Chapter 49
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Is This the Truman Show, or a Game of Lies?
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“Oppa. Let's head up.”
“Ah. I'm gonna smoke one more and then go up.”
“Oooong. Why so suddenly. Okayyy. I'm heading up first!”
“Sure.”
I watched Oh Hana's back as she bounded up the stairs, her hips swaying with vibrant energy, and really lit up another cigarette.
“Sssip, fwoo!”
Even inhaling the smoke deeply didn't ease this stuffiness, this inexplicable sense of disappointment? What should I even call this feeling? One thing was clear—the meal I'd just eaten felt stuck in my chest for no reason.
Digestion wasn't happening.
“Yeesh… Ha. Man.”
A hollow laugh escaped me on its own.
[Find out the purposes and circumstances of living together with the people in the one-room apartment]
[0/3]
[Reward: 3 million won, Stamina +3, Virility +3, Strength +3, Intimidation Skill]
[Quest completes only upon hearing somewhat accurate purposes or detailed circumstances.]
Reading the additional conditions made me think it wouldn't be an easy quest to clear, but the fact that not a single one had been honest with me was chilling. Seriously.
Even when I heard their stories right in front of me, I thought all three were telling the truth. They were all so plausible. Such convincing expressions.
Han Aebom had the most serious face of all, and Oh Hana didn't look like she was lying either. As for Yoon Sua, what can I say? Even if she was lying, her innocent face made you believe it was the truth.
“Is this for real, or total bullshit.”
I vaguely remembered reading some nonsense article back in the day saying women's lies are a primal instinct. Is that it?
“Then what? Even without mentioning the quest, doesn't that mean I was the only one who confessed everything honestly?”
My black history generation is insane.
I tapped out the last of the cigarette ash and slumped down right there, cradling my head in one hand.
Honestly, I had no idea how to face them now.
These liars.
Ignorance is bliss.
…Maybe that's a saying for times like this. I might end up in a psych ward at this rate. I'm trying my best to act normal, but it's giving me paranoid personality disorder vibes—doubting others' actions, distrusting their intentions. Feels like I'm turning into that kind of person.
[Novel24]
I clocked in at the convenience store, and even though I'd normally dive into studying with enthusiasm, not a single word was sinking in. The text just blurred my vision.
“Hey, kid, what's with that face.”
“……”
The store manager, shrugging off his vest to head home, glanced at me and couldn't hold back—he came over again. This guy's hilarious. He wants to leave, but when quitting time hits, he's scared of getting nagged at home, so he lingers.
Or maybe he just likes having someone to chat with casually.
“Same face as always?”
“What bullshit is that.”
The manager grabbed the corners of his mouth with both hands and yanked them up in disbelief.
“You've been walking around lately with a face like you're blissed out of your mind. You even started studying again after slacking off. I thought, 'Finally, the kid's getting his shit together,' but today you're looking like death warmed over. How could I not worry?”
Was I that obvious? Oh, right—when I visited my parents' home, everyone immediately noticed my complexion had improved, my skin looked better.
What's the point? Like the manager said, I'd had a brief taste of heaven, and now it felt like hands from hell were dragging me back. More precisely, like I'd plunged my own feet deep into the mud.
‘Did I ask for no reason?’
Maybe I rushed it. Or maybe the one who gave me this quest is at fault? No. I couldn't blame an innocent quest after all I'd gained from it. Plus, there was no penalty for failing it anyway. Pushing too hard was just my greed.
“Gasp. No way—you already heard the news?”
“News?”
What news?
“Cigarette prices are going up across the board next month. Like 8,000 won a pack, they say?”
“Eh?!”
The thoughts cluttering my head vanished in an instant. To a non-smoker, a cigarette price hike might be idle gossip like "the neighbor's dog pooped today." But for a smoker, it was no joke.
Hell, I'd riot if an OTT subscription jumped 2,500 won. Imagine for someone smoking a pack a day.
2,500 times 30… Fuck. How much extra per month… Huh?
“Pfft, pfheh! Puhahaha! Kidding, you idiot! Wow, you bought it hook, line, and sinker. Hey, you think prices just spike out of nowhere like that? Even if they do, it'd be all over the news for a year first. You think smokers nationwide would stay quiet?”
If he weren't so much older, I'd have decked him.
“Ha. Seriously… I'm super sensitive to lies right now. I'm even seriously considering therapy, and you pull that prank.”
“That bad? What, did you get scammed? Cops catch fraud these days in a snap if you report it.”
That would've been better.
Ah, right.
“Manager.”
“Yeah? What is it? Why are you looking at me like that, all full of hope? It's creepy.”
“I feel like you'd give me an answer close to the truth.”
“Y-you little shit. What the hell.”
I asked.
“Ever lied to your family?”
“My family?”
The emotion I felt right now was hard to pin down. One thing was certain: betrayal simmered underneath. What was it? Childish stubbornness? Like, I told the truth, so why did you lie?
Pathetic to admit to anyone.
“Me? All the time, obviously?”
What?
“Kid. Saying my wife's the prettiest in the world, or her cooking's the best. You gotta do it to survive.”
Brain-dead.
“You never watched dramas? White lies, kid. White lies. Sometimes you gotta lie out of consideration for the other person.”
I wanted to argue, but he was too earnest.
“I whine about sales sucking every day. But at home? I act like it's fine. Even if it's not, I pretend and push to make it so.”
“……”
“Imagine dumping 'sales are tanking'—that heavy shit—in front of my wife. I'd get nagged, sure, but how burned up would she feel? Nothing she could do about it.”
I was stunned again, for a different reason.
“What's that look?”
“Nothing. I never dreamed you'd drop actual wisdom on me.”
“You punk! Least you could do is say 'impressive' even if it's empty flattery. Don't you know white lies?”
Yeah. White lies.
“Makes me think I should try them from now on.”
Muttering that the kid had lost his marbles, the manager quietly clocked out. After he left, I mulled it over while handling chores until dawn. I reached one conclusion.
‘White lies.’
That phrase I'd heard way too much today stuck in my chest like it wouldn't budge. Yeah. It might be my delusion, but if I'm gonna delude myself, better in a good direction.
The three women sharing the one-room had circumstances they couldn't reveal to me without harm, so they all resorted to white lies.
Boils down to me not being trustworthy enough. That much was true.
“Welcome.”
“Pay with PayPay card, please.”
“Yes, got it. 9,720 won.”
「Ding-a-ling!」
What trust could a convenience store part-timer like me expect? Maybe I'd been strutting around with too much swagger lately. After 29 years as a solo virgin, banging those beauties might've inflated my self-worth.
‘If that's it, then just raise my actual value.’
My foggy mind suddenly cleared. Not easy, but knowing a clear path forward got my body moving.
[Study diligently to raise your own value]
[0/100 hours]
⏰ Reward: 1 million won, Low-Level Speed Reading Skill
Ha. The system window popped up like it was waiting, and I swear I heard a voice: About time you figured it out.
‘Raise my value so high no white lies are needed, and eventually, they'll tell me the truth.’
Just 100 hours?
At 5 hours a day, that's 20 days. Piece of cake.
[AM 3:13]
…
…
…
[AM 4:41]
Huh?
[Study diligently to raise your own value]
[0/100 hours]
⏰ Reward: 1 million won, Low-Level Speed Reading Skill
Why isn't it going up?
Cherry blossom festival flyers were starting to litter the ground. Even the convenience store had limited-time sakura-themed products—copying Japan, maybe?
“Ugh! Time to finally pack away the puffer jacket.”
The long, brutal cold was finally nearing its end.
“Don't put it away yet. Flower cold snaps can feel like April, but they actually last into May. It could get cold again suddenly.”
“Ahem! That's what grit is for—that's me! With my love for Riki, I could run a lap around the neighborhood naked!”
“Then do it.”
Watching the two bicker as always, Yoon Sua and I shared a quiet chuckle.
By the way.
[Study diligently to raise your own value]
[13/100 hours]
⏰ Reward: 1 million won, Low-Level Speed Reading Skill
Lately, I've finally grasped what true focus means. I'm so zoned in now that I sometimes don't even notice customers coming into the store.
I wondered why the time wasn't ticking up consistently. Turns out, I wasn't truly focusing before.
That damn focus. It makes my teeth chatter now. Time only counts when I'm fully immersed in the knowledge I'm absorbing. Of course, thanks to that, anything I read once and reviewed sticks like glue—even in my sleep.
Once I got the knack, focusing became a breeze.
‘Raising my value like this, I'll become reliable enough for the three women to share their hidden circumstances.’
Just imagining that day fills a corner of my chest with pride.
“Um, Hyunwoo-ssi.”
“Yes?”
Han Aebom called me.
“Could you come in 30 minutes early today?”
“Pardon?”
Her shift is nights, so our schedules overlap, and we usually head in together.
30 minutes early? Why?
I was curious, but it wasn't an issue, so I nodded readily. She flashed a bright smile. She looks thrilled.
“What? You two got a date?”
“Just a walk?”
And so, Han Aebom and I stepped out side by side. Not our usual route—we took a detour.
Once we were a bit away from the one-room, she spoke up.
“Hyunwoo-ssi.”
“Yes.”
“Actually, I have something to tell you. It's hard to say in front of Oh Hana-ssi and Yoon Sua-ssi.”
“……!”
What? Did it come already? Has Han Aebom decided I'm fully trustworthy and it's time to reveal her hidden truth?
‘Fuck. It's here!’
Her expression was more serious than ever. My heart pounded harder than ever. Now that the moment was here, I was insanely tense.
“Yes. Go ahead.”
I'm ready to hear it.
…I thought.
“Um, Hyunwoo-ssi. Our sex… how should we do it?”
Her words stopped me dead in my tracks. Never imagined that coming from that face.