Chapter 46
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 46
Chapter Title: Dryad Secret and Bang Disaster
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Cut!
"Dryad...?"
"Yeah."
I ended up revealing the secret of my birth to Ga-eun.
My mom is a Dryad, a tree fairy, and my dad is human.
I'm their half-breed child.
And not long before I met Ga-eun, I got into an accident that changed my body, freeing me from human flesh into this form.
...Of course, I kept quiet about gobbling up all that dirt and plant fertilizer.
The moment I finished speaking, I held my breath and waited for Ga-eun's reaction.
But contrary to my expectations, there wasn't much change in Ga-eun's expression.
"Oh, I see."
Ga-eun replied calmly.
...Huh? That's it?
I'd probably be more shocked by a sudden downpour.
"Why aren't you surprised?"
I was the one who ended up flustered and asked.
Ga-eun shrugged her shoulders.
"Well... After seeing Brüel yesterday, I already knew elves exist, so this isn't exactly new...?"
"Ah."
Honestly, even I had to admit—a sleek-suited, black-helmeted beauty of a special agent elf was way more astonishing than some lime-green kid.
"Plus, I've seen so many weird sides of you lately that I kinda guessed already."
I stared at Ga-eun with my mouth hanging wide open. A jumble of emotions swirled inside me.
Relief, a sense of release, and a strange twinge of disappointment.
"You could've at least acted a little surprised..."
Feeling oddly frustrated, I whined without thinking.
It was a million times better than disgust or rejection, but after spilling such a huge secret, wasn't her reaction a bit too underwhelming?
All my agonizing had been for nothing—I felt like an idiot.
Ga-eun's eyes widened at my reaction, then she burst out laughing and apologized.
"Pfft, sorry, was I too nonchalant? Okay, wow! That's amazing! A tree spirit? So cool! You're adorable!"
Then she suddenly jumped up, spread her arms wide, and spun around me.
"Whoa, our Su-hyeon is a tree spirit! This is huge, right? So awesome!"
Clap clap clap clap—
My face heated up from the surprise worship.
It was over-the-top, but it eased my mood a bit.
"Okay, that's enough."
"Oh, so you're a tree spirit? No wonder I wanted to tie your hair up baobab-style at first! Hehe."
"......"
And so Ga-eun's hype session ended.
"You said earlier you already suspected something weird?"
"Yeah, like during the aptitude test and stuff. I pieced it together from various things. The clincher was yesterday when Brüel said she was in your service."
"Ah."
Yeah, if I'm casually getting tended to by an elf, anyone would suspect I had some secret.
"Um... weren't you curious?"
"Huh? Of course I was dying to know."
"Then why didn't you ask?"
Ga-eun pondered for a moment, then answered as if it were the most obvious thing.
"I figured you had your reasons. Didn't want to pry if you were hiding it. Everyone has a secret or two, right?"
"Oh......"
She's so mature.
Younger than me, yet so understanding.
Ga-eun fiddled with my cheek as she continued.
"I was waiting for you to tell me when you were ready. As your friend, I wanted to respect your choice. Especially something like this—it's not easy. Thanks for being honest with me."
"Yeah... Thanks. I'm grateful too."
My eyes stung for no reason.
"But who shouldn't I tell about this?"
Ga-eun asked then.
"Probably everyone—they're all hiding their identities and living in secrecy. Though the elves handle any little slip-ups."
"Hmm... Must be tough. I'll be careful."
Afterward, Ga-eun and I headed to school together.
Oh, right—Brüel said she'd taken my bag back.
No wonder I couldn't find it no matter how hard I looked.
I could've carried my own bag, at least.
There were no classes today, but since our paths overlapped on the way to my house and school, she came to see me off.
No real plans during the free period anyway.
"Don't you have no classes today? You didn't have to come all the way here."
"It's fine. Free period anyway, nothing to do. Just a walk."
I was about to wave goodbye to Ga-eun in front of the lecture hall when someone grabbed my arm.
"Gotcha!"
Startled, I turned to see Min-ji and Ji-eun standing there, quite out of breath.
They looked like they'd run from afar.
These two are always together, even from different majors.
"What brings you both here?"
I asked, puzzled.
Min-ji showed me her phone screen as she explained.
It was filled with variations of my hairstyles that Ga-eun had posted.
"We wanted to touch Su-hyeon's hair too!"
"Yeah, it's unfair if only Ga-eun gets to. We're styling it and taking pics too."
Oh crap. I belatedly pulled out my phone and checked the group chat—tons of messages.
They'd guessed we were together from the pics Ga-eun posted and tracked us to near her lecture hall.
Impressive determination.
Min-ji was already in full tantrum mode.
"Me too! I wanna touch! The haiiir!"
Being with Ga-eun makes me feel immature, but watching Min-ji reassures me I'm pretty grown-up by comparison.
Sigh.
I brushed away the bangs flopping in my eyes and sighed.
Ji-eun noticed.
"Su-hyeon, your bangs are poking your eyes right now."
She saw that too?
"Yeah, kinda annoying."
Min-ji's eyes sparkled as she pounced.
"Then, then! How about trimming the bangs a bit?"
"Uh... We going to a salon?"
Honestly, sounded like a hassle. Couldn't I just forehead it up?
"Nah? You usually trim bangs yourself. I'll do it!"
"Yeah. But Su-hyeon's hair growing out makes her look less babyish, more mature."
"Kyaa! This is hell!"
It was a full-on skit.
They dragged me to the nearby women's restroom.
Min-ji pulled small scissors from her bag.
"You carry scissors around?"
"Need 'em for class or assignments."
They positioned me by the sink, swept up my forehead, and gauged the length.
"How much to cut? This much? This?"
"Just enough to lightly cover the eyebrows? Bangs have more volume than you think—they'll flip up a bit after."
"Mm, let's trim just a tiny bit first."
Following Ji-eun's advice, Min-ji seemed set.
"Might be risky, so don't move, okay?"
Min-ji's hands trembled like she had the shakes as she held the scissors to my face.
Seeing sharp metal quiver up close was scary.
"You sure I can trust you...? Don't stab me...?"
"I-It's fine... The height's lower than expected, so it's tricky... Don't worry, I'm good at this...!"
I decided to just close my eyes.
Min-ji took a deep breath and brought the scissors to my bangs. Slowly, very carefully, she started snipping.
Snip
Plop plop
The first cutting sound rang out, a few strands brushing my nose before falling to the floor.
Min-ji gained confidence, a relieved smile spreading.
"Whoa, perfect so far. Just a bit more..."
But then—the restroom door flew open as someone entered.
Min-ji's startled hand twitched...
Shnick
Chunk
Thud rustle—
"Huh?"
"Hek!?"
A small gasp escaped Min-ji.
Even Ji-eun watching was horrified.
"Hey, Park Min-ji, you...!"
"......Heok."
They couldn't even close their mouths.
What? Why the sudden freakout?
Is something wrong?
I opened my eyes and turned to the mirror over the sink.
?
Just neatly trimmed bangs stared back.
A bit short, so my forehead felt breezy, but...
"Why? Something wrong?"
Whether misfortune or luck, Su-hyeon didn't seem to care at all.
She wandered around uncombed all the time anyway—no big impact from short bangs.
But Min-ji and Ji-eun exchanged panicked looks, frozen and speechless.
"Ah, the bangs..."
"Hey..."
"Huh? Why stop? Looks fine to me."
"...Ah, haha! Yeah, Su-hyeon's face is so pretty it works as a style! Total face genius, huh? Ha, haha!"
Min-ji desperately tried to play it off.
Her face pale, sweating bullets—panic clear.
Ji-eun sighed and smacked Min-ji's head.
"Quit yapping. Let's go to the salon."
"Yeah..."
I didn't get why we suddenly needed a salon.
She'd already started—why bother?
"Huh? Do we have to...? Kinda annoying. Can't Min-ji finish?"
"No way—that's beyond amateur fix territory."
Ji-eun shut it down firmly.
And so we headed to Ji-eun's salon.
The place Ji-eun took us looked seriously upscale.
I froze at the glass-and-marble staircase, overwhelmed by the luxury.
"Th-This is a salon?"
Not a fancy hotel?
I shrank back.
"Yeah, my aunt's place—I get discounts all the time. Nice, right?"
"Yeah."
I nodded reflexively.
Who'd say no to this?
"Still pricey even with discount."
"Jealous? Don't come then."
"I don't come often anyway..."
Min-ji apparently got discounts too.
Old friends, maybe?
Inside was even posher.
Glossy red wallpaper, chandeliers, marble lobby.
Instead of dye smell, a subtle aroma wafted.
I instinctively huddled.
"If it's too pricey..."
Neighborhood clip joints or at best downtown shops were my speed—this didn't fit.
Ji-eun kneaded my shoulders.
"Relax, my aunt does half-off for friends? And she'll cover hers anyway. Let's go all out today."
"Ah."
Min-ji started to protest, then remembered her crime and just bowed her head meekly.
"No, it's okay..."
I tried refusing out of pity, but then a slim, sharply dressed man approached with a greeting.
"Welcome. Oh, Ji-eun? No call—what brings you? Didn't you get care last week?"
"Hi, Manager. Is An around?"
"Oh dear, An's off today. Should've called."
Ji-eun sought her regular stylist, but off-day apparently.
"Ah, not here for me today... Could you look after her?"
"Oh... Oh!!"
Ji-eun nudged Su-hyeon forward from behind.
The manager startled at Su-hyeon's looks, then double-took at the mangled bangs.
"What on earth..."
"Uh, bit of an accident..."
Min-ji mumbled guiltily.
"Mm... Hmm..."
The manager gravely lifted my bangs, inspected from all angles, then nodded solemnly.
"Mm, quite the challenge. But salvageable, kid. Could even go a different style? Wait a sec—I'll handle it myself."
"Really? If it's you, Manager, no worries."
"Sure~ Lounge a bit. I'll call after finishing up. Staff, take them to the waiting area?"
"Yes—."
We followed the manager's lead to the lounge with young staff help.
Soft leather sofas, latest TV, fashion mags galore.
And I was draped in a gold-embroidered luxury gown, half-reclined on the center sofa, sipping a staff-brought drink.
Orange juice.
"Feels like a hot spring."
"Heh, they got lounge ideas from spas."
Ji-eun lounged beside me in the same getup.
And Min-ji too.
"No wonder... You getting done too? Ji-eun, you just went last week."
"Figured since I'm here, try the new mana pack. But Min-ji, you sure?"
"What, you two get stuff and I just wait? Think of it as an early cut."
Min-ji sighed in resignation.
"Seriously, I could've paid. I don't even think your bangs are that bad."
I refused again, but Min-ji was firm.
"No! Gotta take responsibility as a woman! Got plenty of part-time pay left anyway!"
"Uh, huh? Okay..."
Wasn't she against it?
Whatever—her resolve was intense, so I let it go.
After chit-chatting a bit, a staffer fetched me somewhere.
No clue why, but Min-ji and Ji-eun tagged along sleepily.
The spot had the grim-faced manager and a bunch of staff around the chair.
"Uh..."
Do multiple stylists usually cut here...?
The manager nodded at me, elegantly lifting scissors and comb.
"Alright then, shall we begin?"