Midas with the Absolute Glasses, Episode 3
* * *
Yuhan knocked on the door of Lee Dahui's divination shop early in the morning and called her out.
She came out rubbing her eyes, still half-asleep, unable to even open them properly, wearing a multicolored Winnie the Pooh pajama set.
"What is it? Why all this fuss so early in the morning?"
"Ta-da!"
Lee Dahui turned her gaze in the direction Yuhan was gesturing.
[Celebrating our collab: Maiden Bosal & Seer Taoist — One free question every day!]
Lee Dahui was dumbfounded seeing the banner Yuhan had prepared and hung up.
"You! Did you head back early yesterday to prepare this?"
"Yeah, now that preparations are done, let's make some money!"
Lee Dahui was speechless, but she liked how hard Yuhan was working, so she decided to let it be.
"It came out clean and nice at least!"
"I told them to design it so it catches the eye the most!"
Even to Lee Dahui's eyes, it felt like it stood out well.
'Will people really come just because we did this?'
Lee Dahui tried to follow Yuhan, who had gone inside first.
Just then, someone grabbed her arm and asked.
"Is it starting today?"
"Huh? What?"
"The one free fortune reading—is it starting today?"
"Yes! Please come in two hours!"
"Got it! I'll stop by later!"
A neighborhood lady who had glanced at it while passing by asked and went on her way.
'Does the advertisement actually work?'
Yuhan and Lee Dahui finished their preparations.
They arranged the seats as they had yesterday and were simply waiting for customers.
Opening time arrived.
About ten minutes later, they heard someone entering from outside.
"Are you open? May I come in?"
"Yes! Please come in."
This was Yuhan's first customer.
And for Lee Dahui, it was a welcome customer who hadn't visited in a long time.
"Hello!"
Two ladies who looked to be in their fifties entered and greeted them.
"Please, have a seat!"
Lee Dahui offered them seats.
From behind the curtain, Yuhan carefully observed the two ladies seated across from Lee Dahui.
"As it says outside, is one thing unconditionally free?"
"Yes, that's right! You're our first customer today!"
"Oh my~! I was right! See? I told you so, didn't I?"
The lady who had asked Lee Dahui about it that morning said excitedly to the dignified lady beside her.
Then Lee Dahui continued.
"What are you here to ask about?"
One of the ladies stayed quiet.
The lady who had asked about business hours that morning spoke up first.
"What about the new Taoist priest?"
"Over~ there! He's watching from behind the curtain."
"Yes! Well, we have our eldest son...!"
"Hold on!"
Yuhan, who had already been watching through his glasses, interrupted loudly from behind the curtain.
[Eldest son, age 28, writing martial arts novel.]
"Hmm~ Your eldest son is writing a book! Let me see! Yap! A martial arts novel!"
Yuhan started mimicking a shaman, as if he had seen it somewhere.
Lee Dahui, finding Yuhan funny, struggled to hold back her laughter.
"Oh, wait a moment! May I make a quick phone call?"
"Please do!"
The lady made a call somewhere.
It was to check whether he really didn't know about her son.
"Hello! Yeah. Ah~ son, what are you doing right now? You said you're writing a book? What kind of book? Yeah. Martial ar... *gasp!* I see! I'll hang up~!"
Everyone present except Yuhan was slightly surprised.
The lady who hung up the phone adjusted her posture.
She immediately knelt down and asked, looking toward Yuhan.
"Excuse me, what should we do about our son?"
Yuhan remembered that he hadn't tested whether he could see the future.
Just as he thought, 'Could this see the future too?' text appeared.
[Grand prize winner at year-end web novel contest.]
'Gasp! It appeared. Jackpot! It even shows details.'
"Please support him! There will be good news at the end of the year."
"Oh, thank you, Taoist Priest! Then when will our son be able to get married?"
At that moment, Lee Dahui cut in and spoke.
"You've received one answer, so please show your sincerity!"
"Oh my, look at my manners! I should have offered the divination fee first!"
The lady opened her wallet and was about to hurriedly take out money.
Just then, the lady beside her grabbed her hand and stopped her.
She demurely took out a 100,000-won check from her own wallet and placed it on the table in front of Lee Dahui.
"Please take good care of this."
"Yes! Understood. Seer Taoist~!"
Lee Dahui pocketed the check and called out to Yuhan loudly, addressing him as Taoist Priest.
Yuhan, who had foreseen this, answered immediately.
"Yes, he will get married next autumn after his novel does well this year."
"Oh my! Thank you."
Yuhan listened to the lady's thanks and said.
"Let's stop here for you today, Madam, and see the lady beside you as well!"
Yuhan carefully watched the lady beside her in the act of paying.
The first lady was dressed in common neighborhood clothes, but her friend beside her was not.
Yuhan didn't know much about luxury brands.
However, her clothes, the bag she carried, her speech and mannerisms all looked refined and luxurious.
Moreover, the lady's slender figure and youthful looks, faintly visible beneath her long, flowing skirt, were so outstanding she could pass for a middle-aged celebrity.
She looked wealthy too, so if things went well, he felt he could get a lot of money from her.
The first lady was disappointed but decided to be satisfied there, then began nudging her friend and urging her to give it a try.
The lady who had followed her friend here was 49 years old, and her name was Kim Seon.
She had been to church before, but today was her first time visiting a temple or fortune-telling shop.
She had come because her friend pestered her, and indeed, the ability to guess correctly seemed amazing.
Still, since she had no real interest in this sort of thing, she felt oddly spiteful.
Suddenly, she wanted to see Yuhan flustered.
'Shall I create a satisfying twist?'
"Try to guess why I came here! Then I'll ask my real question!"
She hoped he would naturally fail and say something nonsensical.
"You had nothing to do, so you followed your friend!"
"......."
Everyone was surprised by Seer Taoist Yuhan's words.
Kim Seon pondered for a moment, then asked again.
"If you get even one thing about my past right, I'll admit you're the real deal!"
Kim Seon felt a bit embarrassed by her blunder, having failed at the satisfying twist she'd wanted.
She was someone who never slipped up with people, so she was honestly quite flustered.
"You miscarried once and haven't been able to conceive since, and your husband has passed away!"
Everyone fell silent at those words.
The friend lady was astonished, thinking he was incredibly skilled.
Lee Dahui was surprised, worrying that Yuhan's words had been too rude.
However, Kim Seon herself was not surprised.
Instead, she calmly took out a 1,000,000-won check and placed it down.
"You've had a hard life!"
She placed the check down and tried to turn around and leave.
"Wait!"
Yuhan sprang up, ran out, snatched the check, and handed it back to her.
"I'll read your fortune for free for life! So please come often!"
"Hey! Have you lost your—!"
Startled by Yuhan's words, Lee Dahui tried to explode in anger, but realizing customers were present, she hastily shut her mouth.
* * *
As soon as business ended, they went out for a celebratory meal.
Yuhan and Lee Dahui were in a good mood, having earned 100,000 won for the first time.
"Hey! How do you guess so well?"
"Just a hunch. What!"
"Tell me the truth already?"
"I just sort of see things a little!"
"See what? By the way, what's with those glasses you've been wearing?"
"Huh! No! Give them here!"
Lee Dahui swiftly snatched Yuhan's glasses and put them on herself.
She looked around as if searching for something, then approached the mirror.
Seeing her reflection wearing the glasses, she let out a silly laugh, perhaps feeling awkward.
Then she made various funny faces and goofed around like a fool.
'Ah, right. I should test whether I can see myself too by looking in the mirror. But if noona sees it too, what will I say?'
Just then, Lee Dahui came back and said.
"Glasses don't suit me! They actually look pretty good on you, Yuhan."
"No! I wear them because my eyes are bad!"
Fortunately, it seemed the text wasn't visible to Dahui.
"As expected of a talented guy! Handsome and humble too."
"If we're talking looks, noona is prettier!"
Lee Dahui possessed a beauty that would captivate anyone.
Even without trying to dress up, men passing by would steal glances at her.
Both had been single since birth, and neither was completely uninterested in the other.
"But why did you say that without taking her money?"
"Ah~ you'll understand if you watch!"
Yuhan had been thinking about how to get a lot of money from Kim Seon.
Then the glasses showed him text.
[Do not take the money. Show your face and earn favor. Keeping her close will bring great wealth.]
Shortly after, their order of samgyeopsal arrived, and the two started grilling the meat, mouths watering.
* * *
It was the living room of an apartment in Gangnam.
A luxury sofa and a large TV. And the latest massage chair. This place, boasting a clean and bright interior, was Kim Seon's home.
Today, she had had a truly mysterious experience.
She had forced herself to go to church because she couldn't conceive, but this was her first time meeting a shaman.
And the young shaman she had met for the first time in her life knew so much about her.
She hadn't been able to stop thinking about what happened at the divination shop the whole way home.
Rather, her interest had grown bigger and bigger.
The young bespectacled shaman had said he would read her fortune for free for life without even receiving a divination fee.
She became curious whether he would seem just as mysterious to other people, and whether he could read their fortunes just as well.
'Shall I use a quick method!'
Having finished her thought, she picked up her smartphone.
She began writing something while uploading the photo she had taken when leaving the divination shop earlier.
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* * *
Yuhan returned home after having dinner with Dahui.
Today felt truly rewarding.
But then the time to go to work at the convenience store approached.
He didn't know what would become of the divination shop, but a reluctance to work at the convenience store began squirming and taking root in a corner of his heart.
'Ah! Right. Let's see if I can see mine too!'
Yuhan went to the mirror by the front door, looked at his reflection, and began thinking.
'Can I make a lot of money?'
"...Doesn't work?"
'Let me try again! What happens tomorrow?'
"...It really doesn't work."
Yuhan giggled and returned to his room, perhaps finding himself funny for having expected it to work.
"So what if I can't see mine! As long as I can see other people's well!"
Having confirmed that he couldn't see his own, he changed his clothes and headed to work at the convenience store.
Ring-a-ling~!
"Welco— hey! Why are you so late! You didn't hurry!"
"I'm sorry! Something came up!"
"I'm docking one hour's wage for being late."