Because the interest in On Jurim was so great, there had been a few insolent visitors who had barged into the kindergarten, but whenever the director contacted somewhere, people who said they were from Hyeonak appeared and took the guests away.
In truth, On Jurim did not exactly have the image of a good guardian, so she had been quite worried, but it did not seem as though he was simply neglecting the child.
That time, too…….
She recalled Jurim, who had brought the child all the way to kindergarten when she had been troubled over a problem with her friends.
‘It did look like the child was quite attached to him.’
The two of them speaking softly in front of the kindergarten had truly looked like father and daughter. She had even glimpsed affection in Jurim as he hugged Geuru.
Hmm, what was it? Yuni asked as she approached Geuru.
“Geuru, is the sitter auntie coming to pick you up again today?”
“Yes…….”
When Geuru turned her head, Yuni knelt in front of her and took her small hands in hers.
“Teacher has been so worried about you lately.”
“Why?”
“Because you have no energy. You even gave away your Yoplait today.”
“……Yes.”
When Geuru remembered the Yoplait that had gone into her friend’s mouth, she nodded with a sorrowful face.
“Did something happen? You’re getting along with all your friends, right?”
Nod, nod.
“It’s not ’cause of my fwiends.”
“Then?”
Geuru blinked slowly.
The reason Geuru had been walking around with her shoulders drooping was because of the card she had seen in the guild leader’s office.
The note that looked as if it had been written in blood remained deeply etched in her mind.
Jurim seemed as if nothing was wrong, just the same as usual, but Geuru was angry.
When the phenomenon called the Great Cataclysm occurred and dungeons and towers appeared here and there, those now called first-generation Hunters awakened.
The time limit for conquering the tower was five years.
Just as a dungeon break from an unconquered dungeon became a threat, it was accepted as an established fact that if the tower could not be conquered, the world would be in danger.
Someone had to conquer the tower in order to protect the world.
Many first-generation Hunters entered the tower and lost their lives.
Jurim was the first-generation Hunter who had survived alone among them.
But that was not Jurim’s fault. Hurting him by saying he had survived by devouring the others was a very bad thing to do.
So Geuru wanted to give Jurim strength. Though while thinking of a way to do so, her own shoulders had ended up sagging instead…….
The teacher, wondering what to make of Geuru’s silence, asked,
“Geuru. Did you perhaps tell the guild leader that there’s an observation class?”
“Mm, the guild leader is busy…… and tired.”
“He said he was tired?”
Geuru pouted and fidgeted with her hands clasped together.
“Probably…….”
“So you haven’t told him there’s an observation class?”
Nod, nod.
This is it. Jeong Yuni’s eyes lit up.
Thinking that Geuru might not have been able to say anything because Jurim was busy and probably couldn’t come to the observation class, and that this might be why she had no energy, Yuni spoke firmly.
“Teacher thinks it would be wonderful if our Geuru showed him how splendidly she can give a presentation. Geuru is so smart that she can already write beautifully, right?”
Geuru rolled her eyes, then nodded once.
Her plump cheeks turning rosy was so cute that Yuni laughed softly.
“There are still fifteen nights left, so think about it slowly and try telling the guild leader. And tell Teacher what happened afterward. All right?”
“Yes…….”
“Shall we play on the playground with Teacher today until the sitter auntie comes? What do you think?”
“Yes.”
Geuru trudged to her feet and headed for the shoe cubbies.
“Now Geuru can put on her shoes all by herself so well.”
Only then did the child barely manage to smile.
Geuru tapped the toes of her sneakers and stepped toward the kindergarten entrance.
A black sedan approached the front of the kindergarten and stopped.
“……?”
Jeong Yuni held Geuru’s hand and approached the sedan.
“You can’t park here…….”
“I apologize, Teacher. We’re only here for pickup and will move right away.”
The person who stepped out of the passenger seat was a man neatly dressed in a suit. He bowed politely.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Teacher Jeong Yuni.”
“Ah, h-hello.”
It was a face she had never seen before in her life. A parent?
“Are you here to pick up a child?”
As she fiercely racked her brain, uncertain, the man smiled kindly and handed her a business card.
‘Doan Construction?’
It was a construction company whose name had once appeared countless times in the media over allegations of growth-related corruption. The reports had been so extensive that even she, who had been a student with little interest in how the world worked at the time, remembered the name Doan.
They had said it had practically monopolized government projects, and there had been talk of collusive ties or something like that.
“I am the secretary of Chairman On Suhyeong, who is Lady Geuru’s grandfather. I have come to escort Lady Geuru.”
“Excuse me?”
Yuni’s head shot up, and Geuru opened her mouth.
‘Grandfather?’
When Geuru turned her head, the window of the limousine with its dark tint lowered.
The elderly man was advanced in years, his white hair neatly combed back. Even seen only through the window, he seemed to possess an imposing presence.
Maintaining a posture as upright as a soldier’s, he continued to stare at Geuru with a cold, rigid face that looked as though it would not crack under any circumstances.
Geuru blinked nervously.
If there was someone she could call a grandfather, there was only one person.
‘The guild leader’s dad.’
Though in truth, he looked rather too old to be the guild leader’s father.
‘He kind of looks like him…….’
The corners of his eyes, the shape of his mouth, and the overall atmosphere he gave off resembled Jurim.
He stared at Geuru for a long while before abruptly saying,
“I am Jurim’s father.”
“Hewwo. I’m Han Geuru from Saebom Kindergawten’s Chick Class.”
When Geuru bowed deeply with her hands at her belly, his head moved up and down ever so slightly.
“I have informed the sitter, so get in.”
When she looked back, the teacher seemed to be contacting the sitter with the secretary’s phone.
She nodded once toward Geuru. It meant it was all right to get in.
Soon, the secretary approached and opened the car door. As Geuru wriggled to climb in, On Suhyeong scooped her up and seated her beside him. A child seat had already been prepared in the back seat.
Sitting snugly in it, Geuru smiled bashfully.
“Thank youu.”
On Suhyeong, who had once again been staring at Geuru so intently it was embarrassing, moved his head up and down again, so slightly it was barely visible.
*
Was he perhaps a person made of steel?
That was her impression of the guild leader’s father, whom she had met for the first time.
Like the boss of a frightening organization that often appeared in movies or dramas……. He had a dangerous and cold air about him.
Sitting side by side in the back seat, Geuru fiddled with her hair and stole glances at the chairman.
“There is no need to be so nervous for nothing. Today, I will take you home.”
“Yes.”
‘Geuru is the very picture of nervousness!’
If the chairman was made of steel, then Geuru had become something like nervousness given human form.
“…….”
“…….”
In the silence, On Suhyeong took out a document containing Geuru’s personal information and unfolded it.
“I looked into you a bit, and they say you are quite bright. On the WPPSI, the Wechsler intelligence test for young children, you are at the level of a highly gifted child…… and I hear you have awakened as well?”
“……!”
All at once, she had a feeling. Now was the time to boast. There really had not been anywhere to boast lately.
Geuru wriggled around in her kindergarten bag and took out her Hunter license to show him.
Her eyebrows lifted high at both ends. Looking at her small, well-formed face expectant of praise, On Suhyeong chose his words before tossing out just one sentence.
“You have done well.”
“Thank you.”
‘I got praised by the guild leader’s dad.’
He examined the license this way and that, then said quietly,
“Han Geuru, is it……. Once the procedure is complete, we can have it reissued.”
She had even been willing to show off a dazzling duck-clip performance if needed, but perhaps the license alone was enough for the chairman, because he returned it right away.
Quite satisfied, Geuru giggled, heehee, and put her Hunter license away.
After carefully closing the zipper and lifting her head, she found the chairman staring piercingly at her.
“……?”
Geuru smiled bashfully.
On Suhyeong simply looked at her in silence for a while before putting away the document with her personal information and taking out several booklets.
He handed her one booklet and asked,
“Would you like to look?”
“Yes.”
An old-fashioned building was drawn on the booklet, and phrases written in a mix of English and Korean were printed on it.
SCAT Test Prep Class
CTY Camp Prep Class Opens
Geuru found the words she could read.
“Overseas gifted institute, study abroad preparation.”