Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: The World is Unfair
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People sometimes overhear things they really shouldn't while going through life.
For example, your closest friend badmouthing you behind your back.
Or hearing that your girlfriend, who you thought was chilling at home, was spotted with another guy.
Stuff like that.
Yeah, that kind of stuff.
"Sophia. Why do you keep hanging out with that guy? What did we do wrong? Tell us if we did!!"
"Um. It's not like that..."
"Then why?! I need to know what I did wrong so I can─!!"
This is giving me PTSD just listening to it. Feels like high school all over again. Oh, wait. This is my second round of high school life.
"They're doing this right in front of the guy himself. But honestly, if my close girl friend was hanging out with Seong-hoon, I'd react the same way."
"Not in front of the guy? It's been less than three seconds since I said it!"
I can't hear you~ I ignored the damn blonde plugging her ears and making a weird face. Right now, I'm standing about five steps away, watching Sophia with a troubled expression.
I can hear everything, of course, and it stings a little when she occasionally points at me while glancing over. That's harsh. I'm an intellectual being, you know.
I only called Sophia over for some help, and this is what happens. On the way, she bumped into her old group of friends.
Yeah. Super awkward. Especially since I'm the cause. I wish they'd wrap this up quick.
"Nothing's more exhausting than getting dragged into someone else's lover's quarrel. You know most fallen nations back in the day started with one?"
"Don't lie."
"Huh? I'm an eyewitness. They just get embarrassed and list 'lie' as the cause of death or whatever. I saw it. With my own two eyes."
"Yeah. At least I know you're some grandma who's lived over a thousand years, so please stop─ That look in your eyes is kinda scary."
Raphael didn't lunge after her quick apology, which was nice. Gotta be more careful next time. Found a landmine.
Hold up.
She lived that long and still got bullied by her fellow angels? Kinda feel bad for her now. High school was tough for a few years—try a few hundred.
"You wanna die for real?"
"No."
She glared when I gave her a pitying look. Pass.
Anyway, after some pointless chit-chat, the conversation wrapped up, and Sophia came over waving her hand.
The guy from her group who was speaking for them was glaring at me with insane intensity. He's scary too.
"What'd you call me for?"
"Eh, I'll explain later. You okay?"
"Huh? With what?"
With what? Her innocence is so pure it throws me off.
"Oh, them? It's fine. We weren't that close. They just misunderstood."
"Dunno why, but it pisses me off. Seong-hoon? Am I the only one?"
"Me too."
"Huh? Did I do something wrong?"
Nah, you didn't do anything wrong. As a vampire, she's probably always ready to bolt anyway. But still.
"Your actions hurt some people."
Especially this guy. It stings. High school flashbacks again.
"??"
Sophia tilted her head like she couldn't get it no matter how I explained, so I gave up and just told her why I called.
Sophia has a wide network. It's the result of her efforts to adapt to human society—she's got connections everywhere.
What that means is.
"Find me an opponent. Around ranks 900 to 700. Frontliner, doesn't use much magic. Weapon doesn't matter as long as it's frontline."
She knows all about that stuff. Sophia looked up at the sky thoughtfully, groaned a bit, then smacked her fist into her palm.
"Ah! Got one!"
This quick? I waited expectantly for her to continue, thinking she'd found the perfect match.
But.
"Him! He hasn't left yet?"
I looked where Sophia pointed, and there was the guy who'd been glaring at me earlier.
Spoke too soon. He's still glaring at me.
I made eye contact, instinctively averted my gaze, then asked Sophia.
"No one else?"
A fancy restaurant.
One inside Justitia for outside guests. Usually sparse, but today it was packed.
Amid the full house, Isia scanned the room, waiting for someone.
Suppressing her pounding heart and pretending to be calm, she saw a man in a sharp suit approaching.
His walk exuded elegance; just watching him move screamed class.
Isia jumped up and waved the second she spotted him.
"Dad!!"
"Sit."
But he was stone-faced. No emotion whatsoever. He sat naturally, crossing his legs.
A waiter came right over; they ordered lightly, and Isia spoke first.
"What brings you here?"
He's a busy guy. Never shows his face, all work no play—and now he's here for her ranking match.
She had tons to say. Academy stuff lately, new spells learned, new friends—well, maybe not friends.
"Just came."
"Hehe. Not because you missed me?"
She grinned as he shook his head, then started chattering like a baby bird. He listened with that blank face.
It seemed one-sided, but his occasional "Hm" or "Mm," and subtle nods showed they were connecting.
Mid-ramble, Isia felt eyes on her and tilted her head.
"Something to say?"
"Yes."
"Oh. I got carried away. What is it?"
"The maid thing sorted?"
Ah. Isia sighed involuntarily. Nope, not sorted. Lee Seong-hoon being strong was secondary; maid life wasn't half bad. With No. 2 and No. 3 joining, her workload dropped, but her debt to him piled up. How could she stab him in the back now?
"Th-that... Not yet. Soon! I'll do it soon!!"
"...Really?"
"Yes!"
She said it confidently, but she wasn't sure. Her dad knew, judging by his lukewarm reaction.
"Fine. What's this Lee Seong-hoon like?"
"Uh. Well~"
Caught off guard by the sudden question, Isia blurted out her thoughts. She just wanted to change the subject fast.
"At first, I thought he was trash. Wouldn't help someone getting beat up by thugs, talked smack to me—figured he was a total jerk."
But people tend to say what they really think mid-sentence, without realizing. Tangents don't come from nowhere.
"But nah, not quite. He steps up when it counts. Helps out big time in real danger, talks rough but more responsible than anyone. Kinda hard to hate him for it. Oh, not that I'm saying I'll keep being his maid─!!"
She flailed in shock at her own words, trying to backpedal, but her dad had heard it all.
One key thing here: Isia's dad is a daughter-con. Not just any—extreme level.
When she was first kidnapped, he dropped everything, stormed the half-demon's lair, and wrecked half of it. Heard about the wraith fight and used the ranking matches as an excuse to rush over.
That level of doting means his ears have filters, obviously.
Simple filter: Screens out anything harmful to his daughter.
Translation: Half of what Isia just said didn't register. Only the negatives—trash, thugs, smack-talk, jerk—stuck in his ears.
Conclusion: Lee Seong-hoon is a threat to his daughter.
"Um~ But in the end, he's a good guy!! Despite the harsh treatment, he's got tons of people around him~"
He let her words flow in one ear and out the other, sending off a flame message somewhere. Mage-to-mage comms. Basically, assigning a 'mission.'
Only he knows where it went.
"Pretty entertaining."
"If you ignore the crowd."
"Half are scouts, right? What if a line forms for my looks and skills? I'd be in trouble."
"As if. Don't get ahead of yourself."
"It'll happen. Raphael's level—they'd line up easy."
Hey. Don't say that or─ I couldn't look away. Only that smug damn blonde would be there anyway.
I scanned the stands without turning. Sure enough, people openly wearing "I'm a scout" vibes.
Black suits, black sunglasses, scribbling notes nonstop. Plus families, potbellied uncles, other students—the arena was jammed.
"I'll be fighting in front of this mob?"
Chills just thinking about it. All this attention on a weakling like me─
"You're an idiot, Seong-hoon? This match is rank 1 vs. 2—that's why it's packed. No one's watching rank 1028 vs. late 900s."
True that. No audience for me. Sweet, pressure off.
"I'll watch."
"Thanks. You not fighting?"
"Just defense matches. Don't care much about rankings."
Makes sense. Her rank's meh, so few defenses—basically a week off? Jealous.
"Must suck that you can't do defense matches, huh, Seong-hoon."
Not at all. No defenses is the dream. I'll chill all week and climb on challenge day.
Gotta eat early or you risk defenses.
Hate that as a weakling.
So yeah, I'll slack a week too─ my phone alarm laughed at that thought.
21st-century style, I checked it casually and froze.
Raphael rushed over. "What's up? What?"
"Huh? Notification. Challenger appeared... What?"
She rubbed her eyes like she misread, peered again.
Stared forever, confused, then yelped.
"Eeeeeh????"
"Challenger appeared. Prepare within 30 minutes?"
Sophia muttered in disbelief too.
Who challenges the ranking dead last?
"No way."
The world is unfair.
That was my life philosophy, 30 minutes later, as they dragged me to the arena.