# 047. Day and Night (1)
“The Daejeon Station dungeon caused enormous social repercussions.
Not only was the Daejeon Station dungeon the first S-rank dungeon to appear, but it also had serious internal problems. Namely, the Doomsday Cult. The Doomsday Cult is a recently rising religious group, and its leader is a man in his thirties named Kim Shin. In the Daejeon Station dungeon, Doomsday Cult leader Kim Shin committed an act that no human should do. He colluded with a Constellation and performed a kind of human sacrifice, which nearly resulted in the loss of about a hundred ordinary people who were caught in the dungeon at Daejeon Station.
The one who resolved this incident, which could have become a national crisis or even a great mistake for humanity, was a young man who had just turned twenty. This young man, who had shown exceptional skills in the previous training tutorial, proved that his previous achievements were no coincidence. The young man…”
“Dad, please stop.”
Jaehee couldn’t bear it anymore and shouted. His stepmother, who was peeling fruits next to them, laughed heartily.
“Jaehee-ya. Your father is just proud of you. I’m really grateful too.”
“That’s, that’s enough. It’s all over now.”
His father had collected and scrapbooked all the articles about the Daejeon Station dungeon and would look through them whenever he had time. That would have been bearable, but when they were gathered like this, he would read these scrapbooked articles aloud. Being forced to listen to it was quite embarrassing. Sometimes, watching his father read articles aloud with an expressionless face, Jaehee suspected that he wasn’t doing it out of pride, but rather to torment him.
“Now, Yeong-i, give one apple to daddy, one to brother Jaehee, and one to brother Jeongwoo.”
“Okay! Here, say ah. Oppa…!”
Contrary to what her stepmother instructed, Yeong-i brought all the apples to Jaehee. Seeing this, Jeongwoo pretended to steal an apple, teasing Yeong-i.
But even so, since Yeong-i wouldn’t give them any, eventually the stepmother distributed apples to Jeongwoo and her husband.
“Yeong-i really loves her brother, doesn’t she?”
“Yes, oppa is Yeong-i’s king!”
“My goodness, there’s that word again! You really love your brother, don’t you?”
At her stepmother’s words, Yeong-i nodded as if stating the obvious.
In truth, Jaehee had been worried that his stepmother might be traumatized by what happened in the dungeon. She was so easily frightened that just seeing the system window was enough to cause a panic attack, and she had spent several weeks in the dungeon. He thought it would become a major trauma for her.
But all those worries had been unnecessary. Since coming out of the dungeon, his stepmother had actually been laughing more and seemed healthier. He couldn’t tell what was on her mind, but he was glad things had turned out well.
As a result, the family atmosphere had become much brighter and gentler than before.
“Jaehee-ya.”
As Jaehee sat quietly, Jeongwoo called his name and poked him. Jaehee let out a short sigh inwardly. Although he had decided to speak, when it came to actually opening his mouth, the words wouldn’t come easily.
“Go ahead, Jaehee-ya, speak freely. You asked everyone to gather because you had something to say, right?”
“Yes… I have something to tell you… But I’m not sure where to begin…”
“It’s okay. We’ll understand no matter how you say it, so just think of it as easy.”
Even with his stepmother’s encouragement to think of it as easy, his heart didn’t feel any lighter.
Fidgeting with his toes unnecessarily, he lifted his head and looked at his father and stepmother. The family atmosphere was unprecedentedly harmonious and gentle. He was worried that his words might ruin the mood, but this wasn’t something he could sidestep or avoid.
When he glanced at Jeongwoo, Jeongwoo nodded. They had already discussed this beforehand. Since Jaehee was struggling to speak, it was Jeongwoo who broke the ice first.
“The world has become strange these days. Things that would have been unimaginable before keep happening.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
His father nodded in agreement with Jeongwoo’s words. Watching this, Jaehee let out a deep sigh.
“It was like that before, but especially recently, strange events have increased. So, I’m worried about both of you.”
“If you have something to say, go ahead.”
Jaehee’s father blurted out with an expressionless face. His stepmother softly called, “Honey,” but his father continued to look at Jaehee.
After conquering the Daejeon Station dungeon, the world had changed rapidly.
The winds of change had been blowing since the tutorial appeared, but this recent change truly shook the foundations of society. People called “kings” had emerged. It had been over a hundred years since kings disappeared from this land, and their reappearance caused various social upheavals. But whether people wanted it or not, the system was forcing them to choose kings.
Kings created by the system weren’t merely conceptual or ruling entities; they were essential for people’s survival.
“Some people say we should be grateful that no more dungeons are appearing for now, but isn’t the whole world basically a dungeon now? There are monsters and strange plants suddenly appearing… I think the world is more dangerous than before.”
Although the Daejeon Station dungeon had been conquered, not all dungeons that appeared during the last contamination incursion could be cleared. Some dungeons were of lower rank and were given lower priority, eventually left unconquered, while others suddenly increased in rank, resulting in failed conquests.
Around the remaining dungeons, monsters and plants from the dungeons were frequently spotted. Even with barricades and 24-hour surveillance, it was useless.
“I’ve been thinking about how to say this, but it seems there’s no other way than to just say it as it is. …The truth is, I’m a king.”
“What?”
“Huh?”
Both his father and stepmother opened their eyes wide, as if they didn’t quite understand what he was saying.
“Yeong-i seems to know that I’m a king. I’m still not sure how she knew. Anyway, there are several skills that come with being a king. Since these are mainly for protection and defense, I actually accepted Yeong-i as my subject before going to the Daejeon dungeon. So I can protect Yeong-i…”
Jaehee paused for a moment and looked at his father and stepmother. It was difficult to read thoughts from his father’s expressionless face, but in his expressive stepmother’s face, he could clearly see surprise.
“If, if you don’t want to, please let me know. I’m fine with it. To be honest, I didn’t want to become a king either. But…, since neither father nor stepmother are Awakened Ones, and since you have to choose a king anyway, I thought it might be better if it were me.”
“Father is okay with it.”
“Excuse me?”
Not understanding what “okay with it” meant, Jaehee asked again, and noticed his father’s face had become a bit red.
“Father means he’s willing to become your subject. Right?”
His stepmother looked at his father with round eyes and burst out laughing.
“Jaehee-ya, did you see? Father is feeling embarrassed? As for me, of course I’m fine with it. I saw on the news that becoming a subject isn’t easy. Not everyone is accepted. Mostly they only accept Awakened Ones, and in the case of ordinary people, they barely accept them if they’re family members of Awakened Ones. But we have you, so that’s good.”
“Alright. Then, as they say, ‘pull the bull’s horn while it’s hot,’ let’s do it now.”
[Great Sovereign. Shin Hyeongho has chosen you as king. Will you accept Shin Hyeongho as your subject?]
[Great Sovereign. Kim Minkyung has chosen you as king. Will you accept Kim Minkyung as your subject?]
Jaehee quickly selected ‘yes’ for both.
It was a strange feeling to have both his father and stepmother become his subjects.
“Both of you are now under my affiliation. With all these strange things happening lately, I’m planning to cast a skill called King’s Veil on our house.”
“King’s Veil?”
“It’s a king’s unique skill that installs a protective barrier, and I heard no dangerous monsters or such things can enter inside it. Since we have Yeong-i too, I thought it would be good to put it on our house.”
“Oh my! Is it like a security service exclusively for Awakened Ones? It’s nice to have such a capable son. I should brag about this to my friends.”
At his stepmother’s words, Jaehee’s face reddened a little. He wasn’t used to receiving compliments.
Contrary to his worries, neither his father nor his stepmother made a big deal out of this. All the time he had spent worrying now seemed futile.
At that moment, Yeong-i came over and patted Jaehee’s shoulder as if to say “good job.” It was both absurd and comforting, so Jaehee remained still for a while.
He could smell the fishy milk scent that comes from babies. Whenever he held Yeong-i like this, he would later find that her milk smell had transferred to him.
“Jaehee-ya. I just saw the text you sent, did Yeong-i talk about a handsome oppa?”
“Huh?”
At Jeongwoo’s sudden question, Jaehee tried to remember who the handsome oppa was, when he recalled what Yeong-i had said. Come to think of it, he had texted Jeongwoo before entering the Management Bureau.
“Oh! Right! But, handsome oppa! Hmm. Now there’s no handsome oppa?”
“No?”
“He ran away.”
“Ran away?”
“Mmm… strange. The handsome oppa definitely said he was strong. But I guess he’s afraid of Jeongwoo oppa.”
Not only were Yeong-i’s words difficult to understand, but Jeongwoo’s expression became peculiar as he heard them.
