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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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I rushed out the door to double-check.
It was.
This was my house.
‘Who are those people? Are they burglars?’
[Are you sure this is your house?]
Just as I was about to ask…
Time, which had been frozen, resumed its flow.
The woman screamed.
“Kyaaa! There’s a robber in the house!”
“Wait! Wait! Wait!”
“Honey! Help me!”
“Get out! How dare you break into our house!”
I froze, stunned by their reaction.
The man grabbed some utensils and threw them at me.
‘Seriously, a Myriad Flower Rain attack with kitchenware?’
[Do those even count as hidden weapons?]
Hye-ji, who was waiting behind me with an expectant look, was also startled by the sudden attack.
I quickly grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the house.
“Wh-what’s going on? Shinwoo, isn’t that your house?”
“It is. But why are there assassins inside?”
“Where are we going?”
“Somewhere soundproof, where no one can see us, and no one can enter!”
“…Shinwoo, isn’t that a bit… inappropriate to ask for in this situation?”
She mumbled, her head hanging low.
Even though I couldn’t see her face, her ears were as red as her hair.
She seemed to have made up her mind and was about to speak, but…
“If you’re okay with it, I don’t mind-”
“The police will be here any minute!!!”
“Huh?”
Her expression instantly turned cold.
It was a look of pure disdain.
She dragged me into a dark alley and started beating me up.
“Did I! Teach you! To do that?!”
“Ow! Wait! Let me explain!”
“Hye-ji is disappointed in you!!!”
“I can explain everything!”
“Save it for hell!”
Her strength was incredible for her small frame.
I was completely helpless, unable to defend myself against her one-sided assault.
After a long struggle, I finally managed to explain the situation.
“So you’re saying that is your house, but there are other people living there? Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
“…You kept interrupting me.”
“Whatever. So, where do you actually live?”
“Hold on, let me make a call.”
I took out my phone and tried calling my dad.
After a few rings, he finally picked up.
“Dad, where are we living now?”
-“…Help me.”
The call ended abruptly.
I tried calling again, but he didn’t answer.
So I tried calling my mom.
After several unanswered calls, she finally picked up.
But…
“Mom, where-”
-“Hang up.”
She hung up before I could even finish my sentence.
I tried calling again, but…
Her phone was now turned off.
‘…Am I even their son?’
[You’re definitely not adopted.]
Hye-ji, seeing that I couldn’t reach them, looked at me with concern.
“Shinwoo, do you even have a home? Is there anyone else you can contact?”
“Ah! Wait! There’s one more person.”
I quickly remembered Old Man Kang-hyuk and called him.
This time, he picked up immediately.
“Old man! Do you know where my house is?”
-“It’s right next to mine, but hold on! There’s some crazy woman here looking for me!”
‘It must be Professor Kim Ji-sun.’
[It’s time for him to pay for his sins.]
‘He deserves it for dumping everything into Elf coin.’
“Just tell me the address! Quickly!”
-“No, wait! The door just got split in half! Hold on, I’ll send you the address later!”
I could faintly hear a woman yelling “Give me my money back, you bastard!” in the background.
Followed by the sound of shattering glass.
The call ended.
“…This is insane.”
“…Shinwoo, if you have nowhere to go, you can come to my place.”
“Are you sure? I don’t want to impose.”
“It’s fine! We have plenty of spare rooms!”
She smiled brightly, trying to be kind.
But there was something intense in her eyes.
Then…
“Oh, I just got the address.”
“Damn it, the timing!”
Old Man Kang-hyuk had sent me the address.
Hye-ji glared at me, fuming.
Ignoring her anger, I checked the address.
“It’s a bit far, but it’s within walking distance.”
[Dear, are you sure it’s the correct address this time?]
‘This time, it’s real.’
Hye-ji, still suspicious, asked to see the address.
She seemed to be hoping that it was wrong.
“Shinwoo, let me see.”
I handed her my phone.
She compared it with something on her phone.
Then, she sighed,
“Ha… It’s near my house.”
“Really? Let’s go then.”
“Ugh, fine. It’s not that far, so let’s hurry.”
Suddenly, we heard sirens in the distance.
“…”
“…”
“Should we run?”
“Yeah.”
A brief exchange, but it was all we needed.
Without another word, we started running towards the address.
We avoided the police cars, just in case.
Later, I heard there was a manhunt in my old neighborhood.
They were searching for a suspicious man who was breaking into houses by picking locks, accompanied by a cross-dressing boy.
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“This is it, right?”
“I hope so.”
[This one is also tired.]
‘Please let it be real, damn it.’
We finally reached the house after avoiding the police cars.
The journey wasn’t easy.
Especially at the park.
“You crazy bastard! We’re in a hurry, why are you picking a fight?!”
“That dog started it!”
[Dear, even this one thinks you went too far.]
‘If someone provokes you, you have to fight back.’
If you just lower your head and walk away when someone insults you…
It’s a guaranteed frustrating moment for the readers.
But Hye-ji, as if she couldn’t understand my logic, yelled,
“Why are you barking back at a puppy?!”
“It called me a homeless loser!”
[…Why did you even understand it?]
‘If you listen with your heart, you can understand.’
Hye-ji sighed and rubbed her temples, looking exasperated.
But…
“Seriously, stop getting angry over such trivial things.”
“And it called you ‘the wall-titted wonder!’ Where is it?!”
“That son of a bitch!!! Where are you?!”
The tables turned instantly.
Hye-ji started searching for the dog.
Her determination was so fierce that it was hard to stop her.
We looked up at the building we had finally reached.
“So, this is it?”
“I think so? This is my first time in an apartment building.”
It was a five-year-old apartment complex, not brand new, but well-maintained.
Even the playground equipment wasn’t rusty.
We wandered around for a bit before finally reaching the right door.
“Shinwoo, I have a bad feeling about this.”
“This is it.”
Hye-ji was still anxious.
But I was certain.
Because the door of the apartment next to mine was split in half.
‘This is the 12th floor, he must have jumped from here.’
[He wouldn’t have sent the address if he was dead. Let’s go in.]
I had never seen this apartment before.
Naturally, I didn’t know the passcode.
All I could do was ring the doorbell repeatedly.
The door remained stubbornly shut.
I hadn’t planned on using this, but I had no choice.
I knocked on the door and shouted,
“Delivery!”
“Coming!”
The door opened immediately.
A woman stood there.
She looked much younger than her actual age, her long black hair tied back loosely.
She looked exactly the same as six months ago.
It was my mom.
She was wearing casual clothes, as if she had been at home.
I was about to greet her,
“Mom, I’m-”
When she suddenly tried to slam the door shut.
But I wasn’t going to let that happen.
I had grown up with a mother like this, after all.
I quickly stuck my foot in the doorway to prevent the door from closing.
“Hey! Open the door! It’s your son!”
“You’re still at the academy! You imposter!”
“It’s summer break! Summer break, damn it!!!”
“…Oh? Really?”
The door finally opened.
“Now that I look at you, you do look like my good-for-nothing son.”
“…It would’ve been nice if you had realized that earlier.”
“Come in quickly. We don’t want any bugs getting inside.”
Then, she noticed Hye-ji.
“Oh, who is this?”
“H-hello! My name is Kim Hye-ji! I’m Shinwoo’s… classmate!”
Hye-ji stammered nervously, her voice trembling.
She looked like an unfinished robot equipped with a still-developing AI.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Shinwoo’s mom. Call me ‘Mom’”.
“Yes, Mom!”
“Shinwoo actually brought home a cute girl?”
Hye-ji’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Do… do I look like a girl?”
“Of course you do! Are you a boy?”
“No, no! I’m just… so touched! Sob sob.”
Tears welled up in her eyes.
It seemed she was moved that someone finally recognized her as a girl.
‘Who the hell would mistake such a delicate girl for a boy?’
[…Are you even human?]
My mom comforted Hye-ji, ushering her inside.
She quickly closed the door behind them, as if to prevent any bugs from entering.
It was perfect.
Except for the part where they left me outside.
“Open the door, damn it!!!!”
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Thirty minutes later, the door cautiously opened.
But it wasn’t my mom.
It was Hye-ji, who had regained her composure.
‘Um… I am their son, right?’
[…Even this one is confused now.]
The aroma of food greeted us as we stepped inside.
It was dinner time.
And my dad was sitting at the table.
But…
“Shinwoo… you’re home.”
He didn’t look well.
He used to be muscular, with a bit of a belly.
But he was different now.
He was thin, his face gaunt and his cheekbones prominent.
The only thing that was the same was his slightly graying hair.
Thankfully, he hadn’t gone bald.
‘That’s a relief. Thank goodness.’
[This one is also relieved. Congratulations.]
The apartment looked different.
But there was an even bigger difference.
“…Why is there a dog?”
“We got him from an acquaintance.”
A chihuahua.
Its small body trembled with 50% fear and 50% aggression.
And it was running around our house.
Hye-ji looked at it apprehensively.
“Shinwoo, aren’t chihuahuas supposed to be aggressive? You’re not planning on doing anything to your family’s dog, are you?”
“I understand your concern, but they’re not always aggressive.”
I slowly extended my hand towards the trembling chihuahua.
I didn’t know if it was trembling out of fear or aggression, but…
“A dog’s aggression has nothing to do with its breed.”
“Then what?”
“It depends on the owner-”
Chomp!!!
The chihuahua bit my hand hard and tried to shake me off.
It was definitely trembling with aggression.
“Chihuahuas are the worst.”
[You have a hole in your hand, dear.]
‘Oh, shit.’
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