Ch.102Step Aside, I Have Something for You to Do (4)

“Why are you being so serious? He might just be growing taller. You’re always teasing Hamin about being short anyway.”

“Right, it’s not Hamin’s fault that he’s short.”

This would normally be the appropriate response.

For high school students, growing taller is nothing special, just a perfectly natural occurrence.

It would be completely normal to consider it just one of the ordinary, everyday aspects of adolescence that everyone experiences.

That is, if this were an ordinary world rather than one inside a webtoon,

and if Do Hamin were just an ordinary loser rather than the protagonist of this world,

and if I were just an ordinary, pretty high school girl who happened to like that loser and kept him around.

Very pretty, actually.

“Actually, Doyoung, weren’t you waiting for Hamin to grow taller? Otherwise, why would you keep saying ‘grow, grow’ to Hamin every day?”

“No, it’s not like I’m praising an onion expecting it to actually grow well. I just do it because I find it amusing.”

“Is Hamin a vegetable…?”

“That’s awful, Ban Nokuni.”

Hamin’s growth was both good in one way

and slightly frightening in another.

I can’t say I’m not happy about it.

After all, I’ve nurtured those growth plates.

Without any cheat abilities like a status window, tutorial messages,

knowledge of the original story’s ending that only I possess,

or the author’s voice that only I can hear.

This is the result of my efforts alone.

Who is Do Hamin?

He’s a protagonist who runs away when asked to sit next to me,

who claims he has no money when invited to watch a movie,

and who escapes saying he needs to study when I suggest getting his broken glasses fixed.

Taking a character who actively rejects opportunities with the heroine

and developing a relationship where we have private kendo lessons for an hour every day—

do you have any idea how lonely my struggle has been?

Later, when I met Ms. Ban Doyoung’s mother

and learned that her parents’ love story began with kendo lessons,

I can’t tell you how happy I was to discover that the route I found wasn’t wrong.

And just recently,

when he knocked out Lee Jeongkyu with one hand—

the same guy who had easily lifted him up on the first day of school—

I realized that all the time spent practicing kendo with Hamin

had not been meaningless at all.

I was genuinely happy then.

I must have felt like Doraemon seeing Nobita defeat Gian in a fight for the first time.

“…I was really happy.”

But when I realized that Hamin was no longer the shortest among the boys,

when I saw that his body was gradually growing,

I felt a mix of joy and fear.

“Now there’s a time limit on teasing him about being short!”

“I thought you were joking, but you actually seem sad about it.”

“It’s probably just 2 or 3 centimeters taller, right? No need to make such a fuss over that.”

“Choi Sahyang, you don’t understand. From now on, I’ll only be able to tease Hamin about his height for about four months… After summer vacation, he might be as tall as me or even taller! Boys shoot up like bean sprouts once they start growing!”

“Why do you keep comparing Hamin to vegetables?”

“Well, Hamin is quite herbivorous.”

Yes, that herbivore is now turning carnivorous.

This is definitely not something to take lightly.

“Did you like that Hamin was short, or are you afraid of him becoming taller than you?”

“No, I’m not exactly afraid of him growing taller. I’m afraid of what comes with the height increase.”

“Huh…? I don’t really understand what you’re saying. What comes with growing taller?”

“That bastard confessing to me in the future.”

“*COUGH!*”

Hyerang suddenly let out an inexplicable cough when she heard my words.

“Pffft hahaha! You’re so funny, Doyoung!”

“You crazy girl, use your turn signal before you say things like that. I almost choked even though I wasn’t drinking anything.”

Hyerang coughed and spat,

while Sahyang clutched her stomach laughing, tears streaming from her eyes.

Both of them produced an improbable amount of liquid despite not having any water.

Ms. Ban Doyoung and her friends shared the surprising trait of being quite watery.

“Doyoung, you’re really funny. Even if everyone calls you the semi-official immortal goddess, that’s going too far. He hasn’t even mentioned confessing yet, how can you be so sure!”

“How can I not be sure? Do Hamin is growing taller. This is no ordinary flag!”

“Ban Doyoung, I can see you’re no ordinary crazy girl.”

“Seriously. We’ve been in school together since elementary, but this is especially fresh.”

Of course, to Sahyang and Hyerang who don’t know this world is inside a webtoon,

my reaction to Hamin’s growth must look like the ravings of a madwoman with no flowers on her head.

But this is clearly a world with predetermined settings and endings.

The character settings in such a world don’t easily change in just a couple of months.

From major aspects like height and hair,

to minor details like hand and shoe sizes, sometimes even the color of eyeglass frames.

The height difference between Do Hamin and Ms. Ban Doyoung wasn’t just to show their physical difference

but was designed so that when Ms. Ban Doyoung hugged Hamin, his face would be perfectly buried in her chest.

Down to the smallest detail,

these are the character settings created based on the meticulous calculations of the author, the creator of this world.

To change such fixed settings of the protagonist that form the foundation of this world,

an extraordinary catalyst would be required.

To change even a small setting

requires a bold move equivalent to [2 years later at the Sabaody Archipelago].

In other words, Hamin’s physical growth signaled that a major change was coming to this world.

Yes, a future as significant as Do Hamin formally confessing to Ms. Ban Doyoung.

That’s probably the biggest event awaiting me, who is possessing Ms. Ban Doyoung.

“Ugh… I didn’t expect it to come this quickly!”

“I can’t tell if Ban Doyoung likes that Hamin is getting taller or hates it.”

“Isn’t it like this? She’s afraid that when Hamin becomes taller than her, he’ll get revenge for all the teasing and bullying she’s done.”

“Ah… so that’s what it was? I thought she was worried about how to respond when Hamin sincerely confesses to her during the school trip.”

“Come on, Doyoung. Did getting a good score on the Korean test make you start talking in riddles?”

“Acquired a taste, huh… Yes, that might be right.”

If only events stayed at this level.

Neither going deeper, nor further away.

A peaceful daily life with just the right amount of stimulation and enjoyment.

I might have been unconsciously thinking that way.

If someone came to me now and asked if I had acquired a taste for this daily life rather than reaching the conclusion,

honestly, I couldn’t confidently deny it.

Because it was fun.

Being with Hamin.

It seems I wasn’t enjoying being the world’s most beautiful heroine,

but rather being Hamin’s heroine.

Most of my enjoyable memories since possessing Ms. Ban Doyoung

came from times spent with Hamin.

And this joy would never be felt again after returning to my original world.

Because Hamin only exists as the protagonist of this world.

Even if I were to binge-read “Half of Half Road” in that world, it wouldn’t be the same.

Watching could never be as fun as actually living in this world.

But now I guess it’s time for me to prepare myself.

After all, until the final moment when I return to my original world, I must remain as Ms. Ban Doyoung, Hamin’s heroine.

“Doyoung, are you that afraid? Of the new era where Hamin is tall…?”

“Of course. Close your eyes and imagine it. That jerk Do Hamin confessing to Ms. Ban Doyoung during the school trip…”

“…”

Sahyang and Hyerang closed their eyes and slightly tilted their heads up as I suggested.

“Probably on the second day of the trip, when we have free time. He’ll choose a place he thinks is romantic and ask me to walk with him. Like a park with fancy fountains or a lakeside full of spring flowers. Since he’s never properly confessed before, he’ll just copy what he’s seen in search results or some Reels.”

“Well, that does sound like something Hamin would do.”

“Then he’ll hesitate until it’s almost time to regroup, unable to say what he wants to say properly, and when the sunset colors the sky, he’ll finally offer the flowers and gift he prepared and speak. With his usual trembling voice.”

“Why is this so detailed?”

“D-Doyoung… actually, I’ve… for a long time… pfft! Hahaha… ahahahaha! Oh, this is too funny… hahaha.”

Laughter burst out of me, and before I knew it, I lost my balance and tumbled down the gymnasium stairs.

It wasn’t a severe fall, and my body seemed to be made of shock absorbers so nothing particularly hurt,

but in the end, I was the first one to break down and fall out of that imaginary world.

“Ah, I can’t do this. Just thinking about it is so funny I can’t continue, hehehe…”

“She’s really mean, that girl.”

“Let’s leave since it’s making Hamin look pitiful. We should go ask the class president about the school trip plans.”

I knew all the weak sides that Hamin had shown until now.

I had seen each of his pathetic, nerdy expressions closer than anyone else.

Now just seeing his face makes my lips twitch involuntarily.

“This is a problem. How am I supposed to maintain a heroine’s face in that moment?”

Could I really stand there as a heroine without laughing when Hamin musters his courage to confess to Ms. Ban Doyoung?

That was the ending I feared most.