“No way… Is she really Ha-yul’s daughter?”

“…If you say that in front of Ha-yul, you might get hit.”

It was half a joke when the kid got in the car.

But now… I could believe she’s really her daughter.

But why does it only smell like soap?

I peeked into the bathroom, and it’s spotless, not a drop of water.

The clothes she was wearing earlier were scattered in the bathtub.

…

I almost cried seeing that.

Could she have lived a life where even those rags were precious and hard to throw away?

Come to think of it, the clothes she’s wearing now are bothering me too.

She chose the most ordinary clothes, leaving behind the fancy, pretty ones Eun-chae bought.

If she were a normal kid her age, wouldn’t she have picked a princess-like dress like the one over there?

Even now, she’s standing still, watching me and Eun-chae.

And every time water drips from her hair, she wipes the floor.

I took the towel from her hand and squeezed the water out of her hair.

I don’t know what kind of life she’s lived until now…

But she doesn’t need to live like that anymore.

***

She picked out the clothes left outside the door and stood there, not knowing what to do, waiting for people.

I just hope my choice of a white tee and jeans was the right one.

But…

Instead of Jeong Ha-yul or the manager, a woman I’ve never seen before appeared and screamed.

“Ahhh!”

“Huh?”

I was startled too and let out a weird scream.

Why is this woman acting like this all of a sudden?

The manager came running from somewhere, hearing the commotion.

“What’s going on! What happened!”

“She’s crazy. Really crazy…”

“I thought the kid got hurt and was shocked. Why are you causing a scene all of a sudden?”

“She’s so… cute… She looks like Ha-yul but even cuter…”

The manager looked at the woman incredulously, then turned his head towards me.

“Uh…”

Then he looked like he was about to faint.

Hmph.

He must have been shocked by me choosing the white tee and jeans, realizing it was a test.

This was definitely the right answer.

“What’s going on? Why is it so noisy?”

Just then, Jeong Ha-yul appeared too.

She brushed her wet hair back and looked at me with tired eyes.

I thought there wouldn’t be a woman as beautiful as Lee Ji-ah for a thousand years…

“Eun-chae is making a fuss again. I thought the kid got hurt.”

“What’s there to make a fuss about… Oh, there is.”

“Wow, this is amazing, Ha-yul. She looks exactly like you did when you were a kid.”

“…She’s even prettier than I was as a kid?”

They say I look like Jeong Ha-yul?

That woman who looks prettier than Lee Ji-ah?

Back in the shantytown, I was so dirty it was hard to tell.

Even when I washed up just now, the mirror was too high for me to see myself.

But I could feel that for a kid, my eyes were big and my nose was high.

If they say I look like Jeong Ha-yul…

This is amazing.

Does that mean I can become that pretty in the future?

The three of them stared at me for a while.

Their blatant stares made my head drop.

My face turned red as a bonus.

To react like this just from being stared at…

Living as a woman from now on is going to be exhausting.

“But what’s the kid’s name?”

“I don’t know either. Ha-yul, what’s the kid’s name?”

“I don’t know either?”

“You brought her here and you don’t know!”

“She doesn’t know her own name, how am I supposed to know!”

“…Really?”

In the shantytown, I was always called “orphan girl.”

So I still don’t know my name.

But come to think of it, weren’t all the other kids there orphans too?

Why was I the only one called “orphan girl”?

“Then let’s give her a name!”

“Ha-yul brought her here, so Ha-yul should name her.”

“Me? I’m not good at that.”

“Once you give a name, you feel responsible. Let’s make her last name Jeong, like yours.”

“Hmm…”

I thought they’d just give me a common name and be done with it…

But the fact that they’re thinking so hard about it makes me a little hopeful.

How good of a name are they going to give me, thinking so hard?

Finally, Jeong Ha-yul, who had thought of something, smiled a deadly smile.

“Okay. I’ve thought of a good name.”

“What is it?”

“Since we brought her from the shantytown, how about Jeong Pan-ja?”

…Crazy.

Five minutes passed, and the name that came out of that pretty mouth was Jeong Pan-ja.

Truly a demon king’s naming sense.

It’s devastating.

“Are you crazy… You want to name the kid Jeong Pan-ja?”

“Why? What’s wrong with it?”

Jeong Pan-ja… She must be crazy.

“…Just let oppa name her.”

“Hmm… How about Anna? Jeong Anna. That’s a pretty name.”

It’s normal and nice.

Maybe because it came after Jeong Pan-ja?

A normal name felt incredibly beautiful.

“No. That’s Jeong Anna. I’d rather go with the name I came up with.”

“Hey, don’t make jokes like that… You shouldn’t go on variety shows. And Jeong Anna is a hundred times better than Jeong Pan-ja!”

“Someone who sells affection is better than someone who doesn’t have any. At least she has some, right?”

“Don’t force it! It’s getting weird!”

But wasn’t this about naming me?

I wish they’d given me some choice too.

“Are you both really crazy? How about Jeong Gyeoul? If you want to give it meaning, you can say it’s affectionate, and we brought her in winter. Isn’t that good?”

“…That’s not bad.”

“Okay. As long as it’s not Jeong Anna.”

“I think I’d be okay as long as it’s not Jeong Pan-ja. Let’s go with Eun-chae’s suggestion.”

Good.

As long as it’s not Jeong Pan-ja, anything is fine.

Jeong Gyeoul… It’s a good name I hadn’t thought of.

I was looking at Eun-chae, who seemed the most normal among the three, when Jeong Ha-yul called me.

“Kid.”

“Yes!”

“We named you Gyeoul, so why are you still calling her kid? Call her by her name. Would you like it if I called you Demon King!”

“…You’re being particularly picky today.”

Jeong Ha-yul’s expression changed completely.

The more I see her, the more I understand why she’s called the Demon King.

I didn’t really want to know, though…

“Oppa… Don’t act tough in front of Gyeoul and be a little more considerate!”

“What I mean is… We gave you the good name Gyeoul, so let’s call you that from now on… Sorry.”

Her expression was full of killing intent, and I thought she might actually do something, but thankfully the manager didn’t die on the spot.

But I don’t know why Jeong Ha-yul is glaring at me.

She’s not planning to take her anger out on me, is she?

“…Did you just wash with soap?”

“…Yes.”

Damn!

Since there’s no comment about the clothes, I must have passed the test.

But it seems she didn’t like the way I showered as a man.

She’s so picky. How many hidden tests are there?

“Oppa. Did you tell her what products to use?”

“Come to think of it, I didn’t… I was too distracted…”

“You’re the loudest but the least helpful. Eun-chae unnie, can you help?”

“Sure!”

Eun-chae took my hand and went into the bathroom, explaining body wash, body scrub, shampoo, treatment, hair pack, cleansing foam, and so many other products in great detail.

…

If this is also a test… I think I might fail here.

What’s a tea tree? Aha this and Baha that?

I couldn’t understand half of the alien language Eun-chae was spouting.

While I was studying the alien language, I heard Jeong Ha-yul’s voice.

“From now on, only wash your hands with soap.”

“Yes!”

“If I find out you didn’t use the products after showering, I’ll wash you myself.”

“Yes!”

With that, she left somewhere.

Thankfully, it wasn’t a test…

But after seeing how much I hated it, she said she’d wash me herself.

She’s truly merciless.

“…I didn’t know Ha-yul had that side to her. Is she really not Ha-yul’s daughter?”

“I don’t know anymore…”

“Gyeoul, let’s go to the kitchen too. We’re going to order food.”

“Food…?”

“What’s wrong? Don’t you like food?”

“No… I love it…”

Tears are flowing again.

When was the last time I had a proper meal?

Even though it’s only been a week since I possessed this body, it feels like a year.

I couldn’t go far and had to beg near the shantytown.

I only got leftover hard rice and scraps of side dishes.

Lately, I couldn’t even get that.

Now I don’t have to beg to eat.

And it’s proper food.

It’s so moving.

I barely calmed down and saw Eun-chae and Kang-woo tearing up too.

Did you guys also live without food?

“…Let’s go, Gyeoul! Let’s eat something delicious!”

I followed Eun-chae, who seemed full of energy, step by step.

When we got to the kitchen, Jeong Ha-yul was sitting at the table, fiddling with her smartphone.

“What did you order?”

“Chinese food.”

“That’s good. Did you order something Gyeoul can eat too?”

“Yeah.”

“…No!”

“What are you talking about?”

Jeong Ha-yul looked at Eun-chae, who was overreacting, incredulously.

“Gyeoul needs to taste and eat more things. Order chicken, pizza, hamburgers, jokbal, bossam, everything!”

“I already ordered the entire Chinese menu, so sit down quietly, unnie.”

“…Okay.”

No need to worry about whether to eat jjajangmyeon or jjamppong, just order both.

Just that much makes me think she’s an amazing person.

She ordered the entire Chinese menu…?

I glanced at Eun-chae and Kang-woo, but they were completely unfazed.

…

I guess we’re living in completely different worlds.

Not even licking the yogurt lid.

Not even eating the crumbs inside the ramen packet.

A life where you buy and drink expensive bottled water.

A real noble is sitting right in front of me.

“That’s amazing…”

“…You have good taste?”

My inner thoughts must have slipped out.

Hearing that, Ha-yul smiled and replied.

…

I thought she was just looking at her phone…

But she must have been paying attention to me while pretending not to.

I realized I need to be careful with every action.

“By the way. What about tomorrow? It’s not good to leave Gyeoul alone at home.”

“Right… We have a broadcast tomorrow, right?”

“I’ll take her with me.”

“…Well. She’s quiet and probably won’t cause any problems.”

It seems I have to go out tomorrow.

I think it’s best to leave me alone at home.

“I can stay quietly at home. While everyone is out, I’ll clean and do the laundry.”

“…”

Ha-yul suddenly stared at me intensely.

Is she worried I’ll steal something if left alone?

“T-then I’ll stay with Gyeoul!”

Eun-chae quickly stepped forward, but Ha-yul’s expression was already serious.

“Tomorrow, the whole family is going out together. No exceptions.”

…

Wow. I almost got kicked out just now.

Let’s work hard until the day I can earn the Demon King’s trust and be left alone at home.

Loyalty, loyalty.