The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family Chapter 83
Park Bom and Berrie spent most of their time together.
Even during meals, bedtime, and even trips to the bathroom, Berrie stayed close to Spring. That’s why Berrie was Spring’s second favorite after Dad. If Dad was the absolute favorite, then Berrie ranked second.
Today, as usual, Park Bom and Berrie were inseparable.
With Berrie in her arms, Park Bom submerged herself in the baby seat, peering at the driver’s seat.
“Aunt Honyang, where are we going?”
“To Grandma.”
“Grandma? Yay!!”
Thump-thump-thump!
Park Bom expressed her excitement with her whole body, while Berrie, nearby, meowed long and loud, adding background music.
Grandma was Spring’s third favorite person. But it was a secret from Aunt Honyang because she didn’t want to see Aunt Honyang sad.
Grandma’s company was huge, so huge it seemed to pierce the sky. It was like the beanstalk from the fairy tale of Jack and the Beanstalk, so initially, Park Bom was scared. What if it collapsed? To be honest, it was still a little frightening even now.
“Berrie, will you protect your sister?”
“Meowwww!”
She promised to protect.
Park Bom felt a bit reassured.
The car finally stopped. As soon as the door opened, the first thing they saw was Grandma!
“Grandma!”
“Oh dear, my puppy.”
By “puppy,” Grandma meant “dog.” Occasionally, Grandma spoke strangely, which Dad said was dialect. Spring used Grandma’s dialect often, but Aunt Honyang disliked it, which often led to arguments between them.
“Please don’t use those strange words in front of the child. She copies them in kindergarten.”
“What does it matter?”
“Seriously!”
Park Bom didn’t fully understand what a dialect was, but she liked it because it was fun and made her feel warm.
Cuddled in Grandma’s embrace, they entered the building. Of course, Berrie came along too.
Every person they met greeted them, and Spring greeted them back. Of course, Berrie also joined in.
“Hello!”
“Meow!”
Spring had developed a lisp, courtesy of a lost tooth a few days ago, causing her to cry over her changed appearance. However, Uncle Tiger had cheered her up, offering her a banana milkshake and letting her ride his spirited horse.
By the way, Uncle Tiger hadn’t been seen for several days.
“Grandma, where’s Uncle Tiger?”
“The uncle is working far away.”
“Will he be late?”
“A bit. Aren’t you missing him?”
Park Bom nodded.
Uncle Tiger was Spring’s fourth favorite. And Aunt Honyang, who stood behind, was the fifth.
Sorry, Aunt Honyang. But the sword dances Uncle Tiger teaches are just so fun.
“When will Ki-hyuk get here?”
“In a bit. He seems to be dealing with some problems with the American kids lately. It’s supposed to be Rosaria today.”
“Is Ki-hyuk a machine lover?”
“Hey, I warned you about being careful with your words, didn’t I?”
“Ah! Did Spring hear that?”
“Spring didn’t hear it.”
Actually, she did.
“Machine lover.”
What did that mean?
Park Bom decided to ask Dad about it later and filed the question away in her “Memory Bank.”
Oh! The Memory Bank was where Spring stored memories. Dad mentioned this bank could eventually store magic as well.
“Had breakfast yet? Let’s eat before heading upstairs.”
“Can’t someone bring food up to us?”
“Pfft. It’s not that you eat a lot that people don’t want to see; it’s just… Never mind. It’s fine. They all know you eat a lot.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Did you not watch Mom’s Prismatic Channel? They posted a video of you eating, and views exploded.”
“Mom!!!”
Spring recognized the video Grandma mentioned. They watched it together.
Aunt Honyang was eating meat, and her plate was piled high like a mountain. But upon reflection, Aunt Honyang wasn’t the only one to eat a lot. Uncle Tiger ate tons, Dad also ate massively, and Grandpa? He ate even more — probably the most of all.
Thinking of Grandpa, Spring suddenly remembered him too.
“Grandma, where’s Grandpa?”
“Our puppy also misses Grandpa, huh? He’s far away too.”
“Further than Uncle Tiger?”
“Probably. Even I don’t know the specifics.”
“Huh!!
“Why?”
“What’s wrong, Spring?”
“You don’t know something?!”
“What?”
Haha!
The three of them burst into fits of laughter.
Spring always favored Dad because he was straightforward. She loved Berrie too, and Grandma who always taught her interesting dialects. Uncle Tiger who taught sword dances, Aunt Honyang who visited her kindergarten often, and Grandpa who bought the most “Captain Tiger” toys — all were special.
Spring loved everyone in her family.
In her diary, she had drawn a picture of her family of six.
“Hmm…”
I feel down.
It’s like my heart is being shredded apart.
Is this what mom called ’emotional scars’? It hurts so much.
I was lying facedown on the table when suddenly,
Thump.
An Americano appeared in front of me.
The chill from the melting ice reached my cheeks, and as I looked up, Jin Yu-ri stood there.
“Wow, if you don’t cool down soon, you’ll turn into slime. You’ll stick to the table.”
“Shut up.”
“If you’re going to get mad, why did you spy on Spring’s diary in the first place? She has privacy too, you know.”
“It was an accident while I was tidying up.”
“Really? A diary accident?”
Jin Yu-ri was smart — too smart. But what could I do? I was wrong.
Just as she said, spying on Spring’s diary was the root of the problem.
To be honest, it wasn’t the first time. I have done it a couple of times.
Twice? Three times?
It wasn’t out of malice. As a father, you know, there are concerns. Is our daughter doing well? What is she playing? Is she getting along with her friends? That sort of thing.
I was preoccupied with various issues lately, so I became more curious.
While reading Spring’s diary, I felt an eerie sensation — I mean, it was the first time I ever felt so chilled to the bone.
The moment I regained my senses and looked back,
Surprisingly, Spring was standing there.
Since then…
“Father!!”
“Grandma, father, hiccup, father, Spring’s Diary … AAAAAH!!”
… I don’t even want to think about it.
“Haa…”
“Actually, the more I think about it, the stranger it gets.”
While swirling her mint chocolate latte, Jin Yu-ri continued.
“How did you manage to slip past your detection ability? It’s practically cheating, you know.”
“Magic was used…”
“Exactly! The question is, how old is she, and how could she use magic to that extent?”
“…Hmm.”
She still doesn’t know. My Spring is a genius.
To be fair, I wasn’t entirely diligent. My senses are too sharp, so it gets tiring when I don’t control them.
Even so, Spring’s abilities were undeniably special.
Just to hypothesize, she might be utilizing one of the ‘bl**d members’ from within her.
She already knows how to manage the bloodline.
My daughter, but…
“…Impressive.”
As I chuckled, Jin Yu-ri looked at me with an odd expression.
“Lately, I’ve been curious. If she’s already this capable now, what will she be like during adolescence? What will you do then?”
“Spring won’t go through adolescence.”
“It’s not a question of whether she’ll go through it or not. Adolescence is a fact of life. A natural phenomenon. The tempestuous season.”
“…”
“Close your eyes and imagine. Spring with full-blown middle-school syndrome yelling, ‘I can’t communicate with my dad! Get out!’ and slamming the door. Can’t you see it?”
“No way.”
“Pfft. Want to bet? I’m putting money on it happening.”
“Why are you betting on me?”
“Because you’re precious…?”
“Haa…”
Anyway, upon reflection, I was definitely in the wrong.
Spring, with her intelligence, is also sensitive, but as a father, I failed to understand her sensitivity.
Thus,
“We need to wrap this up and head out to eat meat.”
“Me too! I’ll pay.”
“Do as you please.”
I glanced at the clock.
Just as I wondered why she hadn’t appeared despite saying she had something to talk about,
The door of the café opened, and there stood Rosaria.
“Coffee, double shot, five sugars. Please bring it over there. This is my tip.”
It’s commonly said: those who become renowned are often eccentric or downright quirky.
Directly speaking, they’re “nuts.”
For instance, if you search on Prism, you’ll find videos like, ‘Bang Bang Bang! The Bizarre Actions of Guardians,’ regularly surfacing. These record the nutty antics of famous guardians.
So, are all top-tier people nuts?
If asked, I’d say yes — there’s evidence.
Just that the cause and effect are reversed.
It’s not that they’re powerful because they’re crazy; they’re powerful because they’re crazy.
A prime example? My former self.
Thus, as once the leading nutcase of the empire, do I understand the talented nuts out there?
Nope.
Why bother?
Nuts are just nuts.
“Your lock, no matter how hard I tried, I can’t open it.”
“Boy, is it funny to say you tried to open your own lock right in front of me?”
“I said this because I tried. Why should I hide it?”
“Look at what you’re saying. Imagine a thief calling the homeowner about the house code and asking, ‘Can you tell me the password?’ Would you give it to him? Isn’t it strange? That’s exactly what you’re doing here.”
“So you suggested trading. If you were given enough compensation for buying a new house, you’d give the password, right?”
“Wow, you’re way more audacious than I imagined. You really are a top-tier thief.”
“I don’t get you. I’m in a deal with Mr. Park. Why are you interfering?”
Rosaria and Jin Yu-ri.
Truly, who is the era’s nutcase?
Two drum rolls!
This is quite an exciting matchup. If only I had time, I’d enjoy it leisurely, but unfortunately, I don’t.
Spring and I agreed to eat meat soon.
“Alright, about the thing I asked before.”
“Completed.”
Swish.
Rosaria handed over the documents.
They were related to the Chandler family.
The incident where the Chandler family’s magic disrupted an area in a civilian zone.
It was quite a serious case. If a citizen had committed such an act, there would be no hesitation in dragging them to the Executive Department and directly sending them to jail.
But Chandler was an American citizen, and what’s more, a renowned family.
This case had the potential to escalate into an international issue.
As I’ve said before, pursuing this vigorously would just lead to unnecessary hassle.
Thus, I contemplated and solutions emerged from unexpected places.
This one, from Rosaria herself.
Apparently, in America, the East and West sides hate each other. They treat each other like enemies almost.
That gave me an idea.
What if we handed this assault case to them?
The Chandler family belongs to the Western aristocracy. But if the Eastern region caught wind of Chandler’s mistake…
It would be quite interesting.
“My mentor mentioned you gave him useful information. He said if you need anything, he’s willing to help.”
“Mentor?”
“Mecha Master. His teacher.”
“How do you know that?”
“By research. Some thief got interested in my stuff.”
Jin Yu-ri growled, calling herself “the thief.”
Ignore her. If I start engaging with this, we won’t finish today, let alone make it to dinner.
“Nothing needed. Just ensure I get the reward properly. Oh, and just a reminder, this mustn’t become a public matter, alright?”
“Don’t worry. Mentor won’t make noise over a single idiot.”
There’s already a “gift” for quiet handling from the Control Bureau. It’ll cause me a headache if you break the promise.
“That’s it, let’s finish talking about trivial stuff. We’re wasting time.”
Rosaria pulled out a magic crystal. Like before, it was drained, just like a lump of rock.
“I’ve confirmed it. The star-shaped magic circle from the other day isn’t something I can undo.”
“How many times do I have to say it? That thing can’t be opened by anyone except me.”
“What? How did you do it? What is it? Why can only you open it?”
“Just one at a time, please.”
I tapped Jin Yu-ri lightly as she sipped coffee.
“Right?”
“You try explaining.”
Magic projecting “My Truth” as a unique magic.
Jin Yu-ri here has already stepped into the first level of this unique magic.
“Just a rough explanation of the concept. I’ll skip details anyway.”
“Really? Can I do it?”
Nodding, I leaned back.
Seeing me look forward, Rosaria seemed uncomfortable. When looking at Jin Yu-ri, one could even see a hint of jealousy in her eyes: “How could you understand what I can’t?”
“Listen, thief. What you couldn’t unlock is called ‘Unique Magic.'”
“I’m not a thief!”
“Quiet. Don’t you want to know? Or stop explaining?”
“…b*tch.”
Despite the noise from their relationship, the explanation was still excellent.
Starting from the basic concept of “truth” to how magicians deal with truth.
Flawless.
It’s clear. From this alone, I see that Jin Yu-ri is an excellent student. If only she could control her mouth.
A while later, once the explanations concluded,
“Ultimately, the unique magic Ki-hyuk set up can’t be undone by anyone else but him. Got it?”
Rosaria paused for a moment in thought before blurting out something strange.
“Isn’t that ‘Alpha Gear’?”
