As he pondered hard, tilting his head from side to side, Rian became more and more uneasy trying to hold the mirror steady. Noticing the unpleasantness in the air at that moment, Cheon Areum spoke with enthusiasm.
"Wow, Rian, you're a professional! I'll have to hold myself back from bragging about you to others so they don't start lining up at our door for an appointment."
Rian pouted, rubbing his feet, not quite convinced. Taking the mirror from his hands, Cheon Areum ruffled his hair messily.
"I'll have you be my hairstylist as of today, so I can't tell anyone else—can't burden you with too much work now, can we?"
Cheon Areum grinned and lifted the shy kid. A few cracks came from his back as he did so, but he could still pick him up. Seating the kid on the dining table, he went over to the fridge.
"What do you want for breakfast? I'll try to make it for you."
Cheon Areum casually asked as he saw the inside of the refrigerator—clean, like the rest of their place. There were only a few common condiments in there and nothing else. Well, it's not like he could cook—being a filthy rich young master, he was even spoon-fed sometimes if he was feeling a bit lazy. The most he could do was boil water, which he learned from a BL book, it was quite a memorable scene, so it stuck with him unconsciously.
"Nevermind, let's order something. What do you want to eat?"
"But you said we had to start saving money from now on..."
"...."
Right... how could he forget? If their living conditions were this dire, there was no way they had enough money to afford takeout.
"Do you know where my phone and wallet would be?"
At that, Rian eagerly jumped down from the chair and ran to the bedroom, bringing out both of his belongings from who knows where. The wallet he was handed was almost brand new—which was a good sign!
"...."
The inside of the wallet was, as the concept went, neat and clean—not a single coin or even a speck of dust. Were they not dirt poor but cleanly poor? The latter seemed to fit the situation more perfectly.
I mean, it's not like everyone carries around money these days. Some of his friends—who were drowning in money much like him—would also not carry any cash on them, but at the very least, they had a debit card...
Cheon Areum was speechless. His eyes wandered off to the little human using the phone he had brought out. Rian held the phone with both hands, typing something seriously. After he was done, he turned the screen around to show him.
"Hyung, this is the money we have in the bank right now!"
He exclaimed, pointing it out. The digits on the screen made Cheon Areum a little lightheaded. He shook his head weakly and counted it again, as if he couldn't tell from a single glance that it was just a few mere 100,000 won. His knees involuntarily bent and he fell to the cold floor, his eyes unblinking and his mouth agape. He felt like he could probably shed a few tears too.
"Did you forget again? This is why I wrote down all your information, including numbers. You can never remember them—I have to show you each time."
Rian spoke as if it was nothing new. He was calm and collected as he closed the digital bank app and opened the notes app to show him everything he had written down containing numbers.
Cheon Areum nodded, praising him, and clasped his hands together, closing his eyes tightly—still on his knees—praying earnestly for the first time in all his years of consciousness.
Dear father and mother in hell or heaven, please shower me with your money once again.
"Who're you praying to? And for what?"
Rian poked his forehead, ironing the frowns on it as he asked curiously.
"I'm praying for money. To my parents."
"But they weren't rich either."
Rian innocently mumbled. Cheon Areum opened one eye and glanced at the innocent and bright face before shutting it again and speaking.
"Doesn't matter. We can still ask them for money."
Rian's eyes blinked slowly as if a new revelation had dawned on him. He fixed his position to match his older brother's and prayed diligently. Cheon Areum had already finished praying when he saw it. As his older brother, he was the prime example of how Rian should act—following in his footsteps without a second thought—but this was undoubtedly dangerous. If this went on, Rian would walk the same path as Cheon Areum: a villain who dies an unaccountable death.
Just the thought of this round and bright ball of fluff going through all that Cheon Areum went through in the book made him shudder. Kim Sangmin was one to get attached easily—be it something he bought mindlessly or a random stranger he met one day by coincidence. If he liked that thing or person, he would become overly attached, not letting the slightest harm fall upon his treasured ones. And it had happened again. The kid he had seen only mere moments ago had become someone he treasured and wanted to protect with everything he had.
"Rian."
He called out in a soft voice. Rian opened his large eyes and stared at him wordlessly.
"Let's order whatever you want to eat."
Cheon Rian blinked repeatedly, unsure if he heard right. He stood up on his little legs with a stern face that didn't match his cute appearance.
"No, we have to save money."
He spoke firmly, shaking his head. Cheon Areum held his chin in his right hand and nodded, agreeing with him.
"I'll just earn more money."
"Really? Can you manage it?"
"Yes. So what do you want to eat?"
Cheon Rian still hesitated before speaking out. Sighing, Cheon Areum pulled the kid with him to sit at the dining table. The egg roll had gone cold, but it was still as tasty as before. He held up a piece in front of Rian's mouth, which he happily accepted. The rest he ate himself, since it was made for him.
"Now, what should we order? A cake is a must, but we need to eat a hearty breakfast too."
Cheon Areum scrolled through the menu of a family restaurant he had never seen or heard of—but it wasn't like he recognized any other places either, so it was fine. It had good ratings.
"Can't we just go to the convenience store down the street?"
"Why?"
Cheon Areum asked, confused by the sudden question. Was convenience store food better? He didn't know. He had only ever gotten a few snacks from a convenience store, rarely. For meals, he always had them at home, made with all organic ingredients.
"I want to drink the chocolate milk they have."
"We can't order that?"
"No!"
Rian shouting out resolutely convinced him that the chocolate milk couldn't be ordered. Cheon Areum put down the phone and got up to get ready to leave. Rian followed him into the bedroom, sticking closely to his side.
"....."
"Did you forget something again?"
As he froze upon entering the bedroom, Rian asked with concern. The previous owner of this body seemed to have dementia. The current Cheon Areum had no such issues—he could remember everything important easily. The reason he had paused was because it was his first time in this place; he had to contemplate everything down to where he could go to poop.
After examining almost everything, he adjusted to it in no time. They were about to leave for the convenience store when a bubble-popping sound came from the phone in his hand.
'Entering the gate in 40 minutes. Don't be late.'
The message he had received was from an unsaved number, but it wasn't a stranger—they had talked before, on call and on chat. The context of the chat was easy to understand, since he had read this book.
They were talking about Cheon Areum joining them for a C-Class gate. Gates that led to dungeons filled with all sorts of monsters and mysteries. As the story went, this world had hunters—or awakened people—who possessed the abilities needed to clear these gates.
From the messages, it seemed like the present Cheon Areum had yet to have his second awakening. Before that, he was an F-Class healer and a freelancer, working without joining a guild because at his level, the guilds who did hire such low classes often abused them and paid almost nothing.
"Sorry, Rian. It seems like I'll be late for work, so we'll have to cut the trip to the convenience store."
He thought Rian would surely sulk and throw a whole tantrum, but he nodded obediently, indifferent. Rian seemed to be mature and childish at the same time—well, that was part of his charm.
Cheon Areum decided he should change his clothes before entering a dungeon. His loose sweatpants were definitely inappropriate for it. What he needed was an expensive and presentable black suit with a harness, but that fantasy shattered in his face as he once again faced the neat and almost empty closet. He had three sets of clothes in total: the one he was currently wearing, a casual jeans-and-shirt outfit, and lastly, a flashy jewel-adorned purple and black custom-made three-piece suit.