Chapter 77 – Swimming Emperor (21)
If I die in a dream, my physical abilities noticeably deteriorate in reality.
So I assumed that Nam Hae-soo, who died due to the betrayal of his wife and subordinates, would wake up without major consequences.
But instead—
He really died…!
The shock hit harder than expected.
Yes, he tried to kill me.
But that was only in a dream.
A dream is just a dream.
Even if I had been murdered there, I wouldn’t have carried hatred back into reality and tried to kill him.
For example, I once hated the Magic Boy Choi Kang-min enough to want to kill him—
But now he’s out of my mind completely.
Because it was all just a dream.
Same for Mr. Nam Hae-soo.
「Mr. Kang Moon-soo. You’re young, as I suspected.」
“……”
「I truly want to thank you.」
“…For what?”
His farewell video wasn’t a conversation—it was one–sided.
「I committed too many shameful acts. You know that better than anyone.」
“Ah, sure.”
I could guess.
「So this is shameless of me, but please keep my story secret.」
“No.”
I planned to explain everything to section chief Seo for research purposes.
‘And beyond that…’
Even without his request, I had no intention of tarnishing the dead.
No one would believe me anyway, and worst-case scenario, I’d get sued by the family for defamation.
Better to stay quiet.
「And I have a request.」
“Knew it…”
「Where we last met—my secret is hidden there.」
“Oh!”
So that private resort he owned had special meaning after all?
He explained the exact location.
「To keep it hidden, I placed it in the lowest possible spot.」
“And where is that?”
「A black cube the size of a baseball.」
“……”
Suddenly this felt annoying.
「How to deal with it—I leave that to your judgment.」
“…Alright.”
If I can find it.
「There’s not much time left.」
Silence.
「Don’t blame yourself. This was my childish fault. I’m sorry for ruining your Olympic dreams.」
“I’m sorry too.”
If I’d spoken to him sooner, not just right before the Olympics…
I regretted it a little.
「I’ll be watching from the sky, hoping you compete in the Olympics.」
“…Thank you.”
「Ah… it truly was a wonderful dream. Long live Korea… Manse…」
Click.
The Swimming Emperor closed his eyes, gazing toward the distant sky.
***
The world’s most decorated swimmer, the Swimming Emperor Nam Hae-soo.
After a long struggle with illness, he passed away, leaving behind his will, and countless mourners attended his funeral.
“We pray for the deceased…”
Sob, sob!
“May he rest in peace.”
Once word spread that he had donated all his assets to society, even politicians and celebrities with no connection to him arrived to pay respects.
The official cause of death was cardiac arrest.
His weakened body after a long illness was cited as the reason.
On the surface, anyway.
“A long illness, huh…”
Could we define being trapped in a happy dream, unable to wake up, as a disease?
A disease where one is happy until death?
No idea.
“Do you regret entering his dream?”
“…No.”
His national funeral was held at the Elmolance Hospital’s funeral hall.
It’s rarely opened—only for people recognized by the world.
“You know why this hospital’s funeral hall is so picky?”
“I don’t care.”
“Because they save every patient—so normally they don’t need a funeral hall.”
“They really never die?”
“Of course people die. A patient who survived major surgery once dropped dead upon seeing his college senior who came to visit.”
“Why?”
“Sudden death from hypertension. Too much excitement.”
“……”
“What? Don’t believe me? It’s a true story.”
“In other words, Elmolance Hospital lied.”
“Call it marketing.”
The line of mourners never stopped flowing into the funeral hall. The parking lot was so full that people had to park their cars along the roadside.
What a contrast…
My father’s funeral had been lonely and pitiful.
Relatives, friends, classmates, teachers…
So few attended that a guestbook wasn’t even necessary.
“Mr. Nam Hae-soo would’ve been pleased if he could see this crowd.”
“It’s thanks to you.”
“Me?”
“You allowed him to leave behind a final message. If he hadn’t woken up, he would’ve just died like any other rich man—quietly forgotten.”
“That’s not necessarily a good thing.”
Because of his will to donate all his wealth to society, the expressions of his family—left with nothing—were extremely unpleasant.
All except one.
His wife, Lady Park Han-hee, wore a calm expression on her wrinkled face.
…She looks the same.
The traces of her youthful beauty lingered faintly under aged lines.
“Moon-soo.”
“Yes?”
“We received an unofficial message of thanks from the federation.”
“They got nothing out of it.”
“They did. Like you said, the funding was cut, but the federation was able to protect the honor of its greatest elder—Nam Hae-soo.”
“Honor… I don’t understand that.”
Money is king, isn’t it?
Section Chief Seo Hye-ju smirked at me.
“There are many people who would risk their lives for honor.”
“Like you, Section Chief?”
“Yes. I once lost my mind over honor and suffered for it.”
She shivered as she recalled her past—seven years trapped as the personal doctor of Choi Kang-min, the magic boy who defied all of modern medicine.
“I’m heading out first.”
Having watched the funeral from afar, I turned to leave.
“Already?”
“It’s hard to keep watching…”
“Why?”
“I, uh… did something embarrassing in the dream.”
“What did you do?”
“That’s a secret.”
I will take to the grave the fact that I romantically courted a woman who has since lived long enough to see her great-great-grandchildren!
***
Even though he donated all his assets to society, Nam Hae-soo was not unmarried.
Lady Park Han-hee.
A spouse also has rights over shared wealth.
That means half of the wealth accumulated after marriage belongs to her. And she was once a model with her own career.
So the conclusion:
Only half of the total assets—including joint real estate, stocks, and bonds—would be donated. The other half goes to the spouse.
“Mr. Kang Moon-soo.”
“Yes, ma’am?”
“Is it true that something is hidden on this island?”
“Yes, Lady Park!”
I replied energetically to Lady Park Han-hee, who moved by wheelchair due to frailty.
How did I get dragged into this?!
The reason was obvious:
The video message.
Even though it was sent to me personally, there was still a staff member recording it.
No such thing as a perfect secret in this world.
“We came here for our honeymoon.”
“I see.”
“Does an old woman like me bother you?”
“Not at all. I was only worried whether you should be here instead of attending your late husband’s funeral.”
“I trust my children. They would never shame their own mother.”
“…Right.”
Ask too much and I may end up hearing an entire family drama, so I shut my mouth.
Splash, splash—
The peaceful sound of waves echoed through the beautiful resort.
‘The lowest place…’
I had flown here because the most expensive form of public transportation—an airplane—was fastest.
Lady Park came along with a righteous reason: fairly dividing any hidden assets her husband left behind.
“I wonder what he hid here on our honeymoon island.”
“…Same here.”
What bothered me was that he told me, not his wife.
“Seeing the sea reminds me… I was still modeling back then, so instead of enjoying the honeymoon, I focused on a photoshoot.”
“…Do you regret that?”
“Not at all.”
Without hesitation, she firmly denied it.
“……”
“Do you think I was too cold?”
“No.”
I simply didn’t understand why Nam Hae-soo had been so obsessed with this kind of woman.
“The photoshoot wasn’t my idea. It was my husband’s request.”
“…Pardon?”
What was she saying?
“He wanted to show off—wanted the world to know he married a beautiful model.”
“…That bastard— ahem! You’re saying Mr. Nam really asked you to do that?”
“He did.”
“……”
“Because of the crowds of photographers following us all day, we couldn’t enjoy our honeymoon at all.”
“I had no idea.”
The research I’d done before entering his dream had painted Nam Hae-soo as a perfect human being.
Swimming emperor, wholesome husband, loving family, generous supporter of future athletes…
Yes, his children were fighting over inheritance, but I assumed that was normal with that much money involved.
To think it was all a façade…!
Now I understood why he’d chosen to dream of returning to the past.
Regret.
He hadn’t dreamed of becoming Nam Hae-soo again because he despised who he once was. Just like Kim Eun-jung, who hated her ordinary looks in reality and became a beautiful noble daughter in her dream…
It’s the dreamer, not the witch, who shapes the world inside the dream.
“Mr. Kang Moon-soo.”
“Yes?”
“The more I look at you, the more handsome you seem. You’re just my taste, you know?”
“Th-thank you!”
I knew this was the type of light-hearted teasing elderly people use, but I couldn’t take it casually—not from her.
“The lowest place. Strange. This island is nothing but flat ground.”
“Maybe it’s metaphorical?”
“Such as?”
“If Mr. Nam hid something here, I doubt he brought anyone along.”
“He did travel alone often…”
“Lady Park, think of somewhere that might fit the phrase ‘the lowest place.’”
Since we’d come all this way, I might as well take advantage of her insight.
“Are you asking me because I’m his wife?”
“Yes.”
“Consider the opposite. The video message my husband sent you—no… sent you specifically—was full of codes only the receiver could understand. I didn’t even know that the final place he mentioned was our honeymoon spot until now.”
“Oh…”
She was right.
“You must know the exact location where he hid it. Either you haven’t realized it yet… or you’re pretending not to, just so you won’t have to share it with me.”
Lady Park Han-hee stared straight at me with sharp eyes.
“…That’s possible.”
“So you admit it?”
“Yes. I think I know what place he meant. I might be wrong, though.”
A place no one would find. The lowest location.
But this was a tourist island.
Tourists go everywhere… almost.
However, there is one kind of spot they never look at.
“Where is it?”
“Mr. Nam said in his message: how I handle that secret is up to my judgment.”
“Don’t worry. If it’s worthless, I’ll give up cleanly.”
“That’s a lie.”
“How rude…”
“When Han-hee confessed to me, she told me something. She said whenever she lies, her right foot shakes from nerves. She even told me to ask her older sister if I didn’t believe her.”
“……”
Lady Park Han-hee’s right foot, seated in the wheelchair, was trembling.
“You still haven’t fixed that habit.”
“Only my husband and my sister knew that… Now they’re gone. So you’re the only one who knows.”
“The person pushing your wheelchair counts, too, you know.”
The caregiver standing behind her moved too deliberately. She didn’t look like a mere helper.
Probably security as well.
And she might be carrying a concealed weapon beneath that flowing skirt.
A trauma I’d developed from surviving too many assassinations in Nam Hae-soo’s dream: I now doubted everyone.
“When my husband sent a secret message only you could decipher… I knew something was strange.”
“I’m sure you did.”
We continued down the beautiful coastal walkway.
How long?
The answer was likely near.
“In all my life, I’ve never once confessed to a man first…”
“I know.”
In her youth, she had said it was her first time doing so.
“Mr. Kang Moon-soo, who exactly are you?”
“Mr. Nam asked a similar question.”
“…He did?”
“Yes.”
Not only him. Every dreamer who met me had asked me the exact same thing.
And my answer was always the same:
“I’m a shaman.”
Nam Hae-soo’s dream hasn’t ended yet.