Ch.90You, Don’t Tell Me?! – 1

Rina complains that there’s no parking space.

She grumbles about how much tax they collect and wonders where it all goes.

She says they diligently collect all vehicle-related taxes but can’t even secure parking spaces.

While agreeing with her, I recalled what she had said earlier.

‘A monster.’

Monster. She called herself a monster. Honestly, it’s true.

With physical abilities several times stronger than others, and powers that science can’t explain.

S-rank means you’ve far transcended the category of human.

It’s no wonder countries do everything they can to maintain and recruit S-ranks.

But Rina’s use of the word “monster” had a different meaning.

It wasn’t simply stating that she was different from others.

It contained something deeper. Something more profound.

“But I think Seojin can handle me. Someone who can make a monster like me seem a little more human.”

I thought she was talking like a cursed princess, but I somewhat understood what she meant.

Perhaps it was related to the word “monster” she had uttered earlier.

Rina possessed power that was overwhelming even among S-ranks.

From her perspective, she was just born with this power.

But to others, she could rightfully be seen as a terrifying monster.

From there, Rina had to make a choice.

Either live like a normal person and blend in with others like other S-ranks.

Or follow her own standards and move forward alone.

Of the two options before her, Rina chose the latter.

Everyone knows this. That’s why they call her “The Yellow Madwoman.”

I thought it was simply a personality issue.

Since that’s how it was portrayed in the novel, I just accepted it.

Though not quite The Elder, she was practically a villain.

But after hearing what she said earlier, that she had no choice but to go mad.

I briefly thought there might be a secret that the world doesn’t know.

‘The Third Eye doesn’t show anything more. Could there be something I don’t know….’

No, that’s not it. I shook my head vigorously.

Stop falling for it. I’ve had enough of being fooled by this crazy woman.

Every time I respond seriously, Rina just laughs.

“What are you doing? Are you trying to find a parking spot?”

“Hmm… I looked around but there really isn’t any space.”

“Who looks around like that? You were practically headbanging.”

After wandering for a while, we finally found a parking spot.

I check the rear camera once, confirm both sides, and pull the car in.

“What are you doing? Why aren’t you getting out?”

“Huh? Wait. Is parking already done?”

“If it’s done, I’d unbuckle my seatbelt, right? And turn off the engine.”

As if it wasn’t a joke, Rina really had the car key in her hand.

No way. Did she really park in just one try?

Is she being careless? I thought as I glanced down.

But what I saw was a car parked with perfectly even spacing.

‘What is this woman? What kind of character is she?’

At first, I thought she was an S-rank drunk on her own power, with late-onset chuunibyou, on the verge of turning evil.

After actually meeting her, I was convinced that was true.

But seeing this, it seems that’s not all there is to her.

I hate to say this, but honestly, it was impressive.

“Take this.”

With those words, a case flies toward me.

I catch it wondering what it is, and find a pair of glasses inside.

I looked at Rina to ask why she suddenly gave me this.

“What are you doing? Put them on quickly. It’ll be annoying if people recognize us from now on.”

At some point, she had put on glasses similar to mine.

And she had tied up her flowing straight hair into a tight bun.

Just glasses and a hair tie. She calls this a disguise.

But the funny thing is, at a glance, she really doesn’t look like Rina.

But I thought just putting on glasses wouldn’t be enough for a disguise…

“You think wearing glasses won’t make a difference? Try them on. It’ll explain why people in movies can’t recognize heroes just because they wear glasses.”

*

To cut to the chase, Rina was absolutely right.

People didn’t recognize either of us, me being relatively less famous, or even Rina.

I think it was crucial that people don’t pay much attention to each other.

Plus, there were many people around, so they just passed by without noticing.

Above all, there were quite a few foreigners, so Rina didn’t stand out.

“What did I tell you? Even just glasses are enough.”

As she whispers in my ear, I feel somewhat frustrated.

Wow. Who would have thought Rina would be right about something.

“…So, how are we going to spend the remaining 36 minutes?”

“Wow. Amazing. Were you really counting those 4 minutes? That’s too much.”

“You said it was for taxi fare, right? Then I need to calculate exactly. If I pay more than what I rode, I lose.”

It’s not unreasonable. It’s actually quite valid.

If a taxi fare is 10,000 won and you pay 10,100 won, you lose.

Now we’re spending time instead of money, so counting is natural.

“Really, no wonder you’re single!”

“Another minute has passed.”

“Argh!”

You’re the weird one for demanding a 40-minute date in the first place.

40 minutes is even shorter than most office workers’ lunch breaks.

It’s barely enough time to have a meal.

“So, Rina. Where are we going? At least tell me something.”

She’s just walking endlessly without telling me our destination.

My legs aren’t hurting, but spending time like this seems wasteful.

Not just my time, but also Rina’s who demanded these 40 minutes.

“You’re so noisy. Are you showing off that you’re single?”

Despite my request, Rina remained unmoved.

She just kept walking along a busy street.

Because of this, I was getting increasingly frustrated.

‘Seriously, why is she doing this? I’m not refusing to date. I agreed to it. We could have a late meal, go to a café, or even sit in a park and talk…’

Wait a minute. Wait, wait.

“Rina.”

“Why do you keep nagging? This time is mine to use as I…”

“Are you single?”

The first reason I asked was because the thought suddenly occurred to me.

I just wanted to see her reaction.

“…What are you saying?”

“Rina, I’m asking if you’re single.”

The first reason was her excessive fixation on the “single” part.

Whenever I said anything, she would circle back to calling me single.

It was strange that she kept repeating it beyond just teasing.

And secondly, she seemed very afraid of her mother.

Usually, children like that have very little dating experience.

With strict parents, getting caught could be troublesome.

“Are you trying to make me angry right now?”

Rina’s expression visibly hardens.

Even when she lost track of The Elder, fought monsters, or when Soohyun was being sharp.

Not once had Rina shown negative emotions.

But as soon as I called her single, she reacted like this?

“Then what were you planning to do on our date? Tell me. You must have had some plan.”

“P-plan? Do we have to date like that?! That’s what singles do!”

“You can say that, but everyone thinks about where to go and what to do.”

Yes, this is it. Now I’m starting to see the picture.

Why Rina kept approaching me so excessively.

Why she kept harping on about me being single.

Because that way, she could hide herself in reverse.

She shook me up so I couldn’t even imagine the truth.

‘I almost fell for it. No, I did fall for it and barely came to my senses.’

I’ve met similar people as complainants before.

They come in and try to shake up government officials with all sorts of methods.

As if they’re experts in handling complaints.

In reality, they’re just loud with nothing to back it up.

“That’s not true! I’m not single!”

“Say it again. Are you really not single?”

“Of course! Do you think someone like me wouldn’t have had a boyfriend?!”

If she did, that would be surprising in its own way.

Even if her powers awakened late, her personality would have been the same.

It wouldn’t be easy to handle a woman like her.

And from what I’ve heard about Rina’s mother,

She seems like the type who would smack her kids for not studying during school days.

“Are you really not single?”

“I’m not!”

“Really, really? Are you really not single? Are you sure? Can you swear on your pride?”

Another characteristic of these types is their unnecessarily high pride.

If you say “swear on your pride,” nine out of ten will give you an answer.

“…”

For a while, Rina didn’t give a clear answer.

Just as I was starting to worry if she might really get angry,

“…Tch!”

She made a strange sound and turned her body away.

And in the midst of that, her eyes were faintly filled with tears as if she was dying of frustration…

Wait. What did I just say? Tears?

Rina? That crazy Yellow Madwoman? The villain and ability user who’s always cursed at.

The one who should have developed a steel mentality by now?

I thought I might be seeing things.

So I slipped my right hand into my pocket and pinched my thigh hard.

…It hurt like hell.