Chapter 105: Ah, How Can I Resist Cheon Yu-hak’s Birthday Party! (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 105: Ah, How Can I Resist Cheon Yu-hak’s Birthday Party! (6)
A park late at night.
Two friends facing off over a girl.
…Wait, is this actually a romance fantasy novel?
For a moment, a wave of self-loathing hit me as I wondered what the hell I was even doing.
But looking at this guy’s track record in the original story, he wasn’t the type to listen if I used ordinary methods.
Lilac was so excessively good-aligned that he was a total idiot who overcomplicated everything. Without this kind of shock therapy, he probably wouldn’t even react.
“…Did Yu-na tell you?”
“Think whatever you want.”
“No, she didn’t, right? Well, I guess it’s not that surprising. You’ve always known all sorts of things that others don’t.”
Damn it, why is he so sharp about things like this?
“To be honest, I was a bit flustered too. Until recently, I had no idea Yu-na felt that way about me.”
“Oh, really? I’m pretty sure everyone in the world except you knew.”
“…Is that so? Still, I had my reasons. Yu-na didn’t really like me when we were kids.”
“I know, you moron. And she didn’t just ‘not really like’ you; she probably hated your guts.”
“So-hyun, you’re being way too harsh…”
Lilac gave a bitter smile and sat down on a bench.
“Actually, you’re right. Yu-na has been so good to me that I don’t even know why I only just noticed.”
“And?”
“I’m about to say something pretty ridiculous. Are you going to get mad if you hear it?”
“No, I’m just going to beat the shit out of you.”
“That’s a relief, thanks. Honestly, even now, I’m not sure if Yu-na truly likes me.”
“Mm, I’m glad I already committed to hitting you. Go on, keep talking. I need to hear the whole thing to decide how hard I’m going to swing.”
“Some things happened when we were young. Yu-na used to find me annoying, but we became close after I saved her.”
The catalyst for Lilac awakening his talent was an incident where he saved Yu-na from a kidnapping attempt by a mysterious man, nearly getting into an accident himself in the process.
A power meant to protect someone. I suppose you could call it his first step as a Hero.
“I see. So what’s the problem?”
“If Yu-na mistook the emotions she felt that day for love and has held onto them until now, then that’s not right. That’s not love; it’s admiration mixed with a sense of debt.”
I wasn’t so sure about that.
Maybe it wasn’t ‘healthy’ in a strictly clinical sense.
Depending on how you looked at it, it could seem like a child’s crush—the kind where a kid says they want to marry their dad—carried into adulthood.
If you assumed Lee Yu-na hadn’t grown at all since childhood, then sure, it wouldn’t be healthy.
However, I couldn’t possibly agree that it was ‘not right.’
“Because of me, because she’s so focused on me, Yu-na hasn’t been able to make many other friends. It’s gotten a bit better lately, but honestly, her personality is… a bit peculiar toward everyone except me.”
“That’s a very long way of saying she’s a total brat.”
“I didn’t think she was that bad…?”
Hey, if you say that, what does that make me? Yu-na is listening to all of this right now…
“Anyway, that’s not a healthy relationship. I wanted to help Yu-na as a friend, but for her to keep dragging along feelings that are closer to a sense of debt…”
“Let’s stop there. I get the gist of what you’re trying to say, so I don’t need to hear any more.”
I understood exactly what he was trying to say.
Yeah, I understood, but…
Everything coming out of his mouth right now was just an excuse—secondary reasons he’d cooked up while running all the way here.
Or rather, even if he truly believed that until now, things had changed the moment he got flustered by my text.
I mean, think about it.
“Then why did you even come here?”
He could have just ignored it. Fine, let’s say he came because of their bond or because he didn’t trust me and was worried something might happen.
Then, when he first arrived, he should have assessed the situation instead of immediately looking for Yu-na.
“…That’s.”
He couldn’t answer. Isn’t it a bit late to make those kinds of excuses when you arrived here panting for breath?
This was a matter of emotion, so logic didn’t really matter.
Whether you like Yu-na as a friend or as a woman, you ran here because you were worried she might go to the party with me—because you were afraid she’d drift away before you could reach a conclusion yourself.
So why the hell are you making such pathetic excuses? Even going so far as to pick apart and deny someone else’s feelings.
“I didn’t think you were like this, Lilac, but you’re more of a coward than I thought.”
I knew. The version of him I remembered last was the twenty-six-year-old him, completely worn down by the world.
At this point, where he hadn’t yet become an adult, it was probably greedy of me to expect the same man who had overcome countless hardships.
But still, this wasn’t right.
“…A coward?”
“Yeah, you’re being incredibly petty right now. Why are you denying her feelings and calling them a misunderstanding just because you feel like it?”
“…It’s not healthy.”
“That’s just how it is, man. Do you think everyone else only has perfectly ‘wholesome’ love? And what’s wrong with liking the boy who saved you when you were kids? That’s exactly what love is.”
“Admiration and love are different.”
“Just because the cause was admiration doesn’t mean you should deny the feelings she’s held onto until now, does it? People’s feelings can change over time.”
I understood. He might have been caught off guard. But reaching that kind of conclusion was just wrong.
“Be honest with yourself. You don’t have some complex reason. You’re just not ready yet, are you?”
“Yu-na and I have always been childhood friends. I thought we could just stay close friends forever…”
“…So what?”
“But for the relationship to suddenly change like this…”
…Suddenly?
The moment I heard those words, my temper flared.
What do you mean ‘suddenly’? Do you have any idea what she goes through because of you?
Wait, what? Why am I so angry? Honestly, this isn’t something to get this worked up over…?
— Die. Please just die. It’s because of you. It’s all because of you…! Because of you, Lilac…!
A sudden headache throbbed in my temples.
…What? Was that Yu-na just now?
It was another memory from beyond that damn noise.
What the hell is this, seriously? If you’re going to show me, show me everything. Don’t just tease me.
Regardless, now wasn’t the time to lose my cool. I couldn’t let myself get swallowed by the emotions in that memory.
As I forced the memory down, the turbulent emotions gradually subsided.
“It’s only ‘sudden’ for you.”
“So-hyun. Honestly, you’re crossing the line. This is our business. We could have handled it ourselves. Even if you hadn’t interfered, eventually…”
“Eventually, Yu-na would have just kept sacrificing herself unilaterally.”
Even if I told him it would lead to a bad outcome, Lilac wouldn’t accept it.
Honestly, if I suddenly told him, “If you guys keep going like this, you’re doomed!” what would he even think?
To make him understand, I needed to approach it from a different angle—touching upon the parts he hadn’t noticed yet.
“…What?”
“You want to play dumb and keep being friends, waiting until you’re ready and your feelings are sorted. Then what about Yu-na? What happens to her feelings while she’s being ignored during your ‘preparation’? If you’re going to act like that, you might as well just reject her outright.”
Wait, is this somehow backfiring on me? Now that I think about it, I’m not exactly in a position to talk, am I?
Actually, I don’t even need to think about it.
At least this guy only has Yu-na to deal with. I’ve got it way worse.
I expected him to get defensive, but the moment he heard the words ‘Yu-na’s feelings,’ his spirit seemed to break. He spoke in a voice that sounded like he was on the verge of tears.
“…Is Yu-na having a really hard time?”
“Do you even have to ask, you jerk? How would you feel if you were in her shoes?”
“…I don’t know. We’ve always just been friends. I don’t know what to do when people talk about things like romance.”
This was getting annoying.
We were just running in circles.
In my eyes, he already liked Yu-na; he just didn’t realize it himself. His mental image, which was still closer to a child’s than an adult’s, simply couldn’t distinguish whether it was affection or friendship.
This was something evident in the regrets Lilac felt in the original story, and it was the conclusion I’d reached after dealing with these kids personally.
— I must be an idiot, Yu-na. I thought I liked Seol-i Noona, but I guess I didn’t. It’s not like anything will change now. I always lose things and then regret it. Cheon Yu-hak was right… I really am a hopeless idiot.
Recalling his appearance in the original story left a bitter taste in my mouth.
I wanted to solve this through conversation if possible.
But this was so frustrating that I figured being more direct would be better.
“Let’s stop, Lilac.”
“Huh?”
Honestly, you have a point. A lot has changed already, so maybe a different result from what I know will happen.
Maybe you two could grow slowly and move forward together.
But at the very least, in my opinion, it feels like that kind of future just isn’t going to come.
So what if I’m being a meddler?
Isn’t it better for me to interfere than to risk a future where Yu-na falls and becomes a Villain, and you end up killing her with your own hands and crying about it?
“I told you earlier, didn’t I? I’m going to beat the absolute shit out of you.”
Now, the problem was how much I could actually do against him, and making sure Yu-na didn’t misunderstand the situation.
The light of Reinforcement enveloped my entire body.
Well, I’d already explained things to her beforehand, so it should be fine.
“Let’s keep it simple. From now on, I’m going to beat you up and then ask Yu-na to be my partner. If you’re okay with that, just stay down after I hit you. If you don’t like it, resist and be her partner yourself, got it?”
“Hey! You can’t just—!?”
I lunged forward, closing the distance between us with surprising ease.
I tried to sweep his legs to trip him, but he dodged it effortlessly.
“I’m not the same guy who used to pant for breath just running around the field like when we first met, you know?”
Lilac stared at me with a dazed expression for a moment before his eyes began to narrow with irritation.
“…You always do this.”
“Do what, you jerk?”
“To put it nicely, you’re full of conviction. To put it bluntly, you’re self-righteous. You act like someone who’s seen the future.”
Oh, the kid is sharp.
“Yeah, I took a little peek at the future. I’m doing this because the way you and Yu-na are acting is a total mess.”
“Are you jok—! Ugh?!”
“Why would I punch a friend if I were joking, you asshole?”
Since it was a surprise attack, it seemed to have some effect. Lilac raised his guard in a panic.
But hey, aren’t your arms part of your body too? Do you think it won’t hurt just because you blocked it?
“Hey! Are you really doing this!?”
“Yeah. Lilac, keep your mouth shut. You’re going to bite your tongue.”
Finally deciding to take this seriously, he drew his practice sword.
Well, at least he didn’t pull out a real blade.
“You drew your sword? Does that mean you’re admitting you like Yu-na?”
“Shut up.”
“Yeah, it must be hard to admit your own feelings. But you have to understand me too.”
“…Understand what?”
It seemed he was quite angry about me getting the first hit in. Lilac, friends grow by fighting like this.
“Do you have any idea how frustrated I’ve been watching you two?”
So, just take the hit.
“…What about you?”
“Huh…?”
“You haven’t even decided between Ga-eul and the Professor, so why are you being such a hypocrite?”
…This kid’s got claws.
He poked right where it hurt.
“I’m going to reach a conclusion soon too, you bastard.”
But just because I’m at fault doesn’t mean you don’t deserve a beating.
“So for now, just shut up and take it…!”
* * *
I lost.
The moment he landed a clean hit, it hurt so much that I just collapsed.
I guess this is what happens when I try to have a physical brawl with Lilac relying only on Reinforcement, without Ruyi or any Artifacts.
To make matters worse, I was barehanded while that jerk had a sword. What a thug.
Still, it wasn’t a total loss.
“…Wow, So-hyun. Since when did your punches get so ‘spicy’?”
“Anyone listening would think you were the one who lost.”
I managed to land two hits on Lilac’s handsome face, so that was enough. I felt refreshed.
Come to think of it, I only got hit once, and he got hit about ten times. Doesn’t that mean I won?
Well, whatever.
“Hey, honestly, you know it too, right?”
“…Know what.”
“The fact that you ran all the way here after getting my text means you already reached a conclusion.”
“…Do I really like Yu-na?”
“You ran here because you were at least jealous enough to care, didn’t you?”
“And Yu-na likes me?”
…Honestly, I didn’t plan on blabbing about this, and Yu-na, who’s probably listening right now, might be plotting my murder.
But everything’s already out in the open anyway. Give me a break.
“You know that better than anyone, so why are you asking me, you idiot? You didn’t actually believe that ‘admiration’ crap either.”
Now that I think about it, collapsing in a park after fighting with a friend feels more like an academy youth drama than a romance fantasy.
“I see.”
Lilac lowered his head, seemingly having reached some sort of understanding on his own.
“Thanks, So-hyun. I feel like the weight on my chest has finally lifted.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Tomorrow, I’ll talk to Yu-na honestly and apologize.”
…Wait? You’re not saying you’re going to reject her, right? That’s not what you meant by feeling refreshed, is it?
“And I’m going to ask her if she’ll be my partner.”
He’s not a complete moron after all. Thank god.
…Wait, is it really a ‘thank god’? Yu-na’s probably going to give me hell for spoiling the surprise.
Anyway, even if a final conclusion hadn’t been reached, it seemed his heart was settled.
I thought the incident was finally over.
But at that moment…
“Oh my, look at this.”
A voice suddenly rang out.
Women with wings resembling bats were looking down at us from the sky.
“How fresh and lovely. Let’s take these boys too.”
“…Haven’t we already exceeded our quota?”
“The more high-quality ones, the better, right?”
“True. Their emotions are certainly intense.”
The moment their eyes glowed with a sinister light…
The demonic energy within my robe began to react to the Touch of the Devil.
…But since these characters weren’t in the original story, I had no idea who they were.