Daddy is too Strong-Chapter 62

Ten minutes later, Yoon-Hee stepped out of her room, looking shy. She was wearing a floral one-piece dress with a coat draped over it.

When she met Do-Jun’s gaze, her face turned red as she spoke. “Um... how do I look?”

She looked up at him, fidgeting nervously.

Do-Jun wondered why it took her so long to get ready when she could’ve just put on anything, but he knew that saying that out loud would definitely upset her.

“You look great,” he remarked.

“R-really?”

“Yeah. Shall we get going?”

“Yes!”

Do-Jun got up from the sofa and walked toward the entrance. Yoon-Hee followed him closely, smiling.

Watching them, Yong-Yong shook his head and muttered, “They’re both so slow.”

***

After a brisk thirty-minute walk, they arrived at the local movie theatre near Isu Station.

As Yoon-Hee scanned the movie posters on the wall one by one, she turned to Do-Jun and asked, “Father, is there anything you want to see?”

“Hmm... is there one you want to see?” he asked back.

“I'm fine with anything.”

“I’m okay with anything too...”

Do-Jun rubbed his chin and examined the movie posters. There were a variety of genres: thrillers, romance, noir, and comedies, but since he didn’t watch movies very often, he had no idea which one would be interesting.

It was also his first time visiting a theatre since returning to Earth.

Yong-Yong jumped in place to get their attention and spoke to Yoon-Hee with the innocent, carefree smile of a child.

“I wanna see that one!” he exclaimed.

“Oh, which one?”

Yong-Yong stood in front of the poster for Young Hunters, which depicted two young men in suits smiling brightly.

It was currently at the top of the charts, already surpassing ten million viewers.

“Oh, I’ve heard people say this one is good. I think all the kids in my class have seen it at least once...” Yoon-Hee muttered.

Since it was a movie about Hunters, it seemed natural that students from the Hunter Academy would be interested. Moreover, since Hunters were immensely popular in South Korea—and around the world—it made sense that everyone was talking about it.

“Your classmates all saw it?” Do-Jun asked with a serious expression.

Startled by his unexpected tone, Yoon-Hee nodded carefully.

Recalling that kids nowadays were very sensitive to trends and that those who didn’t keep up were often excluded, Do-Jun decided they would watch Young Hunters today.

“Should I buy tickets for this one, then...?” Yoon-Hee asked him.

“Go ahead. Should we get them tickets, too?” Do-Jun asked, looking at the two dragons.

“I think we should get four tickets since we can’t just carry them the whole time... I’ll book the next showtime.”

“Thanks.”

Yoon-Hee walked to the ticket counter while Do-Jun sat on a nearby bench. Sitting next to Do-Jun, Yong-Yong stared at the couple sitting across from them.

More precisely, at the popcorn they were holding.

The sweet, savory smell of the popcorn tickled Yong-Yong’s nose. He turned to Do-Jun, who was looking at his smartphone.

“Master.”

“Hmm?”

Yong-Yong pointed at the couple’s popcorn with his front paw, then lay down with his eyes sparkling.

It was obvious that there was only one thing on his mind. Seeing this, Do-Jun chuckled and stood up.

“You want the same stuff?”

“Master, you’re truly generous, unlike someone.” Yong-Yong wagged his tail energetically.

A short while later, Do-Jun returned with caramel popcorn and cola and sat down. He gave Yong-Yong and Karsiel each a piece of popcorn.

“Yum!”

“It’s quite sweet.”

Yong-Yong munched on the popcorn happily. He was startled when he suddenly made eye contact with Yoon-Hee as she returned with the movie tickets. Out of reflex, he began coughing as if the popcorn had gone down the wrong way. He didn’t look different from a child caught sneaking snacks late at night.

“Do you want some water?” Yoon-Hee asked.

She had taken a seat beside Do-Jun and now took out a bottle of water from her bag and handed it to Yong-Yong.

Yong-Yong was caught off by her kind gesture but accepted the water. He fully believed that she would get mad at him.

“We’re going to eat right after the movie, so don’t eat too much, okay?”

Something... something is up... he thought as he nodded.

***

The plot of the movie was straightforward.

Two young men who aspired to be Hunters met and became friends at an academy.

One weekend, out of curiosity, they entered a Fissure, which unfortunately turned out to be an S-rank Great Fissure, and due to a Distortion, they couldn’t leave until they cleared it. They had to struggle together to survive in the S-rank Great Fissure.

They discovered the corpses of S-rank Hunters inside the Fissure, used their weapons and equipment, defeated the boss monster, and ultimately cleared the Fissure, becoming celebrated as heroes.

“I thought it was a comedy at first, but it ended up being so touching,” Yoon-Hee said, wiping away a tear.

Do-Jun nodded in agreement, thinking that the final escape scene, where the two young men fought desperately to save each other, was definitely a highlight.

“Let’s watch another one!”

Yong-Yong exclaimed excitedly, seemingly having been really captivated by the movie to the point that he even forgot about the popcorn halfway through.

“Looks like everyone’s happy. That’s a relief.” Do-Jun smiled, watching everyone chatting together.

***

It was already dark when they stepped out of the theatre, but the city’s streetlights replaced the sun, illuminating the path.

Following the streetlights, they soon saw a large two-story building with a sign reading Korean Beef Farm.

“How much did you say your scholarship was again?” Do-Jun asked Yoon-Hee after reading something.

“Pardon? Why do you ask all of a sudden...?”

A menu displayed on a stand at the door listed various cuts of beef, most of which were priced well over 40,000 won per serving.

It was quite expensive for a student’s budget.

Well, if she needs it, I can cover the rest.

As they stepped inside, they were greeted by an interior that exuded a traditional Korean house vibe.

The server led them to the second floor, removed the reserved sign from a table, and gestured with both hands to the inside of the room. It seemed Yoon-Hee had made a reservation in advance.

“Please press the bell when you’re ready to order.” The server bowed and slid the door shut behind them.

Looking at the menu again, Do-Jun was once more struck by how expensive everything was.

He’d had beef a couple of times at office dinners before, but those were all-you-can-eat or relatively cheap, about 15,000 won per serving.

Yong-Yong stared at the menu, swallowing his saliva.

“Do you think six servings of mixed cuts will be enough?” Yoon-Hee asked them.

Do-Jun glanced at Yong-Yong, who was licking his lips, and mumbled, “I’m not sure...”

“If it’s not, then we can always order more.”

Shortly after they ordered two servings each of sirloin, chuck flap tail, and skirt steak, the server set up the table with various side dishes and brought in the charcoal grill.

“Enjoy your meal. Please let us know if you need anything,” the server said after they placed the plates of beef on the table.

After the server left, Do-Jun picked up the tongs and placed the sirloin on the grill.

As the pink meat sizzled and gradually turned brown, its juices dripped, and a rich, savory aroma filled the air. When Do-Jun lifted the meat to cut it, Yong-Yong’s eyes followed every movement.

“Oh, right. Yoon-Hee,” Do-Jun said.

“Yes?”

“You mentioned before that you might be able to move into a dorm, right? How’s that going? You probably qualify now, especially with that scholarship, right?”

Although he had already read that teenagers needed their own personal space, after what happened earlier today, Do-Jun felt the need to ask about the dorm situation.

If she moved into the dorm, they would not need to move to a new place.

“D-dorm...?” Yoon-Hee avoided his gaze.

The Academy provided dormitories for students with above-average grades, and her recent improvements meant she had not only received this scholarship but also qualified for dormitory residency if she wanted it.

But something seemed to make her hesitate.

What happens if I move into the dorm...?

The contract she had with Do-Jun was essentially a work agreement where Do-Jun provided her with a place to live in exchange for household chores.

But if she moved into the dormitory, the contract would be unnecessary, and Do-Jun would no longer be her father but a stranger.

I... don’t want that.

However, even though she didn’t want it, refusing to move into the dorm and staying at Do-Jun’s place felt like imposing on him.

“What... what do you think, Father?”

“Hmm?”

“About me moving into the dormitory...”

“Why are you asking me about my thoughts?”

“Well... if I qualify, would you want me to move in...?” Yoon-Hee bit her lip and looked at Do-Jun anxiously.

As he flipped the meat, Do-Jun answered, “If you don’t want to, then don’t.”

“Pardon?”

“You want to stay at home, right?” Do-Jun asked her.

At Yoon-Hee’s silence, he continued, “I like having you here, too.”

The house was always spotless, and there was always dinner waiting for him at home. There wasn’t a single household chore he had to do—no trash sorting, no bill payments, nothing.

All of it was possible because of Yoon-Hee.

If she moved into the dorm, life would become much more challenging.

And I’d have to feed these guys, too. Do-Jun glanced at Yong-Yong and Karsiel, who were both staring intently at the grill.

“Yoon-Hee?” He waved his hand in front of Yoon-Hee’s dazed eyes.

Her face flushed red, and she jumped up from her seat.

“I-I have to go to the bathroo...m!”

“Uh... sure.”

She seemed to have bitten her tongue at the end, but Do-Jun chose not to point it out.

As Yoon-Hee left through the sliding door, Do-Jun moved the perfectly cooked beef to the stone plate outside the grill. He then placed a piece into Yong-Yong and Karsiel’s mouths.

“T-this flavor...” Yong-Yong’s eyes widened as he closed his eyes, savoring the beef.

He recalled the flavors of the braised short ribs and chicken that Yoon-Hee used to make, thinking that this new flavor could rival the high standards they set.

***

Outside, Yoon-Hee looked at herself in the mirror installed near the parking lot entrance and noticed that her lips were curved up without her realizing it.

On top of that, her cheeks were clearly flushed.

“I like having you here, too.”

As she recalled Do-Jun’s words, her face grew hot despite the chilly night air.

Memories of her first meeting with Do-Jun, all the way up to now, flashed before her eyes.

“Alright. If those are the conditions, I think this will be helpful for me as well. Let’s draw up a contract.”

A dad contract.

Looking back now, it was an absurd agreement that would be laughed off by anyone.

“Sigh...”

At first, she thought she would move into the dorm once her grades qualified her. She would complete the one-year contract and then thank him before moving out.

Though it hadn’t even been three months since they made the contract, it felt like she’d spent decades with him. She couldn’t even imagine living apart from him now.

Actually, she didn’t want to imagine it.

I know I’ll have to move out someday, but...

Updat𝓮d from frёewebnoѵēl.com.

But as long as she attended the Academy, and as long as she wasn’t an adult yet, she wanted to stay in this home a little longer.