The bell jingled above the door.
I didn't even bother to look up at first. Probably another adventurer.
Or maybe a kobold who wanted to argue about cigarette prices.
Then I heard my mom's voice.
"Surprise!"
I froze.
"...Again?!"
Sure enough, there she was, arms outstretched like this was some kind of sitcom reunion. Behind her came my sister (gum already popping between her teeth) and lumbering in last was my step-dad, as if it was his first time ever in my store, judging by the way he immediately scowled like the shelves had personally insulted him.
"You've got to be kidding me" I muttered.
"Han! My hardworking baby!"
Mom rushed forward, crushing me in a hug.
"I just couldn't resist dropping by again."
"Yup" step-dad grunted. "She made me come."
"Touching" I said flatly.
My sister already had her phone out.
"Oh my god, this is gonna be even better than last time. Do the goblins still work here?"
As if summoned by fate, the Goblin Coupon Gang suddenly appeared from the back room.
This time they didn't say anything.
They just marched out one by one, striking poses in their new "outfits."
Grip was dressed like some kind of medieval knight, complete with a colander on his head.
Snip wore a glittery cape, holding his mop-staff like a scepter.
Clink... had decided on a clown wig.
No explanation.
They stood there in silence.
"...What the hell" I whispered.
My sister burst out laughing. "Oh my god. Yes. I missed them so much."
Step-dad walked down an aisle, glaring at everything. He picked up a can of soda, flipped it over and grunted.
"Too expensive."
"That's the standard price" I said.
He picked up jerky next. "...Also expensive."
"That's premium jerky."
He shoved it back on the shelf and muttered, "Premium my ass."
Meanwhile, my mom was practically glowing. "You've really made something of yourself here, Hanseok. Two visits in and it feels like a second home already!"
"It is. My home..." I muttered.
Of course, that's when I noticed the Dungeon itself, the shadowy shimmer in aisle three, pretending to examine instant ramen like a bored shopper.
Mom noticed too.
"Oh! It's you again! Hanseok's friend!" she said sweetly.
The Dungeon froze.
Again.
"Uh, I, supplier. Yes. Very... reliable supplier" it stammered.
Mom clasped her hands. "Thank you for looking after my son's dream!"
The Dungeon panicked, fizzled like a static screen and then vanished without another word.
Step-dad blinked. "...What the hell was that?"
"Long story." I muttered.
The goblins had apparently decided my family were VIP guests again.
Grip tried to knight my step-dad with a coupon flyer. "By the power of bargains, I dub thee..."
"Get that crap away from me" step-dad growled.
Snip dramatically placed the glitter cape around my mom's shoulders.
"For the matriarch, ruler of sales!"
Mom gasped. "Oh my goodness, thank you!"
My sister filmed the entire thing, laughing so hard she nearly dropped her phone.
I just leaned against the counter, head in my hands. "...Why is this my life?"
And yet... behind the clown wigs and coupon theatrics, I couldn't stop thinking about what Grunt, the first-floor boss, had let slip.
"This store is important."
Important how?
Why?
For the dungeon?
For adventurers?
For monsters?
I glanced at my mom, happily adjusting her glitter cape, at my step-dad grumbling over prices, at my sister laughing at goblins and at the empty space where the Dungeon had just fled.
The weight of it pressed against me, confusing, unsettling.
But of course, before I could dwell too much, Clink honked a rubber chicken right in my ear.
"...And that's my sign to stop thinking" I muttered