Chapter 126

“Did you come?”

Today, Eve was late again. She seemed quite tired, as she just returned home through the gate today. While putting Kabe to sleep, I also lay down on the bed and was about to drift off when suddenly, a gate opened beside me, startling me.

“Dinner?”

“I didn’t eat. I’m hungry, can you make something?”

“Wait a bit.”

But what can I do if she’s hungry?

As I walked into the kitchen, I glanced at the clock—it was 2 AM. Seriously, she worked until this hour? She left for work around 7 AM yesterday morning.

What could possibly be so busy? Those Light Realm guys, even if she’s a Magical Girl, do they really have to work her this hard? She probably didn’t even eat dinner properly. Maybe I should go and flip things over.

There was some rice left from dinner, so I dissolved some soybean paste in cold water and added a spoonful of red pepper paste. I also threw in a packet of anchovies and let it boil. While it was boiling, I took out a zucchini, chopped it roughly, and sliced a couple of Cheongyang peppers. This way, the soybean paste stew would be ready quickly.

I also took out half a carrot, a few green onions, and half an onion, chopping them finely. I cracked three eggs into a bowl, beat them with chopsticks, and added the chopped vegetables. After a moment of hesitation, I added half a can of tuna.

Then, in a frying pan… if I spread it out little by little and mix it well, the rolled omelet would be ready soon.

I took out some napa cabbage kimchi, green onion kimchi, and radish kimchi, portioned them onto small plates, and placed them on the table.

After slicing the rolled omelet into bite-sized pieces, the soybean paste stew was boiling nicely. Eve came out with a towel wrapped around her head, having just showered.

“Can’t you dry your hair quickly with magic?”

Eve’s hair is quite long, so it would take a while to dry. Why is she showering and drying her hair at this hour?

“I didn’t use magic on purpose.”

“Why?”

“If my hair dries, I’ll have to eat and go straight to bed.”

“You’re tired, so you should sleep early. What else would you do?”

I don’t get it. If she’s tired, she should eat and sleep.

Eve scooped some broth from the soybean paste stew and tasted it. It was tasty, of course. There was some magical seasoning in it too.

“The soybean paste stew is delicious.”

“Don’t change the subject. Why aren’t you sleeping early?”

At my words, Eve narrowed her eyes and glared at me. Oh dear.

“Hey, when else would I get to see my wife’s face? I wanted to look at you while eating and drying my hair, that’s why.”

“Oh, is that so?”

That’s such a surprising answer. It’s really different from what I expected.

Then… should I bring it up?

“Eve.”

“Yeah?”

“It’s a bit awkward to say while eating, but there’s something.”

“What is it?”

She took a bite of the rolled omelet and some kimchi. She said she was hungry, and it wasn’t a lie—she was eating like she was possessed.

“The money you owe me, you forgot, right? The advertising fee.”

Clink. Eve’s chopsticks stopped.

I saw it. Eve’s pupils were shaking violently, very violently.

Finally, I realized. Eve hadn’t forgotten—she had deliberately hidden it.

“Eve, I won’t get mad. Tell me. You didn’t forget, did you?”

I could tell. Eve hadn’t forgotten. For some reason, she couldn’t tell me.

“You… won’t get mad?”

“That depends on what you say. Why? What’s going on?”

“Well, it’s just…”

Oh, I forgot to give her water. I took a cup from the dryer and filled it with water from the purifier. Eve took it.

“First, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hide it on purpose.”

“It’s okay. Tell me.”

Money is money. It’s not like it’s there when you have it, and it’s not like it’s not there when you don’t. It’s not a big deal. If something happened, just say so, and we’ll figure it out.

“Well, remember when I blew up my officetel?”

It was when Escario attacked. Eve threw her spear and destroyed the officetel building.

“I remember. Of course.”

“The compensation for that was a bit short.”

“But didn’t you say you could sell some land?”

Where was it? Somewhere abroad, I think. You said you could sell that land.

“Well, the land hasn’t been sold yet. So, I’m short on cash, and I used that money…”

Ah.

“So, you used all that money?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Well, what can you do? If that’s the case, there’s nothing to be done.

“Okay, I get it. Then there’s nothing we can do.”

“Are you okay with that?”

“If I’m not okay, what can I do? You’ll give it to me when the land sells, right?”

“Of course, I will when it sells.”

“Then it’s fine.”

Eve wasn’t trying to take the money and run, nor was she deliberately withholding it. If she needed the money, she would have given it to me.

“Well, then it’s a bit awkward.”

It is awkward. I was planning to use that money to buy a house.

There’s Kabe, Dusik, and Sohee. To get a house for at least four people, we need a deposit.

So… money is the problem. An apartment is out of the question, maybe a villa. Seoul is too expensive, so maybe the metropolitan area.

Trying to figure it out, the problem always comes back to money.

“How are you going to get a house?”

“That’s the problem.”

Eve was almost done eating, and the sound of her spoon scraping the rice bowl was heard. But the problem was, watching her eat made me hungry.

“Let’s see…”

We’re just trying to survive. I opened the fridge—there was kimchi, some seasoned lettuce, and that should do.

“Eve, are you full?”

“Hmm…”

Eve looked into her rice bowl and didn’t answer. That means she’s still a bit hungry.

I took out a larger bowl, scooped more rice, added the seasoned lettuce, finely chopped kimchi, and two more half-boiled eggs. I added a generous spoonful of red pepper paste and a spoonful of sesame oil.

After mixing it all, it became a decent bibimbap.

“Wow, I’m going to be stuffed today.”

“And yet, you’re the first to grab the spoon.”

It’s delicious when mixed. Bibimbap can’t be bad.

Land. Land, huh?

“Eve, do you have any land in Korea?”

“Yes.”

Oh? You do?

“Where?”

“On the way to Suwon. It’s quite large. I bought it because they said it would be redeveloped, but nothing happened.”

This might just work.

“How big is it?”

“Pretty big. About the size of an amusement park?”

That’s huge. It might be possible.

Edell said it too. It’s not impossible, but you need enough land. If you have the land, it’s possible. I didn’t think it would actually work.

“Eve.”

“Yeah?”

“Can I borrow that land?”

“Out of the blue?”

If the size is right, this could become our main source of income. It’s a bit far from Seoul, but if it’s on the way to Suwon… it might work.

In other words, what if we set up a Rose Garden there and charged an entrance fee? We wouldn’t even need management fees. Amanin is there, so the Rose Garden would manage itself!

It would be even better if we could bring the Rose Mansion, but the transportation isn’t great. Plus, considering Kabe’s education, it would be better to stay in Seoul.

“But why the sudden interest in land? You asked and then didn’t say anything.”

Eve was looking at me with a puzzled expression.

“Ah, I have a garden in the Dark Realm, and it’s quite large. So, I was thinking…”

I explained to Eve about bringing the garden to the human realm and setting it up.

“Then we could bring the mansion too and turn it into a cafe.”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

But one concern is that if it disappears, the Dark Realm’s landmark would be gone. Then, visitors from other realms would decrease, leading to a drop in taxes, and ultimately, more stress for Kenneth’s regency… no, since I’m taking over, I’ll be the one stressed.

Come to think of it, I should go to take over. No, do I need to go? Kenneth should come himself.

Anyway, thinking about all this, I finished the bibimbap. I’ll do the dishes tomorrow.

That’s that, and this is this. The next day, I left the house, leaving Kabe with Sohee.

I checked my balance at the ATM in front of the house and sighed. I had saved up quite a bit, but I don’t know when I spent so much…

The drastically reduced balance made me sigh. Even if I ask Keru about the remaining funds, considering the minions’ salaries, we can only last a couple of months.

Without thinking about the Dark Realm, the only way is to bring the Rose Garden and make money from it.

“Come out.”

“I’m here.”

I summoned Chilho after a long time.

“Do you look good?”

“I’ve been eating and playing. I haven’t been doing much.”

Lucky you. I’m getting annoyed for no reason.

“Hey, your boss is fighting hard, and you’re just eating and playing?”

Do I really have to pay these guys?

“Hehe, but I’ve been exercising regularly. Look, no fat.”

“Oh, you’re so great.”

“Where are we going today?”

“Real estate.”

I didn’t want to go too far from Seoul. So, the candidates are Gwangmyeong. If necessary, I might consider Incheon…

“Ah. Are you looking for a house, boss?”

“Yeah.”

“Got it. Where are we going?”

Chilho’s face was the same as before. That sly smile, the tall and well-built figure—all the same.

“That’s the question. Where should we go?”

Incheon is accessible via Line 1. Gwangmyeong has various transportation options besides the subway.

Where should we go…

“Let’s go to Gwangmyeong first.”

There’s something on my mind. What happened to that chicken shop? I heard Eve handled it well, but I wanted to see it for myself.

Is that angelic baby doing well?

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