Chapter 20
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: The Mayor's Date
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Na and Seria. Our dinner for two.
A sentence beyond the realm of comprehension paralyzed my brain.
Didn't one movie fill today's quota completely?
Wasn't the weekend workshop over? Wasn't it time to return to our respective homes, forget each other's existence, and enjoy some peaceful rest?
"Oh, dinner? We were doing dinner too?"
The words that tumbled out of my mouth sounded utterly idiotic even to me.
A zero out of ten for social skills. But there was no helping it. Survival instinct had overwhelmed rational judgment.
If the movie was reconnaissance, then dinner was the main event.
A confined space, seats facing each other, hours of prolonged conversation.
An intense psychological battle unfolding across a table with no escape.
Seria's eyebrow twitched ever so slightly. That was the signal her patience gauge had dropped about 10%.
"Did you plan to watch just one movie and call it a night on this precious weekend evening, Mayor? Surely you're not thinking of abandoning me on the street right after sharing that miraculous cinematic experience?"
"Abandoning? That's way too extreme a word choice!"
"Then how should I put it? The inhumane act of sending away your secretary, who devoted her entire precious weekend to cultivating your emotional refinement, without even treating her to a warm dinner. Don't you think that goes against basic human decency?"
She took a brief breath, preparing her finishing blow.
"Or... am I perhaps an unappealing woman who's wasting your precious time, Mayor?"
It had arrived. The rhetoric that painted the other person as the perfect villain, the scum of the earth.
"No, no! Of course not! Time spent with a capable and beautiful secretary like you is always enjoyable! It's just that, out of respect for your work-life balance..."
Work-life balance. The hot keyword of modern society.
I'd pulled out a trendy buzzword. Now I was the enlightened leader eradicating workplace injustices.
"Right, exactly! In this day and age, taking a secretary's evening for personal errands is straight-up old-school power harassment! All I wanted was to break that vicious habit!"
But Seria didn't bat an eye at my tear-jerking performance.
"Then there's no issue at all. Since I suggested it myself. No power harassment, no bad habits."
"W-Well, that's true, but..."
I made one last desperate stand. Clinging to a thread of hope.
"But Seria, wouldn't it be tough finding a restaurant on such short notice at this hour? Weekends are packed everywhere. So, regrettably, dinner next time..."
"No need to worry. I've already reserved a table. Isn't that part of a secretary's duties?"
Total defeat. All that remained was a pathetic surrender.
An Italian restaurant perched on the top floor of a skyscraper, offering a panoramic view of Neo Incheon's skyline.
Beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, the glittering city nightscape sparkled like scattered jewels.
Soft classical melodies filled the air, candlelight flickered on every table, and the scent of truffle oil tickled the nose.
"Why are you looking around like that? You'll come off as such a bumpkin."
"No, just... the view is amazing. Haha. I never realized Neo Incheon's nightscape was this beautiful."
"If you'd paid even a little more attention to city affairs, Mayor, you'd know three of those buildings went up last year under your approval."
Seria settled gracefully into her seat and scanned the wine list. I clutched the menu, too busy counting the zeros on the prices. What on earth did they do to the food to charge this much?
"What wine would you like, Mayor? The Château Renaud 2005 seems perfect for a night like this."
I wasn't even sure if that was a person's name or a wine.
But what would incompetent yet vain Mayor Lee Garam do in this situation?
He'd bluff, of course. Pretend to know.
"Ah, Château whatever! Sounds good! You really have great taste, Seria! 2005 vintage... That was a great year. Good weather, ripe grapes... something like that!"
But Seria's gaze pierced me coldly.
"You have quite the knowledge of wine, Mayor. 2005—that's when you were still in elementary school. Impressive that you could distinguish Bordeaux vintages with such a refined palate even back then. Care to comment on this wine's tannin content and acidity balance?"
I was done for.
Tannin? Acidity? No clue what those even were.
All I knew about wine was that it was booze made from grapes.
And even that wasn't certain. Could they make it from rice too?
Exposing my ignorance here would complete the plan, but it'd bruise my ego too much in the process.
Fine. Time for a counterattack.
"Haha, Seria. Don't you know how barbaric it is to describe wine's taste in words? Wine is meant to be felt, not analyzed. Tannins, acidity—that's just scientific nonsense killing the soul of the wine. A true wine lover cherishes the emotion of that first sip."
"I see. You're the emotional type, Mayor. In that case, I'll order. Something to appeal to your sensibilities."
In the end, everything was ordered her way. Soon, the feast arrived on our table.
Seria elegantly wielded knife and fork, gracefully transferring bites to her mouth. Every motion was precise and refined, like clockwork.
Meanwhile, I was locked in mortal combat with the spaghetti strands. My desperate efforts to protect my shirt were downright heroic.
"Mayor."
Her correction came, as expected.
"You wrap spaghetti around your fork. Slurping noisily might make the other guests question your dignity."
"Oh, th-that was on purpose. A kind of performance to show my relatable, everyman side."
"A performance willing to sacrifice your own dignity for citizen outreach. Truly a tear-jerking display of selfless devotion."
I laughed awkwardly and twirled my fork.
"To honor that noble spirit, how about displaying your tomato-sauced shirt in the city hall lobby? Titled 'The Red Sacrifice for the People.' Every civil servant and citizen in Neo Incheon would forever remember your ultimate sacrifice."
"......"
That face paired with that personality.
She looked like an angel on the outside, but the words from her mouth were devilish whispers.
God must have dumped all her stats into looks and talent when sculpting her.
If even a tenth—no, a hundredth—of that had gone into her personality...
I might actually be enjoying this dinner.
Thus ended the precarious feast.
After the meal, we took a stroll through a nearby park.
I couldn't quite remember how we ended up walking.
Probably Seria suggested it, or maybe I did to break the awkward tension, or perhaps it just flowed that way silently between us.
Either way, the important thing was we were strolling through the park now.
The nighttime park exuded a charm all its own, different from the day.
Holographic fish swam in the artificial lake, and the installed lights shifted colors in sync with soft music.
Neo Incheon's night. The romance of a high-tech metropolis.
The tension from moments ago vanished like a lie, replaced by a comfortable air between us.
Maybe... coming to this world wasn't so bad after all.
Sure, there was that S-Rank villain about to turn the city upside down, and my secretary was an even bigger black, but minor issues aside.
Putting those trivialities aside, managing the city with such a capable and beautiful secretary seemed like a pretty decent life.
It was then, as such foolish thoughts flitted through my mind.
Right when my heart had swelled like fluffy cotton candy.
Sitting on a bench, Seria turned to me and spoke.
"Mayor."
Her voice was softer than usual today.
"Lately... you've been very different from the man I knew. To be honest, you're surprisingly capable—inspiring even, at times."
"Uh, uh? Really? Haha!"
Totally awkward. The classic reaction of someone unaccustomed to praise.
Actually, not praise in general, but Seria's praise. Positive words from her were a near-miracle.
"By any chance..."
She spoke again.
"If you're hiding something, tell me now."
Her turquoise eyes pierced straight through me.
"It's okay. If you confess now... I'll forgive everything."
My heart sank with a thud.
Forgive? Understand?
Were those words really from Seria?
Her voice was gentle and warm, unlike her usual tone.
It carried a saintly compassion, like she truly meant to accept and forgive it all, like the Virgin Mary herself.
Her beauty shone brighter than ever tonight. Her words far kinder than usual. The romantic park atmosphere.
All of it combined into a powerful spell, numbing my reason.
Maybe, just maybe.
If I spilled everything now, she'd understand?
That I was just an ordinary office worker from another world, merely struggling to survive.
That grabbing the slush funds and running was pure survival instinct.
"Seria... The truth is, I..."
My mouth opened on its own.
My head screamed no, but my heart moved first.
Emotion was winning the war against reason.
Right as I nearly gave in.
KWAAAAAANG—!
What interrupted my confession was a roar that tore the sky apart.
Space in the middle of the park crumpled like a waffle, and a crimson rift tore open.
From it leaped a house-sized tiger engulfed in blazing flames.
A-Rank monster, 'Hell Tiger'.
"A tiger? A tiger?!"
Not in the Joseon era, but in 21st-century Neo Incheon, worrying about tiger attacks?
And it wasn't just any tiger. An A-Rank monster. A disaster that could demolish a couple buildings, a threat capable of turning streets into infernos.
Citizens' screams soon filled the park. I fumbled for the emergency button on my smartwatch.
"Seria! Contact the Special Task Force now! A-And issue the civilian evacuation alert...!"
"Haa..."
The softness had vanished from Seria's face when I turned.
Back to the cold, ruthless 'ice-cold secretary' I knew.
"A beast with no sense of timing."
She slowly raised her right index finger toward the burning tiger.
And then, ever so slightly.
Lowered it.
That was all.
Shwick—
The tiger split in half.
Slide.
Its body slid apart left and right, collapsing to the ground.
The roaring flames extinguished, the intimidating roar fell silent.
Seria casually dusted off her hand.
I could only stare blankly at the surreal sight.
"It's late. We should head back for the night."
As if nothing had happened, she spoke in her usual expressionless tone.
"See you tomorrow."
With a greeting devoid of any smile, she vanished into the night.
I stood there for a long while, alternating glances between the bisected tiger remains and the direction she'd disappeared.
Right.
Yeah.
That woman is a villain. A black. Seria.
A pink disaster scarier than any tiger.
What was I about to do? Confess? Spill my sins?
I nearly ended up halved like that tiger.
The day she learns my true identity will be my last.
Impeachment. Yes, impeachment is the only way out.
I clenched my fist. My hazy goal sharpened once more.
Get it together, Lee Garam. I have to escape. Somehow, from that woman, from this city.