075 – Ha Ildo Unleashed a Dog-Squirrel into the T-Rank Rift! # 5

The internet was in an uproar. That was because S-Rank awakener Cassie had stood in front of the reporters and declared, "I want to naturalize as a Korean citizen! I'm prepared to become a stranger to my own family!"

"Has she completely lost her mind?"

Seo Yerim had picked up her phone intending to search her own name on the internet, and now she was furious. The S-Rank awakener from America was causing a problem far too enormous to ignore.

That woman. I figured she wasn't here on a simple dispatch, but she's still charging around thoughtlessly like a bull in a china shop—back then and now exactly the same!

In Seo Yerim's estimation, Cassie was the type who didn't bother thinking before leaping straight into action. The nickname "The Outlaw" was itself the residue of countless episodes born from that behavioral habit—a mixture of astonishment and mockery piled up layer by layer over the years.

Cassie. According to the rumors swirling around, she had decided to renounce her American citizenship for Korea because she'd fallen for some Korean man.

Vrrrm, vrrrm—.

Before long, Seo Yerim's phone was blaring noisily. The call was from someone considerably high up the food chain.

Push the naturalization ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠through—. The meaning of those words was crystal clear. It meant: get Cassie married off to the man she's smitten with.

Seo Yerim's face scrunched up hard. The words coming through the receiver were, annoyingly, entirely correct. An S-Rank awakener was a presence that every nation on earth wanted to lure onto its own side, and no one knew that better than Seo Yerim. If even one more such person joined Korea, some of the burden weighing down her shoulders would finally loosen. As an S-Rank awakener of Korea herself, she knew she ought to welcome Cassie's decision with open arms more enthusiastically than anyone.

It was an undeniably wonderful piece of news. And yet Seo Yerim was irritated to the point where her scalp itched. Because the identity of that man Cassie had mentioned was painfully transparent.

"Ha Ildo, you bastard! What kind of magic did you cast on her, huh?"

There was no doubt that Ha Ildo had pulled something. That was the only explanation for an S-Rank awakener spouting nonsense about becoming a Korean citizen.

"Don't tell me this punk was out there sweet-tailing her?"

Seo Yerim assumed Ha Ildo had deployed his pretty-boy strategy. It was even possible that Cha Yura, the President's daughter, had whispered 'go woo Cassie' into his ear.

"No, wait, that can't be it. Anyway!"

The incident had ballooned in every possible direction. Deciding this was no time to sit around, Seo Yerim got in her car.

"Hey! You! What did you do?!"

The moment Seo Yerim arrived, she started yelling. The house was hot enough already on a sweltering day, but somehow it felt even hotter now.

"I didn't do anything."

"'I didn't do anything,' he says, sprawled out like that! What did you say to Cassie to make her suddenly go on about naturalizing?! The whole world's in an uproar right now!"

I was well aware the world was in an uproar. The internet and MeTube had been shrieking about nothing else—it would have been impossible not to know.

I spoke calmly to the visibly agitated Seo Yerim. "Cassie asked me to date her. So I told her: I like Korea. If you want to date ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠me, you'll have to become a stranger to your own family and naturalize as a Korean citizen. That's what I said."

I even told Seo Yerim that I'd assumed Cassie was an operative sent to extract me. At that, Seo Yerim furrowed her brow.

"Hey. What exactly makes you think you matter enough for an S-Rank awakener to be used as a spy against?"

"Well, Ari said so, so I took it as gospel. Ari told me this was the most direct counter there is for a honey-trap scheme. Didn't work, apparently. Guess it wasn't a honey trap after all."

"Ugh, everything out of Yu Ari's mouth is a load of bull."

"…Is that so?"

I was flabbergasted myself, honestly. Ari wasn't the sort of person who lied. But if—just hypothetically—Ari's words had been false, then that meant Cassie was no operative. It meant she genuinely liked me!

"So she really just liked me for me. Huh. Am I the type that really lands well with Americans?"

Sliiick—. I ran a hand over my baby-smooth jaw and marveled at my own hidden potential. Then Oinoi, who had been observing the whole exchange, spoke up.

"This Oinoi is reminded of the virgin goddess Artemis whenever she beholds Cassie…! Artemis is a most beautiful, bold, and impetuous goddess of girlhood…! And a superb huntress, she is…!"

I knew my Artemis lore well enough too. Right, Cassie is as lovely and pure as a maiden goddess— I was just thinking so when Oinoi added a little garnish.

"As a side note, Artemis was once deceived by her own brother Apollo and shot her beloved Orion dead with an arrow…!"

"……"

That suddenly turned very, very ominous.

It was Seo Yerim who broke the silence for me. "No. Everything Yu Ari said can't have been a lie. Maybe Cassie really was an operative? And the naturalization is obviously a performance. There's no way the Americans are just going to sit back and watch. Cassie will get her recall order—she's being dragged back to the States. Any minute now—. Watch."

Sweep—. Seo Yerim showed me her phone. On it was something written in English.

"It's in English."

"It says the US Congress has summoned S-Rank awakener Cassie back onto American soil! Cassie's going home, and I'd bet my life they're trying to call you over with some 'you've violated such-and-such law' pretext. The odds that all of this is meticulously calculated are sky-high."

It was a disturbingly plausible theory.

Ding—. Just then, my phone rang.

"So Cassie really does have to go back to America?"

"See? Give it a minute—she'll ask next whether you'd like to come with her. And if you go, you will never set foot on Korean soil again. That's my guarantee."

Ding—. The phone rang again.

It was real. Just as Seo Yerim had predicted, I got a message asking me to come along to the States. My heart was tearing in half in more ways than one.

"And here I thought she was being at least somewhat sincere."

Which district would be best for a date—. How we'd arrange the formal family introductions if we ever held a wedding. I had genuinely been thinking things like that through. Now the shock crashed over me like a wave.

I swallowed my tears and sent the reply. It was also, in its own way, sincere—I really did have a mountain of responsibilities in Korea, too many things left undone. A week might have been negotiable, but three months? That was simply too much.

So it really was a scheme to lure me over and hold me captive in America, after all?

Seo Yerim let out a long sigh. "Hey. Think about it for a second. A woman shows up out of nowhere from America and falls head over heels for you at first meeting—so hard she's ready to throw away her own citizenship. You seriously believe that's something that happens in real life? You're no prince out of a fairy tale."

"……"

Come to think of it, she had a point. It did sound a bit absurd.

"Ha Ildo, I'll tell you this straight: you do not have that certain something that makes people fall for you at first sight. Your first-impression score tops out at a six, and I'm being generous."

Thud—. The evaluation was so merciless that I felt myself freezing over inside. Seo Yerim gave a contemptuous little snort.

"Of course, once you look at him long enough, there are parts you can score pretty decently. But only people who've known him a long time, like me, can appreciate those. And besides—don't you think Koreans marry Koreans? Keeps things clean and simple, doesn't it?"

Koreans should marry Koreans—. I'd heard that argument somewhere before.

"Wasn't that what those women who got their boyfriends stolen by the elves were saying recently?"

"Hey, that and this are two totally different things. At least, that's how I see it. Anyway, the smart move is not to follow her to America. And you—why don't you try looking for someone a little closer to home?"

"No thanks. It's not like I'll be doing any dating."

I shall never expect something as fickle as love again! From this day forward, I shall devote myself wholly and single-mindedly to hard work! It was just as I was swearing this oath that Oinoi spoke up.

"This Oinoi knows full well that there is a woman well suited to the master of this house nearby…! Our nymph sisters have, since time immemorial, served as matchmakers by birthright…!"

Really? There's a woman who suits me, right here nearby? At those words, Seo Yerim flinched—her whole body jolting.

"Could it be—."

"It is the apprentice Kore Jina…! After much deliberation and voting among our nymph sisters, the verdict is that no one suits the master of this house better than the apprentice Kore Jina…!"

Lee Jina? Lee Jina is the best match for me?

Seo Yerim, who had been listening to the whole story, developed a subtle scowl. "Hold on. I can't just let this one slide. In all of South Korea, am I not the number-one bride material out of every woman alive? Whether that counterpart happens to be Ha Ildo or not is beside the point. I'm the record-setting water-purifier sales queen. And you're telling me Lee Jina scores higher than me? Honestly, I cannot accept that."

Seo Yerim was constitutionally incapable of living behind anyone else. Perhaps unable to bear the thought of another woman receiving a higher evaluation than herself, she at last leveled a finger at me with a sharp sweep and declared:

"I'll prove that I'm the best bride material there is. Ha Ildo, are you free tomorrow? Of course you are. Then you're going on a date with me!"

"I never expected we'd be heading home this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠quickly!"

Cassie. She gazed down at the tiny country of Korea from beneath the humming airliner climbing into the sky. The woman in sunglasses seated beside her spoke up.

"That's what happens when you go around causing incidents. Weren't you supposed to be seducing Lee Jeonghun? The plan was to approach Lee Jeonghun, freshly devastated by his fall from S-Rank, and coax him over to the American side. Remember?"

"There was a plan like that?!"

Cassie jolted upright in genuine shock. She truly hadn't known any such operation existed.

Claire, Cassie's field handler and secretary, felt a sigh rising from somewhere deep inside her. "So you never read the file I gave you. And anyway, why Ha Ildo of all people? Aside from the fact that he keeps a dog-squirrel and a honey ant around, he seemed completely unremarkable. His career history was a bit unusual, sure, but."

"Korea small! But Ha Ildo! Very big! But Cassie, first heartbreak ever, so very sad."

Sob—. Cassie wept openly. Watching her, Claire thought, once again, that this girl was fundamentally unsuited to covert operations and honey traps of any kind.

She really did fall for Ha Ildo, genuine as sunrise. To turn this naive girl's head in a matter of days… Ha Ildo. He's a more dangerous man than the reports let on. And that career of his is stranger than I expected, too.

Sweep—. Claire carefully tucked the file on Ha Ildo away in a separate pocket of her bag. It would be wise to keep this man under observation from here on out.

Sweep—. Beside her, Cassie stared out the window and clenched her fist tight.

"I am Cassie Light! I know no surrender! One day soon I'll return to Korea and win Ha Ildo's heart if it's the last thing I do! And I'm gonna catch a male dog-squirrel too!"

━Keong! Keong—!

Curled up in Cassie's hands was a dog-squirrel with a neatly trimmed, stubby tail. Claire narrowed her eyes at the sight of it. "Well, for what it's worth, I'd say the two of you never had a chance of getting married anyway. Your brother Bron is, shall we say, an intense individual? If you'd so much as mentioned marriage, he'd have drilled a nice cool bullet hole through Ha Ildo's skull. If Ha Ildo were on this plane right now, Bron would've shot him at the airport."

"Aw, c'mon, our Bron is a gentleman!"

To you, little sister, maybe. Swallowing the retort, Claire summoned a single profile into her mind.

Bron Light. S-Rank awakener, ranked eighth in the world. Cassie's older brother, and a man famous above all for being utterly uncompromising. Conservative, deeply devoted to family, and especially protective of his little sister Cassie—or so the reports said. If things between Cassie and Ha Ildo had progressed smoothly from here, it would have surprised no one whatsoever for a maximally enraged Bron to appear and gun Ha Ildo down on the spot.

In fact, word was already coming in that Bron had mobilized for the airport to meet Cassie's arrival. Which meant that, in a very real sense, Ha Ildo had saved his own life once over simply by not boarding this plane.

Ha Ildo. You stole Cassie's heart and yet you live on. In more ways ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠than one, a man with stubborn, stubborn luck. Truly, the lucky gentleman, hm? Well—no wonder Cassie fell for him.

Sweep—. Claire looked at Cassie seated before her. She was wearing the face of a girl utterly, completely in love.

"Family and country standing in the way of love! It's just like Romeo and Juliet!"

Cassie. There was a hot flame burning in her chest. Clasping her hands together tight—tighter still—she waited for the day she would set foot once more on the small country called Korea.