Chapter 16: The Master of Debate

Harsh words echoed loudly.

Han Seoyoung quickly covered my ears.

Still, I heard everything.

“Th-That’s misogyny, you know? If you say things like that these days…”

“Misogyny?! I love women! I’ve been married for 40 years and have four grown children! How could I possibly hate women?!”

The “sycophant” couldn’t respond further.

His face turned beet red, and he hung his head like ripened grain.

“Seriously, these young rookies have no manners! Back in my day, if you got your badge at 30, you treated senior lawmakers like parents! And what’s with women glaring around with such brazen eyes, acting so unladylike?!”

“Se-Secretary Kim, let’s go now…”

Sycophant, down!

Park Seokji, KO victory!

The utterly defeated sycophant scrambled to leave in a fluster, but Park Seokji shouted after him.

“Hey! Apologize!”

“Pardon?!”

“Apologize to our candidate before you leave!”

“I-I’m sorry…”

“Hey! Sincerely!”

“I-I deeply apologize! My behavior was inappropriate!”

“Alright! Now get lost!”

In situations like these, Park Seokji was the most reliable ally.

For once, he looked quite impressive.

But this was also a risk.

Reckless remarks always sparked controversy.

‘At least he holds back during official events…’

Even though things had calmed down recently, he was still like a ticking time bomb.

Han Seoyoung seemed relieved, her face visibly brightening.

“Thanks to Representative Park, I managed to survive. Honestly, I was really flustered.”

“Guys like that are nothing to me~ If anyone else shows up, just say the word! I’ll take care of them all!”

This time, even I bowed automatically.

“Thank you, Grandpa~”

“Good, good. Will our Jiwoo give Grandpa a kiss?”

“Th-That’s… uh, no thanks…”

“Haha! My grandkids say the exact same thing.”

But still, a kiss seemed a bit much.

“More importantly, what was that proposal about? Suddenly showing up and offering financial help…”

“It’s obvious. I’ve been with that party long enough to know. They probably want to give us under-the-table money in exchange for not unifying.”

At that point, Goo Doseok spoke pleadingly.

“Can’t we take the money? We’re not planning to unify anyway, are we?”

“If they use it against us later, it’ll be a problem. Someone would have to go to jail. If you’re willing to go, I can reconsider.”

The fleeting sparkle in Goo Doseok’s eyes quickly faded.

“Then we have no choice but to somehow boost the candidate’s approval ratings.”

“If we can hit about 20%, we should be able to raise some funds through a campaign fund. The problem is time.”

There was less than a month until election day.

Raising approval ratings, opening a fund, hitting the target amount, and securing the money…

Expecting all that to happen in a day or two was wishful thinking.

“Even if things miraculously go well, it’ll still be hard to spend money for a while…”

We were still broke.

At that moment—

Flash!

Bright headlights illuminated us.

Naturally, everyone’s eyes turned toward the vehicle.

Vroom!

A luxury sedan drove onto the property.

Not just one, but three in a row.

“What’s this? Was anyone expected?”

“No idea. At this hour, it must be something covert.”

I had a pretty good idea who it was.

At nearly 10 p.m., Braving the pouring rain, there was only one person who’d storm in here.

Swoosh.

A large umbrella opened.

Finally, the door opened, and he appeared.

“Isn’t that Representative Yoo?”

Yoo Hangchul.

The leader of the conservative party and the candidate with the second-highest approval ratings for the presidential election.

Pouring rain.

We welcomed Yoo Hangseol amidst the torrential downpour.

Beside him were only secretaries and aides.

He was the only member of the conservative party present.

Still, his aura was overwhelming.

After all, he was a major presidential candidate.

No one reached that position without extraordinary charisma.

“Representative Kang. It’s been a while since we’ve met.”

“…”

To a child’s eyes, Yoo Hangseol was intimidating.

He was tall, broad, and imposing.

Standing among his equally tall aides, he looked like the head of a crime syndicate.

“When your father visits, shouldn’t you greet him?”

My political father.

That’s how he referred to himself.

And truthfully, I couldn’t entirely deny it.

While I blinked silently, Park Seokji responded with his usual bravado.

“Ha ha. CEO Yoo, it seems our candidate is a bit startled. Since it’s raining, why don’t you come inside and have a chat with me…”

Yoo Hangcheol fixed a sharp gaze on Park Seokji.

His eyes had an intensity that could overpower others, almost like a predator subduing its prey.

“What’s a small fry splashing around in the waters where dragons swim?”

“Ahem…”

Park Seok-ji was left flustered and had no choice but to retreat.

Before a stronger opponent, even the bold grow small.

That was the extent of his role here.

“Mr. Yoo, I’m Han Seo-young, Chief of Staff for Candidate Kang Jiwoo.”

“Hmm. I know.”

“Pardon me, but I wasn’t informed of your visit. May I ask your business here?”

“They say Kang’s in bad shape, so I need to check on his condition, don’t I? Let’s go in.”

As if. Yoo Hangcheol isn’t someone who’d be concerned about me.

There’s definitely another motive behind this.

—

Inside the office

Yoo Hangseol, Han Seoyoung, and Park Seokji.

Bong Soohee, who had been napping in the office and now couldn’t go home.

And me, sneaking glances while playing with Dolly and Tanniping.

“Seoyooong… Kaaang…”

Amid the suffocating atmosphere, Yoo Hangcheol spoke up.

“Don’t guests even get coffee here?”

Han Seoyoung shot up from her seat.

“Ah, will instant coffee be okay?”

“Black.”

“Um, we only have instant mix…”

“Young people these days, why so uncultured? Isn’t there anything else to drink?”

Han Seoyoung, opening the fridge, responded in a tense voice.

“We have Pororo strawberry flavor, Heotchuping milk, and Ki-gochu juice…”

Realizing how embarrassing her words sounded, she trailed off.

“Do you usually drink that stuff?”

Why? What’s wrong with Heotchuping milk?

Try it once. It’s addicting.

“They’re things the candidate likes. We don’t get visitors here often…”

“Unbelievable. Forget it. Sit down.”

“Yes.”

Yoo Hang-cheol stared intently at me for a moment.

His gaze was so piercing that I couldn’t help but glance at him nervously.

“So, even your mental age has regressed? Even the way you think?”

“Pretty much.”

“Is writing difficult too? How’s your learning ability?”

“At the moment, he hasn’t moved past a child’s level.”

Honestly, I have no obligation to report my condition to Yoo Hangcheol.

Strictly speaking, he’s an adversary. It’s strange enough that we’re divulging this much.

Han Seoyoung must be overwhelmed.

I understand.

Political heavyweights might just seem like regular middle-aged men on TV or the internet.

In person, they make your mind go blank.

‘If I offend this person, could something bad happen to me later…?’

Such thoughts interfere with rational thinking.

But it doesn’t matter.

The information Han Seoyoung just provided isn’t particularly important.

Right now, my weapon isn’t intelligence but cuteness.

Everyone knows my wits are shattered anyway.

“Jiwooping.”

Bong Soohee approached me with a rare serious expression.

It seemed she had something to say.

She leaned in close and whispered in my ear.

“…”

Amid the unusually serious atmosphere, what was this Tyutta nonsense?

It was so absurd I couldn’t help but chuckle.

I leaned towards her ear and whispered back.

“Tyu-tta-da-woo-ta.”

Our whispered Tyutta language debate continued.

At the same time, Yoo Hangcheol and Han Seoyoung were having their own conversation.

“Are you certain?”

“Certain about what?”

“That Kang isn’t faking it.”

“Does that look like acting to you…?”

“Kang’s a smart guy. Cunning and ruthless too. He’d do anything to boost his approval ratings, wouldn’t he?”

“No matter how desperate he is, that doesn’t look like acting. If it were, he would’ve told me in advance.”

“You could be deceiving me.”

“I swear I’m not.”

He’s really doubting this?

Well, that’s classic Hangcheol for you.

Even when I worked under him, his paranoia was no joke.

That’s why he could see several moves ahead of others.

Though sometimes, he looked too far ahead, and that became a problem.

“Let me be alone with him for a moment.”

“That might be a bit…”

“I might try to blackmail… that thing? Don’t worry, I already know they’re going to record everything by hitting the walls.” – Rin.

“Then I’ll give you 10 minutes… No, just 5 minutes.”

“Fine, just get out.”

With that, all the adults left the room.

Seeing my anxious eyes, Bong Soohee leaned over and whispered in my ear.

“Jiwoo Ping, don’t freak out. If you’re scared, think of ‘tteuttteo debate.’ You’re a debate master I personally approve of.”

“Tteuttteo debate master…?”

“8.14.”

Calling Kang Jiwoo, the gladiator of debates, a tteuttteo debate master? What nonsense is that?

But hearing someone call me a master did make me feel pretty good.

“Hurry up and get out.”

Bong Soohee was dragged out by Han Seoyoung.

“Come here and sit down.”

The empty office.

I sat facing Yoo Hangcheol.

Even though he already had an imposing build, he looked even more intimidating from the perspective of a smaller body.

‘Tteuttatta… tteuttatta…’

My young body, gripped by fear, muttered nonsense internally.

Oddly, it helped ease the fear a little.

“Representative Kang. You know I’ve tried my best to keep you from getting dragged into this mess, right?”

Yoo Hangcheol seemed to have decided I was pretending. At least, that was his assumption as he began to speak.

“When the party was trying to crush you, I worked hard to diffuse the situation. You get that, don’t you?”

“You’re not answering me?”

His tiger-like eyes stared at me.

There was an uncanny force in his gaze that seemed to dominate people.

It must have come from the confidence built over years of experience.

“Yes… I understand.”

Was this the power of tteuttteo?

Even as I faced that terrifying expression, muttering nonsense in my heart loosened my tongue.

Yoo Hangcheol seemed slightly suspicious but continued speaking anyway.

“I heard you’re broke. Not even enough for snacks, huh?”

“Yes. That’s why the adults fought…”

It was obvious what he was going to say next.

“Remember how much I’ve looked out for you before? And now you’re penniless, right? So just give up on the election and announce your withdrawal!”

Give up and step down in exchange for some positions?

Ridiculous.

If I was going to give up this easily, I wouldn’t have started in the first place.

If I were going to betray my party members and leave them out to dry, I wouldn’t have left your side to begin with.

I unknowingly steeled my gaze, even forgetting the fear of being a child.

I stared directly at him and spoke each word clearly.

It was my answer to his proposal and, at the same time, a sharp warning.

A warning never to spew such garbage at me again.

“A wolf pup doesn’t bow to a dog.”

“Tteuttatta ootta! Tteuttaa ttaatta!”

Wait a minute. Did my dialogue bubble change?

Yoo Hangcheol had once been a journalist in Korea.

A legendary reporter who exposed the dirty secrets of a corrupt regime.

In the days when “life-risking investigations” wasn’t just an exaggeration, he survived countless times and emerged as a hero who metaphorically beheaded enemy leaders.

Yoo Hangcheol’s instincts as a journalist were razor-sharp.

It was only natural, given how they were honed through life-or-death experiences.

This time, those instincts were directed at Kang Jiwoo.

“Considering how smoothly the campaign is going, despite your sudden change into a 10-year-old body, it’s almost as if the real Kang Jiwoo is hiding in the background.”

If you think about it from his perspective, it’s simple.

What if Yoo Hangcheol himself suddenly turned into a 10-year-old kid?

The staff would be in chaos.

The senior party members would tear each other apart.

The entire party would devolve into a mess from infighting.

Without the power of a strong leader, that’s just how parties work.

“No matter how well you deceive others, you can’t fool my eyes.”

Elections are also about intelligence.

It’s hard to gain support through policies.

But it’s comparatively easy to attack your opponent’s weaknesses and drag them down.

Yoo Hangcheol came here today to gather information.

“Unification? It’s just bait.”

Would unification be nice? Sure. But would they accept it? No way.

Why would they when their momentum is on the rise?

That’s why this was the perfect timing.

Ridiculous proposals are bound to anger people.

Angry prey is more likely to take the bait.

“Kang Jiwoo, bite. Reveal your true self above the surface.”

And just as expected, Kang Jiwoo’s eyebrows furrowed into a V at the mention of unification.

The bait was taken.

“Gotcha!”

Kang Jiwoo shouted, spitting in anger.

“Tteuttatta ootta! Tteuttaa ttaatta!”

“???”

“Tteutta-tteuttte! Oottatta ootteea! Tteuttatta!”

“……”

A flustered Kang Jiwoo spilled all their thoughts in tteuttteo!