episode_0116

Comforting a crying woman is truly difficult.

It’s the same even if the one doing the comforting is another woman.

Of course, Baek Ayun was a girl with good social skills, capable of comforting others quite calmly, as long as it wasn’t about her own affairs…

‘I-I want to leave.’

This, indeed, was a different story. Didn’t she choose the wrong person to whine to, no matter what?

Baek Ayun briefly looked down at Cheon Soyul through narrowed eyes.

Although some time had passed since her pitiful crying stopped, her emotions still seemed unmanageable, as she buried her head in Baek Ayun’s embrace.

For Baek Ayun, who was deeply fond of the man who would be Cheon Soyul’s husband in the future, it was an undeniably complex situation.

It was a fact well-known to Cheon Soyul, of course, that Baek Ayun adored Lee Hyunjin.

There was nothing particularly new about it, especially considering they sometimes shared the same body.

‘And yet, she’s asking me such a thing…’

Baek Ayun’s gaze narrowed slightly.

Wasn’t her intention a little suspicious?

‘Is she teasing me or what?’

Of course, Baek Ayun knew Lee Hyunjin’s heart. He was indeed a kind person, but his romantic affections were directed at only one person.

“Hmm.”

…Of course, judging by his recent reactions and demeanor, it seemed he had opened his heart a little to her, who was closest to him after his fiancée?

Though, inwardly, Baek Ayun had been secretly delighted about this recently??

In any case, she could say what Cheon Soyul wanted to hear. It wasn’t difficult. If she wanted, she could even mediate between the two.

But. Still.

A faint smile.

Baek Ayun didn’t want that. To be precise, in her current mood, she had no desire at all to do what Cheon Soyul wanted.

It might be a cruel and mischievous thought, but it was the truth.

In any case, it meant she felt a surge of displeasure.

A subtle twist appeared on Baek Ayun’s lips.

“Soyul-ssi.”

“…Hmm?”

And then she spoke. Cheon Soyul, who was still buried in her embrace, lifted only her head slightly, and Baek Ayun smiled.

“You know, don’t you? Hyunjin-ssi and I have been meeting quite often lately.”

“…”

“They were all meetings approved by you beforehand… But still, in the end, it was you who condoned him meeting various women. If they meet often enough, feelings can develop.”

Her continued words were quite dangerous, unlike her usual self.

A discernible expression began to fade from Cheon Soyul’s face.

Baek Ayun flinched inwardly, but it was too late [like riding a tiger, it’s hard to get off, a proverb about being in an irreversible situation]. She couldn’t take back what she’d already said, so she had no choice but to see it through.

“…Rather than saying Hyunjin-ssi’s feelings for you have completely disappeared, um, yes. It’s possible that a few percent of those feelings might have shifted to another person of the opposite sex—”

*CRACK!*

Baek Ayun’s words couldn’t continue. Lightning sparked, and Baek Ayun flinched, urgently raising her energy.

Did I cross the line a bit too much?

‘…Ah, whatever.’

But as she’d already said, it was inevitable. Asking for relationship counseling (?) from someone caught in a love triangle was honestly cruel.

Given the situation, she thought it might not be bad to stand up and argue back for once, rather than always being unilaterally submissive.

‘If I die, I die.’

Thus, Baek Ayun stiffened her neck with determination, bracing herself to fight Cheon Soyul for the first time since her admission.

“—Uh.”

“?”

“…H-hic.”

With an ominous hiccup, Cheon Soyul’s face immediately turned bright red.

*GUSH!*

“Oh…?”

…It was, in fact, a prelude to an even greater outburst of tears than before, but regrettably, Baek Ayun realized it too late.

Tears began to stream down Cheon Soyul’s smooth cheeks like a waterfall, and Baek Ayun instantly paled, her mouth falling open.

She had just seen her cry a moment ago, but this felt different.

For Cheon Soyul to sob so vaguely, clutching at her throat like a child?

It was a reaction far beyond her expectations. No, when the lightning sparked, she’d naturally expected her to get angry, just like always…!

“No, seriously, why are you acting so uncharacteristically like this?!”

So there was no other option. If it were a violent lightning mage expressing anger and sparking, it would be one thing, but with a close friend who was clearly hurt by her words, she had to approach it differently.

Baek Ayun regretted her previous impulsive provocation and immediately lowered her stance.

“Alright, alright. I’m sorry. I guess my words came out too maliciously because I have jealousy too. I-I didn’t realize you were in no state to argue.”

“…Haa… hic… WAAAH.”

“I said I’m sorry. D-don’t cry…”

Though both girls were similarly small in stature, this time, Baek Ayun was seen embracing Cheon Soyul as if comforting her.

Baek Ayun, stretching her not-so-long arms to hug Cheon Soyul, sighed.

‘This won’t do.’

She realized now that this wasn’t something she could just talk her way out of.

If she’d known this, she wouldn’t have even started a fight.

Baek Ayun slightly raised her head to look out the window, narrowing her eyes as she subtly tried to ignore the faint headache she felt.

A dark sky. Only the faint light from the streetlights in front of the dormitory building flickered.

…Lee Hyunjin, that bastard.

Baek Ayun murmured such a curse, something she would never utter considering her usual feelings for ‘Oppa,’ and thought.

Anyway, it was certainly wrong for him to wander around without properly taking care of his fiancée.

Although Baek Ayun had no reason to try and improve their relationship…

“Haa.”

But what could she do? She loved Lee Hyunjin, yes, but she had also grown just as fond of Cheon Soyul.

This time, she had no choice but to take a small loss.

*****

After Lee Hyunjin spent a passionate night, essentially a one-night stand, with Rachel.

And after the minor incident between Cheon Soyul and Baek Ayun.

A day had passed like that.

The weekend arrived at the Academy.

“…”

Lee Hyunjin couldn’t help but part his lips slightly. His expression might have seemed quite foolish, but his mind was so blank that it hardly mattered.

Waking up early, he shook off his lingering fatigue and checked his phone for a moment.

[Wife-nim: Come out right now] [Wife-nim: I’ll be waiting at the campus entrance]

Seeing the message that had arrived about 30 minutes ago, his face turned pale.

Setting aside the message’s content and its reason, if it was 30 minutes ago, could it be that she’d been waiting at the campus entrance since then?

There was no other choice. Cheon Soyul had already seemed unusually subdued all day yesterday, so such a message arriving this morning made him extremely anxious.

Lee Hyunjin, getting ready with a speed almost unprecedented in his life, headed outside.

“…You came?”

Arriving at the entrance of Cheongsong Academy, breathing heavily, he was met with Cheon Soyul’s familiar, demure expression.

So the reason for his blank expression wasn’t her face.

It was something else.

Specifically, her appearance.

For a while, Lee Hyunjin had to stare blankly at his fiancée before him, unable to erase—no, unable to change—that foolish expression.

It was Cheon Soyul who actually had to blush at such an unexpected reaction.

“W-what are you staring at…?”

Her tone was quite sharp, but her usual fierceness was greatly diminished.

It seemed she herself was aware of her change, as she needlessly fiddled with her hair.

“…Uh…”

So Lee Hyunjin merely blinked.

He stared at her, just like that.

Her light brown hair, usually tied up but now unbound and flowing freely, fluttered in the wind.

Despite not usually enjoying it, today she had finished applying light makeup.

The white dress, which clearly differed from the casual clothes she usually wore, was certainly the most out of place in this situation.

…But it was also just as impressive.

To put it simply, it was as if her pretty appearance, usually hidden by her fierceness, had been fully revealed through the art of clothing and makeup.

Lee Hyunjin lifted his head, unable to revert his bewildered state of mind to normal.

His gaze revealed his emotions so transparently that it would have been stranger not to read his true feelings.

So Cheon Soyul briefly met Lee Hyunjin’s gaze, then—

“Because you made me anxious.”

She then parted her lips.

“Since this was my choice, I have no answer if you say it’s my own doing, but I still want to know. …I want to know your heart more.”

She spoke the words she wanted to say. Slowly, carefully.

Fortunately, her voice didn’t tremble.

She turned her trembling fingertips behind her back to hide them and lifted her head.

“Let’s go on a date. A normal one today.”

“…”

“Well, I was thinking of going to an amusement park or something…”

As she trailed off her words and observed Lee Hyunjin’s face, Cheon Soyul couldn’t help but let the corners of her mouth lift with a surge of overwhelming emotion.

She had dressed according to Baek Ayun’s instructions because Baek Ayun had pushed her quite forcefully.

In truth, she had been a little uncertain if this would work. While she was certainly aware of her own exquisite beauty, she hadn’t had a firm conviction that Lee Hyunjin would fall for such an appeal.

A faint smile.

Still, it seemed Baek Ayun’s words had been right in the end.

Judging by the reaction she managed to elicit from Lee Hyunjin.

Cheon Soyul’s eyes crinkled in a faint smile.

“You’re unusually quiet today, aren’t you?”

She approached Lee Hyunjin with soft clicks of her heels, and soon her slender finger poked Lee Hyunjin’s flinching chest.

*Poke.*

“…You…”

And just as Lee Hyunjin was about to open his mouth, Cheon Soyul cut him off.

“Why?”

“Did you fall for me a second time?”

“…”

“I guess I’m quite pretty today. That’s a relief.”

A playful yet radiant smile. Cheon Soyul shrugged her shoulders, then turned around.

Anyway, she had to get moving, and she wanted to lead today’s date, and so on.

There might have been a few other reasons for turning around, but in truth, there was only one core reason.

Cheon Soyul felt a small sense of relief that Lee Hyunjin wouldn’t be able to see her face anymore.

‘I don’t want to show him more details.’

She had spoken well, and succeeded in presenting a confident facade.

But it was all nothing more than a bluff. One misstep, and it would immediately fall apart.

‘…As expected.’

Lee Hyunjin’s reaction, his face flushing at her unusual attire like this, was…

…a reaction strong enough to make her blush in turn, just by looking at him.

Cheon Soyul held a subtle smile on her lips.

She had already achieved her initial goal.