When the sweltering summer was in full swing, it meant that the rainy season was just around the corner.
The already humid summer became even more damp as the rainy season approached. It was the kind of summer where every guest probably had a small umbrella in their bag. Today, the sun was scorching hot.
Jin Kang, who was making drinks ordered at the café, turned his head at the call of the boss.
“Jin Kang.”
“Yes, boss.”
“You know the Americano for the Haejangguk restaurant across the street, right?”
Already? How did time pass so quickly? He had felt that there were more customers today, and it seemed that time had flown by just as quickly. Checking the time, he realized it was time for the aunts to take a break.
“Got it.”
Jin Kang handed the finished coffee to the customer and moved straight to the coffee machine. Skillfully making the next drink, he placed the coffee in a carrier. Then, something suddenly came to mind.
Jin Kang asked the boss, who was lounging around now that it was less busy, “Boss, Yujin is coming today, right?”
Lately, the evening shift employee’s attendance had been erratic. Some days she showed up, and other days she couldn’t make it. It was like a malicious code with no pattern.
Facing Jin Kang’s intense gaze, the boss flinched and nodded vigorously.
“Yes, she’s coming today. She said she would definitely come.”
“Really?”
“Absolutely! For sure!”
Jin Kang stared at the boss for a long time. The boss’s determined look, pleading to be believed, did not inspire confidence. After narrowing his eyes and staring for a while, Jin Kang let out a light sigh. Honestly, it wasn’t the boss’s fault that Yujin didn’t show up, so he decided to stop blaming him.
“Alright.”
“But honestly, I’m a bit worried too. If Yujin doesn’t come today as well, I’ll have to call Aleum for the first time in a while to help out.”
Aleum, whom the boss mentioned, is his sister. She was a freelance designer who mostly stayed at home and rarely went out. Even though Jin Kang had worked at the café for a year, he had only seen her a handful of times.
Once, Jin Kang had asked her when they met, why she didn’t help run the shop as the boss wanted. Her reaction was immediate and fiery.
“You expect me to work with my brother?”
He could still vividly remember the look in her eyes as if she wanted to kill him. Her already large eyes had widened, pouring out curses with just her gaze… Since then, he never asked about the boss again.
Knowing that it had been a while since the boss called his sister, the boss seemed to feel quite sorry for him.
Anyway, whether Yujin came or not, it meant he could leave work today. That was enough. Feeling a weight lift off his shoulders, Jin Kang smiled brightly for the first time in a while.
“That’s a relief.”
“I need to pray that Yujin shows up. I can’t imagine what Aleum will demand if I ask her this time.”
“What’s wrong with doing something for your sister?”
“Don’t even start. Do you know what she asked for the last time I asked her to cover the café for a day?”
Just thinking about it made the boss tremble.
“What did she ask for?”
“She asked for the Lego Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle. It’s a whopping 6,000-piece set! Do you know how much that is? It’s over 600,000 won! I had no idea Lego could be that expensive.”
“….”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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“Qbk.”
“Gbfr la wjxf rfcrf ab rqfcv j wliilbc kbc pera obg mbnfglcu bcf vjs bo kbgx?”
Alc Bjcu yjgfis mbcajlcfv tlr ijeutafg atja kjr jybea ab yegra bea.
“Lee Yujin, you must come. Seriously, I mean it. If you cancel this time, I won’t let it slide.”
As the boss muttered to himself as if reciting a spell, a gloomy aura emanated from his back. Jin Kang quietly slipped out from behind the counter and picked up the pre-packaged drink. It was best not to disturb the boss in this state.
Leaving the boss muttering to himself, Jin Kang quietly opened the door and stepped outside. He belatedly made eye contact and raised the drinks in his hands. With a gesture indicating he was off to make a delivery, the boss sighed and waved his hand.
“I can not do this anymore”
Indeed, they were a pair of siblings who couldn’t live without bickering.
—-
Feeling a warm heat, Jin Kang crossed the crosswalk and entered the restaurant. There, six middle-aged women were relaxing after lunchtime.
Upon seeing Jin Kang, they smiled and waved.
“Jin Kang? You’re here?”
“Come here, come here. Sit down.”
“Want some snacks?”
Jin Kang, as usual, sat among them and took a legitimate break. Both the café and the restaurant had some downtime after lunch. Since the busy time had passed, the boss also gave Jin Kang a break.
Jin Kang handed over the drinks he brought and received even more boxes of snacks in return.
“Why are there so many snacks?”
“Mrs. Kim brought them.”
“…Huh? Oh, Jin Kang, eat more.”
The woman’s delayed response created an awkward moment. Jin Kang noticed a shadow over her wrinkled face and gave a questioning look to the others around. Seeing them just shrug their shoulders, it seemed she had been like this all day. Is she worried about something?
Mrs. Kim, noticing that everyone’s eyes were on her, gave a faint smile. She wasn’t even drinking the coffee she usually loved, just holding it in her hand. She felt sorry for dampening the atmosphere but couldn’t shake the grim look from her face.
After sighing a few times, she finally spoke, “I’ve been worried. My son has been acting strange lately.”
“What’s wrong with him?”
“Since the start of the summer break, he’s been staying in his room and not coming out. Recently, he bought seven boxes of snacks and has been hoarding and eating them in his room. He even says he doesn’t want to waste time coming out for meals and won’t let me into his room.”
“Is it because of games?”
“My son plays games too. These days, almost all kids do.”
Most young adults in their early twenties are similar. They either play games on the computer or on their phones.
From a young age, they’ve been familiar with handling machines, and their relationships with friends are also centered around games. That’s why students of the same age inevitably look alike. As parents, they might feel helpless, but hearing that others are going through similar situations seemed to provide some comfort.
However, with a hesitant smile, Mrs. Kim tilted her head.
“No, not games. He’s working on some kind of program.”
“A program?”
“Yeah. Our son is majoring in computer science, you know. From what I see, all he has on his monitor are English words and numbers.”
“Ah, Mrs. Kim. Are you bragging about your son here?”
The restaurant boss grumbled to Mrs. Kim. She said that over here, they’re busy scolding their sons to stop playing games, but Mrs. Kim’s son was diligently studying. She vowed that if he was still playing games when she got home today, she would flick him on the forehead.
“No, I’m not bragging. Something just seems off.”
However, Mrs. Kim seemed more uneasy than usual.
“Something seems off? Like what?”
Normally, one would assume that if her son, majoring in computer science, were working on a program, he’d be studying or preparing for a competition. It’s common to feel sorry for him, seeing him reluctant to eat and focused on his work. But Mrs. Kim seemed worried about something else.
“The past few days, he’s been staying in his room and I’ve overheard conversations. But the talk’s been about hacking and breaking codes. It’s making me nervous.”
“…..”
Jin Kang’s hand, which was opening the snack box, instantly froze.
“Then yesterday, he suddenly ran out of his room and unplugged all the internet cables, telling us not to reconnect them until he said so.”
Jin Kang looked at Mrs. Kim with interest.
What her son did was a common reaction among crackers, when a hack fails and they face a counterattack. No matter how deeply he had infiltrated, if he had to unplug the LAN cables, the situation must have been serious. However, these days, simply unplugging the LAN cables doesn’t necessarily resolve everything, so it was uncertain.
‘Uhm… betting and hacking. I hope he’s not a beginner.’
Mrs. Kim’s face darkened with worry for her son. She continued speaking morosely, recalling the argument they had that morning before she left for work.
“This morning, he suddenly asked if we could move. I have no idea what’s going on.”
Having roughly grasped the situation, Jin Kang clicked his tongue inwardly.
That probably wasn’t the best solution. The kid must have known that too, but in his frustration and not knowing how to handle it, he seemed to have blurted it out. It might be the worst-case scenario after all.
Actions taken online are often bolder and sometimes uglier because they are hidden behind anonymity. This is especially true of crackers, who are extremely reluctant to have their identities exposed. After all, they don’t commit crimes in their own names.
Jin Kang was no different. He had been a cracker himself until a year ago. When he received requests from brokers, he would hack, extract data, and sell it. If there were specific demands, he would even destroy internal systems.
Jin Kang started with the desire to be recognized by just one person. His somewhat diminished conscience allowed him to work against black companies or organizations. For ZETA, it was enough to prove his skills in any direction.
However, all these actions were carried out under the name of Lrot. Jin Kang’s personal information remained hidden.
Mrs. Kim’s son probably thought his personal information had been exposed. Whether that was true or false was still unknown.
Jin Kang still silently watched Mrs. Kim’s dark expression. Deep lines, like stories etched in stone, creased her face, a testament to her life’s journey. She mentioned divorcing her husband and raising her son alone without ever complaining. She had worked tirelessly, switching shifts at the factory and even tried her hand at selling goods at the market. Yet, her character remained unwrinkled, always caring for those around her.
When Jin Kang made mistakes during his café job, Mrs. Kim reassured him, saying that people always made mistakes and what was important was how one accepted them.
When he heard that, he thought, “Is this person a boomer?” and kept his distance. But Mrs. Kim, who was naturally stubborn, was unfazed by Jin Gang’s wary gaze.
Knowing that Jin Gang lived alone, she would pack him side dishes, and sometimes she would even hand him a T-shirt, saying she bought it while shopping for her son’s clothes.
As the year passed, Mrs. Kim became like an aunt to Jin Kang. He had seen her at her lowest moments, when she was heartbroken over her son, and he had also seen her overjoyed when her son got into the university of his choice and into the department he wanted to major in. Their relationship didn’t seem particularly close, but he could tell that she truly loved her son.
Without knowing that he was a criminal cracker.
Jin Kang hesitated for a moment. What should he do?
Jin Kang’s gaze at Mrs. Kim deepened. He believed that even though she had already gotten used to her son’s antics, she seemed to sense that things were different this time. Worry lines deepened her face, resembling grooves carved by a flowing river.
A short sigh escaped his lips. Seeing her so concerned, he wondered if worrying would bring her peace of mind.
He could try to find out what the situation is, and if it is something he can handle, he will help.
As long as his identity isn’t exposed, he is confident enough to handle it.
“Auntie, don’t worry too much and go home early today.”
“Go home early?”
“Yes, make something delicious and try to reconcile with your son.”
Jin Kang poked the waist of the boss of the restaurant sitting next to him. Since they had both heard everything together, she must have a good idea of the situation, and it would be nice if the boss could allow it for just one day.
“Oh, Kang. Stop poking. It’s kind of annoying.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Ah, ah! Okay, I get it.”
“As expected, the boss is very understanding. Auntie, you can go home early today. What does your son like?”
“Hmm? Uh, he likes Galbijjim.”
“I like them too. If there’s any left, can I have some too?”
At the casual conversation, Mrs. Kim smiled for the first time. The boss of the restaurant, sitting next to Jin Kang, said, “Kang, you’re so different from the first time we met. You know? How did you become so considerate?” while clicking her tongue.
Jin Kang let out a long, dramatic sigh, saying that he became like this after playing with these aunts.
Laughter echoed loudly in the restaurant. Before long, the relaxed atmosphere led to light-hearted banter. When he had drunk half of his coffee, Jin Kang gathered the snacks Mrs. Kim had prepared and stood up with his arms full.
“That’s it for today’s break. I should go before my boss comes.”
“If you get fired, come here. I’ll hire you as a part-timer.”
“He goes around bragging that he raised me, I probably won’t get fired.”
“I guess that’s true. The owner of the coffee shop has high standards.”
Jin Kang shrugged and headed towards the door. He pushed it open with his shoulder and looked back at Mrs. Kim. Jin Kang raised the corners of his mouth and said to her, who was staring at him as if wondering what was going on.
“Auntie, come to think of it, I think your son would also like Japchae.”
“What? Are you asking because you want to eat it?”
The boss of the restaurant, standing beside them, said in disbelief. Jin Kang nodded solemnly and spoke with a serious expression.
“Actually, ribs and Japchae go hand in hand. He’ll probably look for Japchae too.”
“You’re such a smooth talker.”
While the boss shook her head in disbelief, Mrs. Kim was smiling brightly. Understanding, she said she was planning to make other side dishes too and waved her hand for him to leave.
Jin Kang bid farewell with a “see you tomorrow” and closed the door behind him.
Despite clutching a box of snacks, Jin Kang’s expression was expressionless. Passersby glanced at him with curiosity, but Jin Kang, paying no attention, headed straight back to the café.
Once he finishes tidying up the café and hands over the evening shift to the staff, his schedule for the day will be over. Luckily, today is a day off, so there is no need to worry. There are things to do in the evening, but delaying them for a day wouldn’t be a big problem.
He pondered over how far Mrs. Kim’s son had gotten himself into trouble and how to fix it. Jin Kang visualized a plan in his mind.
First things first, he needs a laptop. His gaze landed on a nearby computer store.
Jin Kang stared at the sign hesitantly, then shook his head. It couldn’t be helped. Determined, he disappeared into the café.
