Chapter 103
Self-esteem battle. The two dragons with strong pride began their competition.
They looked at me and shouted.
"Dad, prepare the next lesson."
"Father, let's move on to the next lesson!"
Even though it's a lesson, I hadn't prepared anything grand. I stepped back slightly at their offensive and said.
"Oh, okay. Let's take a 10-minute break and then start the next lesson."
There should be a break time, after all.
Suryeon and Choryeon might not need it, but Hwaryeon looked like she needed some rest.
'Enthusiasm for studying is good, but the temperature shouldn't be too high.'
I'm not fond of studying myself, but I hoped the children would enjoy studying in moderation.
After the 10-minute break, I opened the calculator app on my smartphone to proceed with the next lesson.
"Alright, let's start the lesson again. This lesson is math. Everyone knows the basic four operations, right?"
This is the most basic of basics, so everyone should be able to do it. The children nodded as if it was obvious.
"If you don't know that, you're not a dragon! You're a wyvern!"
"Of course I know. I knew it from birth."
"I learned it in kindergarten!"
"Woof..."
Mangmung's answer was unsatisfactory. It seemed Mangmung still couldn't do the four operations. But reality is cold.
"Mangmung, point deduction for lack of preparation."
"Woof..."
Attitude in class is important.
But now that I roughly knew the children's levels, I thought we could proceed with the lesson.
"Then shall we solve some problems as a review for this period?"
Solving a total of 20 problems, mixing easy and difficult ones.
This time, it wasn't exactly a test, but we decided to solve problems while discussing together. The children showed various reactions to the problems.
"Aagh! Numbers! I hate numbers! Take this away!"
Hwaryeon had a fit like someone with numerophobia.
"Hmm, too easy compared to my overwhelming skills."
Suryeon sneered at the problems with an arrogant attitude.
"Problems given by Father! I'll solve them preciously! Poor paper! Please take care of me!"
Choryeon expressed condolences to the paper with the problems written on it.
"Woof..."
Mangmung, of course, just stuck out his tongue and stared at the paper.
'Still, they're all working hard on the problems in their own ways.'
Scribble scribble-
Only the sound of pencils writing on paper echoed through the house. None of them gave up, focusing on the problems and racking their brains.
"Aah! I lost count in the middle!"
"Be quiet, Hwaryeon. I can't concentrate."
"Both of you be quiet!"
There was a brief battle of nerves. But unlike usual, they took the test seriously.
Perhaps because they're dragons with strong pride. They basically hated losing.
'It's nice to see them all studying hard.'
Smile-
I smiled watching them rack their little brains. And I prepared some simple snacks and drinks to make it easier for them to study.
"Everyone, eat comfortably while you work."
"Snacks! They're all mine!"
"I like cola."
"Thank you, Father!"
Since Mangmung can't eat human snacks, I decided to throw him a simple dog treat.
"Mangmung, you eat while you work too."
"Woof!"
Since Mangmung ended up playing the role of a floor mat, I decided to give him two dog treats today, reflecting his sacrifice.
Only then did Mangmung smile and eat his snack deliciously.
Scribble scribble-
Munch munch-
The sound of solving problems mixed with the sound of children eating snacks. On a day when the children don't go to kindergarten.
The house that used to echo only with TV sounds and sleep-talking started to become lively.
'This is how a proper home should be.'
The results of studying might not matter much, actually.
I thought I just wanted the kids to have many experiences in their childhood and spend it happily in a stable home with parents.
***
When all the lessons were finished, it was just time for dinner. I prepared a simple meal with egg soup, sausages, and tofu as side dishes.
The kids ate more rice than usual to replenish their energy drained from studying.
"Dad, give me more!"
"Okay, eat more."
"Raaah!"
Munch munch-
Hwaryeon ate an extra bowl of rice. It was amazing how she didn't gain weight eating like that.
'Suryeon and Choryeon are eating well too. They were fighting hard earlier.'
The kids were full of enthusiasm for studying today.
I was worried they might get too heated due to competition in the middle. But fortunately, they didn't overheat when I removed the scored tests.
'...I almost died from them asking about things they already knew.'
You know those types, right?
The ones who ask, "Teacher, is this answer correct?" just to show off, even though they know the content. Suryeon and Choryeon kept asking me questions with that mindset during this lesson.
'Next home schooling... let's stop because it's too hard for me...'
Get up-
I got up with my body tired from playing the teacher role. And I started preparing to go out. The children poked their heads out of the bathroom door and asked.
"Dad, where are you going?"
Three pairs of eyes with various colors staring at me intently.
After finishing brushing my teeth, I said.
"Just going out. I'm visiting Gu Bong-gu. And, we had a promise today, right?"
"Toys!"
"Yes, I'll buy toys too."
Promises should be kept. At those words, the dragon kids raised their hands happily and shouted.
"Yay! Toys! Dad, buy me Power Ranger toys!"
"I don't need toys that children play with, Dad."
"I'll like anything as long as it's a gift with Father's sincerity!"
"Woof!"
Listening to them, except for Hwaryeon, there are no specific gift requests. I guess I can just choose well on my own.
"Trust Dad's intuition and wait. I'll be back soon."
"...Dad's intuition? I trust Dad, but it's hard to trust Dad's intuition."
"..."
Does Suryeon not trust my intuition? She gave me a slightly suspicious look.
'Let's see how she reacts after receiving my gift.'
I'll make you believe in Dad.
I thought this as I left the house. So, on this snowy evening, I walked towards the hospital where Gu Bong-gu was.
***
Gu Bong-gu waved at me from his bed by the hospital window.
"Hey, you came?"
"Yeah, I'm here."
"Sit down. What's that in your hand? It's not like you."
"Fruit juice. For when you're bored."
I put the box of fruit juice next to Gu Bong-gu. Gu Bong-gu said it was good and gulped down the juice in one go.
'Is this how a hospitalized person should look?'
This is ridiculous. I sighed and stared at Gu Bong-gu's face without saying anything.
"What, is there a problem with my face?"
"There's always a problem."
"Look at how this bastard talks? You're still like that even after becoming a dad."
"Of course I watch my language in front of the kids. Anyway."
Gulp-
I downed the orange juice and asked.
"When are you planning to reopen the kindergarten?"
"Soon. I want to open it quickly too."
"Seems like the white smoke was more potent than expected."
"Sigh, you can say that again."
Gu Bong-gu sighed, looking out the window at the falling snow. Well, he must be the most frustrated.
'He needs to take care of the kids, but he can't. Must be frustrating.'
The white smoke from the kindergarten attack incident. It caused problems in Gu Bong-gu's body.
It's clearly external magic, and it causes a repulsion reaction when it enters someone else's body. Strangely, the white smoke was absorbed by the children's bodies, but it caused a repulsion reaction in the adult Gu Bong-gu's body.
I got up from my seat, leaving Gu Bong-gu looking out the window.
"Well, I'm going."
"Okay."
"Recover quickly and come back. The kids at the kindergarten are waiting for you. Grandma is working hard preparing meals in your place."
"Yeah, go on."
Wave wave-
Gu Bong-gu waved his hand carelessly instead of saying goodbye. Then he casually spoke to me as I was opening the door.
"Hey, Lee Ha-jun."
"What?"
"The kids are good, but take care of Grandma too."
"Oh, okay... Sure."
It's the first time Gu Bong-gu has asked me for something. I left the hospital, closing the door with a bewildered feeling.
"He only asked when he wanted me to pay back money. This is strange."
Grandma, huh. It is a worrying age, I guess.
I walked through the white snow, recalling Gu Bong-gu's request.
"Ah, it's cold. Maybe I shouldn't have come out..."
Hard concrete covered with white snow. Intermittently flickering streetlights. I had no choice but to walk with my hands in my pockets in the cold weather.
"I should buy the toys quickly and go back... The kids will be waiting too..."
They'll surely act up if I make them wait too long. I walked a bit faster through the white snow.
"Come to think of it, it'll be Christmas soon."
When Christmas passes, this cold winter will end soon too.
"Has it already been that long since I started living with those kids?"
Time passes so quickly that it feels like the seasons are telling me how long I've been with the kids.
Still, every time I feel the seasons passing so quickly, I think.
"I hope the remaining seasons pass comfortably without any incidents."
It might be difficult because they're dragons.
Thinking this from a father's perspective, I walked through the snow to buy toys for the children.