Chapter 82
Chapter 82
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: A Man Full of Gaps (3)
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Th-this voice!
My mind snapped awake at the sudden voice from behind me.
"Mister? Isn't that you, Mister?"
Ugh. So-jin! It's So-jin! No way—it's Saturday, her convenience store shift day, so why is she here?!
"...Oh no, the meat's burning."
I pretended not to hear and grabbed the tongs, but Yu-ra's piercing gaze stabbed at me from the side.
"Oppa, it sounds like someone's calling you."
"Huh? Wh-who? It's not me, right? I don't have many people who know me anyway."
The pink atmosphere shattered in an instant.
"It is you. Sounds just like they're calling Oppa."
Yu-ra murmured lowly, her bob hair swaying as she turned her head and flashed a bright smile toward my back.
"Hi there. Do you know my boyfriend by any chance?"
"Uh, um. Ah, th-that... um."
"Oppa, come look over here quick. Isn't this someone you know?"
Right. So-jin doesn't know what I look like anyway. I always wore a mask when we met, and unlike with Yu-ra, I deepened my voice every time to hide it well. Plenty of people have similar backsides.
Having thought that through, I squeezed my eyes shut and turned around. Just as I expected, So-jin was standing there.
She was fidgeting, glancing at Yu-ra nervously, but she stared right at my face as if she had to confirm it.
"Mis... ter?"
"Ha, haha. I'm not quite at 'mister' age yet. You sure you got the right guy?"
"Ah, y-yes."
So-jin nodded but couldn't tear her eyes off my face. After staring for a good while, she tilted her head, then bowed deeply.
"Sorry! I must've mistaken you for someone else."
"R-right?"
"Yes. My bad."
She bowed to Yu-ra too before turning away. Her friends at the table one over were watching us, looking like a group.
The moment So-jin took a step to leave...
"Excuse me. Hold on a sec."
Yu-ra called out to stop her.
"Y-yes?"
"Yu-ra, why?"
Yu-ra ignored my attempt to stop her and asked So-jin directly.
"Sorry, but could you tell me your name?"
"Y-yes?"
She looked troubled.
Her eyes darted desperately toward her friends for help, but Yu-ra followed up.
"I'm Kim Yu-ra."
So-jin-ah, you could come and go as you pleased, but leaving's a different story.
So-jin wasn't the type to say whatever she wanted like Yu-ra or Na-young, especially here where she was clearly at fault.
To a third party, it looked like some random girl approached a couple eating meat and caused a misunderstanding.
Seeing her pitiful expression, my mouth opened involuntarily—but that was it. If I butted in now, it'd be like trying to stop a flood with a hoe; even a rake wouldn't help.
So-jin hesitated with a troubled look before finally exchanging names with Yu-ra.
"Ah, I-I'm... um, An So-jin..."
"So-jin, does that mister guy look like my oppa?"
"Ah, yeah. Kind of. Just the back..."
"Hmm. What about the face? Does the face look different?"
"Huh? Um... probably?"
Yu-ra stared intently at the flustered So-jin, then pulled out her phone from her bag, fiddled with it, and held it out.
"Does he look anything like this?"
The screen showed photos: the 'Yu-ra's First Time' face she'd made with the Plastic Surgery skill, and a new one she'd recently created.
So-jin's eyes narrowed as she examined the photo, sparkling for a split second. Yu-ra caught it and pressed harder.
"Well? Do you know him?"
"Uh, well... not sure. I gotta go now. My friends are waiting."
Thinking she'd been caught red-handed, So-jin rolled her eyes to escape, but Yu-ra's next words made her freeze in place.
"You've never seen that mister's face, have you?"
We both flinched.
Hard.
Me and So-jin both jolted. Yu-ra watched us with sunken eyes before turning to So-jin and speaking.
"But you know his voice, right?"
"Y-yes."
"Any phrases he says a lot, or something memorable?"
""So-jin-ah, it's Mister...""
So-jin answered in a trance-like daze. The moment she finished, Yu-ra looked at me.
"Say it."
"Wh-what?"
""'So-jin-ah, it's Mister.' Say it."""
"No way, why would I—fine... So-jin-ah, it's Mister. Happy?"
Yu-ra looked at So-jin.
So-jin, who had been staring blankly, belatedly caught the meaning of that gaze and shook her head slightly.
"Oppa, lower your voice."
"Wh-what?"
Yu-ra lowered her own voice and whispered to me.
"You did that cool deep voice in front of the elevator to fool me before. Do that one. I remember it perfectly, so don't try anything weird."
Ugh, ugh, damn it. This Conan-level girl.
Part of me wanted to come clean boldly: 'Yeah, I'm fuckbuddies with her too. What're you gonna do? Wanna make it a threesome?' But getting caught this time would make it twice now, after Du-na.
Plus, the sketchy overnight at Na-young's that somehow blew over still bugged me.
Fine. Just deepen the voice. She might not recognize it.
Biting back tears, I followed Yu-ra's order.
"Kh, khm. S-So-jin-ah, it's Mister."
I knew I was screwed the instant I said it. So-jin's pupils quaked like an earthquake.
"Uh, u-uhh."
As So-jin stammered, Yu-ra went in for the kill.
"You recognize the voice, right?"
"Th-that's..."
Just as So-jin's lips parted slightly...
"Oh? It's So-jin!"
A loud voice rang out suddenly! It was Pomi coming back from the bathroom. She rubbed the water off her hands on her shirt, spotted So-jin, and ran over grinning.
"So-jin, hi!"
So-jin's confusion hit its peak.
"B-Bo-mi? Wait, you're Bo-mi's oppa...?"
"Pomi, do you know him?"
"Yeah. He works part-time at the convenience store by our place."
"Oh?"
Ugh, what a mess.
Getting caught by So-jin was definite now. Forget the pupil quake; when I checked her stat window moments ago, the two split emotion levels had merged into one.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ 👤 Target: An So-jin 💭 Emotion Level: (My Mister = Pomi's Oppa?) ❤️ Favorability: ?? (Confusion) 🧎 Submission: ?? (Confusion) 💋 Lewdness: ?? (Confusion) Chaos in stat form, literally.
It made sense.
She'd finally learned the identity of the faceless 'mister' she'd been hooking up with belly-to-belly, and it turned out to be someone she already knew.
There was a reason she hadn't immediately clocked me as Pomi's oppa upon seeing my face.
Pomi's face was so cute it was unforgettable, and she even visited So-jin's weekend convenience store shifts alone sometimes.
Me? After that first day I met So-jin, I never officially went to her store.
At her place, I always made her close her eyes, and lately I'd worn a mask.
The single slot in my [Plastic Surgery] skill was taken by 'Yu-ra's First Time,' which was too young-looking for 'mister' claims anyway. Plus, my face got exposed from the 'Yonsei Pink Pussy' video.
'No clue what's gonna happen now.'
Gulp.
Dry swallow.
Would Yu-ra keep grilling me? Would So-jin slap me and call the cops? Or would Yu-ra and So-jin catfight? Nah, maybe they'd both grab me by the hair.
But against my worries, unexpected words came from So-jin moments later.
"Ah, a-ah. You're Pomi's oppa! Hi! I didn't recognize you since it was my first time seeing you without the uniform. Ah, that's why you seemed familiar. The voice too. Ehehe. You're not upset, right?"
"..!"
As Yu-ra watched for my reaction, beyond her shoulder, So-jin's left eye started blinking in a wink.
Sh-she's an angel. So-jin was an angel.
If I couldn't see her emotion stats, I'd have been confused by that wink too.
Was it a signal like 'Mister, let's play this off for now!' after figuring it out? Or 'Pomi's oppa! Sorry for making your girlfriend misunderstand'? I might not have known.
Pomi tilted her head at So-jin's blinking eyes.
"Huh? So-jin-ah. Why're you wi—"
-Shut up, Pomi. "Eek!"
No matter how I looked at it, this kid was doing it on purpose. I sent a whisper to shut Pomi up and synced with So-jin while dodging Yu-ra's persistent stare.
"Ah, yeah. Now that you mention it, you're So-jin. Even after hearing your name, it was so long ago I didn't recognize you. How many months since that time?"
"Pomi comes often, but did oppa switch stores?"
"Nah. There's a beauty like you there—urk. Uh, haha. I've been busy lately, so I just sent Pomi on errands."
"I see. And this is your girlfriend? She's super pretty. Last time you were hitting on me, saying you didn't have one."
"Oppa, you said you didn't have a girlfriend?"
"Y-Yu-ra, that was before we started dating. Chill."
I soothed Yu-ra while sweating bullets.
So-jin dropped her earlier awkwardness and spoke sweetly even to Yu-ra.
"Yu-ra... unnie? Is that okay? How old are you?"
"Twenty-one."
"Huh? Me too! We could be fr—"
"Mine's early birthday."
No way, a family tree breaker right by my side!
So-jin looked pretty shocked too, mouth agape.
"Eh?"
"Just is. You too, So-jin?"
"N-no... Should I call you unnie? ...Yeah, unnie it is. I'm at the CS convenience store by Yonsei west gate. Come by sometime; coffee's on me!"
".."
Thump, thump.
Did our acting pull it off?!
"What time's your shift?"
Yu-ra's blank expression softened a bit.
Whew.
I let out a sigh of relief. So-jin subtly exhaled tension too; I could see her nostrils flare.
"Fri-Sat-Sun nights. Today I swapped with another part-timer 'cause of the school festival. And drop the formal speech."
"Once we're closer."
Yu-ra's iron wall against girls!
"Y-yeah. Come for sure! Ah, my friends are waiting... You two look great together. Have a pretty love!"
So-jin flashed double thumbs-up and scurried back to her table.
Her friends, half-standing probably wondering what took so long, awkwardly sat back down.
"No, nothing like that. He's a regular at my store."
I could hear So-jin making excuses to her friends.
"Shall we go? Pomi's done with the meat too."
"Y-yeah. Let's."
It somehow blew over!
To aid digestion, we decided to walk home. The sidewalk was wide enough for three, so we held hands side by side with Pomi in the middle—like a happy family.
'This heals the soul.'
But someone said it's not over till it's over! As we walked silently down the night street, Yu-ra spoke up.
"Oppa."
"Yeah?"
I answered softly, but soon stammered.
"That girl earlier..."
"Girl? Who?"
"The So-jin one we just saw."
"Huh? Her? What? Why?"
"You slept with her too?"
Gah! Was our acting that lame?!
Worried Pomi—who knew about me and So-jin—might blurt it out, I gripped her hand tight.
"Ow!"
-Don't tell Yu-ra. -Sor-! Sorry! I whispered while answering Yu-ra.
"What the hell is this kid saying? Got a lewd demon in her eyes or something? You think I'd just sleep with anyone? Huh?!"
"You didn't?"
"N-no!"
Yu-ra stopped dead and stared straight into my eyes.
"Oppa. Be honest. I won't get mad."
"H-honestly?"
Nod nod.
"Y-you really won't get mad?"
Nod nod.
"Swear on your mom's life?"
"Ugh, seriously. Are you in elementary school?"
Yu-ra grabbed my hand, forcing our pinkies to hook.
"There, we swore. Now be honest."
"Uh, um..."
Dragging her mom into it. She didn't even get mad about my last overnight. What's up with Yu-ra lately? Did her yandere side vanish?
Screw it. Maybe just spill it easy?
Before that, check Yu-ra's stats first.
'Status, Yu-ra!'
⚔ STATUS ⚔ 👤 Target: Kim Yu-ra 🔥 Fetishes: Nation Philia (Lewd Scolding Fetish, Med), Masochism (Pain Fetish, Weak), Masturbation Addiction (Weak), Yandere (Weak), Zerophilia (Jealousy Fetish, Med), Troilism (Weak) *Yandere and Troilism offset each other, suppressing fetish growth. Yup. Don't say a word. Everything's still there.
And Troilism? What's that?
Anyway, confirming Yu-ra's yandere fetish was alive and well, I decided to hide the So-jin thing to the end.
"Didn't sleep with her!"
"Really?"
"Y-yeah."
"Your voice is shaking."
"It always shakes around you. Heart races too much."
"Ha! ... Swear on your mom's life too, Oppa?"
"I-I don't drag parents into it lightly?"
Smack!
"Ow, that stings!"
"Hilarious, really."
Yu-ra giggled and walked ahead.
Is that it? Really over?
But something felt off about relaxing now. Yu-ra, who'd shown terrifying yandere vibes until recently, wouldn't end it like this.
Gauging the distance to Yu-ra, I turned to Pomi.
"Hey."
"What!"
She was still sulking from the hard grip earlier.
"Why's Yu-ra acting like that lately?"
"Huh? Like what?"
"Even I think it's super suspicious, but she's letting it slide. There has to be a reason for the sudden change."
"I-is there? Oh, pr-pretty rock here! Gotta inventory it?"
Glance.
Her head turned from the rock to me—still watching her—and our eyes met.
Pomi flinched and looked back at the rock.
"G-gotta take it!"
Suspicious. This one's fishy as hell.
"Hey."
"Y-yeah?"
"You know something."
"D-don't? Mia's a baby, knows nothin'."
"Snap out of it! You're not a baby!"
"Am too!"
Her bold declaration left me speechless.
"She was totally my type at first. How'd she end up like this?"
I sighed, and she replied.
"But baby life's comfy."
"You admit it?!"
..Hopeless. This one's hopeless.
Thinking about it, she just eats, plays, sleeps all day. She shows some interest in Yu-ra's school, so before she becomes even more of a lost cause, maybe enroll her somewhere.
Hypnotize the elementary principal or something.
"Sigh. Hey. Answer one thing. What's Troilism? One of Yu-ra's new fetishes."
"Oh, that? Hmm. Like 3P."
"3P? Th-three people...?"
"Y-yeah! That, that!"
Ah. We've been doing threesomes with Pomi every day lately, so she got this fetish! Since it suppresses yandere, it's good—no harm anyway. Felt relieved.