After five months had passed I found myself waking up in the middle of the night for no reason . I found it strange as it happened more frequently as of late and my irritation grew as dawn became my hour of awakening .
Normally, if you wake up in the middle of the night sleep should immediately overcome you but for some reason, it didnât come .
My opened eyes just stared at the ceiling of the bedroom . As my eyes got used to the darkness I could make out words carved in the ceiling . It seemed to say âRoyal 12th Palaceâ . If I am wrong then whatever .
Ah, my body is feverish . Am I getting the flu?
Even I could feel my own body temperature was going up . I wanted to cry, but I had no energy to spare to even cry . As I nibbled on my finger and tried to turn my body, something hard got in my way .
When I raised my head, it was Keitel of all people who was at the very front of my nose .
What is this? Why is he hereâŚ
Oh yeah, this is Keitelâs bedroom .
I cursed at my own stupidity and slowly edged away from him .
I donât want to get assassinated (rolled over) by him .
Anyway, whoeverâs father this is he is very handsome .
For a moment, I forgot about my fever and I raised my empty hand (which I wasnât sucking on) to lift the scattered hair on his forehead . I smirked as I lightly touched his long eyelashes . I guess even with the fever I still had energy left over to enjoy staring at his face .
Keitelâs sleeping face was different . I heard everyoneâs sleeping face looked meek .
His face while sleeping really was meek . A sleeping Keitel was a small shock in its own way . It was my first time seeing him like this yet it didnât feel like the first time . He still looked like a young boy . Looking at his boyish face made my heart ache .
Yup . Heâs only twenty-six by Korean standards . Heâs at the age where he would have finished the army, graduated from college and would have been ready to look for work . If he was the fast type, he could be a father but it was more likely he was still a kid just becoming independent .
When I thought this way I was able to let go . I still couldnât adjust perfectly to this world but I realized Keitel was a man of that age .
Thatâs right, I will forgive you .
All those times you talked so insensitively and all your clumsy actions, I will forgive it all at once with a large heart . I am twenty-five but I also donât know much about babies, and if I was forced to take care of one I would have definitely been as clumsy as Keitel . Thatâs right . When I think of it this way I can understand your awkward actions until now .
I was a newbie at being a baby but he was also a newbie at being a dad . He had just met a life form called a baby how could he possibly know how to treat it? Just by looking at his attitude until now I know that he never once had an interest in babies before, not even as large as a fingernail .
To think that that kind of human has a babyâŚ
I recalled what Cerera had told me before â that I only had this man . At first, I didnât understand what she meant . âI think I get it now . I really only have this man .
I found Keitelâs sleeping hand and held it tightly . My hand was so small and white compared to his rough skin full of calluses . It looked pitiful so I didnât dislike the rough texture of his hand .
I let out a small sigh . Even if I didnât add on anything special this one fact it was enough for me .
The fact that he was my dad .
I once again realized that this was the parent-child bond . Even if you disliked their personality, the way they talked, the way they looked and hated the way they thought⌠A father is a father . Itâs not something that can change just because I donât like it . Itâs that kind of thing . It was the same for him too . The child is the same . You canât sell or change it because you donât want it .
I am the one that needs to adjust . What else can I do? I need to deal with it .
However, now that I decided⌠Keitel, you need to be prepared . I am not your average innocent daughter at all . If you look down on me, the one who will end up hurt is you!
âSleeping like the dead, as always . â
âIs he not sleeping, but dead instead?â
The voice I just heard now made me lose my breath for a moment .
I quietly calmed my racing heart and looked over at the ceiling . The only thing I could see was the darkness in the room . In that dark room, an especially dark shape was there . No, it was a person .
Could-could it be? Another guest of the night?!
The other side must have discovered me too . I tried to kill my breathing .
Can a personâs eyes glow in the dark? No, that was not the eyes of a human, but it doesnât seem to be the vertical slit of a catâs eyes either .
It was quite mysterious . No, it was frightening to the point that it overcame any curiosity .
As I tried to kill the sound of my breathing, the black shape came towards me . I tightened my grip on dadâs hand .
Dad wake up, dad! This is an emergency! Your daughter looks like she is going to die soon! dad! Dad!
âNamu MyĹhĹ Renge KyĹâ (This is a Buddhist mantra)âŚ
It felt like the time mom caught me playing on the computer in the middle of the night or the time I sneaked into the kitchen to steal food at night and got caught red handed .
How can I describe this shivering thrilling feeling? I just cried inwardly .
Am I dead now? To think another night guest came to visit me . dadâs here but I am still going to die again . Thatâs right, my life is damned . Thatâs right, itâs damned! Even if you donât force me to face it I already knew my life was damned from the start!
What the hell, is it a ghost?
Huh, what the fuck is huh . What the hell is wrong with this guy?
The night guest, whose face I couldnât even see, simply crossed his arms . Then he let out a surprised voice as he wondered .
ââŚCan even talk . â
Who in the world was he talking to? Was he simply mad?
The shadow didnât seem to be a night guest, then logically speaking, it only leaves the option of he either a ghost or a lunatic . What were the chances of a lunatic breaking into the Emperorâs bedroom? So I guess he can only be a ghost . Is that right?
Seriously, am I not looking at a night guest who came to kill me, but a ghost instead?!
It was only a moment, but his eyes darkened .
âYou can really see me . â
The eyes suddenly zoomed in closer almost shocking me to death .
Agh! dad save me! Your daughter is going to be shocked to death!
â⌠. Are those words?â
Who the hell are you talking to?
âHuh? I am talking to you . â
So who are you⌠Huh? Me?
I was so shocked I lost my breath for a second . I looked at him with a stupidly shocked expression . That guy, whose face I couldnât make out wordlessly smiled and came closer .
Who, who, who⌠Who are you?!
We seriously understood each other . I wasnât sure if I shouldâve been more surprised at the fact he could understand my words or that he wasnât a ghost .
âWhat are you going to do after you find out? Are you going to steam it and eat?â
What is he saying? His nonsense is an art .
As my face stiffened the approaching figure grabbed his belly and started laughing . I was shocked that the crazy laughter didnât wake Keitel up .
Dad, your ears are useless .
âAh, what the hell . Itâs Keitelâs daughter . What are you doing here?â
I felt taken back at the fact he knew me . âWho was he?â
For some reason, it made me more nervous that he knew me . I made a face .
What are you going to do after you find out?
âOh dear, you are already mad . â
The guy came closer, sat near the bed and reached out to stroke my cheek . Unlike his big awkward hand, his hand felt soft and gentle, but I felt my skin crawl . âHurry up and move your hand . â
Who? Me? Well . Yes, I am quite cute . My cuteness is to the point I can conquer this planet . My ambition is to conquer the world with my cuteness⌠Not!
I clicked my tongue at my silliness when the soft laughter stopped . Then the eyes that shone blue in the darkness coolly let out a chill gleam .
âHowever, human child . How can you see me?â
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