Chapter 73
Chapter 73
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: My Friend, Woo Juyeol
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‘He said today was the last inspection.’
After this, I might never see him again.
Even if we did, it would probably be under worse circumstances.
‘I don't want that.’
Mustering her courage, Haon cautiously looked up at Juyeol.
Whatever he'd been up to lately, the dark circles under his eyes were deeper and the precarious aura around him had intensified each time they met.
She still didn't know why she was so concerned about him, but the words came out on their own.
"Ju-Juyeol."
"...What."
His voice, laced with irritation, replied. He didn't even look her way.
Shaking off her disappointment and embarrassment, Haon blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
"It would be nice to have a store that only sells popcorn. Maybe here, or over there. Still, the popcorn you made was the best. I was even thinking about it yesterday."
"...What?"
He turned to look at her, bewildered, then flinched. Meeting his gaze for the first time in a while, Haon's eyes widened.
‘Did I say something that strange?’
The two of them had stopped walking and were now just staring at each other.
Juyeol hesitated before speaking.
"You and Nova..."
Then he suddenly let out a pained groan and grimaced. He clutched one side of his head and whipped his face away, clearly in pain.
"Ju—"
"Ghost!"
Just as Haon was about to call out to him, River rushed over.
She whispered something to him, then announced that the inspection was over and they would be leaving.
The final inspection ended anticlimactically.
In the end, Haon hadn't even managed a proper greeting with Juyeol, let alone a real conversation.
As she watched his retreating back, she heard a sigh beside her.
"Didn't Ghost just meet up with you because he was sick of Nova? You still have lingering feelings?"
"..."
Chacha asked, her arms crossed and her tone disapproving.
"Why the long face? It's not like you two were that close, were you?"
Haon touched her lips, her expression sullen.
‘That's not true. Juyeol helped me fall asleep without sleeping pills. He saved my life, too...’
The moments she had spent with Juyeol flashed through her mind.
Woo Juyeol, who spoke bluntly but was kinder to her than anyone.
A warm resonance spread through Haon's chest, and a sense of longing blossomed.
‘Ah.’
In that moment, Haon realized. She understood why she felt so disappointed and why she couldn't just let him go.
This longing was different.
‘Juyeol and I...’
She had sought ‘Juyeol’ in him and had always missed ‘Juyeol’, but this longing wasn't for ‘that Juyeol’.
The comfort and warmth he gave her weren't a substitute for someone else.
‘We fought together, ate together, and watched movies together.’
The Juyeol here wasn't ‘that Juyeol’, but just as she wasn't a ‘fake’, neither was he.
We were worried about each other, not anyone else. So...
"We are that close. Because Juyeol is my friend."
Haon ran in the direction Juyeol had disappeared. With each step she took, her heart pounded pleasantly.
She didn't know how she would clear up his misunderstanding. But a vague hope that there must be a way spurred her on.
She wanted to hurry and tell him all the things she hadn't been able to say.
Juyeol, who had already left District 1, was just about to get on his bike.
"Juyeol!"
She shouted his name, and even from a distance, she could see him pause as he was about to put on his helmet.
He had only hesitated, not even turning around, but Haon waved her arms wildly as she ran.
She nearly tripped, but a passing Dudu caught her and helped her up.
[Be careful, Doctor.]
"Thanks!"
Feeling rushed, Haon swung her phone downward.
Blue mana poured onto the ground, turning the neat pavement blocks into a wave that swiftly carried Haon to the entrance of District 1.
The sound, like falling dominoes, grew closer. As River's eyes widened in shock, Juyeol also began to turn around.
Before he could fully turn, Haon threw her arms around his waist.
"Gotcha!"
"...!"
Startled, he froze, his arms raised awkwardly. He couldn't even push away Haon, who was suddenly clinging to his side.
"Juyeol."
"..."
Haon looked up at him and grinned.
"Why have you looked so down lately? Is it because you can't find Halo? If there's anything I can do to help, let me know."
"..."
"If you don't trust me, then trust my skills. The lab is always open."
"You..."
He looked down at Haon with a confused and pained expression, then covered his face with his hand.
"Have you no shame? No pride at all?"
"I think I have a ton of both."
"A ton, my ass."
A hollow laugh was buried in his trembling voice.
Haon shook his waist as if to get his attention and grumbled.
"It's so hard not being able to say hi or talk to you. Can't you just nag me from the side instead? Just don't avoid me."
"...I thought I told you I'm not the 'my Juyeol' you're looking for."
"I know!"
Juyeol, who had been rubbing his face, froze.
"You're the only one of you in this universe. You have nothing to do with 'that Juyeol'. I know that now."
"..."
"I'm not worried about 'that Juyeol' right now. I'm worried about you. The Woo Juyeol right in front of me."
A gentle smile, as if woven from the spring sunlight, spread across Haon's face.
Juyeol, who had been meeting her gaze with an unsteady, trembling one of his own, furrowed his brow and touched his head.
"Why do you keep giving me a headache?"
"A headache? Are you really sick somewhere?"
As Haon peered at him, trying to check his condition, he pushed her forehead away with his finger.
"You have a real talent for driving people crazy."
"I do?"
[That's right! The Repairman drove me crazy too!]
Ttiyong, who had been circling near Juyeol, suddenly leaped up and started rolling around between their feet.
Haon burst into laughter, and Juyeol, who had been pressing his forehead, got on his bike.
"Ah. Juyeol. Are you leaving?"
"I should just smash that thing."
"Ttiyong. You're taking good care of Juyeol, right?"
[Of course! I'm very dependable! I can also toast bread well to make sure his stomach is full!]
"..."
Juyeol shook his head in disbelief, then left the astonished River behind and sped away from the Old District.
* * *
Nova felt wronged. It was as if the world had deceived him.
He had gotten rid of the safe house and made Haon the boss of District 1, yet he had no idea why things were turning out this way.
An unmistakable shadow had fallen over her clear face, and he was certain she was having nightmares every night.
He also knew she couldn't sleep without sleeping pills and was living with their minor side effects.
‘But... why has she brightened up again?’
Nova stared at Haon as she said something to the cranes at the science experience center construction site.
His boss, who until recently had been walking a tightrope between helplessness and depression, hadn't grown any darker.
She had welcomed him out of loneliness, and the bright sparkle in her eyes had been slowly fading.
He could feel Haon gradually slipping away again, to a place beyond his reach.
‘I should have killed Ghost after all.’
Whether she despised him or not, if he killed Ghost and locked Haon away in a place only he knew...
She wouldn't even be able to dream of things like weapons filled with love.
‘Even now, she only tosses me the kind of kindness and welcome one would show a stray cat.’
Nova, who had been looking at Haon as if she were heartless for not asking anything about him, put down the blueprints and asked.
"Darling. Why on earth does the Old District need a library and a science experience center?"
"Is there any place that *doesn't* need a library and a science experience center?"
Haon asked back, her expression saying, *what kind of question is that?*
Even Nova found himself thinking, *Is that so?* before asking again.
"I can understand the library, but what's a science experience center?"
"People can learn how this city is scientifically maintained, and they can see the stars, right?"
Saying the area was at a high altitude and got very dark at night with the streetlights off, Haon had insisted on building an observatory.
But Nova knew little about stars, nor had he expected something like this to be District 1's new 'attraction'.
Something else was needed.
"Darling. Once the library and the science-whatever are complete, I think it'd be good to announce that the new District 1 has fully established itself in the Old District. Something like a large-scale event."
"Is that necessary?"
"Of course. As District 1 gets more organized, other villains are probing us less and less. We need to nail it down now. I'll prepare everything."
"Nova. You must be busy enough as it is."
"What's being busy when it's for my boss?"
Nova flashed a beautiful smile, and Haon's eyebrows drooped in a touched expression.
"Thank you so much. To think you'd be so considerate... I'll think of something that can showcase District 1's development."
And so, Nova began preparing for the opening ceremony of the library and the science experience center.
He lay down on the noisy construction site, where only the mechanical cranes remained, and stared blankly at the night sky.
‘Could it be... my darling doesn't know what a casino or a club is?’
After some thought, Nova decided to change his approach.
‘Alright. I'll have to take her there and show her.’