< Chapter 140: Relationships (4) >
I woke up.
The familiar scenery of my room.
“…It wasn’t a strange dream, right?”
Whether it was a dream or something else, the memory remains vivid. The words Shin spoke are still lingering in my head.
It probably wasn’t a dream.
His words were too plausible to be dismissed as a figment of my imagination.
Everything he said made sense.
“Let’s meet again at the end that is not the end…”
Recalling Shin’s last words, I got up from my bed.
Those words held a lot of meaning for me.
“Does it mean that as long as I manage to survive and reach the point of bringing down the ending, defeating Demon God, I can know everything?”
It was as if he had given me a clear goal when I had been merely thinking of surviving vaguely.
“…Even if I have to, I will survive until then.”
I have to find out why I ended up in this situation, even if it’s out of resentment. I clenched my teeth.
But it’s a bit disappointing.
There were still many questions I wanted to ask.
“I didn’t even ask if dying here means dying for real.”
I was so distracted that I couldn’t ask the most important question. No, initially, whether this world is really a world inside a novel, or like the cliché in other web novels, another dimension that really exists.
I couldn’t even ask that.
And more than anything,
“I should have slapped him, but I forgot to do that too.”
I gritted my teeth.
“…But still, I gained a lot.”
I came to know the detailed principle behind the trace of my power, Adam.
I found out that Shin is my ally.
And I learned that I should not tell anyone that I do not have a status window.
“What to do.”
What should I really do?
I thought that to untangle the twisted relationships around me like a twisted donut, I had to disclose my truth to some extent. But that’s not possible.
“…I am going crazy.”
I can’t back down now either.
Literally caught between a rock and a hard place.
I have become unable to move either way.
“I can’t just ignore it either.”
If I don’t somehow untangle these entwined relationships, the trust between us will break.
If that happens, it will be a major obstacle when waging a full-scale war against the truth’s saviors.
“It might even turn into a hostile relationship.”
“The larger the trust, the greater the sense of betrayal when it comes back,” it was said.
If left like this, I could be antagonized by those four.
“I decided to stop lying because I didn’t want that to happen someday….”
Now was the Maginot Line.
The final line where I could rectify my lies and establish a correct relationship. It might be a bit calculative and selfish, but I have helped those four a lot until now.
It was the only time where some reasonable participation was possible if I explained my situation.
That’s why I had chosen not to lie….
“It’s completely messed up.”
If I spill my truth, it gets detected by the system.
Knowing this fact, my choice has become a necessary evil, neither more nor less.
“Not that lying was a good choice either.”
If spilling the truth is the worst move, lying is at best the next worst.
No, considering it might cause a bigger disaster in the future, it can also be called the worst move.
“Wow. I’m going crazy.”
Caught in a dilemma.
Whichever path I choose, it’s hell.
There was no answer.
“…The somewhat fortunate thing is that only Jia knows it.”
About the Sunshine Orphanage and being a half-elf, half-celestial. Jia is the only one who knows both of these disconnected identities.
That is somewhat fortunate.
But this is just a matter of time too.
Once a glass starts to crack, even if you glue it, it will eventually shatter someday.
My current situation is exactly that.
The moment Jia’s patience collapses and she consults someone, everything ends.
“Sooner or later, it’s only a matter of time before those four find out.”
Even if Jia doesn’t explicitly say it, since Maiden started having doubts and acting upon them, it is inevitable that cracks will appear in our relationship.
“It won’t be long before they come to ask me directly.”
What exactly is the relationship between me, Jia, and Si-yeon? They will come to ask straightforwardly.
“Ah.”
The more I think about it, the more this situation seems to have no solution from all sides.
“I expected that when relationships formed through various misconceptions gather, it would turn out like this someday….”
That timing was too fast.
All because the incident spiraled out of control due to the butterfly effect.
“I connected those four too quickly.”
I shook my head vigorously.
As the remaining time passed, despite pondering over and over, the fact that there was no answer became even clearer.
“Sigh. Let’s just go to school.”
With a deep sigh, I got up from the bed.
* * *
Friday.
The group battle that was paused and postponed has finally come to an end. To speak of the results, our team has achieved a clean sweep.
“Ha. It ended with 4 wins and 1 loss.”
Chul-jin approached me with a wry smile.
“What does the loser want with the winner?”
I joked with a smile.
“I came to take some revenge on the winner. Why?”
Chul-jin sneakily moved behind me, attempting to wrap his arm around my neck.
Clearly aiming to headlock me.
“Too slow.”
I dodged with a light body movement, escaping from Kim Chul-jin’s grasp.
“I, as a bro, have no interest in having physical contact with a loser, especially a male one.”
“Ah.”
He clenches his fist, glaring at me as if extremely annoyed.
“So, is it okay to have physical contact with a losing female?”
“Huh?”
Suddenly, a playful voice came from behind, and at the same time,
“Eiya!”
Soft arms wrapped around my head. Si-yeon was looking at me with a playful expression.
“Accept the wrath of the loser!”
She then put strength into her arm.
“Oi Oi Oi! It hurts! It hurts!”
It was so painful that I couldn’t think of anything else. It seems she has become stronger recently.
“Humph!”
Si-yeon made a pouting face.
“Do you now understand the anger of the loser?! Hahaha!”
Kim Chul-jin’s laughter boomed heartily.
Suddenly, irritation surged.
I was already suffering from a headache!
I immediately jabbed at Si-yeon’s wide-open flank, and very hard at that!
“Ugigoagyagyagak!”
Si-yeon, making an indescribable sound, hurriedly jumped and retreated to the side.
“Se, Seyul, you….”
“Si-yeon, if you expose your flanks like that, this happens. Understand? Do you?”
I took another step towards Si-yeon, who was covering both of her flanks with her hands.
And then, thud.
“Kyaaang!”
It stings.
This time, I feigned a jab and quickly thudded the other side!
“Kyaaah! St, stooop!”
It’s been a while.
My anger hasn’t subsided yet.
“I, I was wrong! Really! Uwaaang!”
Soon, Si-yeon became tearful and sprawled out on the floor.
“Phew. I’ll let it slide for today.”
“…sniffle.”
She looks up at me with tears hanging on the corners of her eyes. For some unknown reason, I feel refreshed.
Is this Si-yeon therapy?
“Seo-yul, you’re merciless.”
Watching us, Chul-jin smiled as if he was enjoying it.
“You too. You could have helped.”
“Then it wouldn’t be fun.”
From his point of view, it probably doesn’t matter whether it was me getting pranked or Si-yeon; it was equally fun either way.
“Hing. Seo-yul, you’re bad….”
Si-yeon slowly approached me, pouting her lips and glaring at me with resentful eyes.
“What? Want me to poke you more?”
I raised my finger.
“No!”
Si-yeon quickly retreated backward, protecting her side.
“Heh heh.”
At her cute reaction, Chul-jin let out a laugh again.
“If Ji-hoon was here, he would have interfered out of jealousy. Poor thing.”
“Don’t say such terrible things.”
I don’t even want to think about that tick-like guy.
“Why? You can make him call you ‘hyung’ (older brother) quite often, isn’t it fun?”
Ha. Don’t even mention it.
“Fun my ass. I wouldn’t let him call me ‘hyung’. I’m so annoyed that I can’t kill him.”
I gritted my teeth, expressing how creepy it would feel to be called ‘hyung’ by him. Ugh.
“Anyway, Seo-yul, you haven’t been hanging out with Shin Jia much lately.”
Chul-jin brought up a new topic.
“Ah, right. Did something happen between you two? The atmosphere seemed awkward.”
Si-yeon followed up with her question.
“…I’m not sure.”
I sighed inwardly.
The situation between Jia and me remains the same.
We are just being indecisive, constantly gauging each other’s reactions.
It’s frustrating in many ways.
“It’s better to resolve it quickly if something happened. Looking at Shin Jia, she seems like the type to bottle up a lot inside. Better to clear it up before it becomes tiresome.”
For some reason, Chul-jin gave serious advice. Nonetheless, it was useless advice. I already know something like that.
“…Yeah. Thanks.”
I want to do that too, but what can I do when there’s no way to?
* * *
The weekend passed without any change.
“I wish she would say something…”
Jia still had nothing special to say. She still attended the training we did together with Si-yeon, and calling ancestor was no different from usual.
On Saturday, Shin Jia came over to play at home and after playing all day with Rena, even the strangely awkward atmosphere disappeared, returning to her usual state.
That’s even more unsettling.
Is this it?
The mind of a murderer who unwittingly committed a murder and is anxious about when they will be caught.
It feels like sitting on a bed of thorns all day.
[Little one. Are you free this Saturday? Let’s talk.]
As expected, it seemed that Mr. Maiden’s patience had reached its limit.
“…Has it really gone wrong?”
It was tightly blocked front and back.
Even the Olympic Road during rush hour would not be this blocked.
“Do I have no choice but to keep the present alive with lies, regardless of the distant future…?”
It seems like this is the only serious way. Right now, I have to do something to come to the future. Roughly speaking, going backward could also bring up a new method.
No matter how much I think about it, there is no other way.
I need time to remedy this situation.
“Alright. I’ll go with this method.”
Even after worrying more, no good method comes to mind. I’ll go with the lesser evil to avoid the worst.
“They say to pull out the ox horn at once.”
I immediately sent a group message to four people.
[I have something to say this Saturday. Is noon okay for you all?]
“…I don’t know. It will work out somehow.”
The dice have been thrown.
Maybe a good move will come up later.
Woowoo-
An immediate reply came.
It was Mr. Yu Hwa.
[I’ll try to make time.]
You woke up early.
[Ah, by the way, I have a few ancient relics that I bought in advance for this mystery project. Would you like to hold onto them for now?]
[Is that okay?]
It’s good for me.
[Of course. It is a relic legally bought with my money. Of course, it is okay.]
[Just return it before the museum is completed.]
So, I can have it for at least a month.
[Here is the item description.]
[Photo attached]
Even the effects are quite good.
[Then I will gratefully accept it. Where should I go tomorrow?]
[I will go to you. I’ll take a look at Goldie as well.]
* * *
After all the Tuesday classes were over.
“Excuse me.”
Mr. Yu Hwa came to visit my house.
“Yu Hwa!”
Rena greeted Mr. Yu Hwa.
Following her, Goldie also followed with a jingling sound.
“Hello Rena. Hello Goldie~”
Mr. Yu Hwa greeted the two with a fresh smile.
White Tiger was lying in the living room, staring intently at the three of them.
“White Tiger is still as haughty as ever.”
“That white cat, well… always the same. These days, his jealousy has decreased, and he doesn’t even come forward for trivial matters. He just rolls around lying down all day.”
It is academically established that the “white” in “white cat” stands for “unemployed.”
“Ah. Please give me that carrier first.”
I reached out for the carrier that Mr. Yu Hwa was holding in both hands.
“Nah, it’s okay. It’s not that heavy.”
“Still, it’s not polite to let a guest carry it.”
I forcibly snatched the carrier away.
“Have you had dinner?”
“No, I was busy today, so I didn’t even have lunch.”
Yu Hwa made a sad face.
“Then would you like to eat together? Rena and I tried cooking together today.”
“… Together with Rena?”
Yu Hwa looked down at Rena with widened eyes.
“I cooked! It was fun!”
Rena answered with a beaming smile.
“Wow. If our Rena made the food, this unnie absolutely has to try it.”
“Hehe.”
“Nyaang.”
Suddenly, Goldie rubbed its body against Yu Hwa’s ankle.
“Goldie?”
Yu Hwa tilted her head slightly.
She had an expression that said she couldn’t understand what Goldie was trying to say.
“He says he also helped with the cooking. He is asking for a compliment.”
“Ah~”
Yu Hwa squatted down and hugged Goldie with an expression that said he was incredibly cute.
“Goldie worked hard too~”
“Meow~”
Goldie looked pleased. Seeing this, Yu Hwa’s expression became even brighter.
“Please sit for now. I’ll just bring out some tea.”
“No, it’s okay. Let’s deal with the formalities quickly and then have a meal.”
“Um, that sounds better.”
I placed the two carriers on the table and sat down.
“Rena, can you go inside the room with Goldie and White Tiger for a moment? Just for 5 minutes.”
“…Okay.”
Rena hurriedly ran, hugged Goldie and White Tiger, and went inside the room.
“She is really cute.”
Yu Hwa watched the closed door with an envious expression.
“Come visit often if you miss her. White Tiger too, they all like Yu Hwa.”
Not just Yu Hwa, they liked most of the people around them.
“I would love to, but work has been too busy.”
Her shoulders drooped sadly.
“…Hang in there.”
I could say nothing more than that.
“Speaking of which, Seo-yul. You know the message asking if you are free this Saturday.”
Yu Hwa looked at me with a peculiar expression.
“Perhaps… Did you tell Jia about that… Have you heard?”
Her words were very cautious.
“That talk.”
It probably referred to the story about my past related to Sunlight Orphanage.
“Yes.”
I nodded with a forced smile.
“As expected.”
Yu Hwa heaved a quiet sigh.
“I’m sorry. I should have stopped her.”
“No, how could you stop Maiden?”
I vividly envisioned Yu Hwa looking restless, alternating her gaze between Maiden and Jia.
“And honestly, weren’t you curious too? About the relationship between Jia and me, the secret I’m hiding.”
For a moment, our eyes met.
Yu Hwa chuckled briefly.
“I’m not really curious.”
“…What?”
“Well, there are things that bother me. But it’s not like I must know, that’s what I mean.”
“What do you mean?”
Yu Hwa wore a faint smile.
“Caring about someone’s secrets is because you can’t trust them.”
“……”
“Because I don’t know what they are thinking. Because they might betray me. Because they might be hiding their true feelings. So, I want to know what they are hiding. It’s the best way to alleviate vague anxiety.”
Yu Hwa’s face was very serious.
“That’s why I am not curious about the secrets Seo-yul is holding.”
With a gaze full of affection and fondness, she smiled faintly.
“Because I trust Seo-yul.”
Her eyes, brimming with trust, shone with a brilliant light.
There was a peculiar resonance in my heart.
A strange joy, as if everything I had done up to now had been affirmed.
I realized how happy it is to be trusted by someone.
“…Thank you for saying that.”
However, those straightforward eyes somehow hurt my heart more.
< Chapter 140: Relationships (4) > End
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