episode_0026

“What is your score?”

Several test papers flew and hit young Hongseol squarely in the face. Although she was past the age where she could feel pain on paper, for some reason the girl’s face looked full of pain and bitterness.

Regardless of the subject, most exam papers were scored at 100 points. Occasionally, different numbers such as 96 and 93 were seen, but even taking that into account, it was never a score worth scolding.

A girl who was called a gifted child because she never missed first place after entering elementary school. The back of the girl, who was the envy of her parents, looked so sad and lonely.

“This is not a problem that is wrong. You studied with a tutor.”

“At.. By mistake…”

“Mistake? If you make a mistake during the CSAT, you will lose another year. If you make another mistake there, you will lose another year. How are you going to live in society with such a weak heart? How many times did my mother tell me that society was more hell than school!?”

“That’s right…”

“Talk back, talk back again! Please follow my sister’s example. When she was your age, she not only scored 100 points but also won a prize at a competition. What is this for you? How did a child like this come out of my womb? Won…”

The middle-aged woman didn’t stop scolding and complaining, but she reached under the sofa and pulled out something. As if reacting to that, Hongseol’s shoulders shrank significantly, but it seemed like she no longer had to worry about such things.

“I can’t do it because you keep talking back. Roll up your calves.”

“Mom…Mom, please…”

“It keeps taking time. Can’t you hear me telling you to quickly roll up your calves!!?”

“Hipp…!”

I prayed until my face was covered in tears, but in the end, the delicate girl had no choice but to leave red scars on her calves. Ten wounds. And ten screams echoed through the mansion, but no one seemed to be involved.

“Kick.”

Even Hong Seol’s older sister, who was secretly watching this and raising her eyebrows.

Time passed like that. As the girl’s body grew, she entered middle school and stayed there for two more years, but her mother’s obsession with her only worsened as time passed.

Unlike her older sister, she is a child with shortcomings. A child who doesn’t know much about the world. Because his father passed away when he was young, he, as his mother, had to take care of everything. For Hong Seol, it was safe to say that her parents’ shadow had suddenly become pitch-black rather than a shadow.

Maybe it was around that time. His originally bright personality gradually became darker and he often began to remain silent.

Because he didn’t want to hear harsh words from his mother, he became obsessed with perfection and began using all of his time to maintain that goal.

“….I’m sorry.”

Therefore, even when Hongseol heard the news that his mother passed away in an accident, he could not shed even a single tear. Of course it was sad and painful. At least when I was young, I had memories of my mother always loving me kindly.

But somewhere in my heart, an inevitable feeling of relief was growing. Was it because she was unfilial? Although she couldn’t give a clear answer, Hongseol decided to just accept the feelings that were growing naturally.

At least, from now on, it will be okay to not be tied down to the perfection that my mother pursued.

Yes, there was a time when I thought it was that easy. Until about a week after my mother passed away and the funeral was held.

“Seol-ah.”

Her older sister, who was eight years older than her, approached Hongseol one day when she was alone in her room and hugged her from behind. Because it was far from the warmth and bonding between sisters, the girl had no choice but to instinctively feel the sense of discomfort that came over her body.

My sister’s embrace, which should have felt warm, felt strangely cold. It made me wonder if this is what it would feel like to be hugged by something that isn’t human. Her delicate body began to stiffen from tension, and when it got to the point where she couldn’t even turn her head, her older sister began whispering quietly into her ear.

“Is it really difficult because your mother passed away?”

“……..”

“I think it will be very difficult. Because our Seol is still young. And, because it’s not enough compared to me.”

Hongseol is horrified and trembles at her blood relative’s words. And her older sister paid no heed and continued to move her lips as if she had expected it.

What was it like that a smile suddenly spread across my sister’s lips? What is certain is that it was not a good thing for Hong Seol.

“So, now I will take care of our Seol. Just like my mother did. All the way.”

“…..!!”

“Seol is still young, so she will need help from her older sister. I don’t know about Seol, but my sister’s business was doing quite well. So Seol can pay tuition, fees, and living expenses without any problems.”

A cool hand stroked Hong Seol’s cheek. And by the time it moved to her neck, Hongseol could no longer hold back the trembling. Of course, even though she knew that, her sister’s hands were still slowly tightening the girl’s neck.

“So, Seol just needs to continue like she has been doing. Just like you did with your mother, when you take a test, you report your score to me, and if anything happens, you tell me first. What happened today. Every single move. It’s all just for me.”

My sister’s eyes are suddenly tinged with madness. Hong Seol had no time to figure out what had made her sister so afraid. Although we hadn’t had a proper conversation in the past few years, it seemed like the gentle older sister had long since disappeared.

“Seol-ah. Should I answer?”

“…….Ugh!”

“Answer. Do you do it?”

Was it because he didn’t get the answer he wanted? The hand that had gently wrapped around her neck began to tighten, and it continued even after Hongseol let out a moan.

It’s as if he won’t stop until he gets the answer he wants.

“Sigh..! Ugh, uhhh..!!!”

“When answering, use polite language. Please, Seol-ah.”

“Yes, yes hehe…! Yes!!”

“Hehehe, our theory is good. All Seol needs to do is continue to act perfect so that no one can touch her. If we do that, no one will be able to look down on our good-natured Seol just because she doesn’t have parents.”

Only then did Hongseol escape from the strong hands and violently let out a coughing fit. My older sister looked at this sadly and patted my back, but on the other hand, she was still laughing inexplicably.

“Our Seol. Our Seol is so weak and pretty…”

Hongseol felt so horrified that the hand stroking her hair belonged to her older sister, who was clearly her blood relative.

I screamed. Although it was just the two of us in the mansion, we screamed for someone to listen, but strangely, no voice came out.

Why can’t my voice come out? At the time I was wondering if something was wrong.

“….You talk in your sleep a lot, senior.”

When Hongseol came to his senses, it was on a bed in an unfamiliar hospital.

* * *

“Woman, this is…”

It was Hong Seol, who was desperately crying for her sister in her sleep. The perfection he usually showed was gone, and he was in the form of a weak child crying out for help.

Anyway, as someone who saw the ending of the game, I already knew Hong Seol’s true identity. The softness hidden behind hardness. The imperfection hidden behind perfection.

That’s why I couldn’t easily blame Hong Seol when he behaved arbitrarily toward me or when he acted coercively, even breaking the rules. At least I knew how Hong Seol lived. And, because I knew what emotions I was still feeling.

“It’s a hospital. It’s not far from my senior’s house, so don’t worry.”

“Hospital… Ah! now..! What time is it now…”

I guess he realized that the sun was slowly setting. Seeing Hong Seol acting obsessively as if she was chasing something, I couldn’t help but grab her shoulder without realizing it.

“Is that important now? My physical condition is like this, so please take care of your body first.”

“ is already feeling better. Everything is healed, so I have to go home now…”

“It’s okay? What on earth is okay? Are you saying you’re okay with that face now?”

“You…what are you doing…!”

“If you have eyes, look in the mirror. Your face is as pale as a corpse, how can you say you’re okay with a face like that!!”

Without realizing it, I raised my voice and held up a hand mirror to Hong Seol. The emergency room concluded that he had lost consciousness due to simple body aches and extreme fatigue, but that by no means meant that it was something to be trifled with.

Saggy cheeks and white complexion. Her complexion was so pale, as if she was suffering from a fatal disease, and I was so frustrated that I wondered where she was going with her appearance like that.

“First of all, I contacted the guardian, so I’m just lying down. If you’re not going to lie down, I’ll beat you up and make you lie down, so when I say nice things to you, just lie down.”

“……..”

“Hehe… I’m sorry for raising my voice. But your senior must be quite frustrated, right? I’m going to go to the bathroom for a moment, so don’t go anywhere and just quietly reflect. If you run away, I’ll really catch you and beat you up, so don’t think too much about it.”

Hongseol’s face was showing various emotions, so she got up to give herself some alone time. Anyway, the nurse is coming to inform the patient of his condition, so it won’t be a problem for a few minutes even if I’m gone.

“Well, she’s still a frustrating woman, both in the game and here.”

It was an afternoon when the desire to smoke soared.

* * *

Hongseol just stared blankly at the ceiling at Lee Ji-woon’s words. For some reason, I couldn’t properly refute his words. Although the words were meaningless and poured out as if they were filled with emotion, Hong Seol could not easily accept them.

“ or more. This is the end of the report, patient. The most important thing is to never rest! You should rest at home for at least two to three days! eat well! Sleep well!”

“Is it two or three days…?”

“If possible, don’t go to school. As I am also raising a child, I think school is important, but telling the patient not to go to school means that the patient’s physical condition is that bad. It’s amazing that I lasted until it got to this point, honestly.”

“……..”

In fact, as soon as this week started, Hongseol realized that she was not feeling well. I didn’t know if it was just a cold or if it was due to reduced sleep while working on the student council and studying at the same time.

My body felt very heavy, and my mind remained hazy, as if I had been hit on the head with a hammer.

It is in a precarious state, like a thatched house in front of a typhoon. However, Hongseol ignored these body signals and went through each day with the complacent thought that he would get better after sleeping for a few hours like usual.

And that physical condition reached its worst before meeting Lee Ji-woon today. As soon as I opened my eyes in the morning, a strong feeling of dizziness took over my head, and my body ached to the point that even walking felt like an arduous task.

However, Hongseol had no choice but to rush preparations. This was not for Lee Ji-woon, but for myself. For myself, who is always forced to look perfect and who is forced to carry out a tight routine that leaves no time wasted.

And, it was to avoid the harsh gaze of her older sister who was always watching her.

‘sister…’

Suddenly, fear welled up from deep within my heart. If she sees this, what will her sister say to her? He may be worried and kind on the outside, but no one could tell what his inner thoughts would be as soon as he entered the house.

As Hong Seol was overcome with such thoughts, her hands began to tremble without her knowledge. Once her hands began to tremble, they did not seem to be able to calm down. This tremor, which showed no sign of going away even when she held her hands together, soon took over Hong Seol’s entire body and began to spread its evil spell.

“But… there’s that blonde-haired student. Maybe a boyfriend?”

“….Yes?”

“No, it doesn’t matter if it’s not your boyfriend… From what I heard, she ran to the hospital carrying the patient? There was a lot of work in the emergency room today so there were no extra ambulances. I don’t know if that’s why… Anyway, it’s usually difficult to do with sincerity, right? So I just asked, hoho.”

“……..”

It was strange. Clearly, the trembling that had taken over my entire body just moments ago was beginning to disappear as soon as I heard Lee Ji-woon’s story.

“I thought the student was also a patient at first because he was just drenched in sweat? It looked really bad, but I still thought it was important to have a friend. Do you know how long he waited for the patient to wake up? I waited four hours, four hours.”

“…….”

“Anyway, please be kind to me later when my body gets better. Even though our types are a bit different, we are both very handsome and pretty, so we will get along well, hohohoho.”

The nurse left with a lady-like, frivolous smile, but her words were enough to shake Hong Seol’s heart. As soon as I heard his name, the tremors in my body subsided to a strange degree, and my mind began to calm down.

“….Ooh, it must be a coincidence.”

Of course, Hongseol himself could not admit it yet.