Chapter 28
Translator - Zofu
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“A k-kiss?”
She must be pretty nervous; I can practically hear her heart pounding.
Jeez, she's so innocent, it's like I'm on a date with a middle schooler.
In high school, she hung around with the delinquents so I didn't realize it, but seeing her now, she's the epitome of innocent and pure.
“Ah, Se-kyung. There's the place I reserved.”
I pointed with my finger at the high-end bar I had reserved.
Se-kyung gulped.
“You reserved *that* place?”
Se-kyung's gaze shifted toward her wallet.
She was probably worried about her own financial situation, given how fancy the place was.
“G-go. Yeah, it looks delicious. Good reservation.”
Se-kyung was putting on false bravado.
Even her false bravado is cute, huh?
We walked hand in hand down a breezy street and entered the upscale-looking Ililpyang Japanese restaurant.
As soon as we sat down, a part-timer looked at us and guided us to a seat further inside.
“The couple seats are inside.”
“We're not a coupl—...”
As Se-kyung was about to say we weren't a couple, I quickly grabbed her hand and stood her up.
“Yes, please show us the way.”
“Ah, yes~”
The Ililpyang part-timer smiled kindly and guided us to the couple seats.
The Ililpyang couple seats had sliding doors and guaranteed privacy.
Plus, the seats were arranged in a straight line, forcing us to sit right next to each other.
I had Se-kyung sit on the inside while I took the outer seat.
Se-kyung placed the bouquet I'd given her on the table and looked at me with slightly nervous eyes. I smiled leisurely and said to her.
“Don't worry. I won't eat you up...”
“Ugh. When did I ever say you'd eat me up?”
Se-kyung puffed her cheeks adorably, pretending to be sulky.
“Anyway, what do you want to eat? Se-kyung?”
“Huh? You pick first, since you're the guy. I'll eat anything. When it comes to taste, guys are picky, not girls—girls just eat whatever they're given.”
“Huh? What's that supposed to mean?”
“Isn't it normally girls who are picky about food and guys who just eat whatever they want?”
“Ah, right—I keep forgetting this is a world where men and women are reversed.”
Even though I know it, I keep forgetting if I'm not conscious of it.
I called the waiter.
“Excuse me. We'll have two full-course meals. For drinks... what would you like, Se-kyung?”
At the words “full-course,” Se-kyung trembled and checked her wallet, then startled and answered reflexively.
“C-cheap. The cheapest thing here.”
Oh, Se-kyung.
You think I'd ask you to pay for drinks?
So jumpy...
It was an unconscious answer, but Se-kyung must've been embarrassed, because she read the room and corrected herself.
“Ah, no. The most delicious one here. Chamisul! Let's drink Chamisul. Chamisul is my favorite.”
“Okay, I like Chamisul too. We'll take two bottles of Chamisul.”
Se-kyung was still trembling as she looked at the menu.
The most expensive full-course meal here was 200,000 won per person.
So since I ordered two, that came to 400,000 won.
It wasn't cheap, but since the accessory shop owner gave me the pendant for free, I could afford this much.
“Se-kyung, why do you keep staring at that?”
Se-kyung quickly closed the menu and said.
“No, it's nothing. Don't worry about the cost and eat up. Si-won, you must really like raw fish, huh?”
Se-kyung's cute eyes fluttered.
Did I take the teasing too far?
Would it be better to just tell her I'm paying?
Nah. But watching Se-kyung flustered is cute, so I'll keep observing for a bit.
I took out the box with the bulldog pendant I'd prepared beforehand and held it out to Se-kyung.
“I was going to give it to you earlier with the flowers, but things got hectic. I'm giving it now. Open it. Do you like it?”
Se-kyung's eyes widened like a rabbit's in surprise.
Then she waved her hands and said.
“No, Si-won. The bouquet was already more than enough, why are you giving me all this stuff? Hey, I really can't accept this. You're really shameless. Isn't it cheating for a guy to give a girl a gift on the first date!? I didn't prepare anything, and now there's a bouquet *and* a gift....…”
Though Se-kyung's words were sharp, her eyes looking at me were completely different from when I'd seen her at the gym—like she was moved inside.
At the gym, her gaze showed she wasn't interested in dating me but felt sexual attraction. Now, it seemed her heart had opened too, and her eyes held affection as she looked at me.
As expected, winning over a virgin pussy requires devotion.
A virgin pussy is different from milfs or misses who know the taste of cock.
You can't easily win one over with just sexual stimulation and seduction.
You have to actively show interest in dating a virgin pussy to win her heart before you can fuck her.
“Ah, come on. I just saw it on the way and thought it'd suit you, so I bought it. I'll open it for you.”
If I told Se-kyung to open it herself, it seemed like it'd take all day, so I opened the gift myself and showed her.
Se-kyung looked at me with a bright smile.
“It's so cute. It's a bulldog? I really love bulldogs.”
“Really? For some reason, I thought a bulldog would suit you. You have to wear it always, thinking of it as me. Here, let me put it on you.”
Se-kyung looked at the bulldog pendant with loving eyes.
Seems like she's already halfway won over.
As they say, there's no woman who isn't weak to gifts.
Our Se-kyung is no different.
I held the bulldog pendant and brought it to Se-kyung's white neck.
Se-kyung's long, white neckline was beautiful.
As Se-kyung lifted her pure, long black hair with her hand, I put the bulldog pendant necklace around her neck.
“Wow, it really suits you, Se-kyung. Your neckline and collarbone line are pretty, so necklaces suit you well. You have to wear this every day from now on, thinking of that bulldog as me.”
Se-kyung looked back and forth between me and the bulldog and smiled prettily.
“Seriously, hey. You two look exactly alike. Like an ugly pair. Hehe.”
“Hey! Ugly? You wanna die? No way. Give it back!”
As I jokingly tried to take back the necklace I'd put on Se-kyung, she growled like she was protecting the most precious thing in the world.
“Hey! Where do you get off giving something then taking it back! I'll never give it up! This ugly bulldog is mine now!”
Just then, a waiter walked over to our table with Chamisul.
“Here's your soju. The food will be out shortly if you can wait just a bit. Have a good time.”
The waiter was definitely nicer, probably because we ordered expensive food.
As expected, it's a world where you have to spend money to be treated well, both in the world I used to live in and here too.
“Si-won, what are you thinking so hard about?”
Se-kyung said, opening her eyes wide cutely.
“No, let's just drink. Se-kyung. You said you can hold your liquor, right?”
I opened the soju bottle and poured some into Se-kyung's glass.
“Alright~ Cheers! You know we can't go home until one of us passes out, right?”
“Don't worry. You think I'd lose to a guy like Si-won in drinking? Even if you become a sea snail, this noona will get you home safe, so don't worry and drink.”
That's not it, Se-kyung.
If I become a sea snail, you'll have to carry me to a hotel.
That's why I can't be the first to become a sea snail.
I have to stay sharp while drinking today.
“Okay. If I become a sea snail, you take me home. If *you* become a sea snail, I'm taking you to a hotel.”
At the word “hotel,” Se-kyung's face turned red and her breathing became rough.
Ah, Se-kyung is so innocent I can't even joke around with her, seriously.
I wrapped my hand around Se-kyung's waist and said.
“Ah, I'm just kidding. Shin Se-kyung! Hey. Let's just drink. Alright! Cheers!”
Se-kyung lifted her soju glass while looking at my hand wrapped around her waist.
Thankfully, Se-kyung didn't pull away or reject it.
Through Se-kyung's slim, curved waist, I could feel faint warmth and a heartbeat.
Se-kyung must have never been touched this directly by a man's hand before; she seemed incredibly nervous.
I clinked glasses with Se-kyung and downed it in one shot.
Thanks to the clean, pleasant soap scent coming from Se-kyung's body, the soju tasted even sweeter.
“Ahh~ that's good.”
Se-kyung scrunched her nose cutely.
“Hey, Si-won, you really drink soju refreshingly well.”
“A guy's gotta drink well. Since I'm a guy. What's your soju limit, Se-kyung?”
“Me? About three bottles? What about you, Si-won?”
I didn't show it, but inside I was screaming “I'm fucked.”
—Ah, I'm completely screwed today. My maximum limit is three bottles of soju.
I remembered crawling home after drinking three bottles at my college freshman welcome party.
But a guy's gotta have pride.
“I can drink four bottles!”
I didn't want to lose to Se-kyung in drinking, so I said my limit was four bottles of soju.
Where would Korean male drinking pride go?
“Wow~ Si-won, you really drink a lot. You're a drinking whale. A drinking whale! Among the guys I know, none can drink more than two bottles of soju.”
Fuck, I'll have to try to hold out with the help of side dishes since the food is good.
“Se-kyung! Let's go, let's go~! Drink, drink!”
Even though the side dishes hadn't arrived yet, we were already on our second glass.
“The alcohol is going in! How long will you make me dance on your shoulders! Chug chug chug chug!”
Se-kyung was also in a good mood, singing the famous Korean drinking song “The Alcohol is Going In” and making cute hand gestures.
Seeing her today, Se-kyung is really cute.
In high school, I thought she was just a slut following delinquents around.
That's why you have to meet people directly to know them.
At that moment, the waiter started bringing out the full-course Japanese dishes one by one.
The first dish to come out was a crab meat porridge with plenty of crab meat.
It went down smoothly, soothing an empty stomach and perfect for starting to drink.
Next came blowfish tempura.
The taste was similar to fish tempura but much more refined.
And then finally, the elegant and upscale main dish arrived—beautifully plated raw flatfish, sea bream, tuna, and blowfish sashimi.
Now that the main dish was out, I decided it was time to start my operation and began subtly making moves on Se-kyung.