Time Spent at Night
Yee Eun-chae's violet eyes were clouded with unease. Even someone as innocent as her understood that the Yee family wasn't solely devoted to justice. She had simply gone along with her family's wishes because they never crossed the line into outright atrocities or acts that stripped away one's humanity. Despite her own strong sense of justice, she never forced those ideals onto others.
'Truthfully, she already knows most of the basics.' Because she could draw such clear distinctions, she was also capable of worrying about the possibility that her family might try to exploit their connection to ask something unreasonable of me.
"No, they only contacted me to ask if we could meet," I said, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. "Nothing's happened yet, so don't worry. Still… it probably isn't for purely innocent reasons."
"Mm… I thought so too. I'm sorry, Cheon. This might end up causing trouble for you because of me."
I gave her forehead a light flick. "Ow! Cheon, that hurts!"
"How is something this small 'trouble'? If a friend needs help, of course I'll lend a hand. Why are you acting like this is some huge burden and blaming yourself?"
Yee Eun-chae's eyes widened slightly at my words. She seemed pleased by what I'd said, yet a trace of guilt still lingered in her expression.
"Cheon…"
"So you don't need to worry about every little thing like this."
At my reassurance, she smiled. "Thank you, Cheon. Hearing you say that makes me really happy. Hehe~"
Seeing her cheerful smile, I returned it before speaking again. "We should start heading back. Once we return to my place, you'll go straight to the dorm, right?"
"That's the plan. I need to go back to the dorm and sort things out calmly with Hyun-ah."
I nodded at her answer and opened the door. "Let's go."
Outside, Arian Liberin, Seo Moon-min-hye, and Yoo Eun-chae were already waiting.
"Oppa, did you talk about something with Eun-chae unni inside?" Seo Moon-min-hye asked, unable to hear us because of the soundproofing.
"It was nothing important," I replied. Arian Liberin gave me a slightly concerned look but didn't press the matter here. From the way her eyes lingered on me, however, I knew she would definitely ask once Yee Eun-chae and Yoo Eun-chae returned to their dorm.
'She won't just let it slide.' Knowing Yee Eun-chae would never do anything wrong to me, Arian Liberin had likely already guessed that the issue involved her family. As the princess and heir of the Liberin Kingdom, she possessed sharp insight into such matters, even if her nation was a constitutional monarchy.
Yee Eun-chae stepped out silently after me and moved to stand beside Yoo Eun-chae.
"We should head back now. It's getting late, so Eun-chae and Hyun-ah need to return soon as well."
"Yes, you're right. I'm fine since I share a dorm with Min-hye, but… Eun-chae and Hyun-ah have to go to the academy dorms."
Publicly, Arian Liberin was known to be staying at the mansion Seo Moon-min-hye had prepared. In reality, she spent most of her time with me, but the academy believed she lived with Seo Moon-min-hye, so she kept her belongings there and used portals to travel back and forth. Officially, Leviathan was also said to be staying at that mansion. Though she had stayed at my place for several days, since Seo Moon-min-hye had been with her, the academy hadn't said anything. Still, we would need to adjust our morning departures soon.
'Starting tomorrow morning, Arian should leave from Min-hye's place.'
Yoo Eun-chae checked the time on her phone. "It really is getting late… We should head back before it gets any later."
"Cheon, thank you so much for today," Yee Eun-chae said, taking my hand. "I want to repay you someday. If there's anything you want, just say it. I'll do whatever I can."
I met her violet gaze. Her eyes were filled with unwavering resolve, as if she truly meant to fulfill any request I made.
"Are you sure? What if I ask for something unreasonable?"
Her promise was essentially a blank check. Of course, if I asked for something truly immoral, she wouldn't go through with it, but within reasonable bounds, her personality meant she would genuinely try to grant whatever I asked.
"I believe you wouldn't. If it's you, Cheon, I know you wouldn't make a request that goes against what's right."
Yee Eun-chae still placed deep trust in me. She was certain I would never ask her to do anything dishonorable.
"Hmm, really? Then what if I asked you to marry me?"
Her face instantly turned bright red. "W-What are you saying?! S-Suddenly bringing up something like that…"
Amused by her flustered stammering, I chuckled. "I didn't actually ask you to marry me. I just asked whether you'd accept a request like that."
"Ugh! Cheon, you're really… Sometimes you're so mean!"
She glared at me with mild resentment, but there was no real anger in her eyes.
"Haha, sorry. As for actual requests… Honestly, nothing comes to mind right now."
"Mm, I see. You probably don't need my help with anything, Cheon."
Seeing her slightly dejected expression, I shook my head. "Of course not. No one knows what the future holds. Who knows when I might desperately need your help? When that time comes, I'll count on you."
"Understood! When that day arrives, I'll do everything I can to help you, Cheon!"
"Yeah, I'm looking forward to it."
Her expression brightened with enthusiasm once more. She was so pure and honest. Even the usually shy Yoo Eun-chae let out a small laugh while watching her, showing just how much trust the two roommates had built despite Yoo Eun-chae's reserved nature.
"Let's head back to the dorm now," I said, gesturing toward the portal Leviathan had prepared. Everyone nodded.
We returned to the dorm together.
"Ah, I should get going now. Cheon, Arian, Min-hye. I'll see you all tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow."
"See you."
After seeing the two of them off, I returned inside.
"Cheon-nim, what did you talk about with Eun-chae inside?" Arian Liberin asked the moment they were gone.
Since there was no reason to hide it from her, I explained. "I didn't want to say it in front of Eun-chae because she was already so worried, but it really isn't a big deal. The Yee family just contacted me saying they wanted to talk."
"As I suspected. Just as I thought."
Arian Liberin had already anticipated this. Though she often appeared pure and unreadable, her judgment as a princess far surpassed that of ordinary people. In the original story, she had made poor decisions because of the unprecedented chaos surrounding Seo Moon-hyun, but in this world, with me present, she hadn't made those mistakes.
"Oppa. The Yee family wants to meet because of Yucheon Group, right?" Seo Moon-min-hye had also roughly guessed the situation. Having witnessed the ugly side of the Seo family and my suffering at their hands since childhood, she had developed a realistic outlook.
"Well, something like that. From the Yee family's perspective, Yucheon Group is a treasure they'd love to form a connection with. Just getting one percent of Yucheon Group's shares would completely change their standing."
One percent of Yucheon Group's shares was worth over thirty trillion won. It wasn't enough to interfere with management, but depending on how they obtained it, their status would shift dramatically.
"If Yee Eun-chae becomes my woman, they probably think they could gain even greater benefits. Things like access to Yucheon Group's combat forces or artifact supplies."
The powerful mana awakeners. Yucheon Group's military-level forces and supplies, along with their top-tier artifacts. They would expect to receive support from these immense powers and have Yucheon Group act as a powerful backer for the Yee family as their in-laws.
"Of course, all of this is assuming Yee Eun-chae becomes my woman."
"The Yee family seems quite different from Eun-chae unni," Seo Moon-min-hye said, her expression darkening as she was reminded of the Seo family.
"They're not as insane as the Seo family, though. They're materialistic, sure, but Eun-chae being a good person like you is true enough."