She had revealed a life as heavy as Seo-jun’s own.

Yet, she showed no signs of blaming anyone or feeling regret.

On the contrary, she was smiling brightly.

Curious, Seo-jun asked,

“Wasn’t it hard for you?”

“Of course, it was hard... so hard that I even thought about just dying.”

“……”

“But because I endured through those hardships, I was able to send my Hyunsu to college, later hear him be called ‘Doctor,’ and even see him get married. And I got to hold my little grandbaby in my arms.”

The Hyunsu she mentioned was probably her son, and likely Cha Jinmyung’s father.

The young man in the framed photo over her shoulder, smiling while wearing a graduation cap.

“You’ve lived an incredible life.”

“I couldn’t do it again. It’s only because it was my first time that I thought, ‘Maybe everyone lives like this,’ and just did it.”

With those words, Lee Sook-hee smiled shyly.

Just then, the magic energy that Seo-jun had infused into her knee took a tangible form. It would serve as a substitute for the worn-out cartilage.

But it wasn’t over yet.

The muscles around her cartilage were too thin and had lost their strength.

Seo-jun used his power to regenerate them.

It might have seemed like an easy task, but if Park Yeon had seen it, he would have been shocked.

Regenerating each muscle fiber required an extremely high level of concentration and a pure, refined magic energy that only Seo-jun possessed.

“How do you feel?”

At Seo-jun’s question, Lee Sook-hee touched her knee, then suddenly stood up with a surprised expression.

‘How…?’

She had always groaned in pain whenever she stood up because of the stabbing sensation in her joints. But now…

“Ah, it doesn’t hurt?”

“I relaxed your muscles.”

“Can that really make the pain go away? I saw on TV that degenerative arthritis only gets worse over time and that constant management is necessary…”

Seo-jun felt the need for a plausible explanation. Fortunately, it wasn’t difficult.

“Your cartilage hasn’t worn down significantly. However, you’ve probably used your knee muscles frequently, without much rest.”

“That’s true… I used to push a cart up and down hills every day. When I was younger, I even walked tens of kilometers at a time.”

“Your muscles never had a chance to rest. I simply helped relax them.”

Still unsure but hopeful, Lee Sook-hee nodded.

Regardless of the explanation, what mattered was that her knee felt fine.

As she marveled at how strong and pain-free her knee felt, Seo-jun smiled brightly.

This should be a fitting way to repay her for the delicious sujebi.

Park Yeon had been diligently familiarizing himself with Earth’s culture.

There was still an overwhelming amount to learn, but at least when it came to television, he had mastered it completely.

These days, he was completely absorbed in daily dramas.

And today was an especially important day.

The male protagonist was going to ask for the father’s approval to marry the female protagonist.

‘Please, let nothing go wrong and just give your blessing!’

The challenges the couple had faced were on par with the struggles of a hero trying to defeat a demon king.

That was why Park Yeon desperately wished for a smooth approval.

-Ah… I’m nervous.

-Don’t be. Let’s go in.

-Okay.

Finally, the two entered the house.

The male lead’s father came out to greet them, but his expression wasn’t good.

Park Yeon clasped his hands together in prayer.

‘Please, please, please!’

But his prayers were in vain.

-Sejun…

-Father, please greet her. This is…

-Sejun, please, tell me it’s not this girl.

-What? What do you mean?

-You… Mina, right?

-How do you know my name…?

-You two are actually… Actually, you’re twins who were separated twenty years ago!

—DUN DUN!—

A dramatic sound effect of shock and horror.

And Park Yeon felt exactly that—shock and horror.

“My God… How could this happen?!”

What would happen to their marriage now? They had endured so much to get to this point…!

“No! No way! How could they be siblings?!”

Despite Park Yeon’s anguished cry, the drama ended right on cue.

As the ending credits rolled, the words “To Be Continued” appeared on the screen.

Park Yeon clutched his head in despair.

“Ughhh! How am I supposed to wait until tomorrow?!”

After a while, he finally calmed down.

“Phew… Maybe it’s because I got so worked up, but I’m hungry.”

There were a few Arutus eggs in the fridge, but nothing else edible.

Instead, a sticky note was attached to the fridge along with 20,000 won.

Feeling pleased, Park Yeon pocketed the money.

Judging by the money left for him, it seemed like he was meant to buy hangover soup from the restaurant across the street.

‘Heh heh, foolish Demon King.’

He had absolutely no intention of following that order.

Instead, he planned to buy a triangular kimbap and cup ramen from the convenience store.

That way, he would still have a hefty sum of 13,000 won left.

‘He’d never expect this. Hehehe.’

With 13,000 won, he could buy a pair of rubber gloves and still have 3,000 won left over.

Feeling pleased, Park Yeon whistled as he left the store.

His destination was a convenience store about 200 meters away.

‘Every time I come here, I’m amazed.’

To him, convenience stores were even more incredible than supermarkets.

It felt as though all kinds of food were gathered in one place.

Among them, what caught his eye was a can of cola in the fridge.

But he couldn’t buy it.

If he wanted to buy even one more pair of rubber gloves to store in his subspace, he had to resist.

Suppressing temptation, he bought his triangular kimbap and cup ramen and began heading back.

Just then—

-It’s true… Please, just give it to me.

“What’s that?”

The voice sounded strangely familiar.

Curious, Park Yeon moved toward the source of the sound.

* * *

Kang Hyunseong Ruled Daejin High School

He was a towering figure at 197 cm and 120 kg.

With his innate physical prowess, Kang Hyunseong dominated the entire school the moment he entered.

Right now, he was furious.

Looking down coldly at his opponent, he spoke.

“Why are you late?”

“We had guests at home. I won’t be late next time……”

“That’s not an excuse.”

With a sneer, Kang Hyunseong turned around and addressed his group.

“Does anyone here think that excuse is valid? Raise your hand.”

Voices from all around responded with a resounding "no." At that, Kang Hyunseong grinned wickedly and approached Cha Jinmyung.

“See?”

“Hyunseong……”

Thud! Thud!

After just a few punches, Cha Jinmyung collapsed to the ground.

Unfortunately, a ten-thousand-won bill peeked out of his pocket as he fell.

Despite his pain, Cha Jinmyung quickly tried to hide the money.

“Well, well. What’s this? The beggar actually brought money today.”

“No way! I’ve never seen this guy carrying cash before…… Did he steal it from somewhere?”

“Cha Jinmyung, where did you steal this from?”

“I didn’t steal it…… My grandma gave it to me. Give it back.”

“Come on, don’t lie. Your grandma collects scrap paper, doesn’t she? How much could she possibly make doing that? No way she gave you thirty thousand won.”

“I’m telling the truth. Give it back…….”

“That’s not how you ask for favors. Didn’t anyone teach you to be polite?”

“Oh, wait! That’s right! You don’t have parents to teach you, do you?”

“Damn, that was brutal.”

“Hyunseong’s got the ultimate verbal attack.”

Grinning, Kang Hyunseong waved the thirty thousand won in the air.

“You should be polite when asking for something. Now, say, ‘Please give it back.’”

Cha Jinmyung had no pride left to lose.

There was nothing left for him to protect, but he couldn’t afford to lose the money his grandmother had worked so hard to earn.

Gritting his teeth, he opened his mouth. No, he was just about to when—

“This world truly has no chivalry.”

With a bored expression, Kang Hyunseong turned his head.

A sleeveless shirt, sweatpants, and slippers.

The perfect combination. The perfect outfit of a neighborhood bum.

“Who the hell are you?”

“Bullying the weak is disgraceful. Stop.”

“What, are you some kind of hero of justice?”

Flinch!

“H-How did you know?”

“Oh, so you really are one? Guess that means I’m about to beat the crap out of you and leave you rolling on the ground.”

“Incredible. I didn’t expect anyone else to know I was a hero. Could it be that you’re one of the Demon King’s……?”

“What the hell are you even talking about, you moron?”

Kang Hyunseong swung his fist.

With a powerful blow that split the air, his opponent’s eyes wavered.

But it was all a misunderstanding.

At that exact moment, Park Yeon was simply lost in thought.

‘The laws of this world say I can’t kill or injure him…… but knocking him down should be fine, right?’

With his thoughts sorted out, Park Yeon leaned his head back, effortlessly dodging the punch.

“You dodged it? You’re dead!”

Thinking it was just luck, Kang Hyunseong swung again. But this time, Park Yeon simply shifted his body back.

As a result, Kang Hyunseong, unable to stop his own momentum, stumbled forward and fell to the ground in an embarrassing heap.

As he lay sprawled out, Park Yeon calmly approached and pressed his foot against his back.

“Enough.”

“You little—”

Kang Hyunseong was shocked.

The weight of the foot pressing down on him felt impossibly heavy.

He wanted to move, but he couldn’t. It felt like a massive boulder had been placed on his back.

“Get your foot off me!”

“If you promise to stop, I’ll move it.”

“Fine! I’ll stop! Okay? Now move!”

“You promised.”

“I said I get it! Move your foot!”

As soon as Park Yeon lifted his foot, the weight disappeared.

Kang Hyunseong shot up and glared at him.

“Tsk!”

Clicking his tongue, he spat on the ground and walked away.

Once he was gone, Park Yeon helped the fallen Cha Jinmyung up.

“Why did you do that?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why did you help me……?”

“Protecting the weak is a knight’s duty.”

“You really are weird…….”

Muttering to himself, Cha Jinmyung continued.

“I didn’t mean anything by it. It’s just…… this is the first time anyone has ever helped me.”

“Is that so?”

“……Yeah. Thank you.”

With a deep bow, Cha Jinmyung walked away.

That’s when Park Yeon called out.

“You must protect yourself! Defend yourself!”

Seo-jun let out a small sigh.

“That happened?”

“If I hadn’t arrived in time, he would’ve been in serious trouble…… Ah!”

“What is it?”

“Now that I think about it, one of them knew who I was.”

“Knew who you were?”

“Yeah, he asked if I was a hero of justice.”

“Oh, is that all? He probably wasn’t actually asking about your real identity, so don’t worry.”

“That’s a relief, but still, maybe I should find out more about that guy.”

Park Yeon asked seriously.

Seo-jun sighed.

Even if he looked into it, it was probably just another school bully.

“Anyway, good job.”

Park Yeon snorted.

Praise from the Demon King meant nothing…….

“I am a hero. A hero cannot turn a blind eye to injustice.”

“Got it.”

“By the way…… Ahem.”

“Go ahead and eat.”

“What do you think I was going to say?”

“You were about to ask if you could have some cola.”

“What do you take me for! I was simply…… Right! I was just going to ask how to cook this cup ramen!”

“Really?”

“But since you’re insisting that I drink the cola…… Hah. Fine. I’ll drink it just this once.”

Watching Park Yeon walk off to grab the cola, Seo-jun chuckled.

Then, he suddenly thought of Lee Sook-hee.

-These days, he’s finally starting to get along with friends, and that makes me so grateful…….