The Duke's Son :Re-Chapter 237

“Well. My announcement yesterday went about as well as I expected.” Yeon Ho-Ryeong smiled. “Good hunting, and be sure to take care of my sons from now on.”

“Rest assured, Master Yeon. Leave them to me.”

“Good. Likewise, whenever you’re ready to visit the beastman kingdom, seek me out, and I will guide you.”

“About that... Is it true what they say about King’s Tears? Can the King of the Beastmen really give such a thing?”

“Nonsense. I don’t know where that rumor started, but no one has ever met the King of the Beastmen. There’s no basis for it.”

“I see.” Jae-Hyeok nodded respectfully. Inwardly, he thought, If no one has met the king, the rumor might really be false, but it hasn’t been disproven, either...

“Alright, I’m off.”

Smiling, Yeon Ho-Ryeong turned and stepped from the health store, only to freeze and turn slightly, glancing at Jae-Hyeok from the corner of his eye.

“Oh, and do not disappoint me. I’m lending you my name, but if you go picking fights on behalf of Ocean, our next conversation will be... different.”

From his flat tone, Jae-Hyeok didn’t have to see Yeon Ho-Ryeong’s face to know his smile had disappeared. Even so, Jae-Hyeok’s expression remained pleasant.

“Naturally, I’ll keep your words in mind.”

There was a saying that children were the mirror of their parents.

Given how terrible of an impression Yeon Ho-Rang had made, Jae-Hyeok had left their first encounter thinking the worst

Given Yeon Ho-Rang’s terrible personality upon their meeting, Jae-Hyeok had naturally thought the worst of Yeon Ho-Ryeong: He’d thought Yeon Ho-Ryeong had to have been a great villain to have raised such a son. It was to the point that—although he lacked the evidence—Jae-Hyeok had assumed that someone “like” Yeon Ho-Ryeong was sure to be among those who’d betrayed the Kang family for benefits—perhaps he was even one of the key orchestrators in the downfall of the Kang family...

That’s just how trash Yeon Ho-Rang’s personality was...

Jae-Hyeok shook his head.

But even if he were a human-shaped turd. I shouldn’t have drawn random conclusions about his father.

In a sense, Jae-Hyeok really had looked down on Yeon Ho-Ryeong prior to meeting him. Of course, after their meeting, his misconceptions naturally vanished.

In part, it was hard not to respect Yeon Ho-Ryeong’s upfront personality and clear principles. But it was also more than that.

More and more, Jae-Hyeok found himself stepping back from his own experience and really thinking through what it would be like to be in others’ positions.

And after taking the time to reflect on Yeon Ho-Ryeong’s circumstances...

Jae-Hyeok’s opinion had vastly changed: this wasn’t a man who’d carelessly raised his sons. No, this was a man who’d isolated himself at sea to bring benefits to his nation with none of the accompanying consequences. In a sense, he was Korea’s most useful and most unloved patriot.

Yeon Ho-Ryeong had dedicated his life to interfering with the maritime trade of those neighboring countries responsible for eating away at Korea’s national interests—countries such as China, Japan, and Russia, to name a few.

He carried the burdens of a nation and the ire of many others. Yet, whatever remained of Yeon Ho-Ryeong’s time and energy, he dedicated it to loving his family—that much was clear, given how far he’d gone to enlist Jae-Hyeok’s help in re-educating his sons.

The more Jae-Hyeok thought about it, the more sheepish he felt for his earlier thoughts. How could he have believed Yeon Ho-Ryeong was a villain?

Unlike the Yaksha, who came to the forefront to defend the country, he was a dark hero active in the shadows.

To live such a life... Master Yeon’s successor must be more selfless than anyone else. They must embody the essence of an aristocrat down to the bone...

Watching Yeon Ho-Ryeong’s back disappear down the far alley, Jae-Hyeok was left to ponder by the door.

Gam Woo-Seon, who was behind the counter in the back of the store, spoke up then: ”Is it really possible to discipline Yeon Ho-Rang?”

As a store owner, Gam Woo-Seon had also heard rumors about Yeon Ho-Rang, the president of Ocean Shipping.

If the elder brother’s personality is already so terrible, then...

Gam Woo-Seon suppressed a sigh.

According to Yeon Ho-Ryeong, his second son, Yeon Ho-Ryeong, was even more problematic.

The only strange thing was that Gam Woo-Seon had never heard anyone speak ill of Yeon Ho-Guk. On its face, Yeon Ho-Guk’s reputation seemed squeaky clean; moreover, he held a high position in the Ocean Guild.

Originally, Gam Woo-Seon wouldn’t have questioned it. But how could a father not know his son? Yeon Ho-Ryeong wouldn’t have warned Jae-Hyeok if Yeon Ho-Guk were as simple as he seemed.

Can Jae-Hyeok manage him?

Gam Woo-Seon struggled to imagine a youth like Jae-Hyeok lecturing and reforming an adult. In contrast, Jae-Hyeok was calm.

“Won’t it be easy? Master Yeon praised me several times. Since he thinks I’ve turned out well, I’ll just teach them the thing I’ve learned and experienced.”

Jae-Hyeok had always dreamed of spreading the essence of what it meant to be an aristocrat. As far as Jae-Hyeok was concerned, the Yeon brothers were fertile ground to do just that. He would instill in them the spirit and attitude of an aristocrat, and viola: reformation complete.

Gam Woo-Seon shook his head. At times like these, he was reminded that the little monster before him was just a sixteen-year-old boy. “Learning depends more on the learner’s attitude than the teacher,” he cautioned.

If everyone were open to learning, the world wouldn’t be the cruel place that it is.

Gam Woo-Seon’s face darkened imperceptibly as he recalled the incident that took his son’s life all those years ago.

Meanwhile, Jae-Hyeok nodded as if he hadn't thought of that. “Then I just need to change the attitude of the learner.”

“?”

“I can just beat them up.”

“......”

Gam Woo-Seon stared at Jae-Hyeok for a long moment, then his lips twitched and he rubbed his eyes. Right. I almost forgot.

This is the Yaksha’s son, after all.

***

“Just how many bad people are there!? This world is completely rotten!”

The Kang mansion was very noisy.

In particular, a glamorous blonde-haired girl was lying on a sunbed by the backyard pool and screaming thunderously.

It was none other than Cheon Hye-Ji.

The embarrassed Lee Jin-Seong and Du Bae-Su apologized sheepishly to Butler Hwang before trying to calm her down.

“Lower your voice. What are you doing at someone else’s house?”

“I’m angry! Since Jae-Hyeok killed them, they must’ve deserved it!”

The trio had come to the Kang mansion after hearing the recent news about Jae-Hyeok. How could they not know their proud friend’s personality? Unlike what the news was alluding to, they knew that Jae-Hyeok wouldn’t have abused his status and power to kill others for selfish gain.

They believed that whatever was going on was the beginning of some coup to harm Jae-Hyeok.

Da-Hee, who’d arrived at the Kang family one step earlier, crossed her arms.

“By the way, why are you wearing a bikini?”

Hae-Rin was also staring at Cheon Hye-Ji with doubt in her big eyes.

“Hmph.” Cheon Hye-Ji crossed her legs in a provocative pose and raised her nose into the air.

“Didn’t Butler Hwang already say that Jae-Hyeok is safe? Meanwhile, it’s summer.”

“So?”

“So, now the perfect time to work on my back-to-school tan! People will look down on me if I go back to school with the same old look.”

Cheon Hye-Ji lowered her sunglasses and trailed her eyes over Da-Hee and Hae-Rin’s white skin before shaking her head as if they were hopeless.

“Listen here. A tan in summer screams ‘well-traveled’ and ‘adventurous.’ Tsk. You’ll see. You’ll all see. Once I’m finished, I’ll be like a new woman: beautiful and glamorous Hye-Ji will be replaced with beautiful, glamorous, and exotic Hye-Ji.”

Da-Hee and Hea-Rin shared a confused glance before Da-Hee’s eyes turned round in concern.

“Hye-Ji, is your Stamina stat low? Normally, with a decent Stamina stat, your skin should recover in just one day after getting a tan.”

“I-it isn’t that low! Even if it recovers in one day, I can just get another tan the day before the end of vacation!”

Meanwhile, Hae-Rin stared off into the distance as a different question bounced around her head. Finding no answer, she snapped back to reality and announced, “I don’t get it. Why would other people look down on you if you don’t have a tan?”

“Not having a tan is like announcing to others that you haven’t done much over the summer! People will think you’re boring!”

“... Is that really something people gossip about?”

“Of course it is, you fool. People will be whispering behind your back if you use a bad lipstick brand, let alone this.”

“I don’t wear lip—”

“Hah!

Cheon Hye-Ji clapped a hand to her forehead in frustration. Then she explained it more directly.

“Jae-Hyeok might like tanned skin!”

“......”

“Think about it. Me, you, and Senior Yeon-Ju—all the women around him have white skin. Maybe he is tired of it. Would you want Jae-Hyeok to get tired of you? That’s where things like tanning and lipstick come in.”

“Ah! Hye-Ji, do you want to get Jae-Hyeok’s attention?”

"Kyaaaaak! I am just giving an example! You idiot!”

Hye-Ji's cheeks turned red all the way back to her ears as she tried to block Da-Hee's mouth.

Meanwhile...

“A new Hae-Rin...”

“Yi!”

“Holy!”

Lee Jin-Seong and Du Bae-Su hurriedly turned their heads as Hae-Rin began throwing off her clothes.

In no time, Hae-Rin was climbing into the adjacent sunbed wearing nothing but her bra and underwear.

Cheon Hye-Ji stared blankly for several seconds before sighing.

“Hah... Alright, boys, get out of here. I’ll take care of this.”

......

MomCheon Hye-Ji grumbled inwardly as she applied tanning lotion for Hae-Rin.

Clear and clean skin...

As a fellow woman, she found the girl undeniably attractive. At this point, with the right timing and a few simple moves, wouldn’t Hae-Rin snatch Jae-Hyeok away?

Honestly, Cheon Hye-Ji was worried.

But...

“Just so you know, I’m not backing down either. I won’t lose.”

Cheon Hye-Ji’s self-esteem was too high to consider anything but a fair fight. So what if Hae-Rin was pretty? She was the glamorous Cheon Hye-Ji. Whose hair had volume like hers? She would defeat Hae-Rin in a fair fight! Thinking as much, Cheon Hye-Ji continued to carefully spread the right amount of tanning lotion over Hae-Rin.

“Me too... Hye-Ji, you are so pretty, so I’ll have to work hard.”

Hae-Rin hadn’t forgotten the help Cheon Hye-Ji had given her with Jae-Hyeok in the classroom a few months ago. Even though her words were close to a declaration of war, Hae-Rin smiled sweetly.

A girl who struggled to express herself and a girl who wasn’t honest—two people who were naturally difficult to get along with formed a subtle friendship, and it was over a boy, of all things. From a typical third-party perspective, it was the least likely sort of friendship.

But Da-Hee was shocked for a different reason. Her face turned as red as a tomato.

“U-um, Hae-Rin, your sweat is making your bra see-through.”

“Here, this belongs to the youngest miss of the family, so it is probably quite small. Still, it is better than being too big, right?”

As expected of a pro, Butler Hwang had returned in no time while carrying a bikini for Hae-Rin. His face was tightly wrapped with a dark towel, so it was a wonder how he managed to navigate without his sight.

"T-thank you."

Making such a fuss at a friend’s house... and it’s even at a sacred ducal mansion.

Butler Hwang’s catering immediately brought the girls to their senses. Suddenly feeling rather silly, they accepted the bikinis with embarrassed expressions.

“What are you guys doing?” Jae-Hyeok called out from the doorway.

“Jae-Hyeok...”

It’d been less than a week since they’d last seen him, but the girls were overtaken by nostalgia upon hearing his voice. So much had changed in the last few days that he seemed to have become more like a distant idol.

“...Uh?”

The wistful looks on the girls’ faces abruptly vanished as another figure popped her head out the doorway.

“Who is that woman?!”

The woman was tall and slim. Although her hair was unkempt and her skin was rough, she was obviously beautiful. Her sharp features and ghost-white skin gave her the aura of an ethereal, icy beauty.

“White is good...”

Hae-Rin was a bit shocked and started to wipe off the lotion on her body with a towel.

“Hey! So you are interested in women, but you prefer older women?”

Cheon Hye-Ji shouted, a mix of anger and sorrow in her voice.

“What...”Jae-Hyeok did nothing to hide his confusion as he walked over. Then he turned his attention to the others before hurriedly shifting his gaze to the sky upon glimpsing Hae-Rin’s “outfit.”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t stop them...”

Da-Hee’s expression was gloomy as she apologized to him.

She was the most composed one, so she ended up being the one who felt all the shame.

***

“You look so good!”

Cheon Hye-Ji was all smiles as she stared at Kang Hyeon-Ah’s image in the mirror.

Lee Jin-Seong and Du Bae-Su clicked their tongues. Even before her own parents, Cheon Hye-Ji’s mood was not nearly half as pleasant as it was now.

“Auntie and Uncle will be upset if they find out if they found out that all along, you had this side to you... Sorry.”

Cheon Hye-Ji retracted her glare and returned to smiling radiantly at Kang Hyeon-Ah.

Ever since she’d learned that the icy beauty was Jae-Hyeok’s elder sister, Cheon Hye-Ji’s mood had gone from the pits of hell to the highest heavens.

Not only was Kang Hyeon-Ah not competition, but she was the perfect in into Jae-Hyeok’s heart. Once Jae-Hyeok saw how well they got along, Cheon Hye-Ji was convinced she would soar to first place among Jae-Hyeok’s potential love interests.

In any case, that was Cheon Hye-Ji's long-term plan. However, at the moment, her smile was genuine.

She used the talent inherited from her mother, a paragon in the beauty business, to achieve a masterwork with Kang Hyeon-Ah’s hair and makeup. Before she knew it, she wasn’t even thinking of her original purpose as she smiled in satisfaction at the final product.

“Perfection.”

Just by focusing on her dry hair and skin, Kang Hyeon-Ah’s beauty shone like the sun, with her striking eyes and upturned lips as the centerpieces that could capture the admiration of both boys and girls alike.

“Jae-Hyeok’s friends are kind and have good abilities.”

Looking at herself in the mirror, Kang Hyeon-Ah was reminded of her past self. All the more, she felt like everything would be okay, that everything would one day return to as it had been eight years ago. Thinking as much, she smiled happily and stroked Jae-Hyeok’s head.

She was so proud of him that the urge to wrap him in a tight hug was nearly overwhelming. However, she caught herself and reluctantly suppressed the urge. She didn’t want to accidentally hurt her brother again.

I need time to adapt to my strength.

She had earned more titles than expected during her eight years in solitary confinement.

In particular, the title of Wallfacer greatly increased her stats, so she needed to be careful until she adapted.

She said to Butler Hwang, “Uncle, thank you for taking care of my father and Jae-Hyeok.”

“I’m glad you returned safely.”

Butler Hwang smiled widely after hearing Kang Hyeon-Ah’s words. Then he led the group to the garden, where a large table was laid out.

“Ohh! It’s a feast!”

“Barbecue!”

The youths cheered.

Meanwhile, Jae-Hyeok quietly opened the delivery app on his phone.

......

That evening, laughter could be heard over the high walls of the Kang mansion. It was a brief moment of peace.

Planes departing from China and Japan were arriving in Korea one after another.