That Guy Has Changed

Chapter 3

I'd been a college student only yesterday. Now I had to drag myself to high school at this ungodly hour. What a novel experience.

No. Who was I kidding?

I was pissed.

Screeech!

The sprawling garden in front of our mansion was apparently also the path to the gate. Whoever designed it deserved a serious talking-to.

'Park Ha-rin, you lunatic. Did you really have to turn the front yard into a maze? Who makes getting to school this difficult?'

Screeech!

I followed my younger sister through a tangle of grotesque plants, barely escaping without getting snagged.

At last, we reached the enormous front gate.

I'd been fuming the whole way, but the anger evaporated the instant I stepped outside.

"!"

I was finally beyond Park Ha-rin's sight. The relief was so intense I could breathe properly again.

'Hah... Is the morning air supposed to taste this good?'

In twenty-five years, I'd never enjoyed a walk to school more.

"Haaah..."

At home, every glance from Ha-rin had felt like an invitation to my own execution. She studied me with those cold eyes as though searching for something out of place.

Now that I'd escaped her, I felt light enough to sprout wings.

'I thought I knew her after seeing her ten thousand times...'

Apparently it made a difference when there wasn't a computer monitor between us. I'd have preferred to learn that lesson in some harmless, fluffy romance game.

'I've escaped the house, but I still don't feel safe.'

A woman so beautiful she was difficult to look at, whose every smile seemed calculated to draw me in.

Standing beside her stirred emotions I didn't want to acknowledge—and the constant fear of being killed made it impossible to relax.

"Haa..."

Still, I'd put some distance between us. That had to count for something.

"......"

Why did it only count for *something*?

『Park Se-eun』

Because the girl trudging beside me was also a heroine.

And she was the person responsible for the third-highest number of my deaths.

"..."

"..."

I'd escaped Ha-rin, my leading cause of death, only to be escorted to school by number three.

'God help me.'

Surrounded by beautiful women and blessed with the face of an angel, I somehow felt like crying. Running away sounded tempting, but it wasn't remotely practical.

'Ha-rin would track me down with money, influence, or whatever else she had. And whatever happened after that, it wouldn't end well.'

For now, I couldn't behave in any way that made her suspicious. I had to play Park Si-hyun convincingly.

'I can't handle torture. She'd get the truth out of me in no time—even the parts that weren't true.'

Ordinary people would dismiss a claim of possession as nonsense.

Ha-rin, however, was hardly ordinary. She knew what she herself could do. Why wouldn't she consider the possibility?

In 《The Tower》, villains occasionally stole the protagonist's body. Whenever that happened, Ha-rin killed the impostor before hearing a word of explanation.

'I can't give her a reason to think I'm somebody else. Not even in front of Se-eun.'

Se-eun walked beside me without a word, her eyes fixed on her phone. As far as she was concerned, I might as well have been invisible.

According to Si-hyun's memories, they hadn't been close since childhood.

Looking at her profile, I could see the family resemblance to Ha-rin immediately.

Something about the resemblance brought a memory to the surface.

Se-eun, pale and trembling, standing before her older sister.

'She grew up under the same roof. She must know what Ha-rin is really like.'

The secret nobody outside the family was meant to learn.

Ha-rin's slender body concealed muscles far denser than any human's. Her intelligence was just as unnatural.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

In most stories, someone with abilities like hers would be dragged into a research facility. Ha-rin had been born into extraordinary wealth instead. Her father chaired a university foundation, and her mother directed a university hospital.

When her test results revealed what she was, her parents destroyed the records to protect her.

They taught her how other people lived and tried to help her understand the limits she didn't share.

All they wanted was for their daughter to have an ordinary, happy life.

Then, three years ago, both parents died in a mysterious accident.

Ha-rin retired from her career as a world-famous pianist after their funeral. She inherited their fortune, made several shrewd investments, and accumulated even more wealth.

And that was around the time—

—she began tightening her grip on the family.

'In a game, this kind of ridiculous backstory is bad enough. Now I'm related to the people in it.'

Possession was already unbelievable. Having to call these people family was worse.

'Would it kill the developers to give me a useful skill instead of this mess?'

Ha-rin was superhuman before the Tower ever appeared. Even if I managed to get poison, her abnormal constitution might make it useless.

'So assassination's out. Can I leave this world instead?'

There was something else about Ha-rin I ought to remember.

But before I could grasp it—

Bzzzt—

A piercing tone filled my ears. Pain lanced through my skull.

"Ugh?!"

HOOONK!

My vision blurred. A hand seized the back of my head and yanked me backward.

"Whoa?!"

HOOONK!

A luxury sedan tore past, its horn blaring. Another step and I'd have gone under its wheels.

"...Fuck."

I'd wandered into the road like a deer with a death wish. Still dizzy, I turned around.

"..."

Park Se-eun, the sister who'd just saved my life, was glaring at me as if she regretted bothering.

"Uh... Sorry. Thanks."

She gave me a look of pure disgust and turned away. The polish on one of her fingernails had chipped.

"...Fuck, you're so annoying."

"..."

'Still, thanks for not letting me get run over.'

I rubbed the back of my aching head and hurried after her.

The pain scattered whatever I'd been trying to remember.

'Forget it. I'll deal with that later.'

Se-eun was already tapping furiously at her phone, her elaborate manicure flashing with every movement.

Maybe because she was of a suitable height, she drew the gazes of every man around.

I guess it's only natural. It's not like the genes my older sister and I got went anywhere else.

Thanks to the aloof impression that resembles my older sister and me, she actually looks like a beauty who's hard to approach, despite being a middle schooler.

Her permed silver-blue hair wrapped alluringly around her back, and her blue eyes were deeper than gems.

Her uniform had been taken in tightly to accentuate her figure, and she had dressed herself flawlessly with proper makeup and manicure. There wasn't a trace of middle-schooler immaturity in any of it.

Simply put, Park Se-eun was a middle schooler who got come-ons just by walking down the street and, ridiculously enough, a top student with excellent grades as well.

'Even if it's fiction, isn't this a bit much? Older sister, younger sister, all of it. Isn't it too over the top?'

Then I remembered Se-eun's route ending.

—Die!

In the game's prologue, getting on Se-eun's bad side could end with a kitchen knife in your stomach.

She hadn't even waited until nightfall in some routes.

'Am I shaking?'

I kept one eye on her hands. Thankfully, she seemed more interested in her phone than in murdering me.

'Three years before the prologue... Maybe she hasn't reached that point yet.'

Something must have happened between the siblings during those three years.

We made it to the bus stop without another incident.

'Whatever caused her to hate Si-hyun that much hasn't happened yet. That means I might still be able to avoid it.'

Knowing that didn't make talking to her any easier.

Her expression practically screamed, *Don't you dare speak to me.*

'Bitch.'

I shifted awkwardly beside her. Then an idea struck.

'Status Window.'

A translucent screen appeared.

Ding!

『Three years remain until the Tower appears...』

Three years. A long time to survive without the game's usual tools.

Without the Tower, my stats and abilities probably wouldn't change much, whatever I did.

'At least I can start exercising. And...'

I was still working through my options when a familiar voice interrupted.

"Park Si-hyun! You asshole! Do you have any idea how late you are?!"

Someone came sprinting toward the stop.

Kang Yu-seong. One of Si-hyun's friends. Just my luck.

'I can't believe I have to deal with that idiot outside a game, too.'

He greeted me with the kind of overenthusiastic wrestling move that nearly knocked me off my feet.

"Gaaah!"

"Why aren't you answering my messages? I nearly got chewed out by our homeroom teacher again because of you!"

He was a good-looking guy, around 180 centimeters tall and solidly built.

More importantly, he was an obnoxious blond with a tan.

"Hey there, Se-eun."

He let go of me long enough to smile at Se-eun.

"..."

She didn't even look up from the beauty video on her phone.

"Hahaha... Still giving everyone the cold shoulder, huh?"

"..."

From the look in her eyes, her affection for him was about equal to her affection for me: nonexistent.

'Poor bastard.'

She probably considered us both beneath her notice.

The Park siblings had extraordinary looks. Their personalities, unfortunately, were just as extreme.

Screech—

Our bus pulled up.

I boarded and stopped beside an empty seat. Se-eun followed close behind.

Yu-seong squeezed past other students to plant himself beside her.

"Hey, that perfume smells nice. What brand is it?"

"..."

"Not feeling well? I have some medicine if you need it."

"...."

No wonder she ignored him.

Yet he kept trying to get her attention.

"We should hang out sometime."

Se-eun's expression soured with every word. At last she shot me a furious look.

Then one of Si-hyun's memories surfaced: a promise he had made to his younger sister.

—If guys won't leave me alone, you have to deal with them. You can manage that much, can't you?

The old Si-hyun would have stepped in. Me?

'Learning to stand up for yourself would make my life easier. Why don't you try that?'

Besides, Se-eun reminded me of my actual sisters back on Earth.

—Hey, orangutan! Didn't I tell you to come running when I call?

In my previous life, I was the only son among five children.

I had older and younger sisters on both sides of me.

Growing up with them had taught me a few things.

Chief among them—

'Those idiots can't even be considered the opposite sex. They're not even as good as our dog, who does somersaults in midair.'

...Feel sexual desire just from looking at your female siblings?

That's just a hopeful dreamer who can say whatever they like because they've never had to deal with those monkeys firsthand.

But why is that?

Thump. Thump.

Why am I... over that monkey...?

Flinch—

At that moment, Park Se-eun glared at me. I was momentarily startled by a glare enough to make anyone jump, and then Park Se-eun grabbed my necktie.

Huh?

Beep—

While Kang Yu-seong was still going, "Whoa?", Park Se-eun grabbed me and jumped off the bus.

"Guh—huh?! W-what? What's going on?"

Park Se-eun dragged me by the hand all the way to a back alley. Then, all of a sudden, I was shoved against a wall.

"Urk?!"

Park Se-eun was glaring at me with a face full of murderous intent.

But when she met my face, her cheeks reddened a little.

...Huh? No way? Hey, no. We're both minors, you know.

Park Se-eun's fist, visibly trembling, rose right up in front of my eyes.

Phew, wasn't this supposed to be censored...?

"You, you fucking bastard!!"

Her fury finally erupted.

What Se-eun didn't know was that Si-hyun's athletic abilities were extraordinary.

Ha-rin might have crushed his confidence, but she hadn't dulled his reflexes.

"Mmph?!"

I caught her wrist, covered her mouth, and turned her momentum against her, pinning her to the wall.

Her eyes widened in surprise. I doubt she'd ever seen her useless brother move so decisively.

Tears gathered in her eyes.

A moment later, humiliation turned that shock into fury.

She kicked and struggled, trying to hit me with her free hand.

I stayed out of reach, watching her movements and anticipating each attempt.

At least she didn't have a weapon.

'Thank God. I spent the whole walk expecting a knife in my back.'

I wasn't trying to hurt her. Quite the opposite.

Se-eun could become an ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ally against Ha-rin, if I managed not to ruin this.

I pressed a finger to my lips and lowered my voice.

"Shh."

She stared up at me, wide-eyed and flushed with anger.

Her gaze began to tremble.

* * *

Everyone envied Park Se-eun for her beauty, wealth, and talent. None of those things made her happy.

To Se-eun, life felt like walking barefoot over thorns.

Her older sister was terrifyingly unpredictable, and her older brother never stopped making her life harder.

'That worthless bastard.'

She had never liked Park Si-hyun, no matter how perfect he looked from the outside.

Didn't he lecherously peek at her and her older sister every single day?

Didn't his face flush and his crotch bulge whenever his hand accidentally touched her?

And he still acted like a child around their blood-related older sister.

Every time her disgust renewed, the reasons naturally came to mind. And.

'We're going to be late. My perfect attendance...'

Yet here she was again, walking to school with him.

And Si-hyun, who ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠had already made them late, had been trailing after Ha-rin that morning with his usual foolish grin.

'What's wrong with that idiot?'

Ha-rin had ordered her to protect Si-hyun, and she'd been particularly insistent today.

"Hey! Watch where you're going! Stop!"

He'd stepped into traffic without looking and nearly been hit.

Se-eun almost cursed him out. She barely stopped herself.

"...."

If Si-hyun was hurt—or even complained about her—Ha-rin would make sure Se-eun paid for it.

'I can't stand this.'

The thought of Ha-rin stirred an older, deeper terror.

It had begun when Se-eun was in her first year of elementary school. A driver had abducted her and Si-hyun on their way home.

—Be quiet. Both of you. Don't make a sound. Not even a breath.

Her older brother had whispered those words in the dusty hideout, shaking all over.

"I-I'm not the one you want, right? You only need my sister! L-let me go!"

He'd once been the dependable brother who played with her while their parents worked. Hearing him offer her up to the kidnappers shattered something inside her.

"Look at this little brat. Already knows how to save his own skin."

The kidnappers laughed, beat him unconscious, and left Se-eun curled up, trying not to sob.

She prayed desperately for someone to find them. Then—

"Si-hyun... Are you here?"

Ha-rin appeared at the hideout, alone. She was only thirteen then, small compared to the grown men waiting inside.

It made no difference. The girl was a monster.

SPLASH!

Blood sprayed across the room.

Ha-rin tore through the men who had terrified them. She ripped at throats and arms with terrifying ease, breaking bodies as though they were made of paper.

The driver fell to his knees, crying and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠pleading. Ha-rin crushed his head without hesitation.

Blood speckled her face as she turned to her sister.

"Park Se-eun. Remember this. From now on, stay away from Si-hyun. I don't know what I'll do if you get close to him. I don't even know myself. Test me if you like, but I can't promise you'll survive the result."

Her face showed no emotion. The sight froze Se-eun more completely than anything the kidnappers had done.

She couldn't force out a word.

Ha-rin's gentle smile frightened her more than the bodies scattered across the floor.

From that day forward, defying her sister had seemed impossible.

"...."

Even if it meant living without freedom.

The memory passed. Se-eun forced herself to breathe. These days she could at least think about Ha-rin without falling apart.

'I'm... I'm fine.'

After the rescue, Si-hyun claimed to have forgotten the kidnapping entirely.

Se-eun had never believed him.

To her, he was someone who would betray his own family to save himself.

'I'll never trust you again.'

And yet—

"You can tell your big brother anything! I'm much more reliable than Si-hyun, right?"

Even in a broken family, surely promises ought to mean something.

Se-eun and Si-hyun had agreed to chase away the boys and girls who pestered each other. She didn't want to speak to him, but she'd honored that agreement.

Today he'd done nothing. He'd just stared out the bus window wearing that ridiculous, vacant smile while Yu-seong bothered her.

'What is wrong with him?'

Usually he at least pretended to intervene. Today he hadn't even bothered.

Anger flared in her chest.

"Stay beside Si-hyun. Don't let other girls get near him."

That was Ha-rin's order. Why else would Se-eun have to make the trip with her brother every day?

There was no other reason. Ha-rin had demanded it.

'Just having me around is enough to scare most girls away from him.'

Ha-rin didn't want Si-hyun getting close to anyone else. She could have hired a driver, but after the kidnapping, that was out of the question.

So she'd made Se-eun his constant companion instead.

It was a family arrangement no normal household would ever consider.

'Nothing about us is normal.'

Still, Se-eun had tried to find some benefit in it.

'Even when you dragged me everywhere, I tried to think there might be something worth the trouble. Otherwise it was all just wasted time.'

With Si-hyun standing beside her, boys usually kept their distance. Whatever else was wrong with him, he had a face that could stop a crowd.

Until now, that had been enough. Why, then, had he seemed so useless today?

"You can't do that. Y-you have to listen to our older sister."

All the disgust she'd held in finally rose to the surface.

'I don't want to waste my whole life because of you. I want to choose something for myself.'

She'd never been a violent person. But Si-hyun's selfishness, his cowardice, and the way he seemed content with Ha-rin's control made her furious.

"You fucking bastard!"

Being excluded from breakfast didn't matter. Frankly, eating alone was easier.

What she couldn't bear was having her entire life reduced to a prop in her siblings' warped relationship.

'I'm done letting everyone else decide how I live.'

She might regret acting on that feeling.

If Ha-rin questioned him, Si-hyun would probably tell her everything.

That was the kind of person he'd become.

Se-eun had stopped expecting anything better from him.

Smack!

And yet—

Why did he seem different now?

Her fist glanced off his hand. Before she could strike again, his palm covered her mouth.

He turned her momentum aside and pinned her against the wall.

Her heart raced as she looked up.

The beautiful boy before her pressed a finger to his lips.

"Shh."

Gone was his usual vacant expression. His eyes were clear and sharply focused.

Slowly, Si-hyun reached into his pocket and took something out.

'...A listening device?'

In that moment, the future began to shift in a direction neither of them could have predicted.

『Park Se-eun's route has changed.』