Chapter 74 – Han Yu-ra
Min-hyuk stared straight at Han Yu-ra standing across from him.
She was wearing her signature wine-colored bread-shaped cap pulled low, a light short-sleeve top, and jeans—relatively neat and tidy for someone in the drawing room.
Under one arm, she carried a file folder the exact same color as her cap.
Han Yu-ra furrowed her brows slightly and asked again.
“So? What did you just say?”
Min-hyuk let out a sigh and waved his hand dismissively.
“Nothing, nothing. Just talking to myself. Anyway… why are you here?”
“The other lounge was too noisy.”
With that, Yu-ra walked over to the vending machine and said,
“You drink canned coffee, right?”
“Hm?”
“I’m buying one anyway. Want one or not?”
“Uh… yeah, sure.”
What the hell is with her…?
Why is she suddenly acting like this? It’s creepy.
Normally, Han Yu-ra was the type who wouldn’t speak to anyone first even if a knife was at her throat.
Her sudden friendliness made him oddly wary.
“Here.”
“Ah, thanks. I’ll drink it.”
Min-hyuk took the canned coffee and sipped it.
A brief, awkward silence filled the lounge.
‘…Maybe I shouldn’t have come down here.’
He had come here wanting to rest quietly alone.
If he’d known this would happen… he should’ve just stayed in the upstairs lounge.
While Min-hyuk kept sneaking glances at Yu-ra—
“How’s the grade project going?”
“Hm?”
“You seem to be progressing on the manuscript lately. Is the grade project going well?”
Why is she suddenly talking to me like this…?
Min-hyuk scratched his cheek and answered.
“Well… the manuscript’s reaching the final stages now. It’s finally starting to feel right to me. What about you?”
“The grade project is… going okay. The problem’s something else.”
“Something else… the contest entry?”
“Yeah. I’ve been revising and fixing this and that, but nothing really feels like ‘this is it.’”
“Ah… I see.”
Min-hyuk replied, and silence returned once more.
Then, this time, Yu-ra subtly glanced at him while moving her lips.
‘Does she have something to say?’
It felt like she had something on her mind but wasn’t saying it.
The air was growing increasingly uncomfortable.
Finally, Yu-ra spoke.
“Wanna take a look?”
“Hm? At your contest manuscript?”
“Yeah. I’m not exactly begging you to look… but there’s still some time left. Might as well, since we’re resting anyway.”
“Uh… sure.”
When Min-hyuk nodded, Yu-ra pulled out the file folder she’d been carrying and held it out.
In that moment, Min-hyuk couldn’t hold back the honest thought that slipped out.
“Did you… bring this on purpose to show me?”
“…If you’re gonna talk nonsense, forget it.”
Yu-ra frowned and started to pull the folder back.
Min-hyuk hurriedly waved his hands.
“Ah, ah, I’m kidding, kidding. I’ll look. Hand it over.”
So that’s why she suddenly talked to him first.
Her awkwardness made him let out a small snort of amusement.
Min-hyuk sat down at the lounge table and opened the file folder.
“This is the fantasy one from last time, right?”
“Yeah. I took your feedback from back then and reworked pretty much everything I wasn’t satisfied with.”
The story of a war mercenary who is reborn as the child of a high-ranking demon similar to a demon king in his second life, and comes to feel family love.
It seemed to reflect Yu-ra’s own sense of lack—centered around the love and misunderstandings between parents and child.
He remembered reading it quite vividly.
But he had also thought the atmosphere was too heavy, and casually suggested that lightening it up a little wouldn’t hurt…
Min-hyuk began reading the manuscript.
[Hey? Melton! Are you feeling sick or something? What’s wrong all of a sudden!]
[Ah, it’s nothing, Dad. Just… something got caught in my throat.]
[Something in your throat? Hey! Call the cook right now!]
[That’s not it! It has absolutely nothing to do with the food!]
A small snort escaped Min-hyuk.
As the corner of his mouth lifted, Han Yu-ra glanced sideways at him.
‘What the… the entire tone of the work has completely changed.’
Last time, it had been intensely focused on delicate emotional lines, carrying a heavy, somber atmosphere throughout the entire chapter.
Given the protagonist’s tragic past, it had naturally maintained that mood.
But this version was different.
After the serious opening that explained the protagonist’s background…
A significant portion was now filled with misunderstanding gags stemming from the clash between the demon king father’s perspective and the human-raised protagonist’s common sense.
“What? Is my work… funny to you?”
“No, it’s funny—that’s why I’m laughing.”
When Yu-ra asked with a hint of unease, Min-hyuk waved his hand dismissively and kept reading.
‘It’s definitely become a lot more fun.’
The previous version hadn’t been bad at all.
If she had kept pushing that heavy atmosphere to the end, it would have become a work with its own unique charm.
But honestly speaking, this version felt far superior in terms of commercial appeal and mass-market potential.
Jump Comics was, after all, a shonen magazine.
Targeting mainly boys in their mid-teens to early twenties meant that relentlessly serious storytelling would be at a disadvantage in a contest environment.
‘This isn’t just because of my feedback.’
The core concept was the same, yet the genre tone and overall feel had shifted dramatically.
It was almost unbelievable that the same author had created something so different—like night and day.
‘She really is a genius prodigy.’
This was the kind of talent where you teach one thing and they immediately grasp twenty—or even thirty.
By the time he finished reading through to the end of chapter 1, Yu-ra quickly added,
“The rest is the storyboards for chapters 2 and 3.”
“You’re submitting these together to the editorial department, right?”
“Yeah.”
Now his eyes moved to the storyboards.
‘Not bad at all. After this… it sets up ongoing conflicts that can sustain a long serialization, with the dad resolving them each time.’
A human hero attacks the demon king family…
The protagonist uses knowledge from his mercenary days to show extraordinary ability, and in the end, the demon king father appears to resolve the incident.
Chapters 2 and 3 presented a short episode that clearly established the work’s future concept and tone.
Min-hyuk lifted his head and asked,
“Han Yu-ra, have you ever serialized a long-form comic before?”
“No, obviously not. Why?”
“…You’re just that good. It feels like something made by a really experienced, skilled veteran.”
“You’re saying it’s okay?”
Min-hyuk handed the file folder back to her and said,
“It’s more than okay—it’s amazing. As expected from Han Yu-ra. No wonder people call you a genius.”
It was plain, honest sentiment—no exaggeration, no flattery.
Honestly…
Calling her a “genius” felt almost too shallow.
A first-year high school student with this level of skill?
And looking at the speed of her growth, it was downright unfair.
‘She didn’t become the future great master for nothing.’
For the first time, Min-hyuk truly realized what kind of monster the girl in front of him really was.
‘Rest in peace, Oh Seung-heon. I’ll pray for your soul, friend.’
He felt genuinely grateful that he wasn’t the one competing against her in the contest.
But then…
“Are you making fun of me?”
“Hm? What?”
“You just called me a genius. That was sarcasm, right? Wasn’t it?”
“…Huh?”
What the hell is she talking about now?
Min-hyuk tilted his head in genuine confusion.
Of course, he had meant every word 100% sincerely.
“If I’m a genius, then what does that make the person who won the grand prize at the competition and even designed David’s armor?”
“That’s… well, I had my own circumstances, you know.”
“What circumstances?”
“Uh, that’s…”
She’s pressing in here?
Min-hyuk couldn’t answer right away.
He couldn’t exactly say right now that he was actually a grown adult in his second life, a former webtoon artist who had been drawing comics for years.
While he stood there with an awkward smile—
“Huuu… Forget it. I’m leaving.”
Yu-ra left the lounge with a slightly irritated expression.
“…Geez.”
She really is hard to get close to.
Min-hyuk let out a sigh and roughly scratched his head.
***
The next morning.
Screeeeech!
“Thank you, ajusshi!”
“Be careful on your way!”
A shuttle bus pulled up at one side of Sadang Station platform.
Animation High students poured out, each grabbing a carry-on suitcase from the undercarriage storage.
“Auuu… Going homeeee.”
“You heading straight home? We’re gonna hit up a karaoke spot first.”
“Yeah, Mom said we’re eating lunch out.”
The kids scattered—some toward the subway, others to bus stops.
Weekend homecoming time.
Meanwhile, Kang Min-hyuk carried only a simple backpack.
He stepped down to the platform and boarded the subway line going in the opposite direction from usual.
After riding for a while—
<<This stop is Express Bus Terminal Station, Express Bus Terminal Station. Doors open on the right…>>
He got off immediately and headed upstairs.
The destination came into view.
“Huuu… Been a while since I came here.”
Gangnam Station Shinsaege Department Store.
Today’s base camp for buying a birthday gift for Hong Mi-seon.
In his previous life, he had visited several times to buy gifts for her, so the place felt somewhat familiar.
Min-hyuk walked straight inside.
‘Luxury floor—skip.’
Of course, it wasn’t that he felt a luxury bag was too good for Hong Mi-seon.
He simply couldn’t afford to blow his entire current savings on a birthday present.
So he passed by the first floor—packed with the most expensive brands—without even glancing and headed straight to the Women’s section on the third floor.
‘I’m a little worried, honestly.’
When he was an adult, coming to a department store felt like nothing.
But right now, no matter how you looked at him, he was clearly a high school student in appearance.
What if someone looked down on him because of that?
Still—he had come this far. No turning back.
Min-hyuk walked directly toward the brands that carried clothing and accessories suitable for middle-aged women.
‘Let’s go here.’
DIFF.
In his previous life, when he got a job at a public enterprise, this was the Singaporean brand where he had bought his mom a bag.
Reasonably priced, good quality, and well-regarded for design.
Most importantly—he clearly remembered how happy Hong Mi-seon had been when she received that bag back then.
“Here we go.”
Min-hyuk took a deep breath and stepped inside.
‘Please… just let this go smoothly.’
Maybe because he never did this kind of thing in his previous life.
Or maybe it just didn’t suit his nature.
Every time he came to a place like this, he felt inexplicably nervous.
As soon as he entered…
A staff member greeted him with a bright smile.
“Hello, customer! How may I assist you today?”
“Ah, um… it’s my mother’s birthday soon. I’m looking for… a bag that would suit a middle-aged woman.”
“Do you have a price range in mind?”
The staff member asked carefully.
She was trying to be as polite as possible to avoid offense, but…
Min-hyuk could easily read the subtle tremor in her voice.
‘She’s wondering if I actually have the money to buy anything here.’
Well, understandable.
A high schooler in a backpack wandering in like this—if he turned out to be window-shopping, it would be awkward for both sides.
Min-hyuk added one more sentence.
“Price-wise… somewhere between 800,000 and 1 million won would be about right.”
“Um… one million won?”
“Yes. I’ve been saving up pocket money for a while.”
At that…
“Ahhh, I see.”
The staff members’ eyes sparkled for a moment.
Just from their expressions, he could tell.
‘Buying a bag for his mom with saved pocket money? How admirable…’
‘How can there be such a student…’
This was Korea, after all—the land of Confucianism.
A student son coming to buy a birthday gift for his mother? Of course they would look at him favorably.
“Ah, yes, I understand. In that case… would it be alright if I recommend a few? We have quite a few pretty and nice bags in the store.”
A warm, pleased smile spread across the staff member’s face.
“Yes, please do.”
Min-hyuk responded with a fresh, bright smile of his own.
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