The Genius Decided To Live An Ordinary Life [EN]: Chapter 325

On the last night of 2000, Jinhyuk’s family, friends, and Hong Ki-jun’s family gathered at the rooftop mansion in Yeouido.

“He uses this place all by himself?”

“He must be lonely.”

“Is there anything Jinhyuk would be afraid of?”

Moon Seok-il, Jung Sang-tae, and Kang Heon-chang, who had come to Seoul for a rare trip, whistled as they looked at the rooftop mansion.

“Hyung, they say there are twelve elevators in this building!”

Kim In-rang, who was the last to arrive because he had to take care of his mother and Hwang Ga-yoon’s family, barely managed to show his face after finding the elevator to the penthouse.

Close employees like Min Yong-rak and a few of his colleagues also attended. As if the cold wave of December 31st was not a problem, those gathered on the rooftop garden were enjoying a barbecue party.

“Alright, everyone! It’s about to start.”

Yu Se-ra was still Yu Se-ra.

Her always bright and energetic personality, which led the atmosphere, was still the same.

So was her love for fireworks.

“Oh! Four! Three! Two! One!”

Following the numbers on the outdoor electronic display on the opposite building, they all shouted the countdown in unison.

「HAPPY 2001!」

Bang-! Bang! Boom-! Fwoosh-!

From the barges floating on the Han River, celebratory fireworks soared, announcing the beginning of the 21st century.

Boom-! Fizzzz-.

“It’s very beautiful.”

“Whoa-. They even do this kind of thing in Seoul-.”

Kim Eun-jung and Jo Seul-chan, with their arms linked, had blissful expressions.

“Yujin, they say this place used to be a construction material factory.”

“Unnie [older sister], you must be happy. The view here is great.”

“It’s my first time here too.”

Yujin’s eyes widened at Hong Su-jeong’s unexpected answer.

She thought they would meet every day if they lived in Seoul, but that wasn’t the case.

Chirp chirp-.

Yu Se-ra, who was clapping and hopping, looked up at Hong Su-jeong. For some reason, her face was gentle.

“I thought there would be something amazing when the 21st century came, but it’s nothing special, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Sigh-.”

“Yes, Mother.”

“Why is your way of speaking so weird?”

“No, Yu Se-ra Mother. You misunderstand-.”

Hong Su-jeong, who was becoming a second-year high school student as the new year began, had also become more easygoing.

Now, she was smiling and pleading with her mother, who was looking down at her, with her hands together, just like Yu Se-ra Junior.

Jinhyuk smiled faintly at the not-at-all tense battle of nerves between mother and daughter.

‘A lot has changed.’

It was an exciting time to welcome the new year, and everyone Jinhyuk cherished was together.

That was enough.

He already had more than enough, and wanting more was just greed.

Although he was often picky, nine-year-old Hong Su-hyeok had become Jung-won’s best friend.

“Jung-won, look here. The fish are huge-.”

“Yeah-, I saw them on a picnic. They’re koi.”

“Hey, would they taste good?”

Whether it was this family or that family, they were all crazy about food. A lot had changed, but their appetite seemed to be unchanging.

Jung-won, who lived in the gym every day, saying he would become a swimmer, was taller and bigger, so he looked as different from Hong Su-hyeok as a third-grader in elementary school and a kindergartener. He spent a lot of time with Jo Seul-chan, and his dialect, which he naturally learned while attending Eodong Elementary School in the countryside, was also different from Hong Su-hyeok, who was a Seoul kid.

“Su-hyeok, I think koi would taste like silk.”

“Silk flavor?”

“Yeah-. Silk is made from silkworms, so it would taste like a cocoon.”

“What does a cocoon taste like?”

“It would be spicy. Because it’s a cocoon.”

Jo Il-heon’s influence on the neighborhood kids was still the same.

“Isn’t it chili that tastes spicy?”

“Cocoon or chili, they’re all the same-.”

The fact that everyone, young and old, had a strange mental state was also a common point between the two families.

‘I’m the only normal one.’

Woof woof-!

Grrr-.

“Oh my, oh my! Jang-gun! You can’t eat that!”

Han Yu-young hurriedly ran to soothe the dogs that looked like they were about to jump into the pond.

As expected of Son Jin-hyuk’s mother, her footwork was quick.

‘Mom is normal too.’

*

A few days after the new year dawned.

The Blue House [the presidential residence] and the Ministry of National Defense contacted him almost simultaneously.

“Yes. I will contact you after discussing it with my father.”

It was two years ago.

Jinhyuk visited the Blue House after being invited after the Asian Games.

At that meeting, he mentioned the project to excavate the remains of fallen soldiers.

He offered to provide financial support at the private company level if necessary.

Behind that was the work of the advisor Dugu Elil. An unsung hero, a shadow that he couldn’t tell anyone about.

**

【Ta-da-.】

‘Don’t come when I’m pooping. How ridiculous would it be if I passed out and fell over with my butt exposed?’

Dugu Elil’s presence had become much weaker, but the headache that made him frown when he suddenly appeared while he was awake was still the same.

He was living alone in a mansion, a place where he couldn’t meet a savior like Jo Il-heon’s father.

【I am fine. I can see but not feel, and I cannot smell.】

That’s so selfish.

Does he think I’m worried about him?

‘Let’s both be careful.’

He said as if asking a favor while carefully pulling up his pants.

Since communication wasn’t smooth, Jinhyuk had no choice but to step back.

【Congratulations on winning three gold medals at the Asian Games.】

‘You’re saying all sorts of things. But what’s going on? You came without me calling, so it must be important?’

Only then did Dugu Elil get to the point.

【There are so many human species that I missed your grandfather several times. I had to put my eyeballs back in several times while searching. That’s why it took so long.】

‘You did suffer.’

【I will show him to you when you fall asleep. Check it then.】

That night.

Whether it was some trick Dugu Elil played, the image of his young grandfather was captured in his mind.

He looked like he was in his thirties, and because he was an old-timer and had a beard and dirt on his face, it was difficult to guess his age just by looking at his face. However, his eyes and jawline were exactly like his father’s. He had a sharp face without much flesh because he hadn’t eaten well, but his tiger-like eyes were piercing even in the dark.

The dashing mustachioed commander encouraged the battle with a pistol in his hand.

In the red winter mountains where not a single decent tree could be found, the battle dragged on, and the enemy and allies were mixed in close combat.

In the darkness where time had stopped, the soldiers entrusted their lives to the flares that descended like angels in the snowstorm.

Every time a flare exploded, Jinhyuk, who was watching the shadows of the ant-like crowd climbing the red mountain, felt breathless.

When the flare went out and darkness returned, they continued their lives with bayonets, relying on passwords to identify friend or foe.

“Karat!”

“Kill them!”

They were outnumbered.

Son Jung-won, who had already been shot in the arm, was stabbed in the thigh by an enemy’s sword.

It was just a small blade, but it was a duller, more cruel, and violent weapon.

When the enemy’s sword, which had deeply pierced his side, was pulled out, a blood clot like a water balloon gushed out with hot steam.

Someone approached Son Jung-won.

“Commander Son! The People’s Army is coming. There are too many Chinese bastards. Let’s retreat quickly. Even if it’s the Volunteer Army, let’s live.”

If it weren’t for the plain combat uniform and the net-covered helmet, he would have been mistaken for a member of the People’s Army because of his accent.

Volunteer Commander Son Jung-won shouted while clutching his side.

Thanks to that, Jinhyuk could clearly hear his grandfather’s voice.

“Sergeant Song! Request artillery fire on our position!”

“Commander Son, I’m fine. Isn’t that the authority of the company commander?”

“Your company commander is dead! You are the commander now!”

The battle was so fierce that they were fighting with even the strength left in their guts.

Sergeant Song lowered his gun as if he had given up and looked up at the sky. There were deep shadows on his gaunt face.

“If we do that, we, and this kid, will all die…”

“No! It means that instead of just us dying, we’ll take them with us! Hahaha-! Since we’re surrounded anyway, where can we go!”

Even though the blood flowing from his forehead was dragging the dirt on his face into his mouth, his grandfather’s face, laughing like a demon, was more familiar than strange, resembling his father laughing with his children.

“Okay, I understand. Let’s do it. Let’s go to the afterlife together.”

Sergeant Song, who had been staring at his grandfather, nodded with a determined expression.

“Hey- you! Come here quickly!”

“Don’t back down! We have to hold them here!”

The Volunteer Army, seeing their commander fighting hard despite his injuries, burned with fighting spirit.

Swoosh-.

Soon, a sharp sound tearing through the air covered the sky.

“Take cover-!”

Bang-! Boom-!

Everywhere, dirt was flying due to the shelling, and a hell of chaos unfolded with severed limbs flying around.

‘No! Grandpa, lie down. Take cover! Even if you just stay still!’

Boom-!

Jinhyuk’s shout, which had no reason to reach him, was buried in the sound of the shelling.

Son Jung-won was running around, pushing his men into the trenches.

‘Dad is in Grandma’s belly!’

The army, which couldn’t even unify their uniforms and didn’t wear helmets, fought to the last man even after the shelling stopped and their allies were annihilated. In the smoke that covered the mountains and people.

Jinhyuk could see it in his dream.

His grandfather, whose heart was pierced by shrapnel, died while clutching the left pocket of his jacket.

The blood tears flowing from his eyes, which couldn’t feel the dirt covering his face and the snowflakes falling on his corneas.

‘Thank you, Dugu Elil. Thanks to you, I was able to see my grandfather’s death…’

【My name is ⬛⬛⬛⬛. Friend.】

**

It was more of a one-sided nagging relationship than a bickering one, but Dugu Elil had also become much more emotional.

Well, everything grows and dies through such changes.

Even gods.

‘I should have written down his name, but strangely, I can’t remember it. Anagne? Anaksunamun? Araksil?’

It was a name that reminded him of a laxative, but it only lingered in his mouth and didn’t come to mind clearly.

Was it because he saw it as a video like any other dream? The scenes were blurry like an old movie, and he couldn’t remember the conversations properly either.

However, he remembered where his grandfather was buried after waking up from his sleep thanks to his concentration.

Jinhyuk’s grandfather, Son Jung-won, was sleeping in an area where he didn’t have to negotiate with North Korea.

***

Son Kwang-yeon and Jinhyuk moved to Cheorwon and took over Son Jung-won’s remains.

The clothes had rotted away, but a fairly well-preserved photo was found in a steel cigarette case. It was a clearer photo of Jinhyuk’s grandmother, Moon Ye-eui, than the one Son Kwang-yeon had. It was the item he had been holding onto in the pocket of his jacket when he died.

“Father…”

Son Kwang-yeon, who was caressing his mother’s photo in front of his father’s remains, had bloodshot eyes and a red nose, but he didn’t cry.

“Let’s go home, Father. I will lay you to rest next to Mother.”

Father, father, father.

Son Kwang-yeon mumbled a name he had never called before.

A high-ranking government official appeared and promised to hold a funeral according to protocol and bury him in the National Cemetery, but Son Kwang-yeon refused.

“If I weren’t Son Kwang-yeon, if my son weren’t Son Jin-hyuk, would you be able to make such a promise? He’s someone who wasn’t even listed in the military register and doesn’t have an identification tag, so even if the government insisted he was a member of the People’s Army, I wouldn’t have anything to say, would I?”

It was a prejudice that the state would discriminate against those who were not listed in the military register.

It sounded like a reproach, but Son Kwang-yeon’s tone was polite.

After all, even if they discriminated, it wasn’t their fault.

The government official only adjusted his glasses and didn’t answer.

“I am grateful just for finding him. Please find the families of those people. They should receive the honor.”

Unknown soldiers.

Where Son Kwang-yeon pointed, the remains of those whose affiliations and identities were unknown were coming to the surface one after another.

*

In the middle of January, cold winter rain poured down.

His grandfather’s remains were laid to rest in a family charnel house, which was created like a park in an empty lot by the waterway.

It was a facility that looked like a small tower from afar and was softly illuminated even at night.

It was a facility that Son Kwang-yeon had prepared behind Cheonmachong [a historical burial mound], saying that he wanted to live together even after death. A charnel house guarded by the graves of loyal dogs.

Neighbors and even SSS members could be laid to rest there if they wanted.

There, Jinhyuk’s grandfather, Son Jung-won, finally entered his rest.

He would have a belated meeting with his in-laws who had settled in first.

Son Kwang-yeon refused all national merit benefits, but Jinhyuk had requested something from a government official.

Thud thud-.

The way they walked with powerful but restrained movements looked like they would break if they were given strength. They were more like soldiers made of bamboo.

At ease- halt.

Thump-!

Right- face.

Shush-!

Present- arms.

Click-, Clack-!

Perfectly synchronized and disciplined movements without an error.

The honor guard pulled back and released the charging handle at the same time as they took the present arms position.

The movement of placing their index finger on the trigger guard was smooth.

Aim.

The muzzle pointed diagonally at the sky along the outstretched left arm.

One- two- three.

In Jinhyuk’s sensitive ears, he caught the honor guard’s command, which sounded like ants, through the rain.

Bang-!

Bang-!

Bang-!

The honor guard’s salute.

It seemed like he could ask for that much for a hero.

After the salute, a disciplined but low command was heard again.

Present- arms!

Left- face!

Forward- march!

It was a grateful thing that they supported the ceremony for the hero even in the rain.

After the simple and solemn enshrinement ceremony, Jinhyuk grabbed his younger siblings’ shoulders.

“Yujin, Jung-won. Now, Grandpa will be sleeping here with Grandma and Grandpa. So that Grandpa doesn’t get bored, Yujin and Jung-won will play here for him. Play with tops, play with ttakji [a traditional Korean game with folded paper tiles], and play with jegi [a Korean shuttlecock game].”

Son Jung-won looked up at his older brother.

“What if Grandpa says it’s too noisy?”

Son Kwang-yeon, who was carefully holding the faded photo, stroked his youngest son’s head.

“It’s okay. He’ll say, ‘Oh, you’re doing great, my grandson.'”

“Yes, ehehe-.”

Jinhyuk bowed his head first toward the charnel house.

“Let’s say hello like this. Say, ‘Grandpa, good night’ and say hello.”

“Grandpa, good night-.”

Son Kwang-yeon smiled brightly as he watched the young ones bowing their heads.

He strongly grabbed the shoulder of his eldest son, who was also smiling at his younger siblings, who resembled his grandmother and mother.

“Thank you for finding Grandpa.”

*

On the weekend that followed, his grandmother, who had been laid to rest in another place, also met her husband.

It was delayed because Son Kwang-yeon didn’t rush the transfer, saying that she would be lonely if she was alone and that it would be better for her to stay with her friends in the place where she had been lying.

What words were needed?

Son Kwang-yeon, facing the charnel house, nodded his head a few times, like a person talking to his parents, and made a pledge in front of his parents’ spirits.

‘I will live diligently. I will live well while raising my children. I will make up for the filial piety I couldn’t show with that.’

It was a warm day with the sun watching over them and snow flurries scattering, like a fairy tale.