Chapter 136: After the Night
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 136: After the Night
"May I love you?"
A sudden confession.
Dumbfounded, I could only stare blankly at the President.
Then, I managed to part my lips and ask.
"Does that mean... you want to go out with me?"
The President slowly nodded.
"Yes. That's right."
"...Well, thank you for the sentiment. But to be honest, I'm a little confused."
It was the same with my junior, Minato, but I'd never imagined someone as incredible as the President could like me.
Besides, she wasn't even a heroine from the original story.
In a way, this was without a doubt a confession born from pure affection for me.
Seeing my hesitation, the President asked with an anxious look on her face.
"Do you... dislike me, by any chance?"
I quickly waved my hands in denial.
"No, it's not that I dislike you, President. I just never thought you saw me that way. Um... It's a bit weird to say it myself, but I have a pretty intimidating face, don't I?"
As I scratched the back of my head, saying it like a joke, the President leaned forward and snapped.
"No! That's not true at all! You're not intimidating, you're dependable!"
"Huh?! Oh, uh... yes..."
Overwhelmed by her intensity, I found myself agreeing with her rebuttal.
It definitely wasn't because I was startled by the chest suddenly thrust before my eyes.
"Really... Yoo-Sung, you have such a low opinion of yourself."
"...My apologies."
I apologized reflexively upon hearing her scolding.
With her arms crossed, the President immediately shot back.
"Don't apologize."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry."
"......"
Having had all my options taken away, I finally just shut my mouth.
About a minute passed like that.
It was the President who first broke the strange silence between us.
"Yoo-Sung, you're far more charming than you think. So please, don't underestimate yourself. I fell for your confidence and your kindness."
Being praised so directly made me feel incredibly awkward.
"And I don't judge people by their looks, you know? I'm willing to love you no matter what your appearance is. All you have to do, Yoo-Sung, is quietly accept my affection..."
As I sat there listening to her praise, I rubbed the back of my neck in discomfort and forced myself to speak.
"President."
She stopped talking.
"What is it?"
I looked her straight in the eyes and said.
"To be honest, I think it would be fine to date you, President. We've known each other for a long time, and it's not like we don't get along."
Objectively speaking, if the President became my girlfriend, she would be way out of my league.
At that, the President's face brightened.
"In that case..."
"But."
I cut her off and pointed out the practical issues.
"Like you mentioned earlier, wouldn't your family be against it?"
Unless we're characters in a children's fairy tale, us just deciding to date won't lead to a 'and they lived happily ever after' ending.
Especially since your family is the Saionji Group, one of the top five conglomerates in Japan.
If I get on the bad side of your family's elders, it would be nothing for them to completely ruin my ordinary family.
Perhaps because she understood what I meant, the President bit her lip.
Then, she retorted.
"If that's the problem, I just have to convince my grandfather. All major decisions in the Saionji family are made by him."
"President... you know better than anyone that's just wishful thinking, right?"
When I said this, as if placating a child, the President finally cried out, her expression welling up with emotion.
"What's with that attitude! I finally worked up the courage to confess!"
"It's because I'm thinking about this seriously, too."
I said, revealing my true thoughts to her.
"I know you didn't ask me out on a whim. But more importantly, we don't have much time left."
It was late August now, which meant there was only about half a year left until she graduated.
And the President was the top student of the third year.
"You're going to university, right, President?"
"...Yes."
"Then, starting in the second semester, you'll be swamped preparing for the Center Exam. Even if we did start dating, we'd barely have any time for it."
"What if I said I wouldn't give up on my studies or our relationship?"
"Then I'd have to force you. I don't want to hear that you messed up your exams because of me."
"You really don't back down an inch, do you."
Her eyes brimming with tears, the President spoke as if she found me hateful.
"If you don't want to date me, just say so. I'd rather you be direct."
"No, that's not what I meant... Here, wipe your tears first."
I took a handkerchief from my pocket and handed it to her.
At first, she just dabbed at her tears, but soon she sniffled and began to sob uncontrollably.
"Waaaaah! You meanieeeee!"
I stared at her, flustered.
I'd been beating around the bush because I was too embarrassed to answer directly, and it seems she completely misunderstood.
So I quickly added.
"Six months! Wait for six months!"
The President stopped her sobbing, tears and snot running down her face, and looked at me.
"Six moooonths?"
"Yes. If we're really going to date, let's do it in six months, after your exams are over."
With that, I took my handkerchief back from her hand.
I held it to her nose and said.
"Here, blow. Blow."
"Hooooonk!"
After helping her blow her nose, I looked down at her tear-streaked face and said.
"Like I said before, I don't want your grades to drop because of a relationship. So, if your feelings haven't changed after you graduate, could you confess to me one more time?"
I won't beat around the bush then. I'll give you a proper answer.
Her eyes red like a rabbit's, she asked.
"What if I confess right now?"
"I won't accept it."
The President hiccuped, swallowing her sobs, and answered in a suppressed voice.
"Okay. I'll wait."
After crying her heart out, her mental age seemed to have dropped quite a bit. Or was it just my imagination?
I stayed by her side, gently patting her back until the exhausted President fell asleep.
*
Just as I expected, when the President came to her senses a while later, she recalled everything she'd done while crying and became incredibly embarrassed.
"F-Forget it! Everything I said while I was crying!"
"Really? Is it okay if I forget the confession, too?"
"Not that part!"
Her face red, the President muttered, "Ugh... what have I done."
She probably didn't realize it while she was crying, but looking back, it must have felt like a dark chapter in her history.
I asked her.
"President, can I ask you one thing?"
"What is it?"
"What was it about me that you liked enough to confess?"
"...I'm not telling you."
She said, sticking her tongue out with a bleh.
It felt like the way the President treated me had become much more informal than before.
*
I must have dozed off during my night watch.
The bonfire that had burned all night was out, and when I opened my eyes, feeling a chill from the cold sea breeze, the sky was already tinged with a faint light.
It was the dawn, just before sunrise.
"Mmm..."
Seeing the President behind me pulling her blanket tighter, as if she were cold, I shoved a handful of twigs into the dead embers and lit them with a match.
Hooo! Hooo!
As I worked to revive the embers, getting ash on my face, the flame that had been flickering precariously, as if about to die out, flared back to life in the pit.
As I watched it with satisfaction, the President, who had been tossing and turning in the hut, slowly opened her eyes.
"Mmm... what time is it?"
I glanced down and checked the time on my smartphone.
"6 AM."
"...Have Shinji and Minami not come back yet?"
"No. They probably ended up sleeping on the mountain last night."
They're both ninjas, so they should be fine, but I'm only human. I couldn't help but worry.
"Yawn... Then I'll sleep a little longer."
"Okay. Go ahead."
Just as the saying goes that beauties love their sleep, the President, who had only been awake for a moment, drifted off again as if nothing had happened.
Watching her out of the corner of my eye as I sat by the fire, I decided to prepare breakfast before it got any later.
I wasn't planning on foraging for food in the wild like yesterday; I was going to heat up some of the ready-to-eat meals from the yacht.
I had just stepped into the seawater to head toward the yacht moored on the coast.
Bwoooooo!
In the distance, a cruise ship was approaching, cutting through the white waves.
"A rescue ship!"
We'd only been on the deserted island for a day, but I was so happy to see it that I couldn't help but shout.