Ch. 12 — 12
“I installed all the basic programs just as you asked. This is quite a high-end system, so it should be able to run most games on ultra settings without any issues.”
Hyung-man smiled with satisfaction as he looked at the PC sitting on Cheol-jun’s desk.
“Yes, thank you for your hard work.”
After the installation technician left, Hyung-man sat in front of the computer and began searching.
[Emotions of gifted children]
[How to properly raise a gifted child]
[Social issues of highly gifted children]
[Negative tendencies of gifted children]
‘Hmm…’
School maladjustment behaviors.
They pursue intellectual exploration rather than physical activities, making it difficult for them to socialize with average children who are overflowing with energy.
The level of standard curriculum often doesn’t match their own, leading to boredom in class, which can manifest as distractibility and a poor attitude.
They may view the teacher’s instructions as authoritarian and openly express their resistance, frequently resulting in them being perceived as problem children, and they commonly exhibit tendencies of school refusal…
Their vocabulary is exceptional, and the gap in their cognitive speed and judgment is distinctly apparent.
They often find the games, language, and culture enjoyed by their peers to be frustrating and childish, leading to a tendency to reject rather than attempt to understand them…
Becoming absorbed in their own world and showing an unwillingness to communicate, combined with individualistic tendencies and strong stubbornness stemming from self-assurance, can cause significant difficulties in making friends…
“Haaa…”
Hyung-man let out a deep sigh.
“Being too smart is a problem, too.”
Checking the clock, it was about time for Cheol-jun to return.
‘I hope nothing bad happened. I wonder if he made even a single friend?’
*
*
*
“…Huh?”
He had assumed the kid would immediately sit down in front of the computer the moment he saw it, but Cheol-jun sat on the living room sofa and started chattering away about what happened at school.
“So, there’s this kid named Min-jun. He’s incredibly good at games. They say he’s the best in the school. He’s also the tallest among the 5th graders. And, Ha-rang is originally Min-jun’s friend, but we decided to be friends too! He’s an animation expert. He recommended a few to me, and just hearing about them sounded really fun. I haven’t gotten to talk much with the other kids yet, but there’s a kid named Si-woo, a kid named Ji-ah, a kid named A-rin…”
Staring blankly at Cheol-jun, who was talking with sheer excitement, Hyung-man let out a sigh of relief and smiled warmly.
‘The experts aren’t always right, I guess.’
“So, did you have fun?”
Cheol-jun smiled broadly.
“Yes!”
“Haha. That’s a relief.”
“But…”
Suddenly, Cheol-jun’s brow narrowed slightly.
Then he looked at Hyung-man.
One of Hyung-man’s eyebrows twitched.
Did something happen after all?
“Uncle.”
“…Yeah?”
“I have something serious to ask you.”
Hyung-man nodded, feeling slightly tense.
“I want you to increase my phone screen time!”
“Ah…?”
“And! I want to install games on my phone too!”
Hyung-man grinned.
He was wondering what it was…
It was something he was planning to do anyway after his consultation with the pediatric psychiatry professor that morning.
“Sure. I’ll do that.”
Cheol-jun’s eyes went wide.
Honestly, he knew his uncle restricting his phone usage was for his own good.
Because when he looked it up, there were an enormous amount of negative things said about cell phone usage.
So, he had been racking his brain trying to prepare a logical argument to get permission, and he never expected to get it this easily.
“Really?”
“Yeah. But you have to stick to your bedtime.”
“Whoa!”
“Hah, jeez. Are you that happy?”
“Yes! Yes!” (Yareu)
Yes? What kind of word was that?
Did he pick up slang from the kids already?
Hyung-man chuckled and turned his head to look at Cheol-jun’s room.
“But, you don’t like the computer?”
Only then did Cheol-jun jump up from the sofa in complete shock.
Then he padded into his room and stood in front of the computer.
“Wow!”
He had been so distracted talking about what happened at school.
And his head had been full of strategies to convince his uncle to allow more phone time and let him install games.
So he only just now realized the computer’s existence.
Cheol-jun quickly sat in the chair and grabbed the mouse.
Hyung-man, who had followed him in, looked at the small back of his head with a proud face.
“Do you know how to use it?”
“Yes!”
He had used his dad’s laptop occasionally.
So he knew how to use it.
Well, since he couldn’t use the internet, the only things he had ever done were a typing practice game and the classic game Starcraft.
Hyung-man pointed at the monitor with his finger.
“If you click that right there, an internet window opens, and you can get an infinite amount of information from there. That’s right. Just type what you want in the box next to the magnifying glass and search. Now, what has our Cheol-jun been the most curious about?”
Hyung-man was looking forward to this.
He thought back to the things the kid had been most interested in lately.
‘Stars? Math problems?’
It would probably be one of those two.
With his round eyes sparkling, Cheol-jun placed his fingers on the keyboard.
His small, bracken-like fingers moved with lightning speed.
[How to be good at Rivals]
“…?”
At the completely unexpected search query, Hyung-man blinked blankly.
‘What is Rivals?’
A video of cute characters running around shooting guns frantically started playing on the monitor.
No matter how much he looked at it, he couldn’t figure out what was going on.
Cheol-jun, who had been excitedly watching the video, suddenly turned his head to look at Hyung-man.
“Oh, right. You know how to play Go too, Uncle, right? I saw a Go board on the balcony?”
“Huh? I play a little bit, yeah.”
In his prime, he was around an amateur 2-dan level.
“My dad told me I’m really good at Go, you know?”
“Ah, you learned Go too? Right. Jae-kang used to play a bit too. Your dad and I are about the same skill level.”
When they were younger, there was a time they were both really into Go.
Back then, their job was secretly residing in China and killing time, so the only things they had to play with were that and cards.
“But, why?”
“I’ve only ever played Go with my dad, so I don’t know what my level is.”
“So. You want to play a game with me?”
“Yes!”
“Haha. Sure, how many handicap stones should I give you?”
“Uh, three stones!”
“Hah, you played like that with Jae-kang?”
“Yes!”
“You must be pretty good. Really.”
Hyung-man laughed, saying “Haha,” and shook his head.
Is he good at Go too, being a prodigy and all?
Since Jae-kang was around his level, let’s assume he’s a 2-dan.
Playing a handicap game with 3 stones against an amateur 2-dan is around an amateur 2-kyu level.
For an elementary schooler, that would be considered quite top-tier.
If he reached that level without even attending a Go academy and only playing with his dad, his skill was considerable.
Hyung-man became curious about Cheol-jun’s skill as well.
Hyung-man grinned.
“Shall we play now? Or after you use the computer a bit more?”
“Now!”
Cheol-jun smiled radiantly, jumped up, and scurried over to the balcony.
*
*
*
[Park Jin-gyeom Go Research Institute]
Si-woo was staring blankly at the sign attached to the large building.
Normally, on Mondays, he would go to school, leave early after the second period, and come straight here.
But today, since it was the first day of the new semester, he arrived a little later than usual.
Si-woo closed his eyes for a moment.
Last week, he had lost in the weekly research student group league.
He still had plenty of points to spare, so a single loss wasn’t enough to make him worry about demotion, but his opponent was an older guy who had repeatedly failed the professional induction tournament and still hadn’t made it even as he approached 18.
He had lost to the guy with the lowest skill level in his research student group.
The fact that he lost to an older guy he always beat kept bothering him.
Reviewing the game a bit, he realized he made a few hasty moves in the bottom-left corner.
That snowballed and caused him to suffer quite a loss.
No matter how much he pondered, the cause of his defeat was that single area.
It was because he let his guard down.
Thinking he was several moves ahead in reading the board, he played aggressively, unlike his usual style.
Once he entered the institute, he would have to review that match with his dad.
Si-woo recreated the battle that took place in the bottom-left corner in his mind, envisioning every possible outcome.
Dozens of Go boards were drawn, and on each one, he began to find the best move and respond.
He mercilessly abandoned any board where he hesitated even slightly after a few moves.
Then, he reviewed only the boards that survived the rigorous filtering process.
He had to carefully examine every single move to ensure there were no flaws in his opponent’s responses.
Si-woo always did this when he lost, of course, but he also repeated this process even when he won if he spotted a move that felt off.
He had to find the absolute best move in advance like this.
That way, his dad would scold him less during the review.
—If they play here, then what?
When this question came, he had to provide the correct answer immediately.
And he had to perfectly explain the significance of that single stone several moves ahead.
Because the low sigh his dad let out when he hesitated even slightly or failed to explain its clear meaning terrified him.
On nights he heard that sigh, he would suffer from nightmares all night long.
Dreams where his body shrank to an infinitely small size, wandering across the Go board while dodging massive Go stones.
In the end, he would always wake up just as his entire body was crushed by one of those giant stones.
Since he was very young, there was nothing but Go in Si-woo’s head.
Kids his own age were far too childish, and holding a conversation was impossible.
Classes were boring, and most of the teachers’ words were useless.
School was a place that only cluttered his mind.
Nothing there helped him with Go whatsoever.
He resented having to attend at all.
Because he had always kept to himself since 1st grade, the kids who used to try talking to him naturally disappeared.
Si-woo found that incredibly comfortable.
He didn’t want to waste his emotions unnecessarily.
—Hello?
One of Si-woo’s eyebrows twitched.
The face that suddenly popped into his mind scrambled the game records of the bottom-left corner he had laid out in his head.
—Wow. My dad taught me Go too!
—He said I play really well!
Recalling what that kid had said, Si-woo scoffed in disbelief.
‘What? Plays really well?’
Even the older guys in Group 1, the top-tier group, could never say they play Go well.
People who live in this world never utter such words.
Because they know exactly how much they have to prove to be able to say they play ‘well’.
Even his incredible dad had never said those words.
Yet, to say it so lightly in front of someone betting everything on Go.
It grated on his nerves.
Si-woo’s brow furrowed deeply.
‘Ugh, so annoying.’
It was probably just thoughtless words spat out by a kid who didn’t even know Go properly, but for some reason, it kept coming to mind.
He absolutely hated that innocent face, boasting as if he genuinely believed he played well.
Grinding his teeth, Si-woo entered the building.
He was even more annoyed because that kid popping into his head ruined his preparation for the game review with his dad.
*
*
*
Hyung-man tilted his head in confusion.
“What? You want me to take three handicap stones?”
Cheol-jun smiled radiantly and nodded.
“Yes. You said you’re similar to my dad. My dad used to take three stones when he played with me, too.”
Hyung-man twitched an eyebrow.
It was the exact opposite of what he had thought.
It meant Cheol-jun, not Jae-kang, was the one playing with a handicap.
“Hah…”
“Um, this is a secret, though.”
“Hm?”
“Honestly, even if my dad took about five stones, I probably still would have won.”
“…What?”
“But, whenever the number of handicap stones went up, my dad’s expression got a little sour.”
“……”
“So after raising it to three stones, I used to lose and win on purpose.”
“Hah…”
Hyung-man narrowed his brow.
Even if he’s a prodigy, should I really believe this as it is?
Well, I’ll know once we play.
Hyung-man pushed the bowl of Go stones toward Cheol-jun.
“Let’s try an even game first.”
“Uh, will you be okay with that?”
“Hey. Your uncle is, huh? Pretty good, you know? Take black.”
“…Okay.”
“No holding back or anything! Got it?”
“Yes!”
And, about 15 minutes later.
Hyung-man swallowed hard as he stared at the vast, impenetrable territories built by the black stones.
There wasn’t a single place he could even try to poke at.
It was an utter defeat.
Honestly, he should have thrown in the towel a long time ago, but he kept playing out of pure stubbornness.
Once the outcome became painfully obvious, the kid started subtly giving him looks.
Looks that practically asked when he was going to resign.
Honestly, that was incredibly embarrassing.
Checking Hyung-man’s expression, Cheol-jun cautiously spoke up.
“Are you going to keep playing?”
Hyung-man slowly shook his head and slapped a stone down on the board in resignation.
Cheol-jun stared at the board and deliberately furrowed his brow.
“Hmm, Uncle.”
“…Yeah?”
“You’re worse than my dad.”
“……”
Staring blankly at Cheol-jun’s maliciously innocent face, Hyung-man barely suppressed the urge to flip the Go board over entirely.
“The loser cleans up the stones, right?”
Hyung-man gritted his teeth and nodded, and Cheol-jun quickly scurried off into his room.
And began to study the game called Rivals.
*
*
*
The next day.
“No way! Noh Min-jun got completely wrecked!”
Lunchtime, the brief phone usage time given after everyone finished eating.
In the Special Creativity Class, which had half the number of students as the other classes, a massive cheer erupted.