Chapter 12: Blood Fragrance Hospitality

“Our class?”

Yeonha-yeon, who recognized me at a glance, walked briskly toward us.

Yeonha-yeon stretched out her arms and was about to embrace the man when she lightly blocked his face with her palm.

She then looked back and forth between him and me and asked calmly,

“How come you two are together?”

Just moments ago, the scorpion had collapsed with a loud crash—it was the dungeon boss.

Now, the surroundings had shifted, and we found ourselves back in the peaceful atmosphere of Han River Park.

“She saved me.”

The man, who looked somewhat like Yeonha-yeon but had entirely different hair and eye colors, pointed at me and shouted.

***

‘Why? Why am I going to Yeonha-yeon’s house?’

“Even though you’re a non-awakened, you threw yourself in to save my younger sibling. Dan-ah, you’re a great blessing to our family.”

‘Why?’

Why am I being made out to be some great hero who risked my life to save a stranger?

“Thank you so much for saving Young Master. Our boss’s friend, we’re truly grateful.”

Why am I sitting in a black car being driven by a grim-looking man in a black suit with Yeonha-yeon?

All I did was lie about monsters being nearby and then hid behind a rock.

“Repaying this kindness is one of our family’s most important principles.”

With an uncomfortably bright look in his eyes, Yeonha-yeon suddenly grabbed my hand.

“You can look forward to being properly treated.”

“Uh, okay.”

Despite my polite refusal, Yeonha-yeon, with an obstinate attitude, insisted that I get in the car, saying she would repay me.

‘Wait… is this kidnapping?’

I stared blankly out the window, watching the scenery pass by, when Yeonha-yeon’s younger brother, Yeon Hyeonggwang, spoke to me in a bright voice.

“Isn’t it fate that you and our boss are in the same class? We should get along well.”

No!

But, pretending to be the ‘good rebel,’ my mouth said something completely opposite to what I was thinking.

“Life-saving benefactor? It’s not that big of a deal…”

I waved my hands in denial, but Yeon Hyeonggwang fixed his long, narrow eyes on me and smiled.

“You don’t need to be humble. You’ve done something amazing.”

No, I didn’t do anything amazing!

‘I want to go home.’

For the first time since possessing this body, I felt an intense urge to return home to the place I had once lived in.

“We’ve arrived.”

With a crisp voice, the car door opened.

Yeonha-yeon got out first, and I followed, finally stepping out with trembling eyes as I took in the overwhelming sight before me.

Men in black suits stood on either side of the car, welcoming us at the entrance of a massive mansion that radiated an eerie aura.

“Let’s go in.”

Yeonha-yeon took the lead, walking with large strides through a group of men who clearly had the aura of gangsters.

“Hurry up and come inside.”

Yeon Hyeonggwang followed, and the gangsters’ gazes subtly fixed on me.

“Ha ha…”

It was an incredibly uncomfortable moment.

Back in my previous world, ranked number one in the global leaderboard, I had experienced countless dungeons, traveled overseas, and gone through all sorts of things.

But this situation—this feeling of discomfort—was something entirely new.

Even now, it felt just as awkward.

“Here’s the axe-marked doenjang stew.”

A gangster, whose face had an oddly pleasant smile despite the long, deep scar on his cheek that seemed like it had been caused by an axe, came over holding a stone pot.

The bubbling sound from the stew in the pot seemed incredibly out of place.

‘I’ve never been inside a gangster’s house before…’

It seemed like I was experiencing a lot of things for the first time today.

Was the extravagant Korean meal on the table meant as a way to repay my life-saving actions?

I stared blankly at the massive table filled with side dishes, the large pot of doenjang stew at the center, and the mound of multigrain rice in my bowl.

“Make yourself at home, Dan-ah. It must’ve been hard running away with Yeon Hyeonggwang.”

“Uh… I’ll eat… comfortably…”

My gaze shifted to Yeonha-yeon’s back, where several rifles hung neatly on the wall.

‘Is this world set in a place where firearms are legal?’

“Right. This is my house, so make yourself comfortable. There’s plenty of food.”

Alright, I’ll try to relax…

As my eyes wandered again, I saw a longsword hanging in an X shape behind Yeon Hyeonggwang.

That must be a real sword, right?

I glanced at the two of them and then at the men in black suits surrounding us, only for my gaze to drop hastily to my bowl.

Behind the men in suits, I spotted an eerie display: bloodstained fingernails neatly framed in a picture.

I nearly lost my focus as I awkwardly reached for my spoon.

‘Why are they displaying something like that…?’

Even a hunter who tears apart and kills monsters would be scared of bloodstained human nails.

This eerie and unsettling home environment was hard to adjust to as well.

“Alright, I’ll eat well.”

I was just about to begin eating when—

“If you finish this, we’ll take you home, noona.”

“Cough—”

I almost spat out the spoonful of stew I had just taken.

“No, I’ll manage to go on my own.”

“No, you won’t. The world is dangerous these days. I’ll take full responsibility and make sure you get home safely, so don’t worry and eat up.”

‘I’m not worried about that!’

What I’m really worried about is being involved with a shady-looking gangster, and now Yeonha-yeon, who just revealed his identity as the guild leader of the Blood Fragrance Guild…

I tried to regain my composure, putting on a forced smile as I began to eat the lavish meal meant for my benefactor.

I couldn’t tell if the sweat dripping from my forehead was from the heat or the cold sweat from trying to cope with this overwhelming situation.

***

After the meal, Yeon Hyeonggwang and Yeonha-yeon really did take me home, even feeding me dessert afterward.

“What in the world is this?”

And then, my parents went into a frenzy.

The gifts Yeonha-yeon had prepared for me kept arriving at the house, and every single one was an expensive item.

When I vaguely explained that the gifts were from the younger sibling of the Blood Fragrance Guild’s leader, whom I had helped rescue at an unexpected gate, my parents, thinking I had awakened or something, were overjoyed.

However, when I clarified that all I did was grab his arm and run away, and then hide while being rescued by Yeonha-yeon, their expressions showed a hint of disappointment.

Still, my parents pushed me to befriend Yeonha-yeon, since I had become his lifesaver.

Their enthusiasm lightened the mood in the house, which had been tense for a while.

Though I was grateful for my parents’ improved mood, considering that I was originally the type of character who would rather avoid entanglements, this situation felt a bit strange.

Moreover…

“Dan-ah, good morning!”

As soon as I entered the classroom, Yeonha-yeon, who had been buried in her desk, greeted me.

Everyone in the class froze like statues.

“Did Yeonha-yeon just call her by name?”

“Doesn’t she not know anyone’s name?”

“Wait, but she just greeted her!”

It was rare for Yeonha-yeon to call anyone by name, especially without anyone else speaking to him first.

Everyone knew she couldn’t remember the names of most of the class, so this sudden greeting left everyone stunned.

“Uh, yeah. Good morning.”

I responded, flustered, and seemed to satisfy Yeonha-yeon, who immediately buried her head in her desk again and resumed working on his workbook.

“W-wait, did she just greet you?”

“Did I hear that right…?”

The students, especially the ones sitting around me, were in a complete uproar.

Their eyes were wide, and their words stumbled out, showing just how shocked they were.

And then the “Four Heavenly Kings” came into the conversation, all staring at Yeonha-yeon greeting me with astonishment, making it an extremely awkward situation.

“Dan-ah, when did you and Yeonha-yeon become so close?”

Nabi, with a subtle voice, gave me a look that said she wanted to know what had happened between us.

“It’s really nothing…”

I tried to explain that nothing special had happened over the weekend, but it seemed my friends weren’t buying it.

“What?!”

Before Nabi could shout in surprise, I quickly covered her mouth.

Her eyes, still wide in shock, then landed on my hand.

And the ears of more than a few people in the classroom were clearly listening in.

“Ah, sorry.”

Realizing my mistake, I quickly pulled my hand away and nervously twirled my fingers, speaking in a frustrated tone.

It wasn’t like that at all.

“It’s really nothing that big. Let’s not talk about it anymore, okay?”

My friends exchanged confused glances but nodded in agreement.

“A new student is here!”

At that moment, a loud voice echoed down the hallway, so loud that it could be heard throughout the class.

“A new transfer student in 1st year, and he’s super handsome!”

The student who acted as the class’s announcement signal shouted, quickly shifting the focus of everyone in the class.

“1st year? Hey, should we go check him out?”

“No matter how good-looking he is, he’s probably no match for the Four Heavenly Kings.”

“Yeah, there’s no one who can top the Four Heavenly Kings’ looks.”

The quickest ones, who were always eager to act, rushed out of the classroom to go see the new transfer student.

“Dan-ah! Should we go too?”

“Uh? Ah, sure.”

I wasn’t really interested, but it felt like I had to go along with the atmosphere, so I nodded and got up from my seat to follow my friends.

The noise in the hallway, while slightly less than when the Four Heavenly Kings had appeared, was still noticeable.

The buzz grew louder and began to approach, now right outside the classroom door.

A slight vein appeared on Yeonha-yeon’s forehead as he sat, studying, completely unbothered.
Creeeak—

The half-open door was pushed fully open by someone’s long, white fingers.

As soon as I saw the person standing there, I froze.

“Dan-ah noona, Boss!”

The person who waved and greeted us with a bright smile, clearly standing out in the crowd, was none other than Yeonha-yeon’s younger brother.

Yeon Hyeonggwang.