World Chapter 1.1

It is dark.

At first dawn, as the sun rises over the mountain ridge, only that part of the sky spreads out faintly red.

I blow a puff of white breath into the frosty, foggy winter air. The mountain air is clear and pure. It is the kind of air I want to embed deep in the roots of my eyes.

I take a long, deep breath. The cold air fills my lungs. A refreshing feeling spreads from deep within my chest. Standing here at a bus terminal, about to leave for somewhere in this early dawn when no one is awake, I feel utterly awkward and strange.

I kept breathing in and out. Just as the time to leave arrived, excitement and fear washed over me at the same time. I eased the unfamiliar feeling with long breaths.

“What are you doing?”

“Ugh!”

As I was savoring the cold dawn air that filled my lungs, Youngwoo hit my back hard with a thud. The pain was unusually sharp. I hunched my back and shouted.

“That hurts!”

“Are you going now?”

“Yeah, I’m going now!”

“Good for you. All you did was sing ‘Seoul, Seoul.’ Are you happy now that you’re going to Seoul?”

“……”

I stared silently at Youngwoo’s sarcastic face.

Of course I’m happy. Why else did I study so hard?

But now that the time to leave had come, the reality of having to live alone in a strange place brought a daunting fear to me, who had been eagerly awaiting this day with nothing but excitement.

No. People live everywhere. There’s nothing to be afraid of.

Soothing my fear, I tensed my chest as if to feign courage and said.

“Of course, you punk.”

“Oh, the bus is coming.”

At Youngwoo’s words, I gripped the handle of my suitcase.

In the deep dawn, the first bus of the village, which comes only once an hour, is approaching from a distance, cutting through the fog with its hazy, orange headlights flickering.

In my haste, I pulled Youngwoo into a tight hug. His firm chest pressed against mine. As soon as we touched, a warmth spread through me.

“Don’t be bored just because I’m not here, and take good care of the kids. Stay healthy.”

“You be careful. Don’t just follow anyone who says they’ll buy you something delicious.”

“Don’t worry about me, you fool. Take good care of my father and mother, too.”

“I already do a better job than you.”

Patting my back with his earth-scented hands, Youngwoo replied to each of my many requests with a “sure, sure.” Then he released his arms from around me, telling me to go.

I looked closely at Youngwoo’s face.

His eyes are simple and clear. They are also the responsible eyes of the de facto head of his household, who lives with four younger siblings and his sick father and mother. And my only friend of the same age.

“The bus is here. Go on.”

“Youngwoo.”

“What now? I told you to go.”

“Youngwoooo.”

“What, you punk!”

“Hee hee, don’t cry because you miss me.”

“You’re the one who’s going to cry. Hurry up and get lost.”

Youngwoo picked up my suitcase for me and loaded it onto the bus. It was the first bus, so there were no other passengers. The bus driver, Mr. Jung, recognized me as I leisurely boarded and asked.

“Are you going to Seoul this early in the morning? Looks like it’s about to snow. Did you sort out your transportation?”

“I’ve already booked everything in advance.”

“Well, I’ll be. It’s amazing enough that someone from this backwoods village is going to college, but to think we have someone going to the best one in the country.”

I let the driver’s words go in one ear and out the other, sat down by the window, and vigorously rubbed the glass, which was quickly fogging up.

The sight of Youngwoo standing outside the bus window finally came into view.

Looking at Youngwoo, the tip of my nose tingled.

I had planned to have a private talk with my father and then come out for the early morning bus, worried I would burst into tears if Youngwoo saw me off. I was grateful and amazed at Youngwoo’s thoughtfulness for seeing through my intentions and coming out to see me off in this early dawn.

I folded my fingers into the shape of a phone, held it to my ear, and mouthed.

‘I’ll. Call. You.’

Youngwoo saw my signal, nodded, and waved his hand.

The old country bus shuddered and then lurched forward. Youngwoo grew distant. My hometown grew distant. I ran to the back seat and leaned against the very edge of the window. He probably couldn’t see me well through the window, but I waved my hand earnestly anyway.

“Kids these days, making such a fuss over a farewell.”

The driver chuckled and muttered.

Before I knew it, Youngwoo was gone, and the early dawn twilight filled the view outside the window.

I turned back to face forward and let out a deep sigh.

The sadness of parting made my eyes well up. Trying not to sink into a sentimental mood, I rubbed my eyes fiercely with the back of my hand.

Youngwoo, me, and Youngwoo’s younger siblings. Jiwoo, Chanwoo, Dongwoo. And the cute youngest, Sooni.

My parents were one thing, but when I pictured their faces in my mind, my heart ached as if I were leaving my own flesh and blood behind. Only then did the reality of leaving the place I had always lived for a strange land sink in.

My father was a church pastor who, disillusioned with city life, had settled here and established a pioneer church. My mother, who had been a teacher, willingly followed my father. My mother took charge of a school on the verge of closing and became a teacher at the small school with fewer than ten students, including Youngwoo and me.

Our village is a deep mountain village that gets isolated when it snows. It’s a simple countryside where people mainly grow mushrooms and make a living by farming on the carved-out mountainsides. Youngwoo was my only friend of the same age, and he and I were the big brothers to all the kids in this village.

Coincidentally, both our families even used ‘woo’ as the generational name marker, so our bond was as tight as that of blood relatives.

In terms of studies, Youngwoo and I were at a similar level. However, I had better circumstances for studying than Youngwoo did, so I got into college. The unambitious Youngwoo said that a high school diploma was enough for him.

Since there wasn’t even a high school here and we had to commute far, Youngwoo’s words weren’t just an empty statement. My father, aware of Youngwoo’s intelligence, had advised him to go to the city with me and continue his studies, but with Youngwoo’s father bedridden for a long time due to a chronic illness, it was impossible for him, as the eldest brother, to continue his studies while leaving his young siblings behind.

Perhaps because he was well aware of his situation, Youngwoo had no ambitions.

He used to say, as a habit, that it was enough to learn just enough to answer his younger siblings’ questions clearly. Most likely, that filial heart of his had crushed his personal ambitions.

Fool, as if anyone wouldn’t know his true feelings.

I rubbed my stinging nose. Outside the bus window, the fog was lifting, and the sun was rising clearly.

After arriving in Seoul, I stayed at my aunt’s house for a few days.

I had never left my hometown since moving to the countryside as a child. There was no country bumpkin quite like me.

My initial worry of ‘what if I get homesick?’ was rendered meaningless as I went around sightseeing with such excitement that I was completely captivated. It was so amazing and fun that I, who had worried I might die from missing them, didn’t think of my parents at all, to the point where I felt sorry.

Time flew by, and soon it was February. The urgent problem of having to find a room for myself, which hadn’t been in the plan, had arisen.

At first, I had planned to live with my aunt as my parents advised, but her house was in a location with poor transportation, taking over three hours for a round trip to school, and my aunt was a newlywed, just a year into her marriage.

After actually living together for a few days, both my aunt and I found it subtly uncomfortable. Whenever her grown-up nephew, whom she hadn’t seen often, appeared unannounced through the front door, a look of belated regret, as if she had made some kind of mistake, was evident on my aunt’s face.

In the end, using the commute time as an excuse, I got my parents’ permission and decided to find my own place.

The task of finding a place was a far cry from the fun of sightseeing. It was a tedious job with more than a few things to consider, as it was a place I would live in for a semester at the shortest, or until I went to the military at the longest.

I tried using the internet and checked out properties introduced by a real estate agent by visiting them myself, but even though I’m not a particularly picky person, there was always one thing that I decisively disliked. After rejecting several places saying I didn’t like them for this reason or that, the agent blew up at me, saying I was being unusually fussy, and I had no choice but to look for another agency.

After wandering for a long time through the alleys near the school, a worn-out sign that said ‘Real Estate’ in a dim spot caught my eye. It was a time when they should have been busy with students looking for rooms before the semester started, but its exceptionally quiet and shabby appearance made me hesitate at the door.

I was peeking in and about to turn away when the door suddenly burst open.

“……”

It seemed like no one was there…

It was as if the door had opened by itself. Wondering why the door had suddenly opened, I moved closer and looked inside. A bald man was dozing on the sofa. The man looked as shabby as the old sign. As the cold wind seeped through the open door, he shivered as if startled and opened his eyes.

The man spotted me and stretched long. I heard the cracking sound of his joints popping.

“You must be a new student. Looking for a room to rent?”

“Huh? Me? Oh, yes.”

I answered in a daze. The bald man was shabby, but his eyes were those of a top-tier real estate agent. When I answered meekly, the man slowly got up and came outside. There was no reason for it, but for some reason, I felt a chilling shiver run down my spine.

“Well, seeing as you’re looking for a place around here, you must be a pretty smart fellow, eh?”

“No, not really. I was just lucky.”

“Haha, so humble. Is there any particular kind of room you’re looking for?”

“It has to be a single room, no matter what. And I’d like it to be clean and quiet. I’m the type to study at home.”

“A great room just became available. The owner of that house is very particular, so they look at the person before the money. They only let you live there if the owner likes you.”

“……”

“A bit eccentric, right? What do you think, want to go take a look?”

“Yes, let’s do that.”

I followed the man. He walked with a slow gait, telling me jokes. Most of them were philosophical remarks that seemed to hold insight into the ways of the world, which reminded me of my father. Perhaps that’s why I felt more at ease; a passing lady gave me an embarrassed look as I occasionally laughed and responded to the man’s words, but the real estate agent was the most likable person I had met in Seoul.

We walked for about ten minutes and left the dense residential area.

The man opened his mouth, speaking in a slow tone.

“A place bustling with too many students isn’t good for studying. People who don’t know any better go to places like that. If you stay in a place with bad energy, even your mind becomes lax. Your body and mind get ruined without you even realizing it.”

“Oh, I see.”

“You have clear energy.”

“Pardon?”

“I said, your energy is clear.”

“……”

I turned to look at him, wondering what he was talking about.

Clear energy… It was the first time I had ever heard such a thing in my life.

Was this one of those ‘Do you know the Way?’ things? I remembered Youngwoo’s warning—a guy who had never even been to Seoul—to be wary and cautious of people who approach you saying your energy is clear and your impression is bright.

“I don’t think so.”

“No, your energy is truly clear. Where is your hometown?”

“Have you ever heard of Nochusan Mountain? It’s a place you pass after Daegwallyeong Pass, a village beyond Nochusan. It’s a place where it snows a lot.”

“A dragon has risen from a backwater village, I see.”

The man listened to my words and replied rather bluntly.

Walking and talking with the man, we soon arrived in front of the house he was introducing.

For a moment, I was spellbound, looking up at the house.

It was a European-style house like one I had seen in my mother’s photo album. It was neither too big nor too small, with a structure where the yard was clearly visible over a low wall, and the yard was even covered in grass. It was the kind of garden where a large dog with dazzlingly white fur seemed like it would come running out, barking loudly.

The surroundings were quiet. It was a wonderful house that seemed to stand apart from the other houses in this alley, both in atmosphere and feel.

“What do you think? The exterior is great, isn’t it? The inside is even better.”

“Wow, it looks like a house I’ve seen in pictures.”

It was as if I were looking at the very house I had always wanted to live in.

The house I had pictured in my dreams, that was the house.

I gaped, utterly excited.

“I don’t know if the owner is here right now. There are a few other students besides you. They’re all good, upright kids. They’re all guys I know.”

The man smiled with satisfaction. He spoke as if he were boasting about his own children.

The man pressed the bell, and shortly after, someone opened the door and came out. I gasped and stared at him.

A pale face, as if he lived without seeing the sun, a slender build with long limbs. He was a man with an appearance so refined and urban that it seemed to exude a sense of grace. This must be what people mean by ‘trendy.’

“Oh, mister?”

The trendy man saw the bald man and walked out with a welcoming smile. His steps were light and soundless.

“Have you been well?”

“We’re doing fine. What about you, mister? Are you well?”

“I’m getting by, one way or another.”

I, who had been staring blankly at the Seoul man, finally turned my gaze to the agent at his reply.

Is he sick somewhere?

As I was studying the bald man’s complexion, the Seoul man asked.

“Who is this?”

“Ah, this is the student who’ll be living in this house starting this year.”

“……”

I hadn’t even checked the inside yet, nor had I decided what to do, but he spoke in a tone that hammered it in, without even asking my opinion.

I didn’t object. The man’s words didn’t matter. I felt like I would be fine even if this house had only one bathroom, and I would be fine even if the heating didn’t work.

This house was the house of my dreams. It wasn’t just the exterior of the house. I, who had grown up in the backwoods, had been completely captivated by that urbane and sophisticated man at first sight. My reason had fled far away, and my instincts were demanding this place.

As I was looking at him with a pounding heart, the Seoul man’s eyes turned to me.

“Looking for a room to rent?”

“Yes.”

“Come on in, a room just opened up.”

I was really lucky.

Along with the agent, I followed the man’s lead and entered the house. He added the explanation that the landlord was away, but he was the landlord’s representative, so I could talk to him about any issues, be it the contract or anything else.

The interior was even more antique than the outside. In the clean and tidy living room, there was an old record player in the currently popular retro style. In front of it was a worn leather sofa, which looked as natural as a vintage piece deliberately made to look old.

There were six rooms in total. Originally, the owner had built the house to spend his later years with his wife, but after losing her in an accident, he was now wandering abroad, so he had completely transformed the house into a boarding house for students.

Including the man, there were four people living there, and they seemed to be students attending the same university. The first floor had a living room, kitchen, toilet, bathroom, and two rooms, while the upper floor had two bathrooms and four rooms.

I went up to the second floor to look at what would be my room from now on. The view was good, and above all, it was spacious and a refreshingly cool space.

“Do you like it?”

The man looked at me, unable to hide my delight with the room, and asked with a smile on his face.

“Yes, I love it.”

“Well, that’s great. What do you think, you can accept this student, right?”

“You’re the one who picked him and brought him here, mister. Of course. What about his luggage?”

“It’s still at my aunt’s house. Can I move in right away?”

“Go ahead. You can even move in starting today.”

“That’s great. My aunt is a newlywed, so I felt sorry for imposing on her for even a short while.”

“My name is Ji Sungjoon.”

“Ah, yes. Let me introduce myself properly. I am Jung Hyunwoo. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Oh, and just in case you’re wondering, everyone living in this house is a guy. We all live together informally. They’ll be back in the evening, so I’ll introduce you.”

With Sungjoon’s hearty permission, I was finally able to find a place to live.

That very day, I packed my things from my aunt’s house and moved in.

I was thrilled that it was the house of my dreams, and the rent was also cheaper than the market price in the area, to the point where I couldn’t believe if this was a dream or reality. It was quiet, so it seemed like I would be able to study well.

By the time I had roughly unpacked and finished organizing, a considerable amount of time had passed. I watched the evening descend beyond the window and then went down to the living room.

There were many things I wanted to ask Sungjoon-sunbae. In the living room, besides Ji Sungjoon-sunbae, there was another man sitting on the sofa. If Sungjoon was like a soft reed, this man had an impression as cold as hard ice.

Sungjoon spotted me and greeted me with a smile.

“Ah, Hyunwoo. Finished organizing your things? Come here. I’ll introduce you. Hey, this is the new guy. He’s a freshman this year.”

“Hello. I’m Jung Hyunwoo.”

“Nice to meet you. Heo Seok.”

“……”

Just as his appearance suggested, he was a man of few words. He spat out only necessary words as if cutting a radish, and he had cool eyes that seemed to glare at people. His gaze, as if he were staring right through me, was embarrassing.

At home, I was considered an extrovert, but after coming to Seoul, perhaps because it wasn’t the place I had always lived, I became a little less talkative and was shy around people I met for the first time. This was probably because my only friend my age was Youngwoo, so I had almost never experienced the process of getting to know new people.