Chapter 26

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 26

Chapter Title: Morning Routine and Zoo Date

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I woke up early in the morning.

Today was a day off. Before 5 a.m., my eyes just popped open on their own.

'Vitamins...'

The first thing I did after getting up was take my vitamins.

The effects were better than I'd imagined. The difference between days I took them and days I didn't was night and day.

'After taking the vitamins, my itching completely went away.'

It wasn't just the itching, either. Allergic rhinitis, colds, body aches from overwork—they were all gone.

My immunity had improved.

The effects are too good. Feels like a waste to hog them all. Should I gift some to my acquaintances?

I shook my head.

No. Realistically, that's impossible right now. Maybe later, but not at the moment. I've got my own problems to deal with.

I had no spare time or resources.

I didn't even have enough points to buy the Handsome Potion.

And there were plenty of other items I needed to get.

Next up.

I bought a Lucky Cookie. Unwrapped it. Crunched it down.

Sweet. Delicious. It put me in a good mood. I bet A-young would love it.

I wonder what today's luck score will be?

Anticipation filled my eyes.

"Ah..."

My expectations shattered miserably.

"Shit, my points..."

Blood tears welled up inside me.

"Lately, it's been nothing but duds."

In truth, I'd been eating Lucky Cookies pretty often.

But the results were dismal. No high luck boosts.

Three facts I'd learned about Lucky Cookies.

One: The luck variance was brutal. It was all or nothing.

Two: High luck boosts were rare.

Three: Stacking buffs was impossible.

Jin-seong bought two Modest Fortune Random Boxes from the shop.

Even if the Lucky Cookie flopped, gacha jackpot incoming!

I'd gotten hooked on the thrill of gacha lately.

Big win incoming! Jackpot! Please give me good stuff!

I opened the Modest Fortune Random Boxes.

I appraised the items.

Good items?

Bad items?

Damn, total dud.

Jin-seong figured he'd pulled junk.

Not what he'd hoped for.

He'd wanted something like a 100-Point Enhancement Ticket, Charm-Up Perfume, or Misfortune Diary.

Sigh, damn, wasted 6 points.

Regret and lamentation filled him.

The Necklace of Charm...

It was women-only.

Perfect gift for A-young.

Today, he was going to the zoo with Choi A-young.

He could give it to her when they met.

The Advice from the Forgotten Book...

It gave fitting advice for any question.

Better use it.

Before activating, he pondered deeply.

What question to ask?

What was he curious about?

It answers questions...

He mulled it over for about three minutes.

It was a dusty black book, about the size of a Bible. He opened it. Blank pages, nothing written.

Text appeared in the center of the blank page.

Jin-seong sank back into thought.

Soon, he asked.

"What should I do?"

It was an ambiguous question.

"I don't really know what I should be doing. I get how to live diligently, but I don't know how to succeed socially or what true happiness even means."

To Jin-seong's earnest question,

the Forgotten Book replied.

A somewhat out-of-left-field answer.

Go find Lee Myung-ho?

Who was Lee Myung-ho again?

Lee Myung-ho? Who's that? Who...?

Fuzzy memory.

It was on the tip of his tongue but wouldn't come.

Oh! Right! Old Eyes hyung!

He'd given up his bus seat to a man with leg issues.

Coincidentally reunited at the gym and exchanged names.

The man's name was Lee Myung-ho.

Go see him?

That he'd have the answers?

Guess I should visit soon.

Having served its purpose, the Forgotten Book vanished.

He was set to meet Choi A-young at 7:30 a.m. About 30 minutes left.

A KakaoTalk message came in.

After the incident, Choi A-young often sent messages saying she was scared.

She'd nearly died to a murderer; trauma was inevitable.

Choi A-young rarely used heart emojis before.

Lately, though, she was using them more often.

Since the murderer incident, her affection has spiked.

The door opened. Choi A-young stepped out.

A light gray dress falling to her knees. A khaki denim jacket reminiscent of a banana. Pyri hair clip.

"How do I look?"

Choi A-young lifted the hem of her dress slightly and spun around.

"I wanted to wear my Pyri pajamas, but since oppa asked for girlfriend vibes, I went with this special cute girlfriend look~"

"Pretty. So pretty. How can a person be this pretty?"

"The hair clip? It's the fashion point today~ Super duper cute and pretty, right?"

"Suits you perfectly."

Jin-seong was half-dazed.

Choi A-young's beauty + fashion + S-rank charm = pure fraud.

What man in the world wouldn't fall for her?

"Hehe, very good~"

Choi A-young was thrilled with his reaction. She smiled contentedly, glad she'd gone with the girlfriend look.

Favorability had risen from 89 to 90.

Favorability 90.

If 80 was 'reasonably trustworthy,'

90 was 'deeply trustworthy. Deep trust. Deep affection.'

The murderer incident had made Choi A-young place deep trust in Jin-seong.

Hearing 'Don't worry. I'll protect you' dozens of times had deepened it naturally.

Choi A-young's eyes softened.

"Shall we go?"

"Yes!"

"I'm excited."

"Me too~"

The zoo was Jin-seong's first time. His first time going out with a girl, too.

Heart's racing.

His spirits lifted.

Should I ask to hold hands?

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He wanted to hold Choi A-young's hand.

No. Hold back for now. Patience.

He cleanly gave up on it.

Affection hadn't even generated yet—just high favorability.

Choi A-young saw him as a great oppa, not a romantic interest.

Physical contact might make her uncomfortable.

Wait until affection develops.

They arrived at the zoo.

Beautiful natural scenery and adorable animals everywhere.

"Wow, so so cute!"

Choi A-young pointed at the meerkats, squealing in delight.

"The flowers here are so pretty~"

"Yeah."

"Oppa, let's take a picture together~"

"Sure?"

They took photos in front of the flowerbed. Posing close with V-signs.

Click.

"Want me to take yours?"

"Yes!"

Click.

"Oppa, stand there. I'll take yours~"

"Got it."

Click.

"Excuse me, miss, could you take a picture for us?"

"Sure."

"Thank you."

Click.

Choi A-young beamed the whole time. Her smile bloomed endlessly.

She loved the beautiful nature and the cute animals.

Photo-taking was fun, too.

"Hungry? Wanna grab something?"

"Oppa...? Be honest~ You have mind-reading powers, don't you?"

"No, just figured you might be. You said you skipped breakfast."

They stopped at a snack bar.

Bought some light snacks.

"What do you want for dinner?"

"Hmm, meat? I want meat~"

He read her inner thoughts.

"Yeah? How about ribs? Cool?"

"Whoa, I was just thinking I super wanted ribs..."

"Huh? You too? Me too. Suddenly craving sweet ribs."

"Synced again~"

"Yeah."

Dinner was decided: ribs.

"We click so well~"

"True."

A twinge of guilt hit him.

It wasn't true synergy. Just reading and matching her thoughts.

They ate snacks and walked.

"Oppa...?"

Choi A-young had to stop.

Will she hate it?

Choi A-young glanced between Jin-seong's face and hand.

His pupils trembled with anxiety. The hand holding hers was tense with nervousness.

"Not at all~. Not uncomfortable~"

Choi A-young shook her head.

"...Warm~"

Shyness colored her voice.

She bowed her head. Avoided his gaze.

They walked slowly in silence for a long while.