Chapter 175
Chapter 175
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 175
Chapter Title: Don't Laugh. Hurry Up.
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Suddenly, a text from Byul.
-Can you talk now?
Byul wouldn't reach out without any reason.
It was probably about Flower or Lee Se-young.
"One moment. I got a call from someone I know."
If it was urgent, I had to take it.
I cut my conversation with Cheon-do short and stepped out the front door, heading outside the dorm.
I left through the main gate into a dimly lit alley with no signs of people around. I pulled out my phone again and called Byul.
[Hello? Oh, Si-heon?]
Byul's voice soon echoed from the phone.
It wasn't the coquettish tone she used with her boyfriend like before; it was calm and composed.
"What's up?"
[Yeah, no. I didn't want to call for something like this either.]
"Flower?"
I wondered if Se-young had gotten hurt or something.
Anxious thoughts crept in because of the future I remembered, but if something really bad had happened to her, Byul's voice would have been much more downcast.
Flower.
Byul probably wanted to talk about that.
[Yeah. I have a favor to ask.]
I leaned back against the alley wall, casually bending my knees and sitting down next to the utility pole.
...I wondered if Cheon-do had followed me.
I expanded my mana to check for presences, but all I sensed were a few cadets who'd come back drunk. No sign of the vigilant one.
'...Do I really have to hide what I'm doing from Master?'
The thought crossed my mind, but I wasn't sure.
Things that could be resolved through talk would be, but right now, everything was so tangled up that it was hard to touch.
I shook my head like a wet puppy to clear it coolly. Then I gathered my thoughts.
Cheon-do had her own matters... and I had mine.
I couldn't rely on my master's help forever. She was too soft on my requests.
I steadied my breath and opened my mouth.
"What is it?"
[...Well. I've got good news and bad news. Which first?]
"Bad news first, if you don't mind."
[Yeah... Fresh intel just came in. They're saying another terrorist attack is coming soon.]
Flower's terrorism.
It was an organization causing issues worldwide right now, one that even World Trees or the Hunter Association couldn't touch lightly.
I closed my eyes, which had been gazing at the night sky, and pressed the phone closer to my ear.
I flicked my finger to raise the volume two notches.
Byul's voice rang out a bit louder.
[So... we're short on manpower. And there's something only you can do right now.]
"...Skip the explanation. I was the one who said we should crush Flower anyway. No need for contracts. Just tell me what."
[We need someone for the Forest Keeper Selection Tournament. The official notice hasn't dropped yet, but you're already confirmed anyway.]
Forest Keeper Selection Tournament...
I exhaled inwardly.
It made sense; it was a globally significant event, so it wasn't strange for Flower to target it.
So what, were they planning to kill off the promising young cadets?
There was nothing more sensitive than killing the youth.
[No, that's not it.]
Byul immediately denied my suspicion, her voice trembling with stress as she continued.
[The Forest Keeper Selection Tournament is held in a place full of young saplings and World Trees.]
"......"
Not people, but trees?
Damn tree lovers.
[If they hit there, it's really over.]
"If they're planning to terrorize a place like that, I can't stop them alone."
[I'm not asking you to stop them. That's for the other hunters and priests. But the most important part is prevention, right? If you spot anyone suspicious, report it. We can't trust all the cadets participating in the Forest Keeper Selection Tournament.]
That sounded like she at least trusted me.
She was really deep in the honeymoon phase.
I hated Flower to death, but I hated World Trees just as much.
Honestly, the Hunter Association wasn't much better... If anarchists existed in this world, I'd probably be one.
I summarized Byul's request to refresh the conversation.
"...So, infiltrate among the cadets and root out the terrorists?"
[Exactly! As expected of Si-heon!]
Byul's tone shot up instantly.
[I'll prepare proper compensation! Yeah? As vice president, I can take really good care of you!]
Vice president... This hyper Maltese-like woman was second-in-command?
Come to think of it, that massive presence I felt at Dawon was the president guy.
'Then this big sis must be pretty strong too?'
I hadn't fought her, so I didn't know, but she probably was.
[What kind of compensation do you want?]
I ignored Byul, who was nasal-toned and excited to persuade me as much as possible, and moved to the next topic.
"We'll think about compensation later. Or rather... Can you tell me something else instead?"
[...Huh? Uh... Hold on.]
[What? It's pretty classified, but since it's Si-heon asking, I'll tell you as much as I can.]
"Flower's current location... and the suspected terror site. You can share that much, right?"
[...Why that?]
Byul sounded surprised, as if my request was unexpected.
From her perspective, it was just asking for useless info.
What was a mere cadet going to do with Flower's location? Storm it?
But that's not it.
To me, Flower's location was more important than any other intel right now.
Whether I smashed right into their base.
Or squeezed them slowly from the outside.
Or... tortured the terrorists coming for the attack to death.
I had no intention of holding back on methods to crush Flower.
"Do I need a reason to crush bad guys? I've got a personal grudge."
[......Yeah. Since it's you, Si-heon, I'll tell you. I'm flying out tomorrow anyway, so I'll hand over the files then too.]
"Got it. I've got to see my master off tomorrow, so let's meet in the afternoon."
Click.
I set my phone down for a bit to cool off, then called Byul back.
There was still good news left.
"So, what's the good news?"
[Good news? Hehe.]
Byul laughed once.
A few seconds later, she spoke to me in an exaggerated, cartoonish voice, like she'd rehearsed her lines.
[From today... you'll be working with Byul~?]
Rather than it being good for me, it felt like it was good for her.
I chuckled and agreed.
"Yeah. That's good news."
[Right~! The new game for this month came out—let's play together!]
"We've got work to do. What game? So gamer-girl after all."
[Yup~ I'm a total gamer girl~ Not ashamed at all~!]
The call suddenly got lively.
I had more questions, but they could wait.
After chatting a bit about the new game info with Byul, I finally headed back to the dorm.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ [Ugh... Sleepy.]
'...Gonna sleep again?'
[I get sleepy after eating. Hehe.]
9 PM.
Good kid Cheon-do had fallen asleep, and Hwang-do and Baek-do were starting to get active.
Maybe because she was leaving the dorm soon, Hwang-do, stuffed with a lavish feast, ended up falling asleep first, leaving Baek-do behind.
Baek-do grumbled inwardly at the food left in front of her—hers and Lee Si-heon's shares.
'Damn... Should've said I wanted to eat first.'
Who could've known Si-heon would be on the phone so long?
She'd planned to eat with Si-heon and Cheon-do or Hwang-do, then enjoy a slow meal and peach tea time alone, but that perfect plan went up in smoke.
-Grrrowl.
It was too wasteful not to eat with all this food in front of her.
There were piles of firm peaches suited to Baek-do's taste, and the other dishes were all luxurious—stuff she'd normally stuff herself with until bursting.
'...He won't eat it if I don't, right? No... Our tastes match too well.'
If things stayed like this, they'd end up eating together for sure.
And that trash playboy would surely run his mouth and grate on her nerves again.
Baek-do scratched her head and sighed.
For some reason, the scars running from her palm to the back of her hand stung today.
Why not just eat it all quick?
Leave enough for Si-heon to eat alone.
With Shiba stuffed full and asleep, staying away from Si-heon as much as possible would make their last night in the dorm fantastic.
She still had a bunch of manga left to read too.
Just scarf down the food fast.
As Baek-do reached out, the dorm door opened, and her face hardened.
"Oh? You're eating already."
"......"
For real.
Really, really, really clueless guy!
Water flea. Useless to the world.
Baek-do exhaled and pulled herself together.
Speak politely, act like her master.
Imitating Cheon-do, she glared sharply at him.
"Where are the others?"
"They already ate. It was a party vibe. Where'd I go leaving my girlfriend behind?"
"Pardon?"
Trash. Playboy.
Inside her cold expression, Baek-do was burning up.
What the hell was good about a guy like that?
She couldn't understand how Hwang-do, who'd yelled since childhood to choose men carefully, ended up clinging to a guy like him.
She wanted to break them up, but...
That might make Hwang-do angry for the first time in years, so what could she do?
Baek-do steadied her breath and tapped the table in front of Si-heon's spot.
'Fine... There's a saying about giving extra rice cakes to those you hate.'
If she looked closely, like observing ants, he had a bit of cuteness maybe.
His behavior was rude and nothing but annoying, but... after the training camp, his face had gotten a little—very little—more mature.
Si-heon sat down, grinning.
"Just the two of us then?"
Again! Spouting nonsense.
"......Shut up and eat."
"You ordered it?"
The food was ordered by Hwang-do from outside and delivered via spatial magic.
The 'Delivery Hwang-do' that even Baek-do ordered from sometimes.
Si-heon glanced at Baek-do, then started eating.
Baek-do sighed once and ate too. Their chopsticks headed for the same spot.
Barbecue ribs.
Perfectly cooked, falling off the bone with a thick ketchup base aroma—Baek-do's top pick for this meal.
Chopsticks clashed, irritation rising.
'It happens.'
Activating Buddha's eyes, Baek-do moved aside and picked another rib.
The problem was their pointless consideration matched; chopsticks clashed again.
This was the second time anger flared.
'......'
They sorted the food somehow and ate; it was pretty good anyway.
Second round: trying for japchae, but seeing Si-heon's chopsticks, she switched to bulgogi.
'...Why do I have to go through this just to eat?'
The thought was brief.
Mid-meal, Si-heon's chopsticks moved toward her.
"Oh, try this. It's good. I usually hate it, but here it's tasty."
Lotus root simmer.
Baek-do hated the unique chew after the soy sauce flavor—something that had dirtied her white rice before.
Irritation at the pointless gesture.
'Messing around.'
She popped it in her mouth. Oh?
Surprisingly crunchy and tasty.
"...It's good."
"Right?"
That triumphant grin looking at her.
Unlike her, he seemed genuinely relaxed. Baek-do felt her heart flutter oddly.
'...Am I too sensitive?'
It was true; that thought crossed her mind.
Si-heon's actions... didn't really cross lines much.
It was just that among many people, his words grated extra.
"Ah, try this too."
Another side dish on her rice.
Not brainless; she always picked fights, yet he casually did these ticklish things.
'...Being alone isn't so bad?'
The thought flickered in her.
But it didn't last.
'What am I thinking! He's still a playboy... trash.'
And water flea. Sea anemone. Total idiot.
The fact he only groped her back then without finishing the deed meant he was impotent for sure.
"Not eating?"
"So what."
"......What?"
"Ah, shut it. No manners while eating. Don't talk in front of master while eating."
"Eh, what's wrong with that. It's the last night."
Baek-do, inwardly cursing Si-heon, nodded as if swayed by his words.
Fine... it was the last.
Unclear when they'd meet again.
Thinking that way made this time feel precious somehow.
Maybe she didn't have to be so prickly just for today?
'......'
-Swish.
Baek-do placed the last rib on Si-heon's rice.
"Last... eat it or not, do what you want."
A clear shift in attitude in her eyes.
Did this guy notice?
He had to; his brain only worked on useless stuff.
Si-heon widened his eyes, then grinned slyly at Baek-do.
"Wanna drink too?"
"...Feeling it today."
"So how long you gonna keep that tone? Beer goes glug-glug, right?"
Baek-do smiled bitterly inside and spoke in a slightly more relaxed tone.
"...Got it. Gimme the beer."
"Heh heh heh."
"Don't laugh... Hurry."
Trash was trash, but maybe recyclable trash.
-Click.
Baek-do savored a sip of the chilled beer can he handed her.
The slightly frozen beer was refreshing, and for some reason, drinking with a guy in front made it taste even better.