Chapter 75: The Price of Help and a Child’s Silent Plea

#75

“Taeseongyeon, if I were to bring in a good A-rank hunter, would there be anything in it for me?”

“An incentive will be paid as a basic. If you have something else you want, we’ll consider it.”

“How much would that be?”

Taeseongyeon subtly smiled, propping his chin on his hand, as if surprised by Dokyeom’s interest in such matters. A cunning smirk played on his lips.

“It’s determined by their rank, characteristics, and the rarity of their abilities, but it would roughly be around 3% to 5% of that hunter’s negotiated annual salary.”

‘Wow, I can see why brokers make a living doing this.’

Dokyeom briefly licked his lips, then shook off the clinging greed. Even so, the thought of selling his ‘puppy’ for money brought a significant pang of conscience.

“Forget the incentive. If I bring in an A-rank, can you just stamp the approval without an interview or anything? They’re a really great friend.”

“First, tell me what their position is. I’ll listen and and take it into consideration.”

“They’re both, and the support role has a noble characteristic… Ugh, why are you prying so much? An A-rank would naturally be a good hunter, but now you’re even filtering A-ranks? Goodness, then why did you sign a contract with me? I’m a flimsy, bottom-tier E-rank with absolutely no ability. I wonder if you even know I’m on the verge of collapsing from lack of sleep?”

“Indeed. Why did I?”

Taeseongyeon countered Dokyeom’s snarky remark with a smiling face. Something fumed inside Dokyeom, but the only thing visible was a piece of bread.

He considered throwing it, but fearing the child might see and imitate, Dokyeom reluctantly spun around and lay down instead.

“Oh, whatever. I’m sleeping, so don’t talk to me. I’m telling you again, don’t give the kid any grief. You might just find yourself by the collar.”

Dokyeom blinked his sleepy eyes, looking at the child who sat at his feet, rolling their eyes.

“Dal, if you’re hungry, just eat without worrying. Big Brother is going to sleep for a bit. If that old man gives you trouble, wake me right up.”

*Peep!*

Dal opened their small mouth and replied softly, a sound like a bird chirping.

‘Dal.’ That was the name Dokyeom had given the child. He had named them for being as white as the moon and as quiet as the moon, but once he started calling them that, no other name seemed to fit so perfectly.

Finally, Dokyeom lifted his upper body, stroked Dal’s head, then flopped back down, curling up like a grub. Just a few minutes later, heavy breathing filled the CEO’s office.

****

In the silent room, the clink of a teacup being set down echoed, and Dal’s shoulders twitched. Their eyes, as white as their hair, trembled slightly before slowly turning towards Taeseongyeon.

Despite their hesitation, their gazes met instantly. Taeseongyeon wore a faint smile, as if observing something curious.

“It seems you don’t remember… do you?”

Dal looked back and forth between Dokyeom and Taeseongyeon with an anxious expression. They couldn’t make a sound, fearing Dokyeom might wake up if they opened their mouth.

Taeseongyeon watched the flustered child, then subtly propped his chin, deliberately forming his lips.

“Little one, say ‘Daddy’.”

At the sight of the elegantly curving corners of Taeseongyeon’s eyes, the child whimpered, looking at Dokyeom, unable to do anything.

“And that one is Mommy.”

*Peep, peep!*

Ultimately, Dal chirped like a chick, their voice barely a whisper.

Taeseongyeon picked up a nearby piece of bread and offered it to the child with a gentle gaze, as if comforting a good child. Then, he whispered softly to the child, who hesitantly accepted it.

“If you make Mommy tired, are you a good child, or a bad child?”

It was a question asked with the answer already known. Dokyeom’s heavy breathing still showed no sign of waking. Dal looked down at the bread in their hand for a moment, then up at Dokyeom, who was asleep with a tired expression.

Only then did Dal realize that while they had been eating, Dokyeom had never eaten with them. Only the vivid images of Dokyeom nodding off to sleep or dozing against the wall remained.

“You can take care of yourself. You’re perfectly capable.”

Despite the gentle invitation, it felt unsettlingly frightening.

“Because you’re a very clever child, aren’t you?”

Dal squeezed their eyes shut once, then hesitantly nodded at the intimidating man before them. They carefully tore open the bread package in their hand and bit into the bread, eating with determination, as if to show they could manage on their own.

Taeseongyeon smiled contentedly, as if watching an obedient child. After that, the child and Taeseongyeon’s gazes did not meet again.

****

It seemed to have started that very day: the child began to feed themselves.

That night, after Dokyeom entrusted the child to Taeseongyeon and fell asleep, he had piled diligently made rice balls on the table like a mountain. Not only that, but he had also placed bread “borrowed” from other shops and food provided by the hotel aside before going to bed.

He had set an alarm to ring every two hours and drifted off around 11 PM. When he awoke again, the world was steeped in the dim light of dawn. With a hazy mind, he couldn’t help but be startled upon seeing the electronic clock on the wall.

It was past 4 AM.

‘What? Why didn’t the alarm go off?’

Dokyeom’s racing thoughts paused for a moment. Just as he was about to bolt upright in surprise, he felt someone rustling and slipping out of his embrace. It was Dal, stealthily getting out of bed.

Their small body cut through the darkness, moving to where the rice balls were placed. They crouched down and began to eat, munching away. A long shadow stretched out behind their small back, flickering in the room.

After eating like that for a long time, presumably full, they wiped their mouth with the back of their hand and returned to bed without hesitation, burrowing into Dokyeom’s arms.

Soon, heavy breathing filled Dokyeom’s ears. In contrast to Dal’s peaceful slumber, Dokyeom’s heart pounded erratically, completely disoriented.

‘Why is the kid doing something they’ve never done before? Did Taeseongyeon say something? Could it be that they were bothered by me constantly taking care of them?’

The thoughts that heated Dokyeom’s mind continued until sunrise. Coincidentally, two hours had passed, and Dal stirred again, shaking their body as they rose.

Just as before, two hours earlier, Dal quietly slipped out of Dokyeom’s embrace, took the bread from the table, and crouched alone in a corner, chewing diligently. They chewed so thoroughly, a truly commendable sight.

After finishing about ten slices of bread, Dal brushed off the crumbs and carefully returned to Dokyeom’s embrace, settling down.

*Screech! Hiss!*

Agon, who had suddenly poked his head over Dokyeom’s back, made a metallic sound and seemed to ask Dal something. Dokyeom quickly closed his eyes. Dal replied with a small bird-like chirp.

*Peep!*

Then, Dal closed their eyes again in Dokyeom’s arms, seeking sleep. Agon, too, pulled Dokyeom’s waist with his thick arm from behind, exhaled a long breath, and fell into a deep slumber.

Dokyeom never imagined he would be so grateful for the three of them to spend a night without incident.

Dal had likely repeated this several times throughout the dawn. Whether instructed by someone or acting out of self-awareness, the child seemed to have decided to manage these many nights alone, without assistance.

As soon as Dal’s breathing deepened, Dokyeom carefully stroked their hair and quietly closed his eyes. He had only thought of them as a child, yet their consideration was deeper and more abundant than any adult’s. Since things had come to this, Dokyeom decided to sleep as much as he wanted today.

But the problem was… why hadn’t the alarm rung? No, he couldn’t have… broken it.

As Dokyeom tried to ignore the whereabouts of his phone and drift to sleep, his brow furrowed involuntarily with an uneasy feeling.

And sure enough, his ominous premonition was correct. When Dokyeom finally opened his eyes in broad daylight for the first time in a while, his hand immediately fumbled beside the pillow and encountered a phone snapped cleanly in half. It was broken so perfectly, like a chocolate bar cleanly split down the middle.

“…Hahaha… I’ll have to get something out of Taeseongyeon. I saved his life, so this is nothing. He uses a good phone, anyway.”

‘But wait, can the data be transferred? I haven’t memorized our puppy’s phone number yet…’

Unlike Dokyeom, who let out a hollow laugh, Agon and Dal looked as if they had enjoyed a night of luxury, their skin smooth and glowing. Dokyeom hadn’t done anything for them, yet anyone would think he had diligently taken care of them.

Seeing that, Dokyeom, with a ‘whatever’ attitude, tossed the phone into the nearby trash can.

“Alright, if you two are happy, that’s enough. Let’s wash up and eat.”

As Dokyeom stretched and rose from the bed, a profound aftertaste lingered. It was the emptiness of another trace of ‘Han Dokyeom’ being erased from this world.

Dokyeom cast his gaze toward the sun-drenched window, looking at the distant city panorama before belatedly heading to the bathroom. He first retrieved the phone he had thrown into the trash and carefully placed it in a desk drawer.

‘After all, ‘Han Dokyeom’ was also his own child, even if he was gone now.’

****

[Skill failed.]

[ was rejected by the ‘Opponent Monster’.]

‘Here we go again.’

As soon as Dokyeom saw the message, he kicked out of the water and clung to the swimming pool wall. He gasped for breath, *huffing* and *puffing*, noticing Dal trembling and pressed against the wall, far from the pool.

Ever since the brawl at the lake, Dal would sit far away from any standing water, never venturing close.

They would allow themselves to be washed, but they were utterly dejected, like a frightened puppy. Whenever they saw Dokyeom, they would *peep, peep* with a face that looked about to cry.

“Dal, *gasp*, *pant*, did you eat all the bread?”

*Peep!*

Dal blinked their pitiful eyes and replied softly. Dokyeom had given them so much bread, but in the short time he was in the water, it seemed Dal had swallowed it whole without chewing, leaving not even a crumb. Not sensing any hunger, Dokyeom climbed out of the water and sat on the edge, catching his breath.

Meanwhile, Agon also abruptly poked his head above the water’s surface. Dokyeom waved Agon away with an annoyed gesture.

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