Chapter 17
Translator: Roshi
Thanks to Hanuri, the unnecessary argument came to an end.
“Ultimately, it just means that neither of you has authority right now.”
At his words, Lee Ha-na and Park Ki-ho nodded.
"Then let's talk again after getting a definite answer."
“Yes!”
“Well…”
While Park Ki-ho confidently answered, Lee Ha-na hesitated.
To come back here again, she would need Yongyong, the creature Park Ki-ho rode in on.
It was impossible to make it back here overland.
In the first place, the only reason the investigation team managed to come this far was because they had gotten half-toyed by a monster and lost their way.
If they hadn’t found this place, they might have been stranded and died.
That was why she couldn’t help but look upset.
“Unnie, what’s wrong? Why are you sad?”
“It’s nothing. I’m okay. It’s just that unnie wants to see Hanuri, but it’s hard to do so.”
“Heeing… I want to see unnie often too.”
Though she tried to hide it at Hanuri's words, it was too obvious. Her attempt to score points with Hanuri.
It seemed she had realized early on by watching him with Hanuri.
That he was weak when it came to Hanuri.
Do-yoon knew that and just let it pass.
“Ajosshi…”
Hanuri looked up at him like the cat from Puss in Boots.
The look in her eyes was identical.
He couldn’t fathom how one child could have so many cute expressions.
Although Lee Ha-na’s actions were impudent, they were sufficiently made up for by getting to see Hanuri’s adorable side.
“I’ll still be able to contact you from here, so let’s stay in touch. Then I’ll come visit with Hanuri.”
"Ah! Hanuri is going to visit unnie?"
“Why? You don’t want that?”
“Nooo… hehe, I like it!”
“Alright. Then let’s go together. By the way, Hanuri, do you like that unnie more than ajosshi?”
“Ah! No… Hanuri likes ajosshi more! The most!”
He playfully teased her for no reason, and as expected, her response was great.
Holding the child who was clinging to him, he looked at the two adults.
"We're done talking, so you can go."
“Yes. Then Hanuri, uncle will be leaving now. See you again, okay?”
“Hanuri, make sure to visit unnie, alright?”
As soon as his words ended, Park Ki-ho and Lee Ha-na said their goodbyes to Hanuri.
“Uh-huh! Byeee~ unnie, uncle, see you again~ oh, and Yongyong too!”
Hanuri waved her hands at the two people as they left.
Then, she ran over to Yongyong, stroked its head, and said goodbye.
That ferocious wyvern, which even Park Ki-ho was still afraid of, was nothing more than a gentle puppy in front of Hanuri.
It even lowered its neck and let out a purring sound as if asking to be stroked more.
‘It’s not even a dog, for crying out loud.’
It was a ridiculous sight, yet somehow it also fit perfectly.
Watching the scene, he silently pondered.
‘What was it again? The qualifications for adoption were a stable job and assets, right?’
Both could be resolved at once.
It was just a matter of time.
The tangled aura around Hanuri would probably be the same.
There was no need to rush.
While creating good memories with Hanuri,
That’s how he planned to handle it.
***
The two who had come in a rush left just as quickly, and the quiet didn’t last long.
Kyup kyup!
“Ah! Kkoma, you! Stop right there! That’s mine…”
The Bear Siblings, who had been soundly sleeping, woke up, and the yard became noisy again.
Kkoma was running around the yard with something in his mouth.
‘He’s running pretty well now.’
The timid personality he had at the beginning seemed to have disappeared entirely as he darted about.
Of course, he was still just a baby bear running.
"Got you!"
Kkyuuung!
Caught by Hanuri, Kkoma rolled around on the ground, stubbornly refusing to let go of what was in his mouth.
The sight of Hanuri wrestling with him looked just like a child rolling around with a fluffy toy.
Do-yoon quietly took out his phone and started recording.
It was because of something he had read a few days ago while looking up parenting information.
‘It said it’s good to keep records.’
Many parents left records from the time their children were young, journals, photos, videos, and the like.
Later, when the child grew up and looked back on them, they said it felt like they had returned to that time.
Thinking about it, he realized he might not get to see these moments again.
The child would grow up, and while her future self would also be cute and lovely,
‘This version of her exists only now, only once.’
Though it slightly deviated from the original purpose, he got a satisfactory result.
Namely, the video.
Other things were nice, but the video was the best.
It captured the moment closest to how it felt right now, even if not perfectly.
“Ajosshiii…”
While he was busily filming Hanuri playing and rolling around with Kkoma, she suddenly called out to him.
“Why?”
“Kkoma…”
“What about Kkoma?”
He handed his phone, still recording, to the shadow hand and approached her.
The shadow hand kept the video focused on Hanuri.
It didn’t seem like a big deal, but her pouty, upset expression was too adorable to miss.
“Kkoma ate Hanuri’s stuff…”
A soft chuckle escaped him.
As expected, it wasn’t a big deal.
“Hanuri.”
“Uuung…”
“Kkoma is still a baby.”
“A baby?”
“Yes, a baby. But Hanuri doesn’t seem as much of a baby as Kkoma, right?”
“Right! Hanuri isn’t as much of a baby as Kkoma. Hanuri is taller and also…”
Hanuri tried hard to think of more reasons to prove she was less of a baby, but couldn’t come up with anything else.
He gave her a reasonable answer.
“And Hanuri is probably older too.”
“Older? How old is Kkoma?”
“Maybe one or two years old?”
It wasn’t a lie.
Judging by the Bear Siblings’ aura, they seemed to be around that age.
“How old is Hanuri?”
“Hanuri is five years old…”
“Then Hanuri is Kkoma’s noona, right?”
“Yeah! Hanuri is noona!”
“Then, as the noona, don’t you think you could share a piece of the apple with Kkoma?”
It was quite a persuasive argument, even to him.
Had he always been this persuasive?
No.
He was someone who, by nature, used his fists more than his words.
Instead of wasting time convincing someone, he preferred to handle things quickly with his fists.
But…
‘Maybe I’ve changed a little thanks to Hanuri.’
In any case, it was clear that Hanuri had influenced him.
“Since… since I’m noona… hehe. Okay! I’ll share since I’m noona.”
“Good girl, Hanuri. You know how to share with your little brother.”
“Uh-huh! Hanuri is kind. Kkoma, eat lots and grow big, okay?”
Kkyuu?
Hanuri patted Kkoma’s head with a somewhat mature expression.
But since she was still only five, the scene was nothing but cute.
Even Kkoma, who was on the receiving end of her generosity, looked utterly confused.
“Kind kids deserve a present from ajosshi, don’t they?”
"Present?"
At the mention of a present, Hanuri’s eyes sparkled with anticipation as she stared at him.
To meet her expectations, he pulled out the Porong doll he had saved to give her later.
It was a doll he had spent all his money on last time.
Of course, he hadn’t planned to give it to her now, but it was the perfect moment, so he couldn’t hold back.
“Wowww! It’s Porong!”
As expected, Hanuri’s reaction was intense.
Clutching the Porong doll, she looked like she had the whole world in her hands.
“Porong… hehe… it’s Porong.”
“You like Porong that much?”
“Uh-huh!”
Her answer came without a moment of hesitation.
Seeing that, he suddenly felt like teasing her.
“Even more than ajosshi?”
“Huh? Th-that..."
Uh-oh.
She hesitated.
He hadn’t expected her to hesitate.
Swallowing nervously, he wondered, Am I going to lose to a doll?
Watching her little chubby mouth move as if chewing on her thoughts made him feel strangely tense.
What answer was going to come out of that mouth?
Am I really going to lose to a doll?
Gulp.
He swallowed again as Hanuri’s mouth finally opened.
“Por… Porong is nice, but I like ajosshi more…”
Phew-
Why did he feel so relieved?
She had hesitated slightly at first when mentioning Porong, but he knew Hanuri wouldn’t lie.
“Right? You like ajosshi more, don’t you?”
“Uh-huh! I like ajosshi more!”
Only after confirming it again did he feel satisfied.
He silently vowed never to ask again whether she liked him or a doll better.
‘1-0, a complete victory.’
The record wouldn’t be broken.
“Ajosshi, can Hanuri go play with Porong now?”
“Sure. Play with Kkoma too.”
“Uh-huh! Hehe!”
Watching Hanuri run off with Porong in her arms, he swiftly extended the shadow hand.
The phone that had been recording was pulled into his hand.
‘Should I delete this?’
After ending the video, he found himself deeply contemplating the message on the screen: “Save this recording?”
The video was focused on Hanuri.
But at the very end, during his so-called "battle" with Porong, his overly awkward voice had been captured, so cringeworthy that it made him second-guess.
The sound of him swallowing nervously to avoid losing to a doll was recorded in full detail.
[Save.]
After much deliberation, he eventually decided to save it.
It wasn’t like he was going to show it to anyone anyway.
Hanuri wrestling with Kkoma, puffing herself up and declaring she was a noona, and her cute hesitation while deciding between Porong and him, those moments were just too precious.
Her wide, sparkling eyes showed a tiny earthquake of uncertainty, and she nervously chewed her lips…
If he deleted it, he’d never get to see it again. That alone made it impossible to erase.
‘Besides, I won in the end.’
Convincing himself it was a victorious record, he slipped the phone back into his pocket.
At that moment,
Kyuuung!
Unlike Kkoma, who was chasing after Hanuri’s doll, Kkomi, who had been glued to his side, suddenly made eye contact with him.
For some reason, he felt like the bear cub was mocking him.
***
At the same time.
Park Ki-ho, who went up to the top floor of the Taegeuk Guild building for the first time, looked at the woman before him with a pounding heart.
Ahn Soo-hwa.
She was the representative of the Taegeuk Guild and one of only ten S-rank hunters in the country.
She was also someone Park Ki-ho greatly admired.
“I’ve been briefed. So, that person said this?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm. As expected, the Hunter Bureau seems to be involved. No wonder they were so quick to grant permission for a wyvern to fly over the city.”
Ahn Soo-hwa tapped her finger on the table, deep in thought, her gaze fixed on Park Ki-ho.
When her intense stare made him feel uneasy enough to swallow nervously, Ahn Soo-hwa finally spoke.
“I’ll approve everything.”
“Pardon?”
“Tell him we agree to all the conditions he mentioned. And I’d like him to come to us as soon as possible.”
"Really?"
"I heard he was encountered in an A-rank Dungeon. That he walks around A-rank Dungeons like they're playgrounds. And the fact that he lives in Chuncheon… At least A-rank, no. He could potentially be estimated as S-rank, so that much is fine."
“That may be true, but verification is still-”
“Sometimes, verification is just a waste of time. Do you think he’s only targeting the Hunter Bureau?”
“Pardon?”
“The investigation team.”
“Ah!”
“It probably came up on their radar too. By now, they’re likely looking into him. Which means we need to bring him to us quickly, don’t you think?”
Ahn Soo-hwa’s gaze carried a subtle pressure as she looked at Park Ki-ho.
“Yes, I’ll contact him right away!”
“Hold on a moment.”
"Yes?"
Ahn Soo-hwa stopped Park Ki-ho as he reached for his phone to contact Do-yoon.
“You said he seems to care a lot about the child, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“To make the negotiation go more smoothly… let’s decide on a better meeting place first.”
“A meeting place?”
“Kids don’t exactly enjoy visiting offices, do they?”
That was true.
Offices and children didn’t exactly match.
“How about this? Something casual, like over a meal.”
“A meal? That sounds good. I’ll find a nice restaurant-”
“There’s no need. There’s a tonkatsu place right nearby that should be perfect.”
"Ton...katsu?"
Park Ki-ho looked puzzled by the unexpected choice.
“Tonkatsu is a hit with kids. Oh, and I like it too. Don’t you, Park Ki-ho ssi?”
“Of course! Who doesn’t like tonkatsu?”
There was no way anyone disliked tonkatsu. While personal preferences might vary, tonkatsu was universally loved.
“Good. Then go ahead and contact him. I’ll head to the tonkatsu place.”
“Yes!”
***
“Tonkatsu? Really? We’re really going to eat tonkatsu?”
“Yes.”
“Waaah… Hanuri loves tonkatsu.”
He already knew that.
After all, there had been a time when tonkatsu was served at the hospital.
That was partly why he had immediately accepted Park Ki-ho’s invitation.
It would also be Hanuri’s first time eating tonkatsu at a restaurant.
But just as Hanuri was getting excited, she suddenly hesitated.
“But… what about Kkoma and Kkomi?”
“Hmm…”
Kyup?
Kyuung?
Hearing their names, the two bear cubs tilted their heads in unison at Hanuri’s words, as if they understood.
*****