Yoo Tae-pung was currently walking through Hangang Park.
Thud, thud…
His footsteps were listless and forlorn, unbefitting a man in his mid-twenties.
He was on his way back from a job interview. It would take a few days for the results to come out, but Yoo Tae-pung already knew the outcome.
The atmosphere was almost identical to all the other interviews he had attended. The interviews where he had failed, that is.
With a sigh, Yoo Tae-pung looked around the park.
Young men and women were sitting on the grass, chatting, eating delivered food, and enjoying themselves.
'Good times.'
Until just two years ago, he too used to come to this park with his juniors, cracking open beers and tearing into chicken. It was a time when he had no worries and could just enjoy himself.
Probably, back then, there were people looking at him and thinking, 'Good times.'
Just like him now.
Licking his lips, Yoo Tae-pung moved on and sat down on a park bench. He stared blankly at the park and the Han River, then opened the briefcase he was carrying.
Although he called it a briefcase, there wasn't much inside. Just his phone and wallet, and the drink and sandwich he had just bought from the convenience store.
There were three drinks. He had originally intended to buy only one, but they were having a two-plus-one sale, so he just grabbed three cans.
Taking out the drinks and sandwich, Tae-pung looked at the park again, then suddenly sensed a presence and looked to his side.
Next to him was a man who appeared to be around his age, also looking at the park.
Like himself, the man was wearing a suit, but unusually, he was also wearing a fedora.
'Is he wearing it for style?'
Thinking it suited him quite well, Tae-pung looked back at the park.
11 a.m. on a weekday…
The fact that a man his age was looking at the park at this time likely meant that he was in a similar situation to himself.
And he hoped so. He didn't want to be the only pathetic one, a kind of… petty feeling.
Feeling self-conscious about that thought, Tae-pung shook his head slightly and looked at the drink he had taken out of his bag, then gently held it out to the side.
"Nice weather, isn't it?"
At Tae-pung's light greeting, the man glanced at him.
"…."
Feeling a little embarrassed by the man's silent stare, Tae-pung smiled and took two more drinks out of his bag.
"They had a two-plus-one deal at the convenience store. I was going to buy just one, but then again, buying singles at convenience stores is expensive, so… I ended up grabbing three."
Feeling awkward, Tae-pung made strange excuses as he subtly pushed the drink forward.
"If you don't mind, please have it."
At Tae-pung's words, the man looked at him and then at the drink. Tae-pung was offering him an iced Americano.
The man's gaze shifted to the other drinks Tae-pung was holding. Perhaps due to a cross-promotion, Tae-pung had different flavors of the same brand in his hand.
"You have a sweet tooth, I see."
Tae-pung was momentarily taken aback by the man's informal speech, but he offered him a different drink as the man seemed to prefer.
"Ah… then please have this one."
When he handed over the caramel macchiato, the man accepted it. He then opened the lid and took a sip.
"Delicious."
Tae-pung smiled at the man's words.
'Is he older than he looks?'
He was a bit surprised when he first heard the informal speech, but strangely, he didn't feel offended.
He just thought it suited him.
Soon after, Tae-pung unwrapped the sandwich. It was a jumbo egg sandwich, and there were two sandwiches inside the plastic packaging.
Tae-pung offered one of them to the man.
"I think it would be too much for me to eat both."
At Tae-pung's words, the man looked at him and then accepted the sandwich.
"I'll enjoy this."
Once again, at the man's casual use of informal speech, Tae-pung glanced at him and shook his head slightly.
Then, he put the sandwich in his mouth, chewing and looking at the park, before subtly checking on the man again.
The man was also looking at the park while drinking his coffee and eating the sandwich.
Seeing that, Tae-pung also silently shifted his gaze to the park. After finishing his sandwich and coffee, Tae-pung put the trash in his bag.
"Well then, I'll…"
…see you again. Tae-pung was about to offer a light farewell but shook his head.
"I hope you have a good day."
At Tae-pung's words, the man glanced at him.
"Why me?"
"Huh?"
"You could have shown this kindness to others, couldn't you? Why me?"
At the man's question, Tae-pung fell into thought for a moment, then said with a smile,
"It's not really kindness… I just thought you looked similar to me."
"Me? Similar to you?"
The man tilted his head and looked Tae-pung up and down.
"Similar?"
As if it were absurd, the man shook his head slightly.
Then, he stared intently at Tae-pung before opening his mouth.
"Do you like goblin stories?"
"Huh?"
"Goblins, you know? They appear in dramas these days."
"Ah… I've seen that drama. It was interesting."
At Tae-pung's words, the man nodded and said,
"Do you know the story of the old man with the bump?"
"That's a famous fairy tale."
"I'm glad you know it. Then you won't feel wronged."
Tae-pung looked at the man, puzzled by his cryptic words.
'Is he crazy?'
As Tae-pung tilted his head, the man said,
"When you wake up, you'll have a bump."
"Huh?"
"I'll see you tomorrow then."
Having finished his words, the man turned around, then, with an "Ah," looked back at Tae-pung.
He took out a business card from his inner jacket pocket and handed it to him.
Tae-pung instinctively accepted the card.
「Goblin Library」
"Goblin Library" was printed on the black card in silver letters.
Looking at the business card, Tae-pung wondered what it was and looked up again. A look of bewilderment crossed his face.
The man who had been in front of him just moments ago had disappeared.
Tae-pung looked around. But no matter how much he looked, the man was nowhere to be seen.
'What is this?'
Looking around with puzzled eyes, Tae-pung shook his head after a while and put the business card in his wallet. He then gathered the plastic wrap and empty can left by the man into his bag and started walking again.
As Tae-pung continued on his way, he suddenly heard the laughter of two men passing by.
"What's that?"
"The things kids do these days… Isn't that a prank we used to pull when we were young?"
Tae-pung's gaze followed the direction the two were pointing and laughing at.
There, a male student was standing, looking at the Han River.
But…
There was a piece of paper stuck to the bag on the student's back. Something seemed to be written on it, but he couldn't see the contents clearly because of the distance.
However… it probably wasn't anything nice.
Usually, that kind of paper was attached with bad intentions.
With that in mind, Tae-pung walked a little faster towards the student. As he closed the distance, he could read what was written on the paper attached to the student's bag.
"Idiot, moron, hit me."
"Tsk!"
Clicking his tongue softly, Tae-pung stealthily approached the student from behind, grabbed the paper, and slyly removed it.
Rip!
Gasp!
Despite the light touch and sound, the student reacted immediately.
"Gasp!"
Seeing the student turn around in surprise, Tae-pung said with a smile,
"There was something on your bag, so I took it off. Don't be alarmed."
"Ah…"
Seeming rather relieved that Tae-pung was a stranger, the student noticed the paper in Tae-pung's hand and asked,
"That's…"
Crumple, crumple.
Tae-pung immediately crumpled the paper in his fist and said,
"It's a flyer."
Smiling, Tae-pung added,
"They do a lot of deliveries to Hangang Park, so there are a lot of these flyers around."
"Uh…"
The student hesitated, unable to answer properly.
Tae-pung looked at the student in the silence, then opened his briefcase. He wanted to give him something as a gesture of encouragement. There happened to be one drink left in his briefcase.
'Good thing I bought the two-plus-one deal.'
Tae-pung held out the drink to the student.
"Here you go."
"No, it's okay."
"It's alright. Take it."
At Tae-pung's continued insistence, the student hesitantly accepted the drink.
"Thank you."
Tae-pung looked at the student for a moment, then said,
"Sometimes school life can feel like hell. Because of a truly devilishly bad teacher, or a friend you never want to see again… Or rather, because of the kids at school."
As the student looked at him, Tae-pung continued,
"When you meet those kids after graduation, they're all weak and pathetic."
"…"
At Tae-pung's words, the student lowered his head and didn't say anything. Watching him, Tae-pung shook his head.
"What good would my words do? Just think of it as a random middle-aged guy meddling in your business."
Finishing his words, Tae-pung turned around. As he walked away, he looked back at the student.
The student was once again staring blankly at the Han River.
Tae-pung shook his head. There was a lot of advice he could give to a child who was being bullied and ostracized.
He could tell him to fight back every time those guys hit him or harassed him, that if he did, they would eventually stop bothering him… But it was easier said than done; putting it into practice was by no means easy.
It was like how everyone knew that not smoking or drinking was good for their health, but few people actually followed through.
'School violence is a problem, a real problem.'
Shaking his head slightly, Tae-pung started walking. The business card he received from the man was forgotten.
***
Waking up in his studio apartment, Tae-pung felt his head was heavy.
No, to be precise, it was his chin that felt heavy.
'What's this? Did I sleep wrong?'
Muttering to himself, Tae-pung scratched his chin with his hand.
Poke!
"Huh?"
He should have felt his sharp, angular jawline, but instead, he felt something heavy and round.
This was like…
"Oh?"
It felt more like scratching his buttocks than his chin. Tae-pung ran his hand over his chin, his face hardening.
He felt something like a soft lump. With both hands grasping the lump, Tae-pung rushed into the bathroom.
And…
"Argh!"
Tae-pung screamed as he looked at himself in the mirror. On his chin in the mirror… was a fist-sized bump.
"What is this?"
Staring at the bump on his chin with wide eyes, Tae-pung wondered if it was swollen and pressed it with his hand.
But it was too big to be just swelling. It was the size of his fist.
Besides, how could something like this appear after just one night's sleep? It was absurd.
Wondering if it was a dream, Tae-pung pinched the bump hard with his fingernail.
"Ouch!"
At the surprisingly intense pain, Tae-pung quickly withdrew his hand and checked the mirror.
His fingernail mark was clearly visible on the bump.
Unable to grasp the reality of the situation, Tae-pung stared blankly at his chin reflected in the mirror.
Then, after a long while, he came to his senses, rushed out of the bathroom, and got dressed.
"Hospital… I need to go to the hospital."
He couldn't live with this strange bump that would have everyone whispering. First, he had to go to the hospital and have it surgically removed.
After changing his clothes, Tae-pung grabbed his wallet and hurried out of the house.
As soon as he stepped outside, he opened the taxi app on his phone. No matter how out of it he was, he wasn't crazy enough to take public transportation with this bump.
Besides, he was in a hurry.
"Come on, get here quick, quick."
As he muttered to himself and walked on, a yellow sports car, a luxury sports car with a horse emblem that he had only seen on TV, caught his eye.
But it wasn't the sports car that caught Tae-pung's attention; it was the man looking at him with the car window down.
It was the man he had seen at the Han River yesterday.
And the moment he saw the man, he remembered what the man had said to him yesterday.
—When you wake up, you'll have a bump.