One Day, My Dad Disappeared - Chapter 1

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 1
The day my father disappeared.
Or rather, that day was when my long-held wish finally came true.

* * *

“It faces south, so the light streams right in! The landlord wouldn’t have listed it at this price if something hadn’t come up suddenly, I promise you!”
The real estate agent continued up the stairs, explaining how sought-after the property was.
“You said you’d be living here with your father?”
“Yes, that’s right!”
“Since it’s a two-story, it’d be perfect—you on the second level, your father on the first!”
A “two-story” was really more of an attic situation. A normal person would have trouble standing upright, but since the agent said I’d be the one using it, there wasn’t much inconvenience to worry about.
“The shops are nearby too! And if you’re commuting as an Imperial Palace staff member, how convenient is that? This place is just perfect, absolutely perfect.”
“You said 250,000 Gold?”
“That’s right, that’s right. You know the neighborhood market rate is all over 300,000 Gold, don’t you? This is a real bargain.”
“Great! Let’s sign the contract!”
With that hearty exclamation, the agent hurried outside to contact the landlord. I looked over the place once more.
I’d be living here with Father from now on. My chest swelled.
“The landlord says, since a young lady will be taking care of her father here, he’ll do 240,000 Gold! Here, the sales contract. Read it through carefully and just stamp here.”
“240,000 Gold?”
“Yes, 240,000 Gold. You got a good deal today, miss.”
The real estate agent beamed.
Ten thousand Gold knocked off? Was this a scam? The suspicion flashed through my mind, but I read through the contract carefully anyway. For this very moment, I’d memorized every word of that book from the academy library—the one about what to watch for when buying property. I was thorough, I tell you!
“Hehe, well now, miss. So careful when viewing the house, and careful with the contract too! Would I really try to cheat an Imperial Palace employee?”
“Haha, I suppose not.”
I pulled out my personal seal, which I’d tucked deep inside my bag.
“Alright then, I’ll stamp it!”
I breathed on the seal I’d had specially carved just for today, warming it with a soft huff.
I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry. Bang—a small sound echoed across the table.
Perfect. Absolutely perfect.
I gazed satisfied at the crisp square imprint of my seal in the box.
“Hehe, well then, from now on this house belongs to Miss Cynthia Violeta. And here are the keys.”
Jingle—two keys dropped into my palm with a bright sound. One had a red ribbon tied to it, the other a blue one.
After that, the agent explained a few more procedures and left. Only then did the reality hit me: this house was truly mine.
“Wow, I finally have my own place in the Capital.”
It had been my dream for so long: a decent job in the Capital, a home of my own, and living with Father.
In truth, the deed was in my name but the money was mostly borrowed from the bank. If anything, I only really owned the front entrance.
The moment I passed the Imperial Palace civil service exam, I’d rushed to a Capital bank and taken out a full loan using my passing certificate.
Of course, Father had said what was the point of him living in the Capital at his age anyway.
“But I’ve already bought the house! What else can you do about it!”
Since he can’t back out, I should contact him right away and get him to move in!

—”What? You really are something. Signing contracts without telling me first—how am I supposed to handle this?”
I heard Father sigh on the other end of the phone.
“Stop saying you dislike it. Please retire from mercenary work and come up to the Capital. I’ve got a job—what are you worried about?”
—”But……”
Even as he hesitated, I drove the nail home.
“If you really want to keep doing mercenary work, you can do it here in the Capital too. We were apart most of the time when I was young anyway. Let’s be together now.”
—”……Was that hard on you?”
“Of course it was! You’re the one who picked me up, and I thought you hated me because I’m adopted!”
When I was younger, I’d thought Father hated me.
How old was I then? Seven, maybe eight. Our house sat halfway up a hill, so the villagers didn’t visit often. Because of that, I thought every father-and-child relationship was like ours.
But then I saw something different.
The day the village festival opened, the fathers and children gathered in the square looked nothing like us. They held hands on walks, hoisted the children onto their shoulders for piggyback rides.
The sight of other fathers rubbing their faces against the cheeks of children begging for sweets or toys, laughing heartily—it was a shock to me.
I envied those children. I wanted to be the daughter of a house full of warmth, not one filled only with silence.
So that day, I gathered my courage. The moment I heard Father’s footsteps at the front door as he returned from his mercenary work, I ran out to greet him.

“Dad, welcome home?”

When I gathered my courage and embraced him, Father’s arms felt far more solid and warm than I’d expected.
My heart pounded wildly in my chest.
I longed for those large hands to stroke my hair, even if awkwardly. I wished he’d laugh stiffly and ask if I’d been keeping the house well on my own.
But what came back was not a tender voice.

“Get away from me.”

With those cold words, Father shoved me away roughly, as though I were something filthy clinging to him.

Shock—

The force sent me tumbling backward, landing hard on my backside. But Father didn’t even glance behind him as he disappeared into his room.
That evening, I went to my room without supper and wept.
Was it because I was a daughter he’d picked up? Would he have loved me if I were his own child?
The more I spiraled through these meaningless hypotheticals, the smaller and more wretched I felt.
After that day, I let go of my hope for Father. I stopped waiting for him, stopped initiating conversation. We remained under one roof, yet the silence between us was worse than that of strangers.
I didn’t understand then. Father had rushed to his room because he didn’t want his young daughter to smell the blood that clung to his skin.
It was the academy that finally made me understand Father’s heart.
The Selmen Royal Academy I attended was a place only nobility could access. Tuition was astronomical—so much so that even a family of our standing, despite our title, couldn’t afford it.
When my instructor mentioned at a parent consultation that she’d be happy if I enrolled at the academy, I thought it was out of the question.
But the moment Father heard those words from my teacher, he sent me to the academy.
After I enrolled, when I learned what a single semester’s tuition cost, my shock knew no bounds. It was more than our household’s yearly living expenses.
Where had such money come from? Had Father secretly received a substantial sum from the Emperor, contrary to rumor? Or had a major mercenary contract come through? I wondered.
But during that first summer break, when I returned home, I learned the truth. To pay for my tuition, Father had sold the sword he treasured above all else—the blade the Emperor himself had bestowed upon him, which he used to sleep clutching to his chest.
It was only then that I realized Father’s gruff demeanor and raised voice were, in their own way, his expression of love.
—”Impossible!”
At Father’s urgent voice, a smile bloomed across my face.
“Exactly. So stop refusing and come to the Capital. The academy graduation ceremony is this week, remember? You are coming, aren’t you? We’ll move everything at that time. Yes?”
A thoughtful hum came through the receiver.
—”Fine. I’ll come.”
“Wonderful! Everything’s already prepared, so just bring yourself! I’ll buy you new clothes, so you can throw out those old rags!”
—”Why throw away a perfectly good shirt? I can wear it for another ten years.”
“If you wear it for ten more years, people will ridicule you!”
I rattled on with my complaints, clutching the dormitory telephone with its poor sound quality, until Father finally acknowledged me before I lowered the receiver.

* * *

And then came graduation day.
I waited for Father at the academy entrance.
“How much longer is he going to take?”
Surely he wasn’t walking from the station to save on carriage fare? The distance was considerable.
Then a carriage pulled up in front of the academy, and someone descended from it.
“Cynthia.”
It was Father. He’d even brought a bouquet for my graduation.
When I waved, he offered a faint smile. I knew it was the best smile he could manage.
“Father!”
Father was beginning to wave back in response.
Thud—
The duffel bag and bouquet he’d been holding fell to the ground.
I watched the flowers roll away before lifting my gaze.
“…Father?”
Father had vanished.
Imperial Records
Imperial Calendar year 540, month X.
An unexplained black circle appeared in Machal Village.
Resident A stated that a Five-pointed Star Mark flashed brilliantly before this phenomenon manifested. The village guard attempted to investigate the circle’s nature but could not penetrate it. They tried stabbing with sticks and swords, but nothing entered the interior. As no significant changes have occurred thus far, observation continues.

And so, one day, Father disappeared.

Author: Yellow Whale
Publisher: Park Dae-il

Published by: Paran Media
Publication Registration: September 14, 2004 | Registration No. 313-2004-00214
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E-book UCI: G720:N+A161-20260922174

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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