Chapter 96

Chapter 96

[Downstairs neighbor]

The sound of birds chirping could be heard.

Ah, so noisy.

The young man tossed and turned in his bed.

To some, it might have sounded like the welcoming sounds of the morning, but to the young man, it was nothing more than noise disturbing his deep sleep.

Whether he lay on his left side or right side, he couldnt block out the noise coming from outside.

Seriously, why are they catching bugs and making such a fuss from the crack of dawn? Get lost to some other house and let people sleep, please!

No use.

The young man put on earplugs.

Only then did the noise disappear.

With a drowsy gaze, the young man lay back on his bed.

He couldnt get any sleep the whole day yesterday because he was gaming until dawn, trying to finish the last stage.

He thought he would collapse until then.

I have toget up and finish I have to wake up.

Playing games until dawn,

He couldnt sleep.

The young man planned to wake up in the late afternoon and finish the game, leaving the last stage.

But right at that moment

Kim Min-ji, here we go!

You have to throw it really hard, or youll die by my hand!

The noisy sounds of the children could be heard.

The young man, who was just about to fall asleep, frowned.

There was no doubt about who the children making noise in the parking lot were.

They were the kids who lived upstairs and their friends.

They often brought them here and caused a commotion.

For Gods sake, please be quiet.

The young man pressed his hand against his ear with the earplugs in it.

Hey! Did you do that on purpose?

Huh, huh? I didnt mean to do that.

Enough! Its my turn now! Youre done!

Hey, Kim Minji. Just lightly

Yeah! Im doing it lightly! What are you gonna do about it?

No matter how loudly the children were screaming, using earplugs or covering his ears didnt help.

He couldnt stand it.

Even patience had its limits.

Ill just!

The young man finally grumbled and got out of bed.

He had been enduring it, thinking of for the sake of the old man in the row house, but he couldnt take it anymore.

The young man shoved his foot into any pair of shoes he found.

Just as he was about to open the door to go out and scold the kids making noise in the parking lot,

Hey, you brats! This house isnt just for you! I pay rent for this place too Ouch!

Something flew in and hit his forehead.

The young man couldnt resist the force and fell back.

Huh?

And Minji blinked with a throwing posture, holding the ball.

Ha, that sucks.

Sorry!

The young man, the downstairs neighbor who introduced himself as Jung Geum-joon, rubbed his red, swollen forehead with an egg.

Minji apologized again and again, looking like she might burst into tears at any moment.

Hyung, Minji didnt mean to do it.

Thats right, please forgive her!

Minji apologized and Geum-joon sighed heavily, unable to do anything about it.

Eunha, who had been quietly watching, started to organize the situation.

Eunhyeok, who felt sorry for Minji, also intervened.

In a way, Eunhyeok was responsible for Minjis mana ball to Geum-joons forehead.

Not long before, the kids had gathered in the parking lot to train their mana.

Eunha had given them two drills: one to form mana into a sphere and throw it, and another to deploy a barrier.

They decided to alternate roles, with one throwing and the other blocking.

Now watch, hyung.

Sigh.

The first team was Eunhyuk and Minji. Eunhyuk was the thrower and Minji was the blocker.

However, Eunhyuk was impatient and threw the mana ball before Minji could deploy her barrier.

Luckily, Minji wasnt hurt, but she couldnt help but light up and get annoyed with Eunhyuk.

And as soon as the roles were reversed, Minji used her mistake as an excuse to throw a huge mana ball.

Unfortunately, it hit Jung Geum-joon, in the forehead as he came out of the door just in time.

Oh, my forehead. This is going to leave a bruise.

Geum-joon grumbled as he rubbed his forehead with the egg.

No, it wasnt just a bruised forehead.

This was an attack that should have knocked him out, not bruised him.

Eunha didnt miss the moment when Jung Geum-joon deployed his barrier almost reflexively, just as Minji threw the mana ball.

Eunha looked down at Geum-joon, who was crouched in front of the shoe rack, grumbling.

He was his downstairs neighbor. As far as he knew, he was almost impossible to see during the day, and he always wore shabby training clothes and wandered around the neighborhood, which seemed to be a ghost town before he emerged from his room.

I thought he was just a recluse who hardly ever came out, but he is not a player.

He seemed skilled at manipulating mana, but Eunha was ambiguous as to whether he was a player or just an ordinary person.

Eunha was bothered by his identity.

He rolled his eyes and peeked around the room, avoiding his gaze.

There wasnt even water.

Do you want some tap water?

Seona brought a cup with tap water.

Geumjeon gulped down the water she brought him.

Oh, but Im hungry too.

Eunhyuk put his hand on his stomach.

He hadnt had a snack since school ended, and his stomach was empty from training.

Me too. Im hungry.

So was Eunha.

He was growing up. The age when you get hungry without even trying.

You guys are hungry, so Im hungry too!

Im a little hungry too. Hayang, are you?

All kinds of stories. So whos the strongest?

Hayang hadnt heard Seona calling out to her, and was deep into the game settings.

She pushed up her chair and stuck her face into the monitor, looking like she was trying to get into the game.

I want meat.

Meat is good. I want chicken.

Chicken! I want chicken, too. They say chicken and beer go well together.

Minji, we cant drink beer.

The kids chattered amongst themselves.

Quenching his thirst, Geumjoon looked up at the ceiling and cleared his throat.

Oh, I want chicken, too.

That was the trigger.

The kids started to pile on.

Hyung, I want chicken! Buy me chicken!

Hey, why should I buy you chicken?

The first kid to speak up was Eunhyuk.

Geumjoon replied with an incredulous face.

Hyung, please buy us some chicken.

You left your money with me? Seriously, kids are so scary these days. They dont have anyone to bully, so they try to bully me.

Eunha said it like it was a given,

Geum-joon shrugged it off with a nonchalant tone.

Hyun-bin is going to cry, oppa. I want to eat our chicken.

No. My money is precious.

Minji pleaded, and Geumjoon hesitated for a moment.

Then, Seona interjected.

I think youre just as handsome as Hyun Bin, so you must have a very large bank account. Oh, I suddenly want to see Hyun Bin eating chicken.

Hmm, hmm. I may look handsome like Hyun Bin, but I dont have that generous heart Fine, although I find it a bit regrettable to spend my money, Ill treat you to chicken.

Geumjoon said with a satisfied expression, raising his chin.

And so, he didnt know.

That outside his sight, the kids were celebrating and were shouting for joy.

But then another problem arose.

Hey, but where are you going to take me?

Hey, where should we order from?

Eunha threw a spark that could be a point of contention.

Of course, lets order from Goobne. Their barbecue chicken is so delicious. Its also low in calories.

The first one to respond was Minji.

What are you talking about! You havent tried your favorite Snowing Chicken yet!

Eunhyuk got angry and added fuel to the spark.

Hey, guys, lets not fight and order something we can all enjoy together. How about BBQ Seasoned and Fried Chicken Combo?

Seona chimed in as well.

Hayang, still immersed in the game, said, Me? What chicken do I want? Um I dont know! Just decide for me!

She still couldnt break free from the game.

Hey, why fight over which chicken to order? Chicken tastes good anywhere, so just enjoy it wherever you order from.

Then No Eunha, you dont care where we order from, right?

Oh, but Im also tempted by potato fries. So, how about we order BHC chicken tenders that we can enjoy with our salad and potato fries?

Captain, we can order fries at Nenes!

Isnt that Snowing and Pickle fries? Lets stick to BHC.

But what about the calories! What do we do about the calories?

Yes, next, Minji~ You can just have the salad.

I want the seasoned and fried chicken combo.

BHC probably has a half-and-half option. Where in the world is there a chicken place without a half-and-half?

The kids said nothing.

Eunha was talking more than usual, and now he was talking about money.

The children exchanged glances.

Captain, youre awake a bit today.

Youre really thinking about yourself.

Half and half is not the same thing.

Huh? I like anything!

In the end, Eunha was the winner.

The kids had to step back, watching Eunha passionately advocate his chicken preference.

Meanwhile, Geumjoon, lying on the floor and staring at the ceiling, said,

I dont care what it is, just order it already. Oh man, the sound of my precious money being spent is already ringing in my ears.

Though he had no strength to move, he had enough energy to grumble.

Notes!

(1) Son Oh-gong: () is a character from the Korean classic novel Journey to the West ( Seoyugi). Also known as the Monkey King, Son Oh-gong is one of the main characters in the story and is based on the mythological figure Sun Wukong from Chinese folklore. For example The God of high school, (one of my fav webtoons btw) the character Jin Mori is loosely inspired by Son Oh-gong and shares some similarities with the Monkey King.

While the webtoon is not a direct adaptation of Journey to the West, it incorporates certain elements and themes from the classic novel and reimagines them in a modern, action-packed setting, which has contributed to the webtoons popularity and appeal to fans of both martial arts and fantasy genres. (go and read it if you are most of the time bored like me) :))