Chapter 72

EP.72 Dad is Sad

At the entrance of a nightclub on the outskirts of Han-daeguri.

I stopped walking and looked at Yuria, who was staring at the sign of the nightclub called “Sinope” with a bewildered expression.

“It’s here.”

“This is… a nightclub. Are you saying Aaron is here?”

“I can feel something from inside.”

“Don’t tell me Aaron has been reincarnated as a woman?”

No way.

“I don’t know either…”

Just as I was about to say something, Yoo Seunghyun came up from the basement stairs and made eye contact with us.

He greeted us with a bright smile.

“Hello?”

He was holding a full bag of trash.

Looks like he’s going to throw it away. Long time no see, Seunghyun.

Aside from seeing you as a tracking demon, this is only the second time we’ve actually met face-to-face, right?

We met at Sehwa’s pancake house. Do you remember?

Yesterday, Sehwa completely drained your soul. I couldn’t help but laugh.

Ah, right now, I look like Kim Taegon.

“Hello. Good afternoon.”

I took off my fedora and greeted him like a middle-aged gentleman. Yoo Seunghyun spoke in a friendly tone.

“This is a nightclub, and it’s not open for business yet. If you want to have a quick drink, you can go down a bit further.”

I smiled and thanked him, then took Yuria a little away from the nightclub.

Then, I hardened my expression.

“Daughter.”

“Yes?”

“I felt a strong sense of Aaron from the guy who just greeted us.”

“What… did you say…?”

She turned her head sharply to look at Yoo Seunghyun’s back.

I couldn’t see her expression, so I couldn’t tell what she was thinking. Does she like him? Or not?

If not, is she just missing him because he has Aaron’s aura?

We made eye contact with Yoo Seunghyun, who was returning after throwing away the trash.

This time, he just nodded at us.

His face was filled with curiosity.

A foreign beauty and a middle-aged man with a thick beard staring at him? It’s understandable.

Yoo Seunghyun scratched his head and quickly went back into the nightclub.

Now, let’s hear your thoughts.

“Do you feel anything too?”

“… No.”

Yuria’s gaze was fixed on the nightclub stairs.

It felt like she was still processing the sight of Yoo Seunghyun’s face.

Alright, since we’ve seen his face without any prior interaction, let’s call it a day for now.

“I just feel a strong sense of Aaron, but it’s not certain yet. It will become clear in a few days, so don’t approach him recklessly until then. We shouldn’t cause unnecessary trouble.”

“Okay…”

“What do you think if that guy is definitely Aaron?”

“I… don’t know. It’s too unfamiliar.”

“You said just a few days ago that you would definitely bring him back.”

“That’s true. If it’s definitely Aaron, I’ll do whatever it takes to be with him. But… is it right to approach him when he doesn’t remember being Aaron? I saw he was wearing a ring earlier…”

Don’t worry about that. He’ll take it off soon after breaking up with Sehwa.

“Fate will bring the same fates together, so don’t worry too much.”

“I’m also worried because of the Device. You never know when a demon might appear…”

“You’re a grown adult, so I trust you’ll handle it.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Let’s go back.”

As Yuria weakly nodded and started to move,

Beep! Beep-!

The Evil Energy Gauge warning sound came from the Device.

It’s been a while since I heard it, and it sounds great.

At the same time, Yuria’s phone rang.

She answered it immediately.

“Yes, Doctor.”

-You haven’t charged the Device yet, right?

“Not yet. But I’ll go right now…”

-No, I just need you to monitor from the lab.

Yuria took a deep breath.

She’s angry. The Doctor is unintentionally helping me.

After the call ended, Yuria stared at her phone with a bewildered expression.

“What the…”

I pretended not to know and asked Yuria.

“What’s wrong? What was that sound just now?”

“Father, I have an urgent appointment, so I’ll be right back. Please go home first. Understood?”

“Ah, got it.”

Seeing my flustered expression, Yuria smiled as if to tell me not to worry and hurried off somewhere.

Now, it’s time for me to become Song Jihyuk.

Busy, busy.

I transformed in a deserted alley and turned on my phone, which I had turned off. There were two missed calls from the Doctor.

It seems the Doctor called me right after calling Yuria.

Sehwa must already be there.

I called the Doctor as I left the alley.

**

Inside a fighter jet flying to the Rocky Mountains in Canada.

After brushing off the Doctor’s scolding for turning off my phone, I looked at Leona, who had already arrived in Canada via a portal, through the monitor.

She was wearing the Beast Slayer suit before becoming the Evil Valkyrie, standing still and staring at the demon.

The large lion demon that we had almost finished creating at the secret base before it died.

The Doctor frowned as she saw this.

“What are you doing? Why are you just standing there?”

She doesn’t want to kill a cute pet.

-That demon is just standing there too? It’s just licking its paw.

As she said, the lion demon was licking its paw, which was as big as a person.

It must be sore from the wounds Sehwa gave it.

It even dug into the hard, snow-covered ground and put its other paw in, looking as relaxed as if it were in a hot spring.

When it looked at Leona, it even begged for sympathy with its soft eyes.

The Doctor, who didn’t care about the cute lion demon’s actions, let out a hollow laugh.

“It’s a demon.”

-I know.

“But why aren’t you killing it…”

-What if it’s a good demon?

The Doctor’s face went blank.

Leona’s tone was cold, and the term “good demon” was absurd.

After a moment of silence, the Doctor got angry.

“Are you kidding me!?”

-…..

“Right now…”

I raised a hand from the cockpit to stop the Doctor.

Then, I spoke to Leona in a cold tone.

“Separate personal feelings from duty.”

No matter how much you dislike the Doctor, you have to act properly when outside.

-Ah, got it…

Leona nodded with a frightened voice, then rolled on the snow and jumped into the air.

She swung her sword at the lion’s neck.

Slash-!

That was the end. The cute lion demon’s final moments.

It didn’t even scream.

Leona, who had been watching the red blood spread across the snow-covered upper layer, entered the fighter jet through the portal linked to the Device.

Whoosh!

She transformed back into Sehwa.

The Doctor scolded Sehwa.

“Do you even think? What? A good demon? Did Tairat open the Gate nicely and let it out or something?”

Sehwa flared up at that.

But then she looked at me and lowered her eyes.

“Sorry… I… fought with Jihyuk… so I’m in a bad mood…”

You fought? That’s a good excuse. I can link it to me turning off my phone.

The Doctor’s expression softened just a tiny bit.

She must have thought about the phone call I made earlier.

“Sigh… Even so, like Song said, you have to separate personal feelings from duty. Why are you so immature?”

If this goes on, Sehwa might snap and cut the Doctor’s throat.

I stood up and stepped between them.

“Let’s stop here. Let’s go back.”

The Doctor let out a deep sigh at my intervention and stopped scolding Sehwa, sitting back down.

She was pressing her temples, probably because of a headache.

I silently incinerated the lion and took control of the jet, turning it around.

When we arrived at the Korean lab, we met Yuria, who was biting her nails while waiting for us.

Yuria quickly approached the Doctor, who was looking serious, and questioned her.

“Doctor. Why did you leave me out?”

“Simple. Your Device isn’t charged yet.”

“Haah…”

Speechless. She probably has nothing to say. She’s been stuck in the same place for quite some time.

The Doctor asked.

“You monitored, right? What did you think of this demon?”

“It’s my first time seeing it too. It had a lot of wounds… I don’t know why.”

“Got it. Song, and Sehwa, good job. You can go now.”

The Doctor spoke quickly and went into her room.

Yuria, sensing something was off with the Doctor, asked Sehwa.

“Why is she like that?”

“I don’t know.”

“Why are you so cold? Your tone is icy. Did you change your makeup? Changing your style?”

“Unnie, let’s talk later. I’m tired, so I’ll go home first.”

“Huh? Okay, got it.”

Sehwa bowed to Yuria and walked past me, leaving the lab.

Good. She’s acting perfectly right after I told her to separate personal feelings from duty.

I was going to scold her severely when we got back, but I’ll let it slide.

“Why is Sehwa like that? Did she fight with the Doctor…?”

At Yuria’s flustered question, I shrugged.

“She didn’t fight with the Doctor, but we had a big argument. When did you get to the lab?”

“Right after the demon died. By the way, you had a fight…?”

“Yes. The problem isn’t that, but the fact that a demon appeared after a long time means Tairat has started acting again… Yuria, you should prepare too.”

“Prepare…?”

“The Device. You know, right? You told Sehwa you’d handle it. But if it’s still not charged…”

Yuria bit her lower lip.

She wants to defeat Tairat, but Aiter’s nature seems to be irritating her.

“I don’t want to rush you, but it can’t be helped.”

“Okay… I’ll charge it as soon as possible. And… Jihyuk.”

“Yes?”

“You love Sehwa, right?”

“Of course.”

“What if… something happened and you slept deeply for three years, and when you woke up, Sehwa didn’t remember you?”

She’s asking me for advice? Hmm… I didn’t expect this.

As I stroked my chin, Yuria gave an awkward smile.

“Was it a bad question given the situation? Sorry.”

“No, it’s not. It’s an interesting question, so I was thinking. Will the memories come back later? Or will they never come back?”

“Assume the latter.”

She’s assuming the worst-case scenario.

Alright. I’ll give you the answer you want to hear to ease your guilt a bit.

“I would approach her. To start a new love.”

“Even if Sehwa met someone else in the meantime?”

She’s worried about the ring. Didn’t I tell you not to worry?

“If that happens, I’ll have to be even more aggressive.”

“More aggressive? Isn’t that too selfish?”

“That’s just how people are. If you were deeply in love and it suddenly fell apart, and your lover went to someone else? I wouldn’t just sit back and watch.”

“… I see.”

“But why are you asking this?”

Yuria fidgeted with her wrist.

It seems hard for her to say.

“I’ll tell you later. Thanks for the answer.”

“Did it help?”

“Quite a bit.”

“That’s good. I’ll head in now.”

“Good job. I hope you and Sehwa make up.”

I nodded and left the lab.

To commemorate planting the obsession with charging the Device, I should conduct an experiment.

I’ll sprinkle some seasoning of betrayal, so look forward to this early morning, Yuria.

I’ll be very sad, so be ready to comfort me.

I returned as Kim Taegon and bought all the high-proof alcohol from the convenience store.

To be continued―――――――――――――――――――――

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