Finals Celebration (Baek Ayoung's Turn)

The conference room of Pandemic was dimly lit and shrouded in darkness, yet exuding an air of luxury. Rebecca, one of Pandemic's executives, scanned her surroundings.

"...."

She had visited Pandemic's hideout countless times, but on the first day after her brainwashing was undone, she had been utterly shocked. Now she could perceive things she hadn't noticed while under the spell.

- Kughaaak -

S-Stop....

Human screams echoed from every corner of the hideout—sounds she had never registered before. She couldn't quite fathom how she had missed such loud noises, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠but seeing the other executives' reactions made it understandable.

"What's wrong, Rebecca?"

"… Nothing."

Rebecca turned away from the burly white man sitting beside her. It was clear they hadn't noticed a thing, still ensnared by the brainwashing.

"Rebecca, by the way, could you help me with something?"

"What is it?"

The white man's name was Reinhardt. A pathetic wretch who bore a righteous name yet committed such atrocities. His brute strength was at least useful, though.

"What else? Terrorism. If we want to kill a lot, I need your cooperation."

"… I'm too busy for that."

Before, she might have agreed, but now that her brainwashing was broken, Rebecca had no desire to assist with such plans.

"Is that so? Too bad."

Reinhardt, who hadn't expected much anyway, turned away immediately. That suited Rebecca just fine.

A moment later, the click of dress shoes echoed as Maestro, Pandemic's boss, entered the conference room. He had probably just finished some ritual to eliminate more humans.

His arrival silenced the noisy room instantly.

"It's been a while, everyone. I've been so busy we couldn't hold our regular meetings."

Maestro took his seat at the head of the table with perfect poise and launched straight into the meeting. Terrorism, kidnappings—the usual chatter. Pointless repetition to Rebecca, but she played along without showing it. She couldn't betray Pandemic just yet; she was in too deep. Escaping required the perfect opportunity.

Staying hidden in Pandemic had its advantages, too.

The apostle's unique teleportation ability....

She had obtained the information on the centaur as planned. The apostle currently wielded mana similar to but distinct from that of a mine. If she could analyze it, she might find a solution. Not guaranteed, but better than nothing.

"Our final agenda item: Victoria Academy.... It's tomorrow. Now, Reinhardt?"

"Yes, Maestro."

Rebecca tilted her head as Reinhardt shot to his feet right beside her.

"We've prepared mines for this terrorist attack. I have high expectations for you."

"I will deliver results...!"

"Good. Coordinate with your team and prepare immediately."

"Understood!"

Reinhardt clenched his fist in resolve and bolted from the room.

I should have said I'd join him....

Of all places, the target was Victoria Academy? And he hadn't even mentioned it. What a lunatic.

"Haa."

Rebecca sighed at the empty seat Reinhardt had left. She didn't have his contact info or any way to reach him, so there was no choice but to let it go. Still, it was crucial intel—she'd have to tell her baby daddy.

Hope he likes it.

He's a good guy; he'd surely appreciate it. With a slight curl of her lips, Rebecca nodded and turned her attention back to the meeting.

*

Thursday morning. I woke up thinking about the celebration tomorrow.

"Ughmmnam... Nom."

Liliana lay beside me. Waking up in the same bed like this felt like ages ago. As I watched her smacking her lips—probably eating something in her dreams—I headed to the living room, where the aroma of fresh coffee wafted over.

Nam Da-eun was brewing it at the table.

"You're up."

"Yeah. Pour me a cup, too."

I felt a bit dizzy, probably from overexerting myself yesterday. Coffee was made for times like this. Sipping the cup Nam Da-eun handed me cleared my head right up.

"Thanks. Whew...."

"No problem."

Nam Da-eun stirred her coffee with a faint smile and continued.

"You must have been exhausted yesterday."

"… Kinda got carried away."

Slurp.

Was this the guilt of a boyfriend caught cheating with another woman? Not exactly the same analogy, but the pang of remorse felt similar.

"Ahem. Time to head to school?"

I changed the subject awkwardly.

"Yeah. Let's go."

Thankfully, Nam Da-eun smiled and went along with it. She didn't seem truly angry.

"Unniii... Let's go quick."

"Got it, Da-hee."

As Nam Da-eun tended to Nam Da-hee, I chatted with Scarlett.

"I'll be off. Scarlett, take good care of Liliana when she wakes up."

"Understood."

Scarlett had been a bit off yesterday, but she was back to normal today. Probably from the intense sex.

"Let's go, Da-hee. Bring your sister, too."

"Okay, oppa!"

"No running, Da-hee. Hold Ho-yeon's hand."

I left the dorm with the Nam sisters in tow. With the finals celebration tomorrow, street vendors were setting up stalls.

"This is basically a festival."

"Yeah."

Nam Da-eun looked around curiously. Come to think of it... during the last festival, we weren't this close. She had helped me in the survival exam, so we weren't on bad terms, but not exactly friends either. A loner like Nam Da-eun, minus me, probably never came to these events.

Should I look after Da-eun, too?

From what I'd seen, she didn't hate fun; she just lacked time, always caring for her sister Nam Da-hee.

Can I manage it?

With so many to juggle, I wasn't sure... but I'd try.

"Unni, unni! I wanna go there tomorrow. Let's go together."

"Sure, shall we?"

But Nam Da-hee grabbed Nam Da-eun's hand and made plans, easing my worries for me. I let out a secret sigh of relief.

Life sure got tough with more women around. Harems were a distant, treacherous path.

I dropped Nam Da-hee off at her affiliated middle school first, then entered A-Class with Nam Da-eun. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Here, we were just classmates.

"Good morning."

"Hello, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Ho-yeon."

"G'morning! Perfect timing."

I sat next to Lumi and Lucy, who greeted me warmly. Lucy immediately locked eyes with me, as if she'd been waiting.

"What're we doing tomorrow? Hm?"

"Tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Finals celebration."

Same here. At this rate, we'd end up having an official harem meetup at the event. The last festival hadn't been this complicated. Side effect of more girls, probably.

"… Hmm, not sure yet. Haven't checked what's fun. Gotta look into it."

I tried to buy time, but...

"Knew you'd say that, so Lumi and I planned it out yesterday."

"Right. Lucy was so excited she prepared everything."

"L-Lumi...!"

"…."

No escaping now. I gave up resisting and listened to Lucy and Lumi's plans until the professor arrived. Honestly, they sounded fun.

*

Lunchtime was free time for Lee Ho-yeon. He could slip away from anyone by claiming he was visiting Baek Ayoung for treatment. Sure, he went to see her almost daily, so "free" might be a stretch, but it worked.

Today, he had a surprise gift ready—a token to improve his relationship with Baek Ayoung. Not that it was bad; he just wanted it even better.

Forgiving enough to overlook me fooling around with other women.

Lee Ho-yeon headed to the infirmary as usual. His staff training had paid off; no one blocked him this time.

Knock knock-

"It's me, Nurse Baek."

- Come in.

He couldn't call her "darling" where others might hear, so he always announced himself like this. Lee Ho-yeon slowly opened the infirmary door.

Inside sat Baek Ayoung in her usual white blouse and black miniskirt.

"Ayoung, how've you been?"

"We saw each other yesterday. Of course I'm fine."

He sat in his usual spot, and she naturally brewed coffee before settling opposite him. Normally, they'd chat briefly, have quick sex, and part ways.

But today was different. Lee Ho-yeon pulled out his prepared tool.

"Ayoung, I brought something for you."

"Hm?"

Baek Ayoung sipped her coffee and spotted the coin dangling from his hand.

"What's that?"

"It's for hypnosis. Supposedly top-notch and pricey, so it'll work great. Thought I'd try it on you."

"Oh?"

Baek Ayoung stifled a laugh inwardly at the coin.

He's still got a boyish side.

Maybe she'd play along a bit. She didn't believe in hypnosis, but if her darling wanted to, she could indulge him. Watching him prepare so earnestly, she decided to pretend to fall under once.

"Alright, focus here while I do it."

"Okay, got it."

Baek Ayoung smiled and fixed her gaze on the coin. To her, it was just adorable—bringing the coin, telling her to concentrate, all of it. Of course, it helped that it was Lee Ho-yeon doing it.

"Ahem. Now, your eyes are growing heavy...."

Meanwhile, Lee Ho-yeon felt a twinge ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of embarrassment acting this seriously, but it was a necessary sacrifice.

After five minutes of swinging the coin and droning on, Baek Ayoung had her eyes closed.

"When I snap my fingers, you'll open your eyes and obey my commands...."

Her lips twitched upward—it looked like she was just humoring him—but whatever. He knew how she'd react.

"…."

"Did it work?"

Lee Ho-yeon examined her, then snap—flicked his fingers.

Baek Ayoung's eyes snapped open, staring blankly into space. Without the status window, he might've believed it for real.

"Ayoung—no, darling. You're hypnotized?"

"…."

Baek Ayoung stared into the void, ignoring him.

Great acting.

Time to proceed.

"Darling."

"Yes."

She replied blankly, like she was truly entranced.

"Take off all your clothes first."

"Yes. …Yes?"

In that instant, Lee Ho-yeon caught the flicker in her eyes.