Chapter My Dad Is This Kind of Person
Glittering sunlight tickled her eyes.
‘Morning!’
When morning came, Gru opened her eyes wide and lifted the round item she’d been sleeping with in her arms high above her head once more.
‘Not a dream!’
Gru steadied her pounding heart, her chin tucked to her chest.
She’d been anxious even while sleeping with it in her arms, afraid it might be a dream.
‘Gru’s transformation item……’
Gru hopped up and turned it on to check the blueprints for the ‘Metallic Armor Changer’.
As expected, the mechanism was similar to the mana amplification item that had sent Taemin on a rampage last time.
It seemed to be a form where rampaging mana enveloped the body, converted into metal fibers in the process, and clad the wearer in powered armor filled with explosive mana…….
“But Bey, if it’s an item made like this, won’t I end up like Big Brother Taemin?”
Gru whispered, recalling Taemin when his mana rampaged. Beilack checked the item and nodded.
“Mumu.”
It meant it could be dangerous if used continuously.
“Hmm.”
Then it would have to be modified.
She couldn’t use it like this, but if she extracted Star Candy using ‘Pluck-Pluck’ and transplanted it, it would become a safe transformation item.
Smiling in satisfaction, Gru stealthily crept to open her bag so as not to be caught by Jurim sleeping beside her.
‘When we get back, I’m definitely transforming.’
It was only after she’d hidden the item deep in her bag that she woke Jurim.
Since she might get scolded for causing another accident, last night’s incident was made a secret shared only among Gru, Mephy, and Chuen.
As they got up and got ready, a brief commotion broke out outside the room.
Iromi, who had woken up at the crack of dawn, ran to PD Hwang and explained that the assistant staff member was a henchman of the former president.
“He ran away the moment he was caught, I’m telling you?!”
Gru was anxious that Iromi might talk about Chuen, but fortunately, Iromi concocted a plausible story.
That the former president had planted someone to ruin the variety show, and that he had been rummaging around and ran away when caught by her…….
It seemed her memory was tangled thanks to the goldfish Chuen had attached.
After the production crew and cast all checked whether their belongings were intact and nothing was missing, and after a meeting that lasted until morning—
As everyone wished, it was decided that filming would continue as is.
After twists and turns, before the start of the day once more—
“Hut, two, three, four, two-two three four.”
While doing morning exercises with Iromi, Kazuki, and Uju, Gru made a resolution.
‘This won’t do.’
At the end of Gru’s fiercely burning gaze lay Jurim, sprawled out sleeping on the wooden floor.
Who knows what he’d been doing all night yesterday, since he hadn’t returned until Gru fell asleep, and in the morning after the commotion he couldn’t even open his eyes properly, wandering around like a zombie before flopping down completely on the wooden floor when it was time for exercises.
He’d said he was past the age for exercises like this.
‘Even though he’s the same age as Master.’
Stretching both arms straight out and leaning to the side, Gru pouted her lips.
Kazuki, doing exercises in the same posture, broke into a bright smile when their eyes met.
“……!”
Kazuki, who worked hard at everything, was indeed worthy of being called a treasure of (former) Japan and a role model for adults, but Jurim was lazy and indolent, utterly lacking in maturity.
Gru stared at Jurim with worried eyes, like a parent with a burdensome child.
‘They’re going to be recruiting new members for Hyeonak now……’
She was endlessly worried that Jurim might end up being bullied by the new recruits.
Clouds billowed in her mind.
Imagining the new sheep whispering behind a black wolf, Gru’s face crumpled into a tearful expression.
‘That can’t happen!’
After finishing exercises, the two adults and two children, excluding Jurim, spent time worrying over the breakfast menu.
“What should we do today?”
“We’re a bit sick of eggs, right?”
Uju nodded at Iromi’s words, and Gru clenched her fist, speaking forcefully.
“Fishie!”
“Fish?!”
“Don’t we have to catch fish?”
Surprised, Uju and Iromi spoke up in succession.
But Gru, who had already made up her mind firmly, pulled out a fork.
“I’ll catch ’em!”
The child who spoke thus pointed at Jurim with her index finger.
“With Dad!”
“……?”
Jurim opened his eyes halfway, a question mark floating above his head.
Regardless, Gru flared her nostrils huffily.
This time, she would capture Jurim’s cool side on camera.
That our dad is this kind of person, that the Hyeonak Guild Leader is such a reliable, kind, and cool person—she would definitely show them!
*
Down a winding narrow country path toward the stream.
Jurim checked again whether she was following well as he looked down at Gru taking the lead.
Her appearance going to catch fish looked almost desperate, to the point it felt quite bizarre.
When Jurim approached and held her hand from the side, Gru broke into a beaming smile.
Other than that, she didn’t look particularly strange.
‘Could it be my problem?’
Jurim, who had been reflecting on himself recently while smiling back at her, was suddenly shocked.
The thought crossed his mind that he might have been lacking in attention to the child lately.
They’d even come on a rural experience trip, yet here the dad was not paying any attention to what his child was doing; she might have grown anxious.
Feeling disappointed in himself, Jurim swept one hand down his face.
“…….”
He clenched and unclenched his left hand.
It was his nature that the worse the situation, the more his fighting spirit flared.
So Jurim resolved to pay more attention to Gru, and Gru set her goal on Jurim showing a more reliable side, and the two arrived at the stream.
Gru rummaged through her inventory and pulled out a fork and a children’s cart.
“Catch ’em with this, and put ’em in here.”
“With this? Okay.”
When Jurim showed some motivation, Gru’s eyes sparkled immediately, her mood improving at once.
“Let’s catch meat!”
“Yeah.”
Jurim rolled up Gru’s pant cuffs, then picked up the cart and set it in the middle of the stream.
Gru stood alone in the ankle-deep stream, holding the fork with Mephy perched on her head.
“Hm?”
Jurim was leisurely half-lying on a rock, wearing sunglasses.
Before she could even wonder why the person who should be catching fish was enjoying the sun by himself while she held the fork—
“Gru, hold up the fork.”
“Yesh?”
Reflexively, Gru lifted the fork she was clutching with both hands.
“Stab.”
“……Hah!”
When Gru poked, a fish was impaled on the fork and flopped.
“Scree!”
“Whoa!”
Mephisto and Gru made a fuss over the fish that had been caught so easily.
“I caught it!”
After Gru moved the fish into the cart, Jurim ruffled her hair with his hand.
“Good job.”
Hwa! Gru’s cheeks flushed red.
“Go hold it up again.”
Nodding, Gru dashed back to the water’s edge.
Before she knew it, her mouth was set in a firm line, her eyes sharply open like a seagull chasing prey.
Toward Gru, who held the fork above her head like a tiny warrior, Jurim’s order fell.
“Now.”
“……!”
Afterward, the moment Gru came to her senses was after she had solidly caught about ten fish and saw the cameraman giving a thumbs-up.
*
“Did you have fun?”
“Uh-huh!”
“Since we’ve played enough, let’s go now.”
“Okey.”
Gru was hopping on the stones by the stream when she suddenly stopped.
‘Huh?’
It had been fun.
That was true.
But only now did she recall that hadn’t been what she’d come here to do.
‘Gru was so cool and active that I couldn’t capture Dad’s cool performance……’
Gru, you got too carried away with the fork……
As Jurim, finished preparing to leave, dragged the cart over, Gru grabbed his hand and began to sniffle.
Her mouth corners quivering, she looked up at him with welled-up eyes, and Jurim flusteredly picked her up.
“Why, why are you crying. All of a sudden?”
“Hyuuung……”
“Is it because you want to catch more fish? Should we not go yet?”
Gru shook her head wildly.
“Nooo…… *sniff!*”
Gru hugged Jurim’s neck.
“Sorry, Dad.”
“For what?”
“Gru was too cool.”
“……?”
Today Gru was too cool, but tomorrow for sure, I’ll capture Dad’s cool side…….
“Uh…… right. You were cool…… You caught a lot of fish too.”
“Hyuung…… K-eung!”
When he praised her, Gru tried even harder to hold back her tears.
Jurim patted the child’s back with a puzzled face, then pushed the cart and turned his steps toward home.