Chapter 51
Chapter 51
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: An Eye for an Eye, a Lip for a Lip.
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“Speak up. What the hell did you two do?!”
“H-Hey! Calm down! Put the sword away! Why are you even drawing your blade?!”
Woojin reached out to stop her, while Jihyun shouted in a fluster.
“Y-Yeah! It was nothing! We just had a little drink, that's all!”
“A drink? Don't make me laugh. My instincts never lie. I can sense something far more impure from you two.”
“W-What's impure about it! Nothing happened, I swear!”
“Ha?! You guys who come running the second I do anything remotely suspicious and nag me to death? 'Calm down'? That's suspicious enough as it is!”
She seemed self-aware that she did sketchy stuff on the regular.
Eileen's eyes sharpened even further.
That was when it happened.
Her gaze locked onto Woojin's wrists.
“!!!”
Under his short-sleeved T-shirt, both of Woojin's wrists bore vivid bruises.
Flash—
Eileen sheathed her sword in the blink of an eye and rushed to Woojin like the wind.
Woojin hadn't even seen her move.
“Oppa! Your wrists!!?”
She snatched his wrist to inspect it.
It was a bruise.
A very clear one.
Woojin oppa was hurt.
The moment she realized that, Eileen's eyes flipped with rage.
Rumble rumble rumble—!
A massive wave of mana rippled out, making everything in the house tremble.
The playfulness vanished from her face.
She was truly pissed now.
“Who.... Who dared to hurt my Woojin oppa....”
Her voice dropped low.
“Tell me!!!”
Jihyun freaked out and tried to intervene.
“Hey! Stop it! You're gonna wreck the whole house!!”
At that, Eileen whipped around and grabbed Jihyun by the nape of her neck.
Couldn't grab the strap of her tank top, so she went for the scruff instead.
Crack—
“Kkh!!”
“What the hell were you doing?! You were right there, and you let oppa end up like this? Are you just the world's strongest on paper!?”
“L-Let... go... kkh!!”
Jihyun felt wronged but had no defense.
It was her doing, after all.
“Make up an excuse! Who the hell dared to touch Woojin oppa!?”
The living room was already a mess. At this rate, the house might actually collapse.
That was when Woojin stepped up.
“Ow ow ow! Ouch, it hurts! Ugh... my wrist is gonna snap....”
Woojin's clumsy acting worked like a charm.
Flash—
Eileen tossed Jihyun aside, clicked her tongue, and rushed to Woojin.
“A-Are you okay? Let me see. Does it hurt bad? Anywhere else hurt?”
Her eyes filled with worry in an instant.
Woojin was a little touched.
'She really does care about me that much.'
Being the 'frail guy' protected by these sleek world-strongest beauties was kinda ridiculous, but what could he do? When you're powerless, you act.
Eileen yelled at Jihyun.
“Don't just stand there gawking! Get the medicine! Now!”
Jihyun, guilty as charged, mumbled in submission.
“O-Okay....”
As she went for the first-aid kit, Eileen ground her teeth.
“This won't do. Who the hell were they! If they could pull this off in Korea... Triads? Yakuza? They knew I was here and still dared? I need extreme measures for Woojin oppa's safety. Can't trust that Jihyun bitch... Huh?”
While checking Woojin's injury, Eileen's eyes narrowed.
“......?”
The wrist bruise wasn't a simple contusion.
Long, thin finger marks.
Five distinct pressure points.
This was a 'hand'.
A very slender woman's hand.
“The culprit... was a woman?”
Jihyun, carrying the first-aid kit, froze in shock.
Woojin's spine went ice-cold.
“W-Well, you see....”
Woojin scrambled for an excuse.
But nothing good came to mind.
Eileen began examining the bruise more closely.
“This... the angle....”
She placed her own hand over the bruise marks.
Press—one side—
“......”
Press—the other side—
“......”
It perfectly matched the pose of someone tying a person down from above.
“......”
Eileen snatched Jihyun's hand, still holding the kit.
Thud—!
Jihyun resisted.
“W-Why! Let go! Let go!”
Ignoring her, Eileen pressed Jihyun's hand to Woojin's wrist.
Size and shape matched perfectly.
“......”
“......”
“......”
Their gazes crossed awkwardly.
Silence fell.
“Y-You—! It was you! You're the culprit!”
“Kyaa! N-No! It's a misunderstanding!”
“Misunderstanding my ass! With evidence this clear! Spill it! What the hell did you do while grabbing Woojin oppa's wrist... Huh?”
Eileen finally shifted back to her usual mischievous mode a bit.
She'd realized the injury wasn't from an outsider.
Then, her now-relaxed eyes spotted another oddity on Woojin.
His thigh.
Under his shorts, a faint red mark lingered on Woojin's thigh.
Like something had pressed down on it.
“!!!!”
Eileen's pupils shook like there was an earthquake.
“...Additional on-site investigation required.”
Woojin instinctively stepped back.
“N-No, what?”
“Hold still.”
Grabbing Woojin's wrist, Eileen naturally sat him on the sofa.
“W-What are you doing!”
“Investigation in progress. Sit.”
“I'm sitting.”
“Sit still. No leg shaking.”
Woojin felt wronged, but had no grounds to refuse now.
Eileen flicked the hem of his shorts with a fingertip.
“Lift it. If I do, it's sexual harassment.”
“Lift what!”
“This.”
Jihyun exploded.
“You're insane—!”
“If there's nothing to hide, why object? Worried it's your mark?”
Jihyun shut her mouth. No comeback.
“...Ugh.”
“F-Fine! I'll lift it. Lifting's all you want, right!”
Woojin lifted the shorts hem just a tiny bit. Eileen's eyes flashed.
“...This is....”
The bruise on Woojin's thigh. Faint, but unmistakably from a 'person's thigh pressing down.'
“Ha?! You two....”
Eileen pinned Woojin's wrists.
Exactly like Jihyun had yesterday.
“W-What are you doing!”
Eileen didn't care.
“Confirming evidence now.”
“Confirming wha—!!!”
Silently, she lifted her smooth leg and placed it over Woojin's thigh.
Slide—
Woojin jolted in shock.
“W-What the hell!”
“Hold still! On-site verification in progress!”
Eileen finally assumed the pose, pressing her thigh down on him.
Exactly the position Jihyun had taken yesterday.
A perfect reenactment, not a word off.
But it felt different from yesterday.
A massive rage emanated from Eileen atop him.
“Hehehehe... So this was it? What you were hiding...?”
Grrr rumble—
Black aura began pouring from Eileen's body.
She was on the verge of exploding.
“Jihyun......”
“Y-Yeah?”
“Y-You thief!!!! How dare you!!! Taking advantage while I was gone!!”
“No!! I didn't! I'll explain!! Just calm down, please!!”
“'The quiet cat climbs the stove first'!! You damn Jihyun!”
In the end, Woojin and Jihyun had no choice but to confess everything from last night to the master detective Eileen.
Otherwise, she'd really misunderstand in some other(?) way.
A moment later, the three sat at the table in an interrogation-room vibe.
“So.... It was all an impulsive accident from the booze?”
Eileen asked coldly, arms crossed.
“Y-Yeah! We didn't do anything! My dad was there too! Right, Woojin oppa?”
“Y-Yeah! Jihyun's not crazy—her dad's in the house, she wouldn't do that to me! Haha....”
Woojin chimed in, sweating bullets.
But Eileen scoffed.
“No, that is crazy. Hmph, and you already committed an 'attempt.' Attempted murder's still a crime. You know that, right?”
“......”
Jihyun clamped her mouth shut. Nothing to say.
But the grilling wasn't over.
“Then the lip balm smell.... How do you explain that?”
It had finally come.
Jihyun's eyes darted around, then she mumbled weakly.
“Th-That really happened? No way, right?”
“Ha, kidding me? Want me to reenact this one too?”
Eileen's action speed was no joke.
Who knew what outlandish stunt she'd pull next.
“W-Well... Maybe it just barely brushed oppa's body. Got on his clothes or something....”
In the end, Jihyun indirectly confessed what she'd done.
Of course, she never admitted it touched lips.
But that was enough for Eileen. Her blue eyes gleamed.
“Oh? You must think I'm an idiot.”
Thud—
Whoosh—
It happened in a flash.
Eileen snatched Woojin's wrist and yanked him straight into her arms.
Paper-doll flimsiness, just like yesterday.
“Wha?!”
Snap—
Woojin's body flew into Eileen's embrace.
“You did it, so I do it. No complaints, right?”
“Do what!”
Eileen looked up—no, glared like she wanted to devour him—at the pinned Woojin.
The beastly glint Jihyun had shown yesterday.
“What else? What you did. Gotta be fair, no?”
“What did I do!?”
Eileen said flatly, but with total conviction.
“A kiss. Not your style to go deep... Just a light peck, right? You think I'd fall for such an obvious cover story?”
“!!!”
How the hell did she know? Jihyun and Woojin couldn't comprehend.
Detective? More like a fortune teller.
Had she gone out last night and gotten possessed by a spirit?
Her face drew closer to Woojin's.
“Kyaa! Stop!”
Jihyun screamed, but Eileen snorted.
“Don't make me laugh. An eye for an eye, a lip for a lip. Looks like you forced it on him, so why can't I? Sorry, Woojin oppa. It's procedure for fair competition.”
Pretty gentlemanly(?) and logical, even.
Woojin wasn't sure whether to nod or not, so he just froze blankly.
No—with these two's strength, escape was impossible. He gave up.
“......Do what you want.”
Jihyun yelled.
“What! Do whatever you want!”
Eileen smiled, licking her lips.
“Hehe, don't worry. I'm a classy lady. I'll make it quick.”