Chapter 200: Melanie is Smiling
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 200: Melanie is Smiling
"This... this can't be happening."
Thud.
Chubby Ahn collapsed, despairing as he slowly read through the scrapbooked articles pouring in.
[Baek Tae-yang Pulls the Holy Sword! Becomes the Hero!]
[Department Store Rescue, Victory Academy Student Representative, Hero, and more—how many more achievements will he rack up? And he’s only twenty!]
[Real Men’s Trait: Writing articles about Baek Tae-yang]
[Kim Min-su, who previously held the title of Hero, revealed to be detained in Rubenia following an investigation…]
《Exclusive! The secret behind Baek Tae-yang’s airport fashion?! Let’s take a closer look!》
[The Humiliation of Moros Child! Korea’s prestige snatched by Bogeumjari! Can it be reclaimed? Netizens give a firm "No, just go back."]
Not a single article was favorable toward Min-su.
He had expected this, but the reality was far more disastrous than his worst projections. His mind was beginning to fracture.
"It shouldn't have gone over 50%... He had to be the one to pull it..."
Even though the results were already set in stone, Chubby Ahn muttered the words over and over.
In the past, even if something like this happened, he would have brushed it off and edited the story.
But he no longer had the strength to do so, and even if he did, Min-su was no longer the protagonist.
"That cowardly bastard... Everything that was supposed to belong to Min-su..."
Gimins was actually a plot device intended for Kim Min-su.
He was a development designed to move immediately after regaining his power to bridge the distance between Min-su and Melanie.
Since their names were similar, it was meant to give off a "We're the same, but I'm different!" vibe.
Furthermore, in Chubby Ahn’s mind, Min-su’s "loser charm" was just a facade, but Gimins was the real deal.
"Aaaaagh! Why is nothing going right!"
Gimins, the embodiment of a repulsive, entitled loser.
Min-su was supposed to crush him satisfyingly, boosting his image and winning the girl in the process.
To think all of this happened because Min-su failed to pull the Holy Sword.
The butterfly effect was insane.
"Now... what do I do now?"
Even when Kim Min-su had 100% of the protagonist's share, he couldn't properly pressure Baek Tae-yang.
But now, Baek Tae-yang had split the share exactly down the middle and was able to compete for the protagonist's seat.
How was he supposed to take down a guy like that?
"No... no, if I think like this, it’s like I don’t believe in Min-su."
If he, the original creator, didn't believe in the true protagonist, Kim Min-su, then who would!
Chubby Ahn began scratching his sagging belly, searching for a breakthrough.
Finding the original author was important, but for now, this took priority.
+++++++++++
Meanwhile.
"Aaaaagh! This! What kind of pathetic humiliation is this! Are you kidding me!"
There was another person in a state of panic, just like Chubby Ahn.
That person was none other than Gimins Moros.
He was currently receiving treatment after being beaten within an inch of his life by Baek Tae-yang at the immigration counter.
Smash!
In a fit of rage, he hurled a vase, which struck the security team leader squarely in the face.
"You pieces of trash! Aren't you my bodyguards? What were you doing? You stopped me once at the start and then didn't lift a finger after that!"
What kind of bodyguard in the world just stands by and watches their employer get beaten! Do you think I pay you for this!
In truth, he wasn't wrong.
Though his way of speaking and his attitude toward people were foul, every word Gimins said was technically correct.
Gimins’s bodyguards weren't selected from Awakeners who fought monsters; they were recruited from a team of criminal hunters.
They were people more skilled than anyone at interpersonal combat and were experts at suppressing humans.
'I have no excuse.'
The security team leader, Park Tae-won, knew he was at fault, so he remained silent and endured Gimins’s verbal abuse.
In reality, the only thing the bodyguards had blocked was Gimins’s attempt to strike Baek Tae-yang.
After that, they did nothing.
'Even if I explain, it’ll just sound like an excuse.'
Actually, the more accurate expression was that they could do nothing.
'They say Baek Tae-yang will be 1st-Grade when he graduates? That’s nonsense.'
This was Park Tae-won’s first time encountering Baek Tae-yang in person.
He had heard rumors that Lee Min-jun supported him and Yu Min-hyuk acknowledged him.
He had assumed it was just a "patriotic hype" campaign to make a new rising star shine brighter.
But he was wrong.
"Hey! Why are you just keeping your mouth shut! Is it because you know I hate it when you just say you're sorry? Fine! I'm sure that's it! But say something! Why did you do it! Why!!!"
Because it felt like we could never win.
Park Tae-won swallowed the words rising in his throat and silently bowed his head.
In times like this, staying still was the fastest way to calm Gimins down.
'Guarding someone only matters if you're still alive.'
Park Tae-won had witnessed it clearly.
The helplessness of a human in the face of overwhelming violence.
He had doubted whether he could even intervene.
'I think I see why a freshman was appointed as the student representative.'
There was a reason Victory Academy kept the fourth-year Kim Ji-hyuk as the Student Council President while naming Baek Tae-yang as the representative.
Kim Ji-hyuk’s cheerful personality was suited for internal leadership, but when it came to handling external affairs, Baek Tae-yang was simply the answer.
The cruelty to thoroughly eliminate obstacles and the meticulousness to always leave behind proof of victory.
"Huff... huff... Baek... Baek Tae-yang, was it? Look into him! Find out everything you can! Weaknesses! Especially find out his weaknesses!"
And the sheer pressure that carved fear into an opponent he had crushed once.
It was a moment that made one feel exactly why Victory Academy was called the top 1%.
An academy with Baek Tae-yang as a freshman.
That was Victory.
"Understood! I will make sure to find out!"
In Park Tae-won’s mind’s eye, Baek Tae-yang was still beating Gimins.
A smile like a child holding a piece of candy.
Baek Tae-yang, who had delivered pure violence with an innocent expression.
That man was no Hero.
'I’ll have to investigate as discreetly as possible.'
A monster.
Baek Tae-yang was a monster.
+++++++++++++++++
"Stupid! Idiot! Sea cucumber! Sea anemone! Mutt!"
"I said I'm sorry."
"You don't sound sorry at all!"
When I arrived home after giving Gimins a satisfying thrashing.
As expected, Melanie was waiting for me at the door with a grumpy expression.
She told me to get inside quickly since there were many eyes watching.
As soon as we entered, she let loose.
"What did I tell you? Tell me!"
"You told me to avoid him as much as possible."
"You heard me and you still did that? Are you crazy?! I told you Gimins is a psycho! You have no idea what he might do!"
"That's why I made him pee his pants a little at the airport."
"Eeeek!!!"
"Ow! Ow! Don't pinch my side!"
Melanie finally exploded at my constant backtalk.
It was a situation where the saying "If only he couldn't talk, he wouldn't be so annoying" fit perfectly.
"I could have handled it myself first! And besides! What if Gimins does something like economic retaliation instead of just personal revenge!"
"We have Chairman Choi Young-nam."
"Seriously! You're such a stupid! Idiot! You don't even know how I feel!"
"Argh! That really hurts!"
I got pinched again.
'But I'm right.'
While it was true that Moros Child was a world-renowned leader in resource research and business.
Strangely, they were a case that never succeeded in Korea.
They were one of those companies destined to thrive abroad but fail in Korea for unknown reasons.
'The businesses Moros Child and Bogeumjari run are almost identical.'
Bogeumjari was a conglomerate with its hands in everything, but its roots never changed.
True to its name, "Bogeumjari" (Nest), it influenced many parts of Korea.
I shook off the idle thoughts before I got too drunk on national pride.
"You! You needed to respond more calmly!"
"I was very calm. The CCTV footage is probably out by now, so you'll know he threw the first punch."
"It was excessive force!"
"Hey, when Awakeners scrap, there's no such thing as excessive force. It's always self-defense."
One of the differences between Awakeners and non-Awakeners was the scope of self-defense.
Since battles between Awakeners had a high probability of leading to death, most people were understanding as long as you didn't kill the other person.
In fact, there were many cases where people died from a surprise attack because they were worried about such things.
"Backtalk, backtalk! Do you have any idea how much I worried about you? Even the one who wrote the article was Yoon San-dong!"
"Yoon San-dong? Who's that?"
"The one who wrote the articles when you were getting hate comments as a director!"
"Didn't he hit rock bottom after that?"
"He said it was the 'Baek Tae-yang Coin' and made a huge deal out of it, and now he's made a comeback. Anyway! That's not what I'm talking about right now!"
But being like this makes it feel like I'm getting nagged by a wife.
There was a hint of the freshness of a newlywed couple in it, and a smile leaked out.
"Why are you laughing! Why!"
"Seriously! This really hurts!"
"I'm pinching you so it hurts! You're so mean, really!"
Melanie wouldn't stand for it and immediately pinched my side again.
It was time to stop taking it and start my counterattack.
"But did you really worry that much? That something might go wrong?"
"Huh?"
Blink, blink.
Melanie’s brain stalled as I pushed back with a direct approach.
It was cute seeing her doe-like eyes fluttering.
"Well? You said it earlier. You asked if I knew how much you worried. I'm curious."
Just how much she worried about me.
As I said that, I slowly closed the distance between us.
Since we were already close enough for her to pinch my side, pulling her into an embrace was very easy.
"Well... well... just... just a little! A little!"
"You said 'a lot' earlier."
"I don't know! I-I was worried our company would take a hit, it's definitely not because of you!"
"Nothing happened between me and the Saintess in Rubenia."
"Really? Can I trust... No, why are you telling me that?"
Melanie’s expression brightened the moment I mentioned the Saintess, before she quickly masked it.
The fiancé excuse was just a cover; this was likely her goal from the start.
She was probably most curious about whether there was anything steamy between the Hero and the Saintess.
"I thought you might be curious."
"I'm not curious at all!"
"Then I don't have to tell you, right?"
"...Of course you have to tell me."
"Why?"
Melanie hesitated for a moment, thinking of what to say, before opening her mouth.
"Because you're... you're our company's model, obviously."
"Not because you like me?"
"...You're so serious one moment and then so sly the next! I really ha—"
I went in for a surprise kiss right then.
It wouldn't be polite to just send back a woman who had come all the way to my house because she was worried.
Melanie slowly closed her eyes the moment our lips touched.
[Sex! Sex! Sex! Sex! Uterine breeding pressure press! My Lord, you're finally going to take this drill-haired wench too! Why don't you just have a wedding dress pussy cake mating session right in front of that Gimins fellow or whatever his name is!]
I immediately ignored Chun-hyang’s words.
Nothing good ever came from listening to her.