Even If You're a Monster
Dawn's Light guild's 7th-floor conference room. Victoria cleared her throat again and laid out her thoughts to the two girls.
"Honestly, it used to be little more than a wild guess back then. There was just way too little info on Phantom at the time."
But things were different now. Phantom had left behind a ton of clues. After reviewing the documents on him, Victoria had immediately pieced together that he only appeared at night. With even more hints piling up for a girl like her, figuring out who Phantom really was wasn't that hard.
"I was still on the fence even up to the Collector. But after the Krahim incident, and then the research lab attack a few days ago, I'm pretty much convinced. That Si-hyeoni... is Phantom."
"Krahim?"
"Victoria... you mean when we were asleep...?"
"Exactly. The moment we dozed off, everything wrapped up in a flash, right? That creepy clockwork giant vanished, and Krahim itself evaporated without a trace. But when we snapped back to reality... Phantom was right there with us. Si-hyeoni was the only one around before we closed our eyes. Doesn't that strike you as too much of a coincidence?"
It was timing so perfect it defied belief as mere chance. And there were just too many instances like that linking Si-hyun and Phantom. Once? Sure, coincidence. Twice? Low odds, but possible. But three times? That wasn't coincidence anymore.
"Just think about it a little. Si-hyeoni... has never been sighted alongside Phantom. Not even once."
"......"
"......"
"And over 80% of Phantom's activities revolve around Si-hyun's acquaintances. You two, me included, even Master Do-jin."
After hearing her conclusion, Emilia and Ga-eun fell silent for a long moment, exchanging glances as they mulled it over. Victoria figured they were too shocked to speak.
Whatever their exact relationship with Si-hyun is, even someone as clueless about romance as me can tell they see him as special. If a guy that precious to them turns out to be a ghost story... yeah, it'd hit hard.
But Victoria had misread their hearts completely. Or more precisely—
She didn't grasp the 'obsession' that far surpassed mere 'love' burning in these two girls.
"Victoria, Emilia and I... we kinda already knew. That Si-hyun oppa is connected to Phantom."
"Wha—?!"
Ga-eun's bombshell that they'd already figured it out. Emilia nodded in agreement from her seat beside her.
"You already knew...? That Si-hyeoni is Phantom?"
Victoria blinked in confusion. The neat puzzle in her head felt like someone had swept all the pieces off the table.
"Victoria, see... my sense of smell's gone into overdrive from the Fox Shrine side effects. I can pick out a single scent molecule. No way I'd mix up Phantom's smell with oppa's."
Ga-eun winked shyly, flashing a matter-of-fact smile.
"I know everything about oppa. Like how he sneaks peeks at my chest while pretending not to. Or his cosplay fetish for maid outfits and nurse costumes. And yeah, he denies it, but he's a total lolicon deep down. I've been aware of my love for oppa for over ten years now. No way I'd miss a little change in his looks."
No sooner had Ga-eun finished than Emilia's small lips parted.
"Combining scientific data is my specialty. But I didn't link oppa and Phantom that way."
"Th-then... how?"
To Victoria's flustered question, Emilia answered with a faint blush.
"The touch of oppa's hands holding me when I turned into that SD character in Krahim... it was the same as Phantom's when I felt it half-asleep."
"What...? Emilia, we were out cold. How could you know?"
"No way I'd mistake Shin oppa's touch. His body heat, the little eye flick when he lies, even the subtle shifts in his voice... I know everything about oppa. Because... he's my whole world. Shin oppa is everything to me—my one and only... universe."
A chill ran down her spine. Emilia's coral eyes gleamed with obsession, delivered in that flat tone. There was something eerily cold about the girl's gaze.
"Ah! Emilia, I know way more about Si-hyun oppa than you do!"
"Denial. My love for Shin oppa runs deeper and longer than any fox's."
"N-no it's not! Oppa kissed me first at the amusement park! I'm the first—me!"
"Oppa used more tongue when kissing me. More saliva too, than with the fox. And... I've been kissing oppa since we were eight. He was too young to remember, but that's fine. I'll stick by him till I die to make him recall it."
*Lick*—Emilia parted her lips slightly, sticking out her tongue. Her cute little fangs and shy expression were dangerously alluring, even to another woman.
"W-wait a sec! What the hell are you two—"
Victoria shouted desperately, trying to butt in. But she couldn't stop the argument that had ignited between them.
"Pbbbt~! I kissed him since we were kids too! On a rainy night, crammed in the wardrobe together, kissing all night! Super deep and steamy—you couldn't even imagine!"
"I kissed oppa under the starry sky at the orphanage. All night, obviously. I taught Shin oppa naughty kisses."
The sudden kiss battle between Ga-eun and Emilia showed no signs of stopping. They'd completely forgotten they were talking about Phantom, now fiercely claiming whose love ran deeper.
And amid it all, What... the actual fuck is wrong with these girls...?? Victoria reeled from the unexpected turn.
Phantom was an object of fear and awe. That black aura instilling primal dread in humans, his noble bearing. The power to erase a ghost story with a flick. Bluntly put, he was a 'monster.' And now she was telling them the guy right beside them might be that very monster...
"Emilia, like I keep saying, I'm the first! You're second—second!"
"I met Shin oppa first. Men never forget their first love. So I'm the legal wife. Fox ears is the concubine."
To Emilia and Ga-eun, none of that mattered a~~~ bit. They seemed way more invested in 'who's the legal wife?'
—Bang!
"Hold up! Do you two even realize what you're saying?!"
"??"
"??"
Victoria slammed the table, her face a mask of disbelief.
"Si-hyun might be Phantom! A terrifying thing like that! And you're yapping about kisses and legal wives?!"
Her argument was spot-on. Just days ago, the ghost story that wrecked an American guild master half to death at Dawn's Light. The dangerous entity that half-demolished the research wing, saddling them with repair costs—and it might be hiding right under their noses, while they chilled with lovey-dovey chit-chat? That was beyond reckless.
......That'd be the normal reaction. But!
"Victoria, I don't care if oppa's Phantom or not."
"What...?"
"Doesn't matter to me either. Whether Shin oppa's a ghost story or human... even if he's a monster... my feelings won't change."
"Emilia, even you—the most rational one—why...?!"
Common sense and logic meant nothing to these two girls utterly smitten with Si-hyun.
Obsession was like that. A state where all the world's rules and common sense became worthless in an instant. Right and wrong, sense and nonsense—all shoved aside, leaving one person as the center of the universe. When they smiled, it felt like warm sunlight; when they turned away, the world might as well end. It seeped in soft as spring rain, then poured endlessly like monsoon floods. The world revolved solely around that one soul, everything else mere backdrop. Following their footsteps became your whole day; hearing their voice, your life's purpose. Too heavy and sticky to call love. A shackle that tightened endlessly once clasped, never to be undone.
Obsession... was precisely that.
About an hour later, the inconclusive 'Legal Wife Wars' hit a temporary lull. That's when Ga-eun sidled up to Victoria.
"Hey Victoria, why'd you tell us this huge secret first? Shouldn't you report to guild HQ?"
"W-well... you two seem to care about Si-hyun a lot. Figured it'd shock you if you found out too late."
"Hehe~~ Thanks, but that lie's showing big time?"
"...?!"
Ga-eun giggled cutely and scooted right up to Victoria.
—Plop.
She pressed her perky fox ears against Victoria's chest.
"Wha—what's this...?!"
"Shh, stay still~"
Ga-eun closed her eyes, listening to Victoria's heartbeat.
Thump. Thump-thump.
"This sound! It's the beat of love! Victoria Crawford!"
"Hah—?! What're you talking about!"
The blonde girl's face flushed crimson in seconds. Emilia watched intently, then let out a small sigh.
"Sigh, knew it. No wonder your stares at Shin oppa in Krahim were so pervy."
"P-pervy?! I-I never looked like thaaat...!"
"Whoa, now it's the sound of lying!"
Ga-eun's hearing caught emotions as precisely as Erisa's 'emotion reading.' She had Victoria pegged.
"Hehe~ So Victoria likes our Si-hyun oppa too, huh."
"Pretending otherwise... Eden's master really is shady..."
"Wh-whaaaah...!"
"Makes sense now. You like Si-hyun oppa, so you couldn't go public with him being Phantom. But you couldn't ignore it either, right? So you told us first—the ones you could open up to. Spot on? Hehe."
Ga-eun's deduction nailed it, reasons and all. No room for excuses.
"Y-yeah...! I do have feelings for Si-hyeoni...! How could I not love a guy who'd risk his life to protect me?! *Hic*...!"
"Hehe~ Knew it~"
"So what now? Gonna tell the guild Shin oppa's Phantom?"
"I... dunno..."
Victoria agonized. Her duties as master clashed with her newfound love.
I can't choose...
The insightful, rational girl had turned into a total fool right then.
"Ughhh... What am I supposed to do...?"
—Swoosh. As Victoria clutched her head in turmoil, Emilia and Ga-eun crept closer.
"Victoria... let's just wait a bit."
"Wait...?"
"Yeah. Until Shin oppa tells us about Phantom himself."
Ga-eun nodded too.
"Si-hyun oppa's hiding that he's Phantom. I don't wanna force it out of him."
"But what if Si-hyeoni really is a bad ghost story...?"
"No way Si-hyun oppa would be. But... even if he was..."
Ga-eun's eyes turned a touch sad as she whispered,
"I'd pretend I never knew till the end. Even if it kills me... Believing him no matter what... that's how a girl in love should be."
"...!"
"Hate agreeing with the fox ears, but same here. If the 'legal wife' won't trust her husband, who will...?"
"You two... care about Si-hyeoni that mu—"
Their love was so profound, so pure. Seeing their unwavering faith in Si-hyun, Victoria decided to bury the Phantom intel deep in her heart.
"Alright~ So Victoria's joining our 'We Love Si-hyun Oppa' club? Hehe."
"I-is that...?"
"Yup! You're the baby, so second concubine. Fox ears first concubine, I'm the legal wife. Unbreakable rule—memorize it."
"Ah! Emilia's starting again! I'm the legal wife—me!"
And just like that. Unbeknownst to himself, Si-hyun now had three more women to take responsibility for.