Actually, Dad Was a Hero

Chapter 40: Tailing

The restaurants in amusement parks are the most cost-ineffective restaurants in the world.

Of course, there are restaurants that sell more expensive food than amusement parks, like high-end restaurants.

However, expensive restaurants have advantages such as better taste, better ingredients, or at least good service or atmosphere. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to stay in business.

On the other hand, amusement park restaurants boast prices twice as high as regular restaurants despite the fact that the taste or quality isn’t that great.

It’s truly a gutsy business practice that takes advantage of a monopoly.

That being said, it was also a bit awkward to prepare food and bring it to the amusement park.

You have to walk around a large area, which is cumbersome, and they make it difficult to find a place to eat the food you brought.

Actually, the expensive food shouldn’t have mattered much to Jin Beom-Min. He had already received over 200 million won just from the North Korea job a few days ago.

If you add up the rewards he received for defeating monsters before that, his assets already amounted to 3 billion won.

Therefore, objectively speaking, he wasn’t in a position to complain about the slightly expensive food.

However, just because he had a lot of money didn’t mean it wasn’t unpleasant to be ripped off.

Money is money, and feelings are feelings.

“Ah, this tastes bad. It’s just expensive.”

As if reading his mind, Seong-Gyun grumbled as he threw down his fork.

“Hey, just eat it.”

Su-Yeon, who was diligently working her fork next to him, glared at Seong-Gyun and scolded him.

“Ugh, you’re not a pig or anything. Eat it all, Nuna.”

Clack!

Jin Beom-Min blocked the spoon that was about to hit Seong-Gyun’s head with his chopsticks.

“Hey, are you guys fighting even when we’re out having fun?”

“Ah, Seong-Gyun started it!”

“So you hit your younger brother’s head with a spoon?”

“It’s okay to hit him a little since he’s smart.”

“This is all I am because I got hit by Nuna? If I hadn’t been hit, I would have already won the Nobel Prize.”

“What, you punk?”

Smack!

Jin Beom-Min let out a deep sigh and flicked his son and daughter’s heads with lightning-fast hand movements.

“Ow!”

“Ouch!”

“Are you going to fight even when we’re out having fun after a long time? You two were getting along so well when you asked to go to the amusement park, and now you’re fighting?”

Su-Yeon and Seong-Gyun pouted their lower lips and looked away.

“Ugh, eat quickly. We need to ride other things after we eat.”

At his words, Su-Yeon started shoving food into her mouth again, and Seong-Gyun started picking at his food and rummaging through it.

Jin Beom-Min frowned as if he was angry, but in reality, he was overwhelmed with a feeling of contentment and comfort.

The siblings, who bickered as always, but listened well to their dad.

They seemed immature, but they were thoughtful children who took care of the housework and meals even when their dad was away for a few days.

For Jin Beom-Min, who just three days ago was battling a house-sized monster and annihilating a North Korean mechanized infantry platoon, each and every one of these small daily moments was precious.

“Dad, let’s ride the roller coaster one more time.”

“Nuna, we’ll have to wait in line for over an hour to ride that again.”

“Hey, but we have to ride it twice since we came all the way here!”

“No, there are new rides too, so why only ride that one? There’s a new one in the back…”

While Su-Yeon and Seong-Gyun were having a heated discussion about their next schedule, Jin Beom-Min stretched languidly and looked around.

It was a weekday, but there were quite a few people in the amusement park, mostly families and couples.

As Jin Beom-Min was casually scanning his surroundings, one person caught his eye.

A small, middle-aged man sitting alone at a table a reasonable distance away.

He was wearing a white shirt and fanning himself with a small fan, and somehow looked familiar.

‘…Where have I seen him before…?’

Jin Beom-Min briefly retraced his memories of the day. The method of recalling memories through association was one of the basic training courses at the Hero Academy.

‘We were on the same bus at the safari. No, come to think of it, even before that…’

The man was also not far from Jin Beom-Min in the amusement park entrance line. And while a bit further away, there seemed to have been a man with a similar impression in the roller coaster waiting line as well.

It was too much of a coincidence.

Moreover, a middle-aged man alone at an amusement park on a weekday afternoon. No matter how he thought about it, it didn’t seem natural.

Having thought that far, Jin Beom-Min naturally looked away from the man and said to Su-Yeon and Seong-Gyun,

“Let’s get up if you’re done eating. Have you decided where to go?”

“We decided to ride the Viking first and then the roller coaster. Since it’s on the way anyway.”

“Okay. Make sure you have your phones.”

Jin Beom-Min cleared the dishes and trash, gathered his children, and started to move.

Glancing sideways, he saw the man with the fan also casually getting up from his seat.

‘I’m sure…’

Jin Beom-Min had heard from Lee Sang-Jun that agents from various countries were working to uncover the identities of him and the Ghost Squad.

However, there hadn’t been any particular signs until now, so he hadn’t been particularly tense.

This was because he was confident he could escape even if an agent approached him.

But now, he was with his children. He couldn’t escape alone, and he couldn’t shake off the tail with his children either.

There was only one way.

‘Do I have to be tense even when I’m with my children now…!’

Jin Beom-Min swallowed his anger and looked around. Then, he spoke at an opportune moment.

“Kids, Dad’s going to use the restroom, so go ahead.”

“Didn’t you just go, Dad?”

“Uh, yeah… but this time I have a stomachache.”

“Okay. Hurry back.”

“Call me if anything happens!”

Jin Beom-Min sent his children ahead and slipped into a side path. The man who was tailing them seemed to hesitate for a moment before hurriedly following the children.

‘That bastard…!’

Jin Beom-Min suppressed his urge to run out and waited cautiously.

Then, he followed the man with quick steps.

“What are you doing?”

At Jin Beom-Min’s chilling voice, the man stopped in his tracks.

“Answer me. You’ll die if you try anything funny.”

“Wh-what… do you mean?”

The man’s tone was very awkward, as if he wasn’t familiar with Korean, like a foreigner.

“…Japanese?”

“Hai, yes. Yes.”

The man pretended to be calm and fanned himself, but his fingertips were trembling slightly, and cold sweat was beading on his forehead.

Jin Beom-Min naturally grabbed the man’s arm. The man flinched but followed Jin Beom-Min as if he had no choice.

In fact, there was no way for him to escape even if he tried. There was no one in the world who could shake off Jin Beom-Min’s grip, which was like an iron clamp.

Jin Beom-Min dragged the man to the place he had just observed.

It used to be a smoking area, but it had become an awkwardly leftover space after the amusement park was designated as a non-smoking area.

Several people were lingering around, looking around cautiously as if they wanted to smoke secretly, but this was the most secluded space in the amusement park.

“Who are you?”

Jin Beom-Min pushed the man against the wall and asked forcefully.

“J-just a tourist… I am.”

“I told you you’ll die if you try anything funny!”

Jin Beom-Min pushed the man against the wall with force in his fingertips.

“Ugh! O-ow!”

As the man struggled, the collar of his white shirt opened. This revealed the three flame-shaped tattoos engraved below his collarbone.

“Th-this is…!”

“Uh…!”

The man quickly closed his collar, but it was too late. Jin Beom-Min grabbed the man by the collar, ignoring the gazes of those around him.

“You. . .!”

“Gah, e, explanation, I will explain. G-Guardian. . .!”

“What is the meaning of this!”

“Ugh. . . Kuhk!”

The man was nearly suffocating, crushed under Jin Beom-Min’s monstrous strength. Jin Beom-Min bit his lip and released the hand clutching the man’s collar.

However, his fingertips still trembled faintly with rage.

“Cough! Cough! Gasp, gasp!”

“. . .Speak.”

“J-Just a moment…!”

“Are you… a follower of the Samhwa Cult?”

“Hack, hack!”

The man coughed and nodded. Jin Beom-Min clenched his trembling fists with anger and asked again.

“Why were you following us… no, my children? Haven’t you given up yet!”

“N-no, it’s not like that!”

“Then what is it!”

The man looked up at Jin Beom-Min with fearful eyes and answered in broken Korean.

“J-just to protect the Heavenly Maiden… to protect the Heavenly Maiden…!”

“Don’t play dumb!”

“I-I mean it! We would never, ever lay a hand on the Heavenly Maiden…!”

Jin Beom-Min looked into the man’s eyes. He was scared and trembling with fear, but he didn’t seem to be lying.

“Wh-what happened in the past… was our mistake.”

“It was a mistake?”

“Hai, yes! Mistake, mistake!”

“Do you think that kind of excuse will work?”

“We’re not fools either. With someone like the Guardian protecting the Heavenly Maiden, how could we…”

“Guardian…?”

The man spread his palms reverently towards Jin Beom-Min and said,

“Y-you, the one holding me now… You are the Heavenly Maiden’s Guardian.”

“…What are you talking about? I…”

Jin Beom-Min hesitated for a moment and looked around. There were people lingering and watching after seeing the confrontation, but none were close enough to hear their conversation.

“…Don’t you know that I… killed your leader…?”

At Jin Beom-Min’s hushed words, the man nodded and replied.

“N-Nishizu-san was punished by heaven for his disrespect… no, uh… for his impiety towards the Heavenly Maiden. A-a different person is leading our cult now.”

Jin Beom-Min stared at the man with a dumbfounded look for a moment.

The Samhwa Cult was a Japanese religious group that had a bad history with him and his family, especially Su-Yeon, quite a long time ago.

But he thought everything had been settled after the incident in the past, but it seemed that wasn’t the case.

“Since when have you been following Su-Yeon…?”

“S-since then… continuously…”

“Continuously?”

“We’ve always been protecting her. Many… followers…”

“This is crazy…!”

Jin Beom-Min let go of the man and stepped back. His words were too shocking.

“You’ve been… following her all this time?”

“Hai, yes. That’s right.”

The man grimaced as he answered, his arm that had been grabbed by Jin Beom-Min hurting badly.

“Until now… for over ten years, we haven’t done anything… just watched over the Heavenly Maiden to make sure she was okay.”

“Crazy… You guys are crazy.”

“I-I apologize if you’re offended. But we didn’t have any bad intentions…”

“Shut up.”

Jin Beom-Min cut the man off with an icy tone.

“Don’t ever show up again. If you’re ever seen around my daughter again, Samhwa Cult or whatever, you’ll die.”

“Th-that can’t…”

Crack!

Jin Beom-Min’s left hand was deeply embedded in the wall. He could hear the gasps of surprise from the people around him, but he didn’t care.

“Literally, you’ll die.”

“Th-th… Y-yes, sir.”

Jin Beom-Min turned around and walked away. He could see the onlookers stepping aside with surprised faces.

Jin Beom-Min took large, angry strides and took out his phone.

And he dialed Lee Sang-Jun’s number, which was now all too familiar.