79. I'm Not a Bodyguard
79. I'm Not a Bodyguard
79. I'm Not a Bodyguard
"Wha... What are you doing...!"
Startled by the sudden kiss, Lee Seol-ha screamed and shoved me away.
Unfortunately, the kiss lasted only about five seconds.
Such a pity...
After pushing me off, Lee Seol-ha stepped back, putting distance between us.
Her expression was not good—probably because of her trauma.
"Wha... What's the meaning of this all of a sudden..."
"This is a method to treat your trauma."
"What...?"
As a matter of fact, this really was a trauma treatment method.
Continuously expose the source of the trauma, and cover it with something pleasant.
An actual trauma therapy technique.
I had seen it on XTube, though.
My actions had at least some basis.
Lee Seol-ha frowned and spat on the ground.
Even if it was because of trauma, that still stung a little.
Right.
Come to think of it, what about Zone A?
"Lee Seol-ha, what happened to Zone A? Did you ditch it?"
"This distance is enough."
Lee Seol-ha showed me her ears.
Her ears were twitching and moving.
She seemed to be using her ability.
"...Really?"
"More importantly, Han Si-jun..."
Lee Seol-ha said, turning her back to me.
"...You'll keep coming to the club, right?"
"P...probably?"
Honestly, I wasn't sure I could keep attending.
The club president is weird, and it seemed like it would negatively affect Ban Ha-na too.
Lee Seol-ha went on,
"Well, the president's personality is weird, but she's nice. She helped me when I was struggling. She's just a bit odd. She's not a bad person..."
Lee Seol-ha seemed worried I might quit the club because of the argument between President Jin Ye-sol and Ban Ha-na.
In fact, I had been thinking about quitting soon anyway, right after securing the Hidden Piece.
I told Lee Seol-ha,
"...I know she's not a bad person. And I plan to keep attending the club for now."
"R...really?"
"Yeah, if I don't have anything else scheduled."
As Lee Seol-ha said, the club president and student council president Jin Ye-sol was not a bad person.
In every route of V. AGE, she played the role of the player's ally and always acted for world peace whenever possible.
Jin Ye-sol had a slightly strange personality, but she was a good person in her own way.
I had no intention of quitting this club before the next episode began.
Hearing that I would keep attending, Lee Seol-ha let out a sigh of relief.
"Th... that's a relief... I heard that last year two people quit in one day because of the president, so I thought you'd leave too..."
"...That's understandable."
If Ban Ha-na had come alone, she probably would have quit on the same day.
The Villain Research Club was informative, but Jin Ye-sol's chaotic personality seemed to split opinions sharply.
"Anyway, I don't plan on quitting... Shall we continue the treatment?"
"This is totally per...perverted, isn't it...!"
Pervert?
That's harsh.
I corrected her:
"I only meant we should walk holding hands...?"
"Th...the order doesn't make sense...! How can you hold hands after a kiss...!"
The order is definitely out of whack.
But after a strong kiss like that, the shock of whatever follows will feel small.
Not a bad situation, then.
So Lee Seol-ha and I went on what we called a patrol walk.
Thanks to her unique ability Beast's Senses, the patrol wasn't hindered at all.
However.
Lee Seol-ha had to walk with her eyes closed.
Because her misandry made the look in her eyes ready to kill me at any moment.
"Ah... I can't see in front of me...?"
"Let's just try walking with your eyes closed first..."
Lee Seol-ha was slowly opening her eyes.
Since her trauma would be reduced if she couldn't see, we continued our therapeutic walk like this.
***
Bodyguard.
In Korean, gyeonghowon.
Yu Ha-yeon and I, hired by Na Yu-na, were summoned on the weekend.
"Getting paid is nice, but it's a hassle..."
"Really? Then should I go visit NAVI?"
"...And what would you do there?"
"Talk, of course."
Yu Ha-yeon had been brimming with confidence about fighting lately.
She seemed displeased because NAVI kept bothering me.
NAVI would collapse on its own anyway.
There was no reason for Yu Ha-yeon to pick a fight with them.
What mattered was after NAVI fell.
Na Yu-na's mental health was the most important thing.
I told Yu Ha-yeon,
"You don't have to step in. I became a bodyguard because I wanted to."
"You weren't forced into it?"
"...No. I did it because I wanted to."
That was a lie.
Becoming a bodyguard was practically half-forced.
NAVI had demanded money and ordered me to provide protection no matter what.
But I could have refused if I wanted.
They weren't going to do anything drastic against a student.
They'd probably just issue a warning.
"Hmm... Really?"
Yu Ha-yeon, looking unimpressed, hit the nail on the head.
"Or do you just want to cheat on me with Na Yu-na?"
"Ch...cheating? What are you talking about?"
Yu Ha-yeon was quick to notice.
As if she already knew my heart, she prodded the important part.
I decided to deflect.
"Just. I've been short on money lately. It's nice for me too when I get paid."
"If it's about money, you should have told me! I'll hire you, Han Si-jun!"
With that, Yu Ha-yeon grabbed my hand.
Where was she planning to take me?
She was pulling me away from the school gate, saying she'd hire me.
"Stop talking nonsense and stay still, Yu Ha-yeon. Na Yu-na is coming over there."
"...Tch."
Yu Ha-yeon clicked her tongue, as if disappointed about something.
Behind her, Na Yu-na was walking toward us like a yellow butterfly.
She walked over, glanced briefly, and spoke.
"Seems I'm a bit late. Let's move right away."
"Wait, can you tell us where we're going?"
"..."
The moment Yu Ha-yeon spoke, sparks seemed to fly between the two of them.
From Na Yu-na's position, she didn't like being talked back to,
and Yu Ha-yeon clearly disliked Na Yu-na's overbearing attitude.
At times like this, I took Yu Ha-yeon's side.
"We'd like to know where we're going too."
"...There's a good alchemy shop that opened, so I'm going to check it out."
"Alchemy?"
Alchemy.
A technique that creates potions or medicines with beneficial effects on the user's body.
Some people even possessed unique abilities related to alchemy,
and its efficacy varied enormously depending on the maker.
'My supplements are alchemy too, I guess.'
The Strength Nutritional Supplement, Agility Nutritional Supplement, and Magic Power Nutritional Supplement I took every day.
Since I took them without fail, my physical stats had risen to a decent level.
I hadn't taken the Magic Power Nutritional Supplement when I lacked a mana core, but after obtaining the Golem Core, I made sure to take it.
Na Yu-na spoke as if she'd finished explaining:
"...I did say we're short on time."
Right.
She did say that.
We followed Na Yu-na, who seemed irritated.
As we walked, a black limousine was waiting by the roadside.
As expected of the rich, a limousine, huh?
It seemed like an unwritten rule that people with a certain amount of money use limousines.
"Get in quickly. If the item I want is gone, it's your fault."
"Why is that our fa-"
"Shut up, Yu Ha-yeon."
Yu Ha-yeon had been under a lot of stress lately, picking fights at every opportunity.
I covered her mouth and got into the limousine.
Yu Ha-yeon glared at me with eyes saying, 'Get your hand off right now.'
"You'll stay quiet, right?"
Nod nod.
I trusted her and removed my hand.
"...I won't say anything, happy?"
"You can talk. Just don't cause trouble."
There was no benefit in causing an incident with Na Yu-na.
There were too many ears around here.
The driver.
From what I'd heard in V. AGE, Na Yu-na had no one she could rely on.
Everyone around her was affiliated with the company, and they relayed everything about her to the chairman.
They were nothing more than surveillance cameras.
Na Yu-na, who would one day go mad after suddenly gaining freedom—after being surrounded by such people her whole life.
I could understand, to some extent, why Na Yu-na became a villain.
'...Well, I'm also a kind of surveillance camera, but.'
Technically, I wasn't hired by Na Yu-na, but by NAVI.
Each month I had to submit a report on Na Yu-na to the NAVI Group.
Of course, I had no intention of sending a proper one.
'I will kiss your daughter.'
I couldn't send it like that, right?
Right?
Strictly speaking, I wasn't on the side of protecting Na Yu-na, but attacking her.
While I was thinking about Na Yu-na's future,
Yu Ha-yeon looked at me intently and said,
"Han Si-jun. You're having weird thoughts again, aren't you?"
...Had she planted a chip in my head or something?
Yu Ha-yeon's guess was frighteningly accurate.
"Hey. I'd appreciate it if you kept quiet in the car."
Na Yu-na threw cold water on Yu Ha-yeon's words.
That worked in my favor.
Yu Ha-yeon frowned and whispered in my ear,
"Why don't you just quit and be my bodyguard, Han Si-jun?"
Yu Ha-yeon was suggesting I change jobs.
I listened to her and thought to myself,
'Not yet. I'll just get Na Yu-na's lips first, then I'll do that.'
But I didn't realize it then.
That if I got Na Yu-na's lips, I wouldn't be able to bodyguard anyone.
The meaning behind Yu Ha-yeon's smile.
I didn't realize.