UR Chapter 124

Chapter 124

He kicked at the frozen snow with the tip of his shoe.

“Hey. If your elder tells you to come, you come. ‘I heard you’? Listen to the way you talk—so damn rude.”

I-bom ran a hand through his hair and let out a sigh. At his confident demeanor, Soo-hyun seemed momentarily thrown off, glancing at him warily.

“I didn’t go because I didn’t want to. We’ve met now, so it’s fine, right? If you have something to say, say it. Right here.”

“What? Something to say? You little punk, I cut your brother some slack with his debt and looked out for you—what makes you think you can act like this?”

Soo-hyun raised his voice.

I-bom stared at him steadily. So that’s what he wanted to say? Then, without warning, Soo-hyun raised a finger and curled his upper lip in contempt.

“Don’t come to the convenience store starting today.”

“……”

“You’re fired. I’ll tell my dad. From now on, don’t bother showing up.”

He snorted mockingly, his voice dripping with derision.

“I told you, your brother’s a conman. And how do I know you’re not the same? The manager said your loss rate was high when you worked—what if I called the cops and had it investigated?”

A dry, almost incredulous laugh escaped between I-bom’s lips. Loss rate. Last time, Soo-hyun had admitted he was the culprit, and now here he was, shamelessly pinning it back on him.

“Oh wait, not a conman—a thief. Someone who steals another man’s fiancée because he wants her.”

“…Do you enjoy talking nonsense?”

I-bom frowned.

“That blind date? It was my brother who said he didn’t want to go. He’s the one who begged me to help because he’d rather die than go himself. And now you’re suddenly acting like you’re overflowing with regret?”

Soo-hyun gave a short laugh.

The arrogant attitude irritated him, but he told himself to be the bigger man. That big-eyed, timid Kang I-bom would back down with just a little intimidation—he always had before.

“What do you want from me?”

“What I want?”

I-bom’s face looked pale for a moment, and seeing it, Soo-hyun’s lips curled upward. Just a little more pressure and this would be over, he thought. What should he say next?

In his mind, he pictured Eun Beom-ho handing him flowers in a proposal. They’d never seriously dated, so he didn’t know the man’s personality, but his looks and manner suggested someone serious and refined. Handsome, rich, and earnest—what else mattered? He disliked feline beastmen, sure, but how often would one encounter a tiger in its beast form anyway?

Most importantly, the fact that the man was “a chaebol’s grandson” and “had asked to meet him for a blind date” filled his thoughts. Any talk of lawsuits or intimidation meant to scare him was irrelevant now.

“Hey, then get on your knees and beg.”

“……”

“You’ve been clinging to Eun Beom-ho and acting like the victim all the way through. Do you know how pissed off I was because of you? I thought you were just a dumb little dog, but turns out you’re a sly fox.”

Thump, thump. Sneakers appeared in front of I-bom, who had been sitting deep in thought on the bench.

“Kneel. Right now.”

“……”

I-bom slowly lifted his head, eyes following the restless movement of Soo-hyun’s foot. In those wide eyes, the irises wavered—like a small flame smoldering quietly in the ashes.

“You worthless little mutt. We took you in out of pity, and you can’t even show gratitude. You’re only fit to work under your brother, earning money and cleaning up after him. A half-breed should stay in his place. And your mother—she was famous for being a total—”

Before Soo-hyun could finish, I-bom shot to his feet. Grabbing the bag he’d been holding, he swung it hard at him.

Whoosh—

With a sharp rush of air, the bag slammed into Soo-hyun’s head. I-bom didn’t stop, striking him again and again without holding back. His tightly clenched lips trembled.

“Hey, are you—agh!”

Thud, thud!

The heavy bag swung wildly, wrecking Soo-hyun’s neatly styled hair. Panting hard, I-bom hit him over and over.

“You’re the worst kind of person.”

His anger boiled over. People who hounded others and tore them down weren’t content to stop—they piled rumor upon rumor. He hated people like Soo-hyun, who spoke carelessly about things that weren’t their business. He hated his grandmother for enabling it, and Kang I-jun for probably laughing along. He hated them all.

“My mom? Now you’re not just picking fights with me—you’re badmouthing my mom? You got proof? Who said it, Kang I-jun?”

“Agh, Kang I-bom, hey, let’s talk—agh!”

The unexpected blows left Soo-hyun flailing, eyes squeezed shut.

“I’m sick of it. You, Grandma, Kang I-jun—everyone! Everyone in this village is rotten to the core!”

With a loud crack, the bag struck Soo-hyun’s cheek. He toppled backward into the snow without even a chance to fight back. Blinking rapidly in shock, he grabbed for a nearby tree to pull himself up.

“You crazy, rabid mutt! I’m calling the cops—I’ll have you thrown in jail!”

Even as he shouted, the bag swung at him again.

With a startled gasp, Soo-hyun twisted his head aside. This time, I-bom’s swing was faster than the bag’s momentum. The bag hit the tree instead, and Soo-hyun bared his teeth in a grin.

“Ha, you psycho—missed me this time! I’m calling—”

But before he could finish pulling out his phone,

Crash—

The tree shuddered violently, sending a heavy clump of snow crashing down on his head.

“Aagh!”

In seconds, Soo-hyun looked like a snowman, buried in white.

“What the hell?!”

Flailing his hands, he tried to shake it off, but his beige coat and neatly styled hair were now matted with dirty snow and leaves. The sub-zero air quickly froze patches of ice across the mess. His face went pale as he looked down at his clothes and screamed.

“Aaagh! Do you know how expensive this is?!”

“You want me to grovel? When have I ever pretended to be a victim? This could’ve all been avoided if my brother went to that blind date himself! You dumped everything you didn’t want to do onto me, then called me a thief? And what’s that about my mom?”

Lifting his bag high, I-bom spoke with force. Tears streaked down his cheeks, but his breath came in fierce, ragged bursts. Sweat dampened his forehead from swinging the bag, but he didn’t care.

“You—you lunatic? I didn’t say anything—”

“Yes, you did. And all of it’s wrong!”

I-bom quietly rolled up his sleeves, then swung the bag with all his strength toward both Soo-hyun and the tree.

Rustle—

Branches shook violently as the bag struck, sending another heap of snow crashing down on Soo-hyun’s head. His scream rang loud across the quiet of Aji Village.

“You—you rabid dog! I’ll never let this go!”

With one last glare, Soo-hyun jabbed a finger at the still-panting I-bom, then turned and bolted the way he’d come.

* * *

His face burned. His fists trembled on their own, and his heart pounded fast.

I-bom strode quickly along the snow-covered path, the squelching sound of dirt and snow mixing underfoot trailing after him in the quiet mountain road.

“Ha… did I hit him too hard?”

He murmured quietly, covering his face. Maybe it was because too much had happened in just one day, but his head felt dizzy. From packing his things and walking out while his grandmother screamed that he wasn’t her grandson, to beating Kang Soo-hyun with his bag when the man shoved his foot in front of him demanding an apology—these were things he normally never would have done.

But after doing something so unlike himself for the first time, the tight knot in his chest had loosened, the pressure easing as if the indigestion in his heart had finally passed. Right now, even if the police came to threaten him, he felt like he could stand his ground and fight back without shrinking. He didn’t want to be pushed around by the villagers anymore.

If he calls the cops, so what. Whatever… I’ll just be a thug then.

His heart thudded heavily. Now all he wanted was to hurry down and see Beom-ho.

Hearing his voice wouldn’t be enough—I need to see his face.

Gripping his bag tightly, I-bom ran downhill, cutting through the mountain.

Taking the bus would be faster, right? I should go… to his company.

Mr. Beom-ho is a Samho… executive, wasn’t he? Where was the company again? I-bom calculated quickly in his head.

If he cut down through Manwol Mountain from Aji Village, there’d be the village bus stop. One of the five daily buses would take him to the subway station that connected to Gangnam. Since Beom-ho had always said he was at the office, if he went to the building, he’d find him. Then he could give him a surprise.

“…Huh?”

Hurrying down the familiar path, I-bom suddenly stopped. It felt a little off—not a route he usually walked. Maybe it was because of the heavy snow, or maybe in his rush to run from Kang Soo-hyun after hitting him, he had taken a wrong turn.

The further he went, the quieter it got until it felt like there was no one else around. Even in the middle of winter, a snow-covered trail without birds or animals—and with no hikers—was suspicious. No matter how much snow fell, there were always at least a few people on the mountain.

“Did I take the wrong path? What… Ah! There it is.”

Thankfully, a trail marker came into sight ahead. I-bom ran toward it quickly.

“…Never seen one like this before.”

Relieved, he approached, only to find the sign was not a recent installation at all—it was extremely old.