A Peaceful Rain at the Grand Canyon
I shouted from beneath the sharply jutting stone overhang at the entrance of the Three Foxes Cave in Kyoto, where I had taken shelter from the rain. “Silvia! How much longer?!”
“Ugh, shut up! Stop talking!”
“It’s already been thirty minutes!”
“Just five more minutes!”
Hearing Silvia’s irritated shout, I kicked a pebble in frustration. What kind of shower took over thirty minutes? I could understand if we were at home, but we were outside. Couldn’t she hurry up…?
While I was wiping rainwater off the rocking chair, Silvia emerged with a towel, wiping her face with a refreshed expression. I asked her, “How much water is left?”
“Two jugs.”
At her answer, I spread both hands in disbelief. “…Two jugs? We brought seven, and you’re telling me you used five of them?”
“Stop whining and go wash up yourself.”
“I’m going crazy… I’ll just brush my teeth.”
“If you’re not even going to shower, why are you complaining so much?”
Was she serious right now?
“Don’t you think it’s because you used up all the water that I can’t shower?”
“Two jugs should be plenty, shouldn’t it?”
“Then you should have showered with only two jugs too.”
“My hair is long, you know.”
“Ah… Forget it.”
When I clutched the back of my neck like someone suffering from high blood pressure, Silvia let out a soft giggle. But weren’t you the one who went to bed all stiff and tense yesterday? Seeing her treat me so casually now was both absurd and amusing. Of course, she was probably doing it on purpose to hide her awkwardness.
After thoroughly brushing my teeth, I plopped down beside Silvia, who was sitting in the rocking chair admiring the view. She looked at me and apologized.
“Sorry.”
“For what?”
“For using five whole jugs while showering. I should have been more careful. It’s my fault.”
“When you say it like that, it makes me sound like a petty person. It’s fine.”
“That was exactly my intention. You understood perfectly? As expected, you’re so smart.”
I let out a hollow laugh and muttered, “I’m completely drained… I should just…”
“Just what? Are you going to pounce on me like yesterday?”
Silvia’s face was bright red as she said that. Yes! That’s how you’re supposed to muster up courage!
With another hollow laugh, I leaned my face close to hers. “Pounce? What do you mean… Want me to show you what a real pounce looks like?”
“N-no, I was joking… Let’s head back now.”
“Head back where? The scenery is nice. Let’s just stay at the entrance and enjoy the view.”
“…I’d like that.”
I like you too.
And so we watched the gently falling drizzle while admiring the peaceful panorama of the Grand Canyon.
“Jihyeok.”
Silvia, who had been silent for a while, called my name. I answered, “Yes?”
“Will you… come here often?”
“Not often, but whenever I feel like it, I’ll ask you, Silvia.”
“Okay… Got it.”
Silvia was deliberately avoiding any mention of Adele. If the topic of Adele came up, she would be overwhelmed by guilt and say things like ‘Let’s stop now’ or ‘We shouldn’t be doing this.’ She knew herself well enough to realize that. That was why she was restraining herself as much as possible. She wanted to maintain—or even develop—this ambiguous relationship with me.
Starting today, Silvia would grow distant from Adele. Why? Because I had taken up a huge place in her heart. Hearing Adele’s innocent, clueless voice last night had been a little bothersome, but Silvia, who had already fallen for me, wouldn’t want to miss this chance. The only worry was that her conscience might eventually win out, leading her to confess everything, beg for forgiveness, and swear never to do it again… but that wouldn’t happen. I had gone through so much trouble to build up her affection and shown her what a man could do precisely to prevent that.
“Even though it’s raining, it’s not as cold as yesterday. Maybe because it’s morning?”
“Must be… Huh? Jihyeok! Look over there, it’s a deer!”
Silvia excitedly tapped my shoulder and pointed. Sure enough, a herd of deer was leisurely walking by. As I stared at them intently, I said, “They’re mule deer. And they’re in a group too?”
“They’re weak, so they form herds. It’s instinct.”
“That’s true. But I thought their numbers were so low it was hard to see them… It looks like the tentacle and moth monsters took out all the predators, so they’ve started appearing again.”
“The monsters unintentionally helped the ecosystem?”
“Seems like it.”
“There’s that Korean saying—‘even dog shit has its uses.’ This is exactly like that, isn’t it?”
Dog shit? Was she calling me insignificant right now? She called me pure evil yesterday too. She keeps saying things that get on my nerves.
After returning to Korea and parting ways with Silvia, I met Chae Bo-young for the first time in a while at the president’s office of a restaurant franchise chain. I wanted to ask about the well-being of the last remaining Beast Slayer, Stella Hayley, and to set up the meeting we had planned last time. But there, I heard an unexpected story.
“Stella’s younger brother is causing trouble?”
“Yes… He keeps calling Stella from school. The homeroom teacher has even visited their home several times, but nothing has changed.”
“What kind of trouble?”
“School violence, smoking… Last time he somehow got his hands on marijuana and did it with his friends…”
“He must be hanging out with the wrong crowd. But isn’t the school Stella’s brother attends a pretty good one? The school district is excellent.”
Why do parents want to send their children to schools in good districts? Precisely because problems like this don’t happen. While it wasn’t completely free of delinquent students, the number was extremely small. There were fewer incidents than at other schools, and many students reformed after meeting passionate classmates and teachers. The parents were mostly well-off and held important positions, so the parent-teacher association had enormous influence. When cases of school violence occurred, they would jump in with both feet. Rumors spread quickly too. The school, unable to ignore their watchful eyes, would likely view Stella’s brother—who had no powerful backers—as a troublemaker and a thorn in their side. And since he had even touched drugs, they would probably push for expulsion or transfer without hesitation… It was strange.
“Ah, well… That’s true. He’s already been suspended.”
“Only a suspension?”
“Yes…”
“Did the CEO of ABC Entertainment pull some strings? No… A new agency’s CEO wouldn’t have that kind of pull with a school like that.”
Bo-young looked completely flustered. Her face was full of worry. Seeing that, the picture became clear.
“You stepped in, didn’t you?”
“Y-yes…”
Bo-young was Korea’s top star. She was famous worldwide, and since the troublemaker was the brother of a trainee she cherished, it seemed her influence had worked. I clicked my tongue and said, “Your image could take a huge hit if this gets out… You were willing to risk that?”
“B-because CEO Song thinks so highly of Stella… I thought I should do everything I could to help… I’m sorry…”
“No. You did well.”
“But Stella’s brother was a model student in America, and that’s how he got into a good school here… I don’t understand why his personality changed so much.”
It was probably because of his handsome face and decent build. The comfortable environment must have played a big part too. Unlike his struggling life in America, in Korea his older sister had incredible singing talent, a new agency had found them a house and was pouring everything into supporting her. On top of that, a superstar like Chae Bo-young was even giving him private lessons… Of course he wouldn’t worry about the future. He probably wanted to show off and make up for his previous hardships. With everyone around him fawning over him, he had fallen for the temptation and gone astray.
I took a sip of coffee and smiled brightly. “How did Stella react?”
“She’s really troubled. She’s tried comforting him and scolding him, but in front of her he acts like a good boy and says he understands…”
“If he’s still causing trouble despite that, it means he’s just pretending to reflect, right?”
“I’m not sure…”
“He’s nineteen now, correct? So he’s a high school junior?”
“He’s a sophomore. He repeated a year.”
“Does anyone else know that you intervened?”
“Only the principal. But a few parents who are close to the principal probably know too… I’m truly sorry…”
Bo-young had nothing to apologize for. She had only done it for me. How could I blame her when she was willing to risk damaging her own image? The fact that the target was Stella’s brother was a bit of a miscalculation, but a favor was still a favor.
I shook my head and said, “I’ll clean it up. There won’t be any damage to your image.”
“Huh…? How…?”
“Because dead men tell no tales.”
Bo-young’s complexion brightened considerably. She stood up and bowed deeply to me. “Th-thank you…”
The Demon King who takes care of his subordinates’ welfare… Where else would you find such a kind Demon King? So work harder, you idiot. If your face hadn’t matched my tastes so perfectly, you would have been tortured by now.
“I’ll have Marcela take care of it, so let’s move on. How is Stella’s skill level?”
“It’s improving rapidly. Honestly, she’s good enough to debut right now. My former manager keeps saying we should debut her immediately… but I’m holding her back.”
“Why?”
“I’m planning to leave WW Entertainment soon and join ABC Entertainment. After that, I’ll hold several concerts and introduce Stella to the audience little by little. It might feel a bit old-school, but I think it will be very fresh if we do it now. It also matches Stella’s image…”
This was something I should follow Bo-young’s opinion on. She knew the entertainment industry far better than I or Marcela did.
“Alright. Do it your way.”
“Thank you. Should I bring Stella here tomorrow?”
I had originally planned to slowly get to know her face. But after hearing about the trouble her brother caused, I changed my mind.
“No, don’t do that… By the way, did you tell Stella anything about me?”
“I didn’t mention your name. I only said there was a powerful sponsor…”
“Good. From now on, refrain from talking about me to Stella. Go back and continue as usual.”
“Yes, CEO.”
Bo-young bowed once more before turning around. As she left the office, her flare dress fluttering, I put my legs up on the desk and fell into thought.
The principal who knew about Stella’s troublemaking brother and Bo-young’s lobbying… and who would soon be eliminated. And Stella, who was deeply troubled. A very good plan had come to mind. A very good idea for using her brother as a long-term pawn.
But now wasn’t the time. There was the Doctor’s deviation, and the work of breaking down the relationship between Adele and Silvia was still in full swing. I had already learned from my time targeting Yuria that spreading myself too thin would only give me a headache. For now, I would focus on handling these two matters first.