Chapter 18: Doki Doki literary club

“Why are you pretending not to see me, Lee Sia?”

A honeyed baritone voice, so sweet it could have been laced with honey.

Even for me, whose male consciousness was still strong when it came to romance, his voice was captivating. My heart fluttered shyly.

Did handsome boys also have handsome voices? How many girls had he charmed with this voice alone? And then there was his impressive height.

It made even me, now in a girl’s body, feel inadequate.

“Are you going to keep ignoring me?”

Tsk.

I clicked my tongue, making sure he couldn’t see me.

Of all people, to run into this guy on my way home…

It wasn’t just because he was a character from the game.

While others might be eager to befriend the handsome chaebol heir, I wanted to avoid such a conspicuous person… It might sound like something out of a shoujo manga, but I didn’t want to attract the jealousy of other girls.

I hated being bullied.

I wondered why he even bothered to call out to me when we weren’t close.

Was he trying to assert his dominance over a disrespectful underclassman who didn’t even greet him? No, that was probably an exaggeration.

It didn’t fit his public image—the aloof and cold Ice Prince… Ugh, that was cringeworthy.

Anyway, that wasn’t important right now.

I didn’t want to get involved with him, so I needed to defuse this situation and get away.

I turned around, feigning surprise at seeing him standing right behind me.

“Oh my! Kim Seong-hyeon sunbae! You surprised me! When did you… ahem?”

I’d put too much energy into my act and my voice cracked.

Embarrassed, I cleared my throat, and he looked at me with a mixture of amusement and pity.

“You’re really bad at lying.”

…I wanted to argue, but I couldn’t deny it.

“Why did you stop me anyway? We’re not even close.”

“Hmm? No particular reason.”

“Excuse me?”

Calling out to someone he didn’t even know, for no reason? Was he always this friendly? I was a little surprised.

He wasn’t the type to call out to a stranger, especially a girl, for no reason.

Of course, that was based on information from the game, but judging by his “Ice Prince” nickname, he probably wasn’t much different in reality.

“Well, I wasn’t planning on stopping you. But seeing you deliberately ignoring me… I felt a little mischievous.”

He said that with a serious face, as if I would just accept his explanation.

So it was all because of a petty whim? That was ridiculous.

My feelings must have shown on my face, as he smiled. One corner of his lips curved upwards.

“Interesting.”

“Excuse me?”

“You. You’re interesting.”

A familiar scene, familiar lines. I felt a distinct sense of déjà vu. A hammer-like shock hit me.

I looked up at his face, a head taller than mine.

His bright blue eyes, like polished jewels, were like a calm sea, undisturbed by even the slightest ripple.

I didn’t know what I was feeling, but it was strangely familiar.

I searched my memories. This wasn’t just a foolish delusion.

The scene became clearer. A flustered girl and a boy with a crooked smile, standing in a park bathed in the sunset… this confrontation was familiar.

But back then, it was just a two-dimensional image. This was reality.

“…That’s a strange thing to say.”

“Why? Did it make your heart race?”

“Of course not.”

“Hmm, but mine is racing. I think I fell in love with you at first sight. What do you say? How about going out with me?”

He reached out and caressed my chin, his blue eyes gazing intently into mine.

A cold touch against my cheek. We were so close that our hearts could almost touch.

A sudden confession. But my heart wasn’t racing. I didn’t even feel a flutter.

Perhaps it was because his eyes, as he spoke of love, were cold and distant.

They simply observed my reaction, holding no trace of the excitement he spoke of.

…Ah, this was one of the events in the game.

One of the earliest events in Kim Seong-hyeon’s route.

The trigger for his interest in the protagonist, and the starting point of a complicated entanglement.

The trigger wasn’t anything complex.

Rather, it was a common trope in romance stories.

Kim Seong-hyeon was practically perfect.

Top grades, exceptional athletic ability, a chaebol heir.

And his looks spoke for themselves.

He was the embodiment of every shallow, girlish fantasy.

And as such, he was constantly surrounded by people. Girls dreaming of romance, people seeking connections with his family… their motives varied, but they all approached him with some sort of agenda.

They flocked to him relentlessly, and he grew to despise them.

And that petty feeling eventually turned into a general dislike of people.

Coupled with his strict upbringing, his originally pure nature became twisted.

He started judging people based on their worth, believing everyone except a select few was beneath him.

He mocked those he deemed inferior and toyed with their feelings.

But one day, the protagonist appeared in his structured life.

Someone who rejected his confession, despite his superior status, who openly avoided him, despite his popularity, who challenged his values directly.

He was initially curious about this girl who kept pushing him away and criticizing his values.

That curiosity soon turned into something more intense.

He fell in love with her.

I always thought chaebol heirs in fiction were masochists.

You’re the first woman to defy me, or something like that.

I also avoided him, like the protagonist in the game, but it was because I didn’t want to have anything to do with him.

He was a celebrity, even within the game. I didn’t want to attract any of that attention.

But I hadn’t expected our paths to cross like this.

“I’m being serious, you know?”

“That’s what makes it worse.”

He was being serious about finding me interesting, not about his confession.

Even if I accepted his confession, which I would never do, he would just toy with me and throw me away.

That was obvious. His eyes didn’t see me as anything more than a plaything.

Let me be clear. This guy was annoying.

His condescending gaze, his dismissive attitude… everything about him was unpleasant, even disregarding the information from the game.

So I hardened my voice and my gaze, making them cold and sharp.

It probably wouldn’t faze him, the son of a chaebol family, but I wanted to show at least a small sign of defiance, even if it meant following a similar path as in the game.

“Sunbae, can I say something?”

“What is it?”

I’d thought the game and reality were different.

And they were. Whether it was because of my influence or the world itself changing, this world was different from the game.

My sister wasn’t obsessed with him, and Seon-a wasn’t in love with Choi Hyeong-gon.

Those were proven facts.

But his personality seemed unchanged. I hadn’t noticed before because I’d been too flustered, and he hadn’t been interested in me, but I wasn’t a fool.

This encounter made it clear.

He saw me, like everyone else, as someone beneath him.

I hadn’t noticed the look in his eyes before, but I couldn’t ignore it now.

And then there was his fake confession, intended to toy with my feelings.

I was getting increasingly annoyed.

His personality, riddled with insecurities stemming from childhood trauma… Even if he was a good person deep down, I didn’t care.

I hated his condescending attitude.

He was a high school student, not a child, yet he lacked any sense of decency.

He was good-looking, but that was it. And he was convinced I would accept his confession.

His ego was truly astounding.

I had no obligation to redeem him. He could live however he wanted.

But I still had one thing to say.

“Your personality isrotten.”

“What?”

“I’m talking to you, sunbae.”

If he treated me like, I would treat him like back.

An eye for an eye.

I smiled brightly, watching his stunned expression, his cool composure gone. It was a triumphant smile, a smile of victory.