Unconscious Lies
Lies soil the soul more thoroughly than anything else.
That is why spirits abhor falsehood.
"I've brought my answer."
Yoo Cho… no, Yoo Hyewon spoke.
Her eyes were steady, unwavering. Clear of any enchantment, those calm pupils made me wonder what words would follow.
Could Hyewon truly reach the correct answer?
With a heart that wouldn't stop racing, I opened the door, and she stepped slowly inside.
"Sujin. Harin. And Yeonhwa as well."
"""……"""
One step behind her stood the three who averted their eyes, pretending not to know, pretending not to see.
They had entered the house like spies, only to be caught as spies themselves.
By ordinary standards their relationship might be read as client and betrayers.
"I'm sorry."
"""….?"""
"My thinking was far too short-sighted."
"""…..Huh?"""
Hyewon spoke.
She was sorry. Sorry for forcing such unreasonable demands upon them.
"No matter how clearly the results showed, no matter how obvious the opportunity seemed, that was never a reason to work you all to the bone."
"Th-that's not true! We were the ones who fell short. The CEO only did the very best she could—"
"—I knew."
"…What?"
She cut Harin's words short.
Head still bowed, she continued in the same even tone.
"I knew it would be too much for you. I even heard you say it was hard. More than anything, I ignored every piece of advice my brother gave me about what to do if any of you truly fell into danger. I gave orders thinking only of myself."
"Is that really so strange? Employer and employee—that's how the relationship works, isn't it?"
Yeonhwa's reply.
At a glance it might have sounded like the correct answer.
But it could not be accepted as correct.
Because—
"Because treating your sacrifice and endurance as something natural is never right."
"We only worked as much as we were paid."
"Even if that were true."
Hyewon bowed her head and apologized.
"I'm sorry."
"""…………"""
"I never looked at how exhausted you were becoming."
She had only rejoiced at the accumulating results, only rejoiced at the slightest growth, and at the end of that month-long march—leaving the three of them collapsed behind her—she had simply felt relief that she had not been pushed out of the succession struggle.
The sin of failing to care for her own people.
That was the conclusion Hyewon had reached about herself.
"So. What's the compensation?"
I had told her once.
Acknowledge the sin, and bring the compensation that matches it.
Hyewon offered a faint smile, looked at Nature, and said,
"I will introduce a maximum sixty-nine-hour workweek."
"Get out."
She still hadn't come to her senses.
I moved to open the door and send her outside, but Hyewon shouted for me to hear her out first.
"Time spent in the dorm will count as working hours as well!"
"Your tongue's gotten long."
"Honestly, idol work fluctuates wildly depending on the season!"
In her heart she wanted to guarantee Sundays off, or at least one day a week to go home, or any number of other labor protections.
But—
"Given the nature of idols, it's simply impossible!"
When there was no work they could rest indefinitely the way they used to, yet when the schedule piled up they advanced without rest for an entire month, exactly like that forced march.
That was what it meant to be an idol—schedules even more irregular than those of temporary workers.
"Once we've secured a more stable position it might be different, but at least for now it's realistically impossible."
In plain terms, Hyewon's words meant this:
She could not promise there would never again be forced marches the way there had been before.
But if such a march did happen, she would at least set an upper limit.
At the very least, she would never again force them to live in the van for an entire month.
"With this, we should at least be able to prevent the kind of exhaustion that happened last time."
"But will it really go that smoothly? When the situation gets tight again, won't you just start extending hours without limit?"
"That time will not come. And even if it does, I will stop it."
"…Is that so."
Honestly it sounded like complete nonsense, yet if Hyewon said it, it was a Hyewon-style answer, and there was nothing more to say.
"At the very least, I will never again treat your sacrifice as something natural. I promise you that, right here."
"""…………"""
Her head bowed once more.
What were the members of Nature thinking as they watched her?
I couldn't be certain, but I suspected they felt a measure of comfort and emotion.
However—
That was all well and good, but—
"Why is there nothing for me?"
"…Excuse me? Wasn't this the correct answer?"
"Hyewon. What exactly are you imagining right now."
Did she truly believe I had thrown this tantrum purely because I was irritated that she had overworked the Nature kids?
"…It wasn't?"
"Wow."
How thoroughly did she see me as a pushover?
Amazement drew a light round of applause from me, and Hyewon's eyes began darting left and right in fresh panic.
"That is, um… Ah! I won't make you do any other work! Oppa only needs to handle the instructor duties!"
"Who's going to oversee the stage direction for the kids, then? Is there another Spirit Contractor of my caliber just lying around?"
Next.
"…A raise?"
"You said it was an incentive system. You said it yourself and already forgot?"
Next.
"…………"
"Nothing coming to mind?"
"W-wait! Just a moment!"
"To know so little about me! What is the point of living any longer!"
"Kyaaaaaaah!!!"
In the end it was settled with Hyewon spending an entire day serving me while dressed in a cross-dressing shota butler cat-ear meow-meow butler cosplay, filmed as a V-log and uploaded.
"Just because I cross-dressed once… to go this far…"
"Sponsor inquiries keep pouring into the YouTuber account, you know."
"…I'm sorry."
"If you understand, then serve me properly."
Even I felt dizzy about it.
Suddenly slapping up those filthy photos—no, truly filthy photos—and declaring "Surely you will do it"…
…Even after I had already come out as a man, the fact that people still clamored for it only proved the world is wide and the perverts are many.
"Still… thank you, Oppa."
"Hm? All of a sudden?"
Hyewon handed me an iced coffee as she spoke.
"If it hadn't been for you, I probably would have gone right back to the way I was in the academy days."
"You might have managed surprisingly well."
"And then those bastards would have taken everything again just the way they wanted?"
"People tend to look for the original, after all."
Subduing others with money and power.
Having once followed that same path in the academy and watched her entire faction get sucked away by the eldest son, Hyewon's reaction was understandable.
"You wanted me to realize it, didn't you? You're still the same kind person, Oppa."
"………"
Kind person.
At those two words, strength entered my hand before I knew it.
—Crush.
"Ah, Oppa, are you all right?"
"Ah. Yeah. I'm fine. It's nothing…"
The paper cup crumpled.
Iced coffee spilled from beneath it.
Hyewon diligently wiped the stain seeping into my pants with a handkerchief…?
Wait. This location is…
"At least it's iced, so that's a relief. If it had been hot coffee…"
"Hold on. I'll take care of it myself."
"Please don't. Today I'm Oppa's exclusive maid… no, butler, after all."
"No. That's not what I—"
—Bang.
The office door flew open with force.
And through it stepped—
"…Oh."
""……""
Yeonhwa looked back and forth between me and Hyewon, then gave a small nod.
"Sex."
""……!!!""
It wasn't that.
Really, it genuinely wasn't that…!!
One way or another we returned to the training center.
After that, ordinary days continued.
Once the day's schedule ended, I went to Ayoung's house and began Nari's treatment.
Sizzle…!
"Ghk… Aaaagh…!!"
I burned away the filthy stained places with light, purifying them.
Then Ayoung's power restored the seared marks and damaged tissue.
In a sense it was similar to hyper-regeneration of muscle, or laser treatment in dermatology.
But precisely searing only the contaminated portions and restoring only those portions again required mana control at the level of an A-Class awakener; anything less would have been impossible.
No wonder they say an A-Class healer is necessary.
Touching only the major pathways might have been manageable, but treating the tiny, intricate mana roads that spread all the way to the tips of the fingers was exhausting work even for me.
"Hauu… Hyaaaang…♥"
"That's right. If it hurts, don't hold it in—scream."
"Sunwoo…! Hau… Aaa, aaaaaah——!!!"
The one saving grace was that she was a warrior.
Accustomed to pain, she rarely thrashed, and though she sometimes wet herself, she never resisted or fought back in any significant way.
Perhaps because of that, slowly but surely, Nari's body began to improve.
Yet it seemed there were still side effects.
"!!!"
A sound rang through my ears.
Something between a scream and a sob.
The piercing cry that stabbed into my brain made me lean back against the wall before I realized it.
"Sss… Huuuu…"
My vision blurred.
Everything felt muffled and dizzy.
My stomach churned. Probably from pushing myself too hard.
"Are you all right…?"
"Ah. Thanks, Ayoung."
Ayoung, who had been beside me, cast a heal on my body.
The dizziness eased somewhat, but the queasiness remained.
My mind grew rapidly heavy. Continuing the treatment any further was impossible.
Still, a few more sessions like this…
She should recover soon enough.
"Leaving already?"
"I'll come again tomorrow or the day after. Oh, and I restocked the fridge, so help yourselves."
"…I'm sorry every time."
Nari lowered her head.
As if she were the problem.
This situation had simply arisen somehow; that was all.
I gathered the food-waste bag and the regular trash bag and stepped outside.
"That's another day done."
After taking out the trash in Nari's place—she still couldn't go outside—we climbed back into the car and headed home.
"You've worked hard, Sunwoo-nim."
"You're the one who ends up suffering because of me."
"Not at all. I do this because I want to."
And then…
"Somehow… it feels a little like the old days…"
"……"
Ayoung looked at me with strangely sparkling eyes.
I wished she wouldn't look at me that way.
And more than anything—
"Sunwoo-nim… you're kind."
"Not particularly."
"You are kind. An ordinary person wouldn't go this far, you know?"
"…We're colleagues. Friends. It's not as if I'm special or anything."
"That's not true. Most people simply ignore it. If only to keep the trouble from reaching themselves."
Every word from Ayoung—
"So. Sunwoo-nim truly is a kind person."
"…………"
My stomach burned.
It was revolting and nauseating.
Strength tightened around the gearshift in my hand.
"…Praising me that much won't get you anything, you know?"
I forced a smile.
I kept my eyes on the road and drove.
Before long we arrived home. I washed, ate.
[Master~~~!]
"Daa, daaa!"
Seiren, and the child nestled in her arms.
"Seona, were you good? Time to go to Mommy now."
"Uu… Ieeeeng!"
"Hey now. Mommy's right over there, so why are you clinging to me? You have to go to Mommy."
I handed the fussing child who refused to let go into Ayoung's arms and stroked Seiren's head.
[Master….]
"Hm? What is it? The mackerel delivery still needs a few more days, you know?"
[It's not that.]
"….???"
Seiren slowly buried her face against my chest.
Pressing firmly into me, she spoke.
[Master… isn't a bad child, right?]
"…Why are you suddenly saying that?"
[…It's nothing! Yeah!]
You're just tired, right? You're tired!
Humans are so weak that even a little movement makes them go owie-owie!
Seiren threw herself over me as if tackling me, then covered my body like a warm blanket.
"Honestly…"
I don't know.
I don't understand it myself either.
There's just one problem.
…Hecate.
Hecate would no longer answer the summons.