“Woojin. It really is our Woojin. It really is you.”

His mother wrapped him in a tight hug and cried for a long time. She’d thought he had died, yet Woojin had appeared in front of her five years later. She was still convincing herself that it was real.

“Where have you been?” His mother had yet to let go of him. 

Woojin replied, “That’s too long a story to explain here. Where’s the rest of our family? I tried to go back home, but it was gone.”

“Sooah is at preschool. Your father…” His mother stuttered, and started to weep. Woojin felt something amiss, and his heart turned to ice.

“Let’s go. Let’s go home and talk.” Woojin changed the subject quickly.

“Yes. Let’s do that. Let’s go home.”

Woojin held his mother’s hands tightly, as if she would disappear, as they left the school. On the bus ride home, his mother sadly explained what had happened to their family.

His father had been caught up in the Dungeon Shock when he’d left for work. Along with the tens of thousands of people on the subway, he had passed away without even leaving behind a corpse. Left alone, his mother had done her best to take care of Sooah.

Not just the head of the house, she had also lost her eldest son. The only reason his mother had been able to hold herself together was for Sooah. They hadn’t been very wealthy in the past, and his mother had to take care of everything in the immediate aftermath of the Dungeon Shock. Woojin could only imagine her despair in those moments.

The only asset they’d owned had been the apartment, but the price of land had sunk deeply after the Dungeon Shock. Moreover, his mother wasn’t qualified for many jobs, since she had only been a housewife.

To make matters worse, Sooah had fallen ill, so the household’s wealth had decreased rapidly. It was now a situation where every day was painful. His mother had struggled just to hold on for the past five years.

“It’s okay. Things are fine as long as you’re alive. Don’t worry too much about it. Back then, I’d thought you had taken the subway and I thought we’d lost you too.”

His mother was grateful just that he was alive.

The bus traveled for an hour before they approached the neighborhood where he used to live. It seemed that his mother had moved a block away from Hammer Guild’s headquarters, into a rundown residential neighborhood.

Woojin’s mother explained, “Just in case you or your father came back, we moved somewhere close by.”

It was commonly accepted that if someone had disappeared during the Dungeon Shock, it meant that they had died. Nevertheless, his mother had held out hope. Now that her son had returned to her after five years, she felt like her efforts had been rewarded.

His mother led him through winding alleyways, and finally wound up in front of a small shack. It was an exceedingly small one room residence, even smaller than Jaemin’s house. A large portion of the shack was taken up by luggage, so the room looked even smaller.

“Stay right here. I’ll go bring Sooah from preschool.”

His mother left Woojin by himself inside the room. Once she left, Woojin looked around the small room that was packed with boxes and opened one nearby.

“Ah…” Woojin sighed. 

The box was full of his old belongings. As he opened the other boxes, they were all the same. Some contained his father’s clothes; others held his clothes. There were even boxes that held the toys he’d played with when he was little.

His mother had kept all the belongings from the apartment they’d lived in five years. She had crammed everything she could into this one room; now it made sense why the room was so cramped. He could guess why his mother hadn’t thrown anything away, and his heart felt like it was going to break.

Soon, his mother returned home, Sooah holding her hand. Her wide eyed face looked up at Woojin. Her complexion looked pale, but her white skin just made her look cuter.

The two year old toddler in his memories had turned into a cute seven year old.

“Sooah. This is your big brother. Greet him.”

“Big brother?”

Sooah nervously grabbed the hem of her mother’s clothes and warily stared at Woojin. Woojin put on his friendliest smile.

“Sooah. Could you play with your big brother for a moment? Mom will make delicious food soon.”

Sooah’s eyes turned bright, “Huh? Mommy doesn’t have to go to the restaurant?”

His mother replied warmly, “Of course not. It’s my day off today.”

It was only lunch, but his mother worked as if she was in a hurry. She prepared a sumptuous feast. Sooah became unusually animated when she saw the meat side dish. It seemed like she wasn’t able to eat meat on a regular basis.

His mother looked at him contentedly, so as to repay her, he ate the food with relish. After he emptied three bowls of rice, he stopped his spoon.

It was said the act of eating food was a good way to lower human wariness, and Sooah lived up to every word. She started to call him ‘big brother’ easily, and stuck close to Woojin’s side. It wasn’t that her wariness was completely gone, but Woojin’s heart hurt when he saw how starved she was for attention.

“Then Sooah plays by herself after coming home from preschool?” Woojin casually asked. 

Sooah nodded, “Yes. Mommy goes through a lot of troubles. I have to behave and play by myself.”

He was immensely proud of his little sister’s words, so he patted her head lovingly.

Sooah pouted, “Jeez. You have to brush Mimi’s head instead of mine.”

Woojin immediately corrected his actions, “Ah. Okay.”

Sooah passed him her doll named Mimi, whose hair he diligently brushed with a brush as big as his finger. As Woojin and Sooah played with the doll, her mother’s gaze lingered on them as she washed the dishes. 

She had struggled so much in the past five years it felt like she’d aged several decades, but this sight quietly warmed her heart.

In the middle of washing dishes, his mother’s phone rang. When she glanced at the screen, she hurried into the restroom to answer it. But Woojin’s senses were now several times more sensitive than normal, so he paid attention to the hushed conversation. 

[What’s going on? Where did you go during rush hour? Come back immediately!]

“Today is a really important day. May I take a leave?”

[Hey lady, what do you think this is? There is no taking random leave at this small restaurant. You even got out of work regularly by telling us stories that your daughter was sick. If you don’t want to get fired, come in right now!]

It was enough for Woojin to figure out what was going on. It felt like a boulder was settled on his chest.

His mother quietly exited the restroom and quickly finished washing the dishes. Then she spoke to Woojin and Sooah with an apologetic expression.

“Sooah. I’m sorry, but can you play with your big brother for a little bit?”

Sooah’s face froze, but she replied quickly, “Mmm. It’s okay. I’ll play with big brother.”

Even though she didn’t have any memories of him, Sooah was already cutely following her big brother.

His mother turned to Woojin, “I’m so sorry about this, Woojin.”

Woojin smiled softly up at her. “It’s okay. Have a safe trip.”‘

“Yes. I’ll be back soon.” His mother left reluctantly, stealing glances over her shoulder.

After his mother left the house, the tears Sooah had been holding back started falling. “She’s always busy. Sooah is always alone. ”

Woojin’s eyes widened when he saw the shower of tears. “No! Big brother is here now.”

Sooah sniffed, “Cheh, I’ve never seen you, so how can you be my big brother?”

Woojin replied, “Huh huh. I’m really your big brother. Don’t you remember me from when you were young? I even changed your diapers.”

Sooah flared up, “Sooah doesn’t wee any more!”

Woojin could only appease the grumbling Sooah by playing with her. He’d thought that his mother would return around dinnertime, but when she didn’t show, Woojin started to cook.

Woojin was used to camping and cooking his own meals on Alphen, so cooking was no issue to him. When he opened the refrigerator, he found several ingredients from the last time his mother had gone grocery shopping.

Dinner was a simple affair, Woojin fried an egg, and shared the vegetable fried rice in the fridge with Sooah. His mother returned late, around 9 p.m.

She was endlessly apologetic, “I’m sorry. Mother is late. Did you have anything for dinner? We’ll have to buy you a phone tomorrow.”

His mother hadn’t been able to contact Woojin, so she must have felt frustrated.

Woojin helped his mother lay down their bedding for the night. It was so cramped that he didn’t even have room to roll over. Sooah had already fallen asleep in his mother’s arms, but Woojin and his mother were having a hard time going to sleep.

“I’m so glad you are back.” His mother mumbled those words over and over until exhaustion stole her away into dreamless sleep. On the other hand, Woojin lay awake, staring at the ceiling.

This isn’t right.

It felt like a building was atop his chest. It took a long time for Woojin to fall asleep.

The next morning, everyone woke up in a flurry. Sooah had to attend preschool, and his mother prepared to go to work.

She left him with a series of instructions, “Woojin, go to the district office and get your SSN reissued. After I get off work, we’ll go find you a phone.  Don’t go anywhere. If you’re hungry, you can make some ramen. Actually, if you are hungry, come to the restaurant. It’s the Soongmi Restaurant in front of the mart.”

Woojin reassured his mother, “Yes. Don’t worry about me. I’ll see you later.”

When everyone left, Woojin was alone, so his mood grew dark. He had a lot of things to do.

He had to cancel the missing persons report, then he had to be reissued an SSN at the district office. Moreover, he had been summoned in his third year of high school, so he hadn’t even graduated. He didn’t want to be unemployed, so he also had to get a job.

I have to make some money.

He couldn’t watch his mother work herself to the bone, or Sooah who had to spend every day by herself anymore. He was the man of the house now. He had to become the pillar of this household.

I have to make a lot of money.

He’d have to study again. He’d also have to find a temporary job to tide him over. But an idea struck Woojin. A way to quickly make a lot of money.

It felt like destiny.

No, it felt like a devil’s claw drawing him in.

I’m an Awakened.

Woojin looked at the three crumpled bills of 10,000 won that his mother had stuffed into his hands and came to a decision. He opened the box that held his carefully stored clothes, and reached in.

An hour or so later, he had his SSN reissued and cancelled his missing persons status. He’d also opened an account in his name at the bank and stood in front of a phone store.

The salesman wasted no time in drawing him deeper into the store. “This is our hottest item, dear customer. It is very sturdy, so it is a model used by many famous Awakened.”

At the phone salesman’s recommendation, he purchased the phone. He entered his mother’s phone number and texted her.

[There is a little brother that I know living close to our house. I’ll stay there for now, and I’ll prepare for the school qualification examination.]

His mother immediately called him when she saw his text. He had to reassure her for a long time to assuage her fears. In the end, she knew their financial situation wouldn’t allow him to study in peace, so she agreed to his proposal.

“Whew. I feel bad about it, but I’ll make it up to him later.”

Jaemin’s house wasn’t very far from Woojin’s house. At least, it was within walking distance. He had decided it was the ideal place to stay until he bought a bigger house.

Woojin unfurled the piece of paper and called the number written on it. Soon, a person picked up the phone.

[Hello. This is the Dongjin Agency’s Park Hweeso.]

When Woojin heard a husky voice answer the phone, he glanced at the screen just to make sure he’d typed the number right. However, the number on the screen matched the phone number on the paper.

[Hello. If you made a call, then please speak.]

“Is this Jaemin?”

[No.]

Click.

The voice at the other end of the call curtly terminated the call. Woojin clicked his tongue as he looked at his phone.

“Haa. What is this? Did he trick me?”

Woojin pinched his temple firmly.