Chapter 9 – I Must Deceive

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So, I always thought that, eventually, I’d have to run into Radiant White. To be honest, I was kind of looking forward to it.

But not like this. I wasn’t prepared at all, had no idea what to say, and the situation couldn’t have been worse.

I didn’t know exactly what Shining White looked like, but it wasn’t hard to guess that my current human appearance might bear some resemblance to her.

Well, I mean, this body I’m using right now—it’s literally Shining White’s body.

Even though I’ve got vampire, dragon, and monster elements mixed in, right now, with my starlight suppressed, I’m just an ordinary human.

Not to mention, vampires are basically monsters too, in a way. Their power also ultimately comes from the stars.

I didn’t expect the dragon traits to be suppressed as well, but since the device was made specifically for me, I guess they made sure to handle that too.

Maybe they saw it as a thoughtful gesture, but right now, it just felt like another massive restriction.

If you take away the vampire, the dragon, and the monster from me, all that’s left is the magical girl—Shining White.

…Though, honestly, I don’t look all that “White” no matter how you spin it.

But the real problem was that I didn’t actually know what Shining White looked like.

If this appearance happened to be nearly identical to hers, aside from hair and eye color, then I might get kidnapped right here and now—no joke.

Considering the obsession Radiant White had for her sister, I wouldn’t even be surprised.

What should I do? Just keep my mouth shut? Yeah, I mean, she’s a magical girl. No way she’d just break in—

“Is no one here…? My tracker couldn’t be malfunctioning. Hm, well, I guess taking a quick look around won’t hurt.”

Oh, come on. You’re a magical girl—obey the law!

“There’s—There’s someone inside!”

I barely managed to stop myself from screaming and instead shouted frantically while pounding on the door.

“Oh? Korean? Um, why are you in a place like this? Wait, did those bastards lock you up?! Hold on, I’ll get you out right away!”

But for some reason, Radiant White seemed to have misunderstood. She started trying to break down the door with even more force.

I racked my brain, desperate to figure out why she was acting like this, and finally realized—she must think I’ve been imprisoned by vampires.

If this keeps up, she’s going to rip the door off just to see me. What do I do? What the hell do I say?

“It’s not—It’s not like that! This is my house! So don’t break the door! I’ll report you for property damage!”

I wasn’t even wearing any clothes at the moment, so I just blurted out whatever I could to stop her from coming in.

“Uh… Your house? A place like this?”

Even to me, it sounded like a lame excuse. But at least I’d prevented an immediate disaster. I was literally naked right now.

“Yes! It’s my house! I can’t believe you’re this gullible—Anyway! Just wait a second! I’m only in my underwear right now!! Let me put some clothes on first!!!”

I couldn’t bring myself to tell a magical girl that I was completely naked, so I lied and said I was at least wearing underwear.

This wasn’t the time to be picky about outfits, so I threw on whatever was within reach. When I looked in the mirror afterward, I was appalled.

The clothes, probably from someone drained dry by vampires, were stained with blood—fine, whatever—but more importantly, I looked like I could walk up to a guy on the street and say, “Hey, oppa, got some time today?” without raising suspicion.

The shirt was half undone because I couldn’t even button it properly over my chest, and the pants were so tight they might as well have been a second skin.

The only silver lining was that I had sneakers and a long coat to cover up.

Goddamn it. What do I do about the corpse? I’d been too lazy to clean it up, and now it was coming back to bite me. This could get me labeled a murderer.

Or worse, a vampire.

And on top of that, those documents were still inside. I could not let her find them.

Screw it. My brain was overheating from overthinking.

…Fine. I’ll just play dumb and act like an illegal immigrant. Or maybe I’ll say I was trafficked here.

I clutched my throbbing head, then stepped outside.

No way was I letting White into the house.

For a moment, I worried I’d combust in the sunlight, but thankfully, that didn’t happen.

The sudden brightness made my eyes sting, and my skin tingle a little, but that was it.

She looked taken aback for a moment, seeing me standing there in the middle of summer wearing a long coat.

“You’re…”

Her words froze me to my core.

Was my worst fear coming true? Did I really look like Shining White?

I anxiously waited for her next words, but after staring at me with a confused expression, she told me to forget what she just said.

…Guess I looked similar for about three seconds.

“Just to confirm… This really is your house?”

She asked again, this time with a more serious expression.

I sighed in relief. At least my worst fear hadn’t come true.

But my relief didn’t last long. This situation was still completely screwed.

There were still way too many things behind me that she couldn’t see. And she was still too interested in me.

Radiant White probably asked out of genuine concern, but to me, every word felt like a death sentence.

The stress was nauseating. I refused to get caught like this—so weak, so pathetic.

And if she took me in, I’d end up at a U.S. military base or something, where they’d see right through this disguise in no time.

White might think my choker was just some odd accessory, but those humans were thorough.

‘That would be game over.’

“Uh… Are you sure you’re okay?”

White, seeing me stay silent, asked with real concern.

“I said it’s my house. What, never seen a semi-basement before?”

Maybe the stress finally snapped something in my brain, because I spat out something way too sharp for a normal citizen talking to a magical girl.

“Oh, no! I didn’t mean it like that! It’s just… I smelled blood from inside…”

That flustered reaction.

That was my lifeline.

I racked my brain for a way to turn this situation around. Think—what was Radiant White weak against?

…

……

………Right. Worldly, crude, and gritty topics.

She was a magical girl who lived in a dream world.

So, I just had to act accordingly.

I hesitated for a moment, but soon, confidence surged through me.

I’ve pretended to be a doctor, a lawyer, a jobless loser, and a feminist activist while switching IPs at night.

I can do this.

“Ugh… Should’ve sprayed some air freshener before coming out. Yeah, fine. It’s not my house. Ugh, how are you this dense?”

‘Pathetic and oblivious people who don’t know their place’—I despised them.

But if I took off this choker, I’d be strong. That meant I could act like one of the strong.

I convinced myself of that and put on the most shameless act possible.

“Huh? Uh… S-Sorry? Did I… do something wrong?”

White looked completely bewildered.

“Nah, nah. My bad for expecting magical girls to have common sense. Hah. This place? It’s a blood-selling club.”

Her face instantly turned red.

“A… club?!”

Seeing her flustered reaction, I couldn’t help but smirk. Yeah. This is the girl I remember.

“Yeah, a club. A place where we sell blood and other things to the bloodsuckers. Never heard of it?”

I crossed my arms and gave her a condescending look, making White wave her hands frantically in protest.

“Th-that’s… um… ugh… But why would a Korean be in a place like this…?”

“Why do you think? Because of this.”

I made a circle with my thumb and index finger while spreading out the rest of my fingers.

“There are plenty of wimps who can’t bring themselves to suck the blood of passing civilians. I’m here to squeeze money out of those cowards. Do you have any idea how expensive medical bills are?”

As she turned as red as a tomato, I subtly adjusted my coat and leaned in slightly, teasing, “So? Do you want a taste, perhaps?”

“N-no! Absolutely not! Never!!! Auuu…”

“Heh, cute. So… if you’re not here to suck blood, then what brings our dear magical girl to such a shady place?”

Taking control of the conversation, I casually asked why she was here.

That part, I was genuinely curious about. Why was she here?

White hesitated before carefully explaining her reason.

“So you’re saying you followed traces of some starlight-wielding guy and ended up here?”

I kept my voice casual, but my heart was pounding in my chest.

She managed to track my magic all the way here.

I knew the Americans were on another level, but damn, they were terrifying. I’d have to be more careful from now on.

“Yes… s-so, um, have you seen anyone suspicious or… unusual around here?”

Feigning contemplation, I twirled a strand of hair between my fingers.

“Hmm, not sure? I didn’t really look at anyone’s face… and honestly, everyone here looks weird, so who knows?”

“I see… Maybe they just passed by… A-anyway, thank you for your cooperation. Uh, could I ask for your name?”

Radiant White politely bowed and asked for my name.

“Hah, you realize where I work, and you still ask for my name?”

I couldn’t help but let out a laugh. White, no matter how naïve you are, did you really think someone working in a place like this would just hand over their real name?

“I just… want to help. I don’t know who it is, but someone you care about must be sick, right? I’d like to contribute to their hospital bills, even just a little…”

Ha, damn. I was lying, but now it’s turning into this.

I should’ve considered the fact that she’s this kind of person.

A name, a name… I can just make one up, right? But I want it to sound at least somewhat pretty.

Closing my eyes, I randomly mixed and matched names in my head until one struck me like lightning, and I blurted it out.

“Sung Mina. Just call me Mina.”

“…Got it. Um, sorry for disturbing your work!”

With that, Radiant White hurriedly took off into the sky, as if escaping.

I could’ve just let her go quietly, but at the last second, a mischievous urge got the better of me, and I added one last comment.

“You’re searching for someone, aren’t you? I hope you find them.”

She froze for a brief moment, as if thinking, How do you know that? But then, she disappeared.

Huh, so that’s that?

“…Uh, um… Mina… should I call you that?”

Almost immediately after White left, Narae returned and hesitantly asked.

But I didn’t even have the energy to respond.

“Don’t talk to me, Narae. Too much happened… I’m exhausted…”

It wasn’t until the next day that I finally took a photo for my ID and passport and changed every name field to “Sung Mina.”