, lying facedown in a rather pathetic manner, and it tugged at my heartstrings slightly.
[It seems all fathers in these novels suffer in some way.]
‘At least it’s not like he’s being tortured with Pompoms, so this isn’t that bad.’
[Compared to that theory, this is a walk in the park.]
Pretending as if I saw nothing, I quietly closed the training room door.
