Chapter 21
The Heavenly Demon and the Puppy
Late at night, in the storage room of Bokbok Interiors.
The Heavenly Demon sat upright, meditating.
Rumble.
Each exhale came with a low, distant thunder that shook the entire warehouse.
At present, his internal energy amounted to only about fifteen years’ worth of cultivation. But the Heaven-Defying Divine Art was a peerless and domineering technique that infused even one’s breath with true energy—the strongest ever recorded in the martial world.
Crackle.
Just as thunder rumbled again, a faint light began to glow from Nameless’s body, lying atop the saucer-shaped charging station.
At that same moment, inside Jang Chaewon’s bedroom—
Ding.
A notification tone sounded, and light flashed from the phone sitting on her bedside table.
Reaching for it, Chaewon lay on her bed, staring at the screen.
“Sigh…”
After a long silence, she raised a hand to her forehead and murmured softly,
“What should I do about him…?”
The next day, around noon.
The Heavenly Demon descended the stairs of an old commercial building about a block away from Bokbok Interiors.
He had spent the morning moving furniture and waste from the building.
“Hmm.”
Dusting off his clothes, he looked up at the sky.
“I’m hungry.”
Since it was lunchtime, the nearby restaurants were crowded with customers.
“Guess I’ll have black bean noodles again today.”
A few days earlier, when resolving Neung Ung-shin’s job, Jang Chaewon had promised that if he carried her halfway up the mountain, she’d buy him gan-jjajang (special black bean noodles) and sweet-and-sour pork for lunch every day for ten days.
True to her word, she’d been keeping that promise diligently—though their lunches now carried a faint air of awkwardness.
“Well, that happens.”
The Heavenly Demon knew full well what caused that awkwardness—
it was because he had told her he would extract the Imoogi’s core.
But it didn’t bother him in the slightest.
After all, he’d faced countless people who had despised or loathed him simply because they didn’t understand him, or because his path differed from theirs.
Beep-beep-beep.
Across the street, the pedestrian signal began to sound.
Striding forward, the Heavenly Demon stopped before the crossing. He had already learned that one must walk only when the light turns green.
Vroooom!
Just then, from far down the road, a blue one-ton truck came roaring at high speed.
In the blink of an eye, it veered toward the very crosswalk where he stood.
“Hm.”
Should he dodge—or stand his ground and show the might of his Diamond Body?
As he pondered briefly, white liquid suddenly splattered onto his head.
Bird droppings?
Sensing what it was, he stepped forward a few paces. At that instant, something struck his toe.
Crash!
With a deafening boom, the truck slammed into his body and came to an abrupt halt.
Hissss.
Smoke poured from the vehicle as the door opened, and the driver stumbled out, covered in white foam.
It seemed that a liquid-type airbag had activated upon impact, filling the cabin with a protective gel.
“Th-the brakes failed…”
The driver fumbled for his phone, looking at the Heavenly Demon wedged into the wreck.
Thud.
Then the Heavenly Demon pushed the truck aside and calmly crossed the street.
“E-excuse me! Wait—sir, you need to go to the hospital!”
When the driver called out, the Heavenly Demon turned, expression indifferent.
“Do not concern yourself.”
“Eh?”
“I am the Heavenly Demon.”
Only then did the driver notice his towering build and extraordinary aura.
“Ah… so you’re an Awakened One.”
Relieved, he slumped to the ground, clasping his hands in gratitude.
A few days later.
“Can’t you at least put the bowls down properly?”
Chaewon, having returned to the store after giving an estimate, frowned at the messy pile of takeout containers outside.
“Even if you don’t wash them, at least tie them up neatly in a bag. I have to fix them every time I see this mess!”
The Heavenly Demon, sitting at the reception table reading a book, replied evenly,
“What are you saying? I always tie them neatly.”
“Neatly? Go see for yourself.”
“As you wish.”
He opened the door—and indeed, the bowls were untied and sauce was smeared everywhere.
The Heavenly Demon stared down at them impassively and nodded.
“This is a conspiracy.”
“What?”
“Someone must be deliberately trying to tarnish my reputation.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Who would bother doing that?”
“Perhaps a rival business nearby—or someone under their orders.”
Stroking his chin as if he had solved a great mystery, he added,
“There are many who would love to mar the name of the Heavenly Demon.”
Chaewon sighed, shaking her head.
“Is there even anyone around here who knows who you are?”
“Of course. I’ve made plenty of enemies.”
“Enemies? Who?”
The Heavenly Demon narrowed his eyes.
“The laborers I’ve worked with at the job sites.”
“…What?”
“Every time the job ends, they all curse my name. If anyone would plot such a thing, it’s them.”
Just then, a small shadow darted out from the alley.
A scruffy white puppy came running, its fur filthy and matted.
Woof! Woof!
It circled around the Heavenly Demon’s legs, wagging its tail excitedly as if greeting its master.
“Huh.”
Chaewon tilted her head.
“You know that dog?”
“Never seen it.”
“Really? What a strange little thing. Guess it’s got a thing for you.”
Smiling faintly, she turned to head back inside.
“Anyway, make sure you clean up the bowls properly this time.”
“Understood.”
The Heavenly Demon looked down at the puppy rubbing against his legs.
After observing it for a while, he reached out a thick hand toward its head.
“Wait, stop!”
The door flew open again, and Chaewon rushed over, blocking the puppy.
“What do you think you’re doing?!”
“What do you mean?”
She looked at him sharply.
“I told you—you can’t do that here.”
“I do not follow.”
“No matter how stray it looks, you can’t just… hurt it.”
The Heavenly Demon glanced at his hand, then shook his head.
“You thought I was going to eat it?”
“Weren’t you?”
“I was not.”
“You weren’t?”
“There is plenty of food in this world. Why would I bother eating something like this?”
Chaewon looked sheepish.
“Right…”
To her, it had looked like he was about to grab the dog by the head with his log-like arm, eyes glowing red.
“Sorry, my mistake.”
Without answering, the Heavenly Demon went back inside.
That Sunday evening.
Slurp.
The Heavenly Demon sat alone at the table, eating black bean noodles.
Though it was his day off, Chaewon had ordered food for him since he stayed in the storage room.
Gulp.
After drinking water, he glanced at the coupon printed with the restaurant’s number and nodded.
“A fine establishment indeed—quick as lightning with their meals.”
He wrapped up the empty dishes in plastic and set them outside.
Woof! Woof!
The same puppy came running, tail wagging.
“Go away.”
He nudged it with his foot, but it clung to his leg again.
“Hmm.”
Staring down at it, he turned and went back inside.
The puppy waited a while, then, realizing he wouldn’t come out, drooped its ears sadly.
Then it began tearing into the plastic wrap on the noodle bowl.
“Just as I thought.”
Watching through the glass, the Heavenly Demon’s face darkened.
“So you were the culprit who framed me!”
Woof! Woof!
The puppy wagged its tail happily as he stormed outside.
He ignored its playfulness and lifted it by the scruff.
“Because of you, I was wrongly accused!”
Woof!
“Don’t ever touch my bowls again. Understand?”
No matter how sternly he spoke, the puppy only wagged its tail, eyes gleaming.
“Hm?”
Just then, Chaewon returned from an errand and froze at the sight.
“What are you doing? Why are you holding that puppy like that?”
“It was the culprit.”
“What?”
“The one that’s been unwrapping the plastic bags around the bowls.”
She looked where he pointed and sighed.
“So that’s what happened… it must have been hungry.”
Taking a small piece of jerky from her purse, she held it out.
“Want this?”
The puppy looked at the treat, then barked at the Heavenly Demon instead.
“That’s odd. Why’s it barking at you?”
She smiled faintly and offered the jerky to him.
“Maybe it wants you to give it.”
“What nonsense.”
“Try it.”
When he held the jerky out, the puppy wagged its tail and happily ate.
Crouching down, Chaewon smiled.
“Looks like it thinks you’re its master.”
“What a strange creature.”
Without another word, he went back inside.
From then on, the puppy often came by the store.
Though the Heavenly Demon ignored it, the puppy greeted him joyfully every time.
Chaewon, pitying it, once tried to leave a bowl of water and jerky out front, but he objected.
“That will only make the entrance dirty.”
And indeed, she knew he wasn’t wrong—but still.
“It just likes you so much… don’t you find it at least a little endearing?”
“It’s merely annoying.”
The Heavenly Demon seemed entirely devoid of human sympathy.
When he kicked the puppy away from the door and shut it, Chaewon sighed quietly.
‘Maybe it really won’t work…’
Even if he could replace spirit water, an emotionless man couldn’t be trusted with divine matters.
No—she couldn’t keep him in the shop much longer.
Processing divine requests required more than power or blessing.
‘No, I can’t judge him just yet.’
Taking a deep breath, she shook her head and turned back to her laptop screen.
Had the puppy grown tired of his coldness?
The once-daily visitor hadn’t shown up for days.
Pitter-patter.
Rain had been falling nonstop, typical for the monsoon season.
Even Chaewon, who usually didn’t care much, began to worry when she saw the gray sky and pouring rain.
“Cheonma, maybe it stopped coming because you kept kicking it.”
When she teased him, he replied flatly from the table,
“It was a mere creature that never should’ve lingered here.”
“So cold-hearted.”
Just then, the old phone on the table rang. A divine request.
“Hello, Bokbok Interiors.”
Listening to the voice on the other end, she jotted notes quickly.
“Yes, we’ll visit soon.”
Click.
As she hung up, the Heavenly Demon asked,
“A request?”
“Yeah.”
Though she nodded, her expression soured slightly.
Unlike before, she now hesitated—unsure if she should take him along.
“What’s the request?”
“Some kind of demolition job.”
“I see. Simple enough.”
A faint spark of satisfaction flickered in his eyes.
He was indifferent to most things, but when it came to store work—especially those involving divine energy—he always took interest.
“Not sure yet if we’ll take it,” she said.
“What do you mean, not take it? Jobs are scarce these days.”
“Yeah, but… I’m not sure if we should handle this one.”
Maybe it was her lack of skill at lying—or her tangled emotions—but she avoided his gaze and stood up.
“I’ll step out for a bit.”
“In this rain? Where to?”
“My mouth feels dry. I’ll grab a coffee.”
“Very well. Go ahead.”
He turned back to his book.
Shhhh.
Outside, Chaewon opened her umbrella.
“Huh?”
She looked down and blinked in surprise.
The plastic around the lunch bowls had come undone again—but someone had covered them with a small board in a ㅁ-shape to keep out the rain.
“That little thing…”
She murmured softly, staring at the bowls.
“Which side are you on, really?”
Biting her lip, she walked to the parking lot, took out her phone, and made a call.
Then, after typing something rapidly, she sent it off.
“Cheonma,” she said upon returning, determination in her voice.
“We’ll start that request tomorrow. Be ready.”
