What did I do wrong?

Even after the woman disappeared, Choi Yoon stood there for a long time.

Why should I hear such words?

Suddenly, something occurred to him.

Ambassador for promoting the census.

A hollow laugh escaped.

Indeed, he should not have taken on something like an ambassador role. Those who are opposed to the census would not look kindly upon Choi Yoon.

What Choi Yoon feared had already happened.

The image he had carefully built up was about to crumble in an instant.

At this rate, before Lee Kang Woo could ruin Choi Yoon, he would first be shunned by the public for leading a dirty discriminatory policy.

“This is driving me crazy.”

As he nervously ran his hand through his hair, Choi Yoon suddenly flinched.

His chest felt tight.

The woman had long since disappeared. He could guess the reason for being cursed at.

Yet his heart was still beating rapidly. It felt utterly unfamiliar.

Is it because of the hot weather?

Indeed, his whole body was feverish and his breathing labored.

Choi Yoon shook his head vigorously. He tried to gather his thoughts.

Come to think of it, I didn’t ask for her name.

Damn it, his mouth tasted bitter with belated regret.

Instead of giving her my business card, I should have asked for her name. I should have gotten her address or number.

So that…

Choi Yoon gazed longingly at the darkness that had swallowed the woman.

…I could meet her again.

Usually, Choi Yoon’s mere appearance was enough to substitute for all explanations. It was always the other party who took the initiative to reveal their name. Everyone was desperate to imprint themselves on Choi Yoon. Information flowed in even when he didn’t want it.

So the thirst of not having any clues in hand felt strangely unfamiliar.

It was then.

With a loud noise, a motorcycle carrying two men stopped in front of Choi Yoon.

Before their eyes could meet, Choi Yoon habitually put on his mask.

The old man who had been riding in the back quickly got off and approached.

“Oh my, I’m so sorry about this.”

Choi Yoon immediately shook his head.

“It’s nothing.”

“Just wait a bit. We’ll fix it and move out of the way soon. Chun Bae, Ji Chun Bae, hurry up. There’s a car that can’t pass through here.”

“Yes, village chief.”

The middle-aged man called Ji Chun Bae picked up a toolbox from the motorcycle. Something long stretched out below his hunched shoulders. Wings. Covered in black feathers.

A supernatural being.

Choi Yoon realized he had unconsciously stopped breathing. He consciously tried to breathe.

“I don’t recognize this young man…”

The village chief squinted in the darkness as he approached Choi Yoon.

“What brings you to this countryside?”

Choi Yoon cleared his throat.

“Good evening, sir. I’m not from around here. I was trying to get to Jangcheon County Office.”

“At this hour?”

“I heard there are protests even at night.”

“Protests? Are you a reporter?”

“No, I’m not a reporter.”

The village chief seemed greatly disappointed.

“Then you also came to participate in the protest?”

He was about to correct him, but the village chief spoke faster.

“There used to be protests at night too. But now the county office blocks it all off with cars at night. They only do it during the day now.”

“I see.”

“There’s nothing there now if you go. You’ll only see something when the day breaks. And most importantly, you’ve taken the wrong road. It’s not this way.”

As if his own son had gotten lost, the village chief looked quite concerned.

“It’s late, so you’ll need a place to sleep, but our situation isn’t favorable. Hey, Chun Bae, did you fix that water problem at your house?”

Ji Chun Bae replied without looking back, his nose buried in the forklift’s engine compartment.

“Not yet! We’re still carrying water to use!”

“Oh dear, then I’ll open up the village hall for you to stay…”

Choi Yoon was somewhat surprised by the unexpected kindness. He hastily declined.

“It’s alright. I can sleep in the car. Please just tell me the way to the county office.”

“It’s difficult to explain verbally. The county office has blocked the road, so you need to take a detour. Why don’t you just go together with our villagers tomorrow?”

It wasn’t in his plans, but he was in no position to be picky.

“If you’d do that for me, I’d be grateful.”

“Alright. Then come to Hambak by 10 AM tomorrow. As for where Hambak is…”

The village chief casually grabbed Choi Yoon’s hand. Choi Yoon, slightly flustered but not pulling away, followed for a few steps.

The village chief, still holding Choi Yoon’s hand tightly, pointed beyond the forklift.

It was the direction where the woman had disappeared.

“If you follow that road straight ahead, you’ll come to a side path going up the mountain. Cars can’t go in. Walk up that side path for about 10 minutes and you’ll see a place called Hambak Flower Restaurant. It’s a two-story wooden building…”

Oh no.

“It’s easy to find because there’s nothing else around and just that one restaurant on the mountain.”

That’s my house. The restaurant I’ve leased out.

“We’ll all gather there to coordinate our chants and pack some lunch boxes before we go. You can meet us there and go together.”

After his father died and he fled to Seoul, he had never visited again. He thought he would never have a reason to go back.

He only meant to go to Jangcheon County Office, but ended up drifting here.

“But why do you look like that?”

“It’s nothing. Thank you. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Soon the road cleared.

After confirming that the forklift and motorcycle had moved to the side of the road, Choi Yoon got into the van. He drove up following the road the village chief had indicated. The side path soon appeared.

He parked the car in a nearby open space.

Past midnight.

He reclined the seat familiarly and took out a blanket.

Spending a night in the car was no problem. He could count on one hand the number of times he had slept properly in a bed due to his brutal schedule.

When he dozed off, exhausted from fatigue, Choi Yoon had a dream.

His father is lying stretched out on the restaurant floor. As always.

Eyes empty, not allowing him to be alive even in dreams.

And a giant fox, straddling his fallen father, opening its mouth wide.

He sits up with a start and backs away. His back hits a wall.

The fox turns to look at him.

Those vertically slit, bright blue eyes turn towards the young Choi Yoon crouched hiding under the shadow of the table.

Poof, nine tails puff up simultaneously.

The fox shrinks in an instant.

Transformed into a beautiful naked woman, she approaches. Slowly.

The woman, the nine-tailed fox, kneels down.

She reaches out her hand to Choi Yoon.

Skin shining as if coated with crushed moonlight.

Eyes dense and perfect like a fake.

Behind her, nine tails cascading like silver willows.

Gasp, he woke up with a start.

Choi Yoon tried to breathe while frozen stiff. His startled heart slowed gradually. His mind, awakened by the nightmare, was crystal clear.

The sun was rising. He was tired.

Ah, it’s been a while. A dream about Dad.

Choi Yoon unbuttoned his shirt, damp with cold sweat. He twisted his upper body to select a sweatshirt and cotton pants from the mountain of clothes piled in the back of the car and changed into them.

Looking in the mirror, he tidied up his skin and skillfully groomed his disheveled hair.

But his mood didn’t improve much. He knew the reason better than anyone.

He didn’t want to go to his hometown house.

The home-style restaurant his father had run, the two-story wooden building, was a source of precious memories and at the same time, a source of terrible guilt.

Despite consulting advice to sell it, saying not to expect property values to rise in a remote location, he couldn’t bring himself to sell it, yet also lacked the courage to face it and visit.

Occasionally when real estate agents contacted him to send contracts for new tenants, he would only think, there are people who manage to live in and maintain that old house.

But to end up going like this.

Choi Yoon got out of the van. He wore neither sunglasses nor a hat.

He decided not to hide here, of all places. He didn’t want to cause unnecessary misunderstandings like, even that bastard has enough conscience to go around hiding his face.

I owe a debt to this place.

When I was young, I may have unknowingly brought a disguised person into a civilian home, but now it’s different.

I’m no longer a child.

I’ve grown into an adult. I’ve succeeded as an actor and gained influence as a notable public figure.

As such, I cannot harm my hometown by becoming the face of a misguided policy.

Having come down to Jangcheon in person with such determination, he thought he shouldn’t be afraid of facing his childhood home now.

With only one side path, the direction was clear.

With tree trunks densely packed on both sides, looking up showed a deep green canopy instead of sky. His whole body was bathed in shade.

The rare beams of light filtering through the leaves danced like star patterns with each step.

When a flower branch gently brushed his hand, it felt like his father’s hand holding his as a child.

Sensations he had tried to forget rose sharply like scales. All his transgressions felt like just yesterday.

If only he could run and meet him now. If only he could undo it all.

If only he could become not himself.

Breathe. Slowly. It’s all in the past. It was a very long time ago. I’m okay. Reciting the advice he had heard from his psychiatrist, he didn’t slow his pace.

But at the end of that path, Choi Yoon lost his composure.

It was a small restaurant.

A two-story wooden house.

The grass in the yard that curved around the house was neatly trimmed and dewy.

And flowers, flowers, flowers.

It was in full bloom as if all the flowers of May had been plucked and poured down from the sky in heaps.

It was closer to the ideal than his memory. What this means is that it was the kind of restaurant Choi Yoon’s father had earnestly dreamed of.

His father always said: A wooden restaurant reminiscent of a flower shop garden, modest but well-maintained. And always wafting with the smell of warm food.

But his father never managed to cultivate the yard. Because just running the restaurant alone and raising a child was overwhelming.

Choi Yoon suddenly looked back. The trail he had walked for about 10 minutes was still quiet.

He looked forward again. The restaurant was a vibrant, colorful dream like a watercolor painting swaying alive in the wind.

As if entranced, he took a step.

Inside the low fence that gave no consideration to security, tall magnolias grew densely. Large petals dyed white and red, or colors in between, were fully bloomed, revealing fluffy yellow stamens.

Beyond those flowers, a small sign carved from wood was modest.

Magnolia Restaurant

The presence was suddenly felt.

The smell came before the sound. The savory aroma of meat sizzling on hot fire.

Choi Yoon stared intently at one of the small windows on the first floor of the restaurant, where the clear clinking of dishes rang out.

A busy shadow briefly crossed the window.

Choi Yoon slowly approached the window.

Before he could place his hand on the windowsill, hot steam enveloped his face. He couldn’t see clearly in front of him.

The rich smell of meat and the heavy aroma of soup penetrated deep into his lungs. He gave a slight cough. He waved his hand to clear away some of the steam. He finally managed to speak.

“Excuse me…”

Only then did he see the other person. Like clouds parting and sunlight streaming in, his vision suddenly cleared.

Ah.

It’s a woman. That woman.

Her soft hair was tied up carelessly, revealing her elegant nape which caught his eye first.

Below that, a blouse with occasional pintucks and lace, a brown apron over it, and arms with rolled-up sleeves revealing white-gleaming forearms, wrists, backs of hands, fingers. Water pooled and dripped from the tips. Drip.

The woman from last night.

The woman stood frozen like a startled deer, staring at him with wide eyes.

Those eyes that instantly captivated the beholder, with their strangely glossy sheen, were particularly jet-black and shiny, which he hadn’t noticed in the dark night. With moisture glistening in them, they were like the dense surface of a night sea.

His gaze inadvertently slid to her slightly parted lips in surprise.

She was pretty at night, but pretty in a different way during the day.

Just looking at her made him dizzy, and Choi Yoon barely managed to speak.

“We meet again.”

Despite Choi Yoon’s greeting, the woman remained frozen with her eyes wide open, staring intently at him. Yesterday’s boldness had evaporated.

Choi Yoon also met her gaze without blinking. He added softly.

“We even talked on the phone. Us.”

That’s why you shouldn’t call someone trash or whatever when you first meet them. So impolite. Telling someone to die, only to meet them again as a building owner the next day in this scary world.

Ah, I quite like this legally bound relationship.

“It’s nice to meet you. Tenant…”

Choi Yoon easily recalled the three syllables of the name saved in his contacts.

“…Kim Ye Rin.”