88. Next Time Again
88. Next Time Again
Han Yu-wol.
If she decided to end me, I would die right here.
A complete deadlock of silence.
Ban Ha-na was the first to speak.
"I am never going back there! Yu-wol is a villain! I hate villains!"
"...She finally figured it out, I see."
Han Yu-wol answered Ban Ha-na's outburst.
She ignored Ban Ha-na and directed her question at me.
"Did little Han Si-jun tell her that, too?"
"Well, it just sort of came up."
"It would have been much easier to control her if she knew nothing. This complicates the plan."
Han Yu-wol seemed faintly disappointed.
She must have preferred Ban Ha-na in the dark about her villain identity.
"Ha-na deserves to know what she needs to know."
"I sent her off for an education, and... haah, such a pity. Isn't it?"
"Nothing pitiful about it! You villain!"
A voice sharp with the accusation 'villain.'
At that, Han Yu-wol shifted her gaze to Ban Ha-na.
Ban Ha-na met her red eyes.
She immediately shrank back, probably from the pressure.
"..."
Han Yu-wol stared at Ban Ha-na without a word.
Then she walked toward her with quiet steps.
Wearing an alluring smile.
"Ban Ha-na. Are you saying you're not a villain?"
"I... I'm not a villain...! I didn't do anything...! Ha-na is good...!"
"Really...? That's what you think...?"
Pft.
Han Yu-wol laughed as if she found it ridiculous.
She raised a pale hand to Ban Ha-na's cheek.
Then she started speaking an uncomfortable truth.
"You never realized how much easier you made it for us to kill people, did you...? Your own conscience stayed nice and clean...?"
"Wh... what do you mean...! I've never killed anyone...!"
"You didn't kill them yourself. But you moved us to convenient locations, didn't you? Without you, those people might not have died at all...?"
"...!"
Han Yu-wol's words were a shock.
Tears welled in Ban Ha-na's eyes.
I couldn't stand watching it any longer and cut into the conversation.
"That's a harsh way to put it."
"What's harsh? Did I say anything incorrect?"
Han Yu-wol's words were damn near bullshit.
But I couldn't exactly say "Cut the bullshit," so I countered her ridiculous argument instead.
"A murderer takes a taxi to the crime scene. In that situation, you blame the murderer, not the taxi driver. Don't take it out on Ha-na."
"...You've managed to annoy me for the first time in a while."
Ban Ha-na did nothing wrong.
How dare she try to gaslight Ha-na?
There were no grounds to hold her guilty.
"Si-jun, I'm not a villain, right...?"
"Of course not."
When I defended her like that, Ban Ha-na grabbed my sleeve.
It meant she was leaning on me right now.
'Ha-na, what kind of ring made you drag Han Yu-wol all the way here...'
I grumbled internally.
Han Yu-wol murmured as she watched the two of us.
"When did you two get close enough to protect each other like that... I'm jealous..."
"Huh?"
Heh.
Han Yu-wol smiled and turned her back.
As if struck by a whim, she walked toward Ban Ha-na's spatial opening.
Heading that way, she spoke in a calm tone.
"Honestly, I just followed along. It looked entertaining."
"...What?"
"I'm saying I have no intention of taking Ha-na."
Then why did you come?
She really came just for fun...?
That sounded exactly like Han Yu-wol, so it made some sense.
She licked her lips and murmured.
"If only I could have had a little taste... that part is a shame."
"That's a bit..."
"You and I will meet again later. I can taste you then."
"No, I mean that's kind of..."
"Well, my time is up. I'll be off now..."
Han Yu-wol said time was up.
She glanced briefly toward the dormitory door.
Was something coming?
I followed her gaze.
I don't sense anything. What is it...?
No sign of anyone outside, and not a single trace of mana flow visible either.
Why did she look over there?
The moment I thought that, Han Yu-wol was standing right in front of me.
When did she get there?
In the instant that thought flickered past,
she lowered her head and whispered into my ear.
"I'll hold back this time and leave... Next time... look forward to it...?"
Han Yu-wol's voice carried a chill.
Ban Ha-na saw it and shouted, "Get away from Si-jun...!"
Han Yu-wol pulled away from me and vanished into the dimensional opening.
The moment she disappeared, Ban Ha-na immediately closed the space she'd created.
"Is she... gone...?"
"Yeah. Si-jun, she's gone."
Lucky to still be alive.
And with that, the long-yet-short reunion with Han Yu-wol came to an end.
***
After Han Yu-wol left.
My dorm room recovered its peace.
The heavy atmosphere lifted,
and the mood of Black Dawn's former transport—Ha-na—bounced back to its usual brightness.
None of this was ever Ban Ha-na's fault.
Ban Ha-na had perked right back up.
But there was something I had to do.
"Ha-na."
"Uh... mm...? Si-jun...? Why...?"
What do you mean, why.
You know perfectly well.
The instant the incident was over, I switched into scolding mode.
"What were you thinking, going to the Black Dawn hideout just to get a ring? Are you out of your mind?"
"B...but...! Si-jun doesn't have money...! Or a ring, so...!"
"So you went back to a place that dangerous? You realize if you'd been caught, we might never have seen each other again?"
"W...well I didn't get caught, so it's fine...! Si-jun is so mean...! Si-jun is a villain...!"
Ban Ha-na was thoroughly sulking.
Her stubbornness was unusually strong today.
All this over a ring...
I couldn't understand it.
Still, maybe Ban Ha-na realized her mistake was a big one.
She apologized to me first.
"But Si-jun, I'm sorry... I didn't think I'd get caught..."
Ban Ha-na bowed her head and offered an apology.
Ha-na really was a good kid.
I patted her head and accepted the apology.
"You won't do it again, right?"
"Mm-hmm..."
The outcome was fine, after all.
Ban Ha-na usually understood after being told once, so she probably wouldn't consider going back to the hideout alone again.
Once the apology was over, Ban Ha-na held out her hand toward me.
Swish.
"...What's this, Ha-na?"
"Si-jun. The ring!"
"Ah, right."
She did say she brought a ring.
I looked at the ring in Ban Ha-na's hand.
"This is..."
"I brought it because it's pretty! Hehe...!"
A pink ring that matched Ban Ha-na.
Was she telling me to put this on?
Kind of embarrassing.
But this ring Ban Ha-na brought.
I knew what it did.
'Spring Lover.'
The ring's name was Spring Lover.
When two people with a certain level of affection wear these rings, each can use the other's ability once a day.
Of all the rings she could have brought, she brought this one.
"Si-jun. Why are you smiling?"
"No reason. Forget it."
I guess I couldn't hide the grin slipping out.
Spring Lover was classified as a Tier 1 accessory, after all.
"Ha-na. Should we put the rings on, then...?"
"Yeah! Si-jun, I like this...! Hehe..."
Ban Ha-na immediately slipped the ring onto her left ring finger.
Then she stared at it, looking satisfied.
"Hehe... a couple ring... does this mean I'm marrying Si-jun now...?"
"..."
She seemed to be mumbling something,
but I ignored it and put the ring on my finger.
"Wait. Si-jun."
"Hm?"
"Not that finger. Si-jun."
My left ring finger was already occupied by Yu Ha-yeon's ring.
I had no choice but to put the ring on my right ring finger.
But Ban Ha-na didn't seem satisfied with that.
She used a dead serious tone.
"The left hand, Si-jun."
"But my left hand already has a ring...?"
"No. You have to put it on your left hand, Si-jun."
...Resolute.
No matter what I said, Ban Ha-na didn't look like she would budge from her "Left hand, Si-jun" stance.
"Haah..."
In the end, I had no choice but to put two rings on my left ring finger.
"It suits you, Si-jun! Rings belong on the left ring finger, no exceptions!"
Ban Ha-na looked incredibly happy.
She seemed like she might fly off somewhere at any second.
"Hehe... a ring, a ring..."
Ban Ha-na lay on the bed and gazed at the ring on her finger.
Was it really that great?
I couldn't understand it 100%, but if Ban Ha-na was happy, that was a relief.
Bzzzzt...!
"Si-jun, your phone is ringing!"
A vibration sound cut in.
My cell phone was buzzing with an incoming call.
Who was it?
I answered right away.
"Hello?"
-Han Si-jun. Nothing happened, right?
"What, Yu Ha-yeon?"
Why was she calling?
She asked me urgently.
-Nothing happened, right? You're not in the middle of something dangerous, are you?
"...I'm in my dorm. What are you talking about."
Han Yu-wol did just drop by, but still.
Was this a woman's intuition or something?
Yu Ha-yeon was checking up on me as if she had radar.
She asked again to make sure.
-...So nothing happened at all?
"...Yeah. Nothing happened."
-...
A brief silence fell.
After about ten seconds, Yu Ha-yeon's voice came through.
-Well, good then. I'm hanging up.
"Huh? Why did you ca..."
Click...
And Yu Ha-yeon's call ended like that.
Why did she call in the first place?
More importantly, how did she know something had happened to me?
Suspicion began creeping up on me.
'...It was just intuition, I'm sure.'
No way she called because she knew.
That was way too unrealistic.
I chalked it up to coincidence and moved on.
The whole thing left a bit of a bitter aftertaste.