MTLNOVEL chapter 1144 - The long-awaited feast (3)
According to the order of events, the next step was for the family to offer their congratulations.
When thinking about Kim Shin-rok's family, the first ones that come to mind are Jeok-ho and Ung-nyeo, but they were the organizers of the event.
So, the representative of the family was Huang Jiho.
It was Huang Jiho who took the stage to offer the kind of congratulatory speech that is typically done by relatives at a 100-day celebration.
‘By holding a 100-day celebration, Kim Shin-rok has publicly announced to everyone that he’s family, but did he feel that wasn’t enough?’
Huang Jiho and the Hojo family members in attendance appeared genuinely happy about the celebration.
Not just Jeok-ho’s close friends, but also the couple who attended with Ahn Da-in seemed the same.
The tigers didn’t hide their congratulations and joy toward Kim Shin-rok.
Huang Jiho, standing on the stage, spoke.
“Long ago, when my lord Jeho was born and his 100th day passed, we wanted to introduce him and hold a celebration to commemorate the birth of a descendant. Those who were invited back then are probably here now.”
In a corner of the stage, “Yeah, I was invited that time!” Yang Je-gun boasted without holding the microphone.
Kim Shin-rok, who was the one most susceptible to Yang Je-gun’s words, treated his only close friend like an annoying presence and focused on Huang Jiho’s words instead.
Huang Jiho briefly shared anecdotes and feelings from Kim Shin-rok’s birth and upbringing.
When the story about him scribbling on Cheong-ho’s dojo wall as a child came up, Cheong-ho laughed as if he already knew about it, while Kim Shin-rok wore a blank expression.
He probably thought he hadn’t been caught.
“Not only did Huang-ho know, huh…”
“Cheong-ho came and told me. He said that you probably scribbled as practice to try making a barrier-level formation similar to Huang-ho’s.”
“Cheong-ho’s dojo security wouldn’t have been lax, so just leaving graffiti would have been impressive.”
When Jeok-ho and Ung-nyeo praised him, Kim Shin-rok lowered his head deeply.
In the end, Kim Shin-rok had no talent for the barrier arts, so it ended as mere graffiti, but infiltrating the dojo to scribble and get away with it was a remarkable ability.
Some of the True Clan members present murmured, “In Cheong-ho’s dojo? Impressive,” and “Wasn’t that the time when Cheong-ho was still active? How did a child manage to infiltrate?”
‘If they’re talking about a newcomer, that person is still here today.’
Among those present were teachers from Eungwang High connected to the Hojo family.
Among them were Gong Cheong-hwon and our homeroom teacher, Ham Geun-hyeong.
Ham Geun-hyeong seemed to attend with mixed feelings, probably because attending the 100-day celebration of a colleague’s child was a bit complicated, but it must have been less troublesome than attending the celebration of a chairman from the Jik Association.
Unlike Ham Geun-hyeong, whose occasionally perplexed expressions made it clear that he was uneasy, Gong Cheong-hwon smiled warmly and gently throughout.
With a joyful tone, Gong Cheong-hwon even said something like this.
“I feel like I’ve been eagerly anticipating this moment.”
Perhaps the newcomer had also been waiting for the 100-day celebration of the first descendant the Hojo family obtained long ago. Even if they couldn’t remember it now.
But when Huang Jiho mentioned Kim Shin-rok’s past during his congratulatory speech, including how he often visited the newcomer’s treasure vault and enjoyed the appreciation of precious items, I wondered how they would feel about that.
Kim Shin-rok also seemed curious, as when Huang Jiho said this, he glanced at Gong Cheong-hwon with a face full of resignation.
Fortunately, Gong Cheong-hwon listened with a smile, showing no change in expression.
“Time that has passed cannot be reversed. Instead, I wish for a future filled with happiness for Jeho, and I will make every effort to ensure those days continue.”
When Huang Jiho, appearing to be in his 30s, finished speaking, applause erupted.
It wasn’t a long speech, but his heartfelt words seemed to have conveyed his affection for Kim Shin-rok, and everyone, whether from the Hojo family, the True Clan, or Eungwang High, clapped.
Among those clapping was Seong Guk-eon.
It was a moment of deep sentiment to see Seong Guk-eon, who had once hated both the True Clan and descendants, now applauding during the 100-day celebration of a descendant.
‘Moreover, he didn’t just participate, he also exchanged greetings with True Clan members other than the Hojo family.’
This event invited influential members of the True Clan and players who weren’t a threat to the Hojo family, nor enemies. It meant that Huang Jiho had carefully selected those who had been vetted.
Today, Seong Guk-eon came to congratulate Kim Shin-rok, but as a politician, it would have been foolish to miss the opportunity to expand his connections.
While maintaining the congratulatory purpose, Seong Guk-eon naturally exchanged greetings with unfamiliar True Clan members, broadening his network.
The True Clan members who received his greetings also showed interest in the only player congressman in Korea.
Until last year, Seong Guk-eon had been known for not interacting with the True Clan or descendants, so some of them, curious about him, took the initiative to contact him.
“That was a lovely congratulatory speech. I wish Siwan could have been here to hear it too. It’s such a shame. Do you think he could come now, even if he’s in Eungwang-gu?”
“Siwan said he’s too busy taking care of a junior who is currently serving as the president of the Jiik Association. It’ll be hard to get him here during the break.”
Between the sounds of applause, Seong Guk-eon and Jeon Mu-young could be heard talking.
During his time as a student, Seong Siwan had rarely been directly involved with the Hojo family, but he had indirectly been linked with them through the secret society investigation and the First Christmas matter.
After graduation, he had been involved with the Hojo family during Seong Hyeong-woo’s funeral.
‘The Hojo family probably wanted to invite someone they could trust, someone who could link the political and family circles, so they probably invited him because of his abilities and character, as he is both a former president of the Jiik Association and Seong Guk-eon’s cousin.’
However, it seemed like Seong Siwan had missed the event due to some online trouble.
If he was indeed caught up in something related to an online troll, it wasn’t hard to guess what had happened.
Until recently, he had been posting angry comments on community forums at all hours, so it was clear he wasn’t in a normal mental state.
Based on that, I could say that the troll wasn’t helping at all, but somehow it still managed to catch Seong Siwan.
If he had come to the celebration, Siwan would have wholeheartedly congratulated Kim Shin-rok and enjoyed the party with everyone, but it was such a pity.
‘Anyway, the protagonist is suffering, but everyone is genuinely congratulating and celebrating.’
At this event, the only person trying to make fun of Kim Shin-rok using the 100-day celebration was Yang Je-gun.
As Huang Jiho spoke, Yang Je-gun, who had been closely watching Kim Shin-rok’s reactions, casually returned to the host's seat with leisurely steps.
Some impatient members of the True Clan and humans couldn’t hold back and shouted jeers, but Yang Je-gun’s grin only grew wider.
The more others got annoyed, the happier Yang Je-gun became.
After getting everyone upset, Yang Je-gun continued the event.
“Did you wait a long time? I came slowly so you could enjoy the party more.”
The jeers grew louder.
At Eungwang High, unless the situation was extraordinary, students preferred to avoid Yang Je-gun. However, there were many aggressive individuals present.
Yang Je-gun smiled broadly, savoring the jeers of the crowd.
Those who knew of his accomplishments in the Youhye-ye clan seemed to momentarily hesitate, a chill running down their spine.
“Seems like you’re not enjoying yourselves? I’m having a blast, though. Too bad.”
As the jeers reached their peak, Huang Jiho raised his hand and let a little of his golden Ineungpa energy spill out.
The faint golden aura surrounded the area, and everything immediately fell silent.
Huang Jiho’s power didn’t spread toward Yang Je-gun but toward the guests, signaling that he wasn’t telling Yang Je-gun to shut up but was instead asking the guests to maintain decorum.
When the jeers ceased, Huang Jiho addressed Yang Je-gun.
“Yang Je-gun, continue.”
“Okay, I’ll do that.”
Yang Je-gun calmly smiled.
As he had just said, the one who seemed to be enjoying the 100-day celebration the most was Yang Je-gun.
Huang Jiho laughed, somewhat exasperated, but couldn’t help but smile at Yang Je-gun’s usual Youhye-ye demeanor, clearly not upset with his friend who was enjoying himself.
“Next, we’ll have the reading of a letter to Jeho, followed by the presentation of gifts and the opening ceremony. You must be looking forward to the gifts I gave too, right?”
Kim Shin-rok, who seemed to be sighing with difficulty, didn’t appear to be looking forward to it at all.
Huang Jiho’s comment seemed to have lowered the volume of the whispers, and people’s voices grew quieter.
“Even if you don’t have many friends, why did they choose this Youhye-ye clan member as the host?”
“Think about it. If he hadn’t been the host, he’d have been sitting with the guests. Do you think he’d just stay quietly?”
“Yeah, that makes sense.”
With everyone’s understanding, the letter reading and gift presentation began.
The letter was, of course, read by Jeok-ho and Ung-nyeo.
Jeok-ho and Ung-nyeo came up to the stage holding hands affectionately, acting as if they were the only two people in the world, with Kim Shin-rok the exception.
As they wrote the letter line by line together, they must have memorized it because they didn’t look at the holographic screen or the hand-written letter as they read it aloud.
‘It seems more like they’re reciting the letter than reading it.’
Jeok-ho and Ung-nyeo gazed lovingly at Kim Shin-rok as they read the affectionate letter.
Kim Shin-rok, unable to avert his gaze, blushed as he quietly listened.
Though many years had passed since Kim Shin-rok’s birth, the time spent with the three of them together must have been very short.
‘They must have spent thousands of years without even being able to share the 100th day together.’
Before the 100th day celebration, a tragedy had occurred, and only recently were they able to come together as a family.
Though the celebration was late, it would not be too late in meaning to celebrate the 100th day spent together as a family.
The three of them would celebrate not just the 100th day but also the many days to come.
“I love you. Our Jeho.”
When Jeok-ho and Ung-nyeo finished reading the letter with their warm and heartfelt words, tears filled Kim Shin-rok’s eyes.
Because their voices overflowed with affection, and the letter was full of sincerity, some of the True Clan members who weren’t directly involved found themselves teary-eyed as well.
Had Yang Je-gun, who had been planning to tease Kim Shin-rok if he cried, not been there, would he have cried?
Even so, with Yang Je-gun redirecting Kim Shin-rok’s emotions in a different direction rather than toward tears, he was saved from having his emotional face captured in photos and videos, so he might be thankful for that.
‘After the 100-day celebration, Yang Je-gun will have to prepare himself for the thumbtack rain for a while.’
Following the letter reading, the gift presentation and opening ceremony proceeded.
Since there were many guests, it was difficult to distribute the gifts one by one, so Kim Shin-rok’s teacher, Baek Ho-gun, and Cheong-ho delivered the gifts on behalf of everyone.
Even though some had heard that Cheong-ho had returned, there were still some people seeing him for the first time, so their eyes widened in disbelief.
But seeing him standing next to the white tiger in such an important event, that disbelief was quickly dispelled.
“...Thank you, Teacher.”
Baek Ho-gun and Cheong-ho didn’t say much, but instead, they both patted Kim Shin-rok’s head and shoulder.
That alone made Kim Shin-rok smile happily.
Seeing this, some of the students looked at each other with serious expressions.
“If Kim Shin-rok’s teacher is someone like that... how should we address him…”
If a teacher’s teacher is someone in the same class or a junior from another class, it might feel a little difficult to approach.
Suddenly, as I thought this, I caught the white tiger’s smile as it looked at me.
For some strange reason, I felt a little uneasy about his smile.
It seemed that the white tiger wasn’t smiling because of Cheong-ho, but for some other reason.