Daddy is too Strong-Chapter 59

—I... I’m not sure what exactly happened, but I sincerely apologize.

“Chief Jung.”

—Y-yes, Supervisor Lee.

Young-Chul’s flustered voice could be heard from the phone. In contrast, Do-Jun sounded like his usual self.

W-what is this? Yoo-Rin bit her lip, realizing that something was seriously off.

Her father was the Chief of the Hunter’s Bureau and wielded absolute, unparalleled power. Even members of the National Assembly and the country's president were wary of him.

Yet here he was, pleading to a mere civil servant.

Who is this man? she wondered, glancing at the ID card hanging around Do-Jun’s neck.

The bottom of the ID indicated Seoul City Hall, and above it was written: Lee Do-Jun, Fissure Management Division.

I feel like I’ve heard that name before... Ah!

She recalled hearing it about two weeks ago when the news was abuzz with the S-rank Great Fissure at Umyeonsan Mountain. She vaguely remembered hearing from her father’s aide that a civil servant had directed the Hunters during the Great Fissure raid and became a hot topic and that his name was Lee Do-Jun.

But why would her father be so deferential to him?

“Your father would like a word,” Do-Jun said as he handed her the smartphone.

Yoo-Rin took it, held it to her ear, and was met by a shout.

—Jung Yoo-Rin!!!

Startled, she flinched.

—What on earth do you think you are doing?

“D-dad?”

Her father had always been kind to her. In the past, he had even laughed off the incident when she broke a millennium-old porcelain piece he cherished. But today, for the first time ever, he was furious.

—I won’t say much. We will talk when you get home. Expect to be severely reprimanded.

With that, the call ended.

Yoo-Rin slowly turned her head and looked at Do-Jun, who had a cold expression. Maybe it was because her father scolded her, but Yoo-Rin’s face had turned pale as a ghost’s.

***

Do-Jun and Yoo-Rin returned to the Fissure.

“Hmm?”

Cheol-Soo scratched his head as he saw Yoo-Rin trailing behind Do-Jun with slumped shoulders. He was curious about what had transpired between them, but he wasn’t going to ask when the person directly involved was present.

“Go on, apologize,” Do-Jun muttered.

Yoo-Rin was visibly startled. Then, she bowed deeply to the Ake Guild members.

Choi Chang-Sik and his party’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“I... I’m very sorry,” she said.

“N-no, Ms. Jung. It was an easily mistakable situation,” Choi Chang-Sik stammered, waving his hand awkwardly while looking at Do-Jun incredulously.

He still couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Yoo-Rin was the daughter of Young-Chul, a man of absolute power.

As one might expect from a child in such a position, she was notorious for her arrogance and high-handedness, so it was beyond surprising to see her suddenly behave so submissively.

“And apologize to the people who came all the way here because of you,” Do-Jun told her.

Yoo-Rin sniffled and bowed to Cheol-Soo and Hyuk-Soo as well. The duo exchanged looks, their mouths agape.

“Well, it looks like the complaint has been resolved. Would it be alright if we let you be?” Do-Jun asked, and Choi Chang-Sik nodded vigorously.

***

Do-Jun’s party and Yoo-Rin stood together outside the Fissure.

“Chief, would it be okay if I dropped by the Academy before returning to the office?” Do-Jun asked Cheol-Soo.

“Huh? Oh, sure. I’ll go back with Hyuk-Soo, then.”

“Thank you. I’ll be quick.”

Cheol-Soo assumed it was at the Chief’s request.

Yoo-Rin looked up at Do-Jun in surprise. Going to the Academy likely meant he was going to take her back to school, and she frantically tried to figure out the reason.

After Hyuk-Soo’s white Sonata drove off down the road, Do-Jun sat in the driver’s seat of his Sorento. He then looked at the hesitant Yoo-Rin and said, “Get in. I’ll drop you off.”

“O-okay!”

Yoo-Rin sat in the passenger seat and closed the door. As Do-Jun fastened his seatbelt, she kept stealing glances at him, evidently anxious.

“If you don’t want to die, I suggest you put on your seatbelt,” Do-Jun said.

At those words, Yoo-Rin’s face turned pale once more, and she hurriedly fastened her seatbelt.

Do-Jun meant that it would be dangerous because he was driving without a license, but she took it as Put on your seatbelt before I kill you.

“Um.”

“Yeah?”

“I-I’m really sorry for earlier,” Yoo-Rin apologized again and bowed her head.

Watching her, Do-Jun started the car and asked, “Why were you even at that Fissure in the first place? Why weren’t you at school?”

At his question, she sighed and mumbled, “It’s just... boring.”

“I see.”

A brief silence followed.

“You’re not going to ask more?” Yoo-Rin asked, looking at Do-Jun with a dumbfounded look.

“Why should I?”

“W-well, I mean, wouldn’t most people ask why it’s boring or if there’s any other reason?”

With that feedback, Do-Jun asked flatly, “Why is it boring?”

“Wow... It’s like I’m speaking to a robot... Whatever. Anyway, why are you taking me back to school when I was so rude to you?”

“I also have a daughter about your age. And she goes to the Academy, too.”

“Ah, I se... W-what?” Yoo-Rin’s eyebrows twitched, and she stared at Do-Jun’s face.

He was clearly in his twenties. She couldn’t believe that he had a daughter her age.

“H-how... how old were you when you had her?” Yoo-Rin stuttered, counting on her fingers.

“She’s not my biological daughter.”

“Did you adopt her?”

“Well, it’s something like that.”

“What’s with that vague answer...?”

“So, what’s boring about school?” Do-Jun asked, chuckling.

“Honestly, I think I’m on the same level as most A-rank Hunters. That’s why I’m in Class A, but all they teach us are monster and artifact theory lessons or basic mana infusion techniques. I already mastered those a long time ago.”

“So you were hunting in the Great Fissure at Seongbuk Park instead. Is that it?”

“Exactly. What I need isn’t theory but actual combat experience.” Yoo-Rin shrugged.

It was only natural for someone who had achieved A-rank Hunter skills at seventeen to feel a bit conceited.

“My dad insists that I’ll gain a variety of experiences at the Academy and should stay, but I think it’s a waste of time for me. Don’t you think so too?”

“Well, you’re not entirely wrong, but that doesn’t mean Chief Jung is either. If I had to choose, I’d lean toward the latter—” Do-Jun paused mid-sentence as an alert popped up.

[Core Distortion is occurring.]

Rumble! Crack!

The sky began to split apart, and a gigantic bird emerged from the cracked space. It continued to reveal itself, eventually landing on the road. Then, it let out a loud roar.

The massive bird over fifty meters tall was none other than the Peculiar Eagle that appeared in the first stage of the Tutorial Zone.

Crushed vehicles lay beneath its feet, blood oozing out between them.

The Peculiar Eagle then opened its beak, spewing out a torrent of flames that engulfed everything on the road in a fiery blaze.

***

Yoo-Rin slowly opened her eyes to see a scene of cars ablaze, along with trees that lined the road just seconds ago collapsed and burning.

She then gasped in shock. “Mister!”

Do-Jun was standing over her, holding up a car with his arms.

“Tsk.” He clicked his tongue and pushed the car away, which was the very government vehicle they had just been riding in.

He was trying to think of what to say to Hyuk-Soo later.

“A-are you okay?” Yoo-Rin asked, panic clear in her voice.

The weight of a typical car ranged from one to one and a half tons. It should have been impossible for an ordinary person to lift.

She couldn’t comprehend how Do-Jun managed it, but that wasn’t the most pressing matter.

“What are those...?” Yoo-Rin muttered.

A bird was screeching wildly in the sky, and a giant ogre with bloodshot eyes was standing before them: Peculiar Eagle and the Cyclops.

Looking around, the entire area was already in ruins.

Do-Jun observed them while stroking his chin.

Those are definitely the ones I killed before.

He was told that the monsters would reappear once the Tutorial Zone was fully cleared and reset, but it hadn’t been cleared yet.

Moreover, this was the first time monsters that should have been in the Core appeared above ground.

While Do-Jun was trying to process the situation, Yoo-Rin stood frozen in place, overwhelmed by the oppressive presence of the two giant monsters.

They were on a completely different level from the B-rank monsters she had faced before. In fact, they weren’t even A-rank.

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S-rank... monsters...

Not just one, but two.

With trembling hands, Yoo-Rin fumbled in her pocket. She needed to call her father for help immediately. There was no way she could handle these monsters alone.

But just then, Do-Jun stepped forward and walked toward the monsters.

Seeing that, Yoo-Rin was startled and reached out, trying to stop him. But before she could reach him, Do-Jun kicked off the ground, leaving a faint afterimage as he instantly closed the distance between himself and the monsters.

Assault Gear? Yoo-Rin wondered, straining her eyes to see.

Assault Gear was a device attached to the heel that enhanced a Hunter’s mobility. Yet try as she might, Yoo-Rin couldn’t see anything attached to his shoes.

The Peculiar Eagle let out a terrifying shriek as it drove its massive beak toward the airborne Do-Jun, while the Cyclops struck at him with its fist, which had turned red.

Zing.

A sword-shaped energy shimmered around Do-Jun’s body, and a single flash of light burst from his hand. Then, the bodies of the Peculiar Eagle and the Cyclops split in half.

Shrrrak!

Thump!

Their cleaved upper halves fell to the ground, causing the earth to tremble.

“T-that... was that...” Yoo-Rin was struggling to speak.

It wasn’t Sword Aura, the pinnacle technique of infusing mana into a sword. For that, one needed a sword as a medium, which Do-Jun did not have.

It wasn’t a manifestation of Release or Transmutation either. It was something completely outside of the ordinary.

Do-Jun walked toward Yoo-Rin and continued past her. He stared at the charred and skeletal remains of the government vehicle lying on the ground with a blank expression and sighed.

“You’re not hurt, are you?” he finally asked, turning his attention to Yoo-Rin.

“Mister...”

“Hmm?”

“Who are you?” Yoo-Rin asked.

***

The news of the destruction of the two-lane road on Seongbuk-ro 4-gil quickly spread online and on TV, along with the appearance of a never-before-seen S-rank monster making the headlines.

“This accident left twenty-three casualties, who all unfortunately lost their lives. The road is currently blocked off, and restoration work will begin shortly. The analysis team has collected the monsters’ corpses for further examination, but no Hunter has come forward to claim the kill yet.”

Hearing the aide’s report, Young-Chul ran his hands over his face and muttered, “Only one person could do it. Who else?

“That’s that, but why isn’t Yoo-Rin answering her phone?”

It was already 7 PM.

***

Yoo-Rin was standing in front of the door to Suite 301 at Changshin Villa, a modest two-room apartment on the third floor of the building in Bangbae-dong.

She took a deep breath and pressed the doorbell.

***

“Yong-Yong, could you check who’s at the door?” Yoon-Hee called out as she stirred the stir-fried potatoes in the frying pan.

“Ah, but things are just about to get interesting,” Yong-Yong grumbled from where he was watching the TV.

He reluctantly trudged to the entrance and jumped up to open the door. He soon locked eyes with Yoo-Rin.

Yong-Yong was the first to speak. “Who are you?”