Ch.30Main Heroine Appears!

# The Day I Met Princess Kurumi

I had to wake up early that morning and prepare more meticulously than usual.

I spent a full hour in the shower, washing away any bacteria that might have accumulated while I slept, then applied mouthwash, cologne, and all sorts of good things all over my body.

“Is this good enough?”

“Wait! Your collar is down. For a man, the collar is everything.”

“Hmm, that’s right, that’s right. Yes, absolutely.”

Madam Rolling and Mr. Lee Seokgyu were checking my attire and physical condition, even delaying their usual work hours to do so.

Behind the couple meticulously grooming me was Sophia, whose expression seemed particularly dark today.

“…Tsk!”

“……”

Sophia and I were essentially being dispatched to the same location today.

However, Sophia was security personnel who needed to remain “outside” the mansion for guard duty, while I was a guest who would enter “inside” and share a table with the princess—someone I hadn’t even seen in the original work.

Despite being at the same place, we weren’t allowed to meet freely.

Only those who received “permission” from Princess Kurumi herself could enter the mansion where she resided.

‘I wonder if I’ll see Sophia again around evening after entering in the morning?’

She seemed quite upset, considering she had prepared two lunch boxes last night, hoping we could at least eat together.

“Well then, have a good time!”

“Ah, yes…”

“If the princess becomes displeased for any reason, apologize immediately and leave the room!”

“Sophia, good luck with security duty today.”

“I got it…”

After completing all preparations and stepping outside, I saw a limousine waiting in front of the hotel entrance, apparently there to escort Sophia and me.

I tried not to be nervous, but I couldn’t help swallowing hard.

***

“Regarding the main gate, which is most important for mansion security…”

“I’ll take responsibility for that.”

“Oh! If Hunter Sophia is handling it, we can rest easy!”

“Then I’ll return to cover the back entrance.”

We finally arrived at Princess Kurumi’s mansion after riding in the limousine.

Beyond the walls, the building resembled a magnificent traditional Japanese ryokan.

As soon as we reached our destination, Sophia told the other hunters which area she would cover and promptly positioned herself at the entrance I would be passing through.

…She probably chose that spot because it would be the quickest place to leave together once her shift ended.

“I’ll be going then.”

“…If anything happens, just shout. I’ll charge in immediately.”

“No, please don’t do that…”

Princess Kurumi was from the Kitsune Family, arguably the most vigilant among the World’s 10 Great Families, especially toward outsiders due to her Beast Hunter constitution.

I was about to give Sophia a brief warning that we might end up with a bad ending if something went wrong, when suddenly:

“Hmm hmm hmm~♪ I’ve come to be the princess’s friend~♫”

I heard someone humming behind me.

Despite this being the private property where one of the World’s 10 Great Families currently resided…

A woman stood confidently before us, blocking the entrance, without showing the slightest tension, already acting as if she were Princess Kurumi’s friend.

She had pink hair styled in buns with adorable ribbons attached.

Just standing there, looking at her made me feel like hearts were popping up around her, announcing how lovable she was.

“Excuse me~. If you’re hunters in charge of security, would you mind stepping aside~?”

The woman before me was deliberately using an affected tone, trying to appear as harmless and cute as possible.

I was momentarily taken aback by her appearance, which was earlier than in the original work, and stepped back.

“What…”

“Hmm? Excuse me~. If you suddenly back away like that when you see someone, what does that make me?”

“Ah, I, um… s-sorry.”

“…? What’s wrong? Do you know me?”

“No, that’s not it…”

Of course, this was my first time meeting her in person.

That is, in reality—but I had met this heroine countless times while playing “Hunter’s Blood.”

And in about half of those encounters, I tried to recruit her as a companion, only to be used and exploited before being ultimately discarded.

“Hmph! I’m upset!”

[Yoo Sihyeon’s affection has decreased by -10.]

Her name was Yoo Sihyeon.

She was one of the main heroines in the original work and a “Condition Hunter” with the ability called “Charm,” which made it easy to build affection with others.

“Hmm~. By the way, you don’t seem to be a hunter, so why are you here?”

Condition Hunters.

They specialized in inflicting “status effects” on targets and were support-type hunters.

The status effect Yoo Sihyeon could use was Charm.

The activation condition was making eye contact with her, after which the target—whether human or monster—would become obedient to her.

That’s why I deliberately avoided her gaze.

In that state, I continued my response.

“I was also invited as a guest.”

“…What? Someone like you… I mean, I didn’t expect the princess to have invited guests other than me! How interesting!”

“Haha, is that so…?”

Yoo Sihyeon smiled broadly, appearing delighted on the surface.

But I knew her true face, so I couldn’t completely relax.

‘Inside, she must be furious that what she thought would be her exclusive “special” opportunity isn’t special anymore.’

Yoo Sihyeon.

She was what you’d call a monopolizing character who wanted everything for herself.

If there was something good, she wanted to possess it alone, and if she saw someone who seemed like a rival…

“Wow~! You’re amazing~!”

At first, she would pretend to be a weak extra, cheering from behind, but once that rival became weaker than her…

“Stay behind me.”

She’d suddenly act cool and pretend to be beautiful and awesome—that kind of heroine.

Of course, until the mid-game, if you just left her alone, she would monopolize all the good things and smoothly progress the story, truly embodying the “I’m the only protagonist” mentality.

“Huh? Why isn’t this dying?”

The problem was that she wasn’t the protagonist but a heroine.

Because she grew stronger quickly and easily through external factors rather than pure training, she soon reached her limit. Without someone to put the brakes on her, she would meet a miserable end.

‘To recruit her as a companion, I needed to offer high-grade items at regular intervals, right? Probably.’

If the quality of the items offered was low or if I missed the schedule before reaching maximum affection, she would quickly turn into a villain trying to steal all my items.

Since getting close to her didn’t seem beneficial right now, I tried to simply pass by her.

“Then I’ll excuse myself first.”

I wondered why Yoo Sihyeon had appeared already, when according to the original work, she shouldn’t have shown up until the “Giant Subjugation” main quest two months later.

With that thought, I took a step toward the mansion’s main entrance.

But then:

“Ex. Cuse. Me.”

Suddenly, she grabbed me from behind, spun me around, and forced me to face her.

I tried to avert my eyes to avoid her Charm, but she held my face, forcing me to look at her.

“You know what? I’ve suddenly become a little interested in you.”

“…!”

“Mr. Ordinary-Looking Extra. Aren’t you happy to make eye contact with a pretty woman like me? Doesn’t it feel good? Aren’t you excited? And don’t you want to answer immediately when I ask you something?”

It felt like inhaling an intoxicating fragrance that made my entire brain euphoric even with just a small whiff, like a drug.

My vision was quickly turning heart-shaped, and my lips trembled with the desire to answer her questions.

But despite appearances, I was an experienced player.

“S-stop… it…!”

“Hmm…”

“Let… me… go… now…”

The method to resist the Charm effect.

I closed my eyes completely and continued resisting Yoo Sihyeon.

Finally, as if her patience had run out:

“Ah, really… what an idiot. I was planning to use you moderately and then discard you since you’re also a guest of the princess, but you’re being stubborn until the end?”

With that disgusting expression she always showed in the original work right before backstabbing me, Yoo Sihyeon began to viciously berate me.

“L-i-s-t-e-n. Mr. Extra, as ordinary as a roadside pebble. Why would someone as insignificant as you try to stand on the same level as someone special like me?”

“S-stop…!”

“You know what? When I see people like you who aren’t special at all but act like they’re something and chase opportunities, it makes me sick. You just don’t know your place~.”

“Stop it…!”

“Hehe. Stop what? Oh, you mean the truth bombs…”

“Sophia! Don’t kill her!!”

“……Huh?”

I had already developed immunity to Yoo Sihyeon’s verbal abuse from playing the game so much.

What worried me was Sophia behind Yoo Sihyeon, her face flushed with anger.

Grab.

“Hmm?”

At my shout, Sophia unclenched her fist and instead placed her hand on Yoo Sihyeon’s shoulder.

“What is it? Do you need something?”

“Sophia. Don’t do it!”

“Sophi… a? Wait… Sophia?”

Then she applied force with one arm.

Crack.

“Aaaaargh?!”

She forced Yoo Sihyeon, who had been standing, to kneel on the ground.

“Ow, ow! It hurts!”

Yoo Sihyeon, who had been holding onto me, now grabbed Sophia’s arm that was pressing her down.

But the Yoo Sihyeon I knew was a D-rank hunter.

In contrast, Sophia was a B-rank hunter recognized not in Korea but in the USA.

Crunch.

“Stop! Stop! Stop!!”

No matter how much strength she applied, her opponent didn’t budge.

Looking up at the eerie woman who was overwhelming her with sheer force, seemingly trying to dislocate her shoulder:

“I-I’m sorry! I was wrong!”

Yoo Sihyeon managed to apologize just before her shoulder bone was about to give way, and only then was she released.