Chapter 54: Day 2 (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 54: Day 2 (3)
Bustle—
The air was thick with the roar of a massive crowd.
"Hmm..."
Lee Sol stepped outside after purchasing her ticket. She let out a short hum of contemplation as she surveyed the event grounds.
"Wow... there are so many people. This must be a huge event," Shin A-young remarked, looking around in admiration.
"...I'll say."
Sol couldn't help but agree. Calling the place "crowded" would have been an understatement; the venue was a literal sea of people. What’s more, it was packed with cosplayers. There were a few people in civilian clothes, but they were the distinct minority.
Dressed in their normal everyday outfits, the two of them felt like the ones who were out of place.
"I had no idea Seung-ho had a hobby like this." Shin A-young wore a subtle smile, looking as if she were considering whether she should take an interest in it, too.
"..."
Actually, that’s not it.
It wasn't like that at all.
"He said he came to help Seung-ah with the event."
"Huh?" A-young’s pace slowed. She whipped her head around. "By Seung-ah... you mean Lee Seung-ho’s sister?"
"Yeah."
"...How do you know that?"
Well, quite simply...
"...Because I asked him."
"Is that so-oo?" A-young trailed off, drawing out the end of her sentence.
She tried to hide her reaction, but she wasn't doing a very good job of it. The light in her eyes seemed to fade slightly, her gaze losing focus as it drifted off into the distance.
"..."
Hmph.
Sol chuckled inwardly. It felt like proof that she was still one step ahead. The tension that had been tightening in her chest began to unravel.
Good. Let’s keep this up.
"They’re probably running a booth inside." Sol took the lead, her footsteps brimming with confidence.
"..."
However, just as she was about to head further in, she came to a sudden halt.
"Oh, uh..."
She froze.
Bustle— Bustle— Bustle—
There were even more people inside than outside. Rows upon rows of stalls were met with endless lines of people. Stalls and crowds. Crowds and stalls. It was a dizzying kaleidoscope of constant movement.
"...We have to look through all of this?" Sol pressed a hand to her forehead. She felt a bit lightheaded.
To be honest, she wasn't particularly fond of crowded places. High-density crowds were even worse. She hesitated to take another step.
"Then let’s do this." Shin A-young raised an index finger and twirled it in the air. "We’ll split up and look around, then call each other if we find them—"
"No." Sol grabbed A-young’s wrist just as she was about to head off. She tightened her grip slightly. "Let’s look together."
She couldn't leave Shin A-young to wander around alone. Who knew what might happen if she let her out of her sight? Even if she was currently in the lead, she couldn't afford to be careless.
"Alright, then."
*
Day 2. The routine was exactly the same as yesterday. It made one realize that business was simply the repetition of the same labor: take the order, prepare the items, take the money, and sell. After doing it for a while, I found I could even manage some small talk in between.
The only difference was that there was one more person now.
"Here." Ji Nuri efficiently packed the goods and handed them to me.
I took the money and passed the bag to the customer. That was the change—Ji Nuri was inside the booth helping us out. We hadn't asked her to; she had volunteered.
"Are you sure you don't want to go look around?" Lee Seung-ah checked on Ji Nuri. Feeling bad, Seung-ah kept popping back into the booth every chance she got.
— “Is it really okay if she doesn't go play?”
Lee Seung-ah’s Mini-Me hovered around Ji Nuri.
"It’s fine. I already bought everything I wanted while looking around yesterday." Ji Nuri gave a cool shrug. She packed the merch into bags with practiced ease. Her work was incredibly neat. "Honestly, I’ve always wanted to try doing this."
She let out a light chuckle.
— “Hehe. Doesn't being 'staff' feel kind of cool?”
Ji Nuri’s Mini-Me grinned with crescent-shaped eyes. It seemed she had a bit of a romanticized view of being an "insider."
"...I wanted to run a booth myself, but I have zero artistic talent, so I’d mostly given up. I didn't have anyone to do it with, either."
"Well, if you're happy, then I guess it's okay..."
"I told you, it’s really fine." Ji Nuri continued her rhythmic packing.
— “Wait, why is she like that?”
Ji Nuri’s Mini-Me blinked its round eyes, lost in thought. Its tiny, fern-like hands tapped against the plastic bags. Then, its movements slowed down.
— “Oh.”
It stopped abruptly.
— “Did she... not want me here?”
She began to wonder if her help was actually a burden. It was a reasonable enough assumption for her to make, but from my perspective, her train of thought was heading in a very strange direction.
"...By any chance, am I making you uncomfortable...?"
At Ji Nuri’s anxious question, Lee Seung-ah shook her head vigorously. "No, no! Not at all!"
Despite the denial, Nuri was still filled with doubt.
— “Is she just saying that because she's being polite? Should I take the hint and leave now?”
The Mini-Me crossed its arms and fidgeted, deep in thought.
"..."
Good grief, she was overthinking it. After handing a product to a customer, I tossed a comment over my shoulder.
"Don't worry about it. She was actually excited because you said you'd help."
"Huh? Really?" Ji Nuri’s eyes widened.
— “Is that true?”
The Mini-Me’s expression, which had been drooping like soggy seaweed, instantly regained its bounce. Boing. It returned to normal in a flash. Her mood swings were quite something.
"Yeah, she was really happy about having someone to boss around."
"Hey! When did I ever say that?!" Seung-ah flared up.
'Hey'? She was getting awfully informal with a brother two years older than her.
"I even recorded it."
"...Wait, really?"
"No."
As if I would.
Thwack. Thwack. Thwack.
Seung-ah huffed and puffed, playfully drumming on my back.
"Oof. Ow." Her fists were small, but her hits stung.
...Anyway, it seemed she really had been excited.
"..."
Ji Nuri, who had been watching us quietly, let the corners of her mouth lift slightly. With a hint of wonder in her voice, she murmured softly, "You two actually get along pretty well."
At those words, we both looked at her at the same time.
"?"
"We do?"
That was honestly the first time I’d ever heard that in my life. Lee Seung-ah’s Mini-Me was so shocked it stopped moving entirely, its mouth hanging wide open.
"Well, it’s not like you're on bad terms. Usually, siblings don't help each other out with stuff like this, do they?"
"Hmm..."
I couldn't just let that slide. I held out a piece of paper to Ji Nuri. On it, I had written the amount we were expected to make this time.
"...About this much."
"Wait, seriously? For just today and tomorrow?" Her voice naturally went up an octave. Ji Nuri’s gaze darted back and forth between the paper and me.
"Thank you very much~" I nodded as I handed another item to a customer.
"...Well, in that case, it makes sense." Ji Nuri was instantly convinced.
*
"Ugh...!"
Ji Nuri stretched her stiff body. A groan escaped her lips as she reached toward the ceiling. Sitting hunched over for so long had made her ache all over.
This is harder than it looks.
As she was stretching, someone caught her eye. To be precise, it was a pair of girls walking with slow, hesitant steps. Their heads turned this way and that as if they were completely unfamiliar with their surroundings. They moved with the behavior of complete novices who didn't belong in this space at all.
However, there was something familiar about their silhouettes. It drew her gaze; they stood out vividly.
"..."
Ji Nuri narrowed her eyes and stared intently at them. One second... two seconds... three seconds...
"Holy cra—!"
A curse almost slipped out of her mouth. Ji Nuri clamped a hand over her lips to stifle it. It didn't take long for her to realize that those two silhouettes belonged to people she knew.
It was Lee Sol and Shin A-young.
‘...What are they doing here?’
Her eyes trembled as if they were malfunctioning. She could feel the panic rising.
"..."
At that moment, the two girls slowly turned their heads in this direction. It felt like it was happening in slow motion.
‘Ah.’
Her first instinct: she couldn't let them see her.
Ji Nuri moved with swift, instinctive precision. She grabbed a paper bag and some wrapping paper from the floor. The only people who needed to hide here were herself and Lee Seung-ho.
"H-Here you go...!" Ji Nuri reached out from behind him.
As she handed the item forward, she used the paper bag to shield Lee Seung-ho’s face. As soon as the customer who received the goods left, Ji Nuri lightly pressed his shoulders down below the desk. Since he was also a closet fan at school, she felt a sense of duty as a fellow comrade to hide him.
...How long did they stay like that?
‘Are they gone?’
She peeked cautiously over the booth. They were gone. Whether they had moved elsewhere or not, the two of them were no longer in sight.
"Phew..."
Just as she was letting out a sigh of relief, there was a stir beside her. She heard the sound of hushed whispering.
"...?"
She turned her head to see what was going on.
"Wo-Wow...!"
"..."
Lee Seung-ah’s friends were wearing shocked expressions, their faces strangely flushed.
"Whoa... this is..." Seung-ah looked at them, her expression a mix of bewilderment and something else. She was muttering to herself.
"..."
Lee Seung-ho blinked and looked up at me.
"...Uh..."
Ji Nuri slowly processed her current position. In her frantic rush to hide him, she hadn't realized... she was practically clinging to Lee Seung-ho from behind, as if giving him a hug. His face was framed between her arms, almost like she was giving him a piggyback ride. That was how she had been "hiding" him.
"...Ah."
She hurriedly pulled away, flinging her arms wide. Step, step, step... She stumbled backward.
"U-Uh, wait..."
It was a situation that anyone would misunderstand. Ji Nuri raised her voice in denial, her face burning with embarrassment.
"I-It’s not like that!"
It really wasn't.