Daddy is too Strong-Chapter 73

Ding-dong.

The café door swung open, and a middle-aged man in a suit hurriedly entered. He wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief as he scanned the surroundings.

After spotting Do-Jun seated in a corner, he made his way over.

Do-Jun glanced at his wristwatch. It should have taken at least twenty minutes to drive from the Hunter’s Bureau to the café, but Young-Chul managed to cut that down to just ten.

“Sorry for being late, Supervisor Lee.”

“No, please, Chief Jung. You make it sound like you were an hour late. And besides, I’m the one who called you out of the blue, so there’s no need to apologize.” Do-Jun glanced around and said, “Also, you seem too formal with me, which honestly feels a bit overwhelming. So, could you please take it easy?”

Noticing people around them whispering and casting curious glances, Do-Jun clicked his tongue in annoyance.

While people won’t necessarily recognize Do-Jun, Young-Chul’s face was more well-known than most celebrities. If someone like Young-Chul appeared flustered and deferential like this, it would certainly draw unwanted attention and could become a nuisance.

“Yes, I understand,” Young-Chul replied.

“So, what would you like to drink? This might take a while, so how about you order something, too, Chief Jung?”

Do-Jun stood up and pulled out his wallet, but Young-Chul quickly waved his hand, urging him to put the wallet back into his pocket. He owed too much to Do-Jun to accept even a small treat.

However, faced with Do-Jun’s firm expression, Young-Chul murmured reluctantly, “Then, I’ll have a brownie mocha, please.”

“Y-you’ll have what?” Do-Jun was taken aback and asked again.

With a face that seemed more suited for drinking black coffee, Young-Chul’s choice of a sweet treat like a mocha surprised him.

***

Young-Chul took a spoonful of brownie from atop the whipped cream and reflected on what Do-Jun just told him.

Do-Jun recounted how he had raided the Fissure that appeared at a neighborhood park in Muhakbong while leaving out the part about his Pocket Watch skill. He explained how the boss monster called Einhasad had shifted the stage called the Core of the Sleeping Forest into its alternate stage, sealing the usual Status Window.

“And you said you were able to activate a new Status Window using a snake you obtained from the Tutorial Zone... Could I please take a look at this Status Window Snake?”

Do-Jun nodded and showed the rather dull-looking, plain white metal bracelet on his right wrist. Upon closer inspection, it had a faint scale-like pattern.

When Do-Jun focused on the Status Window Snake, it softened and writhed.

Kyeeeh!

The bracelet transformed into a small snake and opened its jaws wide in Young-Chul’s direction, making him gasp in terror.

The snake returned to its bracelet form when Do-Jun petted it briefly.

Young-Chul swallowed hard and let out a sigh of relief. Since he was a civilian, unlike his Hunters, if such a creature bit him even once, it could be fatal.

“We don’t know when another Fissure like this might appear, and I can’t keep stepping in whenever a strange Fissure like this opens... I hope you understand what I’m getting at.”

The point was that he hoped Behemoth Guild would grow stronger by making full use of the information provided so he could avoid getting entangled in troublesome matters. The person ultimately responsible for this task was Young-Chul.

“I understand,” Young-Chul replied with a nod.

“Also, whenever a challenger clears a stage in the tutorial, they can choose between a random artifact and an artifact called the Challenger’s Memory. Make sure they always choose the latter.”

“And is there a reason for that?”

“There’s a Hidden Piece you must obtain. It’s an artifact called the Core Talisman, which allows you to teleport to a location in your memory. It will be useful for returning to Earth or even moving to other places.”

Young-Chul’s eyes widened in surprise.

Teleporting to any remembered location?

It sounded like something out of a science fiction novel. If what Do-Jun said was true, it was an artifact that was absolutely necessary.

“Ah, one last thing... I recently learned that streaming from the Fissure is possible using an emergency cam because Yong-Yong... I mean, someone I know has been watching Hunter streams a lot. Could you test whether using it even inside the Core is possible?”

In Fissures, contact with the outside world was restricted unless an emergency cam made from specially processed mana stones was used. Even then, the cam could only transmit, not receive, and couldn’t capture sound.

However, with the advent of new technology, two-way communication involving both audio and video became possible, enabling live streaming. Hunters could now broadcast even from inside Fissures, much like regular streaming.

“That is not a problem, but may I ask why?”

“If it works, please pass the message on to Hunter Kang-Hyun and ask if he’d be willing to stream when he enters the Tutorial Zone.”

***

“Hmmm.”

In the living room, a playmat was spread across the floor. Yong-Yong used his paw to slide two facedown playing cards toward himself, then slowly peeked at them.

He grinned widely before putting on a poker face.

Jackpot!

He had drawn two cards depicting orchids, representing the fifth month. In the Korean card game Seotda [1], it was a strong hand called Five Pair. With only two cards, it usually resulted in a high hand and, if lucky, could be a jackpot.

“I fold.” Karsiel sighed and placed her cards back down.

They were playing for candy as stakes, and three candies were tossed in the center of the playmat.

“Go big or go home, isn’t that right, Master?” Yong-Yong sneered as he gathered four candies from his side and tossed them into the center of the mat.

Losing was impossible with a hand like his.

Noticing Yong-Yong’s confident expression, Do-Jun calmly placed eight candies in the center of the mat.

Yong-Yong’s face stiffened at Do-Jun’s unexpected and aggressive bet. “W-why are you being so aggressive?”

“Scared?” Do-Jun taunted him.

There was no way he could lose. In a two-card Seotda, a Five Pair was almost invincible.

Convinced that Do-Jun was bluffing, Yong-Yong bet all his remaining candies and revealed his cards on the mat.

“Five Pair, Master.”

“Hmm...”

Seeing Do-Jun hesitate, Yong-Yong flashed a triumphant smile and was about to sweep the candies on the blanket toward him with his paws.

Just then, Do-Jun stopped him. “38 Gwang Pair.”

38 Gwang was the highest hand in Seotda.

Do-Jun smirked as he swept the candies. “Looks like you won’t get any snacks this week.”

Yong-Yong looked as if he’d lost his house. He stared blankly at the pile of candies next to Do-Jun.

“Nah, there’s no way this is possible! How can someone get 38 Gwang in every single one of the five rounds? Aaaargh!” Yong-Yong collapsed onto the floor, rolling around in frustration.

The game, which started with each player having fifty candies, ended in a landslide victory for Do-Jun.

Karsiel shook her head and muttered, “Your mistake was trying to win against Master in the first place.”

“Whose side are you on, anyway!”

“You gotta know which way the wind is blowing, you know?” Karsiel said as she clung to Do-Jun’s side, who gave her ten candies.

Karsiel bowed her head in thanks.

He counted the cards, Yong-Yong thought as he sniffled.

He was bitter not only because he lost all his candies but also because he couldn’t catch him in the act despite being sure Do-Jun was cheating.

***

“We have a Fissure field trip tomorrow, so I was just preparing for that,” Yoon-Hee said.

The students of the National Hunter Academy had a practical class day in a Fissure about once a month or every three weeks.

Of course, the training location was chosen based on the students’ capabilities, considering the strength differences between each class. Since Yoon-Hee had improved her grades and moved up to Class B, she would be training in a C-rank Fissure.

“That sounds fun. I want to go, too.” Yong-Yong had approached quietly and showed interest with an innocent smile.

However, Yoon-Hee shook her head firmly. She didn’t want any potential mishaps and wanted to focus fully on the Fissure training.

Lately, Yong-Yong seemed bored and lonely house-sitting and had been trying hard to tag along to the Academy.

“Well, I guess no means no,” Yong-Yong said.

“Huh...?”

Normally, Yong-Yong would whine and beg to be taken along, but he gave up surprisingly easily this time. Yoon-Hee thought that perhaps Yong-Yong was maturing and patted his head, feeling slightly guilty.

“Sorry. I’ll buy you something tasty next time.”

“Okay.”

Karsiel glanced at Yong-Yong.

***

“Alright, I’m off.” Yoon-Hee turned around after putting on her shoes.

Yong-Yong and Karsiel were seeing her off at the door. She looked at them with a mixture of guilt and affection.

“Okay. Have a good day.”

“Safe travels, Young Master.”

As soon as the door closed, Yong-Yong stretched and murmured, “Well then, shall we get going too?”

“I knew it. But, Lord Izaas, if you do that, Young Master will get angry at you.”

“Okay, then you stay home.” With that, Yong-Yong leaped up and turned the front door handle.

As Yong-Yong stepped outside, Karsiel glanced around the now-empty house. Then, two figures—an angel and a devil—appeared above Karsiel’s head.

The angel spoke. “Don’t go. Are you really thinking of betraying the Young Master who trusts you?”

Then, the devil spoke. “Don’t listen to that thing. Do you really want to stay home alone? What will you do all by yourself for more than ten hours?”

“What’s so bad about staying home alone? It’s better than getting in trouble with the Young Master later.”

“You dummy! Getting scolded is temporary, but being lonely lasts ten hours!”

The devil’s words left the angel speechless.

Rubbing its chin, the angel muttered, “Come to think of it, that makes sense. The scolding won’t last long.”

“Hehe, let’s go!”

The devil won.

***

Inside the subway platform at Bangbae Station, Yong-Yong and Karsiel followed Yoon-Hee, keeping a distance of about twenty meters.

“I thought you weren’t coming,” Yong-Yong teased Karsiel.

“The devil won.”

“Eh?”

Whatever Karsiel was saying, they were now accomplices.

“Yoon-Hee’s heading that way,” Yong-Yong said, pointing at Yoon-Hee.

She scanned her transit pass, passed through the turnstile, and headed toward the platform.

Smirking, Yong-Yong stealthily followed her and tried to slip under the turnstile. Just then, someone grabbed him by the scruff.

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It was a station worker. “What’s a dog doing here...?”

“Ack! Let go! Let me go!”

“Eek, L-lord Izaas!”

Murmurs could be heard in the surroundings.

“That dog’s talking.”

“That’s not a dog; it’s a cat.

“Either way, a talking pet...”

***

“Huh, that’s...”

A woman in her mid-twenties, a striking beauty, removed her sunglasses and stared at Yong-Yong.

1. Seotda is a Korean card game that is similar to other showdown games like poker. ☜