Chapter 126: Chapter 126

Han Tae-kyung's presence inside the villa was increasing.

For some reason, the pink cat was multiplying.

I stepped on something squishy. Looking down at my feet, there was a pink fur ball rolling around.

It was that cat. The one Han Tae-kyung liked.

It was a long-running children's animation, and the recent series was also airing on children’s channels in Korea. Thanks to that, getting the toys was easy. Han Tae-kyung had bought them by the box and handed them out freely to everyone around him. The usual victims were Team 1, where Han Tae-kyung was the team leader.

Team 1 was divided into two groups.

Those who gave up and looked at Han Tae-kyung like a rock on the roadside,

And those who went crazy and started hanging out with Han Tae-kyung.

When I saw people dangling pink cat plushies from their weapons while those with enlightened expressions cleaned their weapons, it sometimes made me feel like I was going crazy too.

I stared vacantly at the cat plushie lying on the floor.

For some reason, the clock on the wall had changed.

It had definitely been a black, modern design… but now it was a pink cat with a clock embedded in its stomach.

I had a watch on my wrist, so there was no need to check the wall clock anyway.

I gently pushed the plushie caught at my toes to the side and turned my gaze the other way. On a kitchen island chair sat a large cat plushie. In front of the cat were a glass cup with a cat illustration and a cat-shaped plate.

I turned my gaze the other way.

It was a living room wide enough for children to run around in. There was a display cabinet with a turntable and records filling one wall, and opposite that, a stylish black leather sofa. And of course, that sofa had been overtaken by pink cats. A plushie the size of an adult man, there was no better word than gigantic. A cat.

Of course, Han Tae-kyung hadn’t just put one there. Next to the giant cat, there were three or four more plushies identical to the one on the kitchen island chair. Unlike the one on the kitchen island, they were dressed. And of course, all in different outfits. Next to them were cushions with just the cat’s head… each with a different facial expression, naturally.

Lee Mi-seon… no, that’s not right. This was originally a villa favored by Daeyeon’s chairman, who was Lee Mi-seon’s father. The interior, once a tasteful mix of black and white with plants to add vibrancy, tailored to the chairman’s tastes, was now gone.

Where on earth did Han Tae-kyung get all those plushies? Does Han Tae-kyung's treasure storage subspace, which was filled only with cat character merchandise, still exist now?

That pointless nonsense?

I’m sick of it. It makes me wonder how I’d managed to forget Han Tae-kyung all this time.

Was that my defense mechanism? Because thinking about him made it hard to stay sane? Read full story at novel[f]ire.net

And then an annoying voice came from within the pile of plushies on the sofa.

I frowned and walked toward the sofa. What I was looking for was there.

Woo I-rok, glaring at a tablet PC with a deep frown.

On the tablet PC, a brown-haired girl and a pink cat were dancing. That girl was the main character of the animation, Bonnie.

Because Han Tae-kyung never stopped talking about it, I couldn’t help but know, even if I didn’t want to. He’d sit me down and talk about the cat… When I was little, I didn’t know any better and listened quietly. Later, I just walked away. But of course, Han Tae-kyung kept talking whether or not there was anyone to listen.

Normally, Mini-me would react immediately when I came near, but this time he was silent.

I mean, I didn’t exactly raise you… but you’re still me, aren’t you? I’m not trying to mock the animation, but how can you watch something Han Tae-kyung likes?

When I showed you all sorts of things here so you wouldn’t be bored, you didn’t even look!

Somehow, my pride was oddly hurt.

“Hyung’s here. Aren’t you going to look?”

Mini-me was staring intently at the screen with a serious expression.

The girl on the screen broke the toy she was holding with a mischievous expression. Another little kid, who had probably been the original owner of the toy, began to cry upon seeing the broken toy. Chasie, the pink cat that Han Tae-kyung adored, looked back and forth between the girl and the crying child, clearly flustered.

The basic framework of the animation is simple.

Mischievous Bonnie is a mean child who bullies other kids. Because of that, she has no friends, and in an effort to gain their attention, she acts even more maliciously, which only worsens her relationships. Bonnie has only one friend, and that is the pink cat, Chasie. Bonnie Full House and Chase, aka Chasie Full House.

Chasie feels sorry for Bonnie as she becomes more and more of a loner, and steps in to help her make peace with the other kids. Since Chasie is a cat, the help often takes an odd turn. Sometimes it's touching, sometimes it's ridiculous. Sometimes it fails, but even so, Bonnie gradually becomes friends with the kids with Chasie’s help... That’s the general idea.

It’s a children’s animation. Of course, it has a moral lesson. If not for Han Tae-kyung’s excessive affection for it, I wouldn’t have anything against the animation itself.

“…Huh? Hyung, when did you get here?”

Mini-me finally noticed my presence.

I didn’t really have anything to say in response, so I just smiled.

I pointed at the tablet PC.

“It, it’s not fun. I’m just watching.”

“For just watching, you didn’t even notice I came.”

“I said I’m just watching!”

Thinking differently, it might actually be what Mini-me needs right now. Isn’t he kind of twisted like Bonnie?

If watching that helps him reflect on himself, then maybe I could forgive him for liking the pink cat… No, I can’t forgive it. Seriously, why? How can you like something Han Tae-kyung likes?

Before I could say anything more, Mini-me quickly put away the tablet PC.

That reaction was both funny and absurd, and a faint wave of irritation came over me… But yeah. It’s not his fault. It’s all because of that damn Han Tae-kyung.

Mini-me glanced at the time and asked.

“Why, do you want me to leave?”

“Then? Are you still upset that I didn’t play with you?”

But that can’t be helped. Even if Mini-me doesn’t put up walls with the other kids, there’s still an age difference. There’s a limit to how much I can play with him.

The excuse of studying for admission to pass time is starting to wear thin… What did I do when I was just adopted by Father?

Back then I was going to school, sure. Hmm. Still, I did a lot of things. Father used to take me out on weekends. To the aquarium, amusement park, movie theater.

…Not being able to leave this place is really becoming a limitation. This life is practically another orphanage for a kid who was already cooped up. The routine is monotonous, the people around are limited. Same with the playtime.

I can’t stay holed up in here forever just to avoid Alex Hope. The Pilot High School building will be finished eventually, and I’ll have to leave here in the end.

How much time is left until the forum? Once the forum ends, things might work out somehow.

“I’ve just got a lot to do right now.”

“You were busy over there too, so you didn’t play with me much anyway. Nothing’s changed.”

It’s not my fault, so why do I feel guilty?

I quietly looked at the top of Woo I-rok’s head. A me who had a hyung instead of a father. A bit more honest with his emotions.

Will he notice that I’m not actually his hyung?

Someday, a time may come when he finds out. But I hope that day never comes. I don’t want to explain a situation where my future self is raising my younger self.

“Hyung is your hyung, so it’s okay to be honest.”

Mini-me started to tear at the cat plushie beside him. I quietly watched as its limbs twisted around.

“…I know hyung has to work. So I’m not whining.”

I was more mature at this age than I expected. Why is that?

“That ajusshi said the same thing.”

“He said hyung was so good at what he does that he had no choice but to ask… It’s something only hyung can do, right?”

“…Yeah. It’s something only hyung can do.”

Mini-me relaxed his expression and shrugged his shoulders.

“Really…? You’re really okay with it?”

What the hell did Hong Seok-young say to make the kid calm down ?

Evidence that Han Tae-kyung was staying at the villa, the third.

“I didn’t do anything amazing.”

Hong Seok-young’s haggard face, the kind that should only appear after pulling all-nighters for a week straight.

“What exactly did you do to be so tired, Teacher?”

Even Father used to make that exact face when Han Tae-kyung came within 100 meters.

Hong Seok-young wiped his face with a dry hand.

“That bastard Han Tae-kyung…”

“You’re the one who called him, weren’t you? Weren’t you prepared for this? You said you originally planned to hire him as a teacher.”

“Yeah. I did. But now I’m wondering if that was really a good idea…”

Hong Seok-young shook his head.

“Anyway, we were talking about your little brother.”

“Yes. How did you calm him down? He was still sulking even after I talked to him.”

“I told you, it wasn’t anything grand. I just dumped everything on your future self.”

Hong Seok-young gave a tired grin with sunken eyes.

“I told him to start making a scrapbook of things he wants to ask his hyung to do for him later. Places he wants to go, things he wants to eat… that sort of stuff. When I checked this morning, he was already up to 30 pages.”

“You’re going to suffer a lot trying to do all that.”

Hong Seok-young laughed with that annoying face of his.

More than what he actually said, it was that smug laughter that irritated me and made me clench my fist. Should I hit him once? Now that he thinks of me as his student, wouldn’t he take one hit?

Hong Seok-young flicked his fingers right in front of my eyes.

“Don’t glare like that. Kids that age, if you give them something to focus on, show surprising levels of concentration. He’s probably completely absorbed in it right now.”

“…You’re only saying that because you’re not the one who has to follow through, right?”

“I took a peek, and it’s nothing too difficult. Ah, well, a few things…”

His words trailed off ominously.

What did I want to do at that age? I tried to revive the fuzzy memories. Aside from school, I didn’t really remember much…

“By the way, I didn’t get a chance to ask last time.”

“I-rok, that little kid, he’s you, isn’t he?”

I blinked a couple of times.

“You’re only realizing that now?”

I mean, I basically spelled it out, didn’t I?

For more chapters, you can check out my here --> https://.com/SHWTL

If you enjoy this novel, please review and rate it at Novelupdates. Thanks! 😊

To receive the latest update notifications or report mistakes, join our Discord server linked below.