The Tragic Heroine Scenario
It was the day Marin Eloise was forced to go on a blind date arranged by her mother. She had planned to throw on something simple and head out, knowing it was a hopeless endeavor anyway. Instead, contrary to her intentions, she had been held hostage in front of her vanity for several hours.
This was all because of her childhood friend, Flone Dolos, who had taken her mother's request—"It's an important occasion, so make her look so beautiful that anyone would fall in love at first sight"—entirely too seriously. Even when Marin begged her to keep it simple, Flone had declared, "Flone doesn't know the meaning of 'simple' when it comes to dressing up! I'm going to make Marin the most beautiful girl in the world today!" Left with no choice, Marin quietly surrendered herself to Flone's hands.
Usually, Flone was incredibly free-spirited—a troublemaker who would cause all sorts of mishaps if Marin wasn't by her side to keep an eye on her. Yet, perhaps due to her absolute obsession with all things beautiful and handsome, she possessed an astonishing talent for styling. Marin had thought Flone just liked playing with dolls when they were kids, but before she knew it, the luxury clothing and cosmetics brands Flone personally designed were selling like wildfire.
To think that a daughter of the Dolos family, born with their signature monstrous strength—strong enough to literally split a piano in half during the lessons they took together as children—could possess such a delicate talent. Watching herself transform minute by minute under Flone's touch, Marin couldn't help but think that life was truly full of surprises.
A moment later, Flone's busy hands finally came to a halt, signaling she was finished. Instantly, an ecstatic squeal erupted from her lips.
"Kyaaa! Marin, you are so, so pretty! You look just like a princess! You're the most beautiful person Flone has ever styled!"
Marin looked in the mirror and gasped in admiration. In the novels she usually read, she could never understand the cliché where the heroine, who had never dressed up in her life, looks in the mirror after a makeover and mutters, "Is this... me?"
But looking at the radiant woman blinking back at her from the glass, she finally understood exactly how that felt.
I look like an entirely different person.
As she stared at her reflection with those thoughts, Flone suddenly held up a phone. She had apparently started a video call, and her parents' faces appeared on the screen.
To think the people on the other side of that screen were heroes so deeply respected by the public... Seeing them make such a fuss, already assuming everything would go perfectly, left her utterly speechless. Marin gave a half-hearted nod, tapped the end call button, and turned to thank Flone, who had put so much effort into styling her.
"Thank you, Flone. For taking the time to do this for me."
"Hehehe, it's nothing! Flone loved getting to style Marin! You said the person you're meeting is Yoon Siwoo from Class A, right? I wonder how pretty the baby born between that handsome boy and Marin will be? Hauuu, I can't wait! Don't worry, Marin! Flone will make all the baby clothes!"
"What baby clothes..."
Flone was already counting her chickens before they hatched, and it was giving Marin a headache. Unable to bring herself to confess that she was going with the sole intention of rejecting him, Marin simply let out a quiet sigh.
The place where Marin was scheduled to meet Yoon Siwoo was a famous restaurant where reservations were impossible to secure unless one held a very high social standing. They had no choice but to choose such a venue; if word got out that Yoon Siwoo, who had recently shot to fame, was meeting the daughter of the famous Eloise couple, it would cause quite a stir. Thus, to prevent any scandals before they could even start, they met in a place that gave paparazzi and reporters absolutely no room to pry.
Stepping into the private room reserved for a late dinner—though she wasn't sure what her mother had been aiming for with the timing—Marin caught sight of Yoon Siwoo, who had arrived early and was already seated. In that instant, she involuntarily held her breath.
"Nice to meet you. Um, we've met before, haven't we?"
"...Yes, it's nice to meet you, Yoon Siwoo."
Was this what the male lead of a novel looked like? She had thought he was handsome the first time they met, but seeing him now made her wonder how a human being could possibly look like this. Perhaps out of courtesy, he wore a black suit that contrasted strikingly with his snow-white hair. Even though she had come with the firm intention of rejecting him, her heart fluttered at the sheer sight of him.
Thinking that she would have been too embarrassed to even sit across from him if Flone hadn't styled her, Marin took her seat and quietly met Yoon Siwoo's gaze. Unlike her, who was trembling slightly, his eyes were perfectly calm and still.
I guess dressing up nicely didn't even register with him.
With a bitter smile inside, Marin spoke to Yoon Siwoo.
"I'm sorry to take up your time when you must be busy. My mother is rather overbearing about these things. I feel like I've caused you trouble. I apologize on her behalf."
"Haha... You don't have to go that far. Actually, I'm the one who should apologize..."
Seeing Yoon Siwoo's slightly troubled smile, Marin felt she already knew what he was about to say, so she forced a smile. She had expected it, but it still stung a little. If she hadn't had any interest in him at all, she wouldn't have agreed to come in the first place. She had originally planned to dress down so she wouldn't harbor any expectations, but seeing that even this elaborate makeover was meaningless left her with a lingering sense of regret.
"Um, I'm really sorry to say this, but..."
"If you're going to say you're rejecting me, you don't have to. I already know."
She chose to say the words herself before he could. No matter how small her feelings were, she didn't want to hear a flat-out rejection from someone she actually liked a little. At her words, Yoon Siwoo's eyes widened. To completely shake off her lingering regrets, she added one more thing.
"You already have someone you like, don't you? Miss Scarlet Evande."
"Eh..."
When she mentioned the name of the girl she had run into at the department store a few days ago, Yoon Siwoo's voice faltered in embarrassment, and his face slowly flushed red.
So he can make faces like that too.
As she watched him with mild fascination, he averted his eyes in embarrassment and asked in a small voice.
"Was... was it that obvious?"
"Wasn't it intentional? I thought you were making it obvious on purpose to ward off other women."
"I didn't mean to... Ah, so that's how it looked..."
Yoon Siwoo muttered, hanging his head. She had thought he was a smooth operator, but he was surprisingly innocent. Chuckling at his unexpectedly cute reaction, she watched him bury his face even deeper in embarrassment.
"Anyway, I came here knowing it wouldn't work out. But it'd be a bit awkward to leave the moment we met, so why don't we chat for a bit before we go?"
"...Alright. I'd like that..."
Answering thus, Yoon Siwoo poured a glass of water and gulped it down, his face still flushed as if his throat had suddenly gone dry. Marin smiled slyly at him.
"Then tell me, how did you end up liking Miss Scarlet Evande so much?"
"Cough, *cough*... What? What?!"
"You can at least tell that much to the girl you rejected the moment you met her, can't you? Or do you not want to?"
She had asked a mischievous question on purpose, and it seemed to have gone down the wrong pipe. Yoon Siwoo coughed repeatedly, his face turning bright red—though that might have just been from sheer embarrassment.
"There... there isn't really a specific reason why I fell for her..."
"There's no such thing as 'no reason.' There must have been a turning point."
"Ugh... Well..."
When she pressed him as he tried to dodge the question, Yoon Siwoo hesitated, looking embarrassed but perhaps feeling guilty for rejecting her so quickly. He slowly opened his mouth.
"...At first, she was just someone I couldn't keep my eyes off of... but the more I saw her, the more I noticed her good qualities..."
"What kind of good qualities?"
"...Like how kind she is to others, how good-natured and heroic she is... and how she usually has a blank expression, but when she occasionally smiles, she's incredibly beautiful..."
"I... I see."
Watching Yoon Siwoo blush and ramble on about Scarlet's virtues, looking utterly head over heels, Marin somehow felt embarrassed herself. Yet, it was equally fascinating. It felt far more heart-fluttering than reading any romance novel.
This isn't just wearing rose-colored glasses; he's completely whipped...
With that thought, Marin asked him another question.
"I'm curious about something. Why did you become a Hero when it means leaving the person you love behind? Don't you regret having less time to spend together?"
Yoon Siwoo paused for a moment before answering.
"I do. Of course I do... but Scarlet asked me to become a Hero. She said she hoped people could forget their sadness, even just a little, by looking at me."
To think there was such a backstory behind Yoon Siwoo becoming a Hero. Marin was slightly taken aback, recalling her conversation with Scarlet a few days ago. Scarlet had absolutely no idea that Yoon Siwoo liked her. And there was no way Yoon Siwoo, who spoke with her often, didn't know that. Yet, he had still chosen to become a Hero just to fulfill her wish?
Isn't that a terribly losing deal for Yoon Siwoo?
With those thoughts, Marin asked him.
"Are you really okay with that? Miss Scarlet is..."
"It's fine. I'm doing it because I want to."
As if he knew exactly what she was going to say, Yoon Siwoo answered immediately. He smiled faintly and continued.
"I love her because she's the kind of person who would make such a request, and I became strong because I wanted to grant it. So I don't mind at all."
Looking into Yoon Siwoo's eyes as he spoke, Marin muttered without realizing it.
"...You're a real idiot."
Marin had seen those eyes once before. It was when her parents were drinking together, and her father had asked her mother if there was anything she wanted. Her mother had jokingly asked him to pluck the moon from the sky. Her father, who possessed the ability to manipulate ice, had actually tried to build a bridge of ice stretching into the heavens to fetch the moon, wearing that exact same look in his eyes. If her mother hadn't stopped him, he probably would have genuinely tried to pluck the moon. He was a man who would do absolutely anything his wife asked of him.
Even back then, Marin had called her father an idiot. But despite her words, any woman would secretly dream of a man who would do anything for her.
Feeling strangely envious, Marin glared at Yoon Siwoo and said,
"How can you say such embarrassing things in front of someone you barely know? Honestly..."
"Ah... well... that's..."
"But it was actually pretty cool. Ah, Miss Scarlet is so lucky! She probably has no idea how fortunate she is to have a man like you loving her! If only I had met you sooner, Yoon Siwoo."
"Ahahaha..."
Seeing Yoon Siwoo laugh awkwardly at her blunt honesty, Marin smiled softly. With this, all her lingering regrets were swept away. Feeling much lighter, she spoke.
"Anyway, I enjoyed hearing your story. It wasn't the original purpose of this meeting, but it was fun, so I'd call it a success. Shall we get going?"
"Ah, actually, I have a favor to ask..."
"A favor?"
As she was about to leave, Yoon Siwoo's request made her tilt her head in curiosity. He hesitated, looking unsure if it was appropriate to ask, before speaking.
"Um... if possible, could you become friends with Scarlet?"
At that, Marin didn't bother hiding her sheer disbelief.
"...Are you seriously asking the girl you just rejected on a blind date to become friends with the girl you like? You've got to be kidding me."
"Ah... well..."
Watching Yoon Siwoo look thoroughly embarrassed, clearly aware of how rude his request was, Marin suddenly burst into laughter.
"Well, fine. If she's someone a guy like you likes, she must be a good person. But in return, will you grant a favor of mine?"
When Yoon Siwoo nodded, Marin smiled and said,
"I'll become friends with Miss Scarlet, so you have to be my friend too. I'd love to build a connection with a promising future Hero."
"...Alright. Let's do that."
"Are you still going to speak so formally to a friend?"
At her question, Yoon Siwoo chuckled and replied,
"Got it. I look forward to being friends, Marin."
At those words, Marin flashed the brightest smile she had worn all day. The joy of making a good friend far outweighed the bittersweet sting of rejection.
There was no reason for the city's leaders to hold their meetings in plain sight, so they frequently gathered at a high-end restaurant with top-tier security. Silvia Astra, the young heiress of the prestigious Astra family, was just stepping out after a meeting that had dragged on late into the evening.
Once I get back to the mansion, I can finally spend some time with Miss Scarlet.
She was humming happily to herself when a familiar voice caught her ear.
"Siwoo, I had fun today. See you next time."
"Yeah, see you next time."
Hearing a name she knew all too well, Silvia turned her head. Her eyes widened as she saw Yoon Siwoo, dressed in a sharp suit, bidding a smiling farewell to a beautifully dressed, blue-haired woman.
Isn't that Miss Marin from Class B? Why on earth are those two together in a place like this when they barely even spoke to each other at the Academy?
Silvia instinctively hid herself out of their sight. As she stood there wondering what was going on, she saw the door to another private room open.
"I had fun today. You'll invite me again next time, right?"
"Of course, beautiful. Let's have some more fun next time."
The people stepping out of the room were a well-known male businessman and a woman wearing heavy makeup. Witnessing the two share a brief kiss before parting ways, Silvia tilted her head in confusion.
Wait, I'm pretty sure that CEO is married, and that woman is definitely not his wife.
Then, Silvia recalled a warning from her family elders: this restaurant was frequently used by high society for secret, illicit trysts, so she should keep whatever she saw here to herself. Her eyes went wide.
A secret tryst? No way...
In an instant, an entire tragic scenario played out in Silvia's mind. It was the tragic life story of Scarlet Evande, a tragic heroine who gave her heart and soul to a handsome playboy, only to meet a lonely, miserable end.