I Hate Both of You—!
“I hate both of you—!”
Han Ye-seo screamed at the top of her lungs.
About thirty minutes after she stormed into the convenience store, the windows outside were already packed with onlookers.
Most of them were wearing academy uniforms, which gave me a bad feeling that my academy life ahead was going to be hell.
I was screwed.
I was seriously contemplating suicide.
If I kill myself, it'll all be over. I'll lose consciousness for a bit, the other students will think I died for some inexplicable reason, but I can just regress and be done with it…
Plus, if I die more than seven times, I can claim some rewards… and if not now, I probably won't be able to collect Ja-an's death either…
I had more than enough reasons, but they clashed with my convictions.
I'd avoid dying as much as possible, only doing it when absolutely necessary to reach the best ending.
That was my mindset, my original plan, my core principle.
If that core changed, the person I am would change.
Once you start treating death lightly, the next one becomes just as trivial.
That's what regressors say, anyway.
I figured that was spot on—more than half right, at least.
It gets chipped away, mixed up, and eventually shatters.
The me from the previous past shattered, so she erased all her memories and entrusted part of them to me, allowing the unbroken current me to inherit everything.
That's why I had to eliminate every risky element.
I wouldn't die unless I absolutely had to.
Dying from sheer embarrassment in the first place is… kinda lame, though.
Yeah. I could handle weird stares from academy students.
'Huh.'
I noticed a subtle shift in Han Ye-seo.
Her eyes were glistening around the edges—she was on the verge of tears.
Han Ye-seo yelled.
“Explain yourselves!”
Explain what, exactly? I had no clue.
The gawkers outside were holding up their phones, snapping pics of us.
By tomorrow—or tonight, if they were quick—it'd be on the academy's anonymous board as some viral post.
“Maybe we should talk somewhere without all these eyes on us first.”
“Let 'em stare! Why'd you two leave me out like a total outcast and huddle in the corner like that?!”
Outcast? Wasn't that a bit of a stretch?
I just stepped aside because she was pouting and huffing. That was it.
She expected us to come soothe her, but found us in some weird pose in the corner instead, and got upset?
I got the gist…
'Oh, that time of the month, huh.'
Should I ask? Nah, inquiring if she was on her period might be kinda rude.
Ja-an asked with a straight face.
“I mistook your presence for someone else's.”
“What?”
“With the Gangbuk incident lately, and the academy…”
Ja-an glanced at the part-timer.
Han Ye-seo nodded.
“I get the gist. You were on edge because of my vibe?”
“Yeah.”
“But that doesn't explain ditching me.”
Ja-an was at a loss for words.
I rubbed my forehead.
We were already cornered. Dead end.
Ja-an finally spoke.
I silently prayed his next words would turn this around.
“I'll buy you food.”
“...?”
“That fancy dessert cafe you always wanted to go to—we always ended up at the cheap tea house instead. I'll cover it all today. Even if it's over 200,000 won.”
Was Han Ye-seo the type to fall for that…?
Her eyes flickered ever so slightly.
'She's buying it?!'
Was she nuts?
“Hmph… You think that heals the wound in my heart?”
“A week.”
“Huh?”
“For a whole week.”
“You'll take me every day for a week?”
“Yeah.”
Han Ye-seo zipped to my side, hooked her arm through mine, and marched toward the door.
The teary eyes and puffed cheeks from moments ago vanished like an act.
Han Ye-seo declared.
“Let's go. Now.”
We pushed through the stares and escaped via the front door like it was nothing.
Somehow, it was resolved.
Tomorrow was already filling me with dread.
…
We arrived at one of the priciest dessert cafes near the academy.
Chandeliers sparkling from the entrance, marble floors… I was honestly shocked a place like this existed in Seoul.
Han Ye-seo was dead set on draining Ja-an's account.
“…Three desserts and three drinks for 150,000 won?”
Ja-an alternated between the receipt and the server.
For someone who'd fought on the front lines with his life—and wielded an A-rank relic—he had shockingly modest money sense.
He could probably sell that red cape alone and buy two houses.
'A hero for the money… it was real.'
I'd never doubted it, but this reaffirmed it.
Ja-an pocketed his card and returned to the table.
“Don't most restaurants and cafes do pay-after?”
“With security getting worse, lots of places switched to prepay.”
Han Ye-seo beamed as she answered my question.
Ja-an, now beside us, chimed in.
“Runaways are one thing, but it's gotten worse lately. Sirens are going off more often, monsters popping up quicker. And after Gangbuk, even inside the city isn't safe anymore, people say.”
The impenetrable barrier—that was humanity's view of our walls.
The aftermath was bigger than I'd thought.
Perceptions had crumbled.
Safety was nowhere.
“Anyway, we're students! Just focus on upcoming assignments, right?”
Han Ye-seo boomed to lighten the mood.
Bzzz. The pager buzzed soon after.
Ja-an's steps looked especially heavy.
Gorgeous desserts arrived at the table.
Chocolate syrup brownie, a parfait stacked like a tower with whipped cream and macarons…
My drink was a caramel macchiato with triple syrup.
I speared a big chunk of brownie first.
Girly tastes? 'Can't help it.'
Body changed, so tastes change too. Common sense, right?
What was I supposed to order at a dessert cafe with a body that couldn't handle Americano?
Sweet stuff was the only option.
“Mmm…”
Sugar, chocolate. Sweet.
My brain was spinning.
Food I wouldn't have touched as a guy, but now? It was decent.
'Decent? It's freaking delicious…'
I kept a straight face.
Last shred of pride.
“So good…”
Ah. It slipped out.
The two across from me grimaced slightly.
'…Why?'
Anyway, why were we all sitting together? Why?
Han Ye-seo spoke up.
“Ivy.”
“Yeah?”
“What happened to your tongue?”
“What're you talking about?”
“That stuff looks like it'll clog your arteries just looking at it…!”
Ja-an stared intensely at Han Ye-seo's parfait, dead serious.
“Not like you can talk.”
“Eek.”
Han Ye-seo shut up.
“I partially agree, though.”
“Right?!”
“Compared to the high-concentrate blocks we eat on the front lines, Ivy's cake might be sweeter.”
I ignored them and shoved in a second piece.
What was the problem?
It was just pleasantly sweet.
Ja-an sneakily forked some of my cake.
“…Urk.” He dry-heaved the instant it hit his mouth.
I scowled. 'Ruining my appetite…!'
No matter how I thought about it, that reaction was overkill.
As we ate cake and sipped drinks, something interrupted me.
Beep. Beep. My phone vibrated in my uniform pocket.
'Suddenly?'
Saved numbers: Ja-an, Han Ye-seo, Irene Rock. That was it.
Irene Rock wouldn't call today.
The other two were right in front of me.
I checked the screen.
I flinched and dimmed the screen without Ja-an or Han Ye-seo noticing.
—
—
True motive? Beyond using me as a tool, what else could it be?
I read the next line.
—
—
'A yoke?'
One thought, one word flashed through my mind.
The clue from my status window reward about the next stage of my ability.
The power of abilities defies the world, brazenly violating physical laws and science.
But if the world was the one wielding the yoke…
No, what even was the world?
A game? Code? A story? No clue.
Han Ye-seo asked me.
“Ivy, what's wrong? Your face just soured!”
“I'm fine. It's nothing.”
Checkpoint set.
The Principal had ordered me to come immediately.
I'd regress if I died. But this message might be a trap.
Releasing the checkpoint was too risky. I didn't want to use it if I could avoid it.
Could I endure a full reset with all relationships wiped, and still keep my sanity?
I wasn't sure.
Could I rebuild bonds with a Han Ye-seo and Ja-an who treated me like a stranger, from square one?
I hid my phone under the table and gripped it so hard it might shatter. It felt like cracks were spiderwebbing through my everyday life.