Chapter 2 – He is a fanatic among fanatics(2)
Because of that situation, Byungho turned pale and began pressuring Jinho.
"Hey, you punk! There's a limit to covering things up! You're making gunpowder? Planning to blow someone's head off? You idiot! It won't just be my head flying—everything in every direction will go with it!"
"No… it's hard to get proper gunpowder…"
"Are you insane? Fireworks are overflowing at any stationery store!"
"The impurities…"
"Hey! Tear it all up right now!"
After the scuffle that followed, Jinho promised to plow the field under. Before leaving, Byungho warned him once more.
"I'll come back the day after tomorrow to check, so make sure you plow it completely! Got it?"
"Got it!"
After receiving another firm promise, Byungho started the engine and grumbled.
"That crazy fanatic bastard…"
"Crazy fanatic."
That was the nickname Jinho's relatives—along with his own parents—had given him.
Because of the various accidents he had caused through his obsessive hobbies since childhood, all his extended family worried that "one day he's going to cause a huge disaster."
'Fanatic among fanatics.'
That was the nickname given to him by acquaintances he met through social media and online hobby cafés.
From a young age, Jinho had shown unusual traits. Compared to other children his age, he possessed exceptional concentration and memory.
"I don't think he's an ordinary child!"
At the kindergarten teacher's words, his parents' expectations rose higher and higher.
Around the time he entered elementary school, his parents had his IQ tested. The doctor told them:
"His memory, concentration, and comprehension are all above average. His IQ is near-genius level."
"Thank you!"
His parents were overjoyed and filled with hope.
But that hope soon turned to disappointment.
His remarkable concentration, memory, comprehension, and intelligence showed no trace of themselves when it came to studying.
At three or four years old—just barely understanding speech—he remembered the embarrassing stories about his parents that slipped out during a marital argument and used them for years to silence them. He remembered his own embarrassing childhood moments from kindergarten and elementary school well into his college years, making himself kick the blankets in humiliation at night. He could binge-watch an entire American TV series nonstop, skipping meals until he had to be taken to the emergency room—all thanks to his intense concentration. And yet none of those abilities appeared when it came to studying.
"You've got a good head on your shoulders!"
His parents enrolled him in cram schools and alternated between carrot and stick to make him study, but every time they received his report card, they exploded in frustration. Whether he was in the advanced class or the remedial class, his grades were always average.
He excelled in Korean language, history, and other memorization-heavy subjects. But English, where he hovered in the middle, and math, where he lingered at rock bottom, dragged him down. Jinho himself was frustrated.
"I just can't visualize it…"
He complained to a friend.
"Visualize?"
"In Korean, history, and other memorization subjects, when I read the textbook or a problem, scenes form in my head like a movie. So I remember everything clearly and understand how to solve things quickly. But damn math—it doesn't do that…"
In the end, Jinho had no choice but to choose the humanities track.
Under mounting stress, he immersed himself even more deeply in his hobbies. From fourth grade in elementary school until entering middle school, he became obsessed with a famous robot animation—an ardent Universal Century fundamentalist and hardcore Federation supporter—and made many acquaintances through enthusiastic online activity.
His transformation from hobbyist to "Fanatic among fanatics" began in the second year of middle school.
After being completely blindsided by a steampunk drama set in the 19th century, he eagerly sought it out. It was extremely niche, so he had to obtain it through "shadowy routes" overseas, and since there were no subtitles, he translated scripts he found online while watching. He became addicted.
His parents were furious, but since his English grades skyrocketed during that period, he was allowed to finish the series.
The impact of that drama on Jinho was immense. He transformed from a "fan who watches and enjoys" into a "fan who acts".
Fascinated by steam engines, Jinho built a scaled-down model of Watt's steam engine connected to a generator with his friends and submitted it to a science competition.
Aside from the pressure-resistant cylinder and a few key drive components, the model was made from easily obtainable materials. When they heated the boiler with an alcohol lamp, it generated enough power to light an LED lamp. It won a merit award.
"Jinho, thank you! It's not much, but use this for pocket money."
"What's the point of a humanities kid winning an award! If you put that effort into memorizing math formulas instead! Honey, don't give him any allowance! He'll just build something weird again!"
While his science-track friends' parents thanked him and gave him pocket money, his own parents scolded him. But the next year, he built a steam locomotive model that actually ran on steam pressure, making his parents clutch the backs of their necks in despair.
Through all this, Jinho did his best for college entrance exams. He passed the grueling regular admissions route and was accepted into the Department of Public Administration at an "in-Seoul" university just below SKY tier.
On the day his acceptance was confirmed, his parents gathered relatives and held a celebration.
"Now that you're in college, stop doing useless things and just study!"
"Public administration? Study hard and become a civil servant."
"Don't think about anything else—just study! You know how much your parents have suffered because of you!"
His relatives mixed threats and advice freely.
Even after entering university, Jinho's "active fandom" continued.
During his first-year summer vacation, he used money earned from part-time jobs to build a human-powered seaplane and successfully flew it over the Han River estuary.
"It's flying!"
"It actually flew?"
Police officers and 119 emergency responders on site for safety reasons watched with strange expressions as his plane soared.
The flight made national news.
Under titles like "Talented College Student Inventor", it took up a segment on TV. His parents, however, lay down clutching their heads.
"He's not a son, he's an enemy…"
"What sin did we commit in our past lives…"
Relatives called it "The First Fanatic Rebellion."
Thanks to the TV exposure, Jinho became known as an eccentric on campus.
His antics continued. Angered by historically inaccurate period dramas, he tried making proper Three Kingdoms leather lamellar armor. He spent a vacation living and working at a traditional swordsmith's workshop to learn how to make Joseon hwando swords. During the semester, inspired by a Crusades-era film, he hammered away at a workshop every weekend trying to make a Western full-plate suit of armor.
"What are we going to do with that bastard…"
His parents even beat their adult son in an attempt to stop him. Yet he persisted.
"If only he were bad at studying…"
Because he studied diligently during semesters—except vacations—and achieved excellent grades, they could not give up on him.
Whenever he caused trouble, they remembered what his high school career counselor once said:
"Jinho is very intelligent. But not academically inclined. Simply put, he's suited to being an inventor."
"An inventor… Isn't that hard to live off these days?"
"That's why it's unfortunate. If he'd been born in 18th or 19th century Europe, he would have become an inventor whose name went down in history."
Around his third year of university, Jinho caused a massive incident.
An email from an American acquaintance he'd met online was the trigger.
They were gathering people to build, using traditional methods, the sailing ship featured in a famous pirate movie. Though at quarter scale, everything would be historically accurate.
Jinho's eyes lit up.
He immediately took a leave of absence and flew to the United States.
It was "The Second Fanatic Rebellion."
His mother collapsed again, and his father roared:
"I'll strike you from the family registry!"
His stay in the U.S. lasted longer than expected. The reason was an Arab billionaire hobbyist who had funded the project.
Satisfied with the result, the wealthy sponsor made an offer:
"I happen to need a cruising yacht. How about building it full scale? I'll fund construction and pay salaries. Deal?"
"Deal!"
The participants agreed in unison.
Though modified into an engine-assisted sailboat with modern conveniences, its structure and appearance largely preserved the Age of Exploration design. Hobbyists from many countries brought it back to life.
After completion, launch, and sea trials, Jinho returned to Korea with a copy of the blueprints.
His parents greeted him with one short sentence.
"Go to the army. Everything's arranged."
"Yes."
After military service, he quietly resumed school.
Studying diligently and preparing for the civil service exam, he passed the Grade-5 Public Official Exam one year after graduation.
On the day he was confirmed as a central government official—specifically in the Ministry of Finance—his parents once again gathered relatives for a feast.
"You've worked hard!"
"At last we can breathe easy!"
Relatives praised his parents more than him.
Thus began Jinho's civil servant life.
His parents finally felt relief—but Jinho encountered a problem.
"I feel suffocated…"
Overwhelmed by daily work, he suffered mental thirst. On days off, he built plastic models, played online and mobile games, joined cycling clubs—trying everything. But the thirst deepened, and he was eventually diagnosed with depression and prescribed medication.
Faced with this, his parents made a choice.
"Live the way you want."
"Thank you."
The day after their decision, Jinho submitted his resignation.
Unemployed, he immediately took a job at a master blacksmith's forge.
After three years of living and learning there, the master called him in.
"Open your own shop. You've learned everything I can teach. From now on, you need experience, and only time can give you that."
"Thank you, Master."
That was how Jinho ended up in Yangsan. Using savings from four years as a civil servant and some support, he bought an empty house with a field and opened his forge.
* * *
After seeing Byungho off, Jinho scratched his head and muttered:
"Fireworks from the stationery store have too many impurities—they rust the barrel…"
Commercial fireworks contained various additives for colors and to reduce explosive force. Those impurities severely corroded gun barrels, requiring thorough cleaning after test firing.
"Anyway, if he says plow it under, I have to. I'll go borrow Old Man Hwang's tractor tomorrow."
Having decided his next day's task, Jinho entered the storage shed.
"Let's see…"
He rummaged through shelves, moved aside steam engine models from his high school days, and took out a small box.
"If this had been discovered, I'd be in a holding cell right now."
Muttering, he opened it.
Inside were two tiny glass bottles nestled in cushioning. Looking at the yellow-brown liquid inside the pinky-sized bottles, he sighed.
"Why did I even make this…"
The liquid was nitroglycerin.
After examining them briefly, he closed the box and pushed it deep onto the shelf.
Rumble!
Just as he stepped out of the shed, the ground began to shake.
"Huh? Construction nearby?"
Tilting his head at first, he soon screamed as the shaking intensified.
"No way—it's an earthquake!"
He dashed outside, but after barely five steps, he turned and ran back to the shed.
"If that damn thing explodes, insurance won't cover it!"
Rumble!
Though staggering from the growing tremors, he grabbed the box and rushed out.
Click!
Opening it, he pulled out the two bottles and hurled them toward the field.
Boom!
"Good—"
Just as he felt relieved at the explosion in the field, the ground split open and swallowed Jinho whole.