Chapter 316
While having lunch with colleagues at work, there were times when everyone would eat silently without much conversation. This was one of those moments.
Inside a cheonggukjang[1] restaurant close to City Hall, the Fissure Exploration Unit staff quietly ate their meals. During such moments, Cheol-Soo often tried to lighten the mood with a sudden, unexpected joke.
“Why does an owl take swimming lessons?” he asked, and Hyuk-Soo and Do-Jun looked at each other in confusion. “Because it didn’t want to go hoo-verboard.”
The table fell silent. Normally, jokes like this would leave the atmosphere even more awkward. But, surprisingly, Do-Jun couldn’t help but chuckle. It wasn’t the forced laughter of someone trying to maintain social etiquette—it was genuine amusement. Sitting across from him, Hyuk-Soo also cracked a smile.
“Chief, that one was actually pretty funny.”
“Right? I’ve got more. What happens when a king parks a car...?”
Encouraged by their reactions, Cheol-Soo started sharing a few more of his so-called “dad jokes” he’d kept in reserve. Ordinarily, most people would cringe or shake their heads at these corny jokes, but for some reason, they struck a chord with Do-Jun, who laughed every time.
***
“Are you serious? You actually thought that was funny? ‘When a king parks a car, it’s parking.’ Where do you even learn jokes like that?” Laghaim asked, wrinkling her nose in disbelief.
Kiriel quietly tried to hide the joke book in his hands behind his back. Earlier at the bookstore, he had been laughing his head off while reading it, but now his sense of humor was being thoroughly rejected.
“H-hmph! I didn’t think it was funny, either.” Kiriel lied.
“Really?”