KISS THE SCUMBAG Chapter 6

He knew more than enough that they had no intention of treating him as a guest. In the past, he would have been brought to tears by the misery of it, but now, he felt nothing of the sort. In his mind, there was only a sense of indifference—a thought that “these people haven’t changed a bit”—along with the sole desire to rest with his child.

Finally, when the butler managed to open the door to the hallway, Yujin let out a sigh of relief. The surroundings were as silent as the grave while he walked, holding his child, behind the butler. All that could be heard were his own footsteps and the butler’s. Just as he felt he had been walking endlessly through the wide, long hallway, Caine finally stopped in front of a room. As Yujin was about to let out an involuntary sigh, he hurriedly pulled himself together. The butler took a set of keys from his pocket, inserted one, turned it, and twisted the knob to open the door. Yujin hurriedly stepped inside the room with the child.

The interior was something other than what he had expected. True to the general style of a mansion built over a century ago, it wasn’t a room with an antique atmosphere; rather, it looked as if it had been carved out in a hurry. It was narrow, and there was only one piece of furniture. The bed, pressed firmly against one wall, was a mere single size. The meaning was obvious.

Even though the contempt directed at them was clear, Yujin remained calm. Trying to harass them with such childish tactics was a futile effort. Besides, Angela and he had always slept huddled tightly together in narrow beds anyway.

Not that it matters, Yujin thought, opening his mouth.

“Where is the bathroom? I’d like to wash up.”

There were countless rooms and bathrooms in the mansion. To Yujin, who was asking which one he should use, the butler replied with something other than the answer he wanted.

“There is someone you must meet before that. Please follow me.”

“Just a moment.”

Yujin said hurriedly, then carefully laid Angela down on the bed. Fortunately, the child was sound asleep, snoring softly. After telling the butler he would be out shortly, he closed the door, took off his daughter’s shoes and clothes, and changed her into her pajamas. He should have bathed her, but given how deeply she was sleeping and the circumstances, he boldly decided to let it slide for tonight.

A day won’t hurt.

After roughly tidying up, he opened the child’s sketchbook, wrote a large message on a blank page, and placed it at the head of the bed so she would see it immediately if she woke up while he was away. Angela was remarkably bright—she already knew how to read and write and was quite good at simple arithmetic. Her brilliance was a great help at times like this. Yujin kissed his daughter’s forehead in gratitude. When he stepped outside, the butler was still standing there, his back straight as a rod. Yujin, standing empty-handed before him, asked the butler, who turned to leave without a word.

“Who is it that I must meet?”

It was nearly midnight. What could they possibly want to talk about that they had to wait up until this hour for him? Growing inwardly anxious, Yujin watched the butler stop and turn his head.

“Mrs. Campbell.”

Ah, he almost let out an involuntary sigh. There was only one person in this household called Mrs. Campbell. The eldest daughter, who had had a brief marriage to a British noble, had to be called “Lady,” and the only daughter-in-law, though she took the Campbell name, was never called “Mrs. Campbell” by anyone. Only she was recognized as “Mrs. Campbell.” Ever since Yujin had first entered this house as a very young child, and even now.

As if he had nothing more to say, the butler turned and began to walk. Yujin followed, his lips sealed.

Only the footsteps of the butler and Yujin echoed ominously through the quiet house. The grand mansion, which once overflowed with laughter, seemed to be holding its breath, as if it knew of its master’s absence. Yujin walked on in silence, feeling a suffocating sense of pressure weighing on his chest. The butler, retracing the path they had taken earlier, opened a side door and this time headed downward.

After what felt like a long descent, he opened a door to reveal a hallway so long it made Yujin want to sigh again. As he walked, barely suppressing the urge to shout at them to stop, Yujin suddenly noticed that the appearance of this hallway was distinct from the previous one. The paintings lined up along the walls were all either landscapes of the mansion or the faces of those presumed to be ancestors. When a portrait of a woman in an antique dress—who looked to be the long-deceased mistress of the house—came into view, the butler suddenly stopped. Yujin silently watched as the butler knocked lightly, waited a beat, turned the handle, and opened the door. The butler then stepped inside and spoke.

“Mrs. Campbell, I have brought the guest.”

Speaking in a dry tone, as if reading a user manual for an electronic device, he stepped aside. Seeing the butler extend an arm, gesturing for him to go inside, Yujin barely managed to suppress the urge to let out a deep breath. He passed by without giving him a single glance. Upon entering, in the reception room, he found Mrs. Campbell and another man sitting as expected. It was the eldest son, Gordon. He felt his face stiffen the moment he faced them, but there was nothing to be done about it this time.

Unlike Mrs. Campbell, who sat with her back straight and posture rigid, Gordon was staring at him in a thug-like fashion, legs spread wide, leaning over with his arm resting on one thigh.

Yujin subtly tightened his hand, which had been hanging loosely. It’s okay, he thought to himself. It’s different from back then. I have Angela. For my child, I can be stronger than anyone else in the world.

So, it’s okay.

Just as he was thinking that, the butler suddenly asked,

“Shall I prepare something to drink?”

“No, thank you.”

Yujin refused immediately. They weren’t asking him, anyway. But his intention to not drag this out for too long was clearly conveyed. The butler shifted his gaze from Yujin, who was standing stubbornly. Seeing the butler look at Mrs. Campbell as if waiting for instructions, she gave a light wave of her hand, as if it didn’t matter.

Soon, he heard the sound of the door closing behind him. The butler had left the reception room. Yujin remained standing in place, not moving an inch. Other than moving his hands behind his back to clasp them together.

It was Mrs. Campbell who broke the uncomfortable silence. She furrowed her brows and made a small tsk sound with her tongue.

“You haven’t changed at all. Do you still not know how to greet people?”

At her particularly sharp tone, Yujin merely looked at her with an expressionless face. In the past, he had been so intimidated that he couldn’t find the right timing to greet them, which had led to misunderstandings, but now, he simply had no desire to be the first to speak. The young child who used to be hurt by such cold treatment was no longer there. They would not be able to hurt Yujin with anything ever again. Not ever, not again.

Watching Yujin, who still offered no reaction, Gordon scoffed and said, loud enough for Yujin to hear,

“What do you expect from him? Can a guy who lived by selling his body learn anything?”

It’s a good thing I left Angela to sleep in the room. Yujin breathed a secret sigh of relief and opened his mouth in a stiff tone.

“Is that all you have to say? It’s late, so I’d like to get some rest.”

At Yujin’s question, both Mrs. Campbell and Gordon hesitated. They clearly had not expected him to dare behave with such insolence. Of course, they wouldn’t, Yujin thought.

If it were the Yujin of the past, such behavior would have been unthinkable. The past Yujin, as they had wished, would have been thoroughly intimidated, eyes brimming with tears, panicked and begging as if he had committed a capital offense.

You must have expected me to fill your need for superiority and arrogance, just like back then.

But it had already been five years. And in that time, Yujin had changed. He had no reason to cling to them grovelingly as he had back then.

At Yujin’s gaze, which looked straight at her, Mrs. Campbell was so taken aback that she couldn’t speak immediately and instead took a sip of her black tea. After taking the time to calm her emotions, she returned to her usual attitude and opened her mouth.

“Do you really have to be so troublesome?”