Chapter 119: Inevitability (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 119: Inevitability (1)
After the midterm dungeon practical exam scores were released, our team became the center of attention.
It was only natural, but we were in first place.
An overwhelming first place, at that.
Thanks to that, there was a bit of a commotion.
Some students filed a complaint, saying they couldn't accept our clear time for the Ant Nest Dungeon.
Well… I could see where they were coming from.
The average clear time for active Hunters in the Ant Nest Dungeon is about five hours.
In contrast, we managed to clear it in just three. It was probably easier for them to believe we cheated than to admit such a huge gap existed between us.
Of course, their objection was shut down in an instant.
All it took was releasing the video the examiner recorded during the practical.
A top-tier performance, born from the combination of seamless teamwork and outstanding individual skill.
Faced with a video that left no room for accusations of cheating, the students had no choice but to shut their mouths.
But thinking about it now, I wonder if the whole thing was just a show.
Maybe they deliberately raised an objection because they wanted to see for themselves the skills of the team that took first place by such a landslide.
Why do I think that?
Because after the video was released to the complaining students, the number of people following me around increased dramatically.
A baseless complaint comes with its own consequences.
“You’re Kim Do-jin, right? I’m from the Phantom Guild…”
“Hello, Do-jin! If you haven’t thought about a guild yet, please consider ours…!”
Guild scouts, desperate to recruit new talent, rushed toward me one after another.
At the same time, business cards began to pile up in my palm.
They ranged from large, well-known guilds to small ones hoping to lure in a promising rookie and suck them dry.
“Wow… you got a little bit of everything, didn't you.”
Shin Yu-jeong, who was standing next to me, laughed as she checked the cards in my hand one by one.
“Heh, I guess so.”
Even I have to admit it's pretty funny.
It's amazing how I managed to get cards from such a diverse range of guilds.
After getting through that whole ordeal, I was walking toward the cafeteria when another group blocked my path.
“Do-jin, have you had lunch yet?”
“Uh… I was just about to.”
“Then want to go with me? I'll treat you to something good!”
It was none other than the sunbaes.
It seemed they had finally finished sizing me up, because the number of people offering to buy me a meal had shot up recently.
But not a single one of them has ever succeeded in actually buying me that meal.
“He's on his way to eat with me, so get out of the way.”
That's because the final weapon is alive and breathing right next to me.
“Ahaha… I-I see.”
“Then we'll, uh, eat next time! Bye!”
At a single word from the girl blocking my path like a bodyguard, the sunbaes scattered like autumn leaves.
I’d wondered if it was normal for them to be so scared of a junior, no matter how fierce she looked, but I recently found out why.
Apparently, the number of upperclassmen who persistently hit on her during the first semester only to get beaten up and knocked out is over twenty.
“Tch.”
Shin Yu-jeong clicked her tongue as she watched the retreating backs of the sunbaes.
“They should know who they can and can't mess with.”
Now that people have started flocking around me, she's started sticking even closer to my side.
It seems she's quite worried some other bitch will snatch away the person she's already claimed.
And I have to say, I quite enjoy watching it.
You ask if I feel bad about the women driven away by this unintentional iron wall?
Not really.
The targets I'm aiming for now are on a whole other level; I can't just settle for anyone.
I'm too busy to waste my time on weaklings who can't even stand up to Shin Yu-jeong's spirit.
“Hey, let's hurry. Before more flies start buzzing around.”
“Right.”
After breaking through two human barriers, we finally made it to the cafeteria.
Today's menu was pork cutlet over rice.
I immediately ordered a double portion and added curry on top.
“Are you going straight home after lunch?”
“Yeah, I have to.”
Today I only have two classes in the morning and none in the afternoon.
To be precise, I was supposed to have one, but it was canceled because something suddenly came up for the professor.
Works for me.
“So… don't wander around aimlessly. Go straight home, okay?”
“……”
At this rate, who's the man and who's the woman here?
Isn't it usually the guy dating a pretty girl who gets this anxious?
For us, it's somehow the other way around.
After we finished eating, we went our separate ways.
I had to go home, and she had to go to another class.
“Go straight home, you hear me!”
“I got it, I got it!”
She kept nagging me so much my ears were about to bleed.
I get why she's anxious, though.
There's no relationship as ambiguous as ours right now.
“It really is ambiguous.”
We can't say we've had sex when all I did was put it in and pull it out, but we can't call ourselves just friends after our important parts have met and greeted each other.
“I'll have to set something up soon.”
I've let it simmer long enough.
Now it's time to enjoy the meal.
I was actually going to take a bite already, but I failed because I couldn't keep my big mouth shut.
“Sigh.”
What can I do?
I made this mess, so I have to be the one to clean it up.
I just need to plan a day that will leave her completely satisfied, and then at night, I'll torment her until I'm satisfied.
I remember the brief but intense feeling of being inside Yu-jeong.
I guess her pussy takes after her personality—that tight feeling, squeezing me violently without a shred of mercy.
Right.
For that, I can endure any amount of trouble.
Gradually calming my lust, I get off the bus and turn into an alley.
Just as I was about to reach my building.
I spotted an unfamiliar car parked out front and a woman wearing pitch-black sunglasses.
A black, gothic-style dress that gave off a strong princess vibe, and high heels.
The woman, who had been fidgeting and tapping the tip of her parasol on the ground, lifted her head toward me.
The lower half of her face, visible beneath the dark sunglasses, looked incredibly familiar.
I wanted to deny it, but…
“Are you Kim Do-jin?”
“……”
It seems I'm right.
Clack— Clack—
The sound of her high heels echoed faintly in the narrow alley.
I couldn't help but frown at her precarious walk as she approached.
I told her so many times not to wear high heels, but she never listens.
After struggling to cross a distance of barely ten meters, she suddenly lifted her chin.
“Congratulations. You have been chosen!”
“……”
My mind is a mess.
Why the hell is she here, and what kind of game is she so absorbed in now?
“I shall personally grant you the right to join our guild! You are to bow your head at once and receive it with reverence!”
A hand was held out confidently as she spouted this nonsense.
A thin piece of paper was wedged between her index and middle fingers.
I looked closer and saw it was a business card.
I didn't know about the rest, but the job title printed in front of the name Jung Si-a made me doubt my eyes.
“Jung Si-a, Scout…?”
What kind of bastard gave her a position as a scout…?
That guild must be a real mess.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
“Come in.”
I brought Si-a back to my place under the pretext of discussing things in more detail.
We couldn't just stand in the alley forever, and going to a café was out of the question since she's such a celebrity.
“What a rather nostalgic room.”
As Si-a looked around my humble room, a hint of wistfulness flickered in her eyes.
Judging by her pretty, noble features and her clothes, Si-a looks like she was born a princess, but she's actually a flower that bloomed from the mud.
Until just a few years ago, she had struggled to get by in a room far worse than this one; it hasn't been long since she started living like a proper human being.
Maybe that's why my room seemed so nostalgic to her.
I put an instant coffee mix and hot water into a paper cup and handed it to her.
“Here's some coffee.”
“Mm, this aroma… it is White Mocha Gold.”
“You know your coffee.”
“Huhu, for this princess, such a thing is child's play.”
That's a lie.
It's just that her favorite coffee happens to be White Mocha Gold.
Slurp.
Si-a blew on the hot coffee, took a sip, and gave me a thumbs-up.
“You are a master of the coffee-to-water ratio! Until now, there was only one person who could make coffee perfectly to my liking, and you are his equal!”
That person is me.
I got that good because I was constantly knocking on the guild leader's office door to make her coffee.
Before I knew it, I had started enjoying my coffee with the same proportions she liked.
“Mm, this is good. So good!”
A smile naturally formed on my face as I watched her beaming over a simple cup of coffee.
Even after overcoming poverty to live a life of wealth, she really hasn't changed.
She's overjoyed by a single cup of instant coffee and gets more excited over a piece of pork cutlet than a steak.
Her nostalgic appearance made me pat her on the head out of habit.
The moment I realized too late that I shouldn't have done that, her entire demeanor changed.
“You have some nerve. How dare you touch my head without permission.”
“Ah, about that.”
Her voice, lower than usual, betrayed her feelings.
Come to think of it, the only person ever allowed to touch her head was me.
Not me in this body, but Son Si-woo.
As I am now, not as Son Si-woo, I was a complete stranger to her.
It was an act that could have easily offended her.
Just as I was about to open my mouth to apologize, she spoke first.
“Normally, I would have had to punish you for this… but in recognition of your excellent coffee-to-water ratio, I shall let it slide just this once. Do not let it happen again.”
“Yes, thank you.”
The coffee saved my life.
“But this is a little strange.”
She suddenly tilted her head, staring intently at me from behind her sunglasses.
“The way you patted my head… it felt incredibly familiar.”
My heart clenched.
“You… could it be…”
Don't tell me she's figured out who I am.
“You must have a younger sister!”
“……”
Ugh, her intuition is shit.