Sincere Advice
The first-place prize was definitely something I had no clue about. The second-place prize might have been familiar or not, but judging by its appearance alone, I had no idea what it was. But the third-place prize? That one I recognized immediately. Its distinctive design was impossible for anyone who'd played Gray Zone to miss.
An ornate silver box. The vivid black sun symbol engraved prominently on its surface. The front panel that looked like some godforsaken puzzle with no matching pieces. The worn, chipped edges that gave it the appearance of having survived a brutal journey.
“A fancy box, huh...”
◈ A mysterious silver box containing a key item for the late-game story of Gray Zone
◈ Cannot be opened by normal means — requires solving the front puzzle
◈ Contains the Holy Grace Usurpation scroll
In the game, it was called the Box of Meier. Opening it would lead directly into the latter half of the main story. Still, for something so important, the way you obtained it was rather trivial. During normal gameplay, you could visit a specific shop where it was sold exclusively. It might seem strange at first, but when you thought about it, it made sense. What else would someone who had no idea what the box actually was do with it besides sell it as loot?
Besides, it was protected by powerful magic that made it impossible to open through normal means. The only way to access its contents was to solve the puzzle on the front panel.
“And they made it third place?”
Considering its appearance alone, the evaluation seemed rather generous. Without knowing what was inside, it was basically just another mediocre prize. And right now, I needed that box. With it, I could deal with the heroes far more decisively.
I stared at the poster, lost in deep thought about how one of the keys to a happy ending had suddenly appeared before me. How should I participate? Should I go alone, or form a team? How would I secure the right ranking?
“Ramen’s ready!”
Ines called out from the kitchen. I crumpled the poster and shoved it back into the trash can. A hunting competition with the freshmen. Fine. I’d already memorized the important details, so I could think about it more once I got home.
I headed straight for the kitchen and began what could only be described as dining with the enemy.
“Ugh...”
It was painfully obvious, poison or not, that the stuff was just plain bad. It seemed tailored to American tastes — all I could detect was a heavy, greasy flavor. Still, I consoled myself with the valuable information I’d gained and kept forcing down the completely unspicy ramen.
Of course, I didn’t eat too much at once. I remained wary that Ines might have actually poisoned it. Just a little at a time. Nibble by nibble.
“It’s not poisoned.”
“...?”
Fortunately, it seemed she hadn’t pulled any dirty tricks. Only then did I increase the amount I was eating, but the more I ate, the more convinced I became that I couldn’t stomach another bite. No kimchi, no side dishes — what kind of meal was this? Food was supposed to have tradition and soul, but this had neither. If Cheon Mari had been here instead of me, she would’ve flipped the table long ago.
Ines watched me and scratched her head.
“Is it not good?”
“Yeah.”
It was too obvious to lie and say otherwise. I could’ve called it rude since I was a guest in her house, but Ines constantly picking fights with me was far more of a nuisance.
“Honestly, I don’t like it either.”
Her unexpected response caught me off guard. Ines set her chopsticks down as if she couldn’t stand the taste either.
“I thought non-white people might prefer it less salty, so I added about ten ounces of water. Guess that was a mistake.”
“...”
Was she crazy? Why the hell would she add water? Since when did Asians dislike salt? The only people in the world who hated the perfect balance of sweet and salty were communist reds and fascist shitheads. Watching Ines’s astonishing water-control skills, I could only shake my head internally.
I wasn’t sure if her cooking had been this bad back in her academy days in Gray Zone, but if it had, I could easily imagine what her interspecies boyfriend’s stomach must’ve looked like. Her default appearance in the game had been pretty terrible too, so any guy who dated her back then must’ve suffered in more ways than one. Of course, if she dated the same guy in this life, he’d experience an entirely different kind of discomfort.
“Sorry. I’ll make a new batch.”
“No, it’s fine.”
I was already tired, and a quick glance at the kitchen showed the ramen was all gone anyway. It’d be more trouble to go buy more. Better to just end it here. When I cleared her bowl too and carried everything to the kitchen, her expression turned noticeably gloomy. It looked like she was upset that she hadn’t been able to properly entertain the person she wanted to impress.
“Tsk... This isn’t how it was supposed to go...”
There was even a hint of pathetic desperation in her voice. I had no idea what she’d been hoping for.
“Hey, I’ll just do the dishes.”
“Huh? N-no! It’s okay! You don’t have to!”
“You fed me, so it’s only right. Just sit down.”
“No! You really don’t need to!”
She jumped up from her seat and quickly snatched the bowls I was about to throw away.
“I’ll clean everything! You just sit there!”
I’d been planning to leave, but with her acting like this, I had no choice. When the homeowner insisted so strongly, there was no way to refuse. I stopped what I was doing and stepped back. Ines carefully cleared away the ramen I’d eaten, right down to the chopsticks.
“I was the one who invited you today. It’s only natural that I handle everything.”
She turned to head back to her seat, but I grabbed her hand, sensing something off.
“This is weird. Do you have something to say?”
“Huh?”
“If not, I’m leaving. If you do, spit it out already.”
She hesitated for a moment, clearly gauging my reaction. Then her face turned slightly red.
“Well, um... Do you have any time the week after next? I mean... are you free?”
Her tone had become extremely polite. Even her usual authoritative voice had softened.
“I don’t really have anything planned and I’m kind of bored... I was thinking about entering the competition?”
“Good for you. Work hard.”
“Wait! Hear me out first!”
When I tried to pull my hand away, she grabbed it instead. I already knew exactly what she was about to say.
“There’s a hunting competition coming up soon, right? But going alone would be too much for me. So I was wondering if—”
“You have your club friends, don’t you? Just ask them to team up with you.”
They were proud and confident people. It was entirely possible. Whether that would lead to people dying or getting hurt was another matter.
“Their skills are way too weak. Honestly, among everyone I know, you’re the only one who can actually fight on my level.”
“So because I’m good at fighting, you want to ride the bus?”
“That’s... yeah. That’s right. So if we win a prize later, I’ll give everything to you!”
That was a tempting offer. If I teamed up with Ines and we only managed third place, I could claim the box all for myself.
“...There’s not much in it for me.”
Besides, going alone would be better than that. Considering her combat ability, it might even be better if she didn’t participate at all. Most importantly, there was no telling what kind of backstabbing this Dixie might try. I stared at her coldly.
“It’d still be good experience! Just participating in a competition would look great on your record!”
“...”
“So I was thinking maybe we could form a team together and—”
“So that’s why you invited me to eat together. Forget it. I’m not interested.”
She looked at me like the sky had fallen. Like she was asking if I was serious.
“Why not?”
“Because I’m just not interested. I’ve got things to do anyway.”
The truth was, I planned to enter the competition without telling her. It sounded like a terrible lie, but she was the one who’d suddenly tried to strike a deal with someone she wasn’t even that close to.
“Ah...”
“If you need teammates, just go with your club members.”
“But like I said earlier—”
“Or go by yourself. Honestly, trying to win a prize by relying on someone else’s strength doesn’t look good. You should at least practice a bit and try it alone.”
This was sincere advice. Watching her try to borrow someone else’s power to win a prize like this was genuinely disappointing. Even if she failed, it would be far better for her to challenge herself with genuine desire and effort. At least then she’d retain some of the ability she’d built up, giving her something to build on next time. But relying on others like this left almost no room for growth. Especially for someone stuck in the middle-to-lower ranks like her — it would only increase the chance she’d stagnate.
For the sake of Ines’s future, I couldn’t team up with her for this competition. Unless there was some way it could motivate her to work harder, that is.
“...I understand.”
“I can’t do it this time because of personal reasons, but I’ll seriously consider it for the next competition.”
“Huh?”
“Of course, you’d need to be skilled enough that forming a team with me wouldn’t cause any major problems.”
I’d thrown her enough of a bone. If she couldn’t take the hint after this, she might as well stick her face in a plate of water and drown.
“Ah...!”
With those final words, I patted her shoulder a few times and told her to do her best. As her expression brightened, I slowly made my way out of the house.
Left alone in the house, Ines threw away the ramen she’d been eating and tossed the chopsticks she’d used into the sink. Instead, she ate the ramen Kang Sian had eaten, using the chopsticks he had used.
Her posture was completely without manners. The only thing betraying her emotions were her legs, curled up tightly to suppress her feelings. Eventually, the growing heat and sweat became too much, and she stripped off her top and bottoms. Her underwear, now so damp it was nearly see-through, revealed her deeply tanned skin.
It was a body that could incite lust in anyone — a level of sensuality that could make anyone fall for her. Yet Ines herself seemed completely unaware of this as she calmly organized the situation she found herself in.
After summarizing today’s conversation, she reached one conclusion.
“No matter what method I use... as long as I become stronger... that’s all that matters, right?”
Strength was everything. That was probably it.