Chapter 7
Chapter 7
Episode 7 I Experienced a Weekend Event in the Yuri Game.
It was just past 3 PM when I finished my part-time job and headed home.
Walking across asphalt dyed by the languid afternoon sunlight, a cool breeze brushed past my face. Since I had just gotten off work, my body was still burning with heat, but the refreshing wind gradually cooled it down.
Right now, the one occupying my thoughts was In Yuna, whom I had met yesterday in the hallway bathed in twilight.
The mysterious transfer student and capture target from the yuri game. The hidden heroine.
For some reason, she had shown me inexplicable affection, and the way she acted like she was jealous before leaving yesterday—along with her flushed face—kept replaying in my head, making the corners of my mouth rise on their own.
‘She was seriously cute.’
The impact of that final moment still lingered inside me without fading.
Even knowing it probably wasn’t healthy to dwell on it, the side of In Yuna I saw then had simply been too shocking.
Sometimes, looking at someone as breathtakingly beautiful as her made it hard to even think of her as human. Even in class, the reason people were interested in her but didn’t try approaching her too aggressively was probably because they unconsciously sensed that atmosphere around her.
If I had to describe someone as noble and untouchable before, I would’ve thought of the student council president.
But after In Yuna appeared, that image gained another meaning.
Calling her a cold goddess of winter might sound cliché, but perhaps I truly saw In Yuna as a cold yet noble flower blooming in a snowy field.
And yet that very girl had openly shown emotion like that.
She had even shown adorable jealousy.
How could I possibly forget something that precious!?
‘So this is what people mean by gap moe.’
Scary stuff, seriously.
I used to think it was just a common cliché.
But clichés don’t become clichés for no reason. The fact they keep being used means they work.
‘Maybe I should stop by the park for a bit.’
Normally I would’ve gone straight home, but somehow today I felt like taking a different route.
It was like my feet were naturally being drawn toward the park, accompanied by an inexplicable feeling that something good would happen if I went there now.
So even if it meant walking a little farther, I headed toward the park.
Thunk.
I pulled the canned coffee that dropped from the vending machine, popped it open with a click, and brought it to my lips.
As the cool iced coffee slid down my throat and refreshed me, the lingering heat in my body cooled pleasantly enough to make me feel like my body itself was cheering.
“Kyaah! Cold coffee after work really is the best.”
Chocolate milk or soda would’ve been nice too, but today I was in the mood for coffee.
At the park, where the sounds of children playing filled the air, I wanted to simply soak in the peaceful atmosphere of a quiet weekend.
Maybe it wouldn’t be bad to just sit somewhere and let the breeze wash over me while releasing all tension.
“It’s peaceful. Nice.”
Children sliding down playground slides.
Kids trying to make games like tag and Red Light Green Light feel as thrilling as possible.
Parents chatting happily nearby.
The entire scene entered my eyes like a painting.
That ordinary everyday scenery felt strangely elegant today.
Ever since In Yuna transferred in and I learned this world was actually the setting of a yuri game, maybe I had been more anxious than I realized.
I’d acted normal and carried on as usual, but the sudden intrusion of an external factor and the truth about the world into what I thought was ordinary reality had probably slowly made me restless without me noticing.
But now, watching this everyday scenery, that hidden impatience melted away like snow, flowing out of me like water.
‘This is nice.’
Whether the world was a yuri game or not really had nothing to do with me.
I wasn’t the protagonist, after all.
‘Come to think of it, is there even a protagonist?’
In a yuri game, there should naturally be a female protagonist romancing the heroines.
Which meant the protagonist definitely existed somewhere.
‘Who could it be?’
Well, it wasn’t like I cared much anyway, so whatever.
Honestly, I’d probably already gotten involved enough that I couldn’t completely ignore everything anymore, but I still had no intention of interfering with the events of the yuri game.
“In Yuna?”
Sitting alone on a bench in the park with a figure worthy of worship, bathed in sunlight filtering through the leaves, was none other than In Yuna herself—the same person who had been making me smile to myself all afternoon.
Long black hair flowing smoothly down her back.
A side profile as cold as ice.
And casual clothes completely different from her school uniform, yet perfectly suited to her atmosphere.
She wore a simple white dress with a pink cardigan, but on her it looked like something a professional model would wear.
My eyes widened automatically.
No, could coincidences really happen this perfectly?
Yesterday we happened to meet at the resting area and eat lunch together, and now we ran into each other again like this.
‘Does this kind of probability even exist?’
When coincidences repeat this often, even I start getting suspicious.
Was this some kind of narrative force trying to drag me into the story?
Then what, was I actually a character in the yuri game too?
Busy thinking such ridiculous thoughts, I completely failed to consider the option of leaving.
And then In Yuna turned her head and spotted me.
The moment she did, tension entered my shoulders.
“Ah.”
Outwardly, there was almost no visible change.
But the subtle tremor in her transparent eyes.
The tiny shake in her pupils as if she couldn’t quite believe what she was seeing.
A strange tension crept along my skin.
After the way we parted yesterday, I’d wondered how I should act if we met again, but now that the person herself stood before me, my mind went blank.
Probably the same was true for her too.
“Hey, In Yuna. Fancy seeing you here.”
What I chose was a direct approach.
Rather than running away or pretending not to notice, I decided to face her properly.
To begin with, I hadn’t done anything wrong, nor had In Yuna done anything she needed to feel guilty about.
Avoiding each other would only make things more awkward without solving anything.
Perhaps she sensed my determination to face things directly because—
“Yeah. Hello.”
“What’s that book?”
I pointed at the physical book in her hands and asked about it.
In Yuna quietly showed me the cover.
“『Chef Kim’s Fun Cooking Lessons』. ……I like cooking.”
Considering the rolled omelet from her lunchbox before, I wondered if cooking was her hobby.
The answer came immediately.
“Someday I want to make something even Mom approves of.”
Her face remained as expressionless and cold as an icy lake.
Still, the warmth hidden in her voice came through clearly.
“You’re serious about it.”
“Yeah.”
“Planning to become a chef someday?”
“No.”
Since she seemed so passionate about cooking, I thought maybe she wanted a career related to it, but apparently not.
Still, there was a firm resolve in In Yuna’s eyes.
Something dark and impossible to fully understand seemed to flicker faintly beneath them.
“If you can cook, it becomes useful in many ways.”
“Ah, I see.”
I barely swallowed the question “Useful for what exactly?” before it escaped my mouth.
A primal sense of danger crawled up my spine, warning me not to step any deeper into this topic.
“Well, whatever it is, I’m cheering for you. Good luck.”
“Thank you.”
The way In Yuna gazed steadily at me sent an inexplicable chill down my spine.
I couldn’t understand why I felt that way, but some instinct inside me kept ringing alarms telling me not to keep digging into this topic.
“But using an actual paper book instead of an e-book, huh. Do you prefer physical books?”
These days smartphones and digital media had advanced so much that most people preferred e-books since they were portable and instantly accessible anywhere.
“There’s a unique pleasure to reading words printed on paper.”
“I see. Do you have other books too?”
“Yeah. I have a lot at home.”
A lot at home, huh.
Did she have a huge bookshelf in her room or something?
In Yuna and reading really did suit each other perfectly, making me nod unconsciously.
Standing around forever felt awkward, so I sat down on the bench beside her and looked up at the sunlight shining through the trees.
The glowing leaves swayed like jewels filled with light.
As I watched them, In Yuna spoke first.
“Geum Taeyang. Did you come here for a walk?”
“No, I’m on my way home from work.”
“Work. You have a part-time job?”
“Our school allows part-time jobs as long as they’re not anything shady. Though it’s basically a privilege only students with good grades get.”
It had honestly been hard just meeting the requirements to qualify for a job in the first place.
When I explained that, In Yuna tilted her head slightly.
“Honor student?”
“Why do you sound so doubtful looking at me?”
Did I really look that much like a delinquent?
Sure, I was used to people misunderstanding me because of my blond hair, but somehow hearing that even In Yuna had that impression hit me surprisingly hard.
“I’m joking.”
“…….”
“Really. I can tell Geum Taeyang is diligent and a good person. So it was a joke.”
“…Ah, thanks.”
Whether it was because she evaluated me more positively than expected, or because she mentioned joking with that same cold expressionless face, I realized I was much more shaken than I thought.
I often got misunderstood.
Because of the terrible rumors I recently learned about, my blond hair, and my unusually large physique, people frequently found me intimidating from the very first impression even when I didn’t mean to be.
Of course, among them were people who looked beyond appearances and genuinely tried to understand me, or who approached first and got to know me through conversation.
“Honestly, hearing that is kind of embarrassing.”
“?”
“You really have no self-awareness.”
Natural airheads really were the strongest.
She gave off an atmosphere difficult for others to approach, yet casually sniped exactly the words people wanted to hear without realizing it.
And because she did it unconsciously, there was no ulterior motive at all, making the other person helplessly swept along.
“It’s okay. Are you sick somewhere?”
“Don’t worry. There’s absolutely nothing wrong.”
“?”
From this moment onward, In Yuna was no longer a noble flower blooming in a snowy field inside my head.
She was an unconscious heartbreaker who toyed with people’s hearts naturally.
“Haha.”
“Why are you laughing?”
A laugh suddenly escaped me.
When she asked why, honestly, I didn’t know either.
“No, it’s just… talking with you feels strangely comfortable. Isn’t that weird? We’ve only known each other for three days now. But somehow, talking with you… doesn’t feel bad.”
I’d barely spent any time with In Yuna, and our conversations had only been brief.
Yet somehow, her existence had already begun soaking into me like gentle rain.
Being around her felt calming, like standing in a soft breeze, and even her seemingly cold and inorganic face carried a hidden warmth beneath it.
“…….”
“Why the sudden look? Are you sick?”
“……Perverted womanizer.”
“Huh?”
I just got insulted out of nowhere! Why!?