The Genius Decided To Live An Ordinary Life [EN]: Chapter 300

“Umma, daddy, bye-bye!”\n\n”Hehehe, okay. See you tonight, my puppy.”\n\nHong Su-hyuk, calling his maternal grandfather strangely, was held in Choi Mi-kyung’s arms as he boarded the boat.\n\nYoo Myung-sun smiled kindly and waved.\n\nDespite several corrections, Hong Su-hyuk’s ingrained terms didn’t change.\n\nWell, it’s not exactly wrong… It’s right, isn’t it? Mom’s daddy.\n\nHong Ki-joon also boarded the boat, leaving Yoo Myung-sun behind.\n\nHe was still grateful to his father-in-law for easing his mind, telling him to go ahead as he would stop by Son Kwang-yeon’s house in the evening.\n\nYoo Se-ra, who was afraid of boats, hesitated even at the sight of the canal, which was smoother than an ice rink.\n\n”Ummaaa-. Wow. Waaah-. Boat ride!”\n\n”Go, go. You rascal.”\n\nHong Su-hyuk, who had boarded the boat first, gestured, and there was no way she could refuse.\n\nShe moved her legs, which were trembling uncontrollably.\n\n”Umma said bad words!”\n\n”Mom’s legs are wobbly, you rascal.”\n\n”Said it again!”\n\n”Stop it, you rascal!”\n\n”Ueobeobeo-“\n\nWhen her mother got annoyed, Hong Su-hyuk snuggled into Choi Mi-kyung’s arms.\n\nHehehe-.\n\nEveryone chuckled, watching Yoo Se-ra having an eye-level argument with her young son.\n\nHer public image was calm and intellectual, but her actual self was no different from Choi Mi-kyung.\n\n”Start the engines! Fire the cannons!”\n\nAs the boat began to move at the captain’s signal, Hong Ki-joon’s lips also twitched.\n\nHuff huff-.\n\nJinhyuk, with his tongue lolling out like a general, pedaling away, was quite a sight.\n\n’Hehehe, that rascal. Even if fate changes, it seems his hard-working destiny doesn’t.’\n\nHe knew he was devoted to his family, but to go out of his way to suffer like that.\n\nIt was so absurd that he couldn’t help but laugh.\n\n”Paddle, paddle, let’s go, through the rough sea waves, tada- tadadadada-. Tada dadadadada dada- dadadada to the land of hope!”\n\nHe doesn’t know the lyrics either.\n\nSon Yu-jin’s loud singing also made him smile.\n\nThere were many eyes watching, so she could have been embarrassed, but Son Yu-jin acted without restraint, as if she were the queen of the sea.\n\n’She doesn’t care about what others think and has no shadows, which is nice.’\n\nHis past daughter, Hong Su-jeong, had many shadows.\n\nEven when he suggested doing something, she would only nod faintly, rarely smiling at her dad or speaking first. It was probably after she went to study abroad.\n\n’Our daughter is different now.’\n\nAs if puberty was someone else’s problem, she hugged her dad every day when he came home from work and chattered non-stop when they were together. She even massaged his shoulders, saying he had worked hard, and her fingertips were so skilled that it was more refreshing than any masseuse.\n\nThat alone was enough reward for coming back.\n\nEven when he was sick and tired, he gained the strength to live from others.\n\n’Jinhyuk must be the same.’\n\nHis younger siblings, friends, neighborhood hyung [older brother or male friend], dogs, even the old folks.\n\nHis own will to live was undoubtedly great, but the strength he gained from relationships must also be there.\n\nLook at him now.\n\nHuff- huff- hekk-.\n\nHis thighs, calves, and temples were bulging with veins from pedaling, but his face was smiling. Watching Son Yu-jin sing, Choi Mi-kyung holding Hong Su-hyuk from behind so he wouldn’t fall, Choi Tae-yang holding Son Jeong-won, the dogs going back and forth on the boat, and the two friends who were clearly in a sweet relationship.\n\nThen, when he made eye contact with Hong Ki-joon, he smiled awkwardly.\n\n’That rascal.’\n\nHe said he was regaining his memories.\n\nHe even ran errands for a big shot named Dugu Elil.\n\nNot only did he escape the darkness, but he also used it to his advantage; Son Jin-hyuk was something else.\n\nWhoo-oop-.\n\nHe took a deep breath of the fresh air.\n\nHis head cleared, and he felt so good that he felt like he could fly.\n\n”Hya-. The scenery is great, the air is great. It was a good idea to come here to relax. Right, Su-jeong’s mom?”\n\n”Uhh- uh-oop!”\n\nYoo Se-ra, who had been nodding, grabbed the side of the boat and started headbanging violently.\n\nMorning sickness?\n\nBut… it hasn’t even been a day?\n\nWeeeak-.\n\nChwaaa-.\n\nYoo Se-ra threw bait into the canal.\n\nIt was so well-dissolved that it would be good for baby fish food without having to mix it in water separately.\n\nKim Eun-jung, who was nearby, quickly approached and patted Yoo Se-ra’s back.\n\n”Madam, are you okay?”\n\n”Uheo-eo-.”\n\nYoo Se-ra stretched her arm back and waved it. It seemed like she was saying she was okay.\n\nJo Seul-chan, who had also stood up, scratched his cheek and muttered.\n\n”My goodness, there’s someone who gets seasick even though it’s not the sea.”\n\n”Hahahaha-!”\n\nHong Ki-joon burst into laughter, tears streaming down his face.\n\nHahahahahaha-!\n\n”Utti, my seee- uuuup!”\n\nYoo Se-ra glared and shook her cat paws, but the laughter didn’t stop.\n\nHahahahahaha-!\n\nHe laughed so heartily that the canal echoed.\n\n’Yoo Se-ra, I live because of you.’\n\nHis stomach hurt from laughing so much, and tears even welled up.\n\n*\n\nAs if she had never been seasick, Yoo Se-ra landed a liver shot on Hong Ki-joon’s abdomen as soon as she stepped onto land.\n\n”Ugh-!”\n\n”Is it fun while your wife is seasick?”\n\nAs expected, the lioness Yoo Se-ra.\n\nAfter learning boxing from Hong Su-jeong, she knew the exact location of the liver.\n\n”Hahahahahaha!”\n\n”That rascal-. Looks like you had fun.”\n\nOh, my aching body-. I don’t know why my whole body aches when I was seasick.\n\nYoo Se-ra rolled her eyes once and then walked across the lawn.\n\n*\n\n”What kind of cosmetics does Jinhyuk’s mom use? How come she doesn’t age at all?”\n\n”Oh my, if a CEO who gets skin care says that, it just sounds like you’re making fun of a country person.”\n\nYoo Se-ra and Han Yu-young sat on the porch, becoming one.\n\nEven sisters wouldn’t be this affectionate.\n\n”Su-hyuk, if you need to poop while playing with Jeong-won, you have to come to mom, okay?”\n\n”Okay-“\n\nHong Su-hyuk, who used to be a stubborn and greedy baby, had become a gentle child as he grew up.\n\nIt was thanks to Hong Su-jeong, who took care of him so much but also disciplined him strictly.\n\n”My, he doesn’t seem like a rich family’s young master at all.”\n\n”Don’t even mention it. Su-jeong teaches him so strictly that Su-hyuk can’t do anything. You know what’s even funnier? Even when he’s being scolded by his older sister, he doesn’t come to his mom.”\n\n”Oh my, how can that be? How much does he like his older sister?”\n\n”They’re like glue. If Su-jeong even goes to the bathroom, he begs her to open the door with his hands together. It’s so funny, really.”\n\n”Our Yu-jin was like that. She was always stuck to her older brother, day and night, and she still is.”\n\n”Are you sad?”\n\nHan Yu-young, who couldn’t answer right away, looked around for a moment.\n\nNo one’s listening, right?\n\n”It’s so- convenient…”\n\nThe two mothers narrowed their eyes and chuckled.\n\nThey had heard that it was good to have an eldest child with a big age gap with their younger siblings, but experiencing it firsthand was really great.\n\nWhile the mothers were chatting, Jeong-won and Hong Su-hyuk held hands and walked around the lawn. The dog, Janggun, followed behind the babies like a bodyguard.\n\n”Janggu-i.”\n\n”Janggu-i? Woof woof.”\n\n”Mummy, I am Janggu-i.”\n\nWhen the hot sun became too much, they circled under the plum tree, playing tag.\n\n”Daddy is a fool!”\n\n”Son Jeong-won! Come here!”\n\nTheir appearance was like two waddling raccoons, making them smile.\n\nWoof! Woof!\n\nThe dogs, excited by the running children, joined in, filling the yard with energy.\n\nAfter confirming that the children were playing well, Jinhyuk moved his feet.\n\nTowards the lonely person sitting in the shade of the cherry tree in the distance, looking down at the canal.\n\n*\n\nIndigo.\n\nIndeed, the word indigo was not wasted.\n\nThe sky, without a single cloud or bird, created an illusion as if time had stopped.\n\n’It’s similar.’\n\nIt was similar to the world where Jinhyuk had stayed.\n\nThe color of the sky, the color of the water, and the sounds of the bustling people.\n\nIt was a place where Jinhyuk’s opinions were greatly reflected when the garden was being landscaped and the canal was being built.\n\nHe had told the construction workers that Son Kwang-yeon was a busy man, so they should consult with his son, and Jinhyuk had unconsciously created a land that resembled the world where he had stayed.\n\n’Come to think of it, he said he also interfered when the house was being built?’\n\nSon Kwang-yeon’s house was not a concrete structure commonly called a Western-style house.\n\nBoth the exterior and interior had a structure that was not found in similar houses in Korea.\n\n’I was too busy drinking with my friends to even notice that.’\n\nIt was fortunate that he found out, even if it was late.\n\nDugu Elil had clearly said that Jinhyuk would return with his memories, but Hong Ki-joon had not remembered that at all.\n\nEven after Jinhyuk told him, he couldn’t recall it. The wind blowing in the cracks of space and time was said to make one lose their very self, but still, Hong Ki-joon had protected himself and, belatedly, had even revived his memories with Dugu Elil, so it could be said that he was lucky.\n\n’I also brought a world I saw from somewhere else.’\n\nJinhyuk had only changed his house and neighborhood, but Hong Ki-joon was transplanting a world.\n\nStocks, real estate?\n\nThat was something only commoners would dream of.\n\nWhy would he be attached to such things when there was technology from another world that he had never imagined?\n\nWith one revolutionary technology that went beyond innovation, wealth and fame would follow on their own. And there was no end to the technology that Hong Ki-joon possessed. It was so much that it would be difficult to implement even over several generations.\n\nOf course, immediately after returning, he was overwhelmed trying to grasp the flow of the world and lay the groundwork. How hard he had worked to gain recognition from his father-in-law.\n\nMoreover, due to the changed history, the records he had simply kept had become scraps of paper.\n\n’I was very flustered back then. Because I couldn’t predict anything.’\n\nIt was an unnecessary worry.\n\nSince the world was only watching him, there was no reason to go with the flow.\n\nFrom then on, it was just a matter of continuing to move forward.\n\n’Thinking about this and that, my head is clear and it feels good.’\n\nLaughter, thoughts, what else could there be?\n\nA way not to be consumed by darkness.\n\n’Ah, carnal desire.’\n\n……Eheuheung-.\n\nThere must be something else, right?\n\nHe should ask him when he comes.\n\nMutter mutter-.\n\nAs he continued his monologue, he heard footsteps.\n\nHe had told SSS not to be noticed, so the only person who would approach was that guy.\n\nWhat should he say first?\n\n”I thought I could keep moving forward…”\n\nHong Ki-joon didn’t look back and patted the spot next to him.\n\nThe grass that had grown softly under the tree was soft.\n\nWhen Jinhyuk sat next to him, he continued.\n\n”…It wasn’t easy.”\n\nIndustrial espionage.\n\nEven with strict control and attention to security, they couldn’t prevent technology leaks.\n\nDomestic and international competitors began to copy Se-in’s advanced technology.\n\nSimilar products to the Quadron were also being developed in the United States and Japan. He heard that some people had died from falling.\n\n”That’s when I understood what you meant. That whether you run fast or walk slowly, the gap will be similar. That must be an insight you gained firsthand.”\n\nJinhyuk nodded silently.\n\nEverything in the world was no different from a race.\n\nIf there was a talented person, the competitors who were inspired by them would also improve. Whether they used fair methods or committed fraud, they would catch up.\n\nConversely, if there was no talented person, they would become complacent and the race would become boring.\n\nHere, the word talented person could be replaced by the word revolution.\n\nThe Neolithic Revolution, the Iron Age Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, the Information Revolution, and all the revolutions that Hong Ki-joon had brought about.\n\n”Even if our languages are different, technology monopoly isn’t possible forever. Machines can be taken apart, codes can be decoded, and materials can be disassembled and melted to see how they were made…”\n\nHe sighed and looked at Hong Ki-joon.\n\n”I don’t think you need to blame yourself for not being able to stop industrial espionage. Thanks to that, human civilization has advanced several steps.”\n\n”Yeah. It feels a bit better when you say that. You’re the only one who can say those words in front of me.”\n\nSharing secrets was this comforting and intimate, it seemed.\n\nEven if they weren’t in that kind of relationship, it was only Jinhyuk.\n\nThe only person who could evaluate Hong Ki-joon and offer him comfort.\n\nIt was the same in the past, and it was the same now.\n\nWho would dare say such things in front of Hong Ki-joon?\n\nThose who were concerned about their positions would have to refrain from doing anything that would upset the chairman, fearing that their heads would be chopped off. No matter how gentlemanly the chairman was, he was still a powerful figure.\n\n”I thought you were intentionally leaking technology information to broaden the base.”\n\n”Eheuheuh-, how could that be…”\n\nHong Ki-joon wiped the cold sweat from his sideburns.\n\nThere were technologies that he had mixed with errors, like mixing sand with rice, but that was only limited to technologies that had become obsolete.\n\n”You’ve actually achieved a lot. You’ve created a completely different world that didn’t exist before.”\n\nJinhyuk, who had been holed up studying in the past, didn’t know the outside world in detail. Still, he knew that the past and present, which he had indirectly experienced through newspapers, were completely different.\n\nThe cars were different, and the airplanes were different.\n\nMobile communication, PCs, and telephones were different, and the news frequently reported what South Korea’s geostationary satellite was detecting.\n\nThe news of North Korea’s armistice line provocations and spy infiltration had completely disappeared, and the news of Japan’s Dokdo [a group of islets disputed between South Korea and Japan] provocations, which were often heard, had also stopped since last year. It was from then that rumors began to circulate that several Japanese submarines that had been snooping around the Dokdo seabed had been sunk in the East Sea. Of course, Jinhyuk had confirmed that it was true through internal reports.\n\n”That’s why I’m worried. Whether I should keep releasing new things.”\n\n”Are you running out of sources?”\n\n”Eheuheuh-, how could that be.”\n\nHong Ki-joon smiled and patted his chest.\n\nHe seemed to know what was inside the thick part.\n\n’He must have written it down there.’\n\nHe had rewritten it by hand, and that was why there were piles of handwritten reports when he went to Seoul to meet Chairman Yoo Myung-sun.\n\n”The problem is whether it can be fully contained in the vessel called human, the source is overflowing.”\n\nUm-.\n\nJinhyuk let out a sound that was both knowing and unknowing.\n\nHow amazing was the technology he had brought back that he would say that there was a limit to its implementation with human technology?\n\nHe was also curious to some extent.\n\n”Can’t you tell me? Roughly what kind of technology there is…”\n\n”What kind of technology? Hmm-, what could there be? How about a light-speed engine?”\n\nJinhyuk’s eyes widened.\n\nIt was in contrast to Hong Ki-joon’s playful eyes.\n\n”Do you really have something like that?”