Chapter 115: . The First Encounter (1)
Chapter 115: . The First Encounter (1)
I calmly and carefully observed the final boss party to find out which of them was the final boss and whether that person was a he or a she.
The party started talking to each other while pointing their fingers at me.
With my Gift, I could hear their voices.
—Sahyuk, what do you think about him?
The man called the girl, who was still glaring at me, Sahyuk.
In that case, her last name should be Jin.
Jin Sahyuk.
I couldn’t help but sigh.
I pressed down on my temple.
The final boss had the same name I gave… her.
I held up my smartwatch, but there were no messages to explain this situation as I had hoped.
Meanwhile, they continued to talk.
—Is he really looking at us?
Glaring at me, Jin Sahyuk asked the man.
—Of course, our eyes met.
—Really? But he didn’t look like someone who was strong.
Jin Sahyuk was designed to be the ‘growing final boss’.
Having the same or perhaps higher potential than Kim Suho, she would grow faster than Kim Suho and become the final boss by the end of the story. In a way, she was Kim Suho’s true rival.
Even though she was now a girl, her fate shouldn’t have changed.
If I had the bullet refined with Misteltein’s leaf, she was an enemy I would kill even if I had to consume all of my SP.
—Sahyuk, train your discernment ability. Someone with the eyesight to look down at us from that distance and the courage to glare back at you couldn’t possibly be average.
Just like the man said, my eyesight was special. To have the same level of eyesight as me, one’s perception stat needed to at least be 15.
—And look at that beard. He looks strong too.
I rubbed my beard. I left it alone because I was getting SP just by walking around Cube, but it seemed it was time for me to cut it.
—Didn’t you tell me not to judge a book by its cover?
Jin Sahyuk glared at the man. However, the man only laughed in response.
I grew more and more curious about the man’s identity. In the original story, Jin Sahyuk only had his lackeys beside him…
“Ehew, nevermind.”
This world was different.
I needed to stop crying about the original story.
—Ehem, that’s because I have good discernment and you don’t. Listen brat, stop glaring at him. Are you trying to pick a fight?
—He glared at me first! In fact, he’s still glaring at me!
—I’m sure he’s just attracted to you. Why don’t you wink at him instead? Show off your beauty.
—What about a death wink? I can shoot a beam of magic power at him.
I flinched. This crazy bitch…
Thankfully, the man reacted sensibly and stopped Jin Sahyuk. Then, he waved at me and began to walk away.
I watched them leave to an unknown place.
Although I was caught off guard, I was able to ascertain the girl’s identity.
But who was that man? Who could be standing beside her as her equal or perhaps even a superior?
“Hajin~ can Hayang and I go swimming together~?”
At that moment, Evandel’s cheerful voice rang out.
“Hm?”
I turned around.
Evandel was swinging her legs inside the presidential suite’s indoor swimming pool, while Hayang was happily swimming around.
“Sure, but do you know how to swim?”
“Of course, of course~”
Evandel jumped into the pool boasting.
She didn’t need to change into a swimsuit because her clothes were made of magic power.
“Hayang, Hayang~ let’s race~”
Hearing Evandel, Hayang swam to the starting point.
I could clearly see that this mystical cat was getting smarter.
“It will be ready, start, then go. Okay? Ready…”
Evandel dragged out her word and observed Hayang’s posture.
Then suddenly…
“Start—!”
She quickly shouted and got a head start. Surprised by her cheap tactic, Hayang quickly moved her tiny feet and chased after her.
I smiled warmly as I watched them.
Was this what having a daughter felt like?
…Though of course, I wouldn’t be able to have a child like Evandel with my genes.
**
Saturday morning.
Rather than returning to Cube, I went to the new apartment I purchased.
Located in Seoul’s Seocho District, each of the apartment’s rooms was about 160 square meters on average. By buying this apartment, I realized that my financial power wasn’t anything to be proud of. Even though I became a multi-billionaire through the stock market, buying this apartment cost half of my entire savings.
Of course, the cost of the land had to be considered.
Despite being a superpower in this world, Korea was a tiny country.
“Hajin, Hajin, where is this? It’s so big~”
“It’s our new house. We’ll be staying here from time to time. You can think of it as… a villa.”
“Aha~”
Just as she liked to do in Cube’s dorm room, Evandel ran and sat down on the couch. On the other hand, Hayang walked around the room, looking for somewhere high to climb to.
“I should have brought the nightingales~”
Evandel murmured as she rolled around on the couch. Just to be clear, nightingales referred to all the birds Evandel created. Although they all looked different, Evandel called all birds nightingales, most likely because that’s what I called them.
“Evandel, play with Hayang here. We have Legos, dolls, a video game console, and a TV here, and there are food and snacks in the fridge. Uncle is going to be out for a bit.”
“Un!”
“Meow~”
Because I played with them all night yesterday, Evandel and Hayang happily agreed.
I left the room and got on Agusta.
Listening to its clear engine noise, I raced through the road and arrived at Seoul Portal Station at 8 p.m.
It was an hour before the promised time.
I parked the bike and sat down on a bench inside the Portal Station’s waiting room.
As time passed, people began to arrive.
First was Oh Hanhyun. As soon as he saw me, he widened his eyes, clearly surprised that I was here early.
“You’re already here, Hajin-ssi?”
“Yep.”
Kim Suho, who was the next person to arrive, also reacted the same way. He was also dragging along Yi Yeonghan, who still seemed to be half-asleep.
“Hajin? Why are you here so early?”
“No reason. I guess I was just looking forward to it.”
“Ah, I get it. Kuku, that’s cute.”
Kim Suho laughed. Then, as though he suddenly remembered it, he spoke to Oh Hanhyun.
“Oh right, Senior Oh Hanhyun, Yoo Yeonha says she will come later tonight. Apparently, she’s not feeling well.”
“What?”
I was the first one to be surprised.
Yoo Yeonha coming late? Why wasn’t she feeling well? There shouldn’t have been any incident that would make her ill….
“Do you know why?”
“Apparently she’s hospitalized.”
“What? Hospitalized?”
My surprise turned into shock. Yi Yeonghan replied as he yawned.
“I think it was gastritis caused by stress? You know, she’s kind of sensitive. Chae Nayun even went to visit her yesterday.”
Speaking of the devil, Chae Nayun just came into the station.
“Yo~”
With a bright smile, Chae Nayun waved her hand and ran up to us.
I was puzzled. Chae Nayun wasn’t the type to smile so joyfully when her friend was sick.
“I heard Yoo Yeonha’s sick.”
“Oh, Yeonha? She’s fine now thanks to me staying up with her all night. Her complexion isn’t pale anymore either. She told me to go ahead.”
“Did she?”
In that case, she must have just eaten something bad. After all, Yoo Yeonha liked to secretly eat junk food.
“Alright everyone, let’s go~”
Oh Hanhyun smiled brightly and led us through the Portal.
It only took ten steps for us to get from Seoul to Busan.
Once we left the Busan Portal Station, Busan’s scenery was in full view.
Busan was fully deserving of being called the second capital of Korea. A blue sky, a variety of shops lined up on the streets. People of all nationalities were lined up in front of them, but they all spoke Korean.
“Today, we’ll go on a street tour. Busan is full of street shops: clothing shops, miscellaneous item shops, weapon shops, antique shops, and others. It’s my hometown, so just follow me.”
Oh Hanhyun confidently took on the role of a guide, and we followed after him.
“Busan, Busan~ Busan seagulls~”
Chae Nayun hummed happily and came next to me.
“Hey, have you been to Busan?”
“Yeah, obviously.”
“I see. Oh look, that must be Busan’s street shop road.”
Chae Nayun nudged my arm and pointed at a road filled with street vendors.
Together as a group, we walked in.
Clothes, weapons, scrolls, books… there were all sorts of items on display. Chae Nayun looked around with her eyes opened wide, then disappeared like the wind.
After about five minutes…
“Hey, try this.”
Chae Nayun brought a hat from somewhere.
“What’s this?”
“Try it on.”
Before I could say anything, she put the hat on my head, then glanced at me from top to bottom.
“Oh~ not bad. Do you want me to buy it for you?”
“No, I’m good.”
“But I already bought it, so just keep it on.”
With that, she disappeared once again.
I looked at the price tag that was still on the hat.
What kind of a hat was 350,000 won?
Since it was gifted, I kept it on and continued looking around the shops. I was looking for a proper antique shop, hoping to score some valuable items like I did in Clancy Islet.
At that moment, Chae Nayun appeared once again. This time, with a hot dog in hand.
“Hey, eat this.”
“Where did you….”
Before I could even speak, Chae Nayun stuffed the hot dog in my mouth.
“…Why aren’t you eating?”
“I’ll get sick if I do.”
Chae Nayun looked at me eating a hot dog and giggled like a child.
I stared back at her silently.
She was cheerful and energetic. Her brightness and positivity were making me tired.
Was she like this because Chae Jinyoon's condition improved? Or was it because she…
Suddenly, I felt my stomach churn.
A fundamental question rose up in my head.
Was I allowed to be this friendly with Chae Nayun?
An uncomfortable acquaintance. Wasn’t that the relationship I wanted to maintain with Chae Nayun?
“….”
However, one’s feelings weren’t so easily controlled.
Now, a dark thought that has been sleeping inside me began to emerge.
That it was okay as long as she never found out.
“Hey, try putting this on. It’s going to get cold soon.”
After disappearing once again, Chae Nayun reappeared with a scarf, then put it around my neck.
“Where do you keep getting these things from. Take it off.”
“Ah! But it’s going to get cold soon. Hey, Kim Hajin! Where are you going!?”
I ran away as quickly as I could.
**
I was exhausted.
The day went by while we were having fun, and it was already evening. Because it was autumn, the sun set fairly early, and darkness had descended.
“Today’s final course is… Busan Disneyland~”
We stood in front of our last destination for the day, Disneyland.
Inside Disneyland, smugglers should be conducting a trade secretly. But soon, they would get into a conflict that would devolve into chaos. Kim Suho would then run into Jin Sahyuk while trying to suppress the mess.
When we were just about to go in, Chae Nayun raised her hand after checking her smartwatch.
“Ah, Yeonha says she’s here now.”
Immediately afterward, a limousine stopped in front of Disneyland’s entrance.
The door opened, and Yoo Yeonha came out. Chae Nayun hopped toward her and asked.
“Are you feeling better now?”
“Yeah.”
With a short reply, Yoo Yeonha walked past Chae Nayun and Kim Suho, stopping when she reached me.
“….”
Yoo Yeonha stared at me lifelessly. Unlike her usual self, she seemed weak and fragile.
Was her food poisoning that bad?
“Does it still hurt?”
Yoo Yeonha shook her head.
At that moment, Oh Hanhyun spoke up.
“OH right, we’ll be traveling in pairs inside Disneyland.”
“You, go with me.”
Yoo Yeonha spoke before Oh Hanhyun even explained how the pairs would be formed.
“Huh? Me?”
“What, what are you doing, Yeonha?”
Chae Nayun gave her an odd look, but Yoo Yeonha tightly grabbed onto my sleeve.
I was also wondering why she was acting this way, but since it looked like she had something important to say, I agreed.
“Sure.”
Just like that, I became paired with Yoo Yeonha and entered Disneyland.
Once we were inside, it felt like we were in a fairy tale.
But even while we walked through this world of hopes and dreams, Yoo Yeonha was silent, sighing and stealing glances at me from time to time.
Wondering why she was so down, I brought her to a rollercoaster to cheer her up.
As I expected, Yoo Yeonha panicked as the rollercoaster went up and looked completely lifeless by the time the ride ended.
“Are you feeling better now?”
“….”
“If not, we’ll go on it again.”
“N-N-No, I’m fine. S-So let’s skip t-this and r-ride that.”
Yoo Yeonha pointed at the giant Ferris wheel nearby. I furrowed my brows slightly.
“Isn’t that a couples ride? Why would you want to go there with me?”
“There’s… something I need to talk to you about.”
Yoo Yeonha’s voice was trembling.
“If you say so…. What is it about?”
“….”
Yoo Yeonha didn’t reply, so I followed her wish and went to the Ferris wheel.
To be honest, this was my first time being on a Ferris wheel.
Inside the Ferris wheel’s slow-moving pod, we stared at each other silently.
“…What is it?”
In the end, I asked out of frustration.
“Oh, is it about the bullet I asked you to refine? Is it too difficult?”
“No…. I should be able to give that to you by next month. That leaf wasn’t an ordinary leaf.”
“Right? Ah, if any of it's left over, you can use it for your research.”
“Research?”
“Yeah, for your pharmaceutical company. We’re allies, aren’t we? Or maybe I’m just an investor, haha.”
“….”
In response, Yoo Yeonha clenched her teeth and dropped her head in silence.
It was then.
KOONG!
An explosive rumble resounded.
I looked down from the pod’s window, then looked back at Yoo Yeonha. To my surprise, Yoo Yeonha was staring at me with a determined look. She seemed to be unconcerned about the chaos happening below.
“…What?”
“…Remember what I said? That I had something to talk to you about.”
“Yeah, go ahead.”
“You see….”
KOONG!
At that moment, the Ferris wheel shook strongly and stopped working. Yoo Yeonha didn’t react in the slightest, but I quickly looked back down on the ground.
Underneath the Ferris wheel, where the explosion took place, two people were glaring at each other.
I focused my hearing and sight.
—So, it really was you. To think you’re having fun with a girl. Should I say it’s to be expected from a kid?
Jin Sahyuk was leering at Kim Suho and Chae Nayun.
—…You.
Kim Suho glared at Jin Sahyuk with a stiffened face.
—So, you do recognize me. Well, you would be a fool not to. After all, it’s just you and me.
—Who are you and why are you picking a fight with us?
Chae Nayun furrowed her brows and stepped forward. She was wearing a polar bear hat that she must have won from a game.
—Shut your mouth, shit for brains.
—Shi… I dare you to say that again.
Chae Nayun was a headstrong girl in her own right, but Jin Sahyuk was on a whole new level of crazy.
Jin Sahyuk suddenly condensed her magic power into a ball and threw it at Chae Nayun. The ball then exploded, bursting into a beam of magic power that struck Chae Nayun’s stomach in the blink of an eye.
Chae Nayun was blasted away by a hundred meters, striking the asphalt ground.
It was a sudden ambush that even Kim Suho couldn’t react to.
“Hey, I think we’re going to have to talk later.”
The situation wasn’t good. To think that Chae Nayun would be knocked out in one blow…. Jin Sahyuk was supposed to be a ‘growing’ final boss. Why the hell was she so strong?
I quickly opened the pod door and tried to jump down.
However, Yoo Yeonha grabbed onto my wrist.
I looked back at her hand holding onto my wrist, then looked up at her face.
“I don’t think I can do it later. If it isn’t now… I don’t think I can say it.”
Yoo Yeonha looked like she was about to cry as she blurted out in a desperate voice.
I froze.
Just what could have caused… Ah!
A light bulb went on in my head.
The pieces of the puzzle were finally coming together.
A part of ‘Yoo Yeonha Scandal’ must have happened already.
In that case, it made sense why she got stress-induced gastritis.
“…Then you don’t have to say it.”
Even if you don’t, I’ll help you.
I smiled brightly and tapped Yoo Yeonha’s head.
Then, I jumped down from the Ferris wheel.
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