Daddy is too Strong-Chapter 88

Do-Jun finally broke his silence. “I also don’t know much about raising a child, but I think you’ll do great, Senior.”

When Do-Jun first returned from the Martial World and started working at the Fissure Management Division, all the other employees looked down on him. Yet, Hyuk-Soo was different.

He patiently taught Do-Jun the basics, guiding him through the work no matter how busy he was, never showing the slightest bit of annoyance. Thanks to him, Do-Jun was able to adjust to office life.

“And... if you were really selfish, you wouldn’t have bought that book.” Do-Jun pointed to the book in the plastic bag next to Hyuk-Soo, which he had bought at Book 24. It was titled “From Newbie Dad to Veteran Dad.”

Do-Jun drank his beer in one long gulp, thinking that he was fortunate to have met someone like Hyuk-Soo.

***

Yoon-Hee had already finished an early dinner with the dragons after getting the message from Do-Jun saying he was coming home after having drinks with a coworker.

Their dinner was simple—seasoned lance asiabell, sausages, and fried eggs. Regardless of the complexity of the dishes, her cooking was always delicious.

“We already ate. What are you making again?” Yong-Yong asked, peering into the pot of bubbling bean sprout soup.

After dinner, Yoon-Hee finished washing the dishes, then went to the grocery store in front of their house to buy a bunch of bean sprouts and started making soup, which Yong-Yong found strange.

Since they wouldn’t eat more, what was the point of making soup?

“I’m making hangover soup,” Yoon-Hee said.

“Hangover soup?”

“Lord Izaas, hangover soup is a dish made to help recover from a hangover. The asparagine in bean sprouts helps break down the alcohol. I imagine Young Master is preparing it in case our master drank too much,” Karsiel explained.

“So it’s basically detoxification, huh.”

Considering Do-Jun was not affected by poison, it seemed unnecessary to worry about detoxifying anything. Considerately, Yong-Yong decided to keep quiet about it, not wanting to ruin Yoon-Hee’s efforts.

“Master’s here,” Yong-Yong said, perking up his ears at the sound of footsteps coming from the elevator as it opened.

By now, Yong-Yong could tell just from the sound whether it was Do-Jun or not.

He dashed to the front door, wagging his tail, waiting for it to open.

“I’m back,” Do-Jun said as he entered.

“Haha! Traveler! If you wish to pass this way, you must answer my riddle! In the morning, I have four legs...” Yong-Yong spread his front paws wide and started asking his riddle.

But Do-Jun answered before he could even finish, “You’re a human.”[1]

He kicked off his shoes and walked into the living room.

Yong-Yong froze on the spot, stunned. It had taken him two hours to solve that same riddle when Karsiel asked him.

“Welcome back, Master.” Karsiel bowed her head respectfully.

Do-Jun smiled and patted her on the head. Karsiel beamed, pleased.

“Welcome home, Father.”

“Thanks. You haven’t eaten yet?”

“No, we did.”

“Then what’s the soup...?” Do_Jun asked her.

“You said you were drinking, so I made some hangover soup. Do you not like bean sprout soup...?”

Do-Jun didn’t react, and Yoon-Hee anxiously watched him, worriedly thinking that perhaps she should have gone with pollock stew instead.

For hangover, huh... Do-Jun thought.

He had reached a state of absolute Poison Immunity, and he never got drunk, thanks to the internal energy circulating within him. Still, he decided there was no reason to reveal that now.

“Thank you, this is perfect,” Do-Jun said with a smile.

***

Meanwhile, back at the Core, on the first floor.

After Do-Jun had left, Byeol, who was left alone, approached the Tree of Wisdom.

Whenever she got bored, she would spend time chatting with the Tree of Wisdom, who always kept her company. The tree was incredibly knowledgeable, as if there was nothing it didn’t know.

—Yes, Korea is the country where the human you met, Lee Do-Jun, lives. I’m sure you already knew he was from Earth. But I see he gave you a name.

“Yeah.”

—He called you Byeol, right? It suits you.

“Tanks. But hey, you know, I wanna go to Korea too.”

Thinking of Do-Jun, Byeol pouted. Holding a small stone in her tiny hands, she drew Do-Jun’s face in the dirt.

After drawing uneven eyes, Byeol muttered, “Not good enough! This is not him,” and started to tear up at the sight of her drawing.

Just then, the drawing was wiped away, and a tree root poked out of the ground. The root moved like a hand and redrew the face—Do-Jun’s face.

—Byeol. Did he look like this?

“Woah!” Byeol exclaimed in astonishment upon seeing that the face drawn by the Tree of Wisdom was a perfect match for how Do-Jun looked in her eyes: cool, yet warm at the same time.

Byeol grinned from ear to ear at the tree. “You’re amazing.”

—But, Byeol... let me warn you in advance. This Lee Do-Jun is a dangerous person.

“Dangerous?”

The Tree of Wisdom projected a video of what had happened during the tutorial phase.

It showed Do-Jun killing the Clone of Armorization, defeating the Imoogi, acquiring a Skill Enhancement Ring no one had ever gotten before, and finally tearing the mythical creature Laikar apart with a single flick of his hand.

Since the Core was established, the tree had seen countless adventurers come and go, but none like him. Such feats shouldn’t be possible, and yet they were.

—I am certain that if he wanted to, he could destroy the entire ecosystem of the Core. Byeol, I’m not sure yet, but if he ever turns evil...

“He. Not. A. Bad. Person,” Byeol spoke slowly, carefully, one syllable at a time, showing her dissatisfaction with the tree’s words.

Do-Jun had given her a name and spent all day playing with her.

—I think it would be best if he stayed on Earth.

“He promised me. He said he’d come back.”

The tree decided to stay silent in the face of this stubbornness.

“I wonder when he’s coming back,” Byeol said.

***

Do-Jun mixed rice into the bean sprout soup and took a spoonful. The spicy broth, with finely chopped Cheongyang peppers, was incredible.[2]

Despite not being hungover one bit, it couldn’t get better than this.

Do-Jun marveled at how much Yoon-Hee’s cooking skills had improved day by day. He paused while eating and looked at Yoon-Hee, who was watching him with a subtle smile.

In fact, Do-Jun knew exactly what she wanted. She wanted him to say it was delicious.

“How is it?” she asked.

“It’s good,” Do-Jun answered.

Those two words were more than enough to light up Yoon-Hee’s face with pure happiness.

Despite the busy days filled with the Academy’s demanding schedule, coming home to clean, do laundry, and cook dinner—an endless stream of house chores—Do-Jun’s simple affirmation made all the fatigue melt away.

In truth, she could live just to hear those few words.

“Um... Actually, I have something to tell you,” Yoon-Hee hesitantly started.

“What is it?”

She stood up, went to the bedroom, and brought something, placing it carefully in front of Do-Jun.

It was a letter from her school.

“A field trip?”

It was a four-day trip to Busan with a simple itinerary: a tour of the site of the first Fissure and participation in the upcoming International Hunter Festival in Busan. Although it seemed to be part of their practical curriculum, attendance was semi-optional.

“Could you sign here?” Yoon-Hee asked, pointing to a line requiring the signature of a parent or guardian.

“Hmm?” When Do-Jun looked up slightly from where Yoon-Hee was pointing, he saw that she had marked the section indicating she didn’t wish to attend.

“You’re not going?” he asked her.

“Nope.”

“Why not?”

A school field trip was one of the highlights of student life. Of course, it was up to her to decide whether to go, but as a parent, Do-Jun wanted his daughter to experience the same things other kids did.

Yoon-Hee pulled out the Dad Contract and pointed to the fourth clause: 4. Party B must diligently perform household chores during the contract period.

“If I go on the trip, I can’t diligently perform our household chores.”

Why did she look like she was happy about this? Was it just Do-Jun’s imagination?

No, Yoon-Hee was definitely smiling.

Seeing that, Do-Jun sighed and said, “Go on the trip.”

“W-what?”

“What kind of terrible dad doesn’t let his daughter go on a field trip because of chores?”

“But, but I...” Yoon-Hee’s face fell, looking as if she was about to cry.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to go. Honestly, she did. But she liked being at home even more, where there was Do-Jun, Yong-Yong, and Karsiel.

However, Do-Jun’s expression was firm.

“Okay, I’ll go. But I want to ask you for one thing,” Yoon-Hee said quietly.

“Sure.”

“Can you... pick me up when I get back?” she asked, slightly nervous.

Do-Jun nodded and replied, “I’ll even see you off.”

Only then did Yoon-Hee’s face brighten up with a big smile.

***

On the day of the trip, the Academy’s field was lined with large charter buses. More parents were dropping their children off than Do-Jun had expected.

“I’ll see you in a few days, Father,” Yoon-Hee said.

“Mhm. Have fun and be safe.”

“Make sure you eat properly while I’m gone, okay? I prepared enough side dishes for four days in the fridge, so you just need to heat them in the microwave. Oh, and don’t worry about cleaning or doing the laundry. I’ll handle that when I get back. Just leave the dishes in the sink, and I’ll wash them when I return.”

“Thank you.” Do-Jun gently patted Yoon-Hee on the head.

“Alrighty, then. See you in four days!”

“Yeah. Oh, take this with you,” Do-Jun said, handing her a surprisingly heavy duffel bag.

“What’s this...? W-what’s in here, Father?”

Visit fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm for the best novel reading experi𝒆nce.

***

After the bus left, Do-Jun stood there momentarily, staring at the now-empty field. Then, he started walking to work.

He wondered how he would spend the next four days alone.

1. This is the famous “Riddle of the Sphinx” from Greek mythology.

The full riddle goes like this: “In the morning, I walk on four legs, At noon, I walk on two legs, In the evening, I walk on three legs. What am I?”

The answer is a human. The “morning” represents early life, when a baby crawls on all fours. “Noon” is adulthood, when a person walks on two legs. “Evening” is old age, when a person may use a cane (the third leg) for support. ☜

2. Cheongyang pepper is basically a Korean Jalapeno! ☜