A single stone jutted out from the stone pillar at the entrance. I wondered what it was, but as soon as Mom touched it, a mechanical sound chimed.
A sensor? How interesting.
I looked around. The security at this extraordinary place seemed incredibly tight.
At least no burglars will be getting in.
Mom confidently opened the front door and walked inside.
“It’s been a while. Where is Madam?”
A member of the staff spoke politely, their expression unreadable.
“Alright. Thank you.”
Mom strode forward, holding me in her arms. I waved at the person as we moved away.
The staff member’s eyes flickered slightly.
As expected, this cuteness is irresistible.
‘It’s small change, but I should collect everything I can get.’
Even pennies, when saved up, will find their use.
‘Hmm, I need a deep, powerful hit.’
When will the netizens of the world finally see me?
‘I hope they see me soon.’
This face was not meant to languish in obscurity.
Just as I was lost in thought, the swaying finally stopped.
‘Have we arrived?’
Mom took a deep breath. Being held so close, I could feel every bit of it.
Her voice resonated low.
“Here we go.”
Then, she opened the door.
‘My mom is so dramatic.’
She’s like a hero marching off to defeat the Demon King.
Her grip on me tightened. I remained quiet, simply taking in my surroundings.
‘What a luxurious study.’
It was the kind of study you’d only see in paintings of chaebol homes. It felt more like a drama set than a real place.
‘And why are all the books hardcovers?’
Every single one was embossed with gold leaf, making for an imposing sight.
Mom took one step at a time. For some reason, the atmosphere grew more and more tense.
Finally, her steps halted. A short silence hung in the air.
It was Mom who spoke first.
“It’s been a long time.”
I could feel the deep resonance coming from the pit of her stomach. I was once the greatest supporting actor in South Korea. Even in a baby’s body, I could recognize that much.
I tilted my head slightly. I saw a white-haired grandmother reading a book at a lavish wooden desk.
‘Hmm, she looks pretty ordinary for a Demon King.’
Well, she did look exceptionally refined. But still, she seemed like a normal person.
The grandmother spoke.
“So you’ve brought the mongrel.”
…Wow.
‘Refined? Scratch that. Ordinary? Scratch that too!’
A mongrel!
‘So people who use words like that actually exist!’
Are you Hitler, by any chance?
Mom gave a faint smile. But I knew. It was a smile seething with anger.
“You haven’t changed a bit.”
“Throw that thing out.”
She’s telling her to throw me away, isn’t she?
“If you can’t do it, I’ll do it for you. Mongrels should live with mongrels.”
Wow…
I stared blankly at the woman they called Grandmother. Looking at her again, she now seemed like a perfect Demon King.
Just then, Mom’s body trembled slightly, as if she were laughing.
“You’re so consistent. I suppose that is one of your strengths, Madam.”
Mom hugged me tightly.
“Still, since he’s living in this house, I thought I should at least show you Gongja’s face. Of course, it feels like a total waste to show you my angel’s face at all. But if I didn’t, I don’t know what you’d use as an excuse to do something, so I came. I’m here to take away one of your excuses.”
I could feel Mom gritting her teeth.
“I can just imagine it. If I didn’t show him to you, you’d claim you threw him away because you didn’t know he was mine, wouldn’t you?”
Wow. Was she being serious?
‘Seongjin Group is really something else.’
Are they a family of psychopaths? This is no joke.
Mom spoke in a cheerful voice.
“Let me introduce you.”
Ah, here we go.
‘This is awkward, but I have a job to do.’
I immediately curled the corners of my mouth upwards.
‘Allow me to present my finest smile.’
I don’t know what the outcome will be, but for now, my job is to collect coins.
Just then, I heard the sound of a song.
—*An innocent child just smiled.*
Huh. Mom’s deep resonance was creating a melody.
—*Our eyes met, and the child smiled.*
It was a familiar tune. A song that no actor could ever not know.
‘This is…?’
It was the signature number from the world-famous musical, , a production every actor dreamed of being in.
‘It starts with a widow finding a child.’
And that child later becomes a hero who protects his country. But.
‘When the widow first found the child, people called him cursed and threw stones at him.’
That’s when the widow sings this desperate, yet beautiful song while holding the child.
—*All I wish for is one thing.*
I looked up at my beautiful mother. As she sang, she soothed me with her warm touch.
The Demon King’s eyes wavered.
‘Ah, she’s being swayed.’
Mom’s sincerity was getting through.
—*That you may grow up healthy…*
Mom lifted me high into the air. It was the most iconic scene from the musical. Madam Na Hwajin bit her lip hard.
‘I see Mom’s plan.’
She’s expressing her heartfelt emotions through a world-famous musical number.
‘And it seems to be working.’
The proof was in the way the grandmother’s eyes were trembling.
A chaebol’s wife, especially the mother of a famous actress, would surely have a keen interest in cultural activities like musicals.
‘I should help out.’
I excitedly opened and closed my little fists. I also smiled brightly.
It’s a known fact that when a mother is crying, a child smiling in innocent ignorance only deepens the audience’s sorrow.
“Byoo-ah!”
How do you like that, Your Majesty, the Demon King?
This isn’t a scene you get to see every day.
‘If you were moved, please spare some coins.’
The Demon King’s butterfly glasses slowly slid down her nose. The dumbfounded look on her face was quite satisfying.
“…”
The song ended. And with it, Mom’s performance. She held me and smiled.
“Do you remember, Madam?”
Mom said calmly.
“It was the first musical you and I ever went to see together.”
Wow, of course. It wasn’t just a random song. That musical had a special meaning for them both.
Mom extended her arms, holding me out toward her mother.
“Isn’t our Gongja cute?”
“Ma Sujeong.”
The Demon King blinked and said.
“Have you lost your mind?”
Mom let out a short laugh.
“Ah, so it didn’t work.”
“Ma Sujeong!”
“You really haven’t changed. These are my feelings now. I love Gongja. I’m sure that’s something you can’t understand.”
Mom patted my back.
“Nothing else to say, right? Then I’ll be going. May you live a long and prosperous life in this godforsaken house, Madam.”
Mom immediately turned to leave.
“Stop!”
The Demon King continued.
“That is not Maru.”
Mom glanced down at me slightly.
“Did you pick up a mongrel because you miss Maru? Ma Sujeong, have you gone mad?”
Mom turned back and approached the Demon King. Then she held me up and pushed me forward.
“Look closely.”
“What?”
“I said look closely at my angel.”
The butterfly glasses turned towards me. Her gaze was sharp.
‘A normal baby would be crying by now.’
But what can I do? I’m not a normal baby.
I reached out my short arm. Then I gently caressed the madam’s cheek.
“Byoo-ah!”
I patted her lightly, smiling brightly.
The madam’s eyes trembled. I tilted my head slightly. The lion’s mane on my hoodie tickled my cheek.
‘How about that, Madam?’
I babbled.
“Baa.”
The madam was frozen, only her pupils moving. But I knew.
‘Her cheeks are turning red.’
See, she can’t resist this cuteness.
I kicked my feet together. Just then, the madam, who had been so guarded, averted her gaze.
“Well?”
“He’s… just a baby.”
“He’s cute, isn’t he? So, so cute.”
“W-what does that have to do with anything!”
“No. Maru and Gongja are different. Look! They’re different!”
The madam stared intently at me. I opened and closed my fists once more.
‘Ah, her cheeks got even redder.’
One more push and I might even get some coins.
‘I need something deep and powerful.’
Is there anything?
On my wrist, as I made my little fists, was a striped pattern meant to look like a lion’s mane.
‘Yes! Found it. A deep and powerful blow!’
I’m the type to use everything at my disposal.
I rubbed my cheek with the mane-patterned sleeve and clenched my fist. Then I quickly bent my wrist slightly.
“Buh-roar!”
Roar.
‘Ah, wait, is ‘roar’ for tigers?’
Well, they’re both similar kinds of animals, so she’ll probably let it slide.
Just then, a message popped up.
Wow.
‘Thank you very much.’
A whole 200 coins! You must have been very moved.
‘As expected, no one can resist this cuteness.’
The red-cheeked grandmother pushed up her glasses. But I saw it clearly.
‘Her hand is trembling.’
Wow. This grandma is more interesting than I thought.
“Well, his appearance is a little different, I suppose.”
“Right? It’s not a delusion. My decision to raise Gongja has nothing to do with Maru. This child is my destiny.”
Na Hwajin composed herself. I beamed.
“Still, you shouldn’t bring home a black-haired beast!”
“Our Gongja’s hair.”
Mom showed her my slightly wavy hair.
“Is brown!”
“Ba-woo.”
That’s right. I am not a black-haired beast.
‘I’m a brown-haired beast.’
So it should be perfectly fine to raise me. Grandmother.
Mom adjusted her hold on me and spun around.
“Well then, we’ll be leaving. Live a long life, Madam.”
The grandmother was so flabbergasted she couldn’t say a word. But as we walked away, I didn’t stop waving.
“Bya, ba-buh!”
See you again, Grandma.
Mom patted me as she closed the study door.
“Whew. Gongja, that was tough, wasn’t it? Let’s go wash out your ears as soon as we get home!”
Well, hearing myself called a mongrel was certainly something.
‘But she doesn’t seem entirely against me.’
The fact that my coins went up proves it.
Mom let out a quiet sigh. She seemed disappointed.
‘I didn’t know why Mom needed thirty thousand coins to get healthy.’
But after seeing that grandmother, I think I have a slightly better idea.
Mom kept walking forward. I smiled a little. We certainly had a long way to go.
* * *
Na Hwajin.
The afternoon of the Seongjin Group’s madam was as placid as ever. She was sipping a cup of black tea and reading, just like any other day. But for some reason, she couldn’t seem to turn the page today.
Her daughter Ma Sujeong’s song echoed in her head.
—*That you may grow up healthy.*
Na Hwajin put down her book.
She remembered that day.
‘It was the first musical we went to.’
Na Hwajin could never forget Sujeong, sitting in the front row, her eyes sparkling as she watched the stage.
‘She said she wanted to be an actress from that day on.’
Na Hwajin let out a deep sigh.
She could sense her daughter’s resolve.
‘Just like she was determined to become an actress, she’s determined to raise that child.’
Na Hwajin shook her head.
“Still, to think she’d raise a mongrel.”
An image of the brown-haired lion Ma Sujeong had brought with her came to mind.
—*Ba-woo.*
A muscle in Na Hwajin’s cheek twitched.
The brown-haired beast had such small hands. So tiny and chubby, she’d wanted to give one a little poke.
‘No.’
Madam Na Hwajin readjusted her butterfly glasses. The child was certainly uncommonly cute. But he was still just a mongrel.
‘Well, a rather cute mongrel, I suppose.’
Like how a country mutt can sometimes be cute.
‘Still, how can something look like that?’
Having studied art and aesthetics, Madam Na Hwajin knew. The combination of the eyes, nose, and face shape was truly rare.
‘Like a Cupid sculpture.’
Just as Madam Na Hwajin was reminiscing about the baby’s face she had seen yesterday, the study door suddenly burst open, and someone rushed in, out of breath.
Madam Na Hwajin sighed. The only person in this mansion who would run like that was her second daughter-in-law, Lee Yugyeong.
“Mother! Did you see this!”
Her daughter-in-law shoved a smartphone right in her face.
“See what?”
“This photo! It’s for our company’s promotional materials, but it’s all over the internet!”
Madam Na Hwajin lowered her gaze slightly. It was a photo of Ma Sujeong holding the baby, a single tear rolling down her cheek.
‘It is rather interesting.’
Ma Sujeong was as beautiful as ever. But perhaps because the baby she was holding was so cute…
‘It looks almost like a holy painting.’
Maybe it was because the nuns were in the photo with them.
Madam Na Hwajin pushed her glasses up.
“Scroll up.”
“Pardon?”
“Let me see the comments.”
Her second daughter-in-law reluctantly scrolled up the screen.
└ Wow, a goddess.
└ She looks so holy.
└ We all know Ma Sujeong is gorgeous, but who’s the baby?
└ The baby is so cute.
└ So cute he looks divine.
Lee Yugyeong pouted and said.
“It’s obviously photoshopped. He didn’t look like that in person. People are so gullible.”
Na Hwajin said quietly.
“It’s true the photo doesn’t do him justice.”
“Pardon?”
“He does look better in person.”
