DMH Ch2

As always, the owner of the mansion had put his heart and soul into managing the garden. Gravel paths were laid throughout the garden, as if to prevent even the smallest wildflowers from being trampled. Moreover, luxurious cloud bridges connected the vast, sectioned gardens. Park Wan admired the flowers as he passed through the splendid gardens. Unfamiliar flowers and trees grew vigorously. Just looking at them made the intense summer energy sting his eyes.

The size of the mansion’s garden was almost the same as the zoo he had visited on a school picnic. It required the hands of many gardeners. Park Gwangcheol, who didn’t even have a single certificate, was one of them.

The probability of Park Gwangcheol, who lacked perseverance and was unlucky in his work, settling down in one job was almost zero. His ability to get a decent job and earn a steady living was close to nil. That was why he had to move every year, change jobs every time, and even have his son do his work while avoiding the supervisor’s eyes in the few jobs he worked for a long time. If he was lucky enough to get a good job, it would be nice if he could stick with it, but Park Gwangcheol had a hard time continuing that one thing.

“That old man must have gone to ride horses again. I told him I wouldn’t let him get away with it if he did it one more time. How can I make him quit? He only has one child, not two or three, and he can’t even raise that one properly, so why did he even make me?”

Wan grumbled, half complaining and half angry, as he continued walking. Muttering, he arrived at the back of the garden and unwound the coiled hose from the faucet. He roughly grabbed the hose and stomped on the green grass, thinking of his father, the man who was probably sitting at the racetrack, watching the monitor with a piece of paper full of strange numbers.

The areas assigned to each gardener were so harmoniously arranged with various plants that it would not be an exaggeration to call them creations. In particular, when winter passed and spring turned into summer, the flower garden flaunted its extravagance like the jewels embedded in Louis XIV’s sword. However, the garden that Park Gwangcheol had created was insignificant compared to the areas created by the other gardeners. He was in charge of a very small area, and Wan was always amazed that the mansion’s employer paid him a salary even for doing this little work.

In the garden area that Park Gwangcheol had created, dozens of rose bushes were planted, as if roses were the easiest flowers to grow. Judging by sight, there were easily over three hundred rose bushes planted in the garden.

Park Gwangcheol’s nature wasn’t bad, but inside, he had laziness and gambling, which were serious flaws. Befitting his lazy nature, he had also planted a lot of succulents around the rose bushes, perhaps because he thought they didn’t need watering. The most incongruous plant among them was the columnar cactus, especially next to the rose flowers, which doubled the visual effect. Surprisingly, it seemed that Park Gwangcheol’s columnar cactus had inspired others, as a columnar cactus was planted in the symmetrical opposite garden, giving a harmonious impression.

“You’re really growing thorns in pairs, you son of a bitch.”

Wan turned on the lever of the sprayer, fuming. A fine stream of water was emitted into the air from the sprayer head, which was as big as Wan’s face.

“At this point, he’s not a gardener, he’s just a terrorist. Doesn’t this cactus only grow in Mexico? When did this country become a tropical climate?”

Unlike his mouth, which was constantly complaining, Wan’s hand, which was adjusting the angle of the sprayer head, was careful. Not too strong, not too weak. He watered one area of the garden with a moderate stream of water that wouldn’t damage the petals.

“It rained a while ago, is it okay to water like this?”

Wan checked the time. He used to water with the people working in the other gardens around this time, but today it was unusually quiet. Did they not water because it rained? Well, acid rain and purified water are different. Wan went back and forth in the area that Park Gwangcheol cultivated, devoting himself to hydrating the plants.

***

Mu Jeonghoo woke up from a light sleep due to the fine moisture that hit his ear. He clearly remembered telling them not to disturb him as he went out to the garden after the rain stopped. Frowning, he threw the novel that had been lying on his face and raised his upper body. As he sat up, the blanket spread on the soft grass crumpled. As he removed the book from his face, he felt the faint stream of water that brushed against his face more clearly.

“What is it?”

Mu Jeonghoo wanted to see the face of the person who had disturbed his sweet nap. He tilted his head back, feeling the light stream of water brushing against his forehead. He discovered a stranger through the bushes with flowers pinned like hairpins. The stranger was watering the garden, opening his mouth in a circle and muttering something. Mu Jeonghoo, who was looking through the bushes, stretched his arms behind his back and leaned his upper body back. He estimated the appearance of the unidentified person seen through the bushes. To call him a gardener…

“He’s too young.”

Mu Jeonghoo tilted his head. He could vaguely see a school uniform. The loose school uniform revealed the owner’s armpits without filtering whenever he raised his arms. The sun blazed brightly overhead. He narrowed his eyes and looked at the boy, who was shining refreshingly. The skin visible through the school uniform was as pale as if it had never met the sunlight. He suddenly became curious. Then, without hesitation, he opened his mouth.

“Kim Ah.”

A man in a neat suit approached like a ghost in the space where only he had been.

“Did you call, sir?”

“Turn on the sprinklers in the yard.”

“Yes.”

As soon as Jeonghoo finished speaking, the man called ‘Kim Ah’ returned to where he had been. He went back to his seat and took out the walkie-talkie he had put in his back pocket. His hand pressed the number 1 button. Number 1 was a notification button used to contact the male employees. When there were special instructions, he would press 1 to give instructions.

-Yes, Chief Kim.

A clear voice without static was heard.

“Turn on the sprinklers in Zone B.”

-Understood.

They gave and received instructions familiarly. One minute after Chief Kim gave the instructions, a strange object rose in the middle of the quiet Zone B yard, which was covered with grass. The sprinkler, which had risen like a broken robot’s arm self-healing, straightened its body. Park Wan, who was only looking ahead and watering the garden, was unlikely to hear the start of the small mechanical sound from behind.

“Ah! What is this!”

Sure enough, a stream of water suddenly splashed from behind. The thin, white summer uniform shirt began to get soaked by the stream of water coming from the sprinkler. The navy blue school uniform pants became a much darker color. Wan turned around to figure out the direction of the sudden water attack. To make matters worse, the hose of the sprayer he was holding got tangled. Against his will, he was moving closer and closer to the center of the sprinkler.

Mu Jeonghoo watched the stranger floundering in front of him with a blank expression. Stupid, he should lower the lever first. The hose wrapped around his shoulder and down his arm, like an anaconda devouring a perfectly normal citizen. As Jeonghoo expected, as the sprinkler hidden in the grass rotated 360 degrees, the stranger’s appearance transformed into that of a drowned rat. Not only was water dripping down, but the thin shirt was clinging tightly to his upper body. Even when he tried to pull the clothes away with his hands, the wet fabric wrapped around his body.

Mu Jeonghoo took in the sight of the pale nipples revealed through the thin shirt under the dazzling sun. They looked like slices of plump, good-colored salmon. They must be stiff from the cold water. Jeonghoo unconsciously rolled his tongue in his mouth.

Meanwhile, Wan, who had turned into a drowned rat, raised his head to the bright blue sky. The sun, which he faced head-on, was unbearably hot. If it wasn’t someone else’s house, he would have screamed out of anger. He thought that today was a terribly unlucky day, with nothing going right.

When he grabbed the school uniform and twisted it, a large amount of water fell to the floor. He stretched the hem of his shirt tightly, hoping it would dry in the sun, but of course, it wouldn’t.

“Hello.”

An unfamiliar voice rang out from behind. When Wan turned around towards the sound, a man in a neat outfit was standing there. Despite it being midsummer, he was wearing a long-sleeved dress shirt and a black suit vest. The man, who was covered in black clothes, looked like a black swan.

“It looks like your clothes are all wet, why don’t you go wash up?”

“Excuse me?”

Wan guessed that the man in front of him might be the owner of the huge mansion.

“If you walk around outside in that state, you’ll catch a cold even in the summer. And there are people watching.”

Judging by the way he was inviting a complete stranger into his house, he must be the owner. Park Gwangcheol had never said a word about the owner of the mansion and had said that he had never seen him either. However, the owner, whom he had accidentally encountered, was not arrogant like other rich people and was polite. The owner is such a kind person. Wan thought that if his life turned out like his father’s, this would be a good place to work as a gardener after him.

“Aren’t you curious how I got in here?”

When Wan asked with a worried voice, the man smiled and replied.

“You’re probably Park Gwangcheol’s son, who is in charge of managing Zone B. I’ve already heard the story.”

“Ah…”

“Your eyes look alike.”

Park Gwangcheol must be the only person who passes his work on to his child. Wan scratched his cheek in embarrassment. Wan’s face flushed at the words added by the man called Chief Kim. Even if his father was useless and didn’t help in his life, he suddenly felt embarrassed when people said that they looked alike.

“Ah, yes. But I appreciate the owner’s kindness, but…”

“No. I’m not the owner. I’m just the person who manages the mansion.”

“A manager?”

“Don’t refuse and go wash up.”

Chief Kim looked down at his wristwatch. Even in the simple act of looking at his wristwatch, elegance overflowed. Wan glanced at Chief Kim and became curious about who the ‘real’ owner was who employed such an employee. Perhaps elegance would drip from every word.

“It doesn’t seem like school is over yet…”

“…”

“Even if you go back, you’ll be looked at suspiciously in that outfit.”

Chief Kim emphasized again.

“Yes, I guess so.”

“I’ll dry your school uniform while you wash up.”

Chief Kim’s words were an invitation, but they contained a firmness that he would force him to wash up even if he didn’t want to. He took action before Park Wan could answer.

“Let’s go.”

“…”

Chief Kim’s back was already a few steps ahead. Wan followed Chief Kim, wringing out the ends of his shirt and pants. The wet pants were cumbersome every time he walked. No matter how hot the sun was, he couldn’t dry his wet school uniform while going to school. Even if he hid in bed to hide, the homeroom teacher might suspect him when she saw the damp sheets.

“Good things are good, right? When else would I get to shower in a house like this?”

Wan muttered to himself, following the man closely. On the way from the garden to the mansion, there was a sturdy staircase made of marble. At both ends of the staircase, white eagle sculptures were erected like twins. The staircase, which many people went up and down, didn’t even have dirty traces. Stepping on the outdoor staircase, which was so clean that he felt sorry to step on it, Wan followed the man into the mansion.

“Wow…”

An exclamation came out involuntarily. He couldn’t hide his surprised expression. The entire interior of the mansion – walls, floors, and ceilings – was covered in marble. It was so beautiful that it could be said that the house was made of marble sculptures. Water droplets left traces everywhere Wan passed. He crossed the dazzling ice sculpture-like mansion lobby and asked Chief Kim, who was walking ahead.