Daddy is too Strong-Chapter 32

AT Center, located in Seocho-gu, Gangnam, was an exhibition and convention center affiliated with the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation. It hosted various events, including exhibitions and viewings, under the operation and management of COEX[1].

It was a significant day, marking the last day of the Hunter Festival, which had been running for the past two weeks.

“Father, look! There are so many people here!” Yoon-Hee remarked as she looked at Do-Jun with a broad smile.

“I-I can’t breathe, Master.”

Yong-Yong was squirming in Yoon-Hee’s arms, trying to escape, but she frowned at his struggle and hugged him closer to her chest.

“No way! There are so many people; you might get stepped on.”

“M-master... Ugh. This is torture.” Yong-Yong sent a rescue signal to Do-Jun with his eyes.

Do-Jun smiled at Yoon-Hee and said, “Yoon-Hee, would you give him to me?”

“B-but he might be too heavy for you.”

“It’s okay. I can handle that much.”

Yong-Yong’s expression brightened, thinking Do-Jun would put him down on the ground.

But that was a big mistake.

Do-Jun grabbed Yong-Yong by the head and carried him with one hand. “Are you more comfortable now?”

“I was wrong, Master. Please forgive me. I have committed a grave sin.”

“I’m just joking. Be careful not to get stepped on.” He placed Yong-Yong on the ground.

Honestly, it wouldn’t matter, even if he got stepped on. Would a dragon get hurt from merely being stepped on by a human?

Sniff, sniff.

“This smell...”

A slightly spicy yet sweet aroma drew Yong-Yong as if it were enchanting the dragon.

And when he looked up, he saw a sign: Special Goblin Ribs! Only 9,900 won per serving!

“Ribs!” Yong-Yong panted like a dog as his eyes sparkled with excitement.

Seeing this, Do-Jun and Yoon-Hee smiled at each other and walked over to the stall selling goblin ribs.

“Welcome! These are ribs made with fresh goblin meat sourced from the Fissure yesterday! We’re offering them for just 9,900 won during the festival period.”

Do-Jun took out a ten thousand won bill from his wallet and handed it to the vendor.

“We’ll take one, please.”

“Thank you! It’ll be ready in just a moment.”

Sizzle!

A few ribs stored in the refrigerator were placed on the grill and began to cook with a delicious sizzling sound. Unable to contain himself, Yong-Yong bounced on the spot.

“Oh, he’s cute. Are you a Tamer?” the vendor asked after seeing Yong-Yong.

“I’m raising him, but I’m not a Hunter.”

“Haha, I see. Well, just because you’ve Awakened doesn’t mean you have to become a Hunter.”

Do-Jun nodded.

A moment later, the vendor packed the ribs in a takeout container.

“You two make such a lovely couple, so I’ve added a little extra. Enjoy!”

“That... well, thank you,” Do-Jun thanked the vendor, took the ribs without any denial, and tossed a piece into Yong-Yong’s mouth.

Chomp, chomp.

“I... love... ribs...” Yong-Yong said between mouthfuls.

“Yoon-Hee, you should try one too... Hey, what’s wrong?” Do-Jun asked her.

Yoon-Hee had lowered her head. When Do-Jun bent to check on her, he found her face bright red, like a tomato.

“You don’t want any?” he asked.

“Ahh!” Yoon-Hee jumped back, startled.

“Are you not feeling well?”

“N-no! It’s nothing.”

“Let me know if you don’t feel well.”

“I-I will...”

“Master, could I have one more, please?”

As Do-Jun took another rib from the container and gave it to Yong-Yong, Yoon-Hee took a deep breath and steadied herself.

***

The inside of the convention center was much bigger than expected. With the exhibition halls separated into first and second floors, the crowd seemed larger than outside.

Do-Jun glanced at the paper band wrapped around his wrist. “You have to pay again to see the inside?”

At four thousand won per person, it wasn’t an expensive event by any means.

“Father, would you like to take a picture with this?”

“A picture?”

“Yes. Just cross your arms like this so the band shows.”

Do-Jun extended his left arm with the band, and Yoon-Hee placed her arm over Do-Jun’s wrist and took a quick photo with her smartphone.

Looking at the newly taken photo in her gallery, she smiled in satisfaction.

“Hmm?” Then, Yong-Yong saw a puppy approaching him.

For some reason, the puppy started barking at Yong-Yong.

“Woof! Woof woof!”

“What’s your problem...?” Yong-Yong said to the dog.

“Woof! Woof!”

At the dog’s attitude, Yong-Yong decided to give it a little taste of himself. “Grrrr.”

Startled by Yong-Yong’s growling, the puppy tucked its tail between its legs and ran to its owner nearby.

Yong-Yong chuckled at the sight.

“I’m so sorry, so sorry!” The puppy’s owner ran over to Do-Jun to apologize, who awkwardly waved it off with a smile.

It seemed the owner had accidentally let go of the leash.

“Shouldn’t Yong-Yong wear a leash too? There’s a sign over there saying all pets must be on a leash,” Yoon-Hee suggested.

“W-what did you say?” Yong-Yong muttered in utter disbelief.

“That sounds like a good idea,” Do-Jun agreed without hesitation.

“I... need to wear... a leash?”

And just like that, Izaas, now known as Yong-Yong, the adorable dragon, wore a leash around his neck.

“If other dragons see this, they’ll definitely laugh at me... I want to die,” Yong-Yong cried.

It was the greatest humiliation of his long dragon life.

***

A-3 Exhibition Hall was where Hunter equipment and supplies were being sold—everything from suits to weapons, accessories, and miscellaneous items ranging in grade from F to A-rank.

“F-father! Look at this,” Yoon-Hee said.

“Hm?”

In Yoon-Hee’s hand was a small ring labeled as a B-rank item, Elder Elf’s Ring.

It increased the user’s Agility by 25 and slightly boosted Accuracy, but the price was unrealistic.

“800 million...?”

Why was Hunter equipment so expensive?

Do-Jun felt concerned seeing Yoon-Hee’s eyes sparkle as she fidgeted with the ring in her hand. All he had on him was eighty thousand won in cash and a debit card with a little over 200 million won.

Of course, he could easily get a billion won if he sold all the mana stones he had at home, but even with that, a ring of this price wasn’t something he should easily buy for her.

“If you’re interested in that ring, it’s a rare accessory obtained by defeating the Elder Elf in the Dark Elf’s Forest, a B-rank Great Fissure. It’s one of our shop’s featured items. If you purchase it now, you can get a five percent discount,” the clerk said as he approached with a friendly smile, but Yoon-Hee shook her head and put the ring back.

She was only browsing, with no intention or means to purchase it.

“No, just seeing such a great item is enough for me.”

“The price is a bit steep, isn’t it? In that case, how about participating in our event?” the clerk suggested.

“An event?”

“Yes.” The clerk, Cha Ik-Hyun, smiled and pointed to the right to a partitioned area about 1.5 meters wide and 30 meters long with a sign next to it that read, “Challenge! Sharpshooter.”

“What’s this?” Yoon-Hee asked him curiously.

“There are ten targets inside the partition, spaced three meters apart. You can shoot them down with a mana gun, and we’ll give you prizes according to how many targets you knock down. If you shoot down all ten targets, then the Elder Elf’s Ring is yours.”

“I-I want to try! How do I—” But Yoon-Hee couldn’t finish her sentence. One attempt at the challenge cost a million won. It was an absurdly high price. “Ah... I think I’ll pass...”

“Move if you’re not going to play. Let me give it a try.”

Just then, a big man over 185 cm tall rolled up his sleeves and approached Cha Ik-Hyun.

“You accept cards, right?” the big man said to Cha Ik-Hyun without any honorifics.

“Yes, of course.”

The large man swiped his card, and Cha Ik-Hyun handed him a mana gun.

Once the man walked up to the shooting range, Cha Ik-Hyun explained from the side, “You have three chances in total. By the way, the farther back the target, the sturdier it is.”

“Heh. How sturdy could these targets be? Get ready to pack up that Elder Elf’s Ring, shopkeeper.”

But Cha Ik-Hyun only chuckled at the man’s words. Despite the many attempts today, the highest record was five targets by an S-rank Hunter, ranked eleventh.

The last target was especially impossible to knock down, being made from the bone of an S-rank monster.

Even the strongest Hunter, Lee Kang-Hyun, wouldn’t be able to knock down all ten, Cha Ik-Hyun thought with a smile.

Knowing that knocking down all ten targets with just three shots would require overwhelming mana, the man focused on carefully charging the mana gun with his mana, then took the shots.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

After a series of loud bangs echoed through the shooting range, Cha Ik-Hyun walked over to check the knocked-down targets.

Only two had fallen.

“You got two, impressive! You win a buff potion worth three million won.”

The man’s hand trembled. He was a B-rank Hunter, but even after using ninety percent of his mana, only two targets had fallen. Moreover, he had to hit the second target twice to knock it down.

“Are you kidding me? What kind of scam is this?” he shouted.

“I’m sure I told you that the targets are sturdier the farther back they are.”

The people around them began to stare and whisper at the raised voices. Feeling embarrassed, the man clicked his tongue.

Do-Jun glanced over the list of prizes based on the number of targets hit.

“May I give it a try?” he asked Cha Ik-Hyun.

“F-father?”

Cha Ik-Hyun nodded and extended the card reader to Do-Jun.

After the transaction went through, Do-Jun was handed the receipt along with the mana gun and walked up to the shooting range.

“Please wait a moment.” Cha Ik-Hyun walked over to the machine, reset the fallen targets, and said, “Whenever you’re ready, sir.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Click.

Do-Jun assumed a firing stance. He then took only a tiny bit of his internal energy in his dantian and channeled it into the mana gun.

Pew!

The first mana bullet he fired struck the target’s bullseye, but the target did not fall. The same went for the second and third shots. Despite managing to hit the targets, all that was left were a few scratches on them, and none fell.

Cha Ik-Hyun walked over to check the target.

“Oh... That’s too bad. As a consolation prize, here’s a 100 thousand won gift certificate for you to use here.”

It was an outcome that everyone expected. Cha Ik-Hyun thought of Do-Jun as a D-rank or E-rank Hunter, and even the very first target was too much for Hunters below D-rank to knock down.

As Cha Ik-Hyun was about to wrap things up, someone ran up to him and whispered in his ear, making him widen his eyes. He lifted the partition slightly to peek inside, and after a moment, he approached Do-Jun with a ring in his hand.

It was a D-rank ring labeled Ring of Beginner’s Agility with the effect of increasing the user’s Agility by 10.

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“Here,” Do-Jun said as he handed the ring to Yoon-Hee.

“Huh...?”

“I hope this counts for something, for now, at least.”

"B-but Father, you won this...”

Do-Jun patted Yoon-Hee’s head and said, “You should say, ‘Thank you.’”

Blushing, Yoon-Hee mumbled, “Thank you...”

“That’s good enough.” Do-Jun smiled slightly.

***

As Cha Ik-Hyun stood blankly in front of the shooting range, the man who took a turn before Do-Jun approached to check the target.

His face twisted as he grabbed Cha Ik-Hyun by the collar and angrily said, “Are you joking? None of them fell! Are you discriminating or what?”

He rechecked the target, but all he could see were three scratches in the center of the first target. It hadn’t fallen.

“Anyone can do this! Hey, run it back. If I hit the center three times, I get the same ring as that guy, right?”

“Did you just say that anyone can do this...?” Cha Ik-Hyun asked, pulling back the partition.

The man’s eyes widened as the targets hidden behind the partition were revealed. The eighth, ninth, and tenth targets were shattered.

Cha Ik-Hyun looked at the man and asked, “Can you do it like this?”

1. COEX is a well-known mall/ tourist attraction in Seoul. ☜