Chapter 88: Little by Little (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 88: Little by Little (4)
When someone has something to say to me, I’m the type to wait patiently for them to bring it up comfortably.
They must be hesitating like that because it’s something difficult to say.
However.
“Auntie, another bottle of soju here!”
“……”
Isn’t this a bit much?
We came to this pork belly restaurant to have dinner, but she wasn’t eating any meat and was just chugging alcohol.
How can you finish a whole bottle before the meat is even cooked?
“Maybe you should slow down a bit?”
Deciding this wouldn’t do, I said a word, and her intensity subsided a notch.
She didn’t give a proper answer, but I could see the speed at which she raised her soju glass had slowed.
Strange.
Why is she listening so obediently for once?
“Drinking on an empty stomach will wreck it, so wait until the meat is cooked.”
Wondering if she’d listen to this too, I tried to stop her again, and she put down the soju glass she was holding.
Huh, this is really strange.
She’s wearing a face full of dissatisfaction but doesn’t utter a single complaint.
What on earth does she want to say that’s making her suppress her temper this much?
I was so curious that I almost threw my patient persona out the window and asked her what was so important that she had to beat around the bush like this.
Patience.
There’s plenty of time, and if it’s something she absolutely has to say, she’ll say it eventually.
I shouldn’t forget.
A relaxed, unhurried attitude is the best weapon for maintaining the upper hand in any relationship.
So, for now, let’s fill our stomachs.
Sizzzzzle—
I cut the pork belly, which was cooking on the grill with the most pleasant sound in the world, into bite-sized pieces and began piling them one by one onto the lid of Shin Yu-jeong’s rice bowl.
At that, she spoke with a reluctant expression.
“Hey, if you give all this to me, what are you going to eat?”
“Ah.”
Whoops.
An old habit of mine had slipped out unconsciously.
Whenever my family gathered to grill meat, my job was always to take care of my wife and daughter. I guess that’s why I so naturally piled all the meat onto Shin Yu-jeong’s plate.
“Here.”
She took half of the meat piled on the lid and handed it to me.
She may be selfish and materialistic, but at times like this, she doesn’t seem like a completely hopeless person.
And so, with the meat split between us, our meal began.
The tables around us were buzzing with chatter, but ours was strangely silent.
It was obvious she was still mulling over how to start the conversation even as she ate, so I just left her be.
The only actions we exchanged were sharing the grilled meat and pouring drinks for each other.
By the time two empty soju bottles were lined up on the table.
“Hey… can I ask you something?”
She finally opened her mouth.
“What is it?”
“Well, it’s about…”
She hesitated once more.
Then, biting her lip slightly, she spoke again.
“It’s an old story. Something you might not want to remember…”
“An old story I might not want to remember…”
Just thinking about memories I’d rather not bring up caused a whole string of them to surface in my mind.
This body’s life had been exceptionally tragic, but the hardest time was definitely…
“Back in high school?”
“…Yeah.”
Shin Yu-jeong’s complexion darkened even further.
Judging by her expression, you’d think it was her own memory she didn’t want to recall, not mine.
Well… in a way, it might be natural for her to feel a bit more guilty than me.
The school violence this body endured was closely related to her, after all.
But does she even know that?
“So, what do you want to ask?”
“That… Hoo.”
She stopped mid-sentence again and downed her glass.
Seeing someone who usually charges headfirst into things act like this, she must be feeling incredibly frustrated.
Her two eyes, hazy from the alcohol, turned to me.
“It was fucking tough back then, wasn’t it?”
“It was.”
It felt right to answer not as myself, but with the memories remaining in this body.
At my plain but unhesitating reply, her face gradually grew darker.
Why did she even bring it up if it was going to make her feel this bad?
Ah, I get it.
Even if it wasn’t something I personally experienced, it still happened to this body. She couldn’t understand why I was treating it like it happened to a stranger.
“Does it bother you?”
“Huh? Oh… yeah, it does.”
That’s unexpected.
I thought a cool-headed person like her wouldn’t care about such things in the slightest.
I don’t know what to say here.
While I absorbed the memories this body experienced, giving me a sort of indirect experience, it wasn’t a perfect transfer.
There was no lingering pain or suffering; the events just remained as scenes, so I felt less empathy.
“Don’t worry about it too much.”
“Huh? What?”
“The main reason Kim Jeong-hun started bullying me was because of you, but he’s just a bad bastard. It’s not your fault.”
“…What?”
Uh oh.
The atmosphere suddenly turned hostile.
I was just trying to keep her from feeling guilty about it, but was there something wrong with what I just said?
“The reason that bastard Kim Jeong-hun bullied you… was because of me?”
…She didn’t know?
Since she brought up our high school days, I naturally assumed she knew.
Then again… every time Kim Jeong-hun beat this body up, he threatened that his life would be over if Shin Yu-jeong ever found out why he was being bullied. So, of course, she wouldn’t have known until now.
But that in itself is strange.
Then why on earth was she hanging her head like a sinner?
“Tell me.”
Shin Yu-jeong’s expression was so murderous it looked like she was about to hunt the guy down and kill him right this instant.
I think I chose my words poorly.
“Tell me.”
Her grip on the soju glass tightened.
I immediately reached out, grabbed her arm, and took the glass from her hand.
“First, calm down.”
“How am I supposed to calm down?”
…Good point.
Honestly, how many people could stay calm in this situation?
I know I probably couldn’t.
“Uh… let’s start with a deep breath.”
“This is me after taking deep breaths, so just hurry up and talk.”
A strange picture formed in my mind.
If I could properly control her anger, this could turn into a very satisfying revenge…?
“Make me one promise.”
“A promise? In this situation?”
“Promise me that no matter how angry you get after hearing my story, you absolutely will not go looking for him today. At the very least, call him or meet him the next day, after you’ve sobered up.”
Otherwise, I was afraid she’d really smash Kim Jeong-hun’s head in on impulse.
Her deliberation didn’t last long.
“Fine.”
Does she think it makes no difference whether she goes now or the day after she sobers up?
But it will make a huge difference.
Alcohol has a way of making people’s emotions more intense than necessary.
“So… to talk about how I first got involved with him…”
I told her nothing but the facts.
I recounted the memories floating in my head exactly as they were, from a third-person perspective.
Why he started to hate me so much, why he beat me again and again.
There was no reason to exaggerate.
The facts floating in my head were enough to prove that the guy named Kim Jeong-hun was a piece of trash beyond redemption.
Look at her now.
Bang!
“Kim Jeong-hun, that son of a bitch…!”
After hearing the whole story, Shin Yu-jeong slammed her fist on the table in a rage.
But that’s a bit of a nuisance…
Everyone is staring.
“Let’s go outside first. You’re scaring everyone; they’re all looking at us.”
When Shin Yu-jeong glared around the room, everyone’s heads snapped back to their original positions as if nothing had happened.
They know to be scared of a scary person…
I was worried she might throw a tantrum and refuse to leave, but although she was rough, she did get up.
I went to the counter to pay right away, but she suddenly cut in.
“I’m paying, get lost!”
“……”
Why is she taking her anger out on me?
…Well, thanks for the meal anyway.
“Aaaargh! Fucking bastard!”
The moment we stepped outside, she started screaming curses. I just shook my head.
Then, I discreetly spoke to the terrified restaurant owner.
“She’s just a little on edge because it’s that time of the month. As a fellow woman, I hope you can understand, ma’am.”
“You must have it tough, son…”
I earned one sympathy coin.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
After class ended.
I turned down Im Na-eun’s offer to walk home together and stayed at the university.
Shin Yu-jeong… her classes ended two hours before mine, and she left campus immediately.
She’s probably on her way to meet Kim Jeong-hun.
I caught a glimpse of her face as she was leaving before my last class, and she looked absolutely venomous.
Not quite at the ‘kill someone’ level like yesterday… more like the ‘beat someone half to death’ level?
Thinking of Kim Jeong-hun, who was about to be annihilated by Shin Yu-jeong, naturally brought Sun Tzu’s Art of War to mind.
To kill with a borrowed knife.
Could there be a more fitting phrase for this situation?
“That’s one guy taken care of…”
Now, I just need to do my own thing.
The reason I turned down walking home with Im Na-eun today was to train my body for the first time in a while.
I’d heard that Korea University’s gym was incredibly well-equipped, but I had yet to even visit it once.
That alone showed how lazily I’d been living.
With such a large student body, there were several gyms on campus.
I picked the one closest to the Magic Department and headed over.
I changed into the workout clothes provided for free by the gym and stepped inside.
A feast of countless exercise machines unfolded before my eyes.
It was filled with state-of-the-art equipment that couldn’t even be compared to the gym I used to go to for weight loss.
Ah, but that doesn’t mean I’m thinking they look delicious.
From the past until now, I’ve never once had a ‘delicious’ workout.
I only ever forced myself to do it to survive, to get stronger.
“Phew… the sight is daunting.”
A man’s strength comes from his lower body.
After a light warm-up, I sat on the leg extension machine to destroy my legs first. As I struggled to lift the endlessly heavy roller pad enchanted with gravity magic…
“Hoo-euk, hoo-euk…!”
Across from me, a gym rat powerfully caught my attention.
Slightly faded blond hair and blue eyes shimmering with fierce determination.
I’ve seen that face somewhere before…?
“Ah.”
I remembered.
Elena Mikhailova Dobreva.
The tanker prodigy I had drooled over and been so disappointed to miss out on!
It’s a small world.
I never imagined I’d run into her like this.
“Heut, heu-eut…!”
I found myself staring blankly at her as she worked out like she was in battle.
She was on the bench press, and the weight she was lifting was considerable.
One of those large plates is about 150kg… so with three on each side, six in total, that’s 900kg.
“Hmm, hmm.”
I naturally checked out her physique.
Because she was a woman, it wasn’t overly prominent, but her muscles rippled every time she pushed the barbell up.
“Ssssp…”
Ah, this is such a shame.
To have that much strength and stamina as a mere first-year would place her at least in the upper ranks among tankers.
If she were trained properly, she could become a truly incredible asset…
Letting out a groan of regret, I kept staring at her until our eyes accidentally met.
“……”
A moment of silence.
Thud!
Elena dropped the barbell, wiped her hands once, and walked straight toward me, her eyes fixed on mine.
When she was close, she pointed her index finger at me and glared.
“You.”
Her speech was slightly accented.
“Do not keep looking. This, is manners.”
Oh, dear.
It seems my staring distracted her from her workout.
Feeling sorry, I was about to apologize, but she spoke again, a beat faster.
“I, am not. Easy person. If you look down on me because foreign person, you get hurt, big nose. One more time you look… then you, have no. Eyeballs.”
Uh, um.
…Does ‘have no eyeballs’ mean she’s going to gouge them out herself?