Self-Destruction (5)
The moment my wife said those words, a strange tension settled over the table.
“…Take good care of our Soyeon for me.”
“Yes. I’ll see you again next time.”
My wife gave us a small wave, then climbed into the car that had come to pick her up. She left behind a vague comment about heading in early—impossible to tell who it was meant for.
After she was gone, I tried to hail a taxi to take Soyeon home. My plan was to drop her off and then head straight to Chairman Jeon Nando’s house. The timing should work out just fine.
But then…
“…Want to grab dinner before you go?”
Soyeon stopped me, suddenly suggesting we eat together before heading back.
Dinner? It was barely past one in the afternoon. The fact that she was talking about dinner probably meant she’d dressed up nicely and wanted to stay out and have some fun before going home…
Unfortunately, I already had a prior engagement.
Spending time with Soyeon wouldn’t be bad—in fact, I genuinely wanted to—but Chairman Jeon had called me in secret, away from my wife. I couldn’t just break that promise lightly.
“…Sorry, Soyeon. I’ve got plans, so I need to head out right away.”
At that moment, Min Soyeon’s eyebrows twitched.
“…Plans? A part-time job?”
“No, not a part-time job… The Association asked me to come in about the Toyland incident.”
Only then did Min Soyeon’s expression soften, as if a weight had been lifted from her mind.
“…Then, don’t I have to go too?”
“Huh? No, it’s fine. They said they’d call you separately.”
She must have been unhappy that I wasn’t spending time with her. She bit her lip slightly and glared at me, clearly displeased.
I wanted to stay with her just as badly, but there was nothing I could do.
After staring at me in silence for a while, she let out a short sigh, as if she’d given up, and asked in a suggestive tone.
“…You’ll be back before dinner, right?”
…Huh?
Something about her words felt off. I froze for a second, unable to answer right away.
She took a step closer, pressing me for a reply.
“…Why aren’t you answering?”
In that moment, I saw my wife’s old self overlapping with my daughter’s face.
Startled, I unconsciously took a small step back and answered carefully.
“…I’ll call you when I see how things go.”
She held my gaze for a moment, then slowly nodded as if she understood.
While I was trying to catch a taxi to take her home, I glanced sideways at Min Soyeon standing beside me. Arms crossed, she was quietly lost in deep thought.
…
I quietly looked away and thought to myself.
Blood really doesn’t lie. The older she gets, the more she resembles her mother.
Yu Jihwan poked his face out the taxi window and waved.
“Soyeon. I’ll call you in a bit.”
I waved back, wishing him a safe trip, then immediately went inside the house.
Through the gate, across the yard, and finally to the front door. I opened it with a careless hand and stepped inside. The chilly air in the hallway brushed against my face.
…This is so annoying.
Irritated, I kicked off my shoes—whack, whack—and stomped up the stairs to my room.
Bang!
I slammed the door so hard it nearly broke, tossed my bag aside without care, and threw myself onto the bed.
Plop— The soft blanket wrapped around me.
…
Still not satisfied, I kicked my legs wildly against the mattress.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
After a few rounds of that, I finally felt a little better.
“…Haa…”
I sprawled out limply and stared at the ceiling with unfocused eyes.
I’d worked up the courage to go through with it, enduring the embarrassment with Mom’s encouragement, but Jihwan had run away.
Of course, he hadn’t done it on purpose. The Association had called him, so he had no choice.
That damn Association—why the hell do they call people in on the weekend? Don’t those bastards have any days off?
I knew it was unavoidable, but I still couldn’t hold back my anger.
“…This is so annoying…”
I was also mad at myself for being so complacent. If I’d made solid plans to hang out from the start and blocked off any escape routes, he would’ve had no choice but to follow me.
Panting heavily, I suddenly sat up and walked over to the bag I’d thrown on the floor.
I crouched down, flipped the bag upside down without care, and everything spilled out with a clatter.
“…”
I picked up my phone from the mess, sat down heavily on the floor, and fiddled with it.
Tap. Tap.
I canceled the reservation I’d made earlier.
Reservation for Pia Hotel has been successfully canceled.
The cancellation message arrived instantly.
Just a few minutes earlier—while Mom was talking with Jihwan—I’d nervously rushed to make the reservation. Now that time felt utterly wasted.
Feeling somewhat empty, I let out a heavy sigh and set the phone down. I rolled around on the floor and slowly stripped off my clothes.
Thud. Thud.
The moment my bare skin touched the cold floor, the heat that had been burning inside me gradually cooled.
Just in case, I even took off the matching underwear I’d worn and changed into something comfortable before sitting down in front of the computer.
Vrrrr— Beep—
The sound of the PC’s fans felt like it was comforting my wounded heart.
I habitually launched the game, logged in, and headed to my “friends” to soothe my exhausted mind.
My friends greeted me warmly. For some reason, the sight of their scantily clad characters felt warm today.
I exchanged brief greetings and then brought up the family meeting I’d had earlier.
Then…
The friends who frequently used social media immediately caught on.
“…Huh?”
Apparently, rumors had spread on SNS that the Sword Empress had been spotted at the restaurant we visited today. The story had traveled through various channels and eventually reached my “friends.”
They seemed to have only heard the simplified version: “The reclusive Sword Empress has finally shown her face.”
Since they were among the very few people I knew, I figured it would be fine to tell them. I shared the news of Mom’s return, and my friends exploded with excitement, congratulating me.
No matter what, these girls really had incredible loyalty.
While I was typing casual thanks, I fell into thought.
What should I say?
I was struggling with how to ask them. Since I’d missed today’s chance, I needed to prepare for the next one…
Rather than planning everything alone, it would be much better to get advice from these male-expert friends of mine.
After all, I’d gone and reserved a hotel without proper preparation, only to get stood up.
But to get real help from them, I’d have to explain my entire situation—including the embarrassing things that happened today. I’d definitely get teased. I didn’t want that.
“Hmm…”
While I was filling the chat with pointless messages and worrying, a thought suddenly came to me.
What if I told the story like it happened to someone else?
That’s it…!
Praising myself for the brilliant idea, I waited for the right moment and casually brought it up.
But then…
They seemed suspicious, which threw me off a bit, but I tried to act natural and continued.
I waited for their reactions. One second. Five seconds. About ten seconds later, the replies started coming in.
Luckily, it seemed they were interested.
“…Phew…”
I unconsciously lifted the corners of my mouth and thought I’d fooled them pretty well as I continued typing.
They immediately declared that they understood perfectly and that I should leave it to them.
Then they started seriously debating among themselves what would be best, eventually fighting in earnest…
“…Sigh…”
A sigh escaped me involuntarily.
After arguing for a while, the discussion gradually narrowed down to an idea from “RareNick.”
It turned out to be… getting him drunk and then making a move.
Me. On Jihwan.
“…Crazy…”
Gulp— Just imagining it made my face burn.
The mood had become surprisingly serious compared to before. But I had no idea what they were talking about.
…Is soju and beer really that bad? And what the hell is Lady Killer…?
While I stared blankly at the chat, my friends continued the conversation among themselves.
They even took my situation into account and began seriously crafting a strategy.
They were usually complete perverts, but when it came to relationships with men, they were true professionals who considered even the smallest variables. It was honestly impressive.
After some time, they had created what even I could tell was a perfect plan. They promised to send the necessary supplies to my house soon.
Even though we were different ages and had only met in a game, I was deeply moved by their sincere friendship—stronger than any other friends I could ask for.
…
While I kept thanking them over and over, a thought suddenly crossed my mind.
…Thank god I pretended it was about a friend.