05. The Human Causing a Stir
05. The Human Causing a Stir
"Ah...."
He was dumbfounded.
It felt like his mind had blanked out after hearing Yu Ina's words.
'Well, yeah. Even I'd probably struggle to stay sane if I heard something like that.'
I've never experienced meeting and parting like that, but if Bari said something like that to me, it'd be pretty horrific.
"Honestly, it's not like I have any business sticking my nose into someone else's affairs, but it's all so obvious. Young master, you should just head home and rest easy."
Ha Yeon-seo said that with a slight smile.
Depending on the situation, those words could feel insulting.
But whether she was oblivious to that or saying it on purpose, her face remained perfectly calm.
"No...I can't understand it... How could you with a human...."
"Haa."
Even after hearing Yu Ina and Ha Yeon-seo's words, the guy still couldn't pull himself together.
Frustrated by that, Yu Ina let out a deep sigh.
"I said it's unpleasant, Jin Seong-hyeon."
She made it blatantly clear she was pissed off, and the guy bit his lip hard while glaring at Yu Ina.
Daring to glare at my wife? Guy's got some balls.
"But no matter how I think about it, I can't accept it! If I said I was marrying a human, could you just go 'Oh, okay' and understand?!"
"Yeah."
"...!"
"I already told you, I'm not interested in you, and I don't particularly care who you marry."
"H-How can you say that...."
"Man, you're so clingy. At this point, shouldn't you just say 'Got it' and leave? Or are you too dumb to read the room?"
"Shut your mouth, human!! A human like you... a human like you...!!"
What a spectacle.
"You're nothing but—"
"Seong-hyeon-ssi."
Ha Yeon-seo called out to him as he pointed at me with a face red as a tomato.
She'd had a bit of a smile when calling him 'young master' or whatever, but now there wasn't a trace of it.
Pure ice.
"Don't be so pathetic. As a fellow 『Noblesse』, I can't tolerate any more disgraceful behavior?"
"Disgrace...? The disgrace is marrying a pathetic human! Marrying a slave of the 『Advanced Races』...! And Yu Ina's family has produced 'Management Committee' members for generations!! How can they allow this kind of marriage!!"
"Seong-hyeon, cut it out. If you keep crossing the line, I won't hold back anymore."
"The one who crossed the line is you, marrying a human, Yu Ina! And the family pushing this marriage!!"
"What did you say?"
Now that he's cornered, he's dragging the family into it too. Impressive in all sorts of ways.
"I just can't understand it at all. How could you do something so... so horrific!"
"...Cut it out."
Yu Ina seemed properly pissed off now too.
She stood up from the sofa and glared at him squarely.
"...That's my line, Yu Ina. No one will bless this marriage... It's not too late! Make that human a slave and cancel this ridiculous marriage!"
His face twisted like a demon's.
Ah. Starting to get boring.
Should I tell Bari to pop one of his balls? That might be more entertaining. I don't wanna see this dude anymore.
"Bari—"
Right as I was about to give the order,
"Ah. What the actual fuck is this unheard-of bullshit?"
Ha Yeon-seo's outburst flew out.
Uh... fuck? Was she that type of character? I thought she was always on about dignity and shit.
"I get that you're shocked your crush up and got married, but you can't act so shamelessly."
She stood up amid the frozen atmosphere.
Arms crossed over her superior figure, she approached Seong-hyeon.
The two faced off.
The Chief Instructor's charisma crushed him.
"The Jin Family from the 5th floor, right?"
"..."
Where'd that raging energy go? Seong-hyeon was totally cowed.
Ha Yeon-seo scanned him up and down with her eyes, then smirked, curling one corner of her mouth.
"What kind of backwater family rolls around producing kids raised like this? No pedigree, huh?"
Her voice was a whisper.
Soft and seductive, teasing a man's nerves, but the content was pure violence.
"W-What did you—"
"If Yu Ina weren't married, you think she'd date you? Know your place. You think a nobody like you matches up with a daughter of the Yu Family, one of the Five Great Families?"
"E-Even so, better than a human—"
"Don't drag others into it—look at yourself. Do you match?"
"..."
He opened and closed his mouth but couldn't say a word.
Ha Yeon-seo opened her mouth with an even colder smile.
"You know it, so why act like this?"
After dropping that truth bomb, she clicked her tongue and returned to the sofa gracefully.
Crossing her legs elegantly was just icing.
Seong-hyeon was still trembling, speechless.
"What are you doing? Not leaving? Got something else to say?"
Ha Yeon-seo delivered the final blow.
"...You'll regret this."
In the end, he left behind some useless extra-villain line and exited the room.
"Haa...."
Yu Ina's sigh.
She shook her head side to side, then suddenly apologized to me.
Seemed like an apology for her acquaintance's 'pathetic human' crap... But honestly, isn't her disdain for humans just as bad? They're all the same.
"Anyway, what a pathetic guy. No manners at all."
"...Do you have any right to talk about manners?"
"Of course. Everyone owes me proper manners."
"Hoo. What's the point of talking."
Ha Yeon-seo sighed and leaned back against the headrest, rubbing her temples like she had a headache.
"Thinking about it, it's kinda funny. You're way ruder than that guy earlier."
"Since you're consistently arrogant from start to finish, I've gotten used to it."
"Ah. Totally. That's exactly it. So consistently rude that I've adapted."
Hey, I'm not rude, seriously.
"So, what's your business? Don't tell me you came for lunch or something lame like that?"
"Do I look that idle?"
I took a carton of cigarettes from Bari and handed it to her.
Perfect gift for a smoker like her.
"Here. A present. You must be stressed—perfect timing."
"...A present...? From you?"
She took it with a highly suspicious look and peeled off the plastic wrap. She stared at the crinkling package for a bit, then crumpled it roughly and tossed it on the floor.
"You witnessed our marriage contract, so it's basically like you officiated. Giving a gift is just manners, right?"
"The rudest guy around lecturing on manners..."
She said that, but her expression wasn't bad.
She opened the easily accessible box and pulled out one of the small packs inside.
A pack of smokes!
"...Is this cigarettes by any chance?"
As expected from a smoker, she clocked it right away.
She pulled one out, held it to her nose, sniffed deeply, and nodded.
"Cigarettes, yeah. Looks like a cigar but way smaller... Mild scent too. What's this?"
"Ahh. This is called a 『cigarette』..."
"Cigarette?"
"Yeah. The most advanced form of cigarette."
Vapes exist, but whatever.
"Didn't expect you to be a tobacco connoisseur. Developing new smokes too? Quality's pretty good."
"Technically Bari developed it. Anyway, give it a try. Light it like a cigar."
"Hmm."
She brought the cigarette to her ear and gave it a light squeeze.
"What're you doing?"
"Checking its condition. You inspect moisture and aging before smoking a cigar."
What the hell.
"Chief Instructor, just smoke it."
"Just like that?"
"Yes. It's already prepped perfectly."
"Did you test it, Instructor?"
"Yes."
"I can trust your word."
Finally, she put the cigarette in her mouth and lit it with a flick of her finger.
The tip glowed red as smoke rose.
"You can inhale deeply."
"Hmm."
She sank into the soft sofa, languidly drawing in the smoke.
First time with a cigarette, but she had solid form.
Fwooo.
A cloud of smoke billowed out, slightly obscuring her face.
"...Not bad."
She muttered that one line and took another drag.
Silence stretched on.
She smoked it until about half was burned.
The room was already filled with smoke.
The acrid tobacco scent stung the nose.
Tch.
She exhaled the last puff and crushed it on the table.
"So, how much for these? Made in a workshop?"
"One per cig, 1 gold. Still handmade by Bari for now."
"Per cig?"
"One cigarette is one cig. Twenty make a pack. Ten packs make a carton. I gave you a carton."
"Hmm."
Did she think it was expensive? She frowned slightly.
I lowballed it, but maybe still too pricey?
1 gold per cig means 20 gold a pack... Trainees get 30 gold a month, and trainee income's above average for Tower residents, so yeah, insanely expensive.
"Cheaper than I thought. Isn't this premium stuff?"
But her words were the opposite of what I expected.
1 gold each ain't cheap—luxury tier. Must be swimming in cash as a 『Noblesse』.
"Truth is, we're not in full production yet."
"Hmm."
She seemed to be pondering something.
"Anyway, thanks for the gift. Unexpected delight."
"Glad you like it."
"But you didn't just come to give a gift, right? Promotion?"
"Well, kinda both."
"Then give a lot more."
"That is a lot."
"200 cigs total? Gone in a month."
She'd burn through 200 cigs in a month?
How much does she smoke?
"Hmm."
"Might as well go big since we're at it. Like you said, we've mass-produced the Nanomaterials too."
"Should I?"
Yeah. Let's blow it all.
Gave my wife a carton, gotta spread to her family too.
"How many can you make?"
"About 10 cartons possible."
"Perfect. Make 'em."
Bari nodded and started producing cigarettes right there.
She extended her hand palm-down and spat them out like vomiting—mass-producing cartons.
One by one, they slid out from her palm onto the floor, a pretty magical sight that drew everyone's eyes.
"...What the hell? That's handmade?"
"Handmade is handmade. Bari made them herself."
"..."
She stared in disbelief but snapped out of it.
"The more I see, the more fascinating that doll is. Can't you sell dolls instead of cigarettes?"
"Hell no."
"I'd even buy 'em expensive."
"Nope. Not for sale."
"Tch."
She piled the 10 cartons on the table and started sorting.
"Here, you take this first."
"For me?"
"Yeah. Gotta give my wife some too."
"...Thanks."
"Then two for your sisters, one for the family head."
I handed Yu Ina four cartons total, and dumped the rest on Ha Yeon-seo.
"Do whatever with the rest—smoke 'em or gift 'em."
"Thanks. But it doesn't feel like receiving a gift~."
"Wait a sec... A carton for 200 gold, and you can make them this easily... Why didn't you buy Luna sooner?"
Yu Ina jumped in out of nowhere.
"Told you earlier. Uses tons of premium resources—worst cost-performance."
Not lying; even at 10 gold per cig, it'd barely break even.
Nanomaterials don't grow on trees...
"It's a loss, really. Can't keep making 'em like this. Gotta build the Factory and run it proper."
"Hmm... Fine, I'll trust you for now."
"Factory... Like a workshop?"
"Factory. Eh, workshop ain't totally wrong."
"Got a spot?"
"Yeah. Thinking of using our house."
"...Our house?"
"...She means her house. She's stubbornly claiming it as hers."
"What?"
Ha Yeon-seo widened her eyes and let out a small laugh.
"Well, you're married. Not wrong... But you're consistently so shameless."
"Was gonna ask to borrow your land, but then I thought—your family's house is centuries old, right? About time for a remodel."
"Don't. Let's build a new one. I'll invest."