Chapter 81: Who are you?

“Is there… a seat, empty…?”

The girl tapped Sihyun’s shoulder, asking if the seat next to him was free.

She had light, pale green hair styled in a peculiar way, and her eyes were the beautiful color of coral in the sea, yet they seemed somewhat sleepy.

But what surprised Sihyun the most was,

‘What is it…? She’s small, but why are her breasts so big…??’

Despite her small and cute appearance, the girl possessed a physique that greatly drew men’s gazes.

Sihyun found himself unable to tear his eyes away from the girl’s enormous chest, staring blankly without realizing it.

‘No, no, snap out of it, you bastard! You have a beautiful fiancée like Luna; how can you lose your mind over another woman’s chest?!’

It was like light being sucked into a black hole; he couldn’t easily look away.

But Sihyun, recalling Luna with transcendent mental strength, barely managed to avert his gaze from the girl.

Even amidst this, the girl, maintaining an expressionless face devoid of any emotion, asked Sihyun again.

“Is the seat… empty…?”

“Ahem, yes, it’s empty. But why?”

“Can I sit…?”

“You can, but why here of all places? There are plenty of other empty seats.”

The Dawn’s Light shuttle bus was originally dispatched for the safe commute of non-awakened individuals or non-combatants.

Because of this, Sihyun was always the only one using it, so the seats were very spacious, yet this girl specifically came to him to ask for permission to sit next to him.

‘It was convenient always being the only one on board, but did a new regular employee join?’

Thinking she might be a new recruit to the guild, Sihyun kindly explained how to use the bus.

“Oh, is this your first time on this shuttle? You can sit anywhere that’s empty, so you don’t need to specifically ask me.”

Sihyun encouraged the girl to go and sit comfortably as there were many other empty spots, but the girl merely shook her head slightly.

“No one else, is there… only here. Permission, must give… to sit…”

“You need my permission to sit?”

“Yes…”

“What kind of nonsense is this— no, wait…! Ah, just sit, sit. The shuttle’s about to depart.”

“Okay.”

—Thump.

Only then did the expressionless girl sit demurely next to Sihyun.

Sihyun felt a slight chill at the girl’s appearance; she seemed to barely blink.

‘What in the world is going on?’

He couldn’t understand what kind of situation this was so early in the morning, but Sihyun decided to ignore the girl sitting next to him for now and focused back on Leah.

****

“Mmm, Sihyun! I finished all the pudding!”

“Haha, was it delicious?”

“Mmm. In the morning, I definitely need something sweet to give this body energy!”

Clap, clap.

Leah clapped her hands, looking excited as if she was announcing something profound.

About ten minutes passed with Sihyun on the bus, sandwiched between the green-haired girl and the red-haired girl.

—Whoosh! Whoosh!

“Stay away from this body’s guardian!”

“Shin Oppa allowed me to stick close. So it’s okay to hold on like this.”

“Eek! Sihyun is this body’s guardian and this body’s property! Go away! And Sihyun’s name is Sihyun! It’s not a name like Shin, weed-head!”

“Shin Oppa is Shin Oppa. And I’m not a weed-head, gochujang-head.”

Leah and the green-haired girl each grabbed one of Sihyun’s arms and began to growl.

“Um, hey girls…? First, let go of this—”

Sihyun cautiously opened his mouth to stop the girls, but,

“Sihyun, stay still!”

“Shin Oppa has to stay still.”

“Ah, yes, ma’am.”

The aura from the fiery purple eyes and the emotionless coral eyes was too strong, so Sihyun had no choice but to remain still until they arrived at the guild.

‘Please, just let go of me… Both of your chests are pressing against my arms, and I’m going crazy!’

If my junior reacts, it’ll be a disaster! It would be a catastrophe on the bus!

Sihyun chanted sutras inwardly, trying his best to clear his mind.

However, the girls, completely oblivious to Sihyun’s inner turmoil, continued to cling to him.

—Squish.

“This body sleeps with Sihyun every day! And Sihyun touches this body every day!”

“Leah, please, can you choose your words more carefully?”

“It’s the truth! Even now, he’s touching this body! Weed-head can’t do things like this!”

The green-haired girl, unfazed by Leah’s actions, buried Sihyun’s arm between her breasts.

—Soft.

“Shin Oppa allowed me to do anything. I can do those things quickly too, gochujang-head.”

“No, I only allowed you to sit down. And my name is Sihyun, Sihyun.”

“No, it’s Shin Oppa.”

“It’s not Shin Oppa! It’s Sihyun!”

“Shin Oppa is Shin Oppa.”

“Hey, girls, can’t you hear me?”

Sihyun was ultimately forced to suffer, sandwiched between the two girls until they arrived at the guild.

****

“Ha, what was that, really? My mind feels like it’s been through a washing machine this morning.”

As soon as Sihyun got off the shuttle, he rotated his neck and sighed.

His body was fine, but he felt an immense mental fatigue accumulating.

‘This is all because of that strange girl from earlier…’

He had worried that the coral-eyed girl might keep clinging to him, but as soon as the shuttle arrived at the guild, she briefly greeted him and disappeared somewhere.

– “Shin Oppa… See you again.”

The peculiar girl who called him ‘Shin Oppa’.

Her brief greeting somehow lingered in his mind like an afterimage.

“Oh, come to think of it, I don’t know her name. Should I have asked?”

The moment Sihyun muttered to himself,

—Whack! —Whack!

Leah, who was in Sihyun’s arms, began to hit his chest with her hands.

“Ow! Why are you hitting me all of a sudden, Leah?”

Leah’s eyes were slightly upturned, and her lips were pouting.

“Si-Sihyun, do you like that kind of girl…?”

“Are you talking about that green-haired girl from earlier?”

“Mmm… This body saw Sihyun’s face grinning every time her arm touched him…”

Leah’s voice grew softer as her purple eyes wavered slightly.

The girl displayed complex and subtle emotions on her face, feeling jealous but unwilling to admit it.

‘Ah, crap. Leah must have seen me grinning.’

He had tried to hold it in, but it seemed Leah had caught his male instincts popping out.

‘I did laugh because of that strange girl, but it was more because Leah kept touching me… I need to package this well and explain it.’

Sihyun stroked the sulking girl’s head and told her that the reason he smiled was because of her.

“I was grinning because your chest kept touching my arm, Leah. How could I not smile when a beautiful girl like you is so close?”

“R-Really…?”

“Haha, of course, really! How can I suppress my smile when such a beautiful knightess is clinging to me?”

Leah tilted her head slightly, then began to press her chest with her hands.

“Sihyun, does this body’s chest… feel good to you…?”

“Hmm… Can I be honest?”

“Mmm.”

“During the two weeks I’ve been with you, Leah… honestly, I thought I was going crazy. How can I possibly hold back when an incredibly beautiful girl is hugging me and even sleeping next to me all the time?”

“Hiccup…! Si-Sihyun likes this body that much… I didn’t know.”

Leah twisted her body in embarrassment, but she seemed to feel better, grinning and laughing.

“Hehe, Sihyun was in a good mood because of me, not that weed-head…!”

—Squeeze!

Leah, who had been pouting with jealousy, was now smiling brightly and rubbing her face against Sihyun’s chest.

“Our Leah gets jealous, too?”

“Sihyun took this body’s first… so he has to take responsibility, but it felt like he was looking at another woman…”

“Right, right. If I don’t take responsibility for taking the first of such a beautiful girl, it’ll be a big problem, won’t it?”

“Mmm…! So don’t pay attention to other women!”

“Haha, don’t worry. We won’t meet that girl again. The Dawn’s Light Guild is huge.”

Sihyun chuckled, took Leah’s hand, and walked towards the guild’s research wing, where their regular check-up was scheduled.

****

“Then please go this way.”

A young researcher in a white lab coat led the way for Sihyun and Leah.

“Research Wing A-3 is responsible for the isolation stability testing and bio-data analysis of anomalies. Subjects classified as special grades, like Leah, need to have their physical condition and emotional curves checked regularly.”

“Hmph… This is annoying…! Sihyun, can’t we just run away without listening to him…?”

“You already ruined it the moment you loudly said ‘run away’ in front of the person.”

“Huuuugh…! I hate check-ups…!”

“If you do well on the check-up, I’ll give you lots of pudding as a reward, so just bear with it a little?”

“Mmm… If that’s the case, then there’s no choice. I’ll try my best, so you must keep your promise!”

While Sihyun was comforting the grumbling Leah, the guiding researcher diligently continued his explanation.

“Today’s check-up will be conducted with the newly introduced MDM-2 device instead of the existing equipment. We’ve been told that the team in charge of its design has come to adjust it personally. They said it was Elissa Haze from the UK and another chief researcher…”

At those words, Sihyun frowned slightly.

‘I heard Elissa Haze led the development of MDM, but was there another chief researcher too?’

Before their conversation could even finish—

“We’ve arrived. Please go inside.”

When the researcher opened the door, experimental equipment and research consoles were visible beyond the clear glass wall of the isolation observation room.

And in a corner, slightly away from the other researchers, a person with their back turned, manipulating something, caught Sihyun’s eye.

Green hair illuminated by the white light. A small body in a lab coat twitched and moved.

“That hair color looks familiar… Where have I seen it?”

The moment Sihyun slightly raised his head to look in that direction,

“Hello… Shin Oppa.”

An emotionless voice with almost no intonation was heard.

The girl with green hair and coral eyes.

“We meet again…?”

The girl who had been bickering with Leah this morning approached Sihyun with an expressionless face and greeted him.

“Huh?! Why are you here?”

“I’m, a chief researcher here. Came to work…”

The girl tapped the name tag on her white lab coat, introducing herself.

[Chief Researcher / Emilia]

“Shin Oppa, my name is Emilia. Please remember it.”

“Ah, uh…? Ah, okay.”

The moment he met the peculiar girl he had accidentally encountered that morning again, Sihyun couldn’t help but clutch his head.

‘No, this is too much for a coincidence, isn’t it? First, I need to take care of Leah before she starts growling again—’

However, contrary to Sihyun’s expectations, Leah looked at Emilia with a slightly triumphant smile.

“Weed-head! Sihyun’s smile this morning wasn’t because of you! Sihyun told me it was because he liked this body’s soft chest!”

“Shin Oppa’s mouth curved up a little more when his hand touched my chest. Don’t talk nonsense, gochujang-head.”

“Hmph! No matter what you say, Sihyun is the man who took this body’s first! He promised to take responsibility!”

“Shin Oppa gave me permission first… so I also have a duty to take responsibility.”

While the two girls were having their own argument, oblivious to their surroundings.

“Wow… He laid his hands on kids that look so young?”

“I thought lolicon only existed in 2D, but to think there was someone like that in our guild…!”

“Shouldn’t we… report this to the police…?”

The people around them were completely branding Sihyun as a lolicon + pervert + trash who messed with two girls simultaneously.

‘Hahaha, I’m screwed, aren’t I…? This time, I really need to write my resignation.’