Hehehe.

Park Yeon’s excitement was written all over his face.

Why, you ask…?

“Where’s Uncle?”

“He’s sleeping.”

Because…!

Finally…!

For the first time today…!

He was in charge of waiting for Seo-woo’s kindergarten bus.

This was an important mission. Ensuring that Seo-woo safely got to kindergarten was a serious responsibility.

“Uncle never sleeps in, though…”

At Seo-woo’s remark, Park Yeon recalled last night.

The Demon King had come home late for some reason and drank alone, wallowing in his thoughts.

He was always a drinker, but something was off yesterday.

Normally, the Demon King drank often by himself. Since he rarely had the opportunity to drink in the Demon Realm, he had been making up for it now.

But last night, he didn’t even have any snacks with his drink.

Moreover, when he drank, he usually expelled the alcohol from his body once he got tipsy.

Yet strangely enough, he hadn’t done that yesterday.

Well, not that it’s any of my business.

There was something else that required his attention.

Seo-woo’s safe commute…

Screech!

The bus came to a halt, and the goddess stepped out.

“Hello—”

Flinch!

Instinctively about to greet him, Lee Ra-hee stopped in her tracks.

She couldn’t see them. Why weren’t they there?

Usually, either Yeon-jun or Seo-jun waited for the kindergarten bus. But today, neither of them was in sight.

Swish, swish!

She anxiously scanned the surroundings, but the two were nowhere to be found. Only Park Yeon stood there.

“……”

“It has been a while.”

“……Has it?”

“Indeed. I haven’t seen you since the day before yesterday. Just two days, but to me, it felt like an eternity. However…”

Lee Ra-hee clenched her fists.

Her hands wouldn’t open no matter what.

“Something feels missing today.”

“……”

“Unrivaled. Your beauty remains unrivaled.”

Having said that, Park Yeon chuckled. He found his own line so witty.

She was smiling too.

Her lips were slightly curved up, weren’t they?

That meant… one more time.

Park Yeon glanced at his watch.

“I hope you will remember this.”

“……”

“Today, at 8:21 AM, I fell for you once again.”

Kukukuk!

Perfect.

Park Yeon… Is there anything you can’t do?

Not only did he capture the faith of the divine and receive an oracle, but now he was winning over the hearts of women?

Perfect… Too perfect!

While Park Yeon was busy admiring himself, Lee Ra-hee was overwhelmed with secondhand embarrassment, struggling to keep herself from cringing.

With all the strength she could muster, she finally managed to open her hands.

This can’t go on…

She was someone who naturally found it difficult to say harsh things. In fact, back in college, she once ended up dating a guy simply because she couldn't bring herself to reject him.

For over six months…

And now, once again, she hadn’t spoken up. No—she couldn’t speak up.

But this was her limit.

Lee Ra-hee shut her eyes tightly.

“Park Yeon! I have something to say!”

Oh, my goddess, you are finally calling my name? Then I shall call yours as well.

“Speak, my dear Ra-hee!”

This kind of thing was called a ‘rhyme’ in dramas, kukukuk.

“Until now, I hesitated to say anything because I didn’t want things to get awkward between us. And I’m naturally bad at saying harsh things. But… but I can’t keep avoiding this. I think it’s best to make things clear.”

“Make things clear?”

Park Yeon thought back to all the dramas he had watched.

Normally, it was the male lead who proposed to the female lead, but occasionally, the reverse happened too.

Could this be one of those cases?

Then when should we have the wedding?

How many kids should we have?

A boy as cute as Seo-woo would be nice… Ah! A daughter would be good too.

If she takes after Ra-hee, she’d be stunning.

Men everywhere would fall for her.

Kukukuku.

Just as Park Yeon was delving deep into his delusions, Lee Ra-hee spoke.

“I understand your feelings, Park Yeon. And I truly appreciate them. But I don’t have those feelings for you. I’m sorry. I’m really sorry… I hope you’ll stop now.”

Park Yeon couldn’t believe his ears.

You… don’t have feelings for me?

What was she saying?

Ah… He must have misheard.

Yes, that’s it.

If not…

The Demon King’s scheme?

Yes! It had to be the Demon King’s scheme!

He must have threatened her!

The Demon King couldn’t stand the idea of him and Ra-hee being together, so he must have secretly approached her and forced her to say this!

That had to be it. There was no other explanation for why his dear Ra-hee would say such things!

……Of course, Lee Ra-hee could read all of Park Yeon’s delusional thoughts through her past experiences.

Before he could spiral further, she quickly continued.

“I’m really sorry. But I’m sure you’ll find someone better than me. Goodbye.”

“W-Wait!”

Hastily, Lee Ra-hee picked up Seo-woo and boarded the bus.

“Driver, please go now!”

The bus wheels spun as it quickly took off.

“……”

Even after the bus disappeared, Park Yeon remained frozen in place. He stood there for a long time, like a statue.

Park Yeon spoke in a self-deprecating tone.

“Of course, I knew.”

“……”

“That someone like me could never dare to reach a goddess…”

“……”

“But where did it all go wrong? What mistake did I make? What did I do to deserve this? Tell me… Tell me, Park Doo-shik!”

Still reeling from the pain of rejection, Park Yeon was half out of his mind.

And the one suffering because of it was Doo-shik, who had been peacefully selecting Arutus eggs at the poultry farm.

“……”

He was not at all pleased with the arrival of this crazy hero.

Honestly, he wanted to kick him out immediately.

But he couldn’t. he had a feeling that if he did, the hero might just take him down.

Blabbering about blasphemy or whatever.

Regardless.

Park Yeon continued his monologue alone.

“Everything was perfect. The time I spent with her, the days we shared, our conversations… even the humidity and temperature! So why? Why, Park Doo-shik?!”

He’s completely lost it.

Doo-shik shook his head.

“I saw something like this in a drama once. They say half the world is made up of human females… Isn’t half the world full of women?”

Though he meant it as a form of consolation, it did nothing to comfort Park Yeon.

With a bitter expression, Park Yeon responded.

“…Yeah, half the world is women. But she is one of a kind.”

Scratch, scratch.

‘Why do I feel guilty all of a sudden?’

Even for Doo-shik, this side of the hero was unfamiliar. That always-confident hero now looked utterly defeated.

“This won’t do. Let’s head out.”

“What?”

“Let’s just go somewhere.”

“Go where all of a sudden?”

“There’s an orc proverb that says: The most foolish thing is to set a destination!”

“What does that mean?”

“Setting a destination is the same as setting your own limits.”

“Huh. That’s actually a good saying.”

In the end, Park Yeon and Doo-shik left the poultry farm.

Doo-shik pulled out some crumpled bills from his pocket. It was money he had received from Hwang Tae-su at some point.

And with human currency, he could buy Park Yeon’s favorite drink—cola.

“How many bottles of cola can I buy with this?”

“That’s fifty thousand won. You can buy two. Why?”

“I’ll buy them, so let’s go.”

“Sigh… I guess I have no choice but to drink, then.”

Park Yeon and Doo-shik headed to a nearby convenience store. As they walked in, the clerk greeted them cheerfully.

“Welcome!”

Smile.

“……!”

Doo-shik turned his head when he didn’t hear Park Yeon’s footsteps. For some reason, Park Yeon had frozen in place. He didn’t respond even when called.

“Hey.”

“……”

“Hey, Park Yeon?”

Thump-thump!

“……”

“Hey, Park Yeon!”

“I found her.”

“Found? Found what?”

“I found her!”

“What the hell are you talking about?!”

“My true goddess!”

That’s right.

Park Yeon was a hopeless romantic.

Seo-jun stretched and got up. It seemed that drinking last night had done him in—he had overslept.

Since he had enjoyed the slight buzz, he hadn’t bothered expelling the alcohol from his system, and now, this was the result.

“Is this my first time sleeping in after thousands of years?”

Seo-jun chuckled.

In the Demon Realm, there had been no real need to sleep. Even after returning to the present world, he always woke up at precisely 8 AM.

But now, the clock’s hands were pointing to 11.

And he had slept right at the shop.

Empty bottles from last night’s drinking session were still scattered across the table. He cleaned them up and made himself a simple meal of instant ramen.

Not that he needed a hangover cure—it was just that he wanted to experience the feeling of one as a human.

He cooked two packets of ramen and brought them to the table. The rising steam made the dish look all the more appetizing.

He took a sip of the broth.

“That’s refreshing.”

Even though his body no longer experienced hangovers, the warmth of the broth still seemed to clear his head.

Next, the noodles.

Slurp—!

The firm, springy noodles leaped up like a mullet and slid into his mouth.

And then—

Jingle!

Accompanied by the chime of the door, Kang Min-hee walked in. Seo-jun greeted her as if nothing were out of the ordinary.

“You’re here?”

“Looks like you’re having a hangover meal.”

“Yeah. I drank a bit last night.”

She nodded and took a seat across from him.

“Could you make me a bowl too?”

“Of course.”

Soon, Seo-jun returned with another bowl of ramen and handed her some chopsticks.

“Thanks.”

Slurp—!

“This is good.”

“I’m glad.”

“You’re good at everything, huh, Seo-jun?”

“Am I?”

“Even cooking ramen.”

After that, she quietly finished her meal. Once she set down her chopsticks, she spoke up.

“I didn’t get to properly thank you last time because of everything going on. Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.”

“Honestly, I don’t remember much. But my husband told me. That it was you who first got me to the hospital after I received the news about my mom.”

“You don’t remember?”

“Bits and pieces, but not everything.”

“I see.”

Sometimes, when people experience extreme shock, they lose memory of that moment. That was probably what happened to Kang Min-hee.

“There’s that saying, ‘a blessing in disguise,’ right?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t know if this is one of those times, but thanks to you, I was able to have a proper last conversation with my mom. Without regrets.”

If Jin-sun had been in a deteriorated state of mind, she wouldn’t have been able to have a proper farewell conversation.

But fortunately, she had been fully lucid at the end. She had recognized her daughter, Kang Min-hee, and clearly expressed her love.

“And here.”

Kang Min-hee rummaged through her handbag and pulled something out.

It was a condolence envelope. She placed it on the table and slid it toward Seo-jun with a bright smile.

“It was a pretty large amount. No… more than just large. Ten million won.”

“That’s quite a bit.”

“That was your donation, wasn’t it?”

“Huh?”

“Don’t bother denying it. I know it was you. This was the only envelope without a name.”

“……”

“I checked the CCTV footage, and it showed you making a donation, but there was no envelope labeled with your name. What does that tell me?”

“Is that so? That’s strange. It really wasn’t me. How could I possibly have ten million won to donate?”

She smiled faintly.

“Then take it back.”

“This huge sum?”

“Yeah.”

“But this is money given in condolence for your grandmother. How could I possibly take it? I can’t accept it.”

“Then think of it as compensation.”

“Compensation?”

“For helping me preserve my memories.”

With that, she pulled an album from her handbag.

“Thank you. Truly.”