Chapter 104: Don’t Touch Our Oppa
Chapter 104: Don’t Touch Our Oppa
The moment the others and Shin Sangyong entered, the gentle atmosphere between Jung Hayeon and me instantly evaporated, as if it had never been there in the first place. While I appreciated her ability to clearly separate public and private matters, I first had to deal with the immediate problem at hand.
Upon entering the room and seeing me awake, the others initially showed relief. I smiled and told them I was fine when they asked about my health. But that didn't last long.
Soon, they had formed a circle around me, their faces filled with awkwardness. They weren't fools. The abilities I had displayed against the demons clearly surpassed the standards they had set for themselves. They were powers that were impossible for a fellow Year 0 User to possess.
A meaningless silence stretched on for some time, but as expected, the one to finally break it was the female User, Jung Hayeon. I waited for her question, mentally calculating how much I should reveal.
“Would you happen to have anything to say to your companions?”
At her question, I closed my eyes and deliberated. I hated giving vague answers. I had planned to reveal most of it after this expedition anyway, so I wasn't too burdened, but there were still limits. The facts that I had seen the end of the Hall Plain, obtained the Zero Code, and returned for a certain reason were things I could never tell them.
When I had more or less made up my mind and opened my eyes, the others were watching me with anxious faces. I paused for a moment before speaking in a low voice.
“I do.”
“Then please, tell us.”
I tilted my head from side to side. Her demand to just tell them everything, without any context, was a little absurd. Where on earth was I supposed to start? I shook my head with a grim expression.
“These aren't things I can answer with a simple, all-encompassing statement.”
At my words, Jung Hayeon’s brow furrowed slightly. She remained silent for a while, as if mulling over my words, before continuing in a chilly voice.
“All-encompassing, you say. Then you mean to tell me you're hiding more than just one or two things.”
“That’s right.”
I admitted it readily. In that instant, I saw my companions exchange bewildered glances. I, however, maintained a calm demeanor. If I were to act intimidated in a situation like this, it would only give them the impression that I was admitting guilt. As such, a confident attitude would be more effective in conveying my position.
Jung Hayeon closed her eyes as soon as she heard my answer. She continued speaking with her eyes shut.
“I don’t know your intentions. I don’t know your reasons, either. But I can’t say I feel very good about this.”
“…”
“First, let me tell you what’s on my mind. When I first met you, I felt a great affinity for the User named Kim Soohyun. But now, I’m not so sure. However… my honest feeling is that I want to continue feeling that affinity.”
“The feeling is mutual.”
At my response, Jung Hayeon’s expression softened slightly, and she spoke in her usual clear voice.
“If you truly think so, then please tell me. No… I will ask the questions. I want you to answer every single one of them without a single lie.”
“Every User has a secret or two.”
At my polite refusal, Jung Hayeon’s eyes flashed sharply once more.
“This is different. Right now, I’m honestly not even sure if you’re human, let alone a Year 0 User.”
“…Very well. But even if I answer you now, can you be certain that what I say is the truth?”
“I have my ways. In any case, you just said ‘very well.’ I’ll take that to mean you’ll grant my request.”
After finishing her sentence, Jung Hayeon reached into her clothes. The conversation was slowly getting to the heart of the matter. The others seemed to sense the shift in atmosphere, as they all swallowed nervously. Soon, Jung Hayeon pulled out a small, round crystal ball from her pocket and placed it in front of me. The moment I identified it, I almost let my expression falter.
“I didn’t think I’d have to use this here. I’m sorry. But I’ll confess now… I want to place my hopes in you that much, and I can’t let go of my lingering attachment. So I hope you’ll forgive me for using this 〈Crystal of Truth〉.”
Seeing the Crystal of Truth, I let out a low groan. It was a rather rare item. In my ten years in the Hall Plain, I had seen a 〈Crystal of Truth〉 used less than a hundred times. As everyone’s eyes focused on the crystal, she pushed it toward me and explained.
“It’s an item I came across by chance a year ago. If you place your hand on the 〈Crystal of Truth〉 and infuse it with magic, it synchronizes with the user’s inner self. That synchronized self is then converted into a sort of frequency that appears in the crystal. The synchronization is linked to the user’s voice and can determine whether they are telling the truth or a lie.”
“Must you resort to this…?”
Even though I trailed off with a displeased look, her expression didn’t waver. Still, I could understand her feelings to some extent. That item was traded at an extremely high price, making it a User’s nest egg, so to speak. I hadn't seen it when I rescued her before; she must have kept it hidden deep within her clothes.
For her to give up that nest egg and present it now meant she had made a significant decision. In other words, it was proof that Jung Hayeon also held certain expectations of me. It was a pain I would have had to go through eventually, but it felt like it was happening in a big way. But there was no helping it.
I let out a deep sigh and was just about to grab the 〈Crystal of Truth〉.
“Unni. Stop it.”
It was the exact moment I reached out to place my hand on the crystal. A slender hand shot out from my right and snatched my hand away. The owner of that hand was none other than Lee Yoojung.
“Yoojung-ah. Stay out of this.”
“You’re the one who should stay out of it, Unni.”
Despite Hayeon’s gentle admonishment, Yoojung didn’t back down and stood her ground. The two women’s gazes clashed in mid-air, glaring daggers at each other. Considering how close they usually were, Yoojung’s behavior was quite unexpected.
“This is necessary, for me and for all of you.”
“Who are you, Unni, to be so forward?”
“…”
At Yoojung’s scathing remark, Jung Hayeon’s face visibly contorted into a frown. But Yoojung was just as formidable. With eyes blazing with a fire I had rarely seen from her, she stared directly into the face of the woman she was usually so close to. Jung Hayeon made her displeasure obvious, but Yoojung paid it no mind and pressed her further.
“To be blunt, Unni and Shin Sangyong haven’t even been with Oppa for that long. I’m different. We’re different. We’ve eaten together, slept together, and acted together from the very beginning. What Unni is doing right now, pushing him into a corner like this… I don’t know how Oppa feels, but I find it incredibly annoying.”
I’d felt something was off about Yoojung for a little while, and now I knew what it was. Yoojung had always spoken casually, just adding ‘Hyung’ or ‘Unni,’ but this time, she had been speaking formally from the start. Jung Hayeon must have noticed it too, because she replied to Yoojung in a deeply subdued voice.
“You’re still young. Or maybe you just don’t grasp what kind of place the Hall Plain is. This is a place where people deceive and are deceived. If there’s even the slightest thing that doesn’t add up, you have to address it head-on. That’s the creed that has kept me alive until now. Should I be completely open, too? Strictly speaking, the User Kim Soohyun, whom you all trust and follow so much, has been deceiving you all this time…”
“Don’t you dare say that!”
As Yoojung screamed, Jung Hayeon immediately fell silent. Yoojung’s shoulders trembled as if in genuine rage, and she shot back in a sharp tone.
“That’s right. I don’t know much. But I can confidently say that I know more about Oppa than Unni does, at least.”
“You…”
“I’m not finished. You say Oppa deceived us? What exactly did he deceive us about? Oppa has sacrificed for us; he’s never deceived us. No, even if he did, it wasn’t deception. Oppa must have had his reasons.”
Jung Hayeon wasn’t one to be defeated easily. Anger seemed to be rising in her as well; her usual composed expression was gone, and she was biting her lip hard.
“Fine. Maybe it’s easy for you to think that way. But have you ever considered that you might be deluding yourself? Do you really think the others find it so easy to accept?”
“What did you say?”
Yoojung’s eyes widened as she turned her head toward Ahn Hyun and Ahn Sol.
“Hey. Ahn Hyun, Ahn Sol. Say something. Do you also think Oppa deceived us?”
At Yoojung’s question, Ahn Hyun and Ahn Sol just looked at each other with flustered expressions. Neither of them answered right away. Seeing Hyun and Sol hesitate, Yoojung let out a disbelieving scoff. “Ha.” Looking at Yoojung, Jung Hayeon spoke in a low voice.
“The word ‘deception’ doesn’t always have to be negative. Fine. As you said, maybe I don’t have the right to push Soohyun-ssi. But even if I don’t have the right to hear it, you all are different. You have the right to know. But just as you said, you’ve been with him from the start, so you rely on and follow Soohyun-ssi too much. That’s why I’m speaking on your behalf. And I also believe him… Hah. Never mind.”
She opened her mouth as if to say more but quickly closed it again. Ahn Hyun and Ahn Sol still looked confused, and Shin Sangyong simply kept his eyes closed. Vivian, meanwhile, was glaring at Jung Hayeon with sharp eyes.
Most people would have backed down after such a speech, but Yoojung was Yoojung. She rolled her eyes in disbelief, her face a mask of incomprehension. But, apparently unable to find the right words, the sound of her grinding her teeth could be heard.
Soon, her eyes blazed to life, and the sparks flew toward Ahn Hyun and Ahn Sol.
“Are you just going to stand there and listen? Aren’t you angry? Aren’t you furious?”
“L-Lee Yoojung. First, calm down. It’s not that I don’t trust Hyung. But let’s just hear what he has to say. There’s no harm in listening, right?”
“Th-that’s right. I trust Orabeoni, too.”
Ahn Hyun and Ahn Sol finally managed to speak, their words stammering, but it only served to fuel Yoojung’s anger.
“Calm down? Do I look like I can calm down? Wow, this is unbelievable.”
“…”
Frustrated by their reactions, Yoojung choked up for a moment, gasping for breath. Ahn Sol, looking worried, cautiously tried to soothe her, but Yoojung violently shook her off. Then, with a loud voice, she began to unleash all her pent-up frustration like a machine gun.
“You and Sol have completely forgotten how much you’ve benefited from Oppa since the Rite of Passage.”
The direct hit made Ahn Sol hang her head low. Ahn Hyun spoke calmly, in a tone that suggested he was trying his best to hold back.
“That’s not it… I just think we should talk…”
“Talk? What is there to hear? Who was it that lured those zombie bastards away so we could get out of the forest? Who saved us when we were about to be crushed by the boss monster and bought us time to escape all by himself? Who was it that turned down an offer from the great Golden Lion Clan just to stay with us?!”
At Yoojung’s roar, the surroundings fell dead silent. But she seemed to have no intention of stopping. After panting for a moment, she spoke again.
“Who was it that always fought the monsters at the front to protect us? Who was it that always bought us new equipment while he himself wore a worn-out sword and old clothes? Do you know who was running around without a break while we were training and resting comfortably? It was Oppa. Soohyun Oppa.”
Ahn Hyun and Ahn Sol could only stare at Yoojung with blank faces. By now, her shouts seemed to be tinged with the faint shimmer of tears. Watching her, I was inwardly amazed. Had she really thought of me that way?
I never imagined she cared for me that much, but Ahn Hyun and Ahn Sol were no different. The only reason they had remained silent was that they were, curious and wanted to hear my side of the story. From that perspective, Yoojung was, if anything, overreacting.
But considering Yoojung’s personality and behavior during our time together, her current reaction wasn’t entirely incomprehensible. It was a little embarrassing, but I couldn’t deny the warm feeling in my heart as she tried to defend and protect me like this.
A heavy silence fell over the group after Yoojung’s outburst. But soon, Yoojung turned her head back to Jung Hayeon.
“It’s the same for you, Unni. If it weren’t for Oppa back then, Unni and User Shin Sangyong wouldn’t have been saved either. How can you do this? What on earth did Oppa do wrong? We should just be happy with how things are. He did it to protect us… and you’re taking it like this…”
As she spoke, Yoojung glanced at the 〈Crystal of Truth〉.
“That’s…”
For a moment, a troubled look flickered across Jung Hayeon’s face as she replied. She had been momentarily pushed back by the storm of Yoojung’s momentum. I nodded to myself at Yoojung’s unexpected success. There was no way Yoojung could have intentionally orchestrated this situation, but in any case, the atmosphere wasn’t bad.
Now that the stage was set, it was my turn to step up. Since I had intended to reveal some things anyway, I needed to tell them a certain amount of the truth. I silently stared at the 〈Crystal of Truth〉, running through various scenarios in my head.
At the same time, I activated Third Eye.