Ch.89Sorry, I’m Not S-Rank – 3

“….”

What’s with this woman? Did she sell her “The Yellow Madwoman” title or something?

She stops at red lights and goes on green. She doesn’t even speed up on yellow.

When merging, she uses her turn signal, obeys the speed limit, and maintains a safe distance.

Is this really Rina Lee? I was expecting to see Mad Max drenched in madness.

“Why do you keep glancing at me like that? Is this your first time seeing someone drive?”

Of course I’m staring because it’s fascinating. Not the driving, but Rina herself.

She drives this properly? That Rina Lee? The Yellow Madwoman?

The one who should be screaming “Fuck manners! Fuck speed limits! Fuck turn signals!”

Screech—!

“Ugh.”

A car coming from the merge lane probably didn’t check properly.

When Rina honked, the driver was startled and quickly reduced speed.

If her reaction had been even slightly delayed, it could have led to at least a fender bender.

In this situation, cursing in anger would be justified.

It’s basic courtesy to check your surroundings when merging.

And if it were the Rina I know, she would curse and use physical force… but she doesn’t?

‘Even now… she’s not getting angry? That Rina Lee?’

At this point, it’s beyond fascinating—it’s becoming frightening.

I’m starting to wonder if I’m really with Rina.

Maybe there’s a villain who can mimic other people’s appearances.

In just a few minutes, all sorts of thoughts ran through my mind.

“First of all, yes, I am Rina.”

“Huh, what?”

“You keep looking at me like you’re thinking, ‘Who is this person? This doesn’t seem like someone I know!’ Our handsome and suspicious Seojin oppa.”

Her words were so accurate that I could only blink, unable to respond.

At this rate, I should be careful even about what I think around this woman.

“Second, I’m actually careful when driving. Want to know why?”

“…A little.”

“It’s nothing special. When I first started driving recklessly, my mom beat the crap out of me.”

Was Rina’s mother perhaps an S-class ability user too?

I thought about it carefully, but the answer was ‘no.’

Both of Rina’s parents are naturalized foreigners in Korea.

If those foreigners had been S-class ability users, both their home country and South Korea would have made a huge fuss about it.

“You said you’re going to the Academy?”

“Yes.”

“That’s strange. I asked those guys in suits earlier, and they said you were on leave.”

When did she have time to investigate?

“They even said it was paid leave, approved by the higher-ups.”

“That’s right.”

“You’re going to work even though they’re offering paid leave? Are you in your right mind?”

Rina is making me out to be crazy, and honestly, I have nothing to say.

Even I think that someone who insists on working despite being offered paid leave must be crazy.

If people desperately wanting vacation time heard about my situation,

I’d accept their curses if they demanded I give them my leave instead.

“Is it because of her?”

“Who?”

“Why are you pretending not to know? That girl who’s all giddy over you.”

“Soohyun.”

Crack—

I think I just heard something break.

Glancing over, I noticed the steering wheel Rina was gripping had slightly crumpled.

A car steering wheel isn’t made of clay, yet her grip strength deformed it like that.

Once again, I was reminded that she truly is a crazy woman.

“Now you’re even calling her by name so casually. It’s EXTREMELY annoying to hear.”

“…I don’t see why that should bother you, Rina.”

“Why wouldn’t it? Don’t you remember how I was recently rejected by our Seojin oppa, who’s single but puts up walls?”

Can she stop with the “single” comments already?

It’s not even gaslighting, but she’s making me wonder if I really was single all along.

“Wait, was that actually a serious confession asking me to date you?”

“Wow. Look at this guy. Did you think I was joking or something?”

“Yes. I naturally thought it was a joke.”

At my answer, Rina makes an expression of disbelief.

Then she turns her head completely, fixing her gaze on me….

“…No, no! Look ahead! The car, the car!”

When the traffic light changed, the car in front suddenly braked hard.

Even with a safe distance, Rina isn’t looking ahead right now!

If we continue like this, we’ll crash right into them with a bang….

Screech—

…but we didn’t. Does this woman have eyes on the side of her head too?

“You’re really something. You actually thought that was a joke?”

“Well… honestly, yes. You were constantly joking around with me then, and also….”

“So you thought the confession was a joke too. Like a prank confession to tease you?”

I found myself nodding at Rina’s words without realizing it.

She sighed, “Haah,” and pressed the accelerator as the light changed.

By the way, her gaze was still focused entirely on me.

“I admit I am crazy. I won’t deny that, but I’m not at the level where I’d put myself on the line as a condition. And I’m a woman too, you know?”

She is a woman, I suppose. That’s why she’s a madwoman, not a madman.

“…”

After that, Rina focused on driving in silence for a while.

Thankfully, she turned her head back to watch the road ahead.

Thanks to that, my uneasiness decreased just a tiny bit.

‘Yes, just a tiny bit.’

I glanced around to see how far we were from the Academy.

The scenery is starting to look familiar, so we must be almost there.

Ah, yes. If we turn left here, take the main road, and go a bit further…

Whoosh—

“…Rina?”

“What?”

“You shouldn’t turn right here. This way leads to… not the Academy.”

“I’m not going to the Academy.”

What is she saying? Didn’t she just say she’d take me to the Academy?

“Are you kidnapping me?”

“Kidnapping? What a bleak choice of words.”

“Then what? Where exactly are we going?”

“First, you need to pay the taxi fare. We’ve been driving for almost 40 minutes.”

“…How much is it?”

“I don’t need money. Do you know how much money I have? It’s probably rotting away.”

It would be nonsense coming from anyone else, but this is Rina we’re talking about.

An S-class ability user. One who’s been called the strongest in South Korea.

Naturally, the various subsidies and compensations that come with that must be enormous.

The statement that her “money is rotting away” is probably true.

“Then what do you want?”

“I spent 40 minutes of my time, so you give me 40 minutes of yours.”

“What does that—”

“I’m asking you on a date, are you that oblivious?”

At the word “date,” I reflexively looked at Rina.

I wondered if she might be laughing like before.

True to her madwoman reputation, I thought she might be playing a prank and giggling about it.

‘But, damn. She’s not laughing.’

Couldn’t she laugh at a time like this?

I wish she would giggle and say, “Were you hoping? This is why you’re single!” right now.

If she did, I might be annoyed, but I could laugh it off somehow.

“You said we’d have dinner together, but there’s been no word of it.”

But instead of laughter, Rina unloaded her complaints in front of me.

“Do you think I don’t have men who like me? They’re so annoying.”

“That’s 100% a lie. Who would dare annoy you?”

Unless they’re suicidal.

“Just answer me. 40 minutes on a date with me as taxi fare. Deal?”

“What if I say no?”

“Then I guess I’ll have to take money instead. Let’s say… 400 million won?”

“Let’s do the date.”

At my answer, Rina looks at me again in disbelief.

As if asking why I immediately accepted after the money was mentioned, after acting like I wouldn’t agree.

‘What do you expect? 400 million won isn’t pocket change.’

It’s no joke—an S-class ability user’s time is worth at least that much.

If Rina had spent those 40 minutes with me doing something more productive,

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say she could have earned 4 billion won instead of 400 million.

And knowing Rina, she would probably insist on collecting the 400 million.

In that case, spending 40 minutes with her is much better.

“I can’t believe this.”

Rina grumbles, but a smile is subtly forming at the corners of her mouth.

Looking at her, a question suddenly came to mind.

I have a feeling that asking might be disadvantageous to me.

She might respond with comments about me being single again.

But I felt that this was the right timing to ask.

“Can I ask you one thing, Rina?”

“As long as it’s not weird.”

She gives me the exact same answer I gave her before.

It’s a bit creepy that she remembers that far back.

“Why are you doing this? I don’t understand why you keep acting this way toward me.”

“That’s a strange question. An adult woman asks an adult man on a date. Is there some special meaning to that? I’m doing this because I like you. Seojin oppa, you really are single, aren’t you?”

“I want a more serious answer.”

“Who says I’m not being serious?”

After that, Rina continued to mutter something under her breath.

After driving for a few more minutes, we stopped at a traffic light.

“…Seojin oppa, do you think I’m crazy?”

I almost reflexively answered “Yes” to Rina’s sudden question.

If her voice and expression hadn’t been so serious,

I might have actually answered that way.

“Well….”

“Why hesitate? Yes, I am crazy. I know it too. That I’m a madwoman. That I’m not in my right mind. Always causing trouble, acting before thinking, doing things that blur the line between ability user and villain. Being a madwoman, yes, I coolly admit it!”

It’s good that she’s self-aware.

Sometimes there are people who are crazy but insist they’re normal until the end.

“But, Seojin oppa. You might think this is nonsense.”

Tap tap—

Rina lightly taps the steering wheel as she continues.

“I had no choice but to be crazy. If I don’t move, if I don’t cause trouble, if I don’t fight… this heart, right here, feels like it might stop. That’s why I act like a madwoman.”

“What are you—”

“But, you know, I’m a ‘monster.’ A monster no one can handle. Other people can’t deal with me.”

Suddenly I feel her gaze on me.

Instead of eyes flickering with faint madness or excessive interest,

Blue eyes containing something strangely profound were approaching me.

“But with Seojin oppa, I feel like you might be able to handle me. Someone who can make a monster like me seem a little more human.”