The Hero Returns

“What about Seoul?” Su-hyeun asked Kim Dae-ho. “Why do you ask?”

“Just cause. Just answer me.”

Kim Dae-ho pressed for an answer and Su-hyeun hesitated a little bit. It was a different question than his past life. He didn’t expect Kim Dae-ho to ask about Seoul.

“Well…Seoul is a great place to live,” Su-hyeun said.

“In what way?”

“Lots of people, lots of convenience facilities. The transportation system is well established, so it’s easy to get places. Families with kids prefer Seoul because of its better education system. Most of all, again, there are a lot of people.”

“Lots of people? Hmm…”

“But they’re all meaningless to you. You hate crowds. The only convenient facility you need is a supermarket. Also, you don’t usually move around a lot, so you don’t need good transportation.”

“Yea, that’s right.”

“One good thing is, you could easily get all the materials you need for your workshop. Since Seoul is the most active place for trading and auctioning items and Ether stones in Korea.”

“Oh, yea?”

Kim Dae-ho’s face brightened a little bit. He liked that, at least.

Su-hyeun asked quietly, “Are you thinking about coming to Seoul?”

“Yes. I’m thinking about it.”

“Why? Is it uncomfortable to live here?”

“No.” Kim Dae-ho shook his head. “This is the best place for me.”

“Is there a particular reason you insist on this place?”

Su-hyeun already knew the reason, but he asked anyway. He knew Kim Dae-ho would tell his next story after he finished talking about the reason he lived there.

“I’m too old to hold onto things. It’s all because of memories.”

Kim Dae-ho got up from his seat. He walked toward a drawer on one side of the room. He opened the third one from the top and took out a picture frame.

“I was a man who only liked fire and metals. I didn’t deserve her.”

Kim Dae-ho looked at the two people in the picture. They were a young Kim Dae-ho, looking uncomfortable, and a younger woman riding on his back.

“But she told me I looked awesome when I worked with a hammer. I told her I like living in the middle of nowhere, like here, and she said then she liked it here, too.”

“Did you have a family?”

“No. We weren’t together long, anyway. We lived together for about three years. At that time, I was even crazier about working. My wife didn’t get a baby and passed away.” Kim Dae-ho wiped the dirt off the picture frame with his sleeve. “And this is the only picture I have: just this one black and white photo. I regret not taking more pictures with her. And I even didn’t look at this picture often.”

“Why?”

“What’s the use? It won’t bring her back. Thinking back to that time still makes me…I’m not sure how to feel.”

Kim Dae-ho rubbed the glass part of the frame. No tears came out. Everything had happened too long ago to shed tears again now. That was fortunate at least, Kim Dae-ho thought.

“So, I couldn’t leave here. I never went to Seoul. Everyone goes to Seoul. I turned my back on the world and lived only for her. It’s been 20 years since she passed.”

“You’re a romantic.”

“Romantic? No. It’s just a lingering affection and stubbornness.”

“Are you better now?”

“You know the saying, ‘Time heals all wounds.’ I don’t know who said that, but I think whoever it was was an idiot. I thought time would help me, too. But longing was like drops of water. The water kept pouring in but not evaporating. So, I just had to work harder, like a crazy person.”

“Then, why now?”

“Because I’m ashamed.” Kim Dae-ho put the picture back in the drawer and looked at Su-hyeun. “When I look at you, I feel ashamed, and I can’t stand it.”

“Me?”

“Yea. Although I live in the middle of these mountains, I still have ears, man. Whenever I turn the TV on, people talk about you all the time. When I see you, I feel ashamed and embarrassed.”

“There’s no reason to be ashamed. It is your life, and you live like this because you want to. It’s not like you committed a crime or anything.”

“I didn’t say I feel ashamed because of you, man,” Kim Dae-ho retorted and looked back at the drawer. Soon, he sat back opposite Su-hyeun, looking calmer.

“Anyway, I grumbled at my sad plight for twenty years, and I thought it was time to stop. That way, I will be less ashamed.”

“Are you saying—”

“I want to live like you. I’ll no longer turn my back on the world. I’ll stand tall. And I’ll stop hiding my children behind my back and show them to the world.”

“Have you made up your mind, then?”

“Yes.”

At Kim Dae-ho’s answer, Su-hyeun got up from his seat.

“I’ll find you a house then. Just pack your stuff. I’ll find a nicer workshop than here, too.”

“Hey. I have money, too. Why do you treat me like a beggar?”

“Houses in Seoul aren’t cheap. And I have been getting equipment from you for so long, the least I can do is pay you back in this way.”

“What do you mean? You gave me more stuff. Thanks to you, I enjoyed all the best materials and even made my dream hammer.”

“Then, that’s better. I’m happy for you, and you are happy for me. Win-win, isn’t it?”

Kim Dae-ho laughed a little bit at Su-hyeun’s easy words.

“Wow. Did you put honey on your mouth?”

“Then, you agree with me, right?”

“Okay, okay.” Kim Dae-ho slammed the table in front of him and said, “Let’s go, Seoul!”

Act 3

Su-hyeun went back to Seoul immediately. At first, he went to Gangnam District. Gangnam was the area where the most Ether stone auction houses were. Also, it had the highest floating population in Korea. So, Su-hyeun thought it would be good to find a house in Gangnam for Kim Dae-ho to get materials for his workshop.

<<But he doesn’t like crowds…>>

Su-hyeun headed to a real estate office near Yeokgok Station. He wore a mask to hide his face and went into the realty building. The realtor was already talking with a customer.

“Hello, sir. Could you wait for a minute, please?”

The realtor, with a big smile, pointed to an empty chair for Su-hyeun. Su-hyeun nodded, looking at the properties that hung on the wall. He checked the size, location, and year of completion. There were many pretty good houses.

<<If he goes to a smaller house than he has now, he’d feel cramped… I should get a house as big as possible. He also wouldn’t like high floors. Not a noisy place…>>

Su-hyeun Kim Dae-ho’s tastes well. Su-hyeun wrote down a checklist on a notepad he brought. Soon, the realtor sent off the customer and came to Su-hyeun.

“Sorry to make you wait.”

“That’s okay.”

At Su-hyeun’s response, the realtor hesitated a little bit. He made a curious face but soon smiled again.

The realtor asked, “Do you have a house you’ve thought about or a sale you’ve been looking for?”

“I’m looking for a large single-family house. It would be good if there’s a yard, also somewhere with convenient transportation.”

“A single-family house?”

The realtor opened his eyes big with a surprise at the unexpected request. He thought Su-hyeun would look for a studio or small apartment. He thought for a moment and got up.

“Please, hang on.”

After searching for properties on a laptop for a while, he brought the laptop over to Su-hyeun.

He said, “There aren’t many single-family homes in Gangnam. Few houses for sale in this Nonhyeon-dong area.”

“Please show me the biggest one.”

“This one, then. It’s a single-family house that used to be a restaurant. The yard is wide, and the location is good, too. Very quiet.”

Click—

He showed a picture of the large house. It seemed pretty large at a glance.

“It was a bad place for the restaurant because there isn’t a large floating population. But there is a subway station within walking distance. There’s a highway close, too, so it’s not a bad place to reach by car as well.”

“How much is it?” Su-hyeun asked.

“It is 7.5 billion. It’s quite expensive since the yard is large—”

“I’ll take this one if it’s the biggest. The location seems good. Also, do you know any property for sale used as a workshop? If there is one, I would like to buy it as it is.”

Su-hyeun was planning to spend some of the money that he had earned on this occasion.

<<I still have quite a lot of money left after I paid back Mr. Gordon.>>

Anyway, money didn’t mean much to Su-hyeun. To him, it didn’t matter if he had money or not. Also, there was still a lot of chances to make money if he needed it.

“I-I don’t deal with workshops, but I can ask around for you.”

“Then, please.”

“Okay. For the house, I’ll call the owner right now. How much can you put down for the mortgage?”

“I won’t use a mortgage.”

“Okay, sir. Then, give me a minute, please.”

The realtor rushed away to make the call. Immediately, he called the landlord and began to prepare the sale. Su-hyeun sat down for a moment and waited for the realtor. About that time, he could feel a vibration in his pocket.

Bvvvrrrr, bvvrrrr—

“Oh, one sec.”

Su-hyeun quickly checked his phone. There was a message.

<<Bak Yun-gyu?>>

It was a sudden contact. He checked the message and frowned slightly.

He muttered in a small voice, “Geneva?”

***

In the middle of Gangnam Street. Among a crowd of people, there was a crude-looking, middle-aged man in old, worn-out clothes. It was Kim Dae-ho. He arrived at Gangnam Street with Lee Ju-ho. He had a picture in his hand.

“Honey. How is the air in Seoul?”

He talked to the picture for the first time. Of course, there was no answer, but Kim Dae-ho went on muttering, “I don’t like it so much. It’s stuffy and not fresh. I hate crowded places, but I’m sure you will like it here.”

Although he said he didn’t like it, a smile hung on his face.

“People say this is the best neighborhood in Seoul. You know the old saying, ‘Follow a friend to Gangnam.’ I have no idea why people would follow a friend to this noisy town, but apparently, it was a thing. So, how is it? Are you satisfied? Do you want to look around more?”

Kim Dae-ho spoke with a loud voice while looking at the picture, but soon his voice became thick with emotion.

“I’m sorry. Sorry to be late. You asked me to go to Seoul with you, once, just once. I am late by twenty years.”

Twenty years. It was a long time. Lee Ju-ho, who came with Kim Dae-ho, stepped aside at his muttering. He thought he should give Kim Dae-ho a moment alone.

“I did it because I was scared. If I came here, I would think about you, and that would tear my heart apart. So, I’ve been hiding all the time. But…” Kim Dae-ho hung down his arms with the picture. “But I won’t hide anymore.”

He looked around at Seoul. Everyone was rushing around. Kim Dae-ho went on, as he looking at them, “Everyone here lives busily. People young enough to be my grandchildren live busier and fiercer than me. The man I got to know recently keep reminding me of that.”

Kim Dae-ho thought about Su-hyeun. He thought about when he saw him on the TV and what Su-hyeun had been doing. He lived really busy and fiercely, and that made Kim Dae-ho feel ashamed.

“I’m sorry, honey.”

And Su-hyeun lit up the fire in Kim Dae-ho’s heart that had been dead for so long.

“I’ll let you go now. Good-bye.”

Kim Dae-ho had a smile playing about his lips. He had expected Seoul would make him sad, but now he felt glad.