The Confirmation of Ability — A Cafe Part-Time Girl
She had let out a sound without realizing it.
Their eyes met.
Hye-na turned her head away with a blushing, embarrassed expression, as if she had been caught in a shameful moment, and hurried toward the restroom inside the counter.
[Target has left the field of view.]
[Automatic emotional control has been suspended.]
[Last confirmed value: 82]
‘Ah… when I lose sight of them, I can’t control it.’
Yeon-woo continued analyzing his own ability in his mind.
After a long time, Kang Hye-na returned.
The number above her head had dropped to 59.
The value had switched back to automatic mode.
Yet she still looked unable to calm her excitement.
Her chest rose and fell with faint shudders, her breathing quick and ragged, and a blush lingered on her cheeks.
The moment their eyes met, she lowered her head again, unable to meet his gaze properly with an embarrassed expression.
He had gotten a rough sense of what “effect” would come from an increasing emotion value.
But confirming anything beyond that in a public place like a cafe was impossible.
He slowly stood up, finished the bill, and left the shop.
A smile lingered at the corner of his mouth.
‘Fuck… I… I’ve acquired an incredible ability!!!!’
***
Yeon-woo began walking down the street.
His gaze now scanned the world in an entirely different way than before.
When he focused on a specific person for about ten seconds, the status window activated.
Multiple windows sometimes appeared at once, which had been disorienting at first, but he adapted quickly.
It felt as if a new sensory organ had been born inside him.
Most people he met on the street had emotion values at 10 or below, lingering in the realm of indifference or neutrality.
A tired-faced office worker (5), a young man wearing headphones and swaying to the rhythm (8), a housewife walking the market with a shopping basket in hand (6).
Occasionally, when observing a couple walking hand in hand like lovers, the fun multiplied.
Their emotion values roughly revealed the nature of their relationship.
Their values hovered between 30 and 40.
He checked the couple walking arm in arm with gentle affection.
Man (11), woman (41)
A stark temperature difference…
The woman leaned her body against his arm, nodding to every word he said, occasionally bursting into laughter and responding to him.
But the man kept a cold expression the whole time.
‘Those two… will probably split up soon.’
As he thought that, time passed unnoticed.
‘What about my values with Ah-young? Maybe around 50 to 10?’
Yeon-woo let out a bitter smile while thinking.
He had felt the temptation to manipulate the emotion values of the people he met on the street the way he had with Hye-na, but he didn’t do it.
Instead, just by knowing their emotion values without manipulation, he realized how extraordinary his ability truly was.
A single number had become a lens that pierced through a person’s current psychological state.
A slight smile touched the corner of Yeon-woo’s mouth.
***
The sun had set, and the streetlights began lighting up one by one as evening fell in the neighborhood alley.
Yeon-woo was passing the cafe he had visited that morning.
At that moment, the door opened and Kang Hye-na walked out.
She was wearing the same outfit she had worn when he first saw her in the shop.
Watching her walk slowly while looking at her phone, Yeon-woo’s heart quickened.
The target he had manipulated to push the emotion value over 80.
He wanted to learn more through her.
And… it was true that he had been drawn to her beautiful appearance.
If it had been the old Yeon-woo, he would never have approached first to speak.
A numberless, introverted personality.
Approaching a stranger woman first was almost impossible for him.
But things were different now.
Curiosity had overwhelmed his introverted nature.
‘Good. Let’s start. I can’t live like this forever.’
The moment he locked eyes with her, the status window opened.
[Target Information]
Emotion Value: 7 [Automatic]
Name: Kang Hye-na
Age: 22
Occupation: ???
Main Interests: ???
Yeon-woo walked slowly and naturally blocked her path as if crossing her way.
“Hello. We… saw each other at the cafe earlier today, right?”
“Eh? Ah!!! Hello.”
“You’re off work now.”
“Yes. I think you live near here.”
“Yeah…”
[Target Information]
Emotion Value: 28 [Automatic]
Name: Kang Hye-na
Age: 22
Occupation: ???
Main Interests: ???
‘Eh? The emotion value… jumped so fast. What the heck?’
Yeon-woo thought briefly.
‘Yeah… earlier… when I looked at her… it went over 80, right?’
A short memory flashed by.
The way her gaze had changed then, the subtle shift in her expression.
‘Is the effect still lingering…?’
The value kept rising.
29… 30… 31
Even amid the conversation, it flowed naturally.
“I live in the small apartment village right in front of here.”
“Yeah? I heard from the owner earlier. You’re one of our regulars…”
Her voice was gentle, carrying a light laugh at the end.
“Yeah. Because it’s close and quiet, I visit often.”
Whether her original personality was bright
or influenced by the emotion value…
She continued smiling at Yeon-woo while chatting.
“So… you’re on good terms with the owner too.”
“Yeah… Then I’ll see you more often from now on. Please take care.”
The conversation paused for a moment.
Yeon-woo, who lacked small talk, suddenly had no idea what to say next.
In this level of silence and awkwardness…
Normally, a woman would awkwardly greet him and pass.
But she didn’t.
She blinked, eyes fixed on him as if waiting for his next words.
The current value was 35.
When he had observed her today…
This level was typical for couples walking arm in arm.
Yeon-woo thought.
‘At least… she might have affection toward me. I don’t know… just… try approaching her.’
“Could you spare some time? I… got the urge to drink so I came out alone… If you’re free, would you like to have a drink with me?”
He said it, thinking he would definitely be rejected.
Kang Hye-na stared at him in silence for a moment.
The number above her head wobbled slightly.
It fluctuated between 35 and 39.
“I… don’t drink much…”
She said in a small voice.
‘Good, let’s push it one more time here.’
“I don’t drink much either. I just wanted to have one drink lightly. Actually… I need someone to listen to me talk more than alcohol.”
She hesitated slightly…
“Then… okay.”
She nodded with a smile.
A victory cry rang out inside Yeon-woo’s chest.
Yeon-woo guided her to a small izakaya inside a nearby alley.
The space was narrow but cozy, the scent of delicious side dishes and quiet conversation blending together.
The drinks and snacks arrived, and as they filled each other’s glasses, the awkwardness slowly melted.
Yeon-woo steered the conversation with ordinary questions.
Her hometown, major, why she started part-time work in this neighborhood.
Hye-na answered his questions kindly while blushing.
Occasionally, she would giggle softly at Yeon-woo’s strange remarks.
The atmosphere was not bad.
At least, Yeon-woo thought so.
“Hye-na, you really seem to have a good personality.”
It was a sincere compliment from Yeon-woo.
Her gentle responses and natural smiles had made him feel comfortable.
“Eh? But…”
Hye-na stopped for a moment and blinked.
“Have I told you my name?”
Yeon-woo was momentarily stunned.
‘Oh shit. This is… information I got through the system.’
“Ah…! At the shop earlier… I heard the owner calling you Hye-na.”
“Ah…!”
Hye-na nodded as if she understood and let out a small laugh.
But as time passed, Yeon-woo, who found speaking with women awkward and difficult, could not continue the conversation.
The conversation kept cutting off and times of silence stretched longer.
Something was starting to twist.
His clumsy way of dealing with women was starting to show in places.
Hye-na still smiled and honestly responded to the conversation, but the number above her head slowly dropped.
33… barely over 30, then 29, 28… soon wandering in the mid-20s.
‘24… 23…’
The lower the number fell, the more Hye-na’s reactions changed.
She seemed to grow bored with the place.
Yeon-woo sighed inside.
‘Yeah… when I’m with women like this… I can’t give off affection…’
The frustration he felt from Ah-young rose slowly.
The atmosphere he created was still insufficient to pull in women.
He had no choice but to coldly acknowledge his reality.
‘Yeah… I’ll admit it.’
‘Emotion value. Switch to manual mode.’
[System recognition complete.]
[Would you like to switch to manual conversion mode for emotional state?]
[YES / NO]
‘YES!’
[Emotional state has been converted to manual mode.]
[Please input the desired value.]
Yeon-woo looked at Hye-na.
‘50.’
[Would you like to input the emotion state as 50?]
[YES / NO]
‘YES.’
[Value input complete.]
[Would you like to execute?]
‘Execute.’
[Execution started.]
[Emotional state of the target has been set to stably rise.]
[Current increase rate: 1 point per minute]
The number above Hye-na’s head began to move from 23.
24… 25… but the speed felt painfully slow.
‘Can I change to 1 point per 30 seconds?’
[Possible. Adjusting increase rate.]
[Current increase rate: 2 points per minute]
The pace quickened.
26, 27, 28… As the number rose, the change in Hye-na’s appearance became noticeable.
45… 48… and finally 50.
---
