Praise the Orc! Chapter 9:
Chapter 9 – What People Live By (1)
The trio had a warm farewell with Simba before returning to Grant’s cabin .
“Please deliver this for me . ”
“This…?”
“It has been quite a while since I’ve last seen Instructor Lenox . ”
As Grant’s wife fed them warm food, Grant held out a letter .
“Thank you again for what you’ve done, the other farmers appreciate it as well . ”
“I just did what I had to do . ”
“You’re already a warrior,” Grant laughed out loud .
They promised to meet again and left Grant’s house . Their tension filled bodies finally relaxed . As they walked towards Orcrox Fortress, Ian and Grom looked at each other .
“Today…”
“Shall we call it a day?”
“Yes, it’s late . ”
Right now, it was dawn in reality .
“We finally had an adventure in the game . ”
“That’s right . Thanks to Ian, I think my life as an orc is going well . ”
Grom thanked him . Without Ian, he wouldn’t have been able to complete this quest, and would’ve died .
“Tomorrow as well?”
“Yes, if nothing happens . ”
“Then let’s meet again tomorrow . ”
Ian and Grom smiled and bumped fists . Within a moment, their appearances blurred as their connection to Elder Lord was terminated .
***
“Boss-nim, did something good happen?”
“No, does it look that way?”
“Yes, you keep smiling . Did you get a girlfriend?”
Ian smiled at the inquiry .
“Look, there’s the smile again . ”
“It’s nothing . ”
“What? Something is strange…”
Ian was thinking about his adventure with Grant and Grom . They got rid of the mutant wolf and formed a fierce relationship between men . A smile appeared as he recalled Grant’s final blow to the werewolf and Simba’s indomitable will against the wolves . Ian had completely fallen for the charms of Elder Lord and the orcs .
He hummed as he imagined his next adventure .
Suddenly, Ian’s phone rang . It was his little sister, Yiyu, who should’ve been listening to lectures at school at this time . What was so urgent that she would call him at this time?
“Yes, hello . ”
–Oppa…!
Her voice was urgent .
“What’s going on?”
–Oppa, you see… Right now I am at…
Ian’s face stiffened at Yiyu’s following words .
–The police station .
“…What for?”
–That…
Ian roughly heard the situation and took off his café apron .
“Boss-nim…?”
“I need to go out for a while, so please look after this place alone . ”
“What’s going on?”
“Please . ”
Ian left the café .
He got in his car and stepped on the accelerator, driving towards the police station close to Yiyu’s university . Ian went inside and found Yiyu, who got up as she saw him . Her expression was grouchy . Ian hugged her .
“Are you okay?”
“Yes…”
“Are you uninjured?”
“Yes… I’m fine…”
“Then it’s okay . ”
Ian ruffled Yiyu’s hair, causing her to quietly laugh . He turned his head and saw two men sitting down, both of their faces looking like a mess . One of them got up and greeted Ian .
“Hello . I am Yiyu’s friend, Park Jungtae . ”
“I’ve heard the story . ”
Ian shook hands with Park Jungtae .
“And there…”
He looked at the man sitting apart from Park Jungtae .
“That person?”
He scowled at Ian and looked away .
Ian asked Yiyu, “What exactly did he say to you?”
“To me? Just… let’s have a meal today . Girls always agree when I promise to take them someplace expensive… He muttered . ”
Ian raised his eyebrows .
“So you?”
“I stayed quiet, but Jungtae was next to me, and they ended up arguing…”
Fists ended up flying . Park Jungtae bowed his head like he was ashamed .
Ian sighed .
“Who struck first?”
“Almost at the same time…”
There were such moments . Just before a physical conflict, their eyes would meet and sparks would fly before they pounced at the same time . Looking at their faces, both of them seemed similar . It seemed like they thrashed around without actually knowing how to fight . There were no serious injuries or aftereffects .
Ian laughed as he looked at their faces . Yiyu poked Ian’s side .
“Oppa, why are you laughing?”
“They are truly kids . Still, I’m glad that it wasn’t a big deal . ”
“This isn’t a big deal?”
“Nobody is dead or maimed . ”
“Please don’t say such scary things, this is the police station . Won’t Jungtae go to jail?”
“It’ll be fine . ”
An agreement would be reached by both sides . Ian looked at the men .
“The words he said to you… As a senior, is he usually like that?”
“Sometimes…he flirts, but I don’t care . It isn’t uncommon . ”
Ian raised his eyebrows, causing Yiyu to laugh this time .
“What? Don’t you know that I get several phone numbers from men whenever I go outside? Right, Park Jungtae?”
“Uh…well…”
Park Jungtae answered with a gloomy expression .
Ian started laughing . So that’s what happened .
Park Jungtae and the other man were fighting over Yiyu . The level of injuries were similar, so it was likely to end with a mutual agreement . That’s why the police officers cleared a space for them to talk .
Ian told Park Jungtae, “You fought because of Yiyu, so thank you . Still, in the future, don’t swing your fists, even if there is an argument . ”
“Yes… I’m sorry . ”
“If that senior continues to bother you, then contact me . ”
He handed Park Jungtae his business card . Park Jungtae’s eyes widened as he saw the name ‘Café Reason . ’
“Ah, are you the boss here?”
“Yes . Do you know of it?”
“I heard the girls saying good things… The boss…” Park Jungtae smiled at Ian and continued, “He is kind . ”
“Come visit sometime . ”
Suddenly, there was a disturbance in the police station .
A middle-aged man was walking this way . There was oil on his face and he yelled as he walked, “Where is Sangho? Sangho! Yang Sangho!”
Ian had a bad feeling . The senior who fought Park Jungtae over Yiyu stood up .
“Yang Sangho! Hey, you stupid fool . Why did you get beaten up? You’re a disgrace to my name . ”
“Father…”
“Yes, where is your opponent? Is it you?” He pointed to Park Jungtae . “You were hit by this child… Aish, you screw up . ”
“……”
“What was it about? This woman?”
Ian’s eyebrows twitched .
“Well, you both hit each other, so we can come to a mutual agreement . No, will that be enough? Should I call the police commissioner?”
The middle-aged man bragged as he raised his phone .
“Is that your guardian over there? That baby? Or that woman? Is that young man related to you? No parents?”
At that moment, the police officer in charge came back . His expression was heavy due to the disturbance .
“Oh, Guardian-nim . Please sit there quietly…”
“I should be quiet? I am a busy guy, yet I came all the way here, got it?”
“Calm down, yes?”
Ian, who was watching the scene, knocked on Yiyu’s back .
“Go back to school . ”
“Oppa?”
“Don’t worry, I will handle it . ”
“Still…”
“Don’t you know that you won’t receive your allowance if you’re absent from school?”
“But…”
“I’ll take care of Jungtae, so go . ”
Yiyu nodded . However, she couldn’t help looking at the middle-aged man with an uneasy expression . Ian placed his hand on Yiyu’s head and grinned .
“Jung Yiyu . ”
“Yes . ”
“Don’t you know that I can solve things?”
“Yes…”
That’s right .
Her brother, Jung Ian, always solved her problems, no matter what happened .
When she was a child, she told Ian that children were harassing her, and they became quiet after a few days . Ian found her lost items and cooked whatever she wanted to eat .
After their parents passed away, she was uneasy about their inherited debt . However, Ian just smiled and told her to believe in him, and he dealt with it all alone . He became a soldier and paid off the debt, providing her living expenses and paying for her university tuition fees .
Seven years later, when he returned to South Korea, Ian was unchanged . He always solved her problems reliably . That was why Yiyu was forced to nod .
“Oppa, thank you…”
“If you want to thank me, help out at the café . ”
“That is too much . Don’t you know that it’s the exam period?”
“I hope you do well on the exams . ”
“Look forward to it . ”
Ian ruffled Yiyu’s hair .
Yiyu said goodbye to Park Jungtae . Someone glanced at her as she left . It was the middle-aged man talking with someone over the phone .
“Why is that girl going? Isn’t she involved?”
“……”
“W-What is that look?”
Park Jungtae was surprised .
Ian’s expression changed the moment that Yiyu disappeared . He seemed like someone who always smiled gently . That was the story he heard about Café Reason’s boss . A warm hearted man who was always smiling, making the customer feel stable the moment they saw Ian .
But that smile was erased the moment that Yiyu left . Now he looked like someone else .
‘My brother, he was a soldier . He used to fight in the Middle East and Africa . ’
The words that Yiyu had said popped into his head . The conflicting images were now merging together .
The middle-aged man cried out, “You, you, why are you staring at me like that?”
“Don’t talk anymore . ”
“Are you talking to me right now? Are you crazy? How old are you, you brat?!”
The police officer in charge said, “Both of you, please calm down . ”
“Didn’t you hear what that brat said to me? Your boss, who is it? Do you know who I am? I am someone who eats with the police commissioner, understand? Hey . ”
The middle-aged man searched through his wallet and pulled out his business card .
“I am a person who runs a company, you…”
“A brat who doesn’t even know shame . ”
Ian approached . As Ian looked down at the man, he flinched and dropped his business card .
“Don’t you know shame?”
“Y-y-you, this…”
“Don’t you feel any shame when you look at your child?”
“Talking impolitely…”
The police officer inserted himself between the two of them .
“Now, now, calm down…”
The police officer flinched . He easily pushed the middle-aged man, but Ian didn’t budge . It felt like he was pushing against a large rock . The police officer glanced at Ian with surprise before sitting both of them down .
The middle-aged man regained his bravery .
“Call your boss here . Now, there’ll be a lawsuit, instead of an agreement!”
Jungtae’s face became pale . His situation at home wasn’t good, so Jungtae hadn’t told his parents . He had no knowledge of law and couldn’t afford to proceed with a lawsuit . The middle-aged man seemed to have a lot of money . Just as he saw on TV, the middle-aged man would use an expensive lawyer and his connections to turn Jungtae’s life upside down .
Then Ian said, “Jungtae . ”
“Yes Hyung . ”
“I’ll resolve it, so don’t worry . ”
Ian picked up the business card that the middle-aged man dropped .
The man was talking with someone on the phone . He was disguising his son as a victim and asking the person to solve it . The man made all sorts of promises like, let’s play golf next time, he would buy them a drink etc .
It was sickening .
“You over there . ”
Ian called out to the senior who fought with Jungtae over Yiyu .
“……”
The senior raised his head . It was an ambiguous expression . His belief in her father along with the shame of the situation appeared on his face .
“Did you apologize to Yiyu?”
“……”
“Apologize?”
The senior looked down as he shook his head . Ian waited for his answer .
Once he raised his head again, his face resembled his father who was oily and greedy .
“Why?”
“……”
“You should be prepared to bow deeply in apology, along with that brat . ” The senior exclaimed .
Ian started laughing, “That isn’t pride . ”
“What nonsense are you saying?”
“You are ashamed of your father, but have decided to follow his actions . ”
“Don’t speak nonsense . ”
“Look . ”
Ian pointed around . All the police officers and civilians had expressions of contempt on their faces .
“They are watching your father with that disgusted expression . ”
“You **** . ”
“Later, those expressions will turn to you . ”
The middle-aged man finished his call and got up .
“Do you know who I just called? That person…”
Ian ignored him and turned to the officer in charge . The police officer had a distressed expression on his face .
He was obviously disgusted at the actions of the powerful, but it was a world where innocent people would be sacrificed . A scenario where the student called Park Jungtae was in trouble was painted in his head .
“Inspector-nim . ”
“Yes . ”
“I’ll be back after a phone call . ”
The cop looked at Ian . He, the man who was the guardian of the girl who caused the fight, was consistently calm . He felt something dignified in that attitude .
“Yes . ”
He expected a possible reversal of the situation .