030. What on Earth Does That Mean?
030. What on Earth Does That Mean?
A few days passed.
Shin Se-hee stood with her arms crossed, nodding to herself at the scene before her eyes.
'Do-hee seems to have come around for good, I'd say.'
Kang Do-hee was now trailing after Jin Yu-ha everywhere he went.
Not that they were chatting comfortably with each other yet, of course.
But Se-hee saw it all.
Every time Jin Yu-ha was training hard, beads of sweat rolling down his face, Kang Do-hee's wistful gaze would follow his back.
Then, the moment Jin Yu-ha sensed something and turned his head, she'd pretend she hadn't been staring at all—an absurdly childish drama unfolding right there.
'Hmm, a little disappointing, I have to admit. I'd wanted to see that mad dog squirm just a bit longer.'
Shin Se-hee touched her lips.
"Though this is faster than I expected..."
Kang Do-hee's attitude toward Jin Yu-ha had swung wildly over the past few days.
At first, she'd glared at him with eyes so full of hostility that even Se-hee was taken aback,
but by the very next day, that look had completely changed.
Not that this was entirely unplanned, of course.
On the first day, she'd deliberately sent Do-hee only the footage of Jin Yu-ha swinging his sword at the academy cadets,
and on the second day, she'd sent the reason why.
For a more dramatic effect.
'Still, after seeing that too, it's no wonder she turned out this way.'
Truth be told, Shin Se-hee thought there was nothing left about Jin Yu-ha that could surprise her.
After all, he'd already more than proven how special he was with just that face and his combat ability.
But the day he participated in joint training for the first time.
That day had been one shock after another.
Shin Se-hee had been surprised three times that day.
The first was when she saw Jin Yu-ha's command ability.
The second was when he was suspected of being a Demonized Human.
The third was when Jin Yu-ha demanded party authority as compensation.
The second one, the Demonized Human suspicion incident—well, that was just the Hunter Management Bureau being the Hunter Management Bureau, as monumentally stupid as ever. She could let that slide.
'But that command ability and the party authority demand...'
Shin Se-hee felt her lips go dry and wet them with her tongue.
The fact that Jin Yu-ha had demanded party authority
meant he likely wanted to form his own team as soon as possible.
With command ability like that, it was the natural next step for him.
Shin Se-hee herself had already formed her own team and cleared multiple Gates before even entering the academy.
That's why she understood.
Just how absurdly high-level Jin Yu-ha's judgment truly was.
'He instantly synthesized enemy intel and allied intel. Assessed the combat situation. Then directed his party members' skills and movement paths down to the second.'
And in the middle of all that, Jin Yu-ha hadn't just been standing there staring blankly at the map.
While faithfully performing the role of a Damage Dealer clashing directly with monsters,
he had simultaneously issued commands as if he were watching the entire battlefield from a third-person view.
'Granted, it was only possible because the scale of the battle was small... but even so, that isn't something a normal person can do.'
There are plenty of Damage Dealers in this world who are outstanding 'only' in combat.
Take Kang Do-hee, for instance.
But people like him—who possess that level of judgment and outstanding combat ability—are few enough to count on one hand.
At this point, it had gone past spine-chilling to genuinely dumbfounding.
To think he'd been hiding an ability even more terrifying than his swordsmanship behind that pretty face.
'The team he puts together will undoubtedly soar higher than any other party...'
She looked over at Kang Do-hee.
Even during her own training, Kang Do-hee kept stealing glances at Jin Yu-ha.
One spot was definitely going to that clueless girl.
He'd shown interest in Kang Do-hee from the very beginning.
'And the other spot will be mine, of course.'
No matter how good someone's judgment is, it's ultimately limited to small-scale combat.
If he wanted to expand the scale of the battlefield, he would absolutely need someone behind him to coordinate the overall situation and provide support.
"As it happens, scheming and managing parties is precisely what I do best."
She'd demonstrated her competence in this matter, so he'd obviously offer her a party spot in return.
It really had been a brilliant move on her part to help Jin Yu-ha this time without any ulterior motive.
Sure, he'd shown some resistance to her at first, but now were they not 'partners' who helped each other?
Thump, thump.
'Ahh, I can't wait... for the day when I slowly dye Jin Yu-ha's soaring party in my colors.'
A soft laugh escaped Shin Se-hee's lips at the rising anticipation.
* * *
Evening, after joint training had ended.
Shin Se-hee had called me over, saying she had something to discuss in private.
She looked tired—I'd run her pretty hard during training—but she swept her hair back and gave me a captivating smile.
"What is it?"
"I've come to collect my payment for the deal."
"Ah, the deal."
I nodded.
Shin Se-hee had definitely done her job properly.
I'd been a little thrown off at first by Kang Do-hee glaring at me like I was her sworn enemy,
but that only lasted a day.
By the very next day, the hostility in her eyes had vanished like it was washed clean.
'Though, the direction it shifted to is a little... burdensome.'
During individual training time, some inexplicably sticky gaze had kept following me,
and during joint training, she'd followed orders so excessively that I'd had to pull her aside and rein her in several times.
'Still, that's something I can gradually adjust. And it looks like I'll be able to make the party offer soon. Se-hee really did hold up her end of the deal.'
Facing her eyes, glittering under the moonlight, I spoke.
"All right, fine. You definitely helped me out this time. Thanks to you, I think I'll be able to get Kang Do-hee into my party."
"Heh. I knew it would turn out that way. This is what happens when I put my heart into something."
She said it with a coy, haughty look on her face.
"So, anyway. The deal was that I'd tell you who took your necklace, right?"
"...What?"
Shin Se-hee tilted her head and asked again.
"In exchange for you connecting me with Kang Do-hee, I was supposed to tell you who took your necklace. That was the condition."
"Ahh, yes. Y-yes, that's right. That was the deal, wasn't it?"
Shin Se-hee suddenly stumbled over her words, as if flustered.
Tch.
I clicked my tongue to myself.
'Knew she'd pull this. Look at her acting flustered. Anyone would think it's real.'
Muddying the fact that this was a deal while leaving only the debt intact.
That was exactly the kind of woman Shin Se-hee was.
'She must've figured out that someone stole the necklace, so she thought she could catch them herself. Loss and theft aren't the same thing.'
Getting any more entangled with her would only add more headaches.
As expected, the best move with this woman was to close the deal quickly and cut ties.
I spoke in a cold, flat voice.
"Among the party you put together back then. Do you remember the one with the scar over his left eye?"
"Ah, yes. I remember."
"He's the culprit. He's got a Plunder skill."
"...Ah, I see."
Shin Se-hee nodded with a dazed look on her face.
"So, I've told you who did it. I'll be going now."
"...What?"
"It's late, and we've got sparring against another group the day after tomorrow. I need to rest."
With that, I finished speaking, turned my back, and headed straight for the dormitory.
And in the place where Jin Yu-ha had been standing.
"Huh...?"
Shin Se-hee stood frozen, her hand stretched out toward his back.
"That's it...? Wh-what about the p-party?"
* * *
Lunchtime the next day.
I was waiting for Lee Yu-ri in front of the main gate of the training ground.
A moment later, she finished training and walked over.
"Jin Yu-ha, what's up? You said you had something important to tell me today?"
'I'll talk to Kang Do-hee later. First, I need to lock down Gukbap.'
Today, I was planning to ask Lee Yu-ri to join the party I'd form after the entrance ceremony.
"Yeah. Let's go eat and I'll tell you. What do you want today? Anything. My treat."
"...How about gukbap?"
I'd said she could have something expensive, but Lee Yu-ri cautiously suggested gukbap.
I chuckled.
"Sure, sounds good. Let's go."
We headed to a gukbap place on the shopping street.
We ordered our gukbap and were waiting a bit for the food to come out.
BANG—!
Suddenly, Shin Se-hee threw open the door and walked in.
She came straight toward us.
Plop.
Then, with her head hanging low, she sat down across from me.
"...Hey, Jin Yu-ha. What's with her now? Weren't we eating lunch without her?"
Lee Yu-ri had her arms crossed and her eyebrows were twitching the second Shin Se-hee plopped down next to her.
Beats me. I'm a bit thrown off myself, you know.
'What's she butting in for all of a sudden? Weren't we all done talking yesterday?'
And something about this girl just isn't right when she's in front of gukbap. What the hell.
Well. If I don't know, I might as well ask.
"Shin Se-hee. Why are you here? You said we weren't eating together."
When I asked that.
"How could I not come?!"
Shin Se-hee squeezed her eyes shut and shouted.
"What...?"
"H-h-how could I p-possibly not come?! A-after you showed me that!!!"
"Showed you what?"
When Gukbap asked from beside her.
Shin Se-hee immediately opened her mouth again.
"That! You were hiding something so incredible!"
"Something incredible?"
"F-forcefully! Giving orders!"
"Orders...?"
"When we had those restraints on our wrists, l-like that!"
"Restraints...?"
Lee Yu-ri's voice had dropped to an icy chill, as if the temperature had plummeted by a hundred degrees.
"Last night! Why only Do-hee! Only Do-hee...!"
A sense that something had gone terribly, terribly wrong here.
"Pu-put me in too, please!"
Se-hee, Se-hee...
What the hell is "last night" supposed to mean.
What do you want me to put in you.
You dropped the object, you bitch.
"Jin Yu-ha, was this the 'something important' you wanted to talk about...?"
When I turned my head, Lee Yu-ri's eyes were glowing with a dangerous light.
'Shit...?'