Chapter 79
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 79
Chapter Title: Shopping and Stolen Glances
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I was at a big-box supermarket with Min-ji.
After telling her that I'd cleared the major hurdle of earning Bella's trust and now just needed to slap on a wolf tattoo sticker, she dragged me here for some reason.
I'd been wanting to see Min-ji after so long, so I didn't mind at all.
We grabbed a cart first and headed straight to the snack aisle.
"Hurry up and load 'em in."
"...Snacks?"
"Obviously."
She shot me a glare, like what kind of nonsense was I spouting in front of the snack aisle.
Overpowered by that look, I tossed in a few of my favorites for now.
"Mt. Taste and Ace? You're such an old man."
Min-ji smirked as she eyed what I'd picked.
I knew my snack tastes were a bit quirky, so I gave an awkward laugh.
Maybe I should grab something else—I reached for the cart, but Min-ji smacked the back of my hand.
Then she gently rubbed it and said,
"Leave it, you idiot. Let's go grab some booze."
Next up was the liquor aisle.
Min-ji picked these herself.
She loaded up on pricey-looking whiskey and cola that screamed high-end at a glance.
I'm not much of a drinker myself, so I just watched.
"You stick to drinks."
She glanced back at me and led me to the beverage section.
I figured it was her way of looking out for me since I don't drink much.
But it did make me wonder.
Had I ever told Min-ji that I wasn't big on alcohol?
"Why do I have to drink soda?"
"...Heard guys don't stay hard when they're drunk?"
"Huh?"
Her serious face and that unexpected consideration had me bursting out laughing.
Who knew she'd be thinking that far ahead.
"We doing it tonight?"
I whispered right into her ear on purpose.
Her face flushed red as she shoved mine away.
"...Shut up, you perv... Maybe we will..."
As she said that, I slipped a few sports drinks into the cart.
Nothing beat them after sweating buckets.
And there might be plenty of sweating tonight. Better safe than sorry.
After that, we headed to the cosmetics section.
Not just makeup—shampoos, conditioners, and hair dyes were all clustered there too.
Min-ji grabbed two things in quick succession.
They were labeled hair removal cream.
"...Hair removal?"
"Gotta stick tattoos on you and me. Needs to be smooth and natural."
"Oh... You too?"
I needed it for the wolf tattoo, but Min-ji—
"Forgot already?"
She pointed to her abdomen with a finger.
The empty space between her navel and lower down.
That's when I remembered the uterus tattoo sticker we'd promised.
"You were so hyped back then?"
Min-ji laughed, mimicking my face from that time.
It wasn't even close.
Our faces were too different to pull off the same expression.
No matter how hard she scrunched, she couldn't look like me.
As she explained, that's why we'd met up today.
We both needed tattoo stickers anyway, and doing it together seemed fun.
Watching her point at her belly like that made my head heat up unbidden.
And we picked up condoms too.
With the usual excuse that we might need them.
We grabbed a few other necessities, then hopped in a taxi to a hotel.
But not our usual spot—I suggested somewhere new this time.
Min-ji looked puzzled at first but trusted me and went along with it.
"This place..."
"Know it?"
"Yeah."
The spot I'd rerouted us to was the hotel where Bella was staying.
Setting aside my connection with Bella, the place itself was luxurious and spotless—perfect for future dates with Min-ji.
I just hadn't expected it'd happen this soon.
One of the most famous hotels in the country, so Min-ji knew it too.
She nodded approvingly.
"Nice. Spacious."
In the lobby, she craned her neck, taking in the decorations slowly.
A hotel staffer approached, took our bags, and headed to the elevator, saying they'd deliver them to our reserved room.
Thanks to that, we could leisurely stroll the lobby unburdened.
Good call reserving on my phone on the way.
The hotel was bustling with people.
Thinking she'd been waiting somewhere in that crowd made my chest tighten.
Suddenly, Min-ji turned to me.
"So, who'd you come here with?"
"Huh?"
"Who was it?"
"...No, it's not like that."
I waved my hands in a panic.
No clue where the misunderstanding came from, but not this time.
"Always so damn transparent, you perv..."
A bit unfair, but hard to argue.
I was planning to target Bella on the top floor soon enough.
Min-ji sighed, grabbed my collar, and pulled.
"Focus only on me tonight."
Her words brooked no compromise—I nodded like I was entranced.
She seemed pleased with my dopey face, grinning as she let go.
And with that, we headed to our room.
It was shaping up to be a long night.
The hotel's top floor.
In the space also called the penthouse, she lounged on the sofa for the first time in ages, feeling truly at ease.
Truth be told, she spent most of her time there, but anxiety always gnawed at a corner of her mind, robbing her of any real comfort.
The biggest source was Alex—practically family—getting nabbed by the cops.
At first, she'd been ready to storm the precinct in a rage to bust him out, but Brody, another Wolf exec and S-Rank villain, held her back.
A-Rank Alex going down without a fight felt off.
'Could be a spy. Or a hero sharper than we think.'
When she scoffed that an S-Rank like her wouldn't get caught, Brody insisted caution never hurt and reined her in again.
"Brody's too damn rigid."
Unlike his bearish bulk, he always played it safe.
It was his strength, but as a fellow org member, it could suffocate sometimes.
"On the other hand..."
She thought of the man who'd solved her problem.
He had Brody's build and power too.
"Seonghan."
She murmured his name slowly.
Not easy to pronounce, but it was starting to stick to her tongue.
One of a kind.
Speaking English and Russian like a native, talking back to her, even looking down at her sometimes—things no one else dared.
Not like the average thugs.
Not like the usual villains she'd seen.
Taking out fourteen B-Rank villains solo?
Rescuing Alex from police HQ like it was nothing?
And snapping handcuffs with just his fingers right in front of her?
A sight she'd never witnessed before.
'At least A-Rank. Maybe on my level.'
She shook her head after mulling it over.
Post-rescue, her worries had eased—but Seonghan had slipped right into that void.
How strong was he really? Where to put the wolf tattoo? What was his past?
Curiosity kept bubbling up.
"Sigh. Time for food."
One thing she loved about this country was the meals.
Tasty, no annoying tipping culture, and people mostly left you alone.
Usually room service, but tonight she craved going out.
That was why.
She spotted Seonghan in the lobby with a woman by his side.
"Hng."
No reason, but she ducked behind a pillar.
Even she couldn't fathom it.
'Why'd I hide?'
Nothing warranted it.
Yet her body moved first.
She peeked at them from hiding.
"...Lovers?"
A cat-like beauty.
The most stunning East Asian woman she'd seen.
One flaw: foul mouth.
Her Korean wasn't fluent, but curses? Crystal clear.
Yet Seonghan always beamed hearing them.
Masochist for sharp tongues, maybe.
They wandered the lobby chatting, then took an elevator somewhere.
Entranced, she followed into another elevator, getting off on the same floor.
Half a dozen times en route, she nearly bailed—but tailed him anyway.
Even saw which room they entered.
She crept toward it slowly.
"Haah, fuck, am I insane?"
Disgust at herself for even thinking of pressing her ear to the door.
She sighed and turned away.
And—
"Ahhng..."
A frail woman's moan leaked from the door.
Hard to believe it was that potty-mouthed girl—so delicate, feminine.
Dazed, she approached and focused on the sounds.
"You horny bastard... Right off the bat..."
"Acting like you don't love it."
"...Asshole..."
"..."
Sounds she'd never heard before.
Still cursing, but the tone, the sultry breaths—it was pure coquetry, a woman basking in affection.
She cursed a lot herself, so oddly, she overlapped with the woman.
As the act dragged on, the woman's demeanor softened; Seonghan grew more commanding.
Listening, she couldn't help but press her ear to the door.
Humiliating to her pride, but now wasn't the time for that.
She held her breath, bit her lip, and zeroed in on the noises inside.