First Flag (2)
“Huh? You guys...”
I stopped in my tracks as I was about to bolt. A girl in the same uniform as my sister was acting like she knew us, staring right at us from the direction I was facing. She glanced back and forth between us before heading straight toward me.
“Who are you?”
“Huh? You forgot me already? That's kinda hurtful.”
She had slightly tanned skin and short, spiky brown hair like a lion's mane—total big-sis vibes. Even in her school uniform, her athletic build screamed health and vitality, making her a total beauty. But her face was still kinda babyish and cute, contrasting her mature body. A bagel girl, right? Anyway, this stunner knew me, so of course I was flustered.
“Long time no see, Kim Taeyang.”
She flashed a bright, healthy smile. I was staring at it like an idiot when my sister Kim Hayan's voice from behind made me jump.
“Wait... Min Iri?”
“Yeah? Iri-hyung?... No, Iri-noona?!”
I scanned her up and down in shock, over and over. She was definitely wearing the same uniform as my sister—skirt and all. Memories from when we were little kids came flooding back. But... this was different from back then? Actually, this neighborhood we moved to was where we used to live before. When we were really young, I'd hang out with the local kids, and there was this one older boy everyone—especially the guys—adored. Cheerful, fun, great leader, and athletic to boot... I could see echoes of that bro in this girl now.
“When did you get a sex change?”
Thwack—!! It wasn't just a knuckle rap; a heavy thud hit my forehead.
“Ow ow ow!!!”
“What are you talking about? I've been a girl since I was born.”
“What? That doesn't...”
Was it the impact? Suddenly, something foggy in my head cleared like mist lifting. A tiny fragment of my past-life memories resurfaced.
Right—Min Iri was Kim Hayan's childhood neighborhood friend in the game. An athletic beauty and ace of the school track team. Not a heroine, just supporting, so she wasn't super popular.
“What are you spacing out for? Was it that shocking?”
Iri-noona looked at me like I was overreacting while I was lost in my past-life daze.
“Taeyang, seriously~ That's rude. Sorry, Iri.”
“Hahaha, no biggie. I mean, I still get called a 'tomboy' all the time, so it's understandable.”
Unlike that forehead smack, she laughed it off heartily, no hard feelings. Hayan-noona was super sociable too—chatting intimately with a friend she hadn't seen in nearly ten years.
“Heard it from your mom?”
“Yeah, she mentioned you guys were coming. Didn't expect to run into you this soon, though.”
Iri-noona checked her watch. I pulled out my phone—time was really getting tight now.
“So what are you two doing here instead of going to school?”
She eyed us curiously. We were at...
“Hold up!”
A bad feeling hit me, and I whipped around to Hayan-noona.
“Yeah?”
She smiled brightly, like no worries at all. So innocently...
“Well, you see...”
“Noona, don't!”
“Taeyang didn't know the way, so he was all, 'Noona, come to school with me~' like a total baby.”
“Aaaaaah!!!”
Remembering my earlier reaction made my hands and feet curl up in embarrassment. Why the hell did I talk like such a whiny kid? If going back in time means my sister kills me, my past self might beat her to it. My face burned with shame as I lunged at Hayan-noona.
“Aww~ What's wrong, Taeyang~?”
People say siblings don't fight much? Yeah, scratch that as of today. While I tussled with Hayan-noona, pushing her arms, Iri-noona just watched with a chill grin.
“Hahaha, you two haven't changed. Taeyang's still a total siscon, huh.”
“Wh-who's a siscon?!”
I couldn't let that slide! Sure, I've thought Hayan was pretty before, but I've never felt anything weird like that! Even as I protested hotly, both noonas just laughed it off.
“Haa... I hate noonas for real. I'm heading to school—don't follow me.”
“Ehh~? Don't be like that~”
“Go to school together, you two!”
I needed to hightail it out of there fast.
“Taeyang. Didn't you say you don't know the way?”
“I know it now!”
Huu~ Once the heat died down, my head cleared. Time to calmly sort things out.
First off, I blocked Kim Hayan's first flag. Normally, she'd bump into Choi Seonwoo in this alley, dropping her favorite hairpin—a gift from her little brother. She'd tear up searching for it, he'd help, pick it up first, and hand it over with their hands brushing. Not love at first sight, but it'd make them close right from transfer day.
Phew~ Somehow defended it. With the flag derailed, no instant bonding for Seonwoo and Hayan-noona. Variables might pop up, but I did what I could.
“Didn't expect to run into Iri-noona there, though.”
Min Iri, as mentioned, athletic beauty supporting character—not a heroine. In the Love Chain community, there were occasional posts like these from a tiny minority:
And then one reply:
Fact-bombed into oblivion. Anyway, the devs never mentioned her much. So Min Iri's safe—no yandere here. Later in the story, she even tries to rein in Hayan-noona. Phew~ Good news. If Hayan shows yandere signs, Iri-noona's a reliable ally to consult. Plus, they're in the same class sophomore year, so she'd spot any weirdness or romance vibes early.
Relieved, I headed to middle school with lighter steps.
“First day transferring, and I barely thought about it.”
My head was full of noona stuff—no tension about school life. Survival first, then future worries. Passing the front gate, I barely registered Pullyip Middle School.
Just... felt like I forgot something. No clue what. Past-life memories still foggy like a misty haze. Probably not important. Super minor...
“Alright, class, we have a transfer student today.”
First time seeing this classroom. First time seeing the teacher. First time seeing these kids.
“Come on in.”
Homeroom called my name, and I stepped into the unfamiliar room. Gave a basic self-intro. Not in the mood to stand out—my mind was elsewhere, no teenage drama vibes.
“Everyone, help Taeyang out if he doesn't know something, make sure he can keep up.”
“Yes~”
“Taeyang, your seat is...”
“Teacher, right here.”
A girl waved her hand. Didn't care who—nodded to the teacher and headed over. Until I looked at her.
“Ah... I remember now.”
I muttered without thinking, staring at the girl with her hand up. Should all be new faces, but one looked familiar.
“Huh? Taeyang, something wrong?”
Ignoring the teacher, I spaced out, staring at the girl next to the raised hand. I'd remembered what tiny thing I forgot.
My—Kim Taeyang's—first flag. Messing with noona's route created a variable here too. My first commute had one too.
Kim Taeyang's a supporting gag character in Love Chain, but the devs gave him decent backstory. Transfer day, he bumps into this girl on the way to school. Details vague, but they become friends. Story progresses, and it looks like he has a crush on her. The Love Chain Plus artbook says, “Deep down, maybe a pure romantic...” Gamers just memed him from the start, though.
“Kim Taeyang?”
“Ah, no, Teacher. It's fine.”
Just sit first.
Homeroom wrapped quick. Meanwhile, I sorted past-life info on my seatmate.
Lee Yuyeong. If she's just Taeyang's one-sided crush, no biggie—I'd ignore her. Romance? Overloaded with noona worries; maybe way later, post-noona crisis. If she stays a crush object.
Why worry this much? Blame Innocent Love, the devs of Love Chain.
That company—huge eroge fans—almost lost everyone once. They planned a DLC “Lee Yuyeong route” for Love Chain. Everyone assumed it'd promote Min Iri to heroine—she had a niche fanbase. But nope. Taeyang crushing on Yuyeong was the issue. Fans joked NTR with “Gold Taeyang,” but a real NTR route for the meme king? Hilarious... if not for their “happy pure-love comedy VN” slogan. Fans were pure-love purists—boycotts erupted. Devs claimed “Taeyang gets a happy ending,” but scrapped it.
Point is: Lee Yuyeong could go yandere too. Devs wrote it once. But canceled, so I never cleared it. No clue what her yandere does. Might “clean house” and kill me...
“Hoo~”
Sorted, I exhaled and decided. Just won't get close. High school hits, Seonwoo enters via noona link. No ties to me? Safe.
“Hey.”
Decision made, Yuyeong called from beside me.
“...What?”
“You were staring holes through me earlier. You got a crush or something?”
“No.”
So please don't talk to me!!
I broke into a cold sweat facing her playful grin.