Chapter 70: Star, The Shadow (1)

“I’m home,” Chang-Sun said as he entered through the front door.

“Oh, my! You came home already? I thought you said the training would take more than three months…!” Chang-Sun’s mother, So Yu-Ha, emerged and greeted him in shock. Judging from her apron and the spatula in her hand, she must have been cooking dinner.

“The training ended earlier than I expected, so I came back early,” Chang-Sun explained.

“I would have prepared more dishes if I knew you were coming,” Yu-Ha said regretfully.

“It’s okay. I don’t mind waiting. Otherwise, we can order,” Chang-Sun reassured her.

“Nonsense. You’ve come back home after a long time, so you should eat a home-cooked meal.” Yu-Ha shook her head.

“Then, can I ask you a favor?” Chang-Sun asked.

“A favor?” Yu-Ha’s eyes widened; she was unable to understand Chang-Sun. As of late, he had been eating a lot. Could it mean he wanted to eat more home-cooked meals, as he had come back home after a long time?

Instead of answering her, Chang-Sun looked outside and called out, “What are you doing over there? Come in.”

Wondering who was outside, Yu-Ha followed Chang-Sun’s gaze. She was shocked to see a large, tall man outside, who seemed hesitant to enter.

“He’s…?” Yu-Ha trailed off.

“He’s my friend, and his name is Baek Gyeo-Ul. Come in,” Chang-Sun said, gesturing at Gyeo-Ul.

“E-Excuse me,” Gyeo-Ul said, shyly entering with a face so red he looked as if he were about to explode any second. He stared at the floor, unable to meet Yu-Ha’s gaze.

Thinking he was very innocent for his age, Yu-Ha smiled brightly and said, “You’re Chang-Sun’s friend, so don’t just stand there. Come inside.”

“T-Thank you,” Gyeo-Ul said in a barely audible voice and nodded, but he was still shy. Although he was a head taller, he quietly hid behind Chang-Sun.

Looking at Gyeo-Ul, Yu-Ha reflexively chuckled, saying, “There’s no need for you to be nervous. Just make yourself at home.”

As he started talking to the gentle Yu-Ha, Gyeo-Ul slowly relaxed and began to enter; finally seeing the inside of Chang-Sun’s home little by little, he was left very surprised. He gaped slightly, thinking,

‘This kind of home really exists…!’

Perhaps because he had always lived in old studios underground, Gyeo-Ul was amazed by everything in the house. In the studios he had lived in, he had always been worried about bumping into the ceiling, but he did not need to worry about that here because the ceiling was so high. There were no black water stains or mold on the clean walls. The floor was made from bright marble of the sort he had only seen on TV, leaving him unsure whether it was really alright for him to set his feet on the floor. When he wore the indoor slippers given to him by Yu-Ha, they were shockingly fluffy. However, what surprised him even more was the living room, after he crossed the foyer.

‘I-It’s so big!’?

Gyeo-Ul thought in shock, unable to believe such a large house existed.

When he lay down in his old studios, his head and toes had touched opposite walls at the same time, and he had been able to get to the other end by rolling once. In contrast, he could roll several times in this living room, and he would never be able to reach opposite walls simultaneously while lying down.

‘I can even see the Hangang River…!’?

Gyeo-Ul thought, looking through the window with sparkling eyes. Through the wide balcony window, he could see the Hangang River immediately. As it was sunset, the river was full of various lights, creating a night scene that made Gyeo-Ul marvel.

‘Mr. Chang-Chang-Sun lives in such a place…’?

Gyeo-Ul looked at Chang-Sun, who behaved as if all he had were nothing unusual, feeling even more impressed by him.

He had already been full of awe and respect for Chang-Sun, but those emotions had only grown. Even before he became a Player, Gyeo-Ul had known that Chang-Sun was famous, but after seeing the real Chang-Sun with his own eyes, Gyeo-Ul was even more amazed by him and was not even jealous. He might have been if he could actually compare his life with Chang-Sun’s, but he was unable to. Thus, he could never be jealous of Chang-Sun.

‘Huh? That’s…?’?

Gyeo-Ul thought, turning to the large television that covered an entire wall of the living room; it was broadcasting about Chang-Sun.

On the news, the reporter was delivering the latest story next to a picture of Chang-Sun and several familiar people. Along with the Shin siblings, Gyeo-Ul, who had been staying right next to Chang-Sun the entire time, was in the picture.

‘It’s a bit embarrassing…’

Gyeo-Ul thought.

“Ahhhh! Hey! Who are you?!” A woman who had been lying down and chewing on dried squid screamed after belatedly noticing Chang-Sun and Gyeo-Ul. She was Lee Hae-Seon, Chang-Sun’s sister. “W-W-Why are you…!”

Seeing no problem with entering his own home, Chang-Sun looked emotionlessly at Ha-Seon and pointed at the TV with his chin, as if to ask why she was watching the news.

Ha-Seon finally realized her mistake and hurriedly turned off the TV with the remote control, exclaiming, “Changing channels! Yeah! I’ve been changing channels and coincidentally put on the news!”

“I didn’t say anything,” Chang-Sun replied, not sure what Hae-Seon had expected him to say.

𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Ha-Seon’s face reddened and she exclaimed, “Ugh! You’re annoying!”

Stomp! Stomp!

She stomped irritatedly into her room.

“Why are you suddenly going into your room? It’s almost dinnertime!” Yu-Ha called out, following Hae-Seon.

However, Hae-Seon quickly slammed the door and yelled, “I’m not going to eat dinner!”

Thud!

“My, where did she get her temper…” Yu-Ha sighed, shaking her head, and smiled bitterly as she looked at Chang-Sun. “As you already know, your sister is really bad at expressing her emotions. She may grumble a lot, but she’s been worrying so much about you. Everyday, she reads news that talks about you, and a couple of days ago, she watched your tryout video on Youtube…!”

“Mom! Don’t be absurd! I hate him!” Ha-Seon opened her bedroom door and shrieked with an even redder face than before.

Yu-Ha gaped, exclaiming, “Ha-Seon! You’re his big sister, so you shouldn’t say such a mean thing to your brother, who came back home after such a long time!”

“Forget it! I’m really not going to eat!” Ha-Seon retorted, stomping her feet.

“Do you really think you can win an argument by not eating?” Yu-Ha asked.

“Ah, I don’t know! I don’t know, don’t know!” Ha-Seon yelled, shaking her head.

After rebuking her daughter, Yu-Ha eventually suggested to Chang-Sun and Gyeo-Ul, “Why don’t you two get freshened up first?”

* * *

Chang-Sun took Gyeo-Ul into his room.

“Whoa…!” Gyeo-Ul exclaimed loudly, no longer able to hold in his sense of wonder. “Sir, so th-this is your room…”

“Hyung,” Chang-Sun said, cutting him off.

“Pardon?” Gyeo-Ul asked, tilting his head.

“Call me hyung,” Chang-Sun repeated.

“…So, this is your room, h-hyung?” Gyeo-Ul replied, feeling somewhat shy as he called Chang-Sun ‘hyung’. He was very unfamiliar with the term, as he had never been close to anyone, but still, he was having a great deal of fun. Although he had been lonely his entire life, he felt that he now had a friend who would always have his back, like a wall.

‘I think Xerxes would nag about making things complicated,’

Chang-Sun thought with a chuckle, looking at Gyeo-Ul.

He was also reluctant to be called ‘hyung’ by his old colleague’s son, but considering his physical age in this world, it made sense for him to be called this way.

“Yeah, this is my room,” Chang-Sun replied with a nod.

“This is amazing… It’s bigger than my house…” Gyeo-Ul murmured, continuing to admire the large room as he looked around.

On the walls, there were various posters of Chang-Sun as a professional gamer; countless trophies were in his bookcase, every one of them saying ‘first place’, ‘first place’, ‘first place’… From looking at them, Gyeo-Ul could tell how great a professional gamer Chang-Sun had been.

However, those posters and trophies were not what stole Gyeo-Ul’s attention. On top of Chang-Sun’s desk, there was a desktop computer that looked more expensive than the ones Gyeo-Ul had seen while wandering from one PC Bang to another, and three top of the line monitors beside it!

“Wow…” Gyeo-Ul murmured, looking around to see more of the room. There were various game consoles such as a PS5, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox Series X, and several game cases stacked in a small bookcase.

“Is it your first time seeing these?” Chang-Sun asked.

“Yeah, I couldn’t afford these… Wow, you even have 《Third Life Ranker》? It must have been difficult to get this, and it’s even a limited edition…” Gyeo-Ul trailed off, dumbfounded. With sparkling eyes, he looked at the classic game, for which people had to pay several times more than the original price, like a child who had found an interesting toy.

Chang-Sun chuckled lightly because he had not thought the stern Gyeo-Ul would be interested in such things. In the end, he handed Gyeo-Ul a game controller and said, “Try it.”

“Can… I?” Gyeo-Ul asked, scratching his head.

“Why not?” Chang-Sun replied, putting the game controller in Gyeo-Ul’s hands.

After his regression, Chang-Sun had never played games, so he thought it would be better to watch Gyeo-Ul play. Besides, he had even forgotten how to play games, and they were not even fun anymore. However, it would be different for Gyeo-Ul. Just as expected, Gyeo-Ul nervously received the game controller with shining eyes.

* * *

‘Even the bathroom is really big, and I can use hot water as much as I want,’

Gyeo-Ul thought as he got out of the bathroom with rosy cheeks, drying his hair.

The boilers had always broken down in his old studios, usually forcing him to shower with cold water. On top of that, he had not been able to own shampoo, conditioner, or body wash, which meant he had needed to wash himself and his clothes with one bar of soap. Thus, when he actually got to use all of those things, he felt as if he were living in a brand new world.

‘Chang-Sun hyung truly lives in a different world,’

Gyeo-Ul thought, realizing how hard his life had been once again. However, what surprised him the most was when he sat at the dining table.

“It’s not much, but help yourself,” Yu-Ha said as she sat down.

“Th-There are so many…!” Gyeo-Ul exclaimed, gaping as he saw the table full of banchan.

How many kinds of banchan were on the table? Ten? No, there were more than eleven. Along with banchan made from meat, seafood, and vegetables, there was a boiling pot of doenjang-jjigae in the center of the table. On top of each multigrain rice bowl, there was even a fried egg. It was truly a feast for Gyeo-Ul, whose everyday meal was rice and kimchi, or sometimes jjageuli if he was lucky.

“I’m not sure if you’ll like them. How is it?” Yu-Ha asked.

“They’re so good!” Gyeo-Ul exclaimed from the bottom of his heart.

The many kinds of banchan also tasted good. He felt as if the freshly cooked rice were melting in his mouth, and Yu-Ha had perfectly seasoned and grilled an entire mackerel. Additionally, the seasoned vegetable dish was so good that Gyeo-Ul’s jaw dropped.

“Oh my, I’m so glad to hear that. To be honest, I put in a lot of effort for the first time in a while,” Yu-Ha said with a smile.

“I think you could open up a restaurant, because I’ve never tasted anything like your cooking,” Gyeo-Ul said while covering his food-filled mouth.

“You talk so sweetly. I hope some youngest son learned from you,” Yu-Ha said jokingly, making Gyeo-Ul glance at Chang-Sun, who was sitting beside him.

Without saying anything, Chang-Sun ate like a monk consuming tasteless temple food.

“They’re good,” Chang-Sun concisely answered after sensing Yu-Ha and Gyeo-Ul looking at him, but his monotonous tone made his answer sound insincere.

Yu-Ha pouted with discontent, saying, “Look at him. That’s why I don’t want to cook delicious meals for him. Was your name Gyeo-Ul?”

“Huh? Yeah, I’m Gyeo-Ul!” Gyeo-Ul replied with a nod.

“Do you want to be my youngest son? I think you’ll be a better youngest son than him,” Yu-Ha suddenly asked.

“Uh, well…!” Gyeo-Ul trailed off hesitantly, unsure what to answer, and studied Chang-Sun’s face to see whether he was angry.

Yu-Ha burst into laughter and said, “You don’t have to take it seriously. I was just joking.”

Gyeo-Ul blankly looked at Yu-Ha for a while, feeling warm, but he was unsure why. He just felt that way, suddenly experiencing a sense of deja vu. Yu-Ha’s laughter somehow set butterflies in his stomach, reminding him of a forgotten memory. It seemed he had heard similar laughter during the childhood he no longer remembered. The only thing he could remember from that time was a faint afterimage, but that image was warm, just like now.

“My beautiful, very beautiful baby…”

‘Ah,’

Gyeo-Ul thought, vaguely realizing whose laughter it was.

‘Mom. It’s Mom’s… laughter. I-I also had a loving mom, even though I don’t remember her.’

After realizing that, Gyeo-Ul had to lower his head, bullying the innocent rice bowl with his spoon during the entire meal in order to not choke up and cry. Without saying anything, Chang-Sun looked at Gyeo-Ul, who was sitting by his side.

1. A Korean dish that is thicker than jjigae but has more soup than stir-fried dishes.