Chapter 257: Sexual Frustration. (End?)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 257: Sexual Frustration. (End?)
Sitting on a familiar park bench and staring blankly at the sky, a sense of skepticism began to wash over me.
“Is it really okay for me to live like this…?”
I feel like I had the exact same thought yesterday. It’s truly a mystery.
No, So-hyun. You idiot. How could you make the Professor faint again the moment you decided to exercise some self-restraint?
I woke up this morning and ate the omurice the Professor made for me. With a look of grim determination, she spread her arms and said it was okay if I wanted to do more, but I barely managed to hold back and escape.
She was trembling all over like a newborn lamb, completely drained of energy—how could I possibly ask for more?
Today is already the last day of summer vacation.
In a sense, I’m burning through the end of a spectacular summer that no one else could have enjoyed more thoroughly.
But I can’t help but wonder if I’m living too debauched a life, or if this is truly the only way I have to relieve stress.
As I was staring vacantly at the sky, a neat, handsome face suddenly appeared before my eyes.
“Whoa!”
“…What are you doing?”
“Ah, was that not funny? The setting is: a Senior playing a prank on her Junior, who looks like he’s already finished with life, while she’s on her way back from a mission.”
It was Baek Seol.
She was smiling playfully, but honestly, it was hard to respond because I wondered if even that expression was manufactured.
“Ah, Junior. I was wondering where Seol was going all of a sudden, but it turns out she was looking for you.”
And surprisingly, my Master approached as well.
“Hmm, our cute Junior was sighing with a face full of worries.”
“Oh, that’s a problem. Junior, if it’s a worry you can share, would you like to tell us? Well, even if I’m your Senior, we’re only a year apart.”
“…I-I appreciate the offer, but why are both of you sitting so close to me?”
“Because it would be troublesome if a fun-looking toy ran away?”
“As a Taoist, I cannot simply ignore a Junior who is troubled.”
The psychopath, approaching with a remarkably honest and bold attitude, and my Master, whose smile was wide but whose thoughts were hard to read, both subtly closed the distance.
…In the past, I would have been flustered, but now I think I know what these two are thinking.
They’re both bored.
“Did you two go on a mission together?”
“Hmm, it seems you want to naturally change the subject. I’ll let it slide, though. It’s a bit different. I went because I received an official request, but Ha-ru didn’t.”
“For me, it was just like volunteer work. I don’t really care about rewards or point rankings.”
“If you put it like that, it makes it sound like I’m obsessed with grades. I’m just earning them because it’s better to have them than not while doing what I can rationally.”
“Still, you’ve never missed being the top of the class.”
“The Point Shop often gets good items, after all.”
…I’ve been thinking this for a bit, but are these two actually close?
I didn’t really get that impression before the regression.
“Are you two friends, by any chance?”
“No?”
“I don’t think so?”
…Wow, both of them answered without a moment’s hesitation? If even one of them had wavered, it would have caused a controversy.
“Hmm, how should I describe the relationship between Seol and me? A relationship where those around us arbitrarily viewed us as rivals?”
“It’s true that I felt a bit of interest when I was still a freshman, but in the end, I realized she was just another boring human and got tired of her.”
“Right, if I had to say, we’re just acquaintances who know each other’s faces?”
They didn’t seem to be on bad terms, but given the strange sense of distance, it was likely true that they weren’t friends.
“Now then, let’s end the boring talk here and hear about our Junior’s worries.”
“Yes. Sometimes things feel better once you tell someone else.”
Ah, they remembered that? Honestly, I thought I had successfully moved past it.
Well, to be frank, my problem wasn’t something I could tell other people—especially not two female Seniors who weren’t much older than me.
Given their personalities, I didn’t think they’d be embarrassed, but saying things like, “My libido is so high it’s a problem,” or “I keep having lewd thoughts lately so daily life is hard,” felt a bit like sexual harassment.
Just as I was about to decline as politely as possible, our crazed rationalist, Senior Baek Seol, patted my shoulder and laughed.
“Actually, you’re right. If it’s a worry that’s truly hard to talk about, you don’t have to say it.”
…Huh? She’s backing off easier than I thought. Honestly, I expected Baek Seol to threaten me with my identity as the masked villain or something.
“But a Senior has a heart for her Junior, you know? Surely it’s okay to buy a drink for a Junior who has worries he can’t speak of?”
“Hmm? Are you going to ask for Junior’s help too?”
“They say the more samples, the better.”
The two of them, who had been whispering to each other before I even agreed to go, gave me bright smiles.
“That…”
“Well, I suppose so. There’s no reason to refuse free alcohol.”
…Free alcohol?
“You said you were a Taoist; is it okay for you to drink…?”
What was Master like before the regression? I didn’t have an image of her being drunk, but she would drink occasionally if she got into the mood.
…Even though her health wasn’t good.
Back then, whenever I asked if it was okay for a Taoist to drink such things, I always got the same answer.
“The Mount Hua Sect consists of Taoists, but we do not disconnect from the secular world. Since we build our discipline within it, drinking is not particularly forbidden.”
For the record, most of the answers to my questions about whether it was okay for a Taoist to do “that” were along the same lines.
Later, because she said everything was okay, I asked what exactly was forbidden for a Taoist. She replied that impulsive murder driven by emotion, or taking life with a sword swung without purpose, was forbidden.
At the time, I was fooled by the plum blossoms she conjured to set the mood and her solemn aura, but thinking back, those weren’t just Taoist issues—those were things you just shouldn’t do in general.
“Hmm, it might not be the most exemplary attitude for a cadet, but this is related to a request.”
“A request?”
“Yes. The alcohol we’re going to drink is a kind of prototype, so it’s free.”
The story suddenly turned suspicious.
“It’s a product still under development, but have you ever heard of a Hero Drink?”
I know it. I know it all too well. How could I not know, after all the hell that broke loose because of it in the 1st Timeline?
…Wait, why is that crazy drink showing up here?
* * *
“…Right, so this is the investigation on that cadet?”
In a house located next to a kendo dojo that had a fairly decent atmosphere despite being in a quiet forest, a man was looking at documents containing information about a boy.
He was none other than Kang Ho-in, Kang Ha-ni’s father, and the documents he was looking at were about the boy who was the source of his worries.
If he were just some cheeky brat who suddenly called him “Father-in-law,” there would have been no need for a background check. Unfortunately, the aura the boy carried was far too anomalous to allow him to be close to his daughter without any verification.
Though he appeared to be just an ordinary boy, he sometimes emitted a pressure similar to a monster he had encountered only once in his life.
Yet, for some reason, whenever he looked at his daughter or the people around him, his eyes were strangely overflowing with affection and guilt.
Of course, he didn’t think he could understand a person’s essence through such a background check, but he thought it would be better to know basic information before meeting him in person again, so he had commissioned the information.
“…Investigation or not, he’s just plain famous.”
Surprisingly, the kid was quite a celebrity.
“Well, I’ve obtained information that isn’t generally available, so take a look for yourself.”
The information contained all sorts of details.
In addition to his unfortunate childhood, there was the discord within his family.
His efforts to overcome his weakened body, his fortuitous encounters, and so on.
From broad information to minor details, like how his height had grown from just over 160 cm to 170 cm.
A significant amount of personal information was written down, and the conclusion Kang Ho-in reached after reading it all was as follows:
I have no idea.
Just what kind of guy is he?
There was too much information, and it was so inconsistent that instead of seeing what kind of person he was, his head only felt more cluttered.
Things like how he was very good at singing, how he cherished his friends but had a very foul mouth, or how he gave the impression of having lived a rough life despite being a young master from a wealthy family.
Even the evaluations from those around him were strange.
Some evaluated him as a very kind and innocent child who made them worry, while others evaluated him as having a very calculating and cold-hearted nature.
“…So, what do you think?”
Unable to reach a conclusion himself, Kang Ho-in first tried to ask the person nearby for help.
Namely, his wife.
“Oh my, he’s a pretty-looking boy. There are so many pretty boys like this these days, aren’t there? He looks like a celebrity.”
“…He doesn’t have much muscle; he’s not manly enough.”
“Is investigating someone secretly like this a manly thing to do? It’s not very like you.”
“Ahem. That’s true, but I couldn’t help it.”
“I know you’re worried because it involves Ha-ni, but she’s a girl who can take care of herself.”
His wife’s words certainly made sense.
He also wanted to support her if possible.
“…If he were from a bloodline capable of a normal romance, I wouldn’t have gone this far, even if I had to concede a hundred steps.”
However, Ha-ni had been born with the most dangerous talent in a family where such a normal romance was hard to hope for.
“…Do you really think that person will appear again?”
“He will come. And he will eventually try to finish me off, since I couldn’t finish the job that day. Then, when I can no longer protect her, it’s obvious he’ll target Ha-ni as well. He hates our family and our sword more than anyone.”
That was why he had tried to distance his daughter from the family.
“It didn’t turn out as you expected.”
Indeed. Originally, he thought his daughter would never look for a husband.
Since she was a highly competitive child, he thought she would eventually try to defeat everyone else and become the best. And since he had warned her not to use the family’s swordsmanship until she returned with a husband, he had hoped she would graduate from the Academy and become an ordinary hero.
But not only did she find a man she liked, she was even willing to use the family swordsmanship for his sake.
Things had become thoroughly tangled.
“I wish that child could have been born normal.”
“Talent isn’t always a blessing.”
Thinking of the calamity that could strike at any moment gave him a headache, but surprisingly, his wife had an expression quite opposite to his.
“Even so, I like this boy. I feel like he might be able to protect our Ha-ni until the very end.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s cute and he’s the heir to the Yuseong Group.”
“…Don’t joke around.”
“I’m half-serious. Our child, who hated men so much, found someone she likes—of course I’m happy.”
“That means there’s another reason for the other half.”
“Looking at this photo, I liked his eyes.”
“His eyes?”
“The way he looks at his friends… it’s like he’s looking at a very precious treasure.”
“Is that all? You’re not going to say he looks like someone who would cause a miracle for a precious person, are you?”
“Of course not. It’s actually the opposite.”
“Hmm?”
“There’s just something. It’s not certain just by looking at a photo, so let’s decide the rest after meeting him in person.”
“…Right, in the end, I’ll have to meet him again to decide. Whether he’ll take the test or run away. Whether he’s prepared to spend his life with her.”
“Parents who ask things like that when kids are dating aren’t popular.”
“…Still, if I don’t do it, who will?”
Yes. Gauging his intentions and testing if he was worthy of Ha-ni were things that would only begin once he met the boy in person.
Since he had said he would call for him, the boy must have prepared himself to some extent.
* * *
What am I doing right now…?
“Our Junior drinks well! Come on~ Bottoms up! Bottoms up! That’s it!”
“Hmm, it seems the level of intoxication varies from person to person.”
As I heard Baek Seol recording something and my Master’s voice cheering me on, a transparent liquid was poured into the glass shimmering before my eyes.
Ah, right. I came here to check this.
…The Hero Drink.
Its official name is Project Soma.
It was created with the intent of allowing superhumans, who can control their intoxication, to feel truly drunk. Was it described as a concept closest to alcohol that acts directly on the mind or soul rather than the physical body?
…In the 1st Timeline, it was also the item that the Twelve Zodiacs took over, forcibly increased its addictiveness, and distributed as a drug for heroes.
“Wow~ Even Professor Park A-ram told all her secrets after two glasses during the early sampling, but Junior is holding out remarkably well.”
“Hmm, I don’t care about the worries, but it’s good to see you drinking so well! Now, shall we have one more glass?”
I had come with the intention of checking if it was being misused or if addictiveness had already been added.
Fortunately, at this stage, it didn’t seem to have the addictiveness of a drug.
However, there was a problem.
One that was different from what I expected.
…It’s strong.
“Mmm! It’s good that you drink so well. Would you pour one for me too, Junior?”
When I poured a drink into Master’s glass, she filled mine again.
Honestly, I want to stop drinking.
But there was a reason I couldn’t stop.
— So-hyun, let’s drink together today!
It was because I remembered how I had rejected every single one of Master’s invitations to drink in the past.
And I didn’t just reject them.
‘It smells like alcohol, so get lost.’ ‘Ah, damn it, don’t draw your sword after drinking!’ ‘Drink it all yourself.’
…I rejected her with zero manners.
The words she said to me on the day she died were still engraved in my heart, and one of them was holding me back now.
— Ah, if I had known it would be like this, I should have tried to force you to join me. Right? Then, since So-hyun is kind, you would have eventually drank with me.
I had regretted it so much, thinking I should have just drank with her since I wouldn’t even get drunk anyway—so how could I refuse the drink Master was giving me now?
Yes, in the end, it’s my karma again.
“Cheers!”
Well, it’s just alcohol; it’s not like drinking it will kill me.
“It’s not easy to get a drink poured by beauties like us~”
…Actually, it might kill me.