Chapter 60: But I'll Take Responsibility, So It's Fine, Right, Father-in-law?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 60: But I'll Take Responsibility, So It's Fine, Right, Father-in-law?
"Eat up."
"Thank you. I’ll enjoy the meal."
No matter how much you spread out on a typical household dining table, there are bound to be limits.
Usually, there are no more than five main dishes, with the rest being side dishes to fill the space.
But what if it wasn't a typical household table?
What if the food was spread across a banquet hall table like something out of a manga?
Then the situation becomes serious.
This is a bit much.
Even if I wanted to show them I was enjoying the meal, the amount of food was excessive.
I had thought they were just being polite when they said they’d put in some extra effort for a long-awaited guest.
But when they suggested moving locations and mentioned they had prepared a proper spread, I sensed something was off.
There was no need to have this many servants just to host a single guest.
Then again, I’m not exactly an ordinary guest.
I was suddenly reminded of my current standing.
A first-year cadet who had cleanly cleared a major incident without a single casualty.
A person guaranteed by Chairman Choi Young-nam and supported by the Hunter Lee Min-jun.
That was me.
I should have realized it when the reporters started calling me 'Hunter' instead of 'Cadet.'
This must be what Melanie always meant by the 'qualifications of an Awakener.'
I’m no longer in a position to receive ordinary treatment.
Beyond just 'ordinary,' I might have to get used to being treated like this all the time.
Of course, in today's case, it was possible Su-jin had gone out of her way to prepare such a lavish spread.
Regardless, I realized today exactly what kind of attitude I should maintain when I'm treated with such hospitality in the future.
"Noona, should I peel the lobster for you?"
"Oh...? Ah... would you...?"
Su-jin was sitting demurely beside me, looking restless.
It was likely because of the seating arrangement; Su-jin and I were sitting side-by-side, while her parents sat across from us.
In a way, it looked like a formal marriage meeting, which seemed to make her unconsciously nervous.
Su-jin was wearing a white flower-patterned lace blouse.
The harmony of her calm, straight black hair, the blouse, and her denim skirt was truly fantastic.
Every time she got embarrassed, her skirt would shift, offering a glimpse of her inner thighs.
If her parents hadn't been there, I might have reached out right then and there.
"Our Su-jin is perfectly capable of peeling her own lobster, but Hunter Baek Tae-yang, more importantly—"
"Honey?"
"Dad?"
"...The lobster is... particularly difficult to peel today... Honey, I'll peel one for you too."
"Thank you."
The conversation kept flowing like this.
Whenever I took care of Su-jin, she would beam and give a small smile.
Yoo Min-hyuk would react to that, and his wife and Su-jin would always put on the brakes.
Watching this heartwarming scene of a family meal, I also...
I also what?
What memory was I trying to pull out? What scene was I trying to recall?
There was definitely something I was supposed to think of after seeing something 'heartwarming.'
But nothing came to mind.
It was like looking at a clear river and seeing nothing but myself.
My mind turned white, and every memory except for 'me' was painted over with opaque colors.
"Tae-yang, are you okay?"
"Huh? Oh... yes, I'm fine. I think I was just moved because the food is so delicious."
"Really? Hehe... I made this part..."
The current moment of this meal felt incredibly distant.
I slowly chewed through my opaque memories, dragging them to the surface.
I am Lee Tae-ok... and I have a family.
I hadn't thought about this incredibly obvious fact even once until now.
Lately, my words and actions hadn't been focused on 'Lee Tae-ok,' but rather on 'Baek Tae-yang.'
It certainly wasn't like this before I entered the S-Class Gate.
Back then, my stance was more about not caring whether these beings made of text lived or died.
But in Wonderland, I naturally worried about casualties.
Are my memories mixing?
In Baek Tae-yang's memories, there were no family relationships.
It might have been a detail that wasn't set, or he might have been an orphan.
But that didn't mean Lee Tae-ok's family relationships didn't exist.
"Noona, you're really good at cooking. What's this?"
"Oh, that's braised chicken wings in red chili paste with a side of basil..."
I steered the conversation toward me just answering and talking as little as possible.
I kept a subtle, not-too-exaggerated smile on my face and nodded.
I accelerated my thoughts.
It had been barely a month since I entered the world of Academy Pure Love Diary.
In that short time, my memories were already mixing, and I was struggling to recall things from Earth.
It was a common cliché in possession novels, but I never thought it would happen to me.
Should I start keeping a diary to record things...
Knowing this didn't change much.
I had to clear the NTL Quests and find the next clue to make any progress.
But what if I completely blended into the novel and developed the mindset of a character?
What if I truly started believing this was reality and stopped even trying to escape?
"Wow, this beef is delicious... What cut is this?"
"My, Hunter Baek Tae-yang has quite the sophisticated palate. To recognize it immediately. This is 'Song Hana' brand hanger steak."
"Thank you for telling me, uh..."
"You can just call me Mother."
"Yes, Mother."
"Good. Son-in-law, eat plenty."
"Honey!"
"Mom!"
I had been smoothly pivoting the conversation, but everyone looked at Mother with shocked faces at her unexpected words.
Mother, on the other hand, looked quite confident, meeting everyone's eyes with a gaze that said, 'It's going to happen anyway, isn't it? Am I wrong?'
Even Yoo Min-hyuk couldn't find a rebuttal, so Su-jin remained silent as well.
This is bad.
I had run into a very difficult situation.
If I rejected her outright here, the atmosphere would turn awkward.
But if I nodded in agreement, we might suddenly become an official couple.
According to my calculations yesterday, there were a total of seven women I needed to have a relationship with immediately.
If I got tied down now, things would get complicated.
I had to provide an answer that walked the middle ground without causing offense.
She's no ordinary woman.
Yoo Min-hyuk's dinner invitation might have just been a lure.
To think the final boss was someone else entirely.
If the silence stretched too long, the mood would turn strange.
"I still feel that I am lacking the proper qualifications."
Honestly, it was hard to call this the best answer.
But it was the only thing I could think of right now.
It lowered myself while elevating Su-jin and subtly signaled my humility.
Furthermore, it was the only option that didn't reject the relationship but indirectly conveyed that it wasn't possible at the moment.
"Hoho, you don't have to take it so seriously. I was just joking."
"Honestly, why would you make a joke like that? You surprised Hunter Baek Tae-yang."
"Exactly... Why put pressure on the kid during a simple meal..."
Yoo Min-hyuk was constantly checking his wife's mood, worried about what she might say next.
Su-jin kept glancing at me to see if I was offended.
I was making eye contact with Su-jin's mother, and those eyes were definitely not filled with playfulness.
If I show a single opening, I'll be hooked.
A gaze sharper than a bird of prey's was trying to pierce through me.
This was no time to be confused about being in a novel or whatever.
"I enjoy these kinds of jokes too, Mother. It's quite alright. Hahaha."
"Hohoho!"
"Hahaha!"
The meal seemed to be winding down.
While we were chatting back and forth, the food had disappeared quickly, largely because we couldn't talk too deeply since it was our first meeting.
It's not like we could jump straight into a background check.
"My wife and daughter are certainly excellent cooks. Don't you agree?"
"Yes, I think you must be very happy."
"You're right, I am very happy. That's why I hope my daughter never gets hurt."
Yoo Min-hyuk led me up to his study, saying 'the men have things to discuss.'
The study was massive, taking up the entire fifth floor.
It wasn't just filled with books; it was also lined with weapons and equipment favored by Hunters.
The situation of two men facing each other over coffee in the middle of it all wasn't exactly pleasant.
"My daughter is..."
A textbook fatherly speech followed.
This was the second hurdle for me.
In a typical rom-com, I should have been moved by the time Yoo Min-hyuk finished his story.
A story of a man taking responsibility for a woman through a deep conversation between men, fueled by paternal love!
That was surely what Yoo Min-hyuk was hoping for.
No, I'm telling you, I can't.
I had too many women to take care of.
Soon, the periodic mobilization day for always-active ability users was approaching.
There was a chance Kim Min-su's heroines might appear then.
I had to be ready to accept a new woman at any time, so I couldn't exactly make a vow of pure love.
But I can take responsibility for all of them.
I had a body capable of satisfying everyone even during a wild sex party.
Since this was a world created by Chubby Ahn, there had to be a mechanism to reach a harem ending no matter what.
There's no way that fat bastard would think about 'shipping' them off to others.
If he had intended that, he wouldn't have made Kim Min-su the protagonist in the first place.
He was likely full of dark desires to live vicariously through a character with a similar personality to his own.
There was no way he planned an ending where the protagonist only stayed with one main heroine.
I'll take responsibility for everyone, see the ending, and then get out of this novel.
I reaffirmed my resolve and looked at Yoo Min-hyuk with a serious gaze.
His speech was coming to an end, and I needed this expression to give my words weight.
Since my already sharp eyes were filled with intensity, even Yoo Min-hyuk flinched slightly.
"...So, I'm counting on you to look after my daughter."
"I am lacking, but I will do my absolute best."
Yoo Min-hyuk's 'best' and my 'best' were likely very different.
But as long as the ending is happy, doesn't it matter?
"Dad! How much longer are you going to keep Tae-yang here, seriously?"
Perhaps the conversation had taken too long, as Su-jin came running to my side.
She had eventually lost her patience waiting and came to get me.
"The talk is over. Don't forget the promise you made me, Hunter Baek Tae-yang."
"Yes, thank you, Father-in-law."
"Tae-yang, let's go to my room."
"Sure, Noona."
I felt a bit guilty.
Because my ending and Yoo Min-hyuk's ending would be different.
But so what?
I'll still take responsibility, so it's fine, right, Father-in-law?
"Noona, you look really beautiful today. Sorry I couldn't say it earlier."
"No, it's okay. My parents were just... so much. It was overwhelming, wasn't it?"
"Overwhelming? Not at all. It's all out of interest and wanting things to go well for us. I liked it."
"That's a relief..."
Su-jin let out a sigh of relief and guided me to her room.
The way her toes wiggled inside her white socks was so cute.
With a deep smile, I took Su-jin's hand.
Going to a room where it would be just the two of us in this vast mansion.
I couldn't help myself.