Little Sister (2)
From the time I was little, I was the kind of kid who always paid back exactly what I received. No more, no less — just as much as I'd been given.
I figured that way, the other person would understand how I felt.
But growing older taught me something.
Paying someone back exactly what they did to you makes you an idiot.
Obviously, the other person has no idea. They never feel the same pain you felt.
I'll kill her.
The other party was still just an Academy cadet. Ordinarily, I would have closed my eyes and let it slide. If it hadn't involved Chaewon, that is.
She'd laid a hand on someone she should never have touched.
All I had to do was whisper it quietly. Die.
With a blank expression, I slowly opened my mouth. Not a shred of guilt crossed my mind.
Then—
Rattle.
The classroom door slid open. I turned my gaze without thinking.
"What are you guys doing?"
It was Yoo Sia. She swept her eyes across the classroom in an instant. Then, as if she'd grasped the situation completely, she approached with a cold smile, her strides long and unhurried.
"Y-Yoo Sia. Stay out of this? This isn't any of your—"
"...!"
Click.
My mind snapped into focus in an instant. Yoo Sia had closed the distance in a flash and, without a word of warning, shoved a pistol straight into Shin Jihye's mouth.
"Congratulations. You'll be joining your parents now."
Whoa — was she always like this?
I remembered Yoo Sia as the quiet type. I'd never once seen her get angry in all the time I'd known her. She was the kind of girl who always considered other people's feelings. But the scene in front of me was of her jamming a gun into someone's mouth and smiling ice-cold.
"S-Sia! Don't!"
Chaewon desperately tried to stop her.
"...You stay out of this."
"Mmph!"
But Sia, her face expressionless, only pressed the gun in deeper. A faint sheen of tears gathered at the corners of Shin Jihye's eyes.
"W-what the hell do you think you're doing?!"
Her hanger-on tried to intervene.
"Want to join your parents too?"
"...!"
Sia merely tilted her head, her expression utterly unbothered. The girl opened her mouth, looking incredulous.
"D-don't get cocky. You wouldn't actually shoot, would you?"
"You think I wouldn't."
"G-go ahead! If you want your life to be over. Do you even know who Jihye's parents are?"
"Ah."
Sia nodded quietly. Then she smiled brightly.
"Do you know who my parents are?"
"Sia... you can't shoot!"
Chaewon kept trying to stop her, but Sia didn't seem to hear. Her slender finger rested lightly on the trigger.
Looking at that, I thought: That's so fucking cool.
Her already beautiful features seemed to shine even brighter. The pistol dangling from those pale fingertips looked as cinematic as a scene from a movie.
"That's right. I was going to shoot whether you told me to or not."
A click rang out. She'd pulled the trigger.
No bullet came out.
"...?"
Thud.
Shin Jihye collapsed to the floor. At the same time, a clear liquid trickled down from the hem of her skirt.
Sia leaned down and spoke gently.
"Empty magazine. So you are afraid of dying."
"H-hwaaaah!"
Shin Jihye burst into sobs.
...Yoo Sia.
Chaewon, who had been covering her eyes, had already approached her. Then she took off her uniform blazer and gently draped it over Shin Jihye's skirt.
"...Cover yourself with this. And apologize. For talking to my brother like that."
Something ached in my chest. She always snapped at me, but it wasn't as if I didn't understand how Chaewon felt. We had a bond thicker than words.
Still, my mind was a mess with a new realization. ...Chaewon isn't being bullied or anything, is she?
And gratitude toward Yoo Sia filled every corner of my thoughts.
That's a relief.
I returned to the shop and took off my mask. What had happened to Chaewon had been a massive shock. If Sia hadn't been there, I would have killed them.
...Yoo Sia.
The potential to become a future S-rank Hunter. Beyond that, there was a lot that was unusual about her. Mixed-race — I'd heard she was of British descent. She'd spent most of elementary and middle school in England, and hadn't been in Korea for long.
The only daughter of SJ Group, the number-one corporation in Korea's business world. In short, an enormous chaebol family. The unusual part was that despite being from a chaebol family, her parents had an international marriage, making her a mixed-race girl with silver-gray hair and blue eyes.
Long silver hair and blue eyes. When she'd gotten close with Chaewon... I didn't even know. But in my previous life, she'd been Chaewon's closest friend as well.
I smiled quietly. I should treat her well. I owed her a great deal, after all.
While I'm at it, maybe I should invite her over?
Chaewon and Sia's relationship. They'd been close in the previous loop too, but it would help if I looked after her even more. The shop was opening tomorrow anyway, so I figured I'd show off my skills for the first time in a while. I didn't only know how to make noodles, after all.
I opened my phone and sent a KakaoTalk message.
......
Like sister, like brother. She'd latched onto the "something tasty" part immediately.
I looked at the chat with a fond, fatherly smile and stuffed my phone into my pocket. Then I grabbed my coat.
What to make. I considered it briefly, but the answer was already decided. If I wasn't going to use the advantages of regression for this, then what was the point? I already knew.
...The food Yoo Sia had gone crazy for in my previous life.
Two high school girls were walking home from school. At the fork where their paths split, they stopped for a moment. Yoo Sia smiled brightly and waved.
"See you tomorrow, Chaewon."
Chaewon had been wearing a conflicted expression, but realizing this was her last chance, she spoke up in a rush.
"H-hey!"
"...Hm?"
Sia tilted her head. Chaewon recalled the KakaoTalk exchange she'd had with Seonghun.
"A-are you busy right now?"
"Is something going on?"
Sia's face was full of expectation. Chaewon ducked her head, mumbling, embarrassed.
"No, it's just... it's nothing big."
She said it timidly.
"If you're okay with it... want to come over to my place?"
Sia was about to nod immediately at that adorable display — then a delightful idea occurred to her, and she stopped. She spoke with a mischievous look.
"What a shame, Chaewon. I've got something today."
"...Something?"
"Yeah. I have to go to a banquet hall. One of my mom's friends is getting married. It's a celebration party."
Yoo Sia was mixed-race. Her father was Korean, her mother British. She'd grown up in England as a child. Even her name, Sia, had been chosen so it wouldn't sound strange whether used abroad or in Korea.
"...Ah. I see."
Chaewon's shoulders slumped. The disappointment on her face was obvious.
The part about having to go to a banquet hall was actually true. It was just that, to Yoo Sia, that kind of thing wasn't particularly important. She could postpone any schedule she wanted if it was for Chaewon. But she'd wanted to see this dejected look on Chaewon's face. Now that she'd accomplished her goal, she filled Chaewon's hopes back up.
"I'm lying."
"Huh...?"
"I just wanted to see you look disappointed."
Sia laughed softly and took Chaewon's hand.
"Let's go! I wanted to visit your house anyway. I learned that best friends are supposed to... go over to each other's houses like this."
"S-Sia, you..."
Chaewon looked indignant, but she was happy. The reason she'd hesitated in the first place was because she'd been afraid Sia would refuse. She smiled, beaming, and walked on holding Sia's hand.
The food Yoo Sia had gone crazy for in my previous life.
That would be kimchi fried rice.
"The rice came out well. Still got it, after all."
The most important ingredient in fried rice. That would be, above all else, the rice. In fried rice, the rice is both the star and the entire show.
The kimchi's good stuff too. This'll work.
Kimchi fried rice is a little unique. Since it's fried rice, of course the rice matters — but the kimchi is what decides the flavor. Korea's soul food. If you're going to run a noodle shop in Korea, you can't have kimchi that tastes like garbage. You can't make kimchi in a hurry, but fortunately, our family's kimchi had always been on the tasty side.
I finished all my prep and started cooking. A moderate amount of oil in the pan. Stir-fry the green onions, then add the ingredients and the rice and toss it all together. And just like that, it's done.
Ding-dong.
They'd arrived at just the right time. I roughly tidied the kitchen tools and headed for the front door.
"Oh, you're here?"
Yoo Sia and Chaewon. My little sister was, needless to say, adorable, and Yoo Sia was beautiful. The long silver hair and blue eyes were striking — a look you didn't see often in Korea. The moment she saw me, she bowed from the waist, greeting me with impeccable manners.
"Hello. Um, this is..."
Sia held something out. A shopping bag.
"What's this?"
"I felt bad coming empty-handed."
I glanced at Chaewon, who averted her eyes at an angle and mumbled.
"I told her she didn't have to, but she brought it anyway. ...Isn't Sia nice? That's my friend."
Her voice grew quieter with every word. She was embarrassed.
"Yeah. She is nice."
"Th-thank you."
It was a completely different person from the one I'd seen at school. This was also the Yoo Sia I remembered — quiet, polite, well-mannered. The image of her shoving a gun into someone's mouth earlier came back to me, and I almost laughed. I never would have guessed she had that kind of steel in her.
Anyway, I showed them inside.
"I just about finished, actually. Have a seat and I'll bring it out."
"Oppa. What's on the menu today?"
Chaewon looked up at me, her face full of expectation. I'd never been a bad cook to begin with. In my previous life, I'd often made meals for my little sister. Most sibling relationships don't involve much trust, but Chaewon remembered my skills well enough to have brought Sia over.
I said it shortly.
"Kimchi fry."
"...Kimchi fry?"
Chaewon blinked. Then, as if she'd processed what that meant, her face fell.
"...You told me to bring my friend. You said you'd make something tasty."
I answered like I couldn't see the problem.
"Yeah. It is tasty."
"H-how is kimchi fry tasty. I mean, I think it's tasty, but... it probably wouldn't be for Sia."
Sia's family was well-off. Not just well-off — practically half-chaebol. That was why Chaewon seemed to think kimchi fried rice wouldn't be enough to satisfy her.
Even chaebols eat ramyeon.
As I was thinking that, Sia hurriedly waved her hands.
"It's fine. I'll eat anything."
"...Really?"
"Yeah. Really."
As expected of a kid from a well-off family... she's got class.
My fondness for Yoo Sia was blasting through the ceiling and heading for outer space when she added one more thing.
"Um, but..."
"Hm?"
"What's kimchi fry?"
Yoo Sia blinked her big eyes. She genuinely had no idea what it was.
...She didn't even know it existed at this point?
A newly discovered fact. Even better, actually. That meant I'd be the first one to feed it to her.
"You don't know what it is?"
Chaewon said it like she was stunned. Yoo Sia nodded.
"Yeah. Is it maybe... something like escargot? I'm not very good with that kind of thing."
"E-seung-ga?"
Chaewon tilted her head. Escargot was a snail dish. For the record, I hated that food too. I shook my head firmly.
"It's not that kind of food. Don't worry. It's something nobody has strong feelings about."
"Ah, yes."
"Just wait here a second."
I gave the fried rice one more toss over high heat and plated it. I made it as pretty as I could. They were girls, after all, and food always tastes better when it looks good.
After finishing the plating, I set the completed kimchi fried rice down in front of them.
"This one's yours, Chaewon."
Clack.
I only put a little on her plate.
"This one's yours."
"Th-thank you."
The one I gave Sia was piled high. Purely selfish of me. It was also payback for my little sister, and...
Can't turn my little sister into a pig.
Watching her put away two bowls of noodles plus bread that morning, I had a feeling she'd suffer through a diet over vacation.
This life, I dedicate everything to my little sister.
So I would erase every source of misfortune aimed at Chaewon from the face of the earth.
I renewed my resolve once more, and set down my chopsticks.